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OORTAIHIira IHB HISIOBI OP AIL FBXVlOUd EXPLORATIONS OF THE ABCTIC OCEAH.FBOM THl TEA& 1618 ObWN TO THB PRESENT IDCE; gHOwrae HOW far thkt adtanobd northward, what dtsooyxrhs thbt kadb AKO THint BOlJBNTiriO OBSERVATIONS. THI'PRBBRNT WHBRBABOCTS OF SIR JOHN IRANKLIN AND HIS PARTT, IF THKT ARB STILL ALIYB. A 8TATBHKNT OF THl ONLY PRAOTIOABLI HKCHOD BT WHICH THB NORTH POU HAT BB REAOHBD: THB RBA80N8 WHT ALL BXPLORINO BXPEDITI0N8 HATB HirHKlTO. VAILBD TO PBNBTRATB THB lOT BARRIBR8 OF THB POLAR RBGIONS. HIGHLY IMPORTANT ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATIONS, ntOTINO THAT THBRI IB NO SUCH THING AS APPARBNT TIMB AT THB NORTH POLB; SUV- IBRINOS OF DR. KANB'S BXPLORINO PARTT; HOW THET WBRB BURIBO FOR TWO TBAR8 IN THB lOB, BNDVRINO A DEORBB OF COLD NEVER BXPERIENCBD BT ANT HUMAN BSNO BEFORE; THEIR MIRACULOUS ESCAPES AND UNFRECBDENTED HARD- * BHIPS; THEIR ABANDONMENT OF THE SHIP; AND PERILOUS ioURNBT OF FOUR HUNDRED MILES OYER THB lOB. WITH NEARLY ONE HUNDRED SPLENDID ENGRAVINGS. BT PROFESSOR AUGUST SONNTAG, ARBOMOIIBB TO nB EXPIDmOH, VORlfMBLT OF THK ROTAL OBSBBYATORT AT TIBiniAt AXD UMt or TBI V. ■. lATIOlCAL 0B8BBTAT0BT, WABHUfaTOH OITT, D.O. ■*1 i J itl PHILADELPHIA: J. H. O. WHITING, N. E. OOB. FIFTH AND CHESTNUT STS. Entered aooording to Act of Congresi, in the year 1857, by OEAS. 0. RHODES, b the (Mm of the (Jink of the Distriot Court of the United States, in and for the Butem District of Pennsylvania. iTaBBOTr»B IT Moaea cbabum. PBOFESSOB SONNTAa. 181133 To (he Editor of (he PhiUidelpkia Evening Journal. In yoar paper of Satarday I noticed an account of the proceed- ings at. an entertainment f^ven by Mr. G. W. Ohildb, of the firm of Childs k, PiTKBSOM, to Home of the members of the Qrinnell Exploring Expedition in Search of Sir John Fbamkun, a protest, si^ed by some of them, in relation to the publishing of " Sonntag's Narratire of the Orinnell Expedition," which does much ii^jastice to me as the publisher. If yon will have the kindness to give the enclosed aiBdaTit a place in your paper, yoa will mnch oblige, . Yonrs, CHARLES 0. BHODE& PhUadelphia, March U, 185T. .1 BosA SomiTAO, being duly sworn, doth depose and say, that Mr. Chabuu C. BHi8 boui^t the namtim, wiitton by her husband, giying an account of his voyage to the Arctic regions, under the com- mand of Dr. E. E. Kani, and that she believes he bought it for the pinrpose of publishing it , ROSA SONNTAO. Sworn and snbsoribed before me this 14th day of March, Anno Domini 1867. GEO. GBYlii;, Xlderman Thirteenth Ward. W PREFACE. m 1r the publication of such a book as this required any ex- planation or apology, it would be sufficient to say that every item of information relating to Arctic discovery is eagerly de- sired by \he public at this time, and it would be almost crimiv nal for any man who possesses such information to withhold it from the world. The undersigned having purchased Pro* fessor Sonntag's Narrative of the Grinnel Expedition, some months since, have used their best judgment and abilities in.pre- paring this thrilling narrative for the press, to make it as ao* ceptable to the reading public as possible. The artistic embel- lishments and electrotyping are of the first order ; and we feel assured that many highly interesting facts recorded in this work have never appeared in print before. We are equally confident that no man who ever visited the Polar climes could be better qualified by nature and education to give an accurate and satbfactory account of Arctic affairs, than the gifted and scientific gentleman whose narrative we now offer to the public. All preceding journals of Arctic travelers have been more or less vague and incomplete, being for the most part diaries of personal adventure rather than graphic descriptions of the localities, incidents, and peculiarities of those myste- nuAoi. nous regioni which rarroand the Pole, and their almost equally remarkable inhalntanta. In this work, a'* we confidently believe, the reading public will have the most concise and complete description of the manners and habits of the Esqui- maux tribes that has ever issued fW)m the press. Professor SoitaitagjB now engaged with a party of scientific gentlemen in making explorations in Central America and in Mexico; accounts of their observations in those countries, together with drawings, maps, &o^ all of the highest import- ance to geographical and geobgical science, will appear in book form as soon as the work can be made ready. Respecting the price of this Volume, we have concluded to put it at such a low figinn, as will enable all classes to read it. The first edition has been ordered in advance of its publication, and we confidently believe that it is destined to have an vn- preoedented d/rcfidation, CHAS. C. RHODES. PkOadBlpkia, Jan. Itt, 1857. m % CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. btNdMtnry OttMrmdMM on VoyagM of DiieoTory and Iiplontion in Otn*> ml.— The Unfortunate Expedition of Sir John Franklin.— Ineffeotual Al> lempte to Ditoover hie Wbereabouta and afford him Relief. 13 CHAPTER II. ' Captain Kane's lipeditien etarte ftym New Tork— Afftoting Seenee at its I)epartare — ArriTal at St. John's — The Tribnlatione of the Adventuren begin Early. — The Expedition reaches Qreenland.— Modes of Living o( the Esquimaax.-— Visit to the Danish Settlement. — Frequent and Terrific Appearance of Ioel)ergs. — Howthej are Formed, eto ...t*. ,81 CH/'?TER III. further Obserrations on the Difficulties of Arctic Navigation.—" Floes" iind ** Hummooks" of lee described.— Ships Built oxpressly for Navigating the Polar Seas. — Preparations for Passing the Winter among the Ice. — We begin to Experience all the Horrors of the Climate. — Great Mortality among the Dogs 39 CHAPTER IV. Our IStuation becomes more and more Unpleasant.— The Arotio Winter sets in. —Intense Cold, and its Surprising Effects. — Polar Scenery.— Dreadful Suf* ferings of our Excursion Parties. — We are visited by the Savage Esqui- maux.— Their Personal Appearance, Dress, Manners, and Character A9 CHAPTER V. Some Account of the Esquimaux Dogs. — Their Singular Habits and Great Utility. — Further Account of the Manners, Customs, and Superstitions of the Savage Esquimaux.— We obtain another Dog-Team, and send out two new Traveling Parties, one commanded by Dr. Kane in person 61 CHAPTER VII. Numbers of Walruses or Sea-Horses are Discoverea.— Description of the Ap- pearance, Habita, and Peculiarities of these Animals. — Summer Scenery in the Arctic Regions.— Vegetation.— Animal Life.— Arctic Birds, Bears, Foxes and Ilabbits 81 9 OOMTlNm. 81 OHAPTIR VIII. Tar^lo Wtku IpMi-^ TbrUling 8MM.~Urfe Firt lUH PfMipiUtod into Um 8m.— 8Mk, ttod tbtir Mod* of Hiding^WtariaoB* Journey MroM th« Iei.--IIow tho iMquiuMz boal SokU.— Water Torreate.— We prepare to Spend Mothor Winter in our Ship, without Firee «t Nighi—Qreat Suffer- lng.^-r«ilate or Dr. Kmm'i Pw^ to roMh Beechj lelaad 01 CHAPTER IX. Tronblee and Diiappotntnents.*— Another Winter eete in.— Soaroity of Fuel.~ Two Bean vieil oar Ship.— A BatUe.— SoTore Soibring and Siokneee.— Eequi^ftos ANhUaotuie, fto.— Their Sleeping Apparatoa. 97 CHAPTER X. Aretio Sportcmaaebip.— Freqaont Yieita of the Eeqaimanz.— Life in the Ee> quimaux Hate.— Modee of Cooking, Cooking Uteneile, etc.— Oeoupationa of Men, Women, and Children.— Laiineea and Gluttony of the Iiquimaaz. —Their Hunting Ezoureiona : Diflioultiee and Dangen thereof.— Interesting Aoeedote of two jonng Ssquimauz Huaten 107 CHAPTER XI. leqaimauz Hunting.— Bear Baiting Extraordinary.— Walms Catching.— Sin- gular CuetomL^Bequimauz Oeneroeity and Benevolence.— Fourieriim in Greenland.— Our Situation beoomee Desperate.— Abandonment of the Ship and the Main Ol^eet of the Expedition 116 CHAPTER Xn. The Reaiona why all Arotio Expeditiona hare been Failnrea.— Captain Panyi Explorationi tiie most Suooessfiil. — Suggestions for a New Plan of Arotio Exploration.— The Possibility of Reaching the North Pole.— How that Ob- jeetmaybaaibetad 122 CHAPTER Xm. An attempt to Answer the Question " Of what use are Arctic Explorations?" —"Will they Pay f— Hints for Enterprising Capitalists and Yankee Spc euIaton.^AdTantagesof Polar Researches to the cause of Science, an object worthy of the Noblest Ambition.— Obeerrations to be made at the Pole. ... 128 CHAPTER XIV. Devotions on Shipboard.