Yol xxYr - The Arctic Circle

DR. A.E. PORSITD - AN APPRECIATIO.T
T. J. hlood
The cr:rrent issr:e of thre Canadian Geographical Journal pr:blished
a ne\MS item stating ttrat- "Dr. Alf Erling Porsild, curator enreritu.s
of the lihtiornl Herbariun of Canada and fonrer chief botanist of
ttre Natiornl Museurn of Ottawa, did sr.lddenly }bv. 13 in Vierura".
Ihris sudden announcgnent mrst have crcne as a shock to Erling
Porsildr s friends and acqrnintanc-es in lbrth Anerica and elsewtrere;
indeed, as a sense of great loss to so rmny who enjoyed his frendship
and who rord revere his nenory.
Erling Porsild was born in Denrnark, yet spent h-is boyhood wittr his
parents in Greenland. His father, Dr. lbrten P. Porsild, established
ttre Danish Arctic Scientific station on Disko Island in 1906, ard is
rencnrned for h-is r^prk on ttre arctic flora. He was also adcncwledged
to be tie leading authority on ttre natr:ral Lr-istory of Greenland. He
becare tlre first Danish nEmber of their parlianent and was kni$rted
b,y ttre kjng of Derunark in 1921.
Erling Porsild was sirgtrlarly fortur:ate in hr-is parentage; in ttre
influerrce of a cr:Itr:red hore where ttre strrdlz of plants was the
ccrrrlcn interest, and thre added opportr:nity of groruing up in a
controlled yet wilderness environnent.
TLrose witlt a krrcrrvledge of Greenland can appreciate ttre infh:ence of
its n:gged beauty on the develogrent of the yourg Porsild dritdren;
the great fiords, ttre si^drlirrg arctic rnists; huge floating icebergs,
the high nourrtajns piercirrg tlre clouds; the great island rnass itself
slo',,ily energing frcrn ttre clasp of tJ:e last great ice age. It is no
wonder that Eriling and his brother gre\^r r.p to be t:rue sons of their
father and have rendered great senrice to Canada.
For one vrho has written so much about the scientific r,rcrk tJrat
engaged tr-im he has r^nritten precious little about himself . For
infornation on the personal life of Dr. A.E. Porsild one must
depend largely on hearsay. It sesns tlat frling received his early
sctroolirg frcrn tris father, ard h-is nptlrer at Disko fsland, 70 degrees
llcrth l-atitude. Iater, he attended a boys boarding sclrool in Denrmrk,
traditionally strong on discipline and shorb on ccrnforts.
It was from the father that tLre Porsil-d boys were instrr.rcted in
langruages, mtlrcrnatics, and particularly in the study of rntural
science. For a period yowrg nen frcm Denrmrk arrived in Greenland
seeking adventure, and fiey, .in exchange for tlre kind hospitality
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