Vilhjalmur—Stefansson, the. Arctic explorer, was recently on a fortnight's surprise visit to friends in London. This is his first journey to London since his last expedition to the North, and he gave to a correspondent of The "Observer" an interview outfluing his latest travels.
As the commander of the Canadian Arctic Expedition he set out, some three months before the outbreak of war, on an exploration which lasted until the week before the armistice. Wo were." he re-from civilization just five and half years, but all the members of the party did not spend that time in the Arctic solitudes. The expedition was divided into several branches, and aa some men went home they were replaced by others, until in all about 150 participated our in work.
"In 1914, with two companions, I made a 600-mile journey by sledge over broken and moving ice from Martin Point, Alaska, to the north-west of Banks Island. In the following year we explored the sea to the north-west of Banks Island. and incidentally discovered now island to the north of Prince Patrick Island. In 1916 we made a more detailed survey of islands opened up by previous expeditions and already mapped, but now ones west of Heiberg Island were also covered. A year later we ran a line of soundings 100 miles northwest of Cape Isachen. and showed that tthe Polar Ocean in this region is fairly shallow.
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