The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-03-30
LIFE IN SIBERIA.
Return of the Four Jeannette Survivors
Experiences on the Hl-F ated Vessel.
New York World, wednes day.

New York World, Wednesday.
Ensign Hunt, who has charge of the four
men, said
'"There were seven in the party when we
started from Bulun. The others were two
natives-Aniguin, an Indian hunter, and
Thornam, an interpreter. We left Bulun,
which is at the mouth of the Lena river, Oct.
25 and travelled day and night on two sleds
drawn by deer teams. The journey to Verk-
hoiansk required ten days. From that point
we were ten days in making the journey to
Yakutsk, from thence nine days to Viteem,
and from that point two days in making the
journey to Kivinsk. Here the party sepa-
rated. Leech was sent ahead with Lauter-
bach and Thornam, the interpreter to Irk
utsk 1 remained at Kivnsk with Manson
and Bartlett to oversee the medical treat
ment of Aniguin, the Indian hunter who
was taken sick with smallpox We remained
at Kivinsk until Jan. 5, when Aniguin died.
Our journey to Irkutsk occupied four days,
which was very fast travelling, the usual time
being six days. The next stage of our jour
ney, to Orenburg, on the Russian boundary,
occupied twenty-four days. From this point
we came by railroad to st. Petersburg. We
remained there week and then took small
steamer for Hamburg, where we embarked
on the Westphalia for New York"
After the party had partaken of lunch at
the navy yard, the men. accompanied by
Chief Engineer Melville, Lieutenant Danen-
hover and Ensign Hunt, again embarked on
the tug and went to the St. Mary's training
ship, at the foot of Twenty-third street.
Here they received a sailors welcome. When
the glasses had all been filled, Mr.. Melville
sang song of which the refrain was: Here's
a health to the homeward bound" Leech
remarked that they had been often cheered
by that song in Siberia when the scenery
looked bleak and desolate and the liquor was
anything but first-rate. The party then came
to New York, and Ensign Hunt and the four
men he has in charge registered at the CONT
mental Hotel. Tomorrow they will leave
for Washington to report to the Secretary of
the Navy and testify before the Investigating
committee. At the Continental Hotel a re-
porter of the World saw Mr.. Leech. He said
that on board the Jeanette the men all had
good time, even when wedged in by the ice,
They had liquor in moderation and tobacco
in abundance. sit almost broke my heart"
he said, ''to have to leave so much good to-
bacco behind in the Jeanette when we had
to abandon her We were allowed to take
with us only pound man. We made
that last as long as possible, and
then we took tea leaves from
which tea had been made, dried them
and smoked them. 1t was poor substitute
for tobacco, but by long odds better than
nothing. When we got among the natives of
Siberia we occasionally obtained some ma
tive tobacco We got it in leaf form. 1t had
never been cured, and was strong enough to
knock horse down, but you bet we en-
joyed it,"
How did you manage to keep your spirits
up all the timer" asked the reporter.
"We thought of home. We never gave up
hope. There was not a man in the whole
Jeanette expedition who ever thought his
last day had come even when things looked
the worst"
Mr.. Leech smoke very highly of the hospi-
tality shown them in Siberia by the natives
and the Russians. Il never met such hos
pitabe people, he said whether civilized
or savage, it was Just the same. They made
US welcome to the best they had though
when we first got among the natives that was
nothing better than rotten geese-geese that
had been killed three or four months previ-
GUS and kept in frozen condition for flu
ture consumption. Oh, they were not so
bad, when you can't get anything else.
But the natives ought to start
tin-canning establishment" Mr..
Leech had both feet frost-btten in
the boats. One of the crew cut off half of
one toe with jackknife but could not am
putate the bone. That job was reserved for
a Russian doctor in Siberia, who completed
the operation with an instrument which,
Mr.. Leech said, Cooked very much like a
huge pair of sheep-shears and when, after
much squeezing, the bone snapped l thought
my leg was gone. But my feet don't trouble
me much now"
ASK him about Helen" said Frank
Manson, who was stretched at full length on
a bed Awaiting himself of the suggestion
the reporter asked Mr.. Leech about Helen.
Helen" said Mr. Leech, was the daugh-
ter of priest at Yakutsk, and there is no
denying was awfully in love with her. So
were some of the other boys, but l cut them
out l had learned just enough of Russian
to be able to make love to her. She swore
that she'd marry me if I'd take her to Amer
lea, and l agreed Everything looked lovely,
although the father objected somewhat and
a Russian was prowling about after her
But, as bad luck would have it, just as had
begun to think myself the happiest man liv-
ing [ had to go north to join a searching
party, and while was away the Russian,
backed by the father, settled my case by
marrying the girl"