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Un des symboles suivants apparaitra sur la dernidre imago de cheque microfiche, selon le cas: le symbols -^^ signifie "A SUIVRE", le symbols V signifie "FIN". Maps, plates, charts, etc., may be filmed at different reduction ratios. Those too large to be entirely included in ona exposure are filmed beginning in the upper left hand corner, left to right and top to bottom, as many frames as required. The following diagrams illustrate the method: Les cartes, planches, tableauM, etc., peuvent dtre filmds d des taux de reduction diffdrents. Lorsque ^e document est trop grand pour dtre reproduit en un seul clich6, 'I est filmd d partir de Tangle sup6rieur gauche, de gauche 4 droite, et de haut en bas, en prenant le nombre d'images nicessaire. Les diagrammes suivants illustrent la mdthode. 1 2 3 32X 1 2 3 4 5 6 ^ SOHWATKA'S SEARCH wm I i LIEUTENANT SCHWATKA. ScHWATKA's Search SLEDGING IN THE ARCTIC IN QUEST OF THE FRANKLIN RECORDS Br WILLIAM H. GILDER 8BC(INU IN COMMAND WITH MAPS AXD ILLUSTRATIONS LONDOIsr SAMPSON LOW. MARSTON. SEARLE. AND RIVINGTON Crown Bladings, 188, Flekt Street [Alirijrits reserved.'i r n / G a£ S 7 TNTRODUCTION. On the 25th of September, 1880, the leading Eng- lish newspaper published the following words : — "Lieutenant Schwatka has now resolved the last doubts that could have been felt about the fate of the Franklin expedition. He has traced the one untraced ship to its gi'ave beyond the ocean, and cleared the reputation of a harmless people from an undeserved reproach. He has given to the unburied bones of the crews probably the only safeguard against desecration by wandering wild beasts and heedless Esquimaux which that frozen land allowed. He has brought home for reverent sepulture, in a kindlier soil, the one body which bore transport. Over the rest he has set up monuments to emphasize the undying memory of their sufferings and their exploit. He lias gathered tokens by which friends and relatives may identify their dead, and revisit in imagination the s[)()ts in which the ashes lie. Lastly, he has carried home with him material evidence to complete the annals of Arctic exploration." The record of Schwatka's expedition is written in these pages. Much of it has already been published in detached letters by the Nm) York Herald ^ which en- gaged the author to act as its correspondent during the journey. Other hands than his have reduced it to its present shape, for his restless energy has again driven vii Vlll INIHODUGTION. ■■\ If I him toward the North, and ha« enlisted him among the crew of the Modgera^ which is seeking the lost Jea^i- nette. Beyond a mere concatenation of the chapters it has been nowhere altered with a view to literary effect or sensational color. The notes from which it is drawn were made from day to day ; and if critics find in it facts which are either improbable or unpalatable, they may, at least, have the satisfaction of knowing that it is a faithful naiTative of carefully sifted evidence. This needs to be said because the statements of the writer have already been questioned in one or two de- tails. He says that the party experienced such cold weather as was almost without precedent in Arctic travel, the temperature falling to seventy-one degrees below zero. He says that the party killed more than five hundred reindeer, besides musk-oxen, bears, walrus, and seal, in regions where Rae and McClintock could scai'cely find game at all, and where the crews of the M'ehus and Terror starved to death. He says that of the last survivoi's of Franklin's party the majority were officers, arguing tliat the watches and silver relics found with their skeletons go far to prove their rank. These statements have been doubted. The accuracy of the thermometei's being questioned, they were tested and found to be curiously exact. The facilities for procur- ing game were assisted by the use of improved weapons ; and besides, as Sir Leopold McClintock has justly shown, it was merely a tradition, not an ascei*tained fact, that these sub-arctic regions were destitute of ani- mal life. The method by which the ofiicial position of INTRODUCTION, IX the boflies was determined is iiKlispiitably open to ob- jection. " "Vratches and silver relics," writes Vice-ad- miral Sir George Richards, "do not necessarily indicate a correspon ling number of officers. Such light valu- able articles