The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1884-10-30
The Greedy RELIEF Expedit,vn RcDor,

the expedition under bie command tor
the relief of the Greedy party, has been
submitted % the secretary OF the navy.
IL cttes the orders under which the ex-
petition was organized, and then enters
upon graphic narrative OF the events of
the voyage. But by far the most inter
estlng portion of the report Is that de-
scrlbing the discovery and rescue of
Greedy and his men. SchleY relates as
follows The impressive scene inside the
Greedy tent: Lieut. Greeley was found
in hls sleeping bag. bis body inclined
forward and has head resting on his left
hand. the book of common prayer open
and held in his right hand. He ap
peared to be reading prayers to Private
Cornell, whose condition was most des-
perate and critical. He was cold to
the waist. All sensation of hun
ger was gone. He was speechless and
almost breathless, His eyes were fixed
and almost CLASSY Indeed, his weak
ness was such that it was with difficulty
he swallowed the stimulants given him
by Drs. Green and Ames. His jaws had
dropped. His heart was barely puIsat-
ing and his body temperature was very
low. This tender scene, of q helpless,
almost famished officer, consolIng his
dying companion, was Ia itself one that
brought tears TO the eyes OF the strong
est and stOutest of those who stood
around him on the mercitul errand of
relief. Sergeants Bralnard and Fred
ericks and Hospital Steward BREEDER
back were extremely weak and hardly
able to stand They were no longer able
to venture away from their camp to seek
TODD, nor to prepare their simple diet of
boiled sealskiD, nor to collect llchens,
nor to catch shrimps upon which they
had TO depend to q great extent TO sus-
tain life. Their faces, hands and limbs
we're swollen to such an extent
they could not be recognized.
This indicated that the entire
party had but short lease of life, prob
ably not more than foTty-eight hours at
the most This fact was recognized by
them all, and had come to them from
their experience during that long and
desolate winter in watching their dying
companions as one after another passed
away from among them forever. Ser
gesnt Ellison was found in his sleeping
bag, where he had lain helpless and
hopeless for months. with his hands and
feet frozen off. Strapped to one OF the
stumps was found spoon which some
companion had strapped there to enable
him TO feed himself. His physical con-
dition otherwise appeared TO be the best
of any OF the SURVIVORS. and this may be
attributed to the fact that each of the
companions had doled out TO him from
out their small allowance something to
help him on account of his complete
helplessness to add anything to his own
by hunting about the rocks for lichens
or catching shrimps He suffered
no waste of strength by exertiDg him
self. This incident of the care of ELL
son was such as only brave and gener-
Gus men, suffering with each other under
the most desperate circumstances, could
think of.
Sergeant Long was much reduced,
though In somewhat better condition
than some of the others. His office of
hunter for the starving party had made
it necessary to increase slightly his pit
! lance of food to maintain his strength,
that he might continue the battle for
food and life to the helpless. In his
case, however, the effect of this con.
| tinued effort had told its story in his
wasted form. Shorter and shorter jour
| neys were made in good weather, while
in the frequent bad weather In the re-
| gion his strength was so much impaired
that when the joyful signal whistle was
heard he had only enough left
| to stagger out to the rocks
| overlooking the water to see
if the signal he heard had proceeded
from a ship in sight. His first visit was
a bitter disappointment, as he saw moth
| ing. A second visit fifteen minutes later
brought him within fifty yards of the
Bears steam cutter and in view OF the
relief ships coming around Cape Sabine.
When the steam cutter ran Into the beach
where Long was seen he rolled down
the Recovered cliff and was taken into
the cutter. He informed Lieut.. Colwell
that the location of the camp was just
over the cliff. In the case of Sergeant
Ellison, the medical officers were fearful
from the first that his chances of life
were very small. AS soon as healthful
food was available and digestive func-
tons should be established fully. q
healthful round of blood circulation
would begin its distribution of new life
to the injured parts and Inflammation
would naturally occur. 1t EllIson's
strength should increase more rapidly
than the Inflammation, amputation OF
the injured parts would perhaps
save his life. Several days after
his rescue June %, DR.. Green
reported that Ellison was threatened
with congestion of the brain. The symp.
toms increased rapidly until the poor
fellow lost his reason. At Good Haven
his condition was SO critical that the
surgeons of the expedition, after consul
t6tion, determined to amputate both
feet above the ankle, as the only chance
tor the life of the sufferer. The disease
however, trIumpbed, amid the bleak
scenes that surrounded him for three
years, in his heroic sacrifice and within
the desolate solitude OF that region o.
everlasting ice and snow, surrounded by
his sorrowing comrades, he passed
away.
Lieutenant Greeley was physically thu
weakest, but mentally the most vIgor
Gus OF the party. He had lam in hi
sleeping bag tor weeks on account
of his gradually failing strength
He was unable to stand alone tor any
length of time aud was almost helpless
except IN sitting posture. All pang
, of hunger had ceased. His appearance
was wild His hair was long and IN
! kempt. His face and hands COvere'
with sooty, black dirt; his body scaDtll'
, covered with wornout clothes. Hi
, torn was wasted. his joints swollen ant
! his eyes sunken. His inquiry was /
they were not Englishmen, but when b
was told we were his own countryme
he paused for a moment as if rejecting
\ then said: 81 am glad to see you.
The condition. OF his camp was in keel
e ing with the scene inside the tent. De
= perate and desolate, the bleak barrier
ness of the spot over which
!, wild Arctic bird would not fly
. the row of graves on little ridge 10
feet away, with the protruding heads an
= feet of those lately bnri, d, a sad bI
n silent witness to the daily increasin
weakness of the little band OF SURVIVOR
the deserted winter quarters In the no
low below with its broken wall invade
"a by water from the melting snow and il
u above it; the dead bodies of two COZ
panions stretched on the ice foot that r
mained the wretched apology for cool
lie ing utensils impTovlsed by them
IS their sore distress, hardly deserving u
II name; the scattered and worn out cloth
1t and sleeping bags of the dead; the q
u sence of all food save a few cupfuls
Is boiled sealskin scraps; the wild al
If weird scene of snow, ice and glacie
20 overlooking ana Overhanging the des
is late camp, completed picture as stat
b. ling as 1t was impressive. / hope neY
IN again in my life to look upon SUI
e. wretchedness and such dSstitution. II
De picture was more startling and mo
y deeply pathetic than had ever dreaI
u ed could be possible. In beholdIDg j
is stood for a moment almost unmannC
e, and then realized that if the expo ditl'
or had demonstrated any one thing mo
u than another, It was that an hour b
ITS value 10 at least one of that part
Stouier hearts than mine felt full OF sc
row. Eyes that had not wept for yes
rs were moistened with tears in the sole
d. nifty of that precious hour in the lives
that heroic little band of sufferers, u
til this moment so hopeless ard bel
ne less.
IL The remainder of the rep
he is taken up with descr
10 toe of the exhumation of the de
I'd bodies, getting them on board of sh
ed and the measures adopted lor toeir pr
er, erVatlon In TINS conhectlnn II u ssa'
err that in preparing the bodies of the de
les for transportation in alcohol to
10 Johns, it was found that six of the
W. Lieutenant KislingbuFy, Sergeants Je
90 ell aud RalstoE, PFivates Whistler. HI
n ~ aud ELLA, had been cut, and
= 6lahv marta removed tn A 0roatsr or L