800.014Arctic/3
The Secretary of State to the British Chargé ( Chilton )
Sir: I beg to acknowledge the receipt of your note No. 627, dated June 15, 1925, concerning the proposed MacMillan Exploring Expedition. It is the understanding of this Department that the Expedition in question will sail from Wiscasset, Maine, on June 20, directly to Etah, Greenland, and that no flights over Baffin Island are contemplated. The planes attached to the Expedition are expected to fly from Etah across Ellesmere Island to Axel Heiberg Land, and to establish a base there from which exploration flights to the northward and westward may be made.
A copy of your note has been forwarded to the other interested departments of this Government and, upon receipt of further information, I shall address a communication to you dealing with the other questions raised in your note.
In order that full information may be available for use in studying these questions, I shall be grateful if you will inform me what constitutes a post of the Royal Mounted Police mentioned in the second paragraph of your note and the establishment thereof; where such posts have been established; how frequently they are visited; and whether they are permanently occupied, and, if so, by whom.
I desire to thank you for the offer of cooperation by any Canadian agency which may temporarily be in the same territory with the MacMillan Expedition and I am sure that the persons responsible for the Expedition will also appreciate the kind offer of the Canadian Government. The scientific character of the Expedition and the experience of those participating in it give assurance that useful data and information of value to the world will unquestionably result from their efforts.
Accept [etc.]