Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-08-12
HORRIBLE, IF TRUEy
4 Terrible Story Of Greelv's Dreary
Camp-It IL Denied By the Naval
Authorities.

4 sTArSxKNr THAT BRAVE xRN, cRAzBD By STAR
VATIoN AND Bitter COLD, FEEDING ON TIE
DEAD BODIES OF THEIR coHRApks-How PRIVATE
CHARLRS HENRY DIED
The New York Times OF to-day prints the follow
ing:
Written documents now In the possession Of the
Navy department at Washington add to the record
OF miserable human suffering already published in
connection With the nnding Of the Greedy relet ex-
Peditlon the most shocking stories OF inhumanity
and canniba!tsm. All the facts have been tn the
possession OF Secretary Chandler for nearly three
weeks, but 80 closely have they been guarded, and
so strictly have the naval olcers and sailors main
famed the silence imposed upon them, that not even
an lnk1ng OF the true and horrible condition of af
falrs has yet reached the puoic ear. For the sake
OF humanity and the American people the army
authof1ties are endeavor1ng to keep the matter
hushed, but In the on1cia Investigation, which is
almost sure to come, the facts In all will undoubt-
edly come out. Every effort will presumably be
taken 70 prevent 1t, but The truth must be known
In time II Will be remembered that in Commander
Schley's first dispatch to Secretary Chandler an
wnsd ahg aune OF sne aeely party he said
board be placed in metallic here for safer and bat
perativeh >1A' "pp'"'' " A' LIZ
As MI. Chandler was in West Point the dispatch
was answered by Rear Admiral Nichols, Acting
Secretary OF the Navy. He said:
yonr own discretion about care and transports-
Secretary Chandler afterward telegraphed:
Prepare them according to your Judgment and bring
It took some days to prepare the iron caskets
which were all bolted and riveted. 1t was remarked
AZ the Time by experienced officers that this would
hardly have been necessary for the presers alton Of
the fr zen bodies They could safely have been
3e aay %
Of frenos OF the dead sailors ing given oppor-
tunty to look at their remains for the purpose OF
tdenunratton or otherwise. Even the sailors on
the relief Ships, with the exception OF few men
who assisted In removing the bodies, were not
sealed. When Commander schey met Secretary
Chandler and Gen. Hazen at Portsmouth August
I'd. on the arrival OF the ships from St. Johns, he
into the cabin of the vessel. Undoubtedly he then
communicated to them the facts which have since
become an open secret
have dot half sesn tod has BEEN paSshed
they lived principally On sealskns, iichens and
shrtmpa As q matter OF tact, they we're kept alive
on human aesh. When the rescuing party dis
covered the half-Starved survivors their first duty
was TO looE 70 the TWO mn who were 1nssnsible
nom cold and prvatton, even to po mt OF death
'Oh," he shrieked as the sailors took hold OF him
to lift MIN tenderly, don't let them shoot me as
they did poor Henry: Must ! be killed and eaten
as Henry was? Don't let them do 1t. Don't: DON'T"
The sailors were horrined, but at once reported
the man't words to Commander Sch,ey After
brief investigation. he felt sotls1ed that the poor
fellow was speaking the truth, and that some OF
the men who perishad had been stripped OF their
nesh TO keep their surviving comrades alive. Mr.
When the horrible reality was brought out before
an investigating committee he did not propose to
have 1t rest solely on his oral testimony. He in
structed tive or three gentlemen, among whom was
pr Anes. the surgeon OF the Bear, to make care
fui examination and put their conclusions in
writing. This was cone, and the reports are now
In the hands OF the Navy department Lieut..
Greely WAS decidedly adverse to having the bodies
OF the buried dead disturbed. lie thou sht 1t wise,
as they had been buried go long let them remain
IA theiI arctic graves Commander Schley did not
agree with him: The bodies were dug from their
camp established In October, 1883. Most OF the
blankets contained nothing but heaps Of white
could be ldentined only BY the marks en- the
blankets BY inquiries Commander Schley discov-
cred That many OF the seventeen men who are said
their faMlshing comrades. 1t was the one last re-
sort. Provided supplies had not arrived. death
there was hope If life would hold out for even Ia
few weeks. 1t Is reported that the only men who
escaped the knife were three or four who died OF
scurvy. The amputated limbs OF men who after
ward perished were eagerly devoured as food
Charles B. Henry's death was particularly tragic
In Cincinnati His friends tried to dssaude him from
going with the expedition, but his spirit Of adven-
ture was aroused by tales Of arctic exploits aud he
determined 10 go Driven to despair by his fright
full hunger Henry saw an opportunity 70 stsal a
little moro than hts share Of Fations and he made
the attempt He was found out and shot for his
crime In the published official report the death Of
this man is set down as having occurred on June 9Th
though shrunken, were intact and recognizable,
but nearly everywhere else the skin had been
stripped from bin and the flesh picked from the
bones. Even his heart and lungs were eaten by his
comrsdes One rib was found shattered by bullet
ball, and to another small fragments OF lead were
attached bullet hole was found In the skin
The body was in this condition when 1t was in
TERED 10 Cypress Hills cemetery last saturday. The
letter his friend, Mr.. Robert 8. Oberfelier OF Sid
ney, Neb, Is daily looking for will probably never
Whether the four bodies which were swept out to
evidence to this story Of horrible cannieaiism eae @
NOT pc learned now, though the papers In the pos
session OF the Navy department. give all ths par
were 10th to talk OF tho horrible experience they
ma passed through but after promises Of absolute
course, It was impossible to keep the actual state
IMPOSED upon them. The of11cers were not allowed
to talk OF what had occurred IN their presence
One man who openly spoke in the mess room about
the inhumanlty OF using fragments Of human flesh
as palt tor Shr1mps was severely reprmanded.
Not word OF the facts was given to anybody until
Chandler.
A Times reporter questioned a few Of the officers
on the three relief ships as they made fast to their
them asserted fatty that the bodies OF the dead
sailors were not at all mut1lated when they were
found, and secuted al! ideas OF canuhalism Others
admitted that the bodies were shocking TO look
upon, but attributed IL to the storm and the ice The
eating story they believed TO be sailors yarn.
The remains OF the men were wrapped In cloths as
soon as possible after they were dug up, and some
OF the party did not see them at all Commander
Schley declined to have anything to say about the
public in his nrst Of1cial dispatch
..Dd you see Henrys b0dy2" he was asked
81 did not"
,'Or what did he DIET"
''Starvation or scurvy, believe, the same as the
Others"
..Do you know whether he was shot,
u am not prepared to answer that question:"
SAID the commander, hurrtedly, and furthermore I
poAtlvely decline to be interviewed When an
snau say what have to say, II anything. and not
before" Without another word the commander
hurried below.
The members OF the crew were little more COM
municat1ve, but conflicting in their statements
enough vas said, however, TO confirm some OF the
ugly stories anoak At least dozen OF the men ad-
United that Henry was shot for stealing food, and
compelled 10 shoot him. This, however, could not
be verified.
A Positive Denial Of the Story by Act.
Ing Secretary Nichols.
Admiral Nichols, Acting Secretary Of the Navy,
says that the New York Times story OF cannibal-
ism and inhumanity BY the Greely party. as tar as
he can judge is lie. The statement that there are
documents ana reports on nle at the Navy depart
ment, he sayA Is utterly false, he knows II the
Greely party Wa0 ever reduced to the extremity