Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 306, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 December 1914 — DIFFERENCE IN THE FEASTS [ARTICLE]

DIFFERENCE IN THE FEASTS

Dinner Recently Given to Greely Survivors Must Have Recalled Sad Memories; Three men sat at meat at the New York club in memory of a “feast” which they had 30 years ago on the circumpolar pack. This is what they had then: Broiled sealskin, boiled rock lichens, one boot, two shrimps, snow water, Russian tea, starvation ice, frozen pudding. What they had these survivors, three of the Greely expedition, would not tell, but the chef at the New York club may be quoted as saying that it was one of the beet dinners ever served from a renowned kitchen. The host was Cot David L. Brainard, U. S. A., and the other two were Henry Biederbeck of Jersey City and Francis Long of the United States weather bureau, New York station. With them was Frederick F. Taylor, now a prominent insurance official, who was on board the Thetis, one of tiie relief vessels, which found the survivors on that memorable June 22, 1884, an anniversary of which was last celebrated for the first time. Capt. A. W. Greely, leader of the ill-fated arctic expedition, was unable to get away from his summer home in New Hampshire, and the other of the quintette of survivors, Maurice Connell, who is in the service of the weather bureau at San Jose, Cal., could not get leave of absence. It will be remembered that the United States joined with other nations in establishing a chain of stations in the Arctic for the purpose of collecting scientific data. General Greely’s party of 25 went up on the Proteus. The men were left at their station on Lady Franklin bay with three years’ supplies. ' It was the understanding that If no relief expedition came in two years, they were to retreat Two vessels failed to reach them and finally the expedition went to Cape Sabine, where 18 of the men starved. When Capt Winfield S. Schley arrived with the Thetis and the Bear, the seven survivors, who had been eating thongs, boots, sealskin socks, rock lichens and shrimp, were almost too weak to eat Had help been delayed 24 hours the survivors believe all would have died.