eat
storm swept the polar sea and scattered my parties hopelessly in a chaos
of shattered ice, Marvin's division, like my own farther north, was
driven eastward and came down upon the Greenland coast, whence he
brought his men safely back to the ship. From this expedition he
returned trained in arctic details and thoroughly conversant with the
underlying principles of all successful work in northern regions, so
that when he went north with us in 1908, he went as a veteran who could
absolutely be depended upon in an emergency.

[Illustration: MEMORIAL ERECTED TO THE MEMORY OF PROFESSOR ROSS G.
MARVIN, AT CAPE SHERIDAN]

The bones of Ross G. Marvin lie farther north than those of any other
human being. On the northern shore of Grant Land we erected a cairn of
stones, and upon its summit we placed a rude tablet inscribed: "In
Memory of Ross G. Marvin of Cornell University, Aged 34. Drowned April
10, 1909, forty-five miles north of C. Columbia, returning from 86 deg. 38'
N. Lat." This cenotaph looks from that bleak shore northward toward the
spot where Marvin met his death. His name heads that glorious roll-call
of arctic heroes among whom are Willoughby, Franklin, Sontag, Hall,
Lockwood, and others who died in the field, and it must be some
consolation to those who grieve for him that his name is inseparably
connected with the winning of that last great trophy for which, through
nearly four centuries, men of every civilized nation have suffered and
struggled and died.

The Eskimos of whom Marvin was in command at the time he lost his life
fortunately overlooked, in throwing Marvin's things upon the ice, a
little canvas packet on the up-standers of the sledge containing a few
of his notes, among them what is probably the last thing he ever wrote.
It is so typical of the man's intelligent devotion to his duty that it
is here appended as he wrote it. It will be seen that it was written on
the very day that I last saw him alive, that day upon which he turned
back to the south from his farthest north.

"March 25, 1909. This is to certify that I turned
back from this point with the third supporting
party, Commander Peary advancing with nine men in
the party, seven sledges with the standard loads,
and sixty dogs. Men and dogs are in first class
condition. The captain, with the fourth and last
supporting party, expects to turn back at the end
of