would naturally be taken by the sur- vivors." But the point which ha.s provoked more criticism than all tlie rest is the native evidence that the dis- tressed cre>vs were in the last resort reduced to canni- balism. Tdis is set down just as it was heard, being worth neither more nor less than any testimony on an event which happened so many years ago. Between the risk oi giving pain to living relatives, and the re- proach of 1 laving suppressed essential parts of the story, no traveller should hesitate for an instant. Dr. John Rae, the veteran of Franklin search parties, writes to the author in the following words : "As my name is men- tioned in connec^^ion with the subject of cannibalism, I must state that when I came home in 1854 I felt bound to report in as condensed a form as possible all the infor- mation given us by the Esquimaux, including the most painful ])art. I ^vould have felt it my duty to do this even had my dearest friends been among the lost ones, for had I Avithheld any part of the sad story, it would have come to light through my men, and I should have been accused, with some show of justice, of garbling my report. I consider it no reproach, when suffering the agony to which extreme hunger subjects some men, for them to do what the Esquimaux tell us was done. Men so placed are no more responsible for their actions X introduction: tlian a nuidinun who coiiiinitH a gi'eat crime. Thank God, when Htarviiig for days, and compelled to eat ^»it8 of ttkin, tiie bonen of ptarmigan up to the beak iid down to the toe-naik, I felt no painful craving ; but I have ween men who suffered so nuich that I believe they would have eaten any kind of food, however repulsive." On the other hand, Sir George Richards shows strong reasons wliy the Es(piimaux should not be believed. "They are said to give as their reasons," he writes, "that some of the limbs were removed as if by a saw. If this is coiTect, they were, probably, the operators themselves. We learn from the narrative that they were able to saw off the hnndles of pickaxes and shovels. .At all events the intercourse between the natives and such of Franklin's crews as they met is surrounded by circumstances of grave susjjicion, as learned from themselves, and this suspicion gathers strength from various circumstances related on Schwatka's journey. Be this as it may, I take my stand on far higher ground. Of course such things have happened. Strong, shipwrecked mariners, sud- denly cast adrift on the ocean, have endeavored to extend life in this way when they were in hourly expectation of being rescued. But how different the case in point ! The crews of the Erehus and Terror, when they abandoned their ship, were, doubtless, for the most part, suffering from exhaustion and scurvy ; death had been staring them in the face for months. The greater part of them probably died from exhaus- |. [. , .1 sud- to irly the |'/'6>r, for Iths. laus- JI^TRODUUTION. XI 4 'A ■■■-. "f: 9\ tion and diseuHe long before they got a hundred miles from tlieh* nliips, and found their graven beneath the ice when it melted in summer, or on the beach of King Wil- liam Land. It is possible that no more than half a dozen ont of the whole crew ever reached the entrance to the Gi-eat Fish River. We need not call in starvation to our aid. I fully believe that by far the greater portion per- ished long before their provnsi ona were consumed. The only thing that would have restored men to convalescence in their condition would have been nursing and the com- forts of hospital treatment, not a resort to human flesh." Apart from these objections, of whicli tlie reader is only forewarned, the importance of the results achieved by Lieutenant Schwatka's expedition has not been gainsaid by any one possessing the least acquaintance with Arctic matters. It made the largest sledge Jour- ney on record, having been absent from its base of sup- plies for eleven months and twenty days, and having traversed 2,819 geographical, or 3,251 statute miles. It was the first expedition which relied for its own sub- sistence and for the subsistence of its dogs on the game which it f Dund in the locality. It was the first expe- dition in which the white men of the party voluntarily assumed the same diet as the natives. It was the first expedition Av^hich established beyond a doubt the loss of the Franklin records. McClintock recorded an opinion that they had