— We bid a Final Adieu to the " Advance."— The Celebrated Boat Journey oommenoed.— Appalling Dangers of this Enter- prise. — Terrible SuflSsrings. — Narrow Escape from Drowning. — DiBtressing Accideni — Death and Funeral of the Carpenter. — A Grave unexpectedly Plfovided 137 CHAPTER XV. Arrival at Open Water. — Embarkation. — Adventures at Sea. — ^Arrival at Hak- luyf s Island.— Great Sportsmanship. — Dreary Aspect of the Coast.— The Transportation of Rocks by loeberj^n. — Scarcity of Provisions.— Large Su|v> plies of Duck Eggs.— Want of Fuel to Cook them 147 1 0ONTINT8. CHAPTER XVI. We arrive at a Spot well Populated by Feathered Bipedi.— €lr«at Slaaghter of the Inhabitant!.— We expect to Meet with Whalers, bnt are Disappointed.— Texatious Deceptions practised on as by the Icebergs.- -x^irrival at Melville Island.— Diffioolties of Navigation at that Point — Three White Men are Discovered on an Island. — Arrival at a Danish Settlement. — ^The end of the fiuaouB Boat Joamey 156 CHAPTER XVn. Oar Cool Rejeption at Upernavik.— The Esquimaux Treat as Handsomely.— The Curious Religions Notions of these People.— Their GoTemment.— Their Strange Duels. — Improvements in their Modes of Living 166 CHAPTER XVin. Itrosses and Decorations of Esquimaux Ladies. — An Ingenious Signal, or a Beau-Catching Contrivance. — Admirable Construction of the Esquimaux Boats. — Reindeer Hunting by Water.— We Proceed in a Danish Ship to Disco Island. — Our Hospitable Reception. — Arrival of Captain Hartstein'a Expedition in P«f\rch of Dr. Kane.— We Embark for the United States.— Arrival at New York. — Conclusion of the Narrative 175 • '».■•••• ^ • * I I >Vi;' SONNTAG'S NARRATIVB Ul« ' sr« the • • • 156 ,_ leir •• • 166 t . nra aux ) to in'i s.—> • • • 175 Of TBB GRINNELL EXPEDITION IN SEARCH OF SIR JOHN FRANKLIN, CHAPTER I. IKTROBUOTOllT OBSERVATIONS ON VOYAGES OP DISCOVERT AND EXPLORATION m OKNBRAL. — THE TJNEORTUNATE EXPEDITION OP SIR JOHN FRANKLIN. DTEPPECTUAL ATTEMPTS TO DISCOVER HIS WHEREABOUTS AND TO AFFORD TTTlf RHLIEP* The exploration of un- known regions has al- ways been a favorite ob- ject with men of a bold and adventurous spirit, — and if we trace the histo- ry of the world, back to the remotest periods, even to the age of fable and poetic exaggeration, we shall find many memora- ble examples of those dar- ing enterprises which aimed at the discovery of lands or seas the very ex- istence of which was ques- tioned by the generality of mankind. The re- nowned Argonautio expe- dition was probably an enterprise of this kind, though the real objects and events of that undertaking are hidden under the misty veil of 18 r 14 sonntaq's narrative of the grinnell expedition. 1 mythological narration. The Phoenicians were the most remarkable nation of antiquity for the extent of their maritime researches, and the number of their colonial settlements. But the enterprise of all early voyagers had its limits, as coasting was the only kind of navigation in which they could venture without encountering risks which were too formidable for human courage to undertake. The invention of the mariner's compass was the commencement of a new era in nautical affairs, as it enabled navigators to dispense with the land-marks which had hitherto guided them through the trackless deep, and to venture boldly through seas and oceans which had hitherto been deemed impassable. The splendid achievements of Columbus, Vespucius, and Vasco de Gama, were among the earliest results of this grand improve- ment in the art of navigation, an improvement which was soon followed by many others in marine architecture, and in the rigging and equip- ment of ships, the construction of which must necessarily be modified to suit the new service for which they were now required. The ships of earlier times were mere coasters, not at all adapted to the navigation of extensive seas or vast oceans, wMch now presented themselves as practicable fields for human enterprise. j* , , After the discoveries in Oceanica, by Capt. Cook and others, the spirit of maritime adventure seemed, for a time, to come to a pause, or we may say, "for lack of argument.'" The opinion seemed to gain ground that very little more was left, in the way of exploration, for sea- faring people to accomplish. Navigators were tempted to sit down and weep, like Alexander the Great, because the earth could a£ford them no other islands or continents to explore. Some attention, indeed, was directed to the Arctic regions ; but the bounds of exploration in that quarter were believed to be well defined by an icy barrier, beyond which the enterprise of man could never penetrate. In the contemplation of tills stupendous obstacle the most ardent enthusiasm became chilled and benumbed, and the proverbially reckless spirit of the sailor was appalled. There was a feeling of romantic and almost superstitious terror connected with the idea of sailing to a locality which appeared to be beyond the limits of the habitable globe; a locality the approaches to which were enclosed by portals of ice more repulsive than gates of adamantine rock ; and which, if once passed, might be closed again on the too-daring traveller, shutting him forever from all intercourse with the cheerful world without, and confining him in the dreary dominions of perpetual winter, without any prospect of release. Imagination presented the frozen corpses of preceding adventurers lying " unknelled, uncoflBned, and unknown," the victims of their own reckless i a H Hi H 9) SO M U f Q n O H n H markablc , and the all early igation in were too >n of the nautical md-marks , and to m deemed icius, and improve- a followed md equip- ) modified The ships lavigatioQ Dselvea as >thers, the b pause, or id to gain >n, for sea- ; down and fford them ndeed, was ion in that sr, beyond itemplation ime chilled sailor was iperstitious \x appeared fcality the repulsive , might be Br from all liim in the of release, urers lying yn reckless I m *■ '•t ; , sonntaq'b nabbatitb of THB ORINNELL BXPEDITION. ]7 hardihood in having dared to yentore beyond those limits where nature herself assumed an aspect of terrible menace, seeming to declare— ** thus far shalt then go, and no farther." To disregaru this prohibition seemed to be almost an act of impiety, and many persons of sober judgment and scientific attainments thought that the experiment of Arctic exploration had been sufficiently tried, and that further attempts of the kind were utterly hopeless. As early as the beginning of the sixteenth century efforts had been made by navigators, under the auspices of different European powers, to open a passage to China and the East Indies, by circumnavigating the northern coast of America. In the year 1527, the idea of a passage to the East Indies by approaching the North Pole, was suggested by a Bristol merchant to Henry Yin ; but it appears that no voyage was undertaken for the purpose of navigating the circum-polar seas nntiil the commencement of the following century. In 1607, an expedition, having this object in view, was fitted out at the expense of certain London merchants. To this attempt several others succeeded, at different periods ; but although they were well projected, and were oarried out with energy, and as much skill and science as the times oould command, in every instance they proved total failures with regard to the main object of the enterprise. At length, after the lapse of more than a century and a half, this interesting object obtained the royal patronage of Grpat Britain ; and in 1778, an expedition under the command of Captain Phipps was planned and eqmpped by tiie British Government. Though Captain Phipps found it impossible to penetrate that vast rampart of ice, which extended for more than twenty degrees between the latitudes of 60° and 81^, " the belief of most scientific men of the age in the possibility of proceeding ' further, under more favorable circumstances, remained unshaken. In 1775-76, the Hon. D. Barrington, an English lord, published a book in which he discussed the possibility of approaching the North Pole, and notwithstanding many important and significant facts were contained in lus valuable work, he was ridiculed by the most of his countrymen as an idle and visionary projector. In 1806, a certain Captain Symmes, of Cincinnati, Ohio, produced a trealise on