stefansson-wrangel-09-31-096r

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THE SUMMER OF 1923 AND THE TRAGIC NEWS 151

since the Foreign Office doubtless wanted to sound out
the various Powers as to their attitude. The technical
advisers of the Foreign Office seemed to be clear as to the
superiority of British rights in the case. The Russians
did not seem appear to have any legal claims, but they were
making a great deal of fuss—wireless despatches from
Moscow, notes to the Foreign Office, and threats from
Vladivostok. The United States had undeniably been
the owners of Wrangel Island for a period following their
taking possession in 1881 and here was at least a reason-
able ground for discussion. American newspapers, doubt-
less basing their editorials on inaccurate encyclopaedias
and other books of reference, were asserting that the
question was whether the United States should surrender
territory which belonged to them to the British Empire.
Amusingly, the papers in Canada were at the same time
discussing the question whether the British Empire
should take Russian territory away from Russia, and
both parties were talking about Wrangel Island. Most of
the Canadian editors evidently based their idea of Rus-
sian ownership on the Moscow declarations to that effect,
but a few apparently took it from the Mercator’s charts
on their walls. To one as unlearned in west-European
history as these men were in the history of Russia, it
might seem reasonable to glance at the map and conclude
that England belonged to France.

When you are trying to lead a nation to a change of
policy nothing is more important than the attitude of the
press. Through my fortunate and most valuable friend-
ship with Sir Michael Sadler, I got in touch with the Lon-
don Times and the Manchester Guardian. For years I
had been a great admirer and constant reader of the
Guardian and I had in part, therefore, the necessary

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