stefansson-wrangel-09-38-006-003

white men and some Eskimos were landed on Wrangel
Island as a colony in middle September,1921, and
they are there still. The Canadian Government were
not informed of this enterprise until the ship that
landed the party had returned.

Attitude of other Countries.
At Washington, Stefansson has discussed
the situation fully with his schoolmate and friend
Theodore Roosevelt, now assistant secretary of the
Navy. Through Roosevelt, Stefansson met several
of the American Admirals. The general attitude of
these men is about that shown by the following
extract from a letter from Admiral Moffett, Chief
of the Bureau of Aeronautics of the U.S. Navy: -
"NAVY DEPARTMENT,
"BUREAU Of AERONAUTICS,
" WASHINGTON.
"March 22,1923.

"My dear Mr. Stefansson:
"Thank you very much for your kind letter
"of March 10th. I am familiar with what you
"have written and what you have done in regard
"to Wrangel Island. Am only sorry that one of
"my own fellow countrymen did not have the
"vision to do what you did.
"I am in entire agreement as to the im-
portance of Wrangel Island and its future use......
.....................................................................
................................

"(Signed) .W.A.Moffett."

In other words, the American attitude, in
so far as known to Stefansson, is that they are
sorry they did not think of occupying Wrangel Island
between 1919 and 1921 while it was No-Man's-Land.
Stefansson at Ottawa was shown what were
said to be all the papers in the Wrangel Island case.
There was no protest there from the American Govern-
ment.
3.