Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-03-10
with the Bear in Alaska.


Herbert w. Spear Of Quincy,wh is an |
engineer in the revenue cutter service |
of the government, was suddenly or |
dered to go to Alaska on the cutter Bear |
toward the latter part OF last NoNem- |
Der. Engineer Spear had been serving |
ON the Gresham, on the great lakes, |
when he was ordered To the Grant at |
Port Townsend on the Pacific coast.
When he arrived at his post he found
government orders waiting him there,
which directed him to take command
of the engineers department on the
Bear. and accompany that vessel on
her trip to the relief of the ice-im-
| prisoned whalers al Point Barrow.
| There was no time to make prepare
| ton for the voyage, and Engineer
| Spear was obliged to leave without
having chance to write to his people
| In Quincy.
| His family have received messages
| this week from Alaska, where the Bear
| Is in winter quarters. This is the first
| opportunity that Engineer Spear has
| had TO communicate with his people.
| Writing from Ounaaska. Engineer
| Spear says; ~ was wholly unprepared
for this trip in the way of clothing.
| but | did manage to buy three flannel
shirts, pair of trousers and some
heavy shoes and few other articles
of Mr.. Whitworth. who had been north
| last season. You know this expedition
was fitted out partly by the govern
ment and partly by the newspapers
Of San Francisco, the Call and the En-
! aminer. The newspapers furnished the
food and most of the cloJhing. and the
| government did the rest. | arrived so
late that | didn't get much clothing,
though what they furnished the officers
isn't worn very much, for they evil
IDENTIFY expected we were going to spend
the winter in n temperature OF about
so degrees below zero.
"E,uph nfficar Ivns furnished with "a
suit of fur clothing, consisting of a
parkey Ga thing like n shirt, with "A
hood to ip and a pair of trousers. one
pair of nayinky boots tmade OF seal
skin, with the hair on and with wal
rus hide soles), three suits of under
wear, two of silk and one of channels
skin. and some very heavy socks to
wear with the above mentioned boots
, and mittens and caps galore. out of
this outfit | got fur suit, the boots
one suit of channels skin underwear.
some socks and a cap. As for food and
/, provisions, we were loaded to the
matches with it.-Besides what we had
, below, We had n deck-load OF barrels
of salt beef and other truck. We have
stun enough aboard now to feed 500
, men year. The distance from Seattle
up to this place is about 100 miles.
, and we made 1t in 10 days. The weather
was very good, with the exception of
about so hours, when We We're hove to
IN sale, anu nau TO use oil TO
keep the seas from coming aboard.
! We arrived here on December 9th and
e took some coal aboard, and on Sat-
1 urday. the 18th, lat l o'clock in the morn
ing. we left for sledge island. about
e 400 miles to the north of this place.
Q but we did not reach It, for when about
. so miles away we encountered heavy
: drift ice. md the temperature of the
a sea water was 90 degrees, so 1t was
: deemed best to hunt for some other
= place to land the party that vas going
overland to Point Barrow. On Wednes-
day, December 18th, we anchored off
Cape Vancouver, and here we succeed
j ed in landing the relief party. At a
y little village (of Eskimos) they were
! fortunate enough to find trader. who
/, had dogs, sleds and all the parapher-
4 MALTA necessary for an overland trip
: who would take them to st. Michael
The overland party consisted of Lieuts
e jaws and Bertholf and DIR. Call. From
q St Michael to Port Clarence they will
a take reindeer belonging to the govern
=, ment and drive them to Point Barrow
u a distance of coo miles.
After landing the party we came
back here, stopping at the Seal islands
: st. Paul and 81. George, arriving al
y noon on the 23rd of December. Her,
). we are for the winter and spring, fol
= there is no chance of getting into tn,
:. Arctl, until the middle of next July
:. and we will probably not leave her,
:, tn June There Is nothing here only
q n trading station for the Alaska Com
!, mercial company and the North Ameri
: can Trading company. Each COMPANY
u y. has it's representatives here. and lo
= Of mechanics building wheelbaTov
= boats (stern wheel steamers) for tbs
Yukon river one of the leading mel
of the N a. II. company said aboarf
a here that there was between SO, 900, OO
y and 500 900 ono OF gold dus
l. at St Michaels to go Il
=. the states on the first boats
!, we will probably be the first boat t.
70 get to St Mchaels. and that will he II
:, June some time. or course we will tr,
" and get into the Arctic as soon as pos
a -'h,e and It will probably be Angus
- before we reach Point Barrow. Thei
n II the whalerS are in destitute circum
:, stances the orders are to take then
!, board and bring them to Frisco. Il
y that case we ought to reach Frisco II
y September some time. but the genera
:, opinion seems to be that on our return
u here from the Arctic,the whalers, If w
get them, will he transferred to som'
q other vessel and we Will go TO st
. Michaels, and stay there TIL the seasoi
a closes In that event We wiz react
a the coast about the first OF November.
a Engineer Spear has been in the reve
y nue. service for number of years. HI
: was aboard the Gallatin when she RAJ
ashore a few years ago.and he narrow
' ly escaped with his life. He was ex'
N pecting transfer from the lakes Il
: The Manning on the Massachusetts
n const. when he got his orders to go t.
. the frozen north but. like n good ser
r want of Uncle Sam, he went at once t.
r his new and uncomfortable post o
v duty.--Springfeld tMass.) Republican