New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-07-27

at Cane Sabine will form the subject of an oil
cal inquiry.
Now we must confess that these dclivcrances
Of critics who are accurately informed after the
events i'm question have been brought to light ito
moi impress us rs being very important 80 lar rs
Lieutenant Grccly is concerned, II Is manllrSty
unfair to condemn him before he has had I'm op-
portunitv of telling his story in detail. lie
abandoned his steam launch of Cape Sabine
before he had learned of the disastrous failure ol
the relief expedition. Probably he had no
rhnicc. All the boats were frozen IN the pacl
on Victoria Head ON August -. and for thir-
teen DAYS ho was drifting with the foa. When
ho ATTEMPTED to land hc was driven back by u
storm. and il WIS not until September - that
he reached the shore. For thirty days hc hhd
been drifting with the Hoe, aud aa he landed nj
Baird Inlet IL is plain that the Ice Wna carrying
him ont loNptd lhnna linv, Then fnr The
ntal time hr rhinrd chat There Wa no help ut
hand and only u limited quantity of Huppllr''
lio led hia men back 90 Cape sabine took hh
inventory of prov 7ions, and decided to ~ into
camp for the winter
Lieutenant Glcely's inventory showed that
the supplies would last until March, when he
cNpcctcd that Smith Sound would be frozen
over and they could march across the Zee To
Littlcton Island with ten days rations During
the winter their remaining boats we've burned Tor
Grc-wood rs a matter of necessity and rs the
Soupd did not freeze over thcir retreat to Lit
fiction Island was cut of. Only two cXpcdients
were open to them in the spring-an attempt to
nrocure the provisions left by the English at
Cape Isabella, and constant efforts to repIehlSh
their scanty stock of food by hunting. Both
cxpcdicnts failed to relieve their suflerngs, and
three-fourths of the party died from starVa-
ton. Everything, however indicates that
Lieutenant Greedy acted throughout with eN-
ccllcnt Judgment. 1t was terrible struggle Tor
life. and he did what he could to save his men.
The expectation that the Sound would hceze
over WAS a mi,calculation which the most cX-
nericncrd Arctic navigator would have made.
Neither ought Lieutenant Greedy TO be con
dcmned for the general plan of relief which his
supcrorS carried ont at his request. lie had
chosen Littlcton Island rs the site for the relief
station, and not without good reason. Expert
cnce had shown that the western shore was
bleak, barren, unnhabtahlc and destitute OF
animal life. Littlcton Island was ON the east
crn shore where there was an abundance 81
animal life, and where natives mad rendered
assistance to the poaris survivors and to o'hrr
Arctic castavayS. II is easy now to say that
the station should have been on the other side
and that stores should have been landed at
Capr Sabine before thc rtotcus entered the zee;
but neither Lieutenant Greedy nor any o.Iicla
in Washington happened to be endowed with
cluryoyant munitions.
The responsibility for the failure of the relief
expedition cannot be shifted from Lieutenant
Gnlinelon's shoulders. Ills instructions may
have been faulty in some respects and Com
mandcr Wdos may not have been allowed
sufficient liberty to exercise discretion; bat the
blame must be- allotted elsewhere. Lieutenant
Darlington ordered the ProtcuS into the ice in
imposition 10 the advice and rcmonstranccs OF
Captnin Pike; aud the ship WAS crushed. If
he had tokcu that veteran unNigltor's advice
and waited rorty-rght hours thc lrotrus would
have bad ~ clear passage acro-. smith sound
and the Grccl, colony would have been rescued.
Tine, would also have brou rescued If hc had
NOT headed stlmI cdc .outhNud WHOM hc lost
his shin. He had every reason 10 expect the
Nantic the FIRST week. in August II hc h1d
waited there aud begun preparations for the
winter. the original plan could have been
carried ont uuculy oll ~ details. This was
our Judgment last year. and IT has not been
altered hy the recent rcci1i-.