perished : Schwatka recorded it as a fact. The success of this latest Arctic journey has been attributed to small, as well as to greater causes. The advantages of summer exploration were manifest. The i li ll '! J! ili Xll INTRODUCTION. Esquimaux of the party gave invaluable aid, building snow-huts with the skill to which none but natives attain, coating the sledge-runners with ice according to a method which only natives understand, and by their good offices enabling the expedition to hold commu- nication and have dealings with the wild +ribes with whom they came in contact. The dogs were chosen with the utmost circumspection, and justified this care by their wonderful endurance. Game was abundant. Such minor devices as the use of blue lights proved efficacious in the dispersal of wolves. Woolen foot gear, made by friendlj' natives, supplied a need which has often proved fatal in the Arctic. Good manage- ment kept all the Esquimaux loyal, and Schwatka'a strong will helped the travellers to live while the dogs were falling exhausted and dying by the way. Among the relics that were brought home was the prow of the boat seen by Sir Leopold McClintock ia Erebus Bay, the sled on which it had been transported, and the drag-rope by which the sled was drawn. There were also two sheet-iron stoves from the first camp on King William Land, a brush marked " H. Wilkes," some pieces of clothing ^'rom each grave, together with buttons, canteens, shoes, tin cans, pickaxes, and every thing that could in any way tend to identify the occu- pants of the different graves or those who died without burial. They were offered to the British Admiralty, and, having been gratefully accepted, were added to the relics already deposited at the Museum in Greenwich Hos- pital, and at the United Service Institution in London. CONTENTS. CHAPTER 1. Northward ''^''"• The Winter Camp CHAPTER n. 16 Our Dogs. CHAPTER III. 40 In the Sledges CHAPTER IV. 54 Native Witnesses. CHAPTER V. 73 The Midnight Sun. CHAPTER VI. 93 CHAPTER VII. Relics 103 CHAPTER VIII. Irving's Grave. 124 CHAPTER IX. Arctic Costumes. xin 136 I Bsn xiv CONTENTS. CHAPTER X. PAGE. OvEB Melting Snows 147 CHAPTER XL Amateur Esquimaux , 165 CHAPTER Xn. Walrus Diet ] 81 CHAPTER Xni. The Return 192 CHAPTER XIV. Famine 218 CHAPTER XV. Esquimau Home-life 342 CHAPTER XVI. Homeward 263 CHAPTER XVII. The Graves of the Explorers 284 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Lieutenant Schwatka .... -p , . "i*""- Frontispiece Camp Daly in Summer.. lo Esquimaux Going to the Hunting-ground ig A Cairn 29 Cairn Marking Deposit of Provisions 31 The Ships in Winter Quarters gg Esquimau Playing the Ki-lowty , 4J Camp Daly in Winter Down-hill WITH the Sledges go Hunting Musk-oxen The Great Bend in Hayes River 09 The Sources op the Hayes River ^^ Meeting with the Ookjooliks [[[[ ^g The Netchillik Ambassadress g. The Council with the Netchilliks '.'..' sr Snow-huts on Cape Herschel [[ ^^ Crossing Erebus Bay Curious Formation of Clay-stone ' . [['" ' ^Iq CLAY-s'i-oNE Mounds 252 The Breaking up of the Icf ^wrj jg„ Thk March Southward ScHWATKA's Permanent Camp Henry Klutschak's Camp. • 195 XV I i" xvi LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. View on Back's River 311 The Dangerous Rapids, Back's River 213 Thj March in Extreme Cold Weather 221 View on Connery River 227 Esquimaux Building a Hut 255 Section and Plan of Esquimaux Hut 257 Esquimau Woman Cooking 261 il H !'li 211 213 221 227 255 257 261 [,p^= 1 I I' ■■ 'f (II! f!ii U (!■ ,Al SOHWATKA'S SEARCH. CHAPTER L NORTHWARD. <* Haul in the gang-plank ; " " Let go the tow-line," shouted the captain of the FletcJier. Then he sig- nalled the engineer to go ahead, and the little schooner Eothefi was abandoned to her own resources and the mercy of the mighty ocean. The last frantic hand- shaking was over, and only wind-blown kisses and part- ing injunctions passed back and forth as the distance between the voyagers and their escort kept continually increasing, until nothing could be heard but the hearty cheers that wished for us a pleasant Journey and un- bounded success. There was no time now for regrets, for if we would be comfoi-table we must direct our thoughts seaward and get our bunks ready for sleeping. So we were paired off and went immediately to work. As Lieutenant Schwatka was not only the senior officer of the expedition, but at the same time taller than I by several inches, I willingly yielded him the top bunk of our state-room, and waited patiently outside until he 2 SCHWAIKA'S SEARCH, I ; 1; h ■ had prepared his lair, for it would I)e impossible for two to work at the same time in such very naiTow space. He at last arranged his two buffalo robes to his pei-fect satisfaction, and I soon spread my humbler blankets to the best advantage. So much accom- plished we retired to our first sleep on shipboard. ' We had left New York on the 19th June, 1 878, a party of five, none of us unaccustomed to hardship and ad- venture. Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka, of the Third United States Cavalry, Polish by descent, American by bii-th, had been distinguished in the war; and I, who was second in command, had seen a good deal of active service. Henry Klutschak, a Bohemian by birth, a civil engineer by i)rofe88ion, brought us the advantage of his previous experiences in the Arctic ; Frank E. Melms was an experienced whaleman ; and Joseph Ebierbing, well known as " Esquimau Joe," had been with Captain Hall and Captain Hayes in their journeys, and with tlie Pandora expedition from England. The Eotlien^ that earned us, was commanded by Captain Thomas F. Barry. Her crew included a first, second, and third mate, a caipenter, blacksmith, cooper, steward and cook, three boat-steerers, and tVelve men before the mast. To prepare her for encounters with the ice, the hull had been overlaid to the chain-plates with oak planking an inch and a half thick, and the stem had been cov^ered with oak about two feet thick, over which was iron plating to the depth of three-quarters of an inch. She was a stout vessel of one hundred and two tons. The stock of provisions laid in on board of her f # NOIiTHWARD, 8 ■'■*■: I for the use of the party inchided hard bread, Indian- meal, flour, molasses, pemmican, canned meats, pre- served vegetables, preserved fruits, coffee, tea, and chocolate. Horseradish was taken as a preventive against scurvy, and tobacco was stored in abundance for the use of such Esquimaux as might have stories to tell or assistance to offer. Arms and ammunition had been generously presented to us by several manufac- turers, and to individual bounty we also owed many of our books, night-signals, instruments, and the timber for our sledges. The commander of the Eothen was, indirectly, the originator of the expedition. Everybody knows that for more than twenty years explorers had been sailing from English and American ports in search of the bodies or the papers of Sir John Franklin and his party. The partial success which attended the investi- gations of Sir Leopold McClintock had served to whet the public appetite. A story which Captain Barry brought home from the Arctic made the curiosity still greater. He said that in 1871-73, while on a whaling expedition, he was frozen in with the Glacier in Re- pulse Bay, and was there visited by several E8(j[uimaux who brought their families on board his vessel. They had lost their way while hunting, and were anxious to see the ships of white men. While on board the Gldoier they spoke of a stranger in uniform who had visited them some years before, and who was accom- panied by many other white men. All of the party jiad afterward died, but the chief had meanwhile col- PI '! it' 1 ' ' .';!^ I 1 4 SCHWATKA'S SEARCH. lected a great (juaiitity of |)a|)erH. He had left these papers behind liim in a cairn, wliere, among other things, some silver spoons had since been found. In the winter of 1876, while the captain was with the bark A. Houghton, before Marble Island, another set of Es(juimaux visited him, and while looking at his log- book said that the great white man who had been among them many years before had kept a similar book, and having told him this one of them gave him a spoon engraved Avith the word " Franklin." rhis was enough to arrest the attention and stir the adventurous spirit of Lieutenant Schwatka. He be- came eager to organize a search party and find the cairn where the pai)ers were supposed to be still buried. He obtained leave of absence, went to New York, and proposed to Judge Daly, of the Geographical Society, to take charge of an expedition. After listening to the lieutenant's offer. Judge Daly gave him all the in- formation in his possession concerning the whereabouts of the supposed cairn, so far as its site could be ascer- tained from the history