RESCUE OF GREELY.

Kumara Times, Issue 2573, 20 September 1884, Page 2 (Supplement)

RESCUE OF GREELY.

The Acting-Secretary of the Navy received a telegram from St. John’s, Newfoundland, dated July 17th, sent by Commander W. S. Ashley, informing him that the Arctic Relief Exqedition sent out to succour the Greely exploring party had succeeded in finding and rescuing the lieutenant and six survivors of his command. They were found by the relief ships Thetis and Bear five miles off Cape Sabine, in Smith’s Sound. These vessels had arrived at St. John’s, Newfoundland, with the survivors on board, at date of despatch. These are—Lieutenant Greeirm- Ser S eant Bramard, Frederick Long, Ellison, the Hospital Steward, Bierdbick, and Private Connell. Sergeant Ellison was very badly frostbitten, and died at Goclhaven, July 9th, after undergoing a surgical operation that deprived him of both hands and feet. Seventeen out of twenty-five persons composing the Gree-ly-Lady Franklin Bay Expedition perished by starvation at the point where they were found. One was drowned while sealing to procure food. Twelve of the dead bodies were rescued and biought to St. John’s, where they were put in metal burial cases for the bettter transport to the United Stales. One Esquimaux was buried at Disco, and five bodies buried in ice near the camp were swept away to sea by the winds and currents before the arrival of the rescuing vessels. The bodies recovered were preserved in tanks of alcohol. The rescue took place on the 22nd Ulle ) under circumstances of great difficulty. The Thetis and Bear lay off from shore about 200 yards. A terrific gale was blowing from the S.W., a heavy sea running, and a formidable ice-rip was apparently inevitable. Lieut. Greely and the other six survivors had to be

transferred from their camp to a steam launch and a whaleboat in their sleeping bags, and while steaming from the land to the ships the destruction of the whole party at one time seemed certain, ihe sea swept furiously over them and the fury of the wind threatened to capsize the boats. At length they were safely placed on board the rescuing vessel, where every possibleprecautaon was taken to ensure their recovery. The scene when the \ elief party and the sufferers met was affecting. “We steamed towards the pack,” writes Commander Ashley, “and found Greely’s P ar y crying like children, hugging each °n. 1 . er ’ / ran^c joy. We at once put oft in the cutter. They flew at me so that i thought them crazy. They seized each oi the men in the boat and hugged them, kissed their hands, and did everything to show their joy and gratitude. All of the party were terribly emaciated.” It would appear that some vessels of the Dundee whahng fleet shared largely in the work of rescuing Lieut. Greely, who says, “The survivors owe their life to the redoubtable

energy of Commander Ashley and Lieut, ■ti. Morey, who, preceded by three, and accompanied by five whalers, forced their vessels through Melville Bay into open water at Cape York. ” During nine months the party had to live on a scanty allowance of food they brought from Port Coime that was “cached” at Bay Harbor and Cape Isabella by Sir G. Hares in 1875, but which was found much damaged by lapse ot time Many arctic voyagers, however, J lln £ freely is indebted for his life to the British explorers, and the stores which he found were left by the British exploring parties. The Greely party also found some stores cached by Berbe at Cape feabine in 1835, and a small amount saved from the wreck of the Porteus in 1883 and landed by Lieuts. Garlington and Oolwell on the beach near where the sun-.

vivors were found. When these provisions were consumed the party was forced to hve upon boiled sealskins stripped from their sealskin clothing and lichens and shrimps caught in good weather when the men were strong enough to make the exertion. As it took 1300 shrimps to fill a gallon measure the labor was too exhaustive to depend on to sustain life entirely.

Sixty-eight hours’ delay m reaching their came would have been fatal to all. The .Greely expedition was composed en tirely of soldiers—picked men from officers non-commissioned officers, and privates of the American army—and was made in co - nection with the Signal Service, of which General Trades is chief officer. It may be considered an outcome of the labours of Count Willzek and Lieut. Weypreicht, of Austria at the Polar conferences held, one in Rome in 1878, a second at Hamburg in 18/ 9, a third in Berne in 1880, and a fourth in St. Petersburg in 1881. They secured the consent of the Powers of Europe to send out t expeditionary parties to make

one years observations simultaneously throughout the Arctic circle. There were to be eight circular Polar stations estaWished, and after some delay the United States agreed to make one of them at Lady Franklin Bay, for which the expedition sailed in 1881, with the result stated Notwithstanding the tremendous suffer mgs the purpose of the expedition was measurably carried out, Greely brinos back copies of meteorological, tidal, astromagnetic, pendulum, and other observations ; also pendulum, gale, and standard thermometer, forty-eight photographic proofs, according to the plan agreed on by the different nations. The work of observing and recording was

begun at all stations simultaneously with corresponding institutions, and on an identical plan, and continued for thirteen months ending September Ist, 1883 During the whole of this time continual observations were taken at every our m all branches of meteorology, ma«T d B^ivonom Y- The temperature of air and water, pressure and humidity of atmosphere velocity and direction of wind, clouds, ram, snow, auroras, &c., were taken on the Ist and 15th of each month. The so-called term days magnetic observations were to be taken every five minutes irom midnight to midnight, and during one hour at every twenty seconds meantime of Gottenburg Observatory. As had been previously determined and adopted at all stations by international agreement, these observations were also to be carried out on term days at all meteorological and magnetic observatories of all countries, as well as by their national vessels in all parts of the world. Naturally researches in other departments of science, such ns zoology, botany, geology, and geography, were prosecuted as much as possible at all stations. Captain Sir George Nares, British Arctic explorer, was interviewed with regard to Greely, and gave the Lieutenant and his party unqualified credit. He said in effect that Greely had taken the longest strides in Arctic mysteries, and he fecilitated himself that the provisions cached by his own expedition had been of such essential service to the latter. On being interviewed, Leigh Smith, the most experienced Arctic explorer living, says “ Greely has performed a feat unequalled in Arctic exploration, and one which stirs the blood, like a recital of the brave times of old,” and that “Ashley’s work was splendidly planned and bravely executed.”