Smyrna times., 1885-04-08
For the Smyrna Times
THE RESCUE OF LIEUTENANT
GREELY,

the closing chapters of Commander w.
5. Schley's story of the " Rescue of 1
Greedy" From it can be learned that
it would have been equally as well had
never conceived, and Gov
ernments carried into effect his plan of
stations, AT least so far as
this hapless expedition was concerned
1t is not easy to see how
a blind adherence to orders could en- {
tail so much suffering as is told, that by
the merest chance the starving sur
ViVOrs were found at Cape Sabine in
stead of at the spot assigned them in
their orders three years previous. Nor
can the censure be deserving to the ill
starred relief expeditions of lSS2-S3,
that did their best to place provisions
in reach of where Greedy expected to
come on his retreat instead of at the
bottom of the Arctic Ocean, or at play
ing hide and seek " in their endeaV-
ors to find each other in the narrOws of
Melville Bay, as is told of the relief eX-
DeditiOn of 1888. To much stress can
not be laid upon the evil consequences
flowing from the remarkable run of the
PrOteus in crossing Kane's Sea-" and |
up Lady Franklin Bay, with but ordi- |
nary difficulty to So Ofnorth Latitude. (
The PrOteus was the third ship that |
had ever done that thing and returned, |
and Lieut.. Greely was destined TO be |
deceived to his destruction by this very
achievement. 1t is true that DR.. Kane
in the AdCGRce sailed into Rennesaler
HarbOr in his expedition of 1854,
fine open bay" but where he remained
| two Years with the ice l3 feet thick
around his vessel, and at several de-
! grees latitude lower than Fort COnger.
| This very remarkable run of the
| Proteus in 1881, not only lesscned the
extreme dangers of Smiths Sound, but
stripped of its terrors the perilOus
navigation of Melville Bay, the grip
and nip Of this fearful gateway " was
made so subservient to orders that
ships were expected TO sail through it
| with ease, and this led TO trouble, not
alone to the Greedy party, but to the
succeeding relief expeditions OF 1888.
The first error was made in making
a depot of Littleton Island at the en-
trance to Smiths Sound, and distant
east from Cape Sabine tWenty-three
miles, without leaving party there to
communicate with Greedy who would
be expected to move southWard at the
end of two years. The second error,
and to some extent the most happy one
was the Cache of Provisions left at
Cape Sabine. 500 OF the $4,000 ratlOns
that went down in the PrOteuS in
Smiths Sound, and of which disaster
no record was left at Cape Sabine, or OF
the more extensive stores at LlttletOn
Island and the worst of all, the mistake
Greelv made in leaving Fort COnger
without making adequate preparations
to return in case he failed to cOmmu-
nicate with the relief parties. The
. reader is forced to draw this inference
from Commander Schley's book because
; the discovery of the party at Cape Sa-
! bine was as much of a surprise to him
as it was to the signal service at Wash
? ington, that they were not at Lttleton
a Island, as they should or were expected
tO he in pursuance of orders. And here
again is exemplihed, when the breath
less messenger came across the ice witt
I the news to Schley that papers relating
Il to Greely had been found, that upOr
their being opened they were found tC
he dated Sunday October 2lst, 1883
inst eight months previous, and as they
Stated with only forty days ration'
left that strange law of chance tina
often times acts better than trained in
. teIlipence. when turn of the rudde
4 would have sent the Thetis beyond thu
l. diving men in the tent at Cape Sabine
S. in their endeavOr to reach Fort Congo
). after finding no trace of the party a
- TittletOn Island. The fortunate tindln
= of these papers by chance, upset 1t
L true. the written instructions OF Com
le mander Schley what 10 do, but whel
1t the recall was sounded and the cutie
g. under Lieut.. COlwell to recover tn
al bodies of the dead pulled away for tn
~ shore the full force Of the serious blunC
= ers previously made were to be mad
- manifest. and so the story reads. Whe
Ill the cutter opened out beyond the Gov
Id on a little ridge, fifty yards or
Mt above the ice foot, was plainly outline
ct the figure of a man. The cOXsWal
II cauoht ND and waved his flag. II
- man on the ridge had seen them, Il
40 he picked up a signal flag from IL
OF rock and waved it in reply. Then
IN was seen coming down slowly and ca
,ut tiOuslv along the slope. Twice he fe
s. before he reached the foot as he a
si- Droached, still walking feebly and wit
difcultv. Colwell hailed him from Il
how of the boat "WhO all are the
ay left p, Seven left" He was a ghast
in SIGHT his cheeks were hollow, his ey
.he wild. his hair and beard long al
vas matted. His army blouse GOVERN
,ol several thickness of shirts and jacket
bo was ragged and dirty. He wore llt'
~ ~ fur cap, and rough moccasins OF u
!, -lii tanned leather tied arOuhd the It
he AS he spoke his utterance was IN!
Ter and mumbling, and in his agltatl'
1ut his laws worked in cOnVulslVe IWlUcn'
,ao AS the two met, the man, with sud-
tbo impulse, took Oft his glove ana sho
- COlwell's hand. mere are lhey
eel asked Colwell, briefly. " In the ten
1t said the man pointing over his should
yer "Over the hill-the tent Is down.
, to Mr.. Greedy alive? " Yes Greei
was alive" Amy other officers NJ
nod then he repeated absently," " the tt
. is down" Who are you Z" Long
'leu There was a confused murmer will
lual the tent, and voice said Wn
g q there ?" Norman answered IT'S n
led mau-Norman who was in the Proteu
wall This was followed by cries Of; On
- is Norman ~ and a.sOund like Zee
; in cheer. c 80.
-ueu who in his excitement anu dSllal
md, was freely crying, got down on
ace, hands and knees, trying TO roll aN
ned the stones that held down the tiapp
,IIod tent cloth. 1t was a tepik or wlgw
M nv tent with fly attached. The tiy i"
no its posts and ridge pole, had o.
ould wrecked by the gale which had D.
he blowing for thirty-six GhOurs and
rob- pole of the wigwam was toppling on
and and was only kept in place by the
luct ropes. There was no entrance, exc
49, under the flap opening, which was h
'iio down by stones. Colwell with
the knife slit the tent cover and looked
ting Close to the opening lay what was
lain parently dead man his jaw
rags, dropped, his eyes were open, but n
orv. and CLASSY, his limbs were mOtionl
'i 60, Opposite was poor fellow, alive,
iew without hands or feet, and with a sp
her tied to the stump of his right a
nseh Two others seated on the grounCC
IT at the middle, had got down rut
bottle that hung on the tent pole
were pouring from it into tin ca
few spoonfulls of brandy-their las
= On his hands and knees was a d
man with long matted beard,
dirtv and tattered dressing gown, '
often a lite red skull cap on his head