The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1912-04-04
MEL V|||ILFSi DEATH
MADE IN 1879 TO
III fated Jeanette Expedition
Sought the Goal BY the
Boring Sea Route

Z ~V~9us sAAV VVOB ny
IS Boring Sea Route
IT UNTIL his death. which occurred
recently in Philadelphia, Rear
~ Admiral George Wallace Mel
vile, United States navy, re-
tired, retained his interest in all mat
tiers pertaining to expeditions by this
and foreign countries to the frozen re-
gions 1t was Melville's high reputa-
ton both for courage and for engineer
ing capacity which led Lieutenant
Commander George w. De Long to ask
that he be made member Of the i'll
fated Jeanette expedition in 1879.
The chief object Of that expedition was
to reach~Ine north pole. 1T was the
first organized attempt to solve: the
problem by the Boring sea route. p.@
On July 8, 1879, the Jeanette sailed
from San Francisco. On Aug. 3 the
Jeanette reached Unalaska island,
where she coaled from a schooner, A
month and two days later the ship
was beginning to be closed off by the
remorseless ice pack. The vessel drift
ed steadily to the westward for nearly
two years. On June II, 1881, this day
being Sunday, at midnight. the Jean
nette was set free from the ice by the
split of the foe on line with her keel
and, suddenly Fighting, started all
hands from their beds to the deck.
By 9 a. m. on the 18th the ice had COM
menced coming in on her side, and at
II o'clock that night the ship was
abandoned.
Setting Out From the Ship.
The Jeanette went down at a dis
lance Of about $50 miles from the ST.
berian coast. With the prospect of the
most toilsome marches over hummocks
Of ice and all the uncertainties Of a
landing and the subsequent Journey
ings which must be made Of over 1900
miles to Yakutsk, officers and men &C.
cepted their new conditions with forti-
tude and hope.
left never failed to speak Of Melville
in the highest terms. Before break
ing camp for the march to the coast
the commander prepared and carefully
sewed up in piece of black rubber,
placed within an empty boat breaker,
a record reciting the facts of the aban.
donment of the Jeanette and the
start southwark in the hope of reach
ing the Siberian islands. From the is
lands it was hoped to reach by boats
saved from the Jeanette the coast of
Siberia.
Each officer and man was provided
with harness. fashioned to go across
the chest and one shoulder and attach
ed to sled by lanyard. De Long
said that the march would be at night
to avoid snow blindness from the in
tense light. Dinner was to be at mid
night, supper at 6 a. m. and this to be
followed by sleep. 1t took three hours
to make the first mile and a half.
Had to Travel Road 13 Times.
A halt of two days was made to re-
pair damages to the men and boats,
when progress was again made of
about mile or mile and a half a
day over the rough and moving ice
foe. The men had to go over the road
thirteen times, seven times with loads
and six times empty handed, thus max
ing twenty-six miles to make an ad-
vance Of only two. At the end Of the
first week De Long found by observa-
ton that the drift had more than neu-
tralized the way covered by the ad-
vance; that, in fact, he had lost TWEEN
ty-seven miles by the drift to the north
west In excess of the march to the
south. This fact he did not impart to
the members By the crew.
On July % landing was made on
an island, and the party left on Aug. 6
and made fair progress for two weeks,
when they were imprisoned in the ice
for nearly ten days. When released
they found themselves in navigable
water. The men split up into the three
boats with De Long. Melville and
Lieutenant Charles w. Chip. the ex-
mand of each. A landing was made
on Semenovski island on Sept. II, and
the following day the party left the
island to try to reach the mainland.
That evening a gale parted the boats.
and they were seen no more by Mel
ville's party. The engineers whale
boat rode out the gale, and on Sept. 10
one Of the eastern mouths of the Lena
was entered. and with. the assistance
Of native pilot the party pushed up
the river. "A small village was reach
ed on Sept. &c in which lived ST.
berian exile. who in time taught Lieu
tenant John W. Danenhower. the ships
master. Russian phrases. e.: : -. ..
The condition Of the occupants Of
the whaleboat was pitiable. Feeble
ragged and starving. with frozen legs.
painful as though scalded from knees
to toes, they clambered ashore. Mel
vile himself was unable to stand for
fifteen days. The. village was poor