of the relics already said to be found, and commended him to General Sherman, in- dorsing his application to be detailed to command the exploring party. The lieutenant also conferred with Messrs. Morrison & Brown, the shipping merchants of South Street, New York, who owned the whaling vessel on which the supposed clew was brought home, and they readily accepted his offer, and with the help of private si^bscriptions fitted out the Eothen. Their instructions to Lieutenant Schwatka were as follows: \v\' NORTHWARD. " Upon your arrival at Repulse Bay you will prepare for your inland journey by building your sledges and taking hucIi provisions q» are necessary. As soon as sufficient snow is on the ground you will start for King William Land and the Gulf of Boothia. Take daily observations, and whenever you d'scover any error in any of the charts you will correct the same. When- ever you siiall make any new discoveries you will mark the same on the charts ; and important discoveries I desire to be named after the Hon. Charles P. Daly and his estimable wife, Mrs. Maria Daly. Any records you may think necessary for you to leave on the trip, at such places as you think best, you will mark ' Eotlwn Franklin Arctic Search Party, Frederick Schwatka in command;' date, longitude, and latitude; to be directed to the President of the Ameiican Geographical Society, New York, United States of America. Should you be fortunate in finding the records, remains, or relics of Sir John Franklin or his unfortunate part}-, as I have hopes you will, you will keep them in your or Joe's c(mtrol, and the contents thereof shall be kept secret, and no part thereof destroyed, tampered with, or lost. Should you find the remains of Sir John Franklin or any of his party, you will take the same, have them properly taken care of, and bring them with you. The carpenter of the Eotlien will, before you start on your sledge journey, prepare boxes necessary for the care of relics, remains, or records, should you discover the same. Whatever you may discover or obtain you will deliver to Captain Thomas F. Barry, or whoever shall be in. 'i, I I « SOHWA TEA'S SEARCH. command of the schooner Eothen, or such vessel as may be despatched for you. You are now provisioned for eighteen months for twelve men. I shall next spring send more provisions to you, so that in the event of your trip being prolonged you shall not want for any of the necessaries of life. You will be careful and economical with your provisions, and will not allow anything to be wasted or destroyed. Should the ex- pedition for which it is intended prove a failure, make it a geographical success, as you will be compelled to travel over a great deal of unexplored country." Thus manned, equipped, and instructed, we sailed from New York. It was nearly a month before we saw our first iceberg. During the night of July 11th I heard the order given to wear ship, and v/as called on deck to see an iceberg d^ad ahead ; but so great was the distance and so foggy the weather that it was some time before I could make it out, and then it appeared only as a thin, faintly bluish line. The eagle eyes of the second mate had discovered it in time to avoid any danger of collision; but the captain thought it more prudent to heave to and wait until dawn before con tinning on our course . The following morning a regu- lar old veteran berg could be seen from the deck, about twenty miles away. It was apparently about a mile long, and could have supplied the city of New York with ice for many years, were there any way to pre- serve it for that purpose. During the 13th we saw four large icebergs, which passed close by the ship. While writing in the cabin, about eleven o'clock of the .A'5 NORTHWARD. 15th, the mate on watch called me on deck to see a magnificent aurora, the first we had seen. It was truly a grand spectacle. At the same time the moon was shining brightly and the sea was as smooth as glass. Near by an immense iceberg looked black against the red twilight along the horizon, while in the distance another berg was white in the light of the full moon. The air was filled \Arith the voices of wild-ducks, who could be heard, but not seen. On Friday, the 19th, in latitude 59 deg. 54 min, north, and longitude 00 deg. 45 min. west., thirteen icebergs were to be seen during the morning, and were of the most varied and pictu- res([ue description. One appeared