the Arctic regions, in which h'e suggested that the earth was prpbably hollow, and that a passage might be found somewhere beyond the Arctic circle, which would t^ord the means of entrance to the cavity within. He offered to verify his theory by actual experi- ment, to be made by himself, and expressed his willingness to stake his life and fortune on the result. This captun, in all other matteri 2 - » SONHTAO'a NAnRATIVi: OF THE ORISNELL EXPEDITION. M' i ( t » eondncted himself like a man of sound judgment, and his theory, fiingnlar «nd startling as it was, obtained considerable credit for a time, both in Europe and America. Even at this day, " Symmes* Hole" is noi quite forgotten, though the captain's theory is believed by scientific men and the public in general to be quite as hollow as the earth itself, according to his representations. The Dutch made three several voyages, in 1594-5-6, for the discovery of a north-east passage, but were equally unsuccessful as the English. All these efforts were made abortive by the icy obstructions, which are always encountered in those narrow seas which lie between and contiguous to Baffin's Bay and Behring's Straits. There is every reason to believe that this obstacle will always ezbt, causing the navi- gation of these waters to be attended with great peril and uncertainty, even in the most favorable seasons. This consideration goes far to preclude all hope that any object of much practical utility to the world can be accomplished by the navigation of these seas, even though the regions beyond could offer the strongest inducements to commercial enterprise. The passage recently discovered by the gallant exertions of Messrs. McClure and Inglefield, b not at all exempt from these difficulties, and the chief results of their discovery, made with so much labor and peril, are the solution of a geographical problem and a mort precise knowledge of the localities. During a period of forty years, the most strenuous and expensive exertions were made- for the attainment of the grand object specified above. The English were the pi^incipal aspirants for the glory of that discovery, and the voyages of those celebrated British navigators. Boss, Perry and Franklin, contributed in a high degree to elucidate the geographical position of the northern American coast, and many addi- tions were made by the exertions of these brave seamen to the stores of physical science. So much has' been said and written on the subject of a north-west passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and so many erroneous notions have been afloat concerning it, that I will account for the recent revival of the attempts to discover it. Among the changes and vicissitudes to which the physical constitw tion of our globe is perpetually subject, one of the most extraordinary, and from which the most interesting and important results may be anticipated, appears to have taken place in the course of the last ten or fifteen years, and is still in progressive operation. The convulsion of an earthquake and the eruption of a volcano force themselves into notice J)y the dismay and devastation with which, in a greater or less degree. SONNIAO'S NARBAirVB OF THE URINNELL EXPEDITION. 19 ingnlar e, both is noi ientifio itself, several ge, but , which m and every le navv they are almost always attended ; but the event to which I allude hac been so quietly accomplished, that it might have remained unknown, but for the extraordinary change which a few intelligent navigators remarked in the Arctic ice, and the reports of the unusual quantities of this ice observed in the Atlantic ; this event to which I allude, was the disappearance of the whole or greater part of the vast barriers of ice, which for a long period of time, perhaps, was supposed to have maintained its firm, rooted position on the eastern coast of old Greenland ; and its re>appearance in a more southerly latitude, where it was met with, as was attested by various persons worthy of credit, in the years 1815-16-17, by ships coming from the East Indies and America, by others going to Halifax and Newfoundland, and in dif- ferent parts of the Atlantic, as far down as the fortieth parallel of latitude. Some of these detached masses were of an unusual magnitude and extent, amounting in some instances to whole islands of ice, of such vast dimensions that ships were impeded by them for many days, in their voyages ; others were detached icebergs, from a hundred to a hundred and thirty feet above the surface of the water, and several miles in circumference. The Halifax Packet reported in 1845, that she had passed a mountain of ice nearly two hundred feet high, and at least two miles in circumference ; a ship belonging to the old Greenland lilissions was eleven days beset on the coast of Labrador in floes of ice mixed with icebergs, many of which had huge rocks upon them, gravel, soil, and pieces of wood. In short, every account from various parts of North America agreed in stating, that larger and more numerous fields and bergs of ice had been seen at greater distances from their usual places in the years above mentioned, than had at any time before been witnessed by the oldest navigators. The fact, therefore, 'might be considered as too well authenticated to admit of a doubt ; it was at once concluded from whence the greater part of these immense quantities of ice were derived. In a letter from Mr. Scoresby, an intelligent navigator of the Greenland seas, to Sir Joseph Banks, he says: "I observed on my last voyage (1817) about two thousand square leagues. (18,000 square miles) of the surface of the Greenland seas, included between the parallels of 74° and 80°, perfectly void of ice, all of which had disappeared within the last two years." And he farther states, " that, although on former voyages he had very rarely been able to penetrate the ice between the latitudes of 76° and 80°, so far to the west as the meridian of Greenwich, on his last voyage he twice reached the longitude of 10° west; that on the parallel of 74° he approached the coast of old Greenland ; that there was little ice near 80 SONNTAQ's narrative 07 HIE QRINNELL EXPEDITIOIT. the land " md he added, that "there could be no doubt that he might have reached the shore, had he but a justifiable motive for navigating &a unknown sea at so late a season of the year." This account was fully confirmed by intelligence received at Copenhagen, from Iceland, in the year 1816, that the ice had broken loose from the opposite coast of Greenland, and floated away to the southward after surrounding the shores of Iceland, and filling all the bays and creeks of that island; and that this afilioting visitation was repeated in 1817; circumstances hitherto unknown to the oldest inhabitant. About the same time the whale ships that frequented the fishery in Davis' Straits, and the Hudson Bay traders, experienced an unusual number of icebergs, and large floes of ice drifting to the southward, down the straits, and along the coasts of Labrador, and of Newfoundland. Yet as to a certain extent those masses of ice were of frequent occurrence in these quarters, and occasionally met with in the Atlantic; it was those from the eastward that attracted particular notice. Whatever the cause may have been for the disruption of this immense barrier of ice from the eastern coast of Greenland, whether by its own weight, after centuries of accumulation, or from the partial disruption of the coast itself, the fact is unquestionable that the notoriety of it given in the several journals of Europe, and more especially in those of England, corroborated by various private communications, was among the circumstances which, combined with others, gave rise to the revival of those voyages of discovery for attempting a passage round the northern coast of America to the Pacific Ocean, and also to another attempt to reach the North Pole by proceeding between the east coast of Greenland, now freed from ice, and the west coast of Spitzbergen, generally not much hampered with icti. It may be observed that none of the old English navigators were able to penetrate any part of the Polar Sea, all their discoveries were confined to the struts, and inlets, and islands, on the eastern coast of America, and the large straits of Davis and Baffin, on the western coast of Greenland. Had Baffin entered Lancaster Sound from his own strait, he would at once have discovered the sea which communicates t? ith the , Pacific, and then there is no saying what this able old navigator and his contemporaries might not have effected ; indeed, at the commencement of Parry's, Ross's, Franklin's, and Inglefield's voyages, from 1818 down to the voyage of Captain Back, in 1835, nothmg was known of any entrance Into the Polar Sea from the other side of America. All that was known on the first attempt, which hardly deserves the name, was that the Polar Sea did exist, that the ships of Captain Cook had looked in at it through •05r.j.':*8 NARRATIVE OP THB ORINNRLL EXPEDITION. 