The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1882-01-23
THE MISSING NAvIGAToRs.
Letter from George KEENAN,, the Arctic
Traveller.


Letter from George KEENAN,. the Arctic
Traveller.
NEW YoRK, Jan .21-Geo. KEENAN,, the Arc
tic traveller, sends the following to the Her
aid:
The telegram from Engineer Melville, dated
Irkutsk, January Is, conveys the unwelcome
news that up to the date of the latest advices
from the mouth of the Lena, Lieut.. De Long
ana the crew of the first cutter had not been
found, and no tidings had been received from
the second cutter, under command OF Lieut..
Chip. Where this telegram was written and
where Engineer Melville and Lieutenant Dan
enhower now are, we do not positively know.
1t would appear to have been written at lrk-
utsk, the capital of Eastern Siberia, in which
case the crew of the wbaleboat are probably
there. 1t may be, however, that the dispatch
was written at Yakoutsk or at some other point
on the Lena, and that it bears the date OF lrk-
utsk merely because the latter place was the
one from which it was telegraphed. Neither
do we know positively up to what date at the
mouth of the Lena Lieut.. De Long had not
been found. 1t is probable, however, that this
news is eight or ten days later than that
brought to Yakoutsk by Lieut. Danenhower,
and that Lieut. De Long had not been found
up to the 25th of November. The fact that the
search party discovered Lieut.. De Longs log
books and instruments, but did not ind the
men, is in some respects, very discouraglng
one, since it shows that the party had been
COup6lI6Q. pTOUdDly ny lIuull6ub uduSOI VI
starvation, to move in search of the help which
had failed to come to them, and that they were
already reduced to extremities, Log books and
instruments are the last things which an ex-
hausted and retreating party abandons, and
when they are thrown away it is an evidence
that the mon are making final struggle for
life. The search parties also found, 1T seems,
four ''records" left by Lieut.. De Long in his
retreat These records should have contained,
and probably did contain, a statement of his
49, ..1z~.a
could be traced and followed, but they seemed
to have been of no avail, since they did not
lead to a discovery of the party. Engineer
Melville requests orders to remain and renew
the search in March. If he is now at Irkntsk
he cannot get back to the mouth of the river
before March, and in the meantime the search
is being carried on by the Cossack commandment
at Bolun. Lieutenant Danenhower it appears,
from the telegram, has been blind, and it was
on this account, doubtless, that he came up the
river to Yakoutsk. Taken as a whole, Engi-
neer Melville's telegram, so far as it concerns
Lieut. De Longs party, is discouraging, but
does not forbid reasonable hope.
(Signed) GEORGE KEENAN,.
The Survivors.
LONDON, Jan. 21-Lieut. Danenhower's
party left Yakoutsk on the Sth of the present
month.
A Later Dispatch.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 22.-The following tele-
gram has just been received by the Secretary
of State,
ST. PETERSBURG, Jan. %.
To Secretary Frelinghmysen, Washington, ID. c.:
Later news Melville. Info rmed same already for
warded direct Secretary of Navy. Dananha uer
and eight men on their way to Irkutsk.
There are various opinions here as to the
meaning of the above dispatch but the impress
sion prevails that the skeleton should be filed
up as follows:
ffT,atar news from MalvilIa 7 an, informed