The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1877-11-22
Sir John Franklin.

The fate of Sir John Franklin's expe-
dition derives renewed interest from the
report of Thomas A. Barry, a returned
Hudson Bay whaler, of the sufferings and
death of the last survivor of the Erebus
and Terror, obtained from the Esqui-
maux, with whom he passed last winter.
The crew of the New Bedford whaling
ship A. Houghton, of which Mr.. Barry
was mate, went into winter quarters last
October on the northern shore of Hud-
sons Bay, where they were joined by
about one hundred and fifty Esquimaux.
The natives were full of anecdotes of the
7isit to their settlement at Cape Ingle-
field of a party Of white men, who came
among them many years ago, perishlng
in a single winter of cold and hunger,
and who were buried with their books,
papers and valuables beneath heaps of
stones. From the Esquimaux's descrip-
ton, these men were evidently the rem
nant of Franklin's expedition, whose fate
and burial-place had been before un-
known. The natives exhibited several
relics as proof of the accuracy of their
statements, and Brrry succeeded in OBJ
tanning from them some spoons, one
marked with Franklin's crest and the
Others with an unknown monogram:
The natives offered to pilot the crew of
the A. Houghton to the mounds, but the
sailors were in no condition to make a
thousand miles journey of exploration:
Mr.. Barry's story, however, has induced
Morrison & Brown. the we'll known New
York shipping agents, who fitted out the
Polaris, to send an expedition next
spring, under Mr.. Barry's command, to
discover the burial-mounds of these last
of Sir John Franklin's men, and obtain
the valuable relics which are probably
preserved there. If the British govern
ment's offer of 100000 for the recovery
of the records of the expedition is still
open, the firm will equip vessel at their
own expense; if not, they will try to Sc
cure subscriptions of sl5, 900, and, if that
fails, they will send whaler, so that the
expenses may be betrayed by cruising
for oil. Mr.. Barry proposes to land on
the western shore of Hudson's Bay, and
reach Cape Ingle6eld, 500 miles distant,
by means of sleds and dogs. Sir John
sailed on his fatal expedite, with the
ships Erebus and Terror, in May 1S45.
The protracted absence of the party
caused great anxiety, and in 1S4S began
the series of rescue expeditions, by the
British Government and by private par
ties, which have cost so great an expen-
diture of treasure to so little effect. Lady
Franklin's faithful devotion caused re-
peated efforts to be made, for many years
after hope itself had died out of every
other heart; and in 1850, at Cape Riley,
the explorers came upon the site of a
tent, paved with small stones, and the
bones of birds. At Beechy Island; near
the entrance of Wellington Channel,
empty meat.cans were found, and the
embankment of house; also working
places for carpenters and other workmen,
and finally three desolate frozen graves,
where members of the party were buried,
who, it appeared by the marks on the
stones, died in the winter of 1876. Nc
Clintock in '59 found further traces of
the lost expedition; but this latest dis
covery, which comes now, after Lady
Franklin's faithful soul has Joined her
husband in another world than ours,
seems to be the most tdirect and import
ant of any. The lost p;...y .yccec::sisted."f
1873 persons, nearly all Of whom proba-
bly, succumbed to Death in about lati-
tude 20 degrees.