like a huge circus tent, with an adjoining side-show booth; while near by another was a most perfect representation of a cottage by the sea, with gables toward the observer, and chim- neys rising at proper intervals along the roofs. On the other side of the vessel a huge monster presented a vast am[)hitheatre, with innumerable columns sparkling in the sunlight and dazzling the spectator with their intense brilliancy. I made a few sketohesi of the most reiiiaikable in view ; but as twenty-three could be seen from tlie deck at three o'clock I gave up in despair. At six o'clock thirty-three were in sight, and the sun set beautifully, eight minutes past nine, surrounded by foui-teen of these monsters of the deep. On the night of the 19th I went on deck to see an iceberg, which was a perfect counterpart of Newstead Abbey. One could almost fancy he saw the ivy creeping over its jiides, so deceptive were the shadows that fell upon it 8 SCHWATKA'S SEARCH. from pinnacles and horizontal projections innumer- able. At half-past seven o'clock in the evening we sighted a brigantine off the weather beam, while thirty-one icebergs were ai'ound us. The vessel was going the same way that we were bound, and was about fifteen miles away. Sunday night, the 2l8t, was a splendid night. One could read distinctly on deck throughout the entire night. There were plenty of icebergs around. Those in front and on both sides of the ship were black against the sky, the moon being on the other side of them, while those we passed shone in all their virgin beauty in the bright moonlight. The red twilight still lingered along the horizon, graduating through a jiale yellow tint to orange, and then deepening into intense blue that was almost black. The picture ^^'a^ fierce in color and startling in the contrasts it pre- sented. At a quai-ter before nine o'clock the next night we sighted llesolution Island in the dim distance. Spy- glasses were at once brought into requisition, and we could see that the mirage had fooled us, though there seemed little doubt of the land's being visible. The next morning the land a\ as in plain sight, about thirty or thirty-five miles off the weather beam, and the water filled with small and da.igerous pieces of ice. The land was covered with fog, and looked desolate enough, but ne^^ertheless seemed acceptable after a tedious journey against head winds and calms. The wind was still directly out of the straits, and we had to beat NORTHWARD. 9 pre- I backward and forward from Eesolution to Button Island, and it seemed as if the straits were unapproach- able. Toward night the wind blew a perfect gale, and added to the usual dangers was the risk of running upon the innumerable pieces of loose ice which appeared on every side, many of them having sharp points pro- jecting below the surface of the water, and heavy enough to pierce the sides of any vessel going at the speed we Avere compelled to make in order to keep suf- ficient headway to steer clear of such obstacles as could b3 seen. The c;iptain and first mate, who were on deck most of the night, said that disaster was imminent ; that the danger was constant, and that the night was withal one of the most terrible ordeals they had ever experi- enced. I was tired and slept soundly, and consequently knew nothing about it until mornins:, which dawned brightly and with a light breeze, under which we passed up to the first icepack I had ever seen. While en- gaged in conversation an inexperienced hand at the wheel brouglit us so close to a small cake of ice, about the size of a schooner, that collision was inevitable. A long projection beneath the water had a most danger- ous look, but fortunately Avas so deep that the keel of the Eothen, ran up on it and someAvhat deadened her headAvay. Long poles were got out at once, and, all hands pushing, succeeded jifter a Avhile in getting her clear without damage ; but it Avas a perilous moment. We Avorked over toAA'ard the south side of tlie straits, and found a channel through Avhich Ave could make but slow progress. The Avind increased and blcAV terrifically ! ( H I !h> ^ ? 