Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1837-06-30
SUFFERlNGS OF THE CREW OF
THE DEE.

THE DEE.
The following particulars of the suffer. |
ings undergone by the crew of the Dee
whale ship, are given in the Aberdeen
Herald:
The Dee arrived in the bay yesterday |
morning, aud at noon entered the harbor. |
The quay was crowded with anxious spec
tdtOrs, and as the vessel neared the berth, |
The scene was truly hoart-rendlng. The |
mourning relatives of the deceased sea.
men, though previously apprised of the |
unfortunate fate OF those who were near
and dear TO them, seemed unwilling to
give credence to any testimony apart from
positive confirmation by those who had
been eye wtnesse; to their deceasc.--
Their weeping widows rushed on board
with their helpless orphans in their arms,
while parents and friends followed in equal
grief. When a convenient opportunity Of
tered, the surgeon, Mr.. Litllejohn, though
IN very weak state, kindly and mos
readily expressed his willingness to give
every additional information in his power.
The most painful fact in conneXion with
the loss Of the Dee's crew. is the great
mortality, compared with the other vessels
which were bese, a the same time. Mr..
Littleiohn accounts for this on the follow
ing grounds.
When the Dee was bcsct she was among
The loose ice, the alternate opening and
closing of which exposed her to great dan
ger. The crew were therefore, constantly
exposed, had most harrassing duties to dis.
charge, and little or no time to change their
clothes. This state of things continued
about two months; and so inevitably Ger.
tam did the destruction OF the vessel at
one appear to BE-, that the beds, chests.
provisions, &c. had to be taken on the ice.
Here all bands remained for two days aud
as proof that this was the first aud the
chief cause Of the fatality which immed.
ateiy followed. Mr.. Lu'ejohn remarks
that almost Immediately after they again
went on board they began 10 complain, and
scnrvy becatnc more and more prevalent.
TO add to this, when the Thomas was LOST.
the greater part Of TIE crew Of the Dee
went over the ice, distance Of four or
five miles, to assist in carrying over part Of
the provisions. THIS second exposure had
"A most painful effect and that it was The
from the fact, that the proportions of 'he
crew Of the Thomas, which were divided
among other vessels, fell victims to the dis
ease in far greater ratio than the other
men on board. That these were he chief
causes is also evident, when we know that
none Of the other vessels were at all dis
'urbed by loose ice, but, on the contrary,
were mmovabe from the first day that
they were fixed until the day they got
clear.
On the eth Of September, the crew Of
The Dee, tearing late season, went on
half allowance. The mess was 3bS Of
bread week, 81 or lbs beef, and "a lbs
barley only, allowed 70 make soup for six
tv one men! But Mr.. Lr,lejohn states
that the scurvy was the great cause Of the
morality and death which must certainly
have been attended with excrucialng pain,
the disease having generally begun IN the
mouth, thus rendering he unfortunate men
unable to take vicruaIs, The extreme
cold is mentioned in Mr.. jttlcjohn's let
ter; but. as another evidence, we may add
that, even in the cabin, while their bands
were over the little fire they had, their
backs were freezing. So intense was the
| frost, that even liquor was frozen, and at
times the ink in the glass was solid.
| The Goals were all exhausted bv the end
Of January, after which slaves Of casks,
with other lumber, were made use off,
The want of fire now added to the pain of
the sufferers, who We're getting weaker
dav by dav. Occasionally lltll, refresh
inr soup was made from Foxes, many of
which they killed; but the ravage of the
disease seemed to battle every remedy
! Splt,ts were allowed IN small quantities,
but seemed TO do little or no good. A par.
,,aI relief was, however, occasionally af
torded in this way; and in their last mo.
mcnts some of the men asked for lutte
rror No spirits were used after the Dee
left the ice, and now death made sad ha-
voc. From the 10th of March, the day on
which she got clear, scarcely was there
one man able to assist another; and our
readers may form some conception Of their
dcplorable state, when we mention the
fact that two or three were lying together
in one blanket, covered with ice, and the
blanket underneath them literally mass
Of vcrmIn.
The dying were often lying in the same
| bed with the dead Tor days together; and
when obliged to consign the latter to the
deep, The bodies had to be hoislcd up
between decks with a tackle, and thrown
overheard
Having only the close reefed topsalls sci
when the Dee left the ice, and the remain
ing portion OF the crew beng unable t'
render any effective assistance. she was a
most wholly at the mercy of the wind ant
tide, and at one time drited so far south n,
) 50 degrees. The temperature now was 1
; pleasing change, but the scurvy was too
deeply rooted to be cradcated wlh0u
some more tangible remedy.