fyxntll Wutottflitg ptawg j\.^«* na .i4 ss-yay* 2236 Cornell University Library CT27S.M39 135 In memoriam Ross Gilmore Marvin, 1905 olin 3 1924 029 859 620 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924029859620 itt iUemnrtam 3Jo00 dilator? Jfiarnttt, 1905 at £>n#t (Eljaprl, (Ennteil ftmwrattg Ihmdaij, April trottttjj-fimrtl} 1910 memorial AMirraa dommanfor Hubert E, Pearg, 31. &. 5?. Writer of #MUt« ®rgan Jreluiie — Andante in G - Antoine-Edouard Batiste (1820-/876) $mn bUat are lljejj - - /Vfer Tchaikovsky (1840-181)3) JCOW blest are they whom thou hast chosen ™ and taken unto thee, O Lord ! Their memorial is from generation to generation. Alleluia ! Prag*r anil Hitman The Rev. Albert J. Lyman, D.D. JHeninrtal Serorti President Schurman fllu 3faMI[ CunkB im to iZHjw P. A. Schnecker JY faith looks up to thee, Thou Lamb of Calvary, Saviour divine ; Now hear me while I pray, Take all my guilt away, O let me from this day Be wholly thine. May thy rich grace impart Strength to my fainting heart, My zeal inspire ; As thou hast died for me, O may my love to thee, Pure, warm, and changeless be, A living fire. While life's dark maze I tread, And griefs around me spread, Be thou my guide ; Bid darkness turn to day, Wipe sorrow's tears away, Nor let me ever stray From thee aside. When ends life's transient dream, When death's cold, sullen stream Shall o'er me roll ; Blest Saviour, then, in love, Fear and distrust remove ; O, bear me safe above, A ransomed soul. Ray Palmer, 1830. Smirilittn of maruttt Jiwttortal Uabltt Memaxml Ai>i>«HB Commander Pearv 3nia llj* Silent Eanb Arthur Foote {1853 ) -JJNTO the Silent Land ! *?J , Ah ! who shall lead us thither ? Clouds in the evening sky more darkly gather, A nd shattered wrecks lie thick on the strand. Who leads us with a gentle hand Thither, O thither, Into the Silent Land ? Into the Silent Land ! To you, ye boundless regions of all perfection- ! Tender morning visions of beauteous souls ! The future's pledge and band : Who in life's battle's firm doth stand, Shall bear hope's tender blossoms Into the Silent Land. O Land ! O Land ! For all the broken hearted ; The mildest herald, by our fate allotted, Beckons, and with inverted torch doth stand, To lead us with a gentle hand, Into the Land of the Great Departed, Into the Silent Land ! Translated by Longfellow from the German of Salts. ■graucr anii 58«trt>irtum »tvtnfoO> Amwt John Stainer (1840-1001) CDrnatt JJoalluSt — Lieder ohne Worte (No. 27) Mendelssohn {1809-1847) ffltmatvxl ifororb By Profbssor O. M. Iceland (read by president schurman) JU OSS GiLMORE Marvin, in whose honor we are assembled T!X to-day, was born at Elmira, New York, on the 28th of January, 1880, being the youngest of six children. When he was six years old his father died, and throughout his early life he contributed to his own support by working in vacation and also while attending school. He received his elementary education in the public schools of Elmira and graduated from the Elmira Free Academy in 1899. In the fall of that year, he entered Cornell University, and won both state and university scholarships. He entered Sibley College for the course in electrical engineering, but later transferred to the course in arts and sciences from which he graduated in 1905 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. His university work was interrupted in 1901 by his joining the training-ship St. Mary's, of the New York Nautical School, for the summer cruise in European waters. He remained with the ship during the next year and graduated from the Nautical School in 1902. I,ater, he was offered a position on the same ship and accepted it, but returned to Cornell in the summer of 1904. The date of his graduation from Cornell marks an epoch in his career. On Commencement Day, he received a letter from Commander Peary providing for his joining the expe- dition which was then preparing to leave for the Arctic re- gions. For some time it had been his great desire to become a member of this expedition and he was very enthusiastic about it. Thus was begun a service, in the interest of sci- ence, which was destined to become his life's work. He successfully carried out his part of the operations of the next year and returned more committed than ever to the work of Arctic exploration in general, and to Commander Peary's success, in particular. He reached New York at Christmas- time in 1906, and within a few days accepted a position as instructor in mathematics at Mercersburg Academy for the remainder of the college year. He after- wards attended the summer session at Cornell and in the fall of 1907 was appointed to an instructorship in civil engi- neering at this university, teaching mechanics and as- tronomy. But the North was calling him and he was a will- ing listener. Commander Peary was preparing for another expedition and his duty was there without question. All of his plans and arrangements were made with the under- standing that they were subject to modification should the Peary expedition complete its preparations in time to leave that summer. And when the word came from Commander Peary he was ready