10 SCH WA TKA •6' SEA RCH. all niglit, forcing the vessels to beat back and forth in the mouth of the straits, and we had a similar experi- ence on the night of the 22d, running the gauntlet under reefed mainsail and jib through loose ice and in imminent danger of shipwreck. Next day the ice ap- peared somewhat open, and Captain Barry concluded to venture into the pack. When Ave got into clear water we \',-orked up to the bulkhead of ice and passed Res- olution Island. We were almost as glad to get rid of it as we had been to see it, nearly a week before. All the icebergs we saw were aground, and several of them had high arches cut into their sides, which looked as if our vessel might safely sail inside and secure a harbor. We worked up beyond the Lower Savage Islands, and in sight of the Middle Savage and Saddle- back Hock. When we went to bed the weather was a dead calm, and the water of glassy smoothness. Not a sound was to be heard save the distant thunder of bursting ice- bergs and the water swashing up against the field-ice that now and then i)assed with the current. It sounded for all the Avorld like waves ui)on a rock-bound coast, or like the distant rumbling of a train of cars. About midnight Joe called me to announce that the natives were coming off to the ship in boats. I hastened to put on my clothes ; but before I got dressed I could hear the captain's voice shouting " Kimo " (Welcome), from the quarter-deck, and when I joined him I could see two dark objects that seemed to be ap[)roaching rapidly, and could hear the confused sounds of voices NORTHWARD. 11 in conversation coming up from the water. Presently it could be seen that one was a kyack and the other an omien, or women's boat, filled with women and children and a few men. By this time Joe had come on deck, and at Captain Barry's request invited them to come aboard. When they heard their native tongue from the stranger ship their surprise was unfeigned. The men bought a number of corlitangs and kummings (nar tive boots), as well as other articles of apparel, and gave in exchange small pieces of tobacco, a few cases of matches, and articles of clothing that were not worth keeping. Captain Barry got a quantity of whalebone, reindeer and fox skins, walrus ivory, a bear-skin, and about a hundred and fifty pounds of fresh reindeer meat. We also bought three dogs for about a pound of powder, and a kyack for Joe, for which the captain gave an old broken double-barrelled gun and a handful of powder and shot. The owner was in ecstasy over the bargain and Joe was more than happy. I could not help, however, feeling mortified that such advantage should be taken of their childish ignorance of values. I was not suqiriseJ, then, when Joe, who has been loua^ enouo;h in civilized lands to know Avhat values are, came to me and said he thought it was wrong to rob these people. They were his own people, and from the same tribe, in fact, so that his interest was naturally with them. His own uncle was one of the chief men of this tribe, but at the time we arrived had gone inland with most of the men on a hunting expe- dition. Joe sent hira his pocket-knife as a present, and 'Till ! ; i :ll III [ 12 SCHWATKA'S SEARCH. also was liberal with needles among the women, who were very grateful for his generosity. The whalers seriously object to giving things away to the natives, a8 it renders their system of barter more difficult. It would be a greater benefit to all these tribes to send one or two of their most intelligent young men to the United States or to England for a few years, so that they could protect them against the rapacity of the masters and owners of whaling ships. They could then get something like a fair equivalent for the goods they have to dispose of. The natives are better whalemen than any of the seamen who come to this country, and they should certainly receive more than a handful of powder and a few bullets for hundreds of pounds of bone, worth about $2.50 a pound. Shortly after day- light the natives departed, and a breeze springing up we set sail upon our journey. Most of the day we were in full sight of the land, which I regarded with keen interest. It certainly seemed the most desolate-looking region I ever saw — a succession of hills of bald rock, with occasional patches of snow and moss ; not a house, nor a tree, nor, in fact, any sign of animal r- vegetable life^ — and yet I longed to put my foot upon that barren soil and commence the work we had before us. One of the principal annoyances of all sailing-mas- ters in the Arctic regions is the sluggish action of the magnetic needle as they approach the magnetic pole, and it was a difficulty from which we were not exempt. The land all looks so much alike that even when run- NORTHWAIW. 