21 Behring*8 Straits, and that Fearne and Mackenzie, two North American travellers, had arrived at the northern shore of North America, at different points and at different times, and reported, somewhat doubtfully, that they had viewed the sea. From these circumstance?, and more partic- ularly from undoubted authorities it was quite clear that a current was constantly found setting down Davis' Strait, and the Strait of Hudson's Bay, and also along the shore of Spitzbergen, all to the southward ; no doubt, therefore, could remain that there must be a water communication between the seas of the Pacific and the northern Atlantic, that the water supplied through the 9trait of Behring (a well-establiahed fact) into the Polar Sea, was discharged by some opening or other yet to be discovered, into the Atlantic. Many scientific men, however, turned into ridicule the idea of a polar basin, and others endeavored to show that if these currents existed, they must be very temporary or occasional, as they would otherwbe drain this polar basin of its water. It may be worth while, now, that the shores of this Polar Sea have been visited and surveyed, one part by English navigators, and th« Asiatic part by the indefatigable Baron Wrangle, and others, to show to these would-be-wise gentlemen, what that sea really is, what are its inpourings, its outpourings, and its dimensions. In the first place, it is an immense basin of water, included by the shores of Asia, of Europe, and of America ; of Asia from Nova Zembla, in 50° east longitude to East Cape in Behring's Strait in 170° west longitude ; that is, 140° extent of coast ; in Europe from Nova Zembla in 50° east lon^tude to Baffin's bay about 70*^ west longitude, an extent of coast equal to 120° ; and in America from the last point 70° west longitude to Cape Prince of Wales, 168° west longitude in Behring's Strait, an extent of coast equal to 100°. These including the opening of Behring's Strait and that between Greenland and Spitzbergen, comprise the whole circle of 360°, an extent of coast which no other detached sea in the world can boast of. It is a circle of two thousand four hundred geographical miles in diameter, and seven thousand two hundred in circumference. Considering the latitude of 70° to be the average boundary line, which it nearly is, by taking the inlets of the land, to balance the outlets of the sea, and in order to satisfy the malcontents, regarding the currents exhausting its waters, it may perhaps be sufficient to state what are its supplies ; they consist of the constant influx of a stream through Behring's Straits, of five or six great rivers from Asia : the Obi, the Jenisci, the Sena, the Indigiska, and the Kolima ; Europe supplies the waters of Dwina with numerous streams from the coasts of Norway 22 SONNTAU'S NARRATIVE OP THE GRINNELL EXPEDITION. and Lapland, and the eastern coast of Greenland and the western coast of Baffin's Bay ; and America poura in several copious streams from the Rocky Mountains with the Mackenzie, the Heame or the Copper Mine, the Bock, and several other minor streams. To talk, therefore, of its being exhausted by the southerly currents, is absolute nonsense. The main object of the English expedition in 1827 was, to discover an entrance from the eastern side of America into the Polar Sea. But it was not done by the first as it ought to have been done, and as the second (1835) most readily accomplished it, and, moreover, navigated one half of that sea to the westward, why then it may oe asked, have future attempts failed to navigate the other half? The answer is ea^y enough ; they failed by deserting the direct path that gave them half the passage towards Behring's Strait, and tried various new ways in search of openings into the Polar Sea, and found but one other on the whole eastern coast of America, and that one not navigable ; the old route of Captain Parry through Lancaster Sound and Barrows Strait, as far as to the lost land on its southern shore, and thence in a direct line to BeHring's Strait, was the route ordered to be pursued by Sir John Franklin, in his last and fatal voyage. The unhappy fate of Franklin, which for a time was involved in pro- found mystery, did not deter others from following in his danger ^^ua track. On the contrary, a feeling of enthusiasm was awakened in his behalf and that of his sorrowing and devoted consort, whose untiring exertions to save him from protracted sitiforing, or a horrible death, excited the sympathy of all Europe and America. This feeling stimu- lated nautical adventurers to that activity wluch has characterized the recent explorations of the Polar seas. Captain Sir John Franklin, K. C. B., made several daring expeditions to the Polar Sea, but his endeavors to make further discoveries were only partially successful. His sufferings and hair-breadth escapes would have daimted almost any other man and deterred him from making other attempts of the same kind. But in 1825-26-27 we find Franklin again on a perilous journey to the polar climes. On this occasion he pro- ceeded over land to the mouth of Mackenzie River, and from thence, by water, to the northwestern extremity of the American continent. The particular object of this expedition was the exploration of the coast between Mackenzie and Copper Mine rivers. Il this undertaking, Franklin started from Liverpool, February 6th, 1825, and arrived at New York on the 15th day of March following. His reception in the last-named city was extremely cordial and flattering. Invitations to attend the meetings of the' various scientific ri It >a8tof m the Mine, , of its scover But as the rigated , have 19 easjr half pro- -.1 h •omnia*! vauativi or thi orinnbll expedition. 2$ mstittttioiis were lent to him and hii par^y, and ereiy other mark of respeotftil attention wai shown hy the oivU aud naval authorities, as well as by prirate individuals ; all of which demonstrations were indicative of the lively interest, which the Americans took in hi>* enterprise. From New York city Captun Frankllo and his ] nrty proceeded up the Hudson River to Albany, and from theuoe again to Niagara Falls, where they remained leveraJ days. Afterwards they proceeded to Laka Huron, where they embarked in canoes, and followed the water comma> nications to the western side of the Great Bear Lake, where he fixed his winter quarters. In the Spring of 1826, Captain Franklin pursued hit way down Maokensie River to the open Polar Sea. In December, 1827, the party, after undergoing unspeakable hardships, returned to England, where they arrived in safety ; but from his next Arctic voyage, Captain Franklin »*7er returned. 8IE JOHN FBANKLIN. f BONNTAG's NARRATIVB of Tfli: QRINNELL EXPEDITIOir. i. ' xa 1836-7, Captain Back of the English Navy, was sent on a voyage of discovery to the Arctic shores. He commanded the ship Terror, which had been chosen for this purpose. He made several important discoveries and having accomplished his perilous voyage to the satis- faction of the government which employed him, he returned in safety to his native country. In 1846, Sir John Franklin, notwithstanding his painful experience in Arctic navigation, incredible sufferings, and miraculous escapes from death, was induced once more to take command of a polar expe- dition. His subsequent adventures are not matters of history but of conjecture only ; and, until very lately, iiie world was in doubt whether Le had ceased to exist or was still enduring a living death In some icy prison of the far North. In his final expedition, Franklin commanded the ships Terror and Erebus, the crews of both vessels amounting to on*> hundred and thirty-eight men, officered and manned as follows : EREBUS. Sib John Frankuk, Captain. Jas. Fitz Jam{:s, Commander. Gbaham Gobk, Lieutenant. J. D. LbVescontb, " Jas. Wm. Fairhoujb, " Chab. F. DesVaux, Mate, BoBT. 0. Sabgbnt, " E. Couch, " H. F. Collins, Second Master. Stephen F. Stanley, Surgeon. H. D. GooDSiR, Assbt. " Jas. Reed, Ice Master. 