National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1884-01-05
THE aRnELY RELIEF BOARD.
Opinions OF Or. Emit Bcssels and Others
J as to Arctic Navigation.

Opinions OF Or. Emit Bcssels and others
as to Arctic Navigation.
DIR. Emil Bessels chief of the scientific
corps Of the Polaris expedition, by invitation
gave the Greedy relief board yesterday his
opinions respecting the proper course to be
taken for tho relief of Lieut.. Greedy and
party. He favored an expedition in vessel,
not too large, TO Payer harbor, Cape Sabine,
and from that point, in case the water should
not be open so as to permit further northing
by the ship, several boats should be sent up
along the west coast of the sound.
These boats should by all means be &C
compsnied by "umraks"-light wooden
frames covered with leather. Capt. Graak
explored the east coast Of Greenland in
}umraks
( In going up the vessel should make careful
search for the Greedy party along the coast of
Greenland. The vessel should not attempt
to cross Melville bay before the middle of
June, and should reach Payer harbor as soon
thereafter as the ice would permit Capt
Mares, In q private letter, had expressed the
opinion that the attempt to get north of
Payer harbor should not be made before the
latter part of August.
DR.. Bessels described at considerable
length, in answer to questions by the board,
his experience with the Polaris-the clothing
food &c., which that experience showed TO
be most serviceable for the Arctic exploration
land the chances for subsistence upon the
game of the country. He described tho
cairns made at Polaris bay by tho Polaris,
but was unable to state tho amount of their
present contents, not knowing how much tho
English expedition had taken from them.
Ae thought Greedy would not BIO able to
GROSS the sound to make use of those supplies
I'm any event. The Polaris people made sew
bral attempts to cross from Polaris bay harbor
TO Lady Franklin bay, but were unsuccessful.
grhe leads were too narrow to be navigatcd
}and too wide for sledging
"a There we're two or three slight attacks of
Iscurvy on tho Polaris, attributable, DIR.
Bessels thought, to the dampness of the
+ quarters and clothing, and not to the food.
Tho disorder made its appearance at time
when there was an abundant supply of fresh
meat, and the steward who had charge of all
4 tho stores and was naturally we'll supplied
/ personally, was the first man attacked.
Drinking water was to be obtained from borg
| ice. 1t contained no trace of saline matter.
| Lieut.. Colwell was introduced to tho board
| and asked If he had any advice to give in an
! jdition to that embodied in the letter deiv-
| Tered to the board by Lieut.. Darlington. He
1 said 1t would BIO necessary il relief was to BIO
| (afforded to Greedy to get the vessel on the
4 spot at the earliest possible moment. "If"
! Tho said, 'Mr. Greedy is going to need relief,
lhe is going to need it next spring. If he
i lcomes down from his place next spring to
4 jLittloton island, he will there find no sup.
\ plies. and will need them as soon as vessel
can get to him. For that reason think the
vessel should get up there to communicate
with him from Cape York at the earliest mo-
ment. If the vessel is not there early, you
\ will find Scotch whaler up there ahead of us.
The all know the party is there, and Little
ton island will be only days run out Of
their way. 1t will pay them to get up thore
ms a business operation and bring the party
Sdown here"
~ The last person to appear before the board
y yesterday was Mr.. George KEENAN,, of this
city, who was called as an expert in the
methods of sledging and camping out in
winter practiced by the natives of Arctic
Asia. In reply to questions asked by Lieut..
Davis Mr. hKennan said that his Arctic ex-
perience was comprised in three years Of
active service in northeastern Siberia, where
in the course Of the time mentioned, he
travelled on sledges about 1000 miles He
had only two or three suggestions to offer
with regard to the general question of
affording relief to Lieut.. Greedy, and they
were as follows: First. He thought the
United States government should offer n suit
able reward to the officers and crew of any
whaling vessel that should succeed in succor-
ing or relieving Lieut.. Greely's party at the
head of Batfin bay next spring. The whaling
feet from st. Johns and Dundee. he said,
!comprised 12 or 10 ships, and it entered
the bay every year on its way to Lancaster
sound in the month of May. The route fol-
lowed by these fellows was up the Greenland
of Cape York, and thence across the head OF
Bafiin bay just south of Smith sound to the
coast of Grinnell land. 1t would be COM
paratively easy, he said, for the captains
of these vessels, after crossing Melville
bay to open communications with the Cape
York Eskimo, and among those Eskimo the
survivors of the Lady Franklin bay party
should first DO sought. If Lieut.. Greedy and
his men came down to the mouth Of Smiths
% sound last fall and were unable, on account
of the lateness Of the season, to reach Uper-
&8navik in boats, they would seek food and
u shelter in the Eskimo settlements, and as
they might by next spring be living there in
IL 1extreme restitution and distress, it was eX-
Z 9tremely important to utilize every chance Of
K4lgetting relief to them at the earliest possible
moment. reward would stimulate the
e officers and crews of whaling vessels
4 10 find them and afford them such relief, and
las the whalers would probably be first on the
ground, it should be made worth their while
10 stop at Capo York, communicate with the
natives across the shore ice, and succor the
Freely survivors, if the latter were there.
In 1881, Mr.. KEENAN, said, fourteen whalers
had passed Cape York before the time when
the Proteus, last spring, left the harbor of st.
John.
Mr.. Remnants second suggestion was that
the chairman of the board write at once to
Sir George Mares, to Capt Stephenson, who
wintered at Lady Franklin bay in the Dis
cpvery in 1S75-'16, and to Commander Mark
ham, asking for advice and recommendations.
The officers named. he said, were probably
the best living authorities upon Smiths
sound and the region north of 1t, and their
suggestions would have tho highest value.
AS third general suggestion Mr.. KEENAN,
urged the Importance of prompt selection
of leader for the proposed expedition.
In reply to questions from Lieut.. Davis,
Mr.. Kcnnan described in detail the travelling
and camping methods of the Siberian natives
COs6ackS. the sladpes clOthinp snow
shoes, food, &C., and pointed out what he re-
garded as the advantageous features Of each.
At o'clock tho court adjourned.
ID
~ Revenues OF the POstofiice.
A statement prepared by the sixth auditor
Z IL 4 Il.