for it. He was given a leave of absence from the university for the next year, 1908-09, and left early in July to join the party on the " Roosevelt." His confidence in the success of the expedition, although as- serted in his usual, quiet manner, could have been second to none ; it was the confidence and trust of the commander himself. The success of the expedition is on the lips of the world, but in its heart lies the success of the life which was given up for the work, on that fateful 10th of April of last year. We gather here to-day to honor and perpetuate his memory. May the influence of his example be ever with us and may it sustain in us his ideals of faithful service ! Snttarfea bg P«aiJ>?ttt §>ripmttatt INTRODUCING COMMANDER. PEARY &INCB Columbus discovered America men have striven to find the North Pole. What Titanic efforts they have made, what tragedies have been enacted, what heroism displayed ! But in vain ; — all, all in vain ! To-day, however, the dream is fulfilled. We ourselves have seen the accomplishment of the herculean task with which the centuries have been in travail. At last he has come — the long-awaited conqueror of the terrors of the Arc- tic world. We ourselves behold him, a plain and modest American. After twenty- three years of struggle this daunt- less explorer returns victorious. To him Nature could not forever remain invincible ; for he assailed her with forces mightier than her own — with the spiritual forces of charac- ter and intellect and scientific knowledge, with amazing practical skill in organization, with a resolute will that knew no impossibility and a tenacious perseverance that no dis- couragement could slacken and no defeat overcome or sub- due. ' ' On earth there is nothing great but man ; in man there is nothing great but mind." No recognition, no honor, can be too high for Command- er Peary. Were he a native of the Old World, kings would desire to ennoble him and parliaments to grant him public monies. As an American he is content with the pride his fellow-citizens take in his achievement and the admiration they feel for his splendid heroism. And the North Pole holds his fame secure — and will hold it when galaxies of great names have vanished from our firmament, swallowed up of time and ruthless oblivion. The dauntless and victorious explorer is with us in this Chapel to-day. On the eve of sailing for Europe he devotes an entire Sabbath to a Memorial Service in honor of his brave and faithful follower and helper and our beloved alumnus and teacher, — Ross Gilmore Marvin. Commander Peary, Marvin admired you ; he served you with loyal devotion and perfect confidence ; and he bravely gave up his life in the furtherance of your great and heroic undertaking. No one but you could fitly make the memor- ial address. ffltmat'ml AMireaa Commander Robert E. Peary, U. S. N. "M AM deeply touched and intensely proud and honored at this opportunity presented me to pay tribute to Marvin. He was my right hand man. No one, per- haps, knew him better under the circumstances that try men's souls, not for a moment, but day in and day out, and week in and week out, than I did — even though I may not be able to express it as I would like. Inevitable in the scheme of life are these sad and ever- recurring moments when we pause to pay tribute to some comrade and fallen fellow- worker who has dropped out of the ranks. In this case, the sadness is somewhat relieved by some rays of light, in the nobility of character exempli- fied in Marvin's life and death, and in the fact that his death was not a useless sacrifice to failure, but a devoted offering to success. Five years ago, when I asked certain applicants for my Polar expedition to come to New York (I had selected a few from the numerous applicants), — Marvin was among them. Clear of eye, wiry of physique, quiet in manner, earnest and determined in purpose, he appealed to me, and I accepted him at once as a member of the expedition, and found him invaluable. Through the long hard weeks preceding the sailing of the expedition, he worked indefatigably, looking after the assembling and delivery of the countless necessary and es- sential items of our outfit, till he, Bartlett, and myself were nearly exhausted. On the northern voyage, he was always willing and ready, whether it was taking observations on deck, or stowing cargo in the hold. When my Eskimo contingent came on board, his good humor, his quiet direct- ness, and his physical ability, gained him at once their friendship and respect, and enabled him from the first to get along with and manage them to an unusual degree. Later, when face to face with the stern problems of life and work in the Arctic region, he met them uncomplain- ingly, and with a steady insistence that could have but one result. I soon came to know Marvin as a man who could accomplish the work assigned to him, whether it was the securing of game for our winter meat supply, the transpor- tation of provisions to a given place, or the taking of obser- vations at a distant station. The tidal and meteorological observations of this expedition were in charge of Marvin. During