12 Warrant and Petty Offiobbs 58 Seamen and Marines. TERROR. Richabd Cbozieb, Captain. Edward Little, Lieutenant. Geo. H. Hodgson, " John Irving, " F. Habnby, Mate. RoBT. Thomas. " Thus. Blanky, Ice Laster. G. A. Maclean, 2d Ice Master. Jno. S. Pbddie, Surgeon. Alex. McDonald, Assistant. J. H. Helpman, Clerk in Charge. 11 Wabbant and Petty Officebs. 57 Seamen and Mabines. 68 Total. P.r''\ ! I '.' Captain Franklin was required, by his instructions, in the first place, to attempt a passage by L^'ncaster Sound, and any channel leading therefrom in the desired uirection. The only intelligence of the Expedition ever received was in the first summer after its departure When the want of further accounts from the exploring party began t produce a feeling of anxiety in England, a search was commenced b^ expeditions following on Franklin's supposed route, and others, enterini{ T. bonntaq's narrativb op the orinnell expedition. 27 a voyage ip Terror, important the satis- n safetj to Behring'fl Straits with the hope of meeting him. Land-joumejs were also undertaken for the same" object. Most of these enterprises were planned and set on foot by Lady Franklin, the exemplary wife of the experience escapes )olar expe- ory but of it whether I some icy ommanded ing to on** s: i ^n. uant. er. Master. t. ;ant. a Charge. Officers. I. ri LADY FRANKLIN. rst place, 1 leading • of the sparture began i meed b^ enteripij missing traveller. At the solicitation of this meritorious lady, the American Government accepted a generous offer made by Mr. Henry Grinnell, a merchant of New York, who proposed to furnish two brigantines for the purpose of fitting out an expedition for the relief of Captain Franklin. All the preparations having been completed, this first American expedition to the Arctic seas sailed from New York in May, 1850, under the command of Lieutenant E. J. DeHaven, of the United States Navy. The American public need scarcely be reminded that this expedition, in company with that commanded by Captain Penny, discovered the first traces of Captain Franklin's party ; these traces, however, were M I: It' I 2$ SONNTAa'S NARRATIVB OF THE GRINNELL EXPEDITION. ▼ery melancholy and un8ati6fa9toi7, consisting of three graves with tombstones, the remains of several rude huts, and a wooden pillar bearing an inscription, which unfortunately gave no information respecting the route which the party intended to take. These mementoes merely indicated that Franklin had established his winter- quarters on that spot. The place was Beechy Island, which had been previously discovered by Captain Parry. It was a subject of much regret that no record of Fraiddin's intended movements was found, as that would have furnished a clue for the subsequent search. These discoveries, therefore, only intensified the anxious desire to learn more of the mysterious fate of the distinguished commander. The Senior Surgdon of Lieutenant De Haven's expedition. Dr. Kane, returned to the United States with a determination that something more should be done to restore Captain Franklin and his surviving followers to the world; hopes being still entertained that tome of the party, at least, might have lived through the terrific dangers, hardships and privations which they must have encountered and endured. Dr. Kane bad adopted the opinion which was commonly held in England by persons acquainted with the circumstances attending Arctic navigation, viz: that Sir John, after leaving Beechy Island, had penetrated through Wellington Channel in a northern direction. This opinion was founded on observations which were made on the state and position of the ice, as reported by those who had discovered the traces of Franklin's expedition. In pursuance of the plan of search which had been devised by Dr. Kane and other scientific men, assisted by the counsel of experienced navigators on both sides of the Atlantic, a second American expedition was determined on. It was to be conducted under the auspices of the United States Government, and was placed under the command of Dr. Kane, who had been detailed for that service by the Secretary of the Navy. , *",. *'i> .^ ■' r ■■;V; •', .J ,,, ,;,;■. ^> < ll, -, .. •/ ♦' .)■ 1 11 im HON. graves witk ooden pillar information rke. These d his winter- ;h had been ect of much ras found, as Tch. These ) learn more D, Dr. Kane, lething more ng followers , say, v ili • \'M CHAPTER II. CAPTAIN Kane's BXPBDnioN starts from new tork— apfbctino SCENES AT ITS DEPARTURE — ARRIVAL AT ST. JOHNS — THE TRIBULA- TIONS OF THE ADVENTURERS BEOIN EARLT — THE EXPEDITION REAOHE0 GREENLAND — MODES OP LIVING OP THE ESQUIMAUX — VISIT TO THB DANISH SETTLEMENT — FREQUENT AND TEKBIFIO APPEARANCE OP ICE- BERGS — HOW THET ARE FORMED, ETC. The new expedition to which reference was made at the close of the last chapter, was the result of private enterprise, and was fitted out at the expense of several wealthy and munificent citizens of the United States. The American Government merely extended its patronage and protection to the glorious object, by providing such scientific instruments as the undertaking required, and designated some persons under naval appointments, viz: THE BRIG "ADVANCE." Dr. E. E. Kane, Commander. Henrt Brooks, 1st Officer. August Sonntao, Astronomer. George Rilet. James McGabry. Henry Goodfbllow. John W. Wilson. G. Ohlsen. Wm. Morton. Isaac J. Hats, M. D., Surgeon. Amos Bonsall. George Stephenson. George. Whipple. Wm. Godfrey. John Blake.' Jefferson Baker. Peter Schubert. Thomas Hickey. 1 t , 1 m ..i 1 "-%■ 1 "! : ■«: m If: I! ;« 11 In several particulars, the plan of thQ new expedition differed from any which had been attempted before. It was assumed theoretically that there existed an open or navigable sea on the north of the 80tlt parallel of latitude. The term open sea was understood to designate one which was so far unembarrassed with ice as to be navigable in the summer season. It was proposed to reach this sea, (if such a sea could be found) by that route which was apparently the most direct, that is to say, via Smith's Sound ; and to descend for the pioposed search, to 81 B0NNTAa*8 NARRATIVB OF THB QRINNELL EXPEDITION. the southern and western shores. The search was to be extended from the station of the ship by means of dog sledges, parties being sent out in various directions to establish depots of provisions in advance of the parties employed in the search. We left New York on the last day of May, 1858, anudst the acclft* mations of thousands of spectators, who had assembled on the wharves to witness our departure. It was a radiant spring morning, the aspect of nature was cheerful and composed, but there was many a sad and agonized heart among the friends and relations of the voyagers, and the leave-taking was such as intimated that many fond parents, wives, brothers and sisters, feared that the parting would be forever. Many persons, at that time, regarded such a voyage as a desperate undertaking, and looked on the officers and crew of the Advance as persons self- doomed to certain destruction. They were, therefore, objects of general admiration and pity ; the noble and benevolent cause for which they sacrificed themselves consecrated the rash and suicidal deed ; and thuSf according to the fancy of many spectators, the humblest sailor who walked the deck of that ship appeared to wear the crown ces in hoods of canvas. The authorities of St. Johns showed i»ll possible kindness and attention to the persons engaged in the expedition, and I rejoice in this opportunity to offer them my grateful acknowledgements for their generous hospitality^ and the assistance they rendered us in making preparations for our subsequent travels. II BONNTACrS NASRATIVE 07 THE GBIXNELL BZPEDITIOir. 