226 DEATH OF EIGHTEEN MEN 



maining two were lying dead inside, one on 

 the floor and the other in bed. The latter 

 was the superintendent, who had been able to 

 read and vnaite, and a journal-book lying beside 

 him contained a record of their sad fate. 



It appeared that early in the season scurvy 

 of a malignant character had attacked them ; 

 some had died at tlie out-stations, and the 

 survivors had with difficulty assembled at the 

 head-quarter station, and were in hopes of being 

 speedily relieved by the vessel ; but the latter 

 not arriving, their stores got exhausted, and 

 the unusual quantity of ice surrounding the 

 coast prevented them from getting seals or 

 wildfowl on the sea or the shore. In addition 

 to the scurvy, they then had the horrors of 

 hunger to contend with, and they gradually 

 died one after another, and were buried by 

 their surviving companions, until at last only 

 four remained. Then two more died, and the 

 other two, not having strength to bury them, 

 dragged their bodies outside the hut and left 

 them there. These two then lay down in bed 

 together to await their own fate, and when 

 one of them died, the last man — the writer of 

 the journal — had only sufficient strength re- 

 maining to push his dead companion out of the 