the long clear winter nights, his mathematical training enabled him to help me greatly in working out problems of march formation, transportation of supplies, and arrangement of supporting parties. In the spring sledge campaign, he was given a division and was always tireless and ready for any emergency. When the great storm came out on the Polar Sea, which 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. Marvin accompanied me on my former expedition ; from this expedition, he returned trained in the mystic lore of the North, thoroughly conversant with the underlying principles of the work and with my methods. When he went North with me two years ago, he went as a volunteer, but as one on whom I could depend absolutely in any emergency ; his remarkable perseverence, together with his firmness of decision, gave him results in scientific problems never before accomplished. One thing that always impressed me about Marvin, and I can see that it must have impressed you who knew him in his home, as well, was the impression that he gave of reserve force. I recall one instance in particular, which not only made an impression upon me, but agreeably sur- prised me. On Christmas day — a year ago last Christmas — we held athletic contests at Cape Sheridan. McMillan was master of ceremonies and arranged the program of sports. A seventy-five yard course was laid out on the frozen shores of the Arctic Sea. The races were held at about mid- night, the courses were illuminated by the ship's lanterns arranged in two parallel rows. The starting point was laid out, and we had the races. There were races for the Kskimos, races for the ship's men and the members of the expedi- tion, and finally, a free-for-all race, for everybody and any- body that cared to enter. ' We had in the party three athletes, among whom was Borup, the crack Yale runner, and McMillan, who was an athletic instructor ; we had also other men who had made records for running in various contests, and also two of the fleetest Eskimos of the North. They lined up at the starting point. I heard the pistol crack — I was stationed at the finish. At first, I saw the twinkling forms of the contestants as they leaped from the start. They were indistinct and shadowy, but as they ' approached me they became distinct and well defined, and there was Marvin in the lead, running easily — well in ad- vance, and in that position, he crossed the line. It was a complete surprise to all of us. That was an example of Marvin, his work and his nerve. The last time all the members of the expedition were together was the night of December 29th. On that evening Marvin, the captain, and the various parties started for the Greenland coast ; and when we met together at the ship after my return from the Pole, there was one who was not with us— one who would never be with us again. To give another instance of his ability, he went to Cape Bryant on the Greenland coast for the purpose of taking tidal observations. The weather delayed him in his work, and he returned rather late to the ship for starting on the northern expedition in the spring. But he reached the ship on Wednesday night, and on Saturday morning he had completed the equipment and the clothing outfit for him- self and his party, and with his sledges and everything in perfect condition, left the ship on the northern expedition. When a few miles out from Columbia, I found that Borup had missed the trail, and had passed us on the way back. Recognizing the fact that some one more experienced should be there, Marvin was the man who was sent back to Columbia to bring back the items of fuel and supplies which we must have for the success and safety of the expedition. Ten days later, far out on the icy sea, many miles distant from land — after days of anxiety on my part, for fuel was so vital to our success — I saw a thin column of white smoke ascending. It was very indistinct and disappeared at times. We caught sight of it only at intervals, but we knew what it was. The temperature at this time was 59 degrees below zero ; and the party on the trail was not visible, only a silver vapor of smoke, arising from the breaths of the dogs and men, being discernible. We knew it was Marvin, and a little later he came swinging in at the head of his party, bringing those vital supplies which meant the success of the expedition. That was Marvin. Whenever it was a question of sending some one to com- mand the field, Marvin was the one chosen next to Captain Bartlett, and on him devolved the onerous and burdensome duties of the expedition. The Eskimos were unfitted for executive duties, and in such cases, where there was need of an executive head, Marvin was always assigned to the task, for he had grasped more fully than any other man, the underlying fundamental principles of the work. During the last few days, he and I walked side by side, and joined in the discussion of the formation of the party, and the various problems which confronted us, formulating the details of the work. Together we planned the details of the new method of advance and relay parties. This method, giving a fixed surface over