Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1884-08-21
NUMBER IS.
HORRORS OF THE GREELEY EXPE.
DITI0N.

in connection with the Greeley expedi-
ton shocking stories of inhumanity and
cannibalism. All the facts have been
in the possession of Secretary Chandler
for three weeks, but have been closely
guarded. For the sake of humanity
the authorities are endeavoring to keep
the matter hushed, but the facts will
undoubtedly come out. 1t will be re-
membered that in Commander Schley's
first dispatch to Secretary Chandler,
announcing the finding of the Greeley
party, he said: II would urgently Sug-
gest that the bodies now on board be
placed in metallic cases here for safer
and better transportation in sea way.
This appears to me imperative. As Mr..
Chandler was in West Point the dis
patch was answered by Rear Admiral
Nichols He said: Use your own dis
erection about care and transportation of
bodies Secretary Chandler afterward
telegraphed: Prepare them according
to your own Judgment
1t took some days to prepare the iron
caskets, which were all bolted and
riveted 1t was remarked at the time
by experienced officers that this would
have hardly been necessary for the
preservation of frozen bodies They
could safely have been brought on in
wooden collins. The design was OBJ
viously to prevent the friends of the
dead being given an opportunity to look
at their remains. Even the sailors on
the relief ships, with the exception of
few who assisted in removing the bodies,
were not allowed to see them. When
Commander Schley met Secretary
Chandler and General Hazen at Ports
mouth on the arrival of the ships from
st. Johns, he was much agitated and
called the gentleman into the cabin.
Undoubtedly he then communicated to
them the fact.
The sufferings and privations of the
men in their canvass hut during the bit
ter winter of 1883, have not half been
told. 1t has been published that after
the game gave out, in February, they
lived on sealskins, lichens, and shrimps.
As matter of fact, they were kept alive
on human flesh. When the rescuing
party discovered the survivors, one of
them. o German, was wild in his de-
lirium. "Oh," he shrieked, as The
sailors took hold of him, don't let
them shoot me as they did poor Henry.
Must L be killed and eaten as poor
Henry was? Don't let them do it.
Don't! Don'tr'
The sailors were Mortified and report
ed the words to Commander Schley.
After brief investigation he felt salts
fled that some of the men who persisted
had been stripped of their flesh to keep
the surviving comrades alive. He in
structed two or three gentlemen, among
whom was DR.. Ames, the surgeon of
the bear, to make a careful examination
and put their conclusions in writing
This was done and the reports are now
in the department. Greedy was ayerse
to having the bodies of the dead dis
turbed. He thought it wise, as they
had been buried SO long, to let them re-
main in their arctic graves. Schley did
not agree with him. The bodies were
dug from their graves. Most of the
blankets contained nothing but heaps
of white bones, many of them picked
clean. The remains could be identified
only by marks on the blankets. Schley
discovered that many of the seventeen
men said to have persisted from starva-
resort, Death stared the hungry and
crazed men in the face, but there was
hope if life would hold out for even a
few weeks. The only men who escaped
the knife were three or four who died
of scurvy. The amputated limbs of
men who afterward were eagerly de
voured.
Charles B. Henry death was partic-
ularly tragic. He was young German,
without relatives in this country, and
joined Company f, Fifth Cavalry, in
Cincinnati. His friends tried to dis
suade him from going, but his spirit of
adventure was aroused by tales of Are
tic exploits, and he determined to go.
Driven to despair by hunger Henry
tried to steal little more than his share
of rations. He was fonnd out and shot.
In the official report the death is set
down as having occurred June G. When
the body was found his hands and face,
though shrunken, were still intact, but
nearly everywhere the skin had been
stripped and the flesh picked from the
bones. Even his heart and lungs were
eaten. One rib was shattered by ball,
and to another fragments of lead at
tached. A bullet hole was in the skin.
The body was in this condition when it
was inferred in Cypress Hill Cemetery
last Saturday. The letter his friend,
Robert S. Obefelder, OF Sidney. Neb.
is daily looking for viii probably never
come to light.
| The survivors were 10th to talk of the
horrible experience they lad passed
/ nh ht1t of #
their evidence was taken in writing.
Greedy said he wished the men had been
rescued by the army instead of the
navy. Of course, it was impossible to
keep the actual state of affairs from the
crew, but absolute silence was imposed
upon them. The officers were not al
| lowed to talk of what had occurred in
their presence. One man, who openly
spoke in the mess-room about the inhu-
mainly of using fragments of human
! flesh as bait for shrimps was severely
reprimanded. Not word of the facts
was given to anybody until Schley made
his report.
A reporter questioned few officers
on the relief ships at the navy yard last
evening. Some of them asserted fatty
that the bodies were not mutilated
when found, and secuted cannbalism
Others admitted that the bodies were
shocking to look upon, but attributed
it TO the storm and the ice. The re-
mains were wrapped in cloths as soon
as possible, and some of the party did
not see them at all. Schley declined to
have anything to say about the bodies
more than in his official dispatch
'Did you see Henry's body?' he was
asked.
Il did not.
"Of what did he dep
Starvation or scuryy, | belive.
do you know whether he was shot?'
Il am not prepared to answer that
| question, said the commander, hurried
ly, land furthermore, | positively de-
cline to be interviewed When an
official inquiry is made into the details
OF the trip, | shall say what | have to
say, if anything, and not before. !"
Without another word the commander
hurried below.
The members of the crew were more
communicative, but conflicting in their
statements Enough was said however
TO confirm some of the ugly stories
afoat At least dozen admitted that
Henry was shot for stealing food, and
one man gave the name of the suryiv-
or who was compelled to shoot him.
! This, however, could not be verified.
All but few of the sailors on the Bear
hn1 faA