New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1882-03-15
THE .JE4NNETTE SEARCH.

The hOpelesSness of the search for the miss
ing officers and men of the Inflated Jeanette
has been apparent for many weeks. The three
boats were separated by a violent gale on the
night of September -, about ninety miles
from land. One of the boats with eight men
was undoubtedly sWamped. Melville, Danen-
hover and nine men reached one of the eastern
mouths of the Lena on the evening OF the
18th, and abandoning their boat marched
south until they reached one of the native set
Elements. Captain De Long, DIR. Amber and
twelve men landed at the nOrthcrnmOst cape
of the delta, and ascending the east bank were
forced to remain in a deserted cabin from Sep
| TENDER 2S to October l, waiting for the river
to freeze over so that they could resume the
Journey on the west bank. They had prOvi-
sions for only two days, but expected to find
game One of the men died on October Z.
The party were then i'll great distress for food,
and two days afterward two men were sent
ahead for relief When they were rescued by
the natives fifteen days afterward they could
not make themselves understood, and it was
not until October % that Melville heard the
news. He organized Il relief party of natives
and traced the march of his missing compan-
IL
records and only abandoning the search when
the natives refused to go on. Returning to
Bolonenga on November 2S he conducted the
twelve survivors first to 1akutsk and subse-
ducnty to Irkutsk, where he arrived on the
last day of the year. On the next day he wrote
to his wife In Philadelphia a short letter which
has been received by her this week. In it he
speaks of resuming speedily the search for
De Long and the others who persisted at the
month of the Lena" 1t was then eighty four
DAYS since De Long and his ten companions
had dispatched the two seamcn from the barren
waste where they were freezing and starving
to death
The second search party set out from
Yallutsl on January Is, Melville being in COM
mard. with Bartlett and Nindermann to head
divisions the latter being one Of the two sea-
men who left De Longs camp on October 9.
The expedition seems to have been well
manned and equipped, and to have been pro-
yisioncd until June ; but there was 10 expccta-
ton when it was organized that it could begin
opcratons before the first of the present
month. Mr.. Benefits agent, having reached
Irkutsk, is now iourneying toward Yakutsk,
but will be likely to await news from Melville
before IahlHG any SlcpS W VI S'iiNO " III" ~
pedition. The two officers dispatched by Sec
rotary Hunt are now on the road between st.
Petersburg and lrkutsk, and will not arrive ut
Yabutsk before the middle of April. The
steamer Lena, which accompanied the Vega
from Tromsoc to the Lena delta in 1878 and
then assembled the river as far as the siNtieth
parallel of latitude, will be at their disposal
during the spring and summer so that they
will be able to unite with Melville in lis search
for the unfortunate cXplorcrs-a search which
on the opening day OF the year he confessed
was absolutely hopeless, as there could not be
any expectation of finding any Of them alive.
Their bodies and the records left behind them
ut the stations wh"r9 they halted will un-
dcubtedly be recovered, for the search seems
TO be narrowed to a desOlate district about
eighty miles in length, which can be readily
secured in open weather. 1t may even be pos