The Andrew County Republican. [volume] (Savannah, Mo.) 1871-1876, 1876-11-09
ICE-BOUND.

ICE-BOUNDs
The Arctic whaling Fleet Surrounded
~ Ieeber9s and Twelve vessels Aban.
densd-Particulsrs OF the Disaster.
San FRANCISCO, Oct. 2l.-The whal-
ing bark Florence arrived this afternoon
from tho Arctic Ocean with 100 men on
being part of the crews Of the
Arctic whaling fleet, twelve Of which
she reports lost in the ice with a por-
ton Of their crews. The remaining
survivors have gone to Honolulu on the
bark "Three Brothers." The follow
ing is a synopsis of the
WRITTEN REPORTS
Of the master Of the feet. On arrival
In Behring's Sea found plenty of ice
and extreme weather, and but few
whales were taken in the first part Of
the 8 Commenced taking wal
ruses on June 1; the ships engaged
soon got all they had casks for. Be-
tween the goth Of July and the LIST of
August the ships worked over to the
east shore, and so north toward Point
Barrow as fast as the ice opened. The
bark Arctic was crushed by the ice July
7tb, of the Sea Horse Islands, eighteen
miles from land. The crew escaped to
shore, and finally were taken on board
by the bark Onward, and subsequently
distributed among the fleet, Capt. Whit
ney going on board the bark Rainbow.
About the LIST Of August the feet, four
teen in number, reached Point Barrow.
The Northern Light and Norman staid
at the South, w~alrusing, and
ESCAPED THE DISASTER.
Those that followed had to stand from
Point Barrow several times, owing to
the ice standing on shore. On August
IA q breeze from the north and north
west broke up the ice. Whales made
their appearance, and soon all the
ships were actively engaged northeast
Of Point Barrow; wind half from west
to northeast, until the night of August
IS, when it began blowing fresh from
the east-northeast. All the ships stood
in shore and anchored to avoid drifting
ice. On the afternoon Of the 10Th the
wind increased and hauled to the north,
bringing the ice on shore, and we all
run under the south side of Point Bar
row, where we found a Ice for four
hours, but the next morning were
obliged to run South as far as Cape
Smith. The "Rainbow" and "Three
Brothers" remained at Point Barrow
for the next three days. Whales were
numerous off Cape Smith, and the ships
were busy taking some. Meantime the
wind set from the west, causing an
UNEASY FEELING.
The space occupied by the ships ex-
tended seven or eight miles of shore,
running along by land south. This
kept steadily closing. On the 23d, the
wind freshened from west-northwest,
and all the ships except the Rainbow
and the Three Brothers, which were
still anchored at Point Barrow, sur
rounded by drift ice, beat to the south
west. In the afternoon the wind began
hauling south of west, but still we hoped
before the ice closed on us VI reach the
open sea, or at least the Sea Horse
Islands, where we could find shelter.
At sunset the ice stopped our progress.
On the morning of the oath thick fog
set in. At this time the heavy ice
packed and reached along the whole
coast about two miles to leeward. The
ships were all lying with open strips OF
water between that and shore. The
Clara Bell lost her rudder, ran neal
shore and anchored. The ice closed
around her, and a large berg grounded
south of her and formed a breakwater,
behind which she lay. The bark Flor
ence drifted up to Cape Smith and got
under the lee of a grounded iceberg,
which
PROVED HER SALVATION.
The ships Josephine, St. George,
Cornelius Rowland, and banks Ca.
mile, James Allen and Onward were
inclosed by pack-ice, during the after.
noon, and drifted rapidly to the north.
east between Woody and Refuge Inlets,
The ship Marengo, under all sail, got
within three or four ship-lengths of open
water, and then the ice closed on her,
As we neared Point Barrow the curren,
slackened, and for two days we drifted
slowly. The Rainbow and Three Broth.
ers, under Point Barrow, lay in com.
parative safety, witnesses of our dis,
tress, but unable to render assistance,
The Marengo, St. George, and bark
Acers Barnes, each sent a boat ashore,
intending to follow with others contain.
ing provisions and supplies in case OF
disaster, but owing to the
ICE STARTING AFREsH,
were unable to do so. On the Goth the
first officer of the Three Brothers, with
a boats crew, took the wife of Capt
Hackmott off the bark Acers Barnes tc
his ship for safety. The next day the
st. George men attempted to haul the
boat ashore over the ice, but they were
caught in a fog. Thirteen of them go
on board the Rainbow and Three Broth
ers. The others gained the ship, ex
eept one, who persisted on he ice. Mex
day the thirteen tried to get back to tn,
st. George, but never reached her
Eleven were rescued by Capt. Owen, o.
the Three Brothers. The other two
were frozen to death on the ice. The
prospect is now very gloomy. Tn,
ships were held helplessly in the ice ant
drifting rapidly northeast.
On August 20 we reached the end o
the Bank, and the current changed t.
east. The ships at Point Barrow wer,
no longer visible. The situation wa.
worse than ever, our only hope being
an easterly gale. On August 30 we wer,
off Point tangent. The crew of thu
'Marengo"
ATTEMPTED TO z ASHORE,
L L.A