Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1880-10-01
ARCTIC DISCOVERY.

THE RETURN OF THE FRANKLIN SEARCH ExpE-
DITIoN-THE MOST REMARKABLE sLEDaE
JOURNEY ON REooRD-wHAT THE EXPEDITION
ACCOMPLISHED.
News was received at New Bedford last
week from the latest Franklin search party,
sent out over two years ago under Lieut..
Schwatka, u. s. A. The party was picked
up by Capt. Michael Baker, of the barque
George and Mary, of New Bedford, at Depot
Island, August LIST, they having returned to
that point from their sledge journey to King
Williams Land on the 4th of March of the
present year. The sledge journey was the
longest ever made through the unexplored
Arctic region both as to time and distance,
the party having been absent from their base
of operations in Hudson Bay eleven months
and four days. During that time they trav-
elled 2,Sl0 geographical or 3,251 statute
miles. 1t was the only sledge journey ever
made that covered an entire Arctic winter.
The expedition, consisting of four white men
and 10 Esquimaux, started from the base of
operations with but one months rations of
Civilized" food. After that the white men
of the party began living upon the fare of
their Esquimaux assistants. The result has
shown that il is feasible for white men to
adapt themselves to the climate and life of
the Esquimaux in the polar regions.
During the summer and fall of 1879 they
made q complete search of King Williams
Land and the adjacent mainland travelling
over the route pursued by the crews of the
Erebus and Terror upon their retreat toward
Backs river and, while 80 engaged, the party
buried the bones of all those unfortunates re-
naming upon ground and erected monu-
ments to the memory Of the fallen heroes.
Their research established the fact that the
records of Franklin's expedition are lost be-
ynp1 EroY,, ha ~ Nha
tives it is believed that the officers and crew
of the Erobus and Terror met q terrible fate.
Old men and women of the Esquimaux tell a
story of those who were doubtless the last
survivors of those vessels with a minuteness
of detail which places their fate beyond
doubt. or what had become of their leader
and the large number who constituted the
crews nothing could be discovered Only a
small party of officers, black about their
mouths with no flesh upon their bones, were
seen dragging boat across the ice, and moth
ing more was seen of them until their skele-
tons were found under their boat and in a
tent, prey TO wild beasts, and with evil
denccs that they had been driven to feed on
their weaker companions before yielding to
starvation and cold.
RELICS OF THE FRANKLIN EXPEDITION.
Some Nachilli Esquimaux who had found
u bthitu Nih bOA hbOul lNO lttl long anu one
foot square, filled with books, at a point on
mainland near Backs river, where the last of
the survivors of Franklin's party are suppos-
ed to have finally pershed, were interviewed
by Lieutenant Schwatka. These natives
broke open the box and threw out the pre-.
ciOus records, which were then either scatter
cd to the winds of thirty Arctic winters or de-
stroyed by children who took them to their
tents for playthings. The point was not only
searched by Lieutenant Schwatka's party but
by nearly the entire Nachilli nation, inspired
by promise Of great reward for the dis
covery of any remnant of books or papers
This search failed to discover any of the
records, but resulted in the finding of a skcl-
eton of a sailor about five miles inland. Its
existence was previously unknown even to
local tribes. Every native who could impart
any information concerning the lost crews
was hunted up and interviewed Some of
them had not seen n white man since Captain
Crozer's party was there. Much valuable
information as to the loss of the Franklin ex-
pedition was compiled. 1t is also made
known that one of Frauklins ships drifted
down the Victoria Straits, and was unwitting-
ly scuttled by the Ookjoolik Esquimaux, who
found it near an island off Grant Point dur
ing the spring of lS49 and cut hole through
its side, Mt the surface of the ice, to obtain
entrance to the hold. At that time one man
was lying dead in the steerage, During the
same year the natives saw tracks of white
men in the spring SHOWS on maitland.
They brought the remains of Lieut. John
Irving, third officer of the Terror, which were
identified by prize medal found in his open
cd grave. The party endured many hard
ships and were once threatened with starva-
ton. No material sickness occurred during
the absence of the expedition in the field,
and no severe frost bites were experienced
by any of the party.
A large quantity of relies of Sir John
Franklin's expedition have been gathered
from each spot where the graves were found
and few tokens selected that may serve to
identify those who perished there. A piece
of each of the boats found and destroyed by
the natives has been brought away, together
with interesting relics in the shape of the
PROV of one of their boats, the sledge upon
which it was transported, and part of the
drag-rope upon which these poor fellows tug
ged until they fell down and died in their
tracks. In addition to these the party secur-
cd board which may serve to identify the
ship which completed the northwest passage.