THE GREELY POLAR EXPEDITION.

Timaru Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 4047, 27 September 1887, Page 3

THE GREELY POLAR EXPEDITION.

♦ Some additional and more ghastly facts havo recently been communicated to tho Chicago Pr.-ss, relating to the ill-fated Groaly expedition, hy Captain Norman, a Newfoundlander, and ice-nwster in two United States Polar exploration parties, on board the Neptune and Proteus. According to a Chicago paper, dated 14th of August, Norman is a man 45 years of age of tine physique, and bears tbe mark of great exposure to wind and weather in his countenance. Captain Norman was icemaster of the Proteus whoa it bore Greely and his party to Lady Franklin bay in 1881, and he held the same position in the Neptune,under the command of A. 11. Bei-ui', ilu- following year,when provisions wore cacLici! utCapeSabine. Ho did not accompany the Proteus and Yantic in 1883, when the former foundered owing to the jealousy of the American consul at St. Johns. He was a member of the final relief expedition, however, and acted as icemaster of the Thetis, which wa3 the flagship of the small squadron. To him belongs tho honour of being the first to discover the starving sufferers, and in fact he remained in their tent with them alone for nearly an hour before the others of the expedition reached the spot. Captain Norman is reluctant to ta'k übont the expedition, but he is expected to know as much of the history of it as any one not a member of it. Laßt night the captain thawed out under the influence of a bottle of claret and related several circumstances which have never been published hitherto. " Yes" said he, !as he lighted a fre3h cigar and leaned back in hia chair, " I was the first man inside the tent where the survivors were found. When we reached Cape Sibine I was detailed to take charge of the ateam launch and go to the place where we had stored two years' provisions. I had a rubber pouch filled with whisky slung over my shoulder and alot of biscuits. When the boat landed I jumped ashoro and started on a run. I knew the lay of tho land, and so was able to get to the cache before any of my companions. About a mile away, across a level plain of ice, I could see a small hill, and alone started for ib, and when I had covered half the distance 1 saw some black object crawling along the rough snow. At first I thought it was aom9 animal, bnt approaching nearer I recognised Sergeant Long. His face was covered with blood, his clothes were literally tied on him, his beard was thick and matted, and his hair hung down below his shoulders." "Isityou.Norman?" said he in a voice so thick that I could scarcely understand him. "Thauk God!" He told me Lieutenant Groely and six others were alive and in a tent a little further on. I give him a drink of whisky and some biscuit and he started on to the launch. When I got near enough to the tent to be heard I called out, " Cheer up, Greely : we're here with two ships to save you !" The back of the tent had been blown down, and I had to cut my way in. The poor fellows were lying on the ground on their Bleeping bag3, just abla to move. I gave them each a drink of whisky and a b;scuit. They acted at Crst as if they were in a dream and could not believe the evidence of their senses. One man just on the point of delirium looked up and asked me if I knew his name. I knew his free perfectly well, and his name too, but I could not recall it. " I knew it," said he. "It's all a dream !" and he began to sob. Just then his iiama flashed across my mind. " Your name? Why, of course, I know it. It's Connell, and your worth a whole crew of sick men." It took them all some time to appreciate the truth. You see all the others, just before their death, became delirous, and would talk to friends just as if they were present. Tho^e whom I found were deeply impressed with this circumstance, and were afraid that they were getting in the t.Tie condition. Sergeant Ellison was lying near the centre of the tent. His hando and feethr.d been frozen the winter before and had dropped off, not amputated, but actually dropped off. I gave him a big drink of whisky, and throw a cracker into hi3 mouth, which he managed to eat by pressing it between his lips with the stump3 of hi3 arms. After a while Lieutenant Colwell and two men, carying bags of bread and pemmican came up. I introduced Colwell to Greely, and said he was a member of the Garlington expedition, which had failed to rescue him the year previous. At this Greely began to curse and rave. He swore at the navy, and said there was not a decent man in it, and that he wished it had been the army that had come to his rescue. Pretty soon a couple of surgeons came, and with theso some men with stretchers, and the poor fellows were taken on board the Thetia," " How about the stories of cannibalism, published after the Greely party had returned ?'' aaked the correspondent. " Cannibalism wns not the worst thing that happened during the expedition, by a long allot," responded Captain Norman after a moment's hesitation. •" There were just three bodies out of the thirteen we found which had not been mutilated.'.Priyate Henry's head and arms had entirely disappeared. His^ bones were picked as clean as a child picks a chicken bone; his vital organs had been removed, and in fact, there was goarcely anything left. There was a well trodden path leading from what was left of hi3 body to the tent. You could Bee whero thick strips of flesh had |bee.n cut from Lieutenant Kislingbuvy'e thighs, just as a butcher cuts a Bteak. The others were horribly mutilated, but there is no use of going into particulars. When I told Commander Schley the condition in which Bomo of tho bodies were found, he told mo to koop tho matter as quiet as possible and not let tho men know anything about it. The bodies wore taken aboard tho ship and placed in alcohol, A wooden ball was placed on Henry's neck and two wooden sticks wore made to represent hia arms. Their clothes were wrapped around them to conceal the deception, and in this way ho was buried on Govornor'g Island. An attempt wa.-i made to observe tho ufmoHt secrecy of the inattor, and when Portsmouth was reached, no one was allowed to see tho bodies, and tho survivors themselves were taken aslvre to tho Navy-yard ind surrounded by a cordon of sontinelo ho that no one could approach them without permission. I think it was thin attempted Becrecy that mado people think something was wrong and which caused a portion of the truth to leak out." " What did you mean by saying that cannibalism was not tho worst thing about the expedition ?" inquired ono of tho gentlemen present. " What'becamo of Dr Pavey 1 How did Lieutenant Kislingbury die ? Why was Private Henry ahol? All these things will como out in duo time. I believe Mr Pavey was killed, and I nover conld get a satisfactory explanation of Kialingbury's death. If Henry was shot for stealing, why was it ho whs the only man bo punished ! They all stole from the store of provisions. Lieutenant Kislingbury was under arrest from tho day he landnd in Lady Franklin Bay until ho died. Dr Pavoy was also under aurest the greater part of the time. In fact, Lieutenant Greoly was not on speaking forms with any of his commissioned officers. On tho night of tho roncuo a private diary of one of the men was found. I flaw it and read u few pages of it, which gavo a

very different version of tho expedition from that given in the published reports. That dairy disappeared the next day, and I don't know what has become of it. I have had letters from Greely and Brainard in regard to it, asking whero it was or win) had it. I don't think it Ins been destroyed, and I believe it will be brought to light one of these days,and if ever it is you may look out for a sensation."