The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-09-29

Nooks and Crevices of the Cargo
Were FILLED I'm with Dried Fish
for Dog Food-Narrow Escape of
the Flagship From Destruction by
Sea Current-Loading of the
Half wild Dogs Aboard-Make-
Up of the Party-Festivities Pre-
cede the Farewell.
BY EVELYN B. BALDWIN,
Commander of the Baldwin-Zeigler
Polar Expedition.
Copyright, 1901, by E. B. Baldwin,
Solombala, Russia, July 2S.-At last
we are off! Our faithful old pilot has
fulfilled his task and is waving us a
farewell from the deck of light ship
off the faraway north coast of Norway
three steamers, America" FIRTH
jof," and "Belgica," are dipping their
flags to the civilized world behind them
and their crews are listening to the
faint hurrahs from the shore. 1t is
gorgeous sunlight night-the Arctic
circles miles to the south of us-and
we are bound for the mysterious and
fascinating realms of the North whose
secrets so many brave men have at
tempted to discover.
Not without unusual toll and trou-
BILE has our start been brought about.
Perhaps in truth 1 should say that this
little event-our farewell to the world
is not our start at all. We made
that many months ago. when our la
| .xxskN -alA china
and their crews, getting together the
members of the expedition and pur-
chasing equipment and provisions.
Americans already know how these
things were accomplished and are
proud of the fact that American gen.
erosity has fitted out the most COM
pletely equipped expedition that has
ever sailed away to the frozen North.
And not only to Americans are these
things known, for at every stop in our
progress along the northern coast OF
Norway, even at little fishing hamlets,
we were greeted with cheers and sped
on our way with good wishes for sue
cess.
1t was at Tromsoe, Norway, that we
assembled our little fleet. Here we
took on cargoes which most sailing
masters would have hesitated to at
tempt carrying Indeed, so confident
were many of the ship owners in from
soc that we should need assistance In
transporting our equipment to Franz
Josef Land that they had stamers
ready to offer me Cat a good hire when
1 arrived. They all said the "FrithJot
was considerably overburdened ana
that the stores awaiting shipment on
the America" would require another
ship at least. There were 5000 sep
hYp in warehouses;.
the first sight of them in scattered
confusion was somewhat disconcerting.
But when we had dispensed with the
useless crates and packing boxes our
four years supply of food assumed
such a compact appearance that the
need of another ship was not appar-
ent, and the vessel lying at anchor
by our side silently spread her sails
and stole away.
Besides a general cargo of provisions
and equipment had contracted for ten
tons of dried fish for our dogs, and now
that the extra steamer had set SAIL the
merchant from whom the fish had been
ordered became alarmed, and without
waiting to see whether we could take
the fish from his warehouse. quietly
remarked to me (taking it as a matter
of course that there would be no room
for the fish on the 'AmericaO
"Of course you will be obliged to
pay me commission for taking the
fish off your hands"
He was not little astounded when
I assured him that every fish would
be taken aboard, and it was only when
bale after bale of this dog food had
been taken away in large lighters that
he gave up the idea of an extra gratu-
ity. BY separating the bales and stor-
ing the fish, a handful at time, be-
tween boxes, barrels, tins, and in fact
wherever a small space appeared, we
at length solved this most important
POLLEN. Finally there remained but
the three portable houses, and the
"Frithjof" took two of these and the
third one was placed on the America"
This last task was completed on Sat-
urday night, and the Sunday following
was a day of rest.
We were not able to get away with
our heavily loaded ships without ac-
cident, however. While all hands were
at dinner on our first day of rest the
America" began to drag her anchor
on the starboard side before a strong
southwest wind and very swift sea
current. She was being driven rap
idly toward the shore when we drop
ped the anchor on the port bow and
stopped her before any damage was
done. Strange to relate, similar ac-
cident occurred to the "Antarctica"
when, year or two ago, she lay at
anchor in this same port. Our chap
ter of accidents Is made complete by
the recording of but one other. On the
following Tuesday, the day of our de-
parture from Tromsoe, one of the large
whaleboats dropped one the foot of one
of our seamen and an amputation of
the little toe was necessary. The OPP
GRAFTON was quickly and skillfully done
by our own doctors. The injured man
pleaded hard that he be not left be-
hind and with such a spirit of course
we should not have thought of denying
him, even had he suffered a greater
disability, the injured man, is a type
of the men who make up our party.
On board our vessles many profess
sions are represented, yet every man
does his share of the hard manual
work. AS soon as we were out at sea-
on the way around to Solombala
where we took on our dogs and last
lot of equipment-the men busted
themselves getting our cargo into bet
ter shape. On the forcastle a group
was busily employed in breaking up
crates and boxes, storing the wood in
the engine room to save fuel; another
group was willing to blacken hands
and faces in heaving coal from be-
tween decks into the bunkers. Here
was an example of the sudden and
strange transformation from the
gentler American life which many of
us have just left behind-a compare
tive ease abandoned for whatever fate