Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1880-09-30
In the Polar Region,


narrative OF an officer on the steamer
Corwin, which departed on an Arctic
expedition from San Francisco last May
When, at last, we arrived at st.
Michaels we had to walk four or five
miles on the ice TO rea ch the settlement.
and the people there were surprised to
see us, having no idea that any kind OF
a vessel could penetrate the icepack
through which we had forced our way.
They also said the winter had been
terribly severe, the thermometer falling
as low as forty degrees below zero for
weeks mt a time. and some times. s.even
lower, and that it was reported at the
Mission, "A station on the Yakon river,
some 400 miles inland, that the ther-
mometer had dropped on one occasion
to seventy-two degrees below zero.
Only one day was passed here, and the
gallant little Corwin started again
through the ice with the Prov pointing
toward Behring's straits. As this is the
season when daylight continues
throughout the twenty-four hours, il
will be seen Mt once that the night
offered no greater obstacle to naviga-
tion than the day proper.
On the second day out from St.
MiclIaels we reached st. Lawrence
island, where it was reported famine
had swept away nearly the whole popu-
lation during the previous year. The
island is ninety miles long from east to
west. We steamed along close by the
shore, working our way through the ice
At last the settlements were reached
and each one that was visited presented
the same dreary scene of death and
desolation. Not sign of life was TO be
seen anywhere. Not solitary dog or
rat was TO be found about any Of the
rude huts; but in front of the houses, in
ghastly row, lay the dead bodies oil
those who had succumbed to the terri
BILE hunger. They had lain there for fif-
! teen months, and we were probably the
first to look upon them. Their clothes
had rotted off their bodies. but the
forms were preserved by the cold so that
they looked like mummies. The skin
was drawn tight over their emaciated
aces and forms, and looked lik ancient
parchment. So perfectly had the dry
air preserved them that we could dis
tinguish the bodies of the women from
the men by the deep tattoo marks on the
chin, which is one of the peculiar styles
OF feminine face ornament. In few
houses bodies were found in various
postures. just as they fell in the last
agony Of solitary death. AS long as
there were any survivors TO perform the
service the corpses were placed in the
regular rows in front of the huts. At
one place we found fifty bodies side by
side, some being the remains Of little
children, while others were the corpses
Of old people.
The usual litter and refuse which sur
round the Essuimaux huts were lack
ing, and there was not n scrap left OF
any kinG OF food. The cleanly -gnawed
bones showed that they had eaten their
dogs; they had even devoured the rats
which infested the village; they had
chewed up the old bits of walrus-hides
everything which would satisfy the
cravings of hunger. At last they had
perished miserably, dying by inches,
with no hope of succor and no chance ol
escape. At least five hundred of the
poor wretches suffered this hiieous
death. To explain this tgrrible famine,
which was rs unusaai as it was fatal,
1t must be added that the season was
ono of unparalleled severity. The ma
tivcs of this island were large, robust
men and expert bunters and fishermen.
But like most OF their race they were
improvident and made no provision for
such winter. The cold set in early and
continued without interruption. The
mercury WAS forty degrees below zero
for weeks at a time. The cold and tho
violent storms prevented them from
going out on the ice 10 catch walrus and
seals-their main dependence for food
in the winter. Their scanty store oI
meat was soon exhausted; they were
many miles from Siberia, and could not
have reached it alive in the face of the
bitter wind. At the northwest end o
the island we found settlement o
about $50. These had suffered severely
from the famine, only about one-halI
the original colony having survived.
They had had a larger stock of pro.
visions than their unfortunate neigh.
bors, and thus escaped complete ami.
nation.