The colored patriot., 1882-05-25
The Sinking of the Jeanette.

The New York Herald prints letter
giving Lieutenant Danenhower's ac-
count of the adventures of the Jeannette
until after the vessel sank. Of the last
hours OF the vessel he says:
About three p. m. Machinist Lee
reported the ice coming through the
bunkers, and the Captain Immediately
ordered, Lower awayr men having
been previously stationed at the boats
falls and some provisions put on the ice.
Melville Immediately cOntradicted the
report. and the Captain delayed the or
der. Thus the ship lay for two hours
and half, the pressure of the ice relax
ing at times aud the ship almost right
ing. Then again she would be hove over
to tWenty-three degrees, and we felt sure
there was no longer any hope for her, for
she would not lift There was nothing
in the world to be done to assist her at that
time. We had to depend upon her
shape. have forgotten to tell YOU that
she. OF course, tioated much higher than
when we entered the pack, and that led
us to hope that she would lift easier in
the nip, for the pressure of the ice
would be below the point her sides
commenced to tumble home. On the
starboard side, while she was heeling,
the nip was felt on her timber heads,
which were the weakest parts of the
frame, but on the port side she was
pressed below the turn of the bilge.
Her fate was practically decided the mo-
ment we found she would not lift. and
large amount of provisions and clothing
was then placed on the ice in readiness
for the catastrophe.
"When the order was given to aban,
don the ship her hold was full of water;
and as she was heeling twenty-three de-
grees to starboard at the time that the
water was on the lower side of the spar
deck. | hope that our friend, the London
standard, will not now think that we
deserted her and left her adrift in the
Arctic, as was stated in one of the is
sues of that paper. We had large
quantity of provisions on the ice about
n hundred yards from the ship, but Mr.
Dunbar, who was alive to the occasion,
advised the shifting of these to an adia-
cent and more favorable foe piece. 1t
tOokus till eleven p. m. to effect the re-
mOVal. We also had three boatS-pame-
ly, the first cutter, second cutter and the
whalebOat. AS soon as Dr. Amber had
looked out for Chipp he relieved me at
my post, and | went to work with No. 3
sled party. which | had been detailed
previously to command. The order was
given to camp and get coffee, so we
pitched our tent abreast of the whale,
boat, and set about fitting out for the
retreat.
about four O clock | was awakened
by Seaman Kuehne calling his relief,
Fireman Bartlett, who was in our tent.
Kuehne called to Bartlett that the ship
was sinking, and the latter jumped to
the tent door and saw the spars of the
Jeannette after the hull was below the
surface. We heard the crash, but those
were the only two men who saw the
vessel disappear 1t was said that the
ice first closed upon her, then relaxing,
allowed the wreck to sink; the yards
caught across the ice and broke off, but
being held by the lifts and braces were
carried dOwn-depth, thirty-eight faith
Oms, as | remember. The next morning
the Captain and others visited the Hpot
and found only one cabin chair ard n
few pieces of wOod-all that remained
Of our old and good friend the Jean
1ette, which for many months had eH-
lured the embrace of the Arctic mon
ster. The Jeanette sank about -four
o'clock on the morning of Monday,
June 13."