88 nded from being sent dvanoe of the accl»- le wharves the aspect a sad and Agers, and nts, wives, »r. Many dertaking, irsons self- of general Hrhich they and thus, sailor who lartyrdom. iperament, a service. rat seemed Accord- rapturons despairing [)me cases he human e had a ;e to St. rases, was obtained ador and IS on the ohns was sss which jfoces in possible m, and I dgements red us in From St. Johns we proceeded to the coast of Greenland, where we entered several Danish settlements, which extend at intervals between latitudes 60° and 73°. These are a kind of missionary establishments, intended in some measure for the instruction of the natives, but serving at the same time to carry on a profitable trade in furs and oil. These settlements are under the charge of a Danish officer, who is called ** the merchant," and who exercises the somewhat complicated duties of store- keeper and governor. The storehouse under his superintendence is replenished at the annual visit of a ship sent from Denmark for this purpose. His Excellency ^ (if we may afford him that title,) buys from the Esquimaux the skins of seals and reindeer, and the blub'ber of whales, sea unicorns, &c., for which he gives them in exchange bread, coffee, butter, salt, and pork, which are almost the only articles of food these people obtain by commerce. The gubernatorial storekeeper supplies them, likewise, with coarse cloth, linens, and gaudy calicoes, for the fashionable Esquimaux ladies, who are desirous of improving on the seal-skin dresses of preceding generations. The storehouse is similar in appearance to one of the large country stores of the United States. The habitations of the Esquimaux themselves are small huts of wood or stone, the seams of which are stopped with clay and moss, and the roofs are commonly covered with painted canvas. The floors are of wood, and, taken altogether, these savage dwellings are superior to the abodes of the Irish peasantry, and to those of the corresponding classes in many countries which pretend to civilization. The Esqui- maux hut, however, seldom has more than one apartment, and that single room often affords shelter and lodging for half a dozen married couples, with their numerous progeny. These small houses are extremely well lighted, one cortlickj or lamp, of blubber, being sufficient for that purpose. Some of the conservatii Esquimaux,, who are obsti- nately attached to the customs of their ancestors, warm their rooms with a kind of large blubber lamp, contrived for the purpose ; but others who are more progressive use stoves, some of which are made of clay, after the Russian fashion. Those of the Greenlanders, who aspire to be of a more refined and superior order, are supplied with pots, pans, and other cooking utensils of cast iron, which are furnished to them by the mer- cantile Governor. At Fiskenaes, where the expedition was received with great hospi> tality and enthusiasm, we obtained the services of an Esquimaux youth, aged about twenty years, who afterwards became very easeful as a hunter and driver of the caninq teams, to which duty he had been well accustomed. This settlement occupies a spot which is picturesquely 8 '■ i :i ;i 1 1 i - ^i 84 soirtrrAQ's narrative of the orinnell expedition. Mfi'i? m i':^ I f- secluded behind nome hilly islands, which partly obstruct the view of the village, without concealing it. These islands afford an excellent harbor. The settlement derives its Danish name from the abundance of codfish found in the adjacent waters. A large fleet of Kyackera surrounded the Advance on her arrival and escorted her into the har« bor. The native ladies, themselves, resolved to take their part in this grand reception, for they came out to meet us in their omeaks or little vessels, made expressly for the use of their delicate sex, being constructed of transparent skins stretched over wooden frames. The Greenland naiads can manage these " fairy frigates" with surprising skill, and their nautical abilities so charmed the hearts of some of our sailors, that they were received on board with much cordiality, and banquetted on the fore-deck with the most sumptuous fare that Jack's aquatic larder could afford them. Fiskenaes drives a considerable trade in eider down, seal skins, cod fish, and salmon. The Governor, Mr. Lassen, who resides at this spot, is an intelligent and polite gentleman, with a portly person and ruddy countenanoe. His large pipe was in such incessant use, that it appeared to be a part of himself. He looked the very picture of Scandinavian hospitality, and he gave us a welcome that deserves to be com- memorated, spreading for us a board which groaned under all the oleaginous luxuries of the climate, and many imported ones, besides. The native delicacies of Mr. Lassen's table, the fiesh of the seal, rein- deer, &c., were improved by the arts of European cookery, so as to make them highly grateful to civilized palates, and especially so to sailors, whose privations on shipboard are apt to correct their gastrono- mic tastes, when they happen to be too epicurian in their tendency. The next port we made was Suckertopper, which derives its name from a high peak in its vicinity, which is so called &om its imagined resemblance to a sugar-loaf, with the white top protruding from its dark envelope. Suckertopper, in the Danish language, signifies "sugar- top." At this place we procured a quantity of seal-skins and other furs, also some additional saws, axes, and other tools, which we thought might be required m our further progress. From Suckertopper we proceeded to ^Proven, where we had the good fortune to obtain several more teams of dogs, numbering about thirty of these useful quadrupeds. Mr. Karl Petersen, who had been engaged as interpreter to Penny's expedition, came on board at Upenavick, where the Advance stood off and on to communicate. Dr. Kane accepted the proffered services of Mr. Petersen, and he became one of the ship's com- pany. His services were eminently useful to us afterwards. pi? m\ BONirrAO's NARRATIVE OF THE QRINNELL EXPEDITION. 87 Soon after ire left Upenaviok, (which is the most northern civilized station on the face of the globe), among other indications of a higher lati- tude, whibh presented themselves, was the increased number of icebergs. The appearance of these was now so frequent, that they ceased to be matters of cariosity, and we learned to look on these stupendous and dangerous objects with a degree of indiflforenoe, Imagine a mass of congealed water, far exceeding in its dimensions the largest Egyptian pyramid, looming up abov.e the surface of the water, higher than the tallest steeple, threatening, every moment, to topple over and submerge every object in its neighborhood. Such floating mountuns of ice are continually presenting themselves to the view of those who undertake to navigate Baffin's Bay. They often enclose huge pieces of rock, and masses of sand or earth, which they take np, in the manner we are about to describe. The interior of Greenland may be considered as almost one entire mass of ice, as it is only on the mountains near the coast and on the smaller blands that the earth, with any of its vegetable productions, is visible. Immense processes of ice fill up the valleys and extend to the sea. The huge masses of ice resemble those of the Alpine glaciers, not such ice as that which is formed by the freezing of pure limpid water, but more like snow, which is congealed to a solid substance after being partially melted. It is opaque and granular, and has a slow ' motion, in those vast frozen valleys, towards the sea. According to Professor Forbes' theory, their motion is similar to that of a semifluid, and is produced by the gravitation of the whole body on a plane inclined towards the sea shore, the foremost masses being urged on by the pressure of those which are more remote from the sea coast and higher up in the valleys. According to the observations of Professor Forbes, and the reports of travellers among the Alps, the ice moves more slowly on both sides than in the centre of the glacier, where the velocity amounts sometimes toafoot j>erei|iem, and sometimes still more. On its edges, the glacier takes up and carries along rocks, sand, and other movable objects, which fall into the sluggish stream, or are washed down from the surrounding mountains. When two such ice streams meet together and become united, the stones, sand, &c., which they hold in suspension, appear in the middle of the united streams. These ice-currents form continued lines, longi* tudinally and parallel to the sides of the valleys in which they have their origin. At the