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Leader (1850-1860), 10th January 1852, Edition Town of 1, Page 33, Untitled Article

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      Untitled Article

      —only you must imagine that the said table is three feet long , or from the bed to the door , and the picture just looking down at me . This morning we began to have a fair wind ; before the day was half over it was right aft . The Terror is coming after us , the transport sailing close to us with as little sail as possible , for she could run us out of sight if she chose ; they fear the ice , doubtless , not being built to shake it away . In our mess we have the following , whom I shall probably from time to time give you descriptions of : —First lieutenant , Gore ; second , Le Viscomte ; third , Fairholme , purser , Osmar ; surgeon , Stanley ; assistant surgeon ,

      Gtoodsir ; icemaster ( so called ) , Reid ; mates—Sargent , Des Vceux , Couch ; second master , Collins ; commander ( you know better than he does himself ) . The most original character of all—rough , intelligent , unpolished , with a broad north-country accent , but not vulgar , good humoured and honest hearted—is Reid , a Greenland whaler , native of Aberdeen , who has commanded whaling vessels , and amuses us with his quaint remarks and descriptions of the ice , catching whales , &c . For instance , he just said to me , on my saying we should soon be off Cape Farewell at this rate , and asking if one might not generally expect a gale off it ( Cape Farewell being ¦

      the south point of Greenland ) , * ' Ah I now , Blister Jems , we'll be having the weather fine , Sir ! fine ! No ice at arl about it , Sir , unless it be the bergs—arl the ice ' 11 be gone , Sir , only the bergs , which I like to see . Let it come on to blow , look out for a bi g ' tin . Get under his lee , and hold on to him fast , Sir , fast . If he drifts near the land , why , he grounds afore you do . " The idea of all the ice being gone , except the icebergs , is racy beyond description . I have just had a game of chess with the Purser Osmar , who is delightful . He was with Beechey in the Blossom , when they went to Behring ' s Straits to look for Franklin , at the time he surveyed the north coast of America , and sot within 150 miles of him ; he was at

      Petro Faulowski , in Kamschatka , where I hope to go , and served since on the lakes of Canada . I was at first inclined to think he was a stupid old man because he had a chin and took snuff ; but he is as merry hearted as any young man , full of quaint dry sayings , always good-humoured , always laughing , never a bore , takes his " pinch after dinner , " plays a " rubber , " and beats me at chess—and , he is a gentleman . The Second Master Collins is the very essence of good nature , and I may say good humour . And now , good night , it is past eleven o ' clock . I have written without stopping , all with the porcupine quill . God bless you !

      6 th . To-day Sir John Franklin showed me such part of his instructions as related to the main purposes of our voyage , and the necessity of observing everything from a flea to a whale in the unknown regions we are to visit . He also told me I was especially charged with the magnetic observations . He then told all the officers that he was desired to claim all their remarks , journals , sketches , &c , on our return to England , and read us some parts of his instructions to the officers of the Trent , the first vessel he commanded in 1818 , with Captain Buchan , on an attempt to reach the North Pole , pointing out how desirable it is to note everything , and give one ' s individual opinion on it . He spoke delightfully of the

      zealous cooperation he expected from all , and his desire to do full justice to the exertions of each . To-day has been a gloomy day , as far as sunshine is concerned , and the wind has drawn round to the northward , though so little of it , that the old Erebus cannot keep her head the right way , or , as we term it , she " falls off" with the roll of the sea . Seven or eight large grampuses came shooting past us to the south-west , which Mr . Goodsir declared were delightful animals . Last evening a shoal of porpoises were bounding about the bows of the vessel as she plunged into the sea , and a bird called a mullimauk , a sort of peterel , which the arctic people look for as a sign of going towards the icy regions .

      At dinner to-day Sir John gave us a pleasant account of his expectations of being able to get through the ice on the coast of America , and his disbelief in the idea that there is open sea to the northward . He also said he believed it to be possible to reach the Pole over the . ice by wintering at Spitzbergen , and going in the spring before the ice broke up and drifted to the south , as it did with Parry on it . ( To be continued . )

      Untitled Article

      The following letter is , published b y tho Times . — >¦ Itoydl Society , Somoreot-houee , January 2 , Sxa , —I have just received the inclosed deposition of Captain Martin relative to his interview with Sir John Franklin , and request that you will givo it a place in your columns . I am , Sir , your humblo servant , C . It . Wbbd . " DEPOSITION . w > 1 << i oi ? rt r Marti 3 l V r « « and commander of the whale ship Intrepid , of Peterhead , solemnly and sincerely ueolarea that on the 22 nd day of July , 1845 when in lat ^ T / Mn ° / ° Ai e flhl ? EntwPri < Je , o ' f Pete ' rhcad , in Breta ™ 'J ° . S 60 W <> , % " «« "her , and towing , the SonO . M * i U ° f *? «» pai 7- Theae "hi ps were alongside the Enterprise for about fifteen mtnut «« . The

      declarant conversed with Sir John Franklin and Mr . Reid , his ice master . The conversation lasted all the time the ships were close . That Sir John Franklm , m answer to a question by the declarant if he had a good supply of provisions , and how long he expected them to last , stated that he had provisions for five years , and if it were necessary he could * make them spin Out seven years ' : and he said , further , that he would lose no opportunity of killing birds , and whatever else was useful and that

      that came in the way , to keep up their stock , he had plenty of powder and shot for the purpose . That Sir John Franklin also stated that he had already got several casks of birds salted , and had then two shooting parties out—one from each ship . The birds Were very numerous ; many would fall at a single shot , and the declarant has himself killed forty at a shot with white pease . That the birds are very agreeable food , are in taste and size somewhat like young pigeons , and are called by the sailors ' roches . '