which to travel, could be matha- matically demonstrated, and it has proved to be the most effective way to carry on an Arctic sledge journey. On his return Marvin was to go to the northwestern point of Grant I^and, and work along the line of the Sound, and there make a series of tidal observations, an undertak- ing only second in value to the main object of the expedi- tion. The first observations taken for defining our position on the expedition were taken by Marvin ; those observa- tions gave us a definitely recorded rate of speed of 50 min- utes of latitude, a record never before made by any Arctic party. I remember very well the 26th day of March, after tak- ing the observations which showed the fact — which I was very glad to report to your President — the fact that Marvin had planted the Cornell colors farther north than any hu- man being had ever before ventured, outside of an Ameri- can party — " Farther north than farthest north of Nansen and Abruzzi ' ' , and, afterwards, that he had entered into that exclusive region into which no one but an American party had ever approached. The taking of the observa- tions settled beyond all doubt, the position of the party. They hitched up their dogs, and after a hearty handshake, they started back. My last words were, ' ' I^ook out for the leads, my boy. ' ' During parts of the year there are rifts in the ice called leads. At times these are tightly closed, and again they are parted. Marvin, as was the custom when white men lead Eskimos, was well in advance of the party, and too late did he realize that he was on one of these recently closed leads, and broke through the ice. You know the result of the expedition. Returning — which was not until the 27th day of April — over a month later, not until I approached the ship on my return from the successful expedition, did I learn of Marvin's death. As I drew near the ship, Bartlett came to meet me, and I could see from the expression of his face, that something was wrong. "What is it, Bartlett ? " I asked, and he answered, " Marvin, poor boy." We do not show our feelings much up in the Arctic regions, neither surprise nor feeling, up there — words are few — but I went to my room stunned. Afterwards I learned from Bartlett and the Eskimos the particulars of his death. As soon as breakfast had been eaten in the morning, the party had started to follow the trail back. The Eskimos hitched up the dogs and followed. An active walker like Marvin would be four or five miles in advance before the Eskimos started, if they happened to be a little slow. No certain conditions of wind and tide exist in the Polar regions. On the march across, no leads had been encoun- tered, and Marvin walking rapidly, intent upon his plans for this independent expedition of his, did not recognize his danger until it was too late. At times various members of the party had encountered these leads, but it had always happened when other members were present. Unfortunately, Marvin was alone at this time. I,ater, at Cape Sheridan, we erected a monument to Marvin. It stands there to-day, linked with his name and with the name of Cornell University. That monument is the most northerly one in the world. It stands there facing northward, looking over that central Polar Sea, the mystery of which Marvin had been most instrumental in solving. And to-day Marvin's name heads that glorious roll-call of Arctic heroes, among whom are Willoughby, Hudson, Franklin, Sauntag, Hall, Lockwood, and the rest of those whose names are inseparably connected with the winning of that great trophy, for which through nearly four centur- ies, men of every civilized nation in the world, have suf- fered, struggled, and died. Nothing can ever make up to the sorrowing mother for her loss, but perhaps she can find some grain of consolation in the thought that her son has made the name of Marvin imperishable — that she is one of that immortal list of mothers who have yielded up their best for the common good ; and that her sacrifice has been the source of gain to thousands of other mothers, whose sons will be the better for Marvin's example. Striking as is the antithesis, Marvin has linked your green -carpeted, leaf-shadowed campus with those grand frozen border lands which lie between God's countries and the regions surrounding the interstellar space. He haswrit- 13 ten the name of Cornell University in inef aceable characters. He has set an undying example. And you men of Cornell entering for the first time, or leaving for the last time, your precincts, and reading this tablet, will understand that those qualities typified in Marvin of clear brain, clean body, and level insistence which brooks no negative, mean inev- itably a winner in the race of life, and an uplift for hu- manity. 14 MARVIN HAD PLANTED THE CORNELL COLORS BEYOND THE FARTHEST OP HANSEN AND ABRUZZI " COMMANDER PEART TO &0HB (gilnuirp fHarmn 1880-1909 CORNELL A. B. 1905 TEACHER AND EXPLORER Drowned in the Arctic Ocean on the Peary Polar Expedition, April 10, 1909 THE STUDENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY ERECT THIS MEMORIAL OF A BRAVE AND MODEST MAN .«*-