point where the glacier enters the sea, huge masses are formed, the pressure from bohii^ heaping up the ice which has already entered the water, in vast piles. Thus the icebergs are J 1 . ■ 1 1 1 ' -1 1 w fit II u )iiii ■mill BONMTAO'S NARRATIVB OF- THE 3RINNELb SXFBDITION. torh.toi, rad tre driven bj the winds and the ourrents out from the shore. In this way they are set afloat in the northern seas ; sometiii.es to a great distance. Large bergs are often seen as far south •§ the Banks of Newfoundland. The appearance of many icebergs u grand and magnificent beyond all power of description. Their siie alone would make them objects of admiration; but in other respects theyVe calculated to OYerwhelm the spectator with awe and astonishmeilt. Some of them appear like float- ing palaces, castles, or towers of stupendous dimensions, with spires, domes, or minarets, often formed with such regularity that the beholder is almost persuaded that they are works of art. Often when they re- flect the beams of the sun, or the more lurid glare of the aurora bore- aUty they appear like immense structures of glass or crystal. The colors of icebergs are various; the majority of them are white or vitreous in appearance; but when seen on the shady side, or at a dis- tance, or through mists or fogs, they wear a dark and frowning aspect, resembling mountuns on the shore, or precipices of roKsk. Sometimes agfun, their colors are variegated, and I have occasionally seen some which had all the hues of the runbow, and no unagiuation could picture a more splendid spectacle. The motions or evolutions of icebergs are ofben no less awe-inspiring and wonderful. When some portions of them are melted away, and their form is thereby changed, so as to remove the centre of gravity, large masAes ofben break off with a detonation like the explosion of an immense mine of gunpowder; the disrupted mass falling into the sea, produces a swell and agitation of the waters, which threaten to engulf ships sailing at a considerable distance from the dismembered iceberg. Sometimes the whole berg whirls over with^ the rapidity of lightning, and occasionally it makes several revolutions before it settles in a new position. These movements of icebergs constitute some of the most appalling dangers of Arctic navigation. It will easily be believed from what is here stated, that the approach of an iceberg is always re- garded by mariners with feelings of intense anxiety, and much care' is taken to give these marine prodigies what sailors call '^a wide berth.'*^ The principal risk is that of running agunst them on a dark night. CHAPTER III. I VUHTUKH 0B8BRVATI0M ON THK DIMlCULTIKfl OP ARCTIC NAVTflATION — " "floes" and "hummocks" of ice DESCIIIBBD — SHIPS BUILT EX- PRESSLY FOR NAVIQATINQ THE POLAR SEAS — PREPARATIONS FOR PASS- INO THE WINTER AMONQ THE ICE — WE BEGIN TO EXPERIENCE ALL THE HORRORS OF THE CLIMATE — GREAT MORTALITT AMONG THE DOGS. In the summer season, pools of water are formed in pure marble-like basins, on the top of the ioebergs, and cascades of olear and brilliant w^ter often fall from them into the sea. Similar cascades and streams percolate through the glaciers. Owing to this cause, the surface of the glacier is very rough, being full of small chasms or indentations formed by the passage of the riyulets. I have stated that icebergs are often objects of dismay to the navi- gators of those seas; but after the mariner has become accustomed to their appearance, much of his terror is dissipated. While the bergs are visible, they may generally be avoided with but little trouble ; but in the dark season, or when the weather is foggy, the danger becomes more imminent. It is a fortunate circumstance that there is day-light during almost the whole of the navigable season on those waters. Still more formidable obstacles to navigation in those seas are the immense fields of floating ice which are formed in the sea itself. There are narrow passes or openings through these fields, called leadtj in the technical language of the sailors, through which the navigator must penetrate, with the momentary risk of having his bark crushed between the sides of the icy chasm. These sides often collapse, or come together with a force more tremendous and irresistible than that of a tornado or earthquake. On such o( caBions, vessels built in the ord> nary manner would be crushed like empty egg-shells. Some ships however, are constructed expressly for this service, in the manner which I shall describe hereafter. The whalers and other northern navigatprs, when they do not find a ''bight" or indentation in one of the parallel fields of ice, orfloeij (as 89 /i 'I til- liiJ sonotag's narrative of tub qrinnell expedition. they are technically called,) endeavor to taw one ; but, unless this is done before the motion commences, it is too late, and a fearful catas- trophe is inevitable. In many cases, ships have been cut in two by the collapse of the fissure, so that the upper part of the hull was left on the surface of the ice, while the low^r part went to the bottom. Some- times the de„ dctien of a vessel is instantaneous, not affording the crew sufficient time to escape, by precipitating themselves on the neigh- boring ice-fields. It is authentically stated that Qaptain Penny, the veteran Arctic sailor, on one of these perilous occasions, was obliged to run up the rigging to the cross-trees, and to leap from thence to a platform of ice, a feat which he was just able to accomplish as the mast, with all the rest of the ship, disappeared in the closing chasm. These dangers have produced a necessity fcr constructing ships which are intended for Arctic voyages on a new and improved plan. The hull is formed with many additional beams and timbers, so as greatly to increase its solidity, and the sides are so shaped that, instead of being held fast by the collapse of the ice-crevice, the vessel is forced upward until it rises above the surface of the floe, and so es- capes without damage. The pressure of two floes or platforms of ice against the sides of a vessel is called, in the language of the sailors, a " nip." By these nips, vessels of the improved pattern jfist described escape the crushing to which ordinary ships would be liable, but are lifted entirely out of the water. ", Captain Kane's vessel, the Advance, received several quite noticeable " nips," without sustaining much damage thereby. She had been care- fully prepared for the" duty which she was appointed to perform, and proved that the ship-wrights of the United States could make their workmanship equal to any emergency. It is not only as a precaution against "nipping" that ships intended for Arctic service should be built in the most substantial manner that is possible. On other accounts it is highly necessary that they should be strong and well fortified. In order that any progression may be made, it is sometimes requisite, that they should be butted, under a full press of canvas, against " bight tongues," or ridges of ice, which join two heavy floes together, and are thus interposed, like a bar, across the passage, completely shutting it up. At other tiDos, the ship must make headway against large^ieces of floating ice, for the purpose of breaking them or thrusting them aside, in order to clear the track. Such pieces are often crowded together in water, which would otherwise be open. Obstructions of this kind yield, when a suflScient force is applied, and when it is neces- sary to overcome them, the ship is driven at full speed against lumps of Q n r « :!