The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1874-01-29
LIE POLARis suRY1YoRs.
A Strange stsry OF Captain HaII's Last
Moments.
From the New York Sun.

Moments.
From the New York Sun
The survivors of the Polaris expedi
ton met recently in the metropolitan
hotel to make arrangements to petition
| congress for extra compensation IN vieg
OF their extraordinary hardships, the,
having hOated one hundred and ninety
six days on the ice before they were
rescued by the Tigress. Capt. J. Nor
risOn presided. Among those in attend
ance were g. w. O. Kruger, Frederick
Jamke, VIM. Nindermann and Gus
Lindquist. Many of the survivors o.
the expedition had returned to sea, and
Mr.. Morrison had been deputed by then
to act in their names. Several of them
were unable to attend in consequence ol
sickness, and among these was e'Esqui
maux Joe, to whose faculty for procur.
ing food in the icebergs the survivors
owed their lives.
The chairman briefly announced the
object OF the naestinQ ststiRg that As
he had, under the instructions of Capt
Hall, selected the men for the Polaris.
and promised that if any kind of sue
cess was met with they would receive
such remuneration as would render
them independent for the rest of theil
to obtain some portion of that remu-
neration from congress. The chairman
asked If any of the survivors had a sus-
pici0n that Capt. Hall was poisoned.
The unanimous reply was that they be-
lieved Capt. Hall died natural death.
Mr.. Kruger said that he had first heard
the rumor of the poisoning from
Capt. Tyson, and he believed II
originated from expressions used by
Capt. Hall in his delirium The chair
man said that one Pat Coleman sailed
In the Polaris and died. In a former
expedition Capt. Hall fired at Coleman
and wounded him for refusing to go for
n deer. His death weighed very heavy
on Capt. Halls mind, and be used fre-
quehtly to say that Coleman had for
given him before he died. The Captain
was much disturbed during his illness
about this mans death, and it probably
served to upset his intellect and led
him to fear that his own life would be
ended by violence.
The question as to whether Capt.
Buddington had willfullv separated
from the men on the iceberg was unani-
mously answered in the negative. The
chairman said that William Nindermann
had, on an occasion of great peril, when
a reward of one thousand dollars had
been offered by Capt. Buddington to
any man who would make fast an anchor
TO an iceberg, accomplished the task,
climbing to height of eighty feet on
the ice, cutting steps as he went, and
doing the work calamity but the re-
ward had never been paid. He added
that the German government had given
to the survivors of the Hama arctic ex-
pedition eight hundred dollars each.
The Polaris survivors pay had been
eighty-fve and one-third cents day.
A petition to congress was read, set
ting forth the peculiar hardships which
the members of the expedition had un-
dergone, and praying for some comPen-
satiOn for them and for Esquimaux Joe
and his wife. Mr.. Hewett read letter
from Capt. Buddington, in which he
says 81 am glad to hear you Al
making efforts to have the crew of t.at
Polaris justly compensated for the L.
bors and hardsh ps they underwent.
while on the ice. L think they deserve
it, for better officers and crew I never
sailed with, including those on the ice
and those who remained in the ship :;
every man did his duty faithfully, and
my best wishes will always be with
them, and whatever I can do toward
them shall do with tho greatest
pleasure"
An address from Capt. Hall to his
crew, while the Polaris was lying in
Thank God harbor, was presented to the
meeting by Mr.. Ct. W. @. Kruger, who
had carefully preserved it through all
of his hardships, carrying it under his
flannel shirt while floating on the ice.
It read
United States Steamship Polaris, C. f. Hall,
Commanding:
SIRs-The reception of your letter of
thanks to me of this date acknowledge
with heart that deeply feels and fully
appreciates the kindly feeling that has
prompted you to this act.
need not assure you that your COM
mander has and ever will have a lively
interest in your welfare. You have left
your homes, friends, and country-in-
deed, you have bid long farewell, for
a time, to the whole civilized world for
the object to aid me in discovering the
mysterious parts of the earth there
fore, must and will care for you as a
prudent father cares for his faithful
children. Your commander,
@. F. HALL.
u. S. North Polar expedition, in winter
quarters, Thank God harbor, lat. 81
deg. 80 min. N, Ion. 81 deg. A min.
W., Sept. "a, 1871.
The reading of this document, COM
ing like voice from the arctic grave of
the gallant commander of the i'll fated
expedition, deeply affected the hardy
sailors who had shared his hardships
and barely escaped his fate. 1t was
written in reply to a letter to Capt.
Hall from his ships company, assuring
him of their unswerving fidelity.