The revenue cutter Bear was known to be en route from the Arctic Ocean to Puget Sound, Washington.  Her arrival was anxiously awaited, as no other suitable Government vessel could be made available for Arctic work.  That ship arrived at Seattle, Wash., on the 6th of November, after a six-months’ cruise in the Arctic, and I at once ordered an expedition prepared for the relief of the imperiled whalemen.

The preparation of the Bear was commenced on the 11th of November, under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury.  Her officers and men of the Revenue-Cutter Service all volunteered for the perilous work, and the ship was completely fitted out, and, under the command of Capt.  Francis Tuttle, of the Revenue-Cutter Service, sailed on her errand of mercy November 29, 1897, within nineteen days from the inception of the movement.

The plan of the expedition was briefly as follows: 

The ship was to be fully provided with rations for the ice-imperiled whalemen, which were to be conveyed to them as soon as the ice conditions in Bering Strait would permit the passage through.  An overland expedition was to be landed from the Bear as soon as practicable, at some point on the coast of Alaska, in Bering Sea, to be determined upon by Captain Tuttle.  The problem of getting food to the imperiled people at the earliest time possible was the all-important consideration, for it was fully understood that the Bear could not, under the most favorable conditions of ice navigation in that region, reach their neighborhood before the following July or August.  The utter lack of transportation of any kind in this far-off land suggested the idea, which was adopted as the only possible plan, of driving reindeer overland, to be slaughtered on arrival, for food to last until the arrival of the Bear with supplies the following summer.  The reindeer were to be collected by the overland expedition from several points in Alaska, notably Cape Prince of Wales and Point Rodney, and, with such aid as could be procured from natives and others, driven to Point Barrow.

The overland expedition was formed, and consisted of First Lieut.  David H. Jarvis, Revenue-Cutter Service, commanding; Second Lieut.  Ellsworth P. Bertholf, Revenue-Cutter Service, and Dr. Samuel J. Call, surgeon of the Bear, all volunteers.  This overland expedition was landed from the Bear at Cape Vancouver, in Bering Sea, Alaska, on the 16th of December, 1897, and commenced its toilsome and dreary journey through an arctic night to Point Barrow, Captain Tuttle returning with his command to winter at Dutch Harbor, Alaska, and from there to take advantage of the first opportunity in the early summer of 1898 to get north.

The overland expedition worked its way to the reindeer stations named, and succeeded in getting together about 450 deer.  They were materially aided by Mr. W.T.  Lopp, agent of the American Missionary Society at Cape Prince of Wales, and Artisarlook, a native of that region, both of whom, at great personal sacrifice, left their families and accompanied the reindeer herd to Point Barrow.