The herald., 1897-09-14
SEVEN MEN AND ONE WOMAN
THE ONLY SURVIVORS OF THE
NEVARCH CREW
Captain Whitesides Tells the Story Of
the Almost Miraculous Escape
From Death


SEATTLE, Wash, Sept. 13.-Two Of
the crew of the whaler Nevarch, lost in
the Arctic, together with thirtyf1ve of
her crew, came down on the steamer
Hum mboldt which arrived from st.
Michaels today. They are: Captain
Joseph Whitesides, the commander Of
the vessel and his wife.
The Nevarch left San Francisco
March last and entered the Arctic
ocean in July. She soon got caught in
the ice at point $50 miles northeast Of
Point Barrow. AT first Captain White
sides thought the ship could be extri-
Gated from its position, but on July 20
they realized there was no hope of such
an event. They hoisted signals of dis
tress, trusting that the revenue cutter
Bear, or some OF the other whalers of
the fleet would see them and come to
their assistance. But the fog came and
obscured them for days. They drifted
rapidly northward with the icebergs.
Finally they decided to leave the ship.
On August IA the whole crew took the
three small boats and started across the
ice. After dragging them for five miles
they came to open water and embarked.
The current caught them at once, and
before they had gone ten miles they were
in another ice pack. Then they discov-
cred they only had five days provisions
and they abandoned the boats and
started across the ice on foot They all
got back safely and then commenced
preparations for a second attempt to
save themselves. All but eight men
decided to push across the ice fields on
foot. The weather was not bit
terly cold but it was foggy and. disagree
able and necessitated more clothing
than was conducive to rapid travel. For
this reason limited amount of food was
carried, for they thought they would
surely reach the Bear or one of the Whai-
ers within two or three days. The eight
men left on the boat thought they were
better off than on the ice and were left
to their fate. Away across the treacher-
GUS ice went the thirty-seven men and
the gritty woman. But one day out the
captain and his wife and seven others
changed their minds about the likeli-
hood of saving themselves by the meth
cd they had undertaken. They w6'Ld
come to open water now and then,
which impeded their escape, while often
they would find it necessary to go far
around massive icebergs rearing their
precipitous sides directly in their path.
Nine of the party went back to the ship,
leaving twenty-nine on the ice. Moth
irg has been heard or seen or these
twenty-nine men since that day-AuS-
ust 18th.
The party got back to the ship safely
and on August IA another start was
made, with eight in the party, Captain
Whitesides, his wife, First Mate Blaine,
Fourth Mate Read and Seamen Scott,
Lechow, Milne and Peters. They took
small canvas boat, into which they
packed weeks provisions. 1t was heavy
load for the little craft but this was the
last hope and they had to take desperats
chances Only the fact that the sea was
comparatively quiet accounts for the
miraculous escape, for any rough wealth
er would have instantly swamped them.
They got into clear water in few hours,
and padding through the fog and dark
ness, avoided as best they could the
drifting ice. They cruised on four hours.
Finally they could go no further by boat
and got out and walked over the ice.
For sixty hours they kept on walking
and boating. At last land was seen.
The land proved to Copper island, bar
rem, desolate spot, from which position
they were rescued on the following day
by the Bear.
Captain Whiteside thinks the twenty
nine men on the ice are surely lost.