Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-12-18

tion of the wind and the condition Of the
sea. Their journal does not mention auroral
phenomena. They, however, most faith
fully carried out all the observations they
were told to make Quite a large number
of white bears visited them during the
winter, and as the Austrian expedition of
ten years ago saw only two or three, these
animals seem to have largely diminished
in that region within the past two centuries
and halt
During the fall the party were able to
collect few herbs to eat as a salad, and 1t
was not until late in the winter that they
began to suffer terribly from scurvy. On
March 10 bear was killed and the record
says that as they had long eaten nothing
but salt meat, this provision of fresh food
greatly rejoiced them. At this time all
were victims of scurvy. A week later
they wrote that the lack of fresh provisions
had caused them at last to lose courage.
They were so feeble that their legs could
hardly support them. The record'of their
sufferiDgs from day to day invariably closes
with report of the weather observations
they had been instructed TO make.
The Keeper of the Record Dies.
April was the fatal month. On April 8,
only two of the seven sailors were able to
get out of DOORS The two last fowls were
killed and given to the men who were sui
fering most, in the hope to restore a little
of their strength. This nourishment did
them much good, and the party longed for a
few dozen more fowls. The dog was kept
as last resource. On April 16 the writer
of the record died. The next entry reads:
May the Lord have mercy on his soul and
upon us. for we are all very sick. The wind
is blowing fresh from the East.
The only man in the party who, when it
landed on the island, knew how to write,
was the first to die, and the work of keep
ing the record then devolved upon another
who had learned to write during the winter.
Thereafter the record was very badly
written and spelled. On April 10 the
sailor wrote:
We have not particle of fresh provi-
sions, and our condition grows worse from
day to day. We see no hope OF recovery
now, for we lack the things we most need
to check the scurvy and to ward OF the
effects of the terrible cold. If we were in
good health we could exercise and keep onr-
selves warm, but now this is impossible.
We are all so sick that we can scarcely
stand, and there is little hope left. We de-
pend on the mercy OF God. The wind and
the weather are the same as yesterday.
The Second Record Keeper Dies.
On April % this record appears in the
journal:
To- day no one is able to help himself ex-
cepting me. All the work of assisting others
has now fallen upon me. lam doing my
duty as well as l can, and l shall do it as
long as God gives me the strength to move.
At this moment went to help our Captain,
who asked me to lit him from his bed. He
seems to be dying, and he thinks that this
change will diminish his suffering5. The
night has been cloudy, and the wind as it
was yesterday.
Here is the record of the last few days:
April 27.-The day is damp. To-day we
killed our dog to have little fresh meat
1t cannot help us much. The night was
cloudy but without wind.
April 29.-In the night the wind changed
to the northeast.