      " That on the 26 th or 28 th of the said month of July two parties of Sir John Franklin ' s officers who had been out shooting , dined with the declarant on board the Enterprise . There was a boat with six from each ship . Their conversation was to the same effect as Sir John Franklin ' s . They spoke of expecting to be absent four or five , or perhaps six years . These officers also said that the ships would winter where they could find a convenient place , and in spring push on as far as possible , and so on year after year , as the determination was to push on as far as practicable . " That , on the following day an invitation was brought to the declarant , verbally , to dine with Sir John , but the wind shifted ,, and the Enterprise having cut through the ice about a mile and a half , the declarant was obliged to decline the invitation . That he saw the Erebus and

      Terror for two days longer ; they were still lying at an iceberg , and the Enterprise was moving slowly down the country . That so numerous were the birds mentioned , and so favourable was the weather for shooting them , that a very large number must have been secured during the time the declarant was in Bight of the two ships . The Prince of Wales whaler was also within , sight during the most of the time . That from the state of the wind and weather for a period of ten days , during part of which the declarant-was notin sight of the two ships , the best opportunity was afforded for securing the birds : That

      the birds described are not to be found at all places on the fishing ground during the whaling season ; but are met with in vast numbers every season on certain feeding banks and places for breeding , and it appeared at the time by the declarant to be a most fortunate circumstance that the Erebus and Terror had fallen in with so many birds and that the state of the weather was so favourable , for securing large numbers of them . The declarant has himself had a supply of the same description of birds , which kept fresh and good during three months , at Davis' Straits , and the last were as good as the first of them .

      " Which declaration , above written , is now made conscientiously , believing the same to be true . " Robert Martin . "Declared before me at Peterhead this 29 th day of December , 1851 , "R . Gbath , Provost of Peterhead . " ( Seal of Peterhead affixed . )

      Untitled Article

      THE PRESERVED MEAT OF THE NAVY . A board of examination , consisting of Mr . John Davies , R . N ., master-attendant of the Royal Clarence Victualling Establishment , Gosport ; Mr . Joseph Pinhorn , R . N ., storekeeper ; and Dr . Alexander M'Kechnie , surgeon and medical storekeeper of the Royal Naval Hospital , Haslar , has been employed since Tuesday week in examining the cases of preserved meats supplied by contract to the Navy , the Admiralty having cause to suspect their purity . The examination has disclosed some horrible facts . The canisters containing the meat are upon the average about 101 b . canisters . On Tuesday 643 of them were opened , out of which number no fewer than 573 were condemned , their contents being masses of putrefaction . On Wednesday 779 canisters were opened , out of which number 734 were condemned . On Ihursday 791 canisters were opened , out of which number 744 were condemned . On Friday 494 canisters were opened , out of which 459 were condemned . Thus , out of 2707 canisters of meat opened , only 197 have proved fit for human food , those condemned for the most part containing suoh substances as pieces of heart , roots of tongue , pieces of palates , pieces of tongues , coagulated blood , pieces of liver , ligaments of the throat , pieces of intestines—in short , garbage and putridity in a horrible Btate , the stench arising from which is most sickening and the sight revolting . The examining board and party were compelled to use profusely Sir W . Burnett ' s disinfecting fluid to keep off , or in the hope of keeping off , pestilence . On Saturday , however , they deemed it prudent to desist from further exposure for a time , to guard against danger , and will consequently not proceed with the examination until next week , the greater part

      of which will be taken up with the filthy investigation , as there were upwards of 6000 canisters to examine at the commencement . This stuff was supplied to tho Admiralty , and delivered into store at the Clarence-yard last November twelvemonth , warrantod equal to sample , and to keep sound and consumable for me years . We arc informed it came from Galutz . in Moldavia . The few caniaters containing meat fit for human beings to eat have been distributed , under the direction of Captain Superintendent Parry , to the deserving poor of the neighbourhood , and those containing tho putrid stook havo been conveyed to Spithead in lighters and thrown overboard . The consequences of such frauds as this cannot be too seriously estimated . Supppse , for instance , Franklin and his party to have been supplied with such food as that condemned , and relying upon it as their mainstay in time of need , the very means furnished for saving their Hvo » may have bred a pestilence or famine among them and been their destruction .