« !!!; B0NNTA0*8 NAAAATITB OF TBB ORnnniLL EXPEDITION. IS ■ M loe, wMch are ^raost as solid and obdurate as rooks. Any vessel built in the usual manner would, infallibly, be wrecked by such collifiions. In such circumstances as we have described, the Arctic steamer, under the command of Captain Hartstcin,made extraordinary progress in her voyage through these seas. She was the very kind of vessel, which the purpose required ; it was necessary to lore a passage, and she was equal to the task. The Advance had a very fortunate and prosperous passage through Melville Bay, which name applies to that part of Baffin's Bay which forms a deep indentation, opening to the South-East, between 74 and 76° North la>titude. This is the most perilous passage in the whole range of Arctic navigation. Here the ice accumulates, after emerging from the Sounds which open upon the Bay, and here it is detained, within a certain centre, by opposing currents. Melville Bay is a vast wilderness of ice, and it is only on extraordinary and fortunate occa- sions that a few ''leads," or narrow passages of water, are open for the purposes of navigation. The surface is covered with fields of ice, vary- ing in thickness from five to thirty feet, and extending in length for miles. Hummocks of ice and icebergs afford the only variety in the dreary prospects here presented to the observation of the mariner. These " hummocks " are commonly produced by the meeting of two large floes of ice, the edges of which break off, and are lifted up as the pressure goes on. These operations of nature are accompanied by a harsh grinding sound, additional fragments are broken off, and piled up, until a rough wall, of considerable altitude, is formed. Other hummocks originate with pieces of ice, of unusual size aqd thickness, which rise above the surrounding surface, and become stationary by freezing in contact with larger and less mobile masses. By this means the hummock becomes a hill of considerable elevation among the smooth and level ice which surrounds it. Old floes are frequently found from twenty to thirty feet thick ; and, occasionally, their thickness is three times as great. The age of these floes can be estimated when it is remembered that witiiin the first year the freezing seldom exceeds nine feet in thickness, and is often not more than six feet, and the yearly accession afterwards is still less — a phenomenon which we will account for in another part of this work. To the North of Melville Bay is an expanse of water, which is usually free from ice. This expanse is known to whalers by the name of Nortii Water. The Advance met with no very serious obstruction, until she had passed Littleton Island, in latitude 78°. Htfre we hove to, for the 1 r ' i 44 sonntaq's narrative of the orinnell expedition. Ii lilt i I :! . purpose of erecting a cairn and flag-staff. While detained in this man- ner-Hthe weather being thick and foggy — the ice formed around the ship, and pinioned her, as it were, to the spot. We were obliged to \rait a few days, when the ice fortunately relaxed, and our gallant vessel was released. By means of persevering labor, we made some progress along the coast, where the ice was broken up somewhat by the rise and fail of the tide. Through the passages thus afforded, the ship was " warped" or forced along, by means of hawsers and lines wound around the cap- stan. This process is exceedingly toilsome and tedious^ and tends much to dishearten the seamen ; however, it was the only means of progression which circumstances afforded us. "i Towards the close of the short-lived summer of this climate, the " bay ice," as it is called, begins to form. 3y this term the new ice, or the first ice of the season, is designated. This new formation being added to the old stock, makes the operations of the seamen still more difficult. On the present occasion, by the fourth or fifth day of September, the new ice had become strong enough to bear a man's weight, and before the middle of the same month it became necessary for the expedition to take winter quarters. The idea of passing several months among the dreary scene- ry of this region was gloomy and dispiriting enough, even to the most ardent temperament. However, we went to work energetically, and made all the preparations which promised to make our situation tole- rable, if not comfortable. The ship ^ad nearly reached the latitude of 78° 50' ; but we were compelled to retrace our course for several miles, in order to find a place suitable for a winter harbor. The spot we selected for this purpose was in a bay, near three small islands, and only five hundred yards from the main land. In making our prepara- tions for warmth and shelter, during o\vc long incarceration, a house of boards was erected over the upper deck of the ship, the holds being first cleared of provisions, which were stowed away in a hut built for the purpose, on one of the small islands. Our cooking stove was set up between decks. At this time several exploring parties were sent out to make obser- vations by land. One of these parties penetrated inland, through the mountainous country, to the distance of fifty miles, where their pro- gress was stopped by a large glacier ; perhaps a portion of the same mass of ice which covers the whole interior of Greenland. This party consisted of three persons, who carried all their baggage on their backs. This baggage consisted of provisions and two small buffab skins, intended to se^e them for bed and bedding ; and, as you may o 09 a 1 H M m o H Q 09 H n a I SI H M td CO •»! o H a M C :#l 1 1 ' ^ I il, t ' J SONNTAG'S RABRATiyB OF THB QIUNNELL EXPEDITION. 4T suppose, the supply was scanty enough, considering that the conch on wMch they might be obliged to repose would probably be the frozen ground or cakes of ice. The average temperature noticed by tlus travelling party was 10°. The ol^er journey was undertaken for the purpose of establishing a depot of provisions for the use of future exploring parties which might be sent from the ship during the winter. These excursionists travelled, for the most part, over the new ice along the coast. For the last fifty miles of their journey, they proceedecT over a causeway, or ele .ated ridge of solid ice, the issue of an enormous glacier in the sea. The frozen sea all around was covered with innumerable icebergs, of all shapes and sizes, through which the ridge over which they journeyed formed a road as strai^t and level as if it had been artificially con< structed for the purpose of travel. It is highly probable that this vast collection of ice is a branch of the glacier wMch had been discovered by the inland party. This hideous journey lasted for more than a month, the temperature through the whole time being generally below zero. The party sheltered themselves every night in a small tent which was pitched on the ice. One buffalo skin served them for a mattrass, and another for a blanket, and these two skins constituted aQ their bedding, which, together with their stock of provisions, was car* ried on a sledge. The provisions which they took with them amounted to about six hundred pounds of pemmican, or meat minced and dried, and mixed with a large proportion of fat or suet. It is a fact very well known and sufficiently accounted fbr by ^/hysiologists, that the most greasy messes are the most acceptable to the human stomach in these intensely cold climates. However much a man may abhor such provisions when in more temperate regions, he soon learns how to swallow them with relish and avidity when his gastronomic powers are invigorated by the sharp breezes of the Arctic Ocean. The desire for animal food in these regions is insatiable. I apprehend that any dift. ciple of Graham, the renowned vegetarian philosopher, would find it necessary to abandon his principles, or his dietetic practices at least, if fate made him a wanderer beyond the polar circle. Notwithstand* ing the weight of their baggage and equipments, this travelling party proceeded, on an average, more than ten miles per day. On this and all future journeys made by parties aent from the ship during the win- ter, the tourists were obliged to obtain water for drinking by melting snow or ice, and this made it necessary to take a great quantity of fuel, alcohol or lard, on the sledge, a circumstance which tended greaU ly to increase their burden. ^ 1^1 r;9' .,i 48 SONNTAG'S KABRATIVB of the QRINNELL EXPEDinOlT. Nearly all of the Esquimaux dogs, and many of the Newfoundland ones, died in the early part of the winter. This extensive mortality was occasioned by a singular spasmodic disease, resembling the Asiatic cholera, which was very prevalent among the unfortunate quadrupeds ; however, their untimely decease was a greater misfortune to us than to themselves; as it, probably, put an end to their troubles, but increased the magnitude of ours. This fatal canine epidemic was produced, as we supposed, by a change of climate and diet; though it was a remarkable circumstance of the case that the Newfoundland dogs appeared to bear these changes better than the Esquimaux animalsi though the latter were natives of a more northