The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1881-08-16
TELEGRAPHTC
THE ARTIC.
The Lest WhaIers - Nothing
from the "JeRnneIte.'

San Francisco, 15.-The Alaska Co.'S
steamer st. Paul arrived this morning.
She brings the following intelligence:
Capt. Hooper, of the revenue cutter Cor
aVi9l received intelligence of the discovery
of the wrecked whalers by Indians on
Msy 10th, and at once sent out a sledge
party unGer Lieut.. Berring to investi-
gate. Il landed on Kolutchin Island,
June ID, and made IFS way across ice
westward to the mouth nt Wsigkerem
river. about 100 miles from Cape Ser
DIRE, where it fell il with party Of ma
tives in whose possession were found ar
ticles taken from the wreck. The Cor
aims party also saw and talked with
natives who had boarded the wreck.
They exhibited two piles of articles
which they said they had taken from her.
They consisted principally of carpenters
tools. etc. The following articles were
recovered and have been brought to San
Francisco to be forwarded to the United
States treasury department: ne whsl-
ing iron, marked "B. k.," possibly the
initials of the owners Of the VfglLant with
five dots, supposed to mean boat No. 5;
one pair of silver bowed spectacles and
Re; one pair of marine glasses, and one
knife marked "V" on the handle. Che
natives said the wrecked vessel carried
a pair of reindeer horns on the end Of
her jibboon. The VgilGnt is known
to have carried such an orna-
ment and ia said to be the only ore
in the whaling feet having such,
which leads to the conclusion that the
wreck was that vessel. Her cabin was
full OF water. masts gone and four dead
bodies were found in her, one of them in
berth, the othors on the floor The
Eatives said the dead men looked as if
they had been dead many moons; that
the skin Of their face was withered and
drawn tight. From this description it
was surmised that the vessel wss wrecked
ss far back SIS the winter of 1880, the
first winter out The wreck subsequently
dritted out to sea. and was lost sight of.
The sledge party bsing unable to go fur
Their westward on account Of the melting
of snow proceeded to Cape Terdez, and
were picked up by the CrOWn on June
18th. They travelled in all $50 or 40
miles. The cutter had her rudder carried
away by ice on June LIST, but repaired it
in st. Lawrence Bay, with materials OBJ
tanned from the wreck of an old whisky
smuggler ashore there. Later she made
q second landing on this island, and sent
parties ashore to visit the scene Of the
destructive famine of 1878 and 1879. In
the Indian villages few changes were dis
covered. Dead bodies we're still lying
about IN numbers The surviving natives
appeared to be in no Want. They were
abundantly supplied with arms and am
munition, also with goods plundered from
the wreck Of the schooner Sofia. The
last intelligence Of the cutters movements
is up to July 9th, when she sailed from
Norton Sound to Goonlooiss Bay. Thence
she was to proceed northward TO Kusl-
zebue Sound and Poiat Barron, to look
after revenue matters; then westward to
Wrangle Land before the ice closed, in
search for the Jeanette. The mildness
of the previous winter and the lightness
Of the ice encountered by the Co7'tOis
gave Captain Hooper strong hopes of
being able to reach aud explore that
land. Nhslers' who are interviewed
considered the prospect favorable Fears
are entertained that some Whaler has
been lost, as early in July large guam
tity of whale oil was reported by native
hunters on the sea about Smack
Island. Four casks of whale oil drifted
ashore there about the same time. These
signs gave rise to apprehension that
some returning whsler was wrecked in
fog on the outlying reefs or rocks about
that island. The fact that the packages
Of oil found were unbroken, is thought
to indicate that possibly one side of the
unfortunate vessel was broken ia, letting
the cargo out. No further details of the
supposed wreck had reached Ounslasks
up to August 4th, when the st. Paul left.
At Seal Island the sealing season closed
successfully on that day.