Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1876-10-23
4 Whaling Fleet Lost IN the Arctic
Ocean.

IL.
Florence arrived here to-day from the Arctic
Ocean, with 100 men on boarGi being part OF
the crews o! the Arctic whaling fleet, twelve oi
which she reports lost 10 the Ice with portion
Of the crews. The remaining survivors have
gone to Honolulu on the bark Three brothers.
4 report OF the disasters is made by the mas
tiers who have arrived here, namely, W. II.
Kelly, master Of the Marengo; b. L. lloman,
of the {. Rowland; i. s. liickWcrth, OF the
Acors Barnes; j. Keenan,, OF the James Aleu-
James Ii. Knowles, Of the ST. George; h. \.
| Ludlow, OF the Camella; I. ". Williams OF
the Clara Bell; George L. Larry Of the jose
phiue, aud Ezra Is. Lapham, OF the Onward.
The following is ! synopsis oil the report ="
On our arrival in the Behring's SEA We found
| plenty Of ice and extreme weather. We COM
menced taking warus June |. BetWeen July
% and August the ships worked over to the
east shore and north toward Point Barrow as
| fast as the Ice opened. The bark Arctic was
crushed by ice july /. The crew escaped 10
shore and afterwards went Oh the other vessels.
August |, the feet, fourteen in number, reach.
ed Point Barrow. The Northern Light anu
| Norman remained south walrusing anu escaped
| the disaster that followed. August the ICE
broke up and whales appeared, and soon all
tho ships were actively engaged The space
occupied by the vessels extended seven OF eight
miles of shore.
On the 23d the wind lresneoed from west
northwest, and all the vessels, except the liam
bow and Three Brothers, which were at P0iut
Barrow, were surrounded by DRIFT Ice. Efforts
to make the open sea failed. On the 24th thick
i fog set 10. The ships were 10 an open strip Of
water. The Clara Bell lost her r oder and ran
near shore, where the ice closed around her,
and q large berg grounded by her aud formed a
breakwatcr behind which she lay. The tlor'
ence drifed up and got under the lee OF The
iceberg, which proved her salvation. The ships
Josephinc, St. George, Cornelius Rowland
and Mareogo, and banks Camilla, James Allen
and Onward were iocosed by pack ice. The
Rainbow and Three Brothers Witnessed our
distress, but were at the time unaele to rSnucr
assistance. On the 2Gth boat from the Three
Brothers took the wife OF Capt llackmotL oil
for safely.
| Next day the st. Georges men attempted to
get a boat ashore over the Ice, but were caught
10 fog and failed. Three lroze to death Oh
the ice. :,
August oS the ships al Point barrow We're
invisible. Un the Goth the masters held =
council, aud concluded there was no further
hope OF saving the ships, soma a when were
already badly ripped by the zee. The sn'p'
: had about three month, rro'I7ons' hSy
were thirty miles from land. September they
all took the boats, each man With - days IA.
!, tons and blanket. Everything else Gu: guns
and ammunition We're left Old board. We would
first carry the baggage halt mile ahead, then
return and dras the bolt5 Tie Ice Was very
rough, aud uow aud then ni:n would treaE
through and they suffered much from cold.
| The first night we cAmped lJur miles from
the shipa Next murnlns resumed the match
in binding =uow storm. Several m2n desert
ed 10 DESPAIR aud returned toward The ships.
Oh their fate We EuoH Golhtug. We worked
Oh through open wafer AZ Il over seas oil u, IN
. the 9Th, when We sig htel the ships at FONT
Barrow. Here We prepared 70 winter as It
would be madness to attempt 70 reach til" open
sra $50 miles off. We prepared ior whaling
as our only resource for food. Bat on The night
of Saptember - The ice colnmcnccd breakIug,
and the Florence, the Three Brothers aud The
Onward got away with The survivors, ii In.
various crews
The following Is lis; of the abandoned ves.
sells. Banks OnW2fI aud t!ala b@il, Dan ilau'
cisco; ships *. George and Aarengo, and Larks
Cornelius Holland, james Allen aod Java,
New Bedford; ship Camilla aud barkentlnc
Josephine, Boston; bark Acors Barnes, New
London, and the Hawaiian barks Desmond and
Arctic.
The vas1ela had on board altogether ,o0o
barrels oil oil, besides large amount Of whale
bone and ivory 1t is the undivided opinion OF
every master that no hope can be entertained
Of the rescue OF the ships or those who remained
on board of them. All are individually lost and
carried away 10 the northeast in the immense
Ice. pack which closed them in Tor miles around.
The masters OF the abandoned Arctic fleet ex-
press uncertainty as 10 the number and names
Of the men who stayed By the ships or return
ed to them after beginning the homoHard trip,
but 50 far az can be ascertaIned it seems prob
able fifty or sixty were left behind, many Of
whom we're kanaks.
New BEDFORD Mass, Oct. .22.-'l'he loss
On the New Bedford whaers 10 the Arctic Is
nearly 100000, mostly Insured IN Boston and
New York offices.