      The examination of the remaining stock of " preserved meat" in store at Clarence-yard was resumed by the officers forming the board , on Tuesday ; but they were again obliged to leave off prematurely , ' owing- to the nausea engendered by their unwholesome . task . They opened 497 canisters , varying in the amount of their contents from 101 b . to lOjlb . each , 466 of which were condemned and thrown overboard at Spithead , and thirtyone only considered fit to let pass for distribution among the poor . Each day brought to light some item of disgust in the matter of the commodity sealed up as " preserved meat . '' In these cases were found clots of hair , a piece of intestine with the manure in it , a huge lump of gangrenous kidney , and such like filthy items . But for

      the great efficacy of the disinfecting solution of Dr . Sir William Burnett , the director-General of the Medical Department of the Navy , which is profusely used in the store where the examination is going on , it would be impossible for the officers to prosecute their investigation for long together , owing to the sickening stench arising from the stuff around them . There remain about 2600 more cases to open , which will occupy the rest of the week . Dr . Twynam , an experimental agriculturist , applied to purchase a quantity of the offal condemned , with the view of its forming the matrix of ammpniacal manure ; but no item of it was allowed thus to escape , and the gentleman was recommended by the authorities to make his application to the Lords of the Admiralty .

      Wednesday's examination only disclosed more disgusting facts . Out of 300 canisters , of the respective size of 101 b ., 10 | lb . lOflb ., and 111 b . each , only one was suffered to pass as consumable , the rest was condemned and thrown overboard at sea . The contents exposed were chiefly loose putrid matter , now and then varied with a few stones , entrails with the excrement in them , kidneys green with decomposition , lumps of heart , and in many cases whole hearts festering with putridity , coagulated blood in great abundance , tallow , lumps of tendons , garbage , grease , and offal . After three hours * labour the officers forming the Board were compelled to leave off , the stench was so great ; indeed , it would have overpowered them but that a man was ever and anon

      employed in well saturating the floor about them with Sir William Burnett ' s disinfecting fluid , with the extra precaution of a blanket saturated with it being hung up immediately contiguous to the bench whereon the contents of the canisters were emptied . Dr . M'Kechnie ( the medical officer of the Board of Examination ) felt sick from the influence of the noxious odour soon after commencing his labours in the morning . Due . notice of the intended examination was given to the contractor's agent and his sureties , requesting their attendence ; but no one has appeared , and the contractor himself , is not to be found . After the 300 canisters above mentioned were examined , one of the canisters of 321 b . was opened , labelled " Goldner ' s patent stewed beef , " and bearing the following directions : — " The canister to be put into a saucepan with warm water and boiled about 15 minutes ,

      then the meat to be taken out , and add to the gravy a portion of water , rice , or any vegetables , and an admirable dish will be obtained . " This " admirable dish , " without the aid of the saucepan , rice , and vegetables , ? resented a sickening mass of revolting decomposition , t was intended as the food of forty seamen , marines , or boys of her MajeBty's fleet . " Preserved meat" from this stock had been issued to sea-going ships , as Commodore Lambert , of the Fox , on the East India station , returned a lot , with the report that after partaking of some of it those who had done so had been seized with sickness , &c , ; and we believe Commodore Martin , of the Prince Regent , 90 , on the Lisbon station , also had some of it , and returned it ; and so doubtless have many other ships .

      Untitled Article

      MISCELLANEOUS . Her Majesty will hold a Privy Council to-day at Windsor Castle . His Excellency the Marquis d'Azegho , Sardinian Minister , has returned to his residence in Berkeleysquare , after a few weeks' stay in Paris . His Excellency the French Ambassador and the Countess Walewski have left the French Embassy , in Grosvenor-square , for Broadlands , on a visit to Viscount and Viscountess Palmerston . The Honourable Mrs . Charles Murray , wife of the Consul-General of Egypt , died at Grand Cairo , on the 8 th of December last , a few days after she had given birth to a son . She was so highly esteemed that , not only were all English residents present at her funeral , but the pall was borne by Consuls General of the other powers , and by the Foreign Ministers . Many Turkish officers , Pachas , and Beys , attended the solemn ceremony , to attest their eympathy and respect , and , in so doing , gave satisfactory evidence of the increase of humanity and civilization in Egypt .

      Untitled Article

      Certain clergymen and laity of Frome have addressed a memorial to the Marchioness of Bath , on the appointment of the Reverend Mr . Bennett , late of St . Paul's , Kniglitabridge , to the vicarage of Frorao .. They assert that they owe it to God , to their flocks , to their children , to their servants , ^ o themselves , to protest against the confiding the cure of souls among them to one whoso writings ,, published but a year and a half ago , contain passages exhibiting doctrines opposed to . the scriptural truthfulness of the Church , and teaching which , as members of that Church , they solemnly repudiate ; and they earnestly entreat tho putroness to reconsider her decision . The , memorial ia backed by citations in support of the above assertion . The Marchioness of Bath , in reply to the memorial from the clergy of Frome , states that tho appointment of Mr . Bennett w irrevocable .

      Untitled Article

      Ribtradiam , that fatal Irish malady , is fast reaching an Intolerable pilch . There appears to be a regularly organised invisible , but certain , conspiracy of death . Mr .

      Untitled Article

      Jan . 10 , I 852 J ; « lf ' f- % tUittt * 33

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 10, 1852, page 33, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1917/page/9/