And let’s go to the initial aphorism… which belongs to the book…
Some streets, in Buenos Aires and in several Argentine cities, are called Almirante Irizar, Alferez Sobral or Corbeta Uruguay.
But not everyone knows why these streets have been given these names.
There is a story that associates them.
I will try to relate it briefly.
On December 21, 1901, a Swedish scientist: Otto Nordenskjord left the port of Buenos Aires aboard the whaling ship Antartic with 3 scientists, also Swedish.
They were sailing from that Nordic country on the aforementioned ship commanded by a Norwegian: Captain Larsen.
In Buenos Aires, a young 21-year-old sailor with a thirst for adventure and knowledge requests to accompany them: Ensign Sobral.
They accept it as another contribution to their scientific and meteorological research in Antarctica.
The plan was to stay there for a year.
Exactly the same year – European punctuality – the Antarctic, the rescue ship, is arriving.
It is 40 or 50 miles from the Swedes. But the ice imprisons it in such a way – the climate is extremely harsh – that it destroys the hull of the ship.
Its 20 crew members, all Nordic, save their lives by walking on the ice to a volcanic island: Paulet.
As they are careful to bring wood and instruments, they manage to build a small wooden cabin that will allow them to survive.
But they are unable to contact the compatriot scientists or obviously with Ensign Sobral.
In mid-1903 – it was Roca’s presidency – the Argentine government, concerned about Ensign Sobral and the Swedish expedition members, decided to send a rescue expedition.
And a veteran corvette built 30 years earlier in England at the request of Sarmiento, undertakes the mission.
It is reconditioned to face the extreme rigor of the frozen southern seas.
They also carry supplies for 3 years in case of any eventuality, always probable in that area.
And they set sail on October 8, 1903 under the command of a ship lieutenant Julián Irízar, whose name an icebreaker bears today: the “Almirante Irizar”.
30 days later they found the four expedition members, obviously including Ensign Sobral, and the next day they managed to rescue Captain Larsen and the crew of the Antarctic, the first ship that had attempted the rescue without success, as I mentioned before.
And recently the sirens, with their sound, filled the North Dock, like almost 100 years ago, when the corvette Uruguay arrived at the port of Buenos Aires after rescuing the group of scientists.
And this time with the intention of remembering a feat alongside which the gesture of altruism of the Argentines stood out; of those facts that do not need the gratitude of the beneficiary.
And a brief final anecdote.
One of the 3 scientists with whom Ensign Sobral spent 2 long years had a strong character; Even he was contemptuous towards the Argentine sailor and the forced coexistence in a small place accentuated the spiritual separation.
On one occasion the Swede left the cabin to collect a possible catch. The place was approximately 1 km away. About an hour passed. The Swede did not return. The temperature was about 25º below zero.
Sobral then told the 3 Swedish scientists:
-I’ll go out and look for him.
He had better orientation than his companions in that inhospitable environment.
He came out resolutely. An icy wind and intense rain blinded him. Until he heard a cry of pain. The Swede had fallen into a small well and could not walk on his own (it was later found that he had a crack in his ankle).
A half hour delay and I would have frozen to death.
Sobral carried him on his shoulders and with difficulty carried him to the cabin.
He had saved his life… The Swede looked at him in a very special way. Gratitude is expressed in a thousand ways. Even with the eyes.
And this final episode and the rescue of those men by other different men – Argentines in this case – brings to my mind this aphorism:
“Nationality groups men together. But only understanding unites them.”
Source: Ambito
David William is a talented author who has made a name for himself in the world of writing. He is a professional author who writes on a wide range of topics, from general interest to opinion news. David is currently working as a writer at 24 hours worlds where he brings his unique perspective and in-depth research to his articles, making them both informative and engaging.
