The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1876-12-14

| hbrave Soumen-Cntldfeu'D CaulD and
1hvertedi Shipa--A Whirlpool that can
Suck the Navies Of the World into Its
Vortex.
Great disappointment has naturally
been eyinced at the dismal failure Of the
two perfectly equipped Engliah screw
steamers-Alert and Discovery reach
the North Pole. It seems ca ii the secret
of that mysterious region defied all the
knight. .errantry of navigstors. For rea-
sons to be subsequently advanced, it il
improbable that the pole will be reached
ifthe efforts are to depend on ordinary
seamen. For it may as well be under.
stood, once for all. that the failure to uc.
cOmplish the mission of the late British
expedition arose not so much from, the
obstacles presented by Nature Ms from the
weak-heartedness of the crews. IL was
mol The stupendous Anehergs Of the PaIa.
ocrystic Sea that baffied Captain Mares :;
it was ineradicabie superstition and de-
morRlizing fear that raralyzed his sea-
men. This view of the subject obtains
no recognition IN tho elaborate report of
the commander, but it is we'll understood
among intelligent seafaring men.
The crews of the Alert and Discovery
had been selected with great caro- by Cap.
tain Mares subordinate officers long he.
fore the expedition sailed in 1874. The
experiences Of Baffin, Ross, Parry, Col
llnson and Others poin ed to this iinpcra.
tive precaution. The long montlu of un-
relieved darkness which make up the
Arctic winter, trying to the nerves Of
educated men, are terrible ordeal To the
naturally superstitious seaincn. Even
when the dense darkness is relieved hy
4, C.t
borealis, the ordinary seaman only sees
another evidence of some terrible and
occult ca tlse which has it's existence at
the pole, whittier he is tending. To him
the fierce. weird Flushing which iniermit-
tently light up the sky before him, are
fire CLEANS having their origin in some
horrible hell presided over by a fire.
demon. When. therefore, Jack reaches
latitue beyond the eighties, he invara-
bly, exhibits evidences of demoraliza-
ton.
Az far AZ practicable, therefore, none
but vigorous, intelligent men were
shipped on the last expedition, and ex-
traordlnnry means were employed, IN the
form of school masters and examiners, To
test the mental Qualifications of the men
and when, amid the plnudits of thou
sands, the two ships steamed graceriliy
up the channel past Beachy Head, the
enngnine commander no doubt congratu-
lated himself on possessing the mort
trustworthy and completely equipped
| ships, and the most intelligent and per-
| fectly disciplined crews that ever essaycd
to penetrate the mystery of the pole
| Ere the two steamers had passed out Of
the North Sea, however, or crossed the
arctic circle, in latitude rs degrees, il
became known to the petty officers that
most Of the forccastle talk at nights
turned upon
| CuILDRES's CAULS
as an infallible preventative against
death by drowning. There were more
than 3 sce:e of cs;:!s III the two ships
and those tars who had their membra.
nous underclothes, felt tolerably secure,
while those who were without this birth
amulet began to feel correspondingly de-
pressed. BY imperceptible gradations,
This snperstitOus fear deepencd, and p,s,-
sessers OF cauls were offered ridiculnasly
large sunls-amounting, in some in
stances, to half years pay-to part with
them. But what was money or the
promise of it under such circumstances ?
What is ten thousand dollars compared
| 70 cl:.nE of bFead where starvation IN
imminent? What were NO many pounds
! sterling compnreo to caul and safety
The men stuck to the mystic fibre and
luck, the Others tried to joke but felt
uneasy. This uneasiness WINS not lessen.
ed when ON the Both of July, the ice pack
was s'--hted off Cape Sabine, and when
exactly week later tho ships we're
caught and encompaSsed by that drifting
pack. the caulless men were ready 10
curse their luck and give themselves up
for lost. Whistling on board was now
considered In the fOrecastle criminal
otfense-it might raiSe the wind, ind the
"hips would be dashed TO pieces. The
struggle with the ice was iucessantly
maintained for three weeks; and the
most obtuse seaman saw that once in.
vo!yed among those changing water
channels it was as hazardous TO proceed
rs to return. On the 2bth of August
Captain Mares decided to leave the Dis
covery TO winter, ou the west side or
Hall'a Basin, in latitude 81 deg, A min.
while he pushed on in the Alert. The
two crews parted company with silence
that might bo felt. The seamen of the
Discovery were filled with gladness TO be
left behind; the seamen of the Alert
vent forward Us a band Of men who com.
pose a forlern hope, AS the Alert
lsteamed out Of sight of her companion
iship along the coast of Grant Land, and
was lost to view az she turned the north
east corner of that desolate and unex-
plored portion of terra firma, the crews of
both ships received paralyzing surprise.
From the deck and rigging of the Dis
icoyery the ;seaulen and officers sax the
Alert suspended in the mir in
AN INVERTED POSITION, yl.
traced ! on the horizon in the clearest
colors, and with the most distinct and
perfect representation. The officers ex.
| plained that this was common optical
deception attributable TO q certain condi-
ton Of the atmosphere. But the fore
castle meHlregarded it,as the wrath of
fthe ship, and Ia low voices wondered aud
discussed the probabilities Of the caul
men having survived the revealed catas-
tr0phe. .if,ifto Iuot $40 ii4 '5 :
/ On board tile Alert, meantime. an
| equally denOralizing state of affairs ex-
;=!ed Ia==:esd c: fading fading g continuous
coast line leading one hundred miles
northward, as the commanders and eyery
one on board had been taught to expect
the ship was on the border of what was
unqnestionably a very extensive sea with
impenetrable ice in every direction
This was disheartening but when en-
countering tho came peculiar atmospheric
conditions as had struck terror into the
seamen of the Discovery. they behed on
the horizon real '.ities where towers and
battlements and spires
BoSoMEp HIGE IN rryS~res, rpprs