Los Angeles daily herald., 1884-10-23
SCHLEY.
His Report of the Greeley Relief
ExuedfffOm.

Expedition.
WASHINGTON, Oct. 22.-The report Of Com
modore windheld Scott schley OF the expe-
dltion under his command for the relief OF
the Greeley party, has been submitted to the
Secretary of the Navy. 1t cites the orders
under which the expedition was organized,
chen enters upon graphic narrative of the
events of the voyage, but By far the most in
teresting portion of the report Is that de-
scribing the discovery and rescue of
Lieut.. Greeley and HIS men. Commo-
dore Schley relates as follows concerning
the impressive scene inside Greely's tent.
Lieutenant ,;n GreelIy was ss, found in his tent
head resting upon his left hand. book OF
common prayer was open and held In his
right hand. He appeared to be reading
prayers to private Carroll, whose condition
cold cold to the waist ali n sensation sic oi hunger s we
was gone. and he was speechless and almost
breathless, his eyes were fixed aud
CLASSY. Indeed, his weakness was
such that s i was with difficaliy ,o, h. he
Green and Ames. His jaws had dropped.
his heart was barely ptIlsating and his bod
temperature was getting. low. This tender
scene OF a helpless and almost famished
itself one that brought tears TO the eyes Of
the strongest and stoutest OF those who stood
about them ON the merctfnl errend OF relief.
sergents Brainard and freoericks and nos
weak and hardly able to stand; they were
no longer able to venture away from their
camp to seek food norto prepare their sim
pie diet Of boiled sealskin, nor TO collect
iichens. nor to catch shrimps, upon which
they had to depend to great extent TO- sus-
tain life. Their faces, hands and limbs
were swollen 20 such an extent they could
not be recognized. This indicated that the
tr..w 49, I..1 I.a Oh. La -
probably not more than forty eight hours ut
BY BY them them ali, and had COME come to
them from their experience during that
long and desolate winter In watching their
passed away from. amongst them forever.
Poor Sergeant Ellison was found In his
sleeping bag. where he had lain helpless
and hopeless for months. with hands and
feet frozen off. Strapped TO one OF the
stumps was a spoon, which some companion
had strapped there TO enable him to feed
himself. His physical condition otherwise
appeared to be the best OF any OF the snrviy-
ors This may be owing % 70 re G iact ti. that each
their small allowance Of food something to
help him on account OF his helplessness to
add anything to his own by hunting about
the rocks for lichens or catching shrimps
ertion incident thereto. This case OF Ellison
was such as only brave and generous men
suffering with each other under the most
desperate circumstances could think of
though In somewhat better condition than
some of the others. His Office OF hunter for
the starving party had made 1t necessary to
increase slightly his pittance Of food to
maintain his strength that he might con-
tinue to battle for food and life. In his
case, however, the effect Of this continued
effort had told Its story on his wasted form.
Shorter and shorter Journeys were made in
good weather, while in the frequent bad
wss weather so much ha' sgos s as. strength Ssn
the joyful signal whistle was heard
he had only enough strength left
to stagger out to the rocks overlooking the
water. to see II the signal heard had pro-
ceeded from ship In sight. His first visit
was a bitter Disappointment, as he saw
nothing. The second visit, fifteen minutes
later, brought him within fifty yards Of the
Bears steam cutter. and In view OF the
When the cutter ran into the beach, Long
was seen to roll down the ice covered cliff,
and was token into the cutter He inform
ed Lieutenant ColwelI that the location OF
the. cimp was just over the cliff.
officers were fearful from the, first that his
chances of life were very small. As soon as
healthful food was available and his digest
i've functions should be re established fully
healthful round of blood circulation
would begin its distribution Of new life to
the injured parts and inflammation
would naturally occur. II EIlison's
strength should increase more rapidly than
the Inflammation, amPutation OF the in
jured parts would perhaps save his life.
Several days after his rescne, June 2sth, DIR.
Green reported that Ellison was threatened
with congestion Of the brain. The symp-
toms increased rapidly until the poor fellow
was SO critical that the surgeon of the expe
dition, after CONSULTATION, determined to
amputate both his feet above the
ancie. as the only chance Of life left
triumphed amid the black scene that had
surrounded him for three years in his heroic
sacrifice, and within tho desolaie solitude OF
that region ef everlasting ice and snow. sur
rounded by his sorrowing comrades, he
passed away. Lieut. Greeley was physically
the weakest, but mentally the most vigorous
of his party. He had lain In his sleeping
bag for weeks. on account OF his gradually
failing strength. He YVES unable to
aud was almost helpless. except in
sitting posture, and all pangs OF hunger had
ceased. His appearance was wild, his hair
was long and unkempt, his face and hands
covered with sooty black dirt. his body
scanfily covered with worn out clothes, his
form was wasted, his joints swollen and his
eyes sunken. His first inquiry was II they
were not Englishmen, but when he was told
they were his own countrymen, he paused
IbT noiutut, US II TtutttinB, tutu Nhlu,
''And am glad to see YOU" The condition
OF his camp was In keeping with the scene
inside the tent, desperate and desolate, the
bleak harrenness OF spot over which the
wild Arctic bird would not fly, The row of
graves on little ridge one hundred feet
away. with protruding heads and feet OF
those lately buried, was a sad but silent wit
ness to the daily increasing weakness Of the
little band OF survivors. The deserted winter
quarters I'm the hollow below with its
broken wall invaded by the water from
the melting snow and Ice above 1t.
the dead bodies OF two ocompanions stretched
on the ice, all that remained Of the wretched
apology for cooking utensils improvised by
the men In their sore Distress hardly de-
serving the name, and the scattered and
worn out clothes and sleeping bags of the
dead. the absence OF all food save few
cups full Of boiled sealskin scraps. the wild
overlooking and overhanging the desolate
camp, completed picture as startling as 1t
was impressive. / hope never again in my
life to look upon sucn wretchedness and
such destimiion. The picture was more
have ever dreamed could be possible. In
beholding II, l stood for q moment almost
unnamed, then realized that II the expedi-
tion had demonstrated any one thing more
than another 1t was that an hour had its
value to at least one OF that party. stouter
hearts than mine felt fun OF sorrow. Eyes
that had not wept for years were moistened
with tears In the solemnity Of that precious
hour in the lives of that heroic little band OF
sufferers. until this moment so hopeless and
helpless.
The rem iinder of the report was taken up
with description OF the exhumstio Of the
dead bodies and getting them on board the
ship and MEASURES adopted for their preser
yation. In this connection II Is stated that
In preparing the bodies OF the dead for
transportation In alcohol to st. John, 1t was
found that six OF them. Lieut.. Kislingburg,
sergts. Jewell and Ralston, privates Whist
Ter. Henry and Ellis, had been cut and the
neshy parts removed to greater or less ex-
tact
Commodore schley speaks In terms Of the