13 ning in jjlaiii sight of it it requires the greatest famili- arity with the j)nncipal points to be able to steer by them. During the night of Friday, August 2, we, by some mysterious operation, got in between Nottingham and Salisbury Islands, when we thought we were be- yond the Digges. We found a bad reef, just on a level with the water's edge, about eight miles north-weL;t of the north-west point of Nottingham Island, which is not down upon the charts, and is situated just where a ves- sel running along at night, " handy to the land," as sail- ors say, would inevitably run upon it. We put it down upon our charts and called it Trainor's lleef, as it was discovered by the tliird mate from the mast-head. During a previous voyage Captain Barry discovered a similar r^cf, about the same distance off the easterly point of Salisbury Island, which we also noted and put down as Barry's Rock. We reached Whale Point, at the entrance of Howe's Welcome, during the morning of Wednesday, August 7, just seven weeks from New York, and about six o'clock a whale-boat reached the vessel's side, after having chased us all night. It was loaded with natives of the iwillie tribe, two or three families of whom still re- mained at the Point, while the others had gone down to the vicinity of Depot Island, which is half-way be- tween Cape FuUerton and Chesterfield Inlet. The vis- itors comprised two men, a woman, two boys, a little orphan girl, and a baby. The woman was a daughter of " Prince Albert," a man of considerable influence in his tribe, and I understood that his power was due to 14 SCHWA TKA'S SEARCH. superior intelligence and sagacity. In fact, all those whom we met at this time seemed much superior in in- telligence to those who came aboai'd at the Lovver Sav- age iHlands. They were cleaner, but by a mere trifle, and showed improvement from contact with civiliza- tion. They usually preferred to array themselves in some part of the costume of white people, though not by any means particular in wearing it as ^vllite people do. One of the men was a young fellow known as "Jim," who, the captain thouglit, would be a desirable ac(|uisition to our party to go to King William Land, and Joe made the proposition to him. He regarded the matter fava)rably, and was particularly interested when he saw some of our fine rifles. His father was an old man, called " The Doctor," who was dependent upon liis son. After giving our guests breakfast and a few presents we bade them good-by, and set sail for De[)ot Island, where we arrived about four o'clock in the afternoon. The lookout from the mast-head saw some boats com- ing from the main-land, and presently three kyacks, an omien, and two whale-boats came alongside, bringing about fifty people, including men, women, and children. Among them were i^rmow and his two half-brothers, Ik-omer (Fire) and Too-goo-lan. " Papa " was there also, and he, too, is one of the few savages that are thoroughly reliable in every respect. He was one of Captain Hall's party when he visited King William Land in 1868. All these people seemed very friendly toward us, and upon a consultation over the charts we III NORTHWARD. 15 decider! to go on to the main-land, near Depot Island, to spend the winter. AVe learned Avith deep regret that one of the Natchillis, who was said to liave spoken to Captain Barry abont the existence of books among the Franklin relics, had since died, and that nobody knew what had become of the other. We determined to make every effort to find the latter, for shonhl he know where the books were hidden, and be willing to con- duct us there, our labor would have been materially lessened. But in any case, whether we found him or not, we liad great faith that, by staying at least one sea- son on King William Land, when the snow Avas off the ground, we should be able to find the records, and com- 2)lete the history of Sir John Franklin's last exj)edition. CHAPTER II. THE WINTER CAMP. "• i li Meanwhile we liad need of patience. Our camp, wliich was in latitude 63 deg. 51 min. nortli, and 90 deg. 26 min. 15 sec. west of Greenwicli, had been CAMP DALY IN SUMMER. named by Lieutenant Schwatka after the president of the American Geographical Society. The tents that 16 r camp, , and 90 ad been ddent of its that 1 ¥m THE WJyTJJR CAMP. 17 hud been provide*! for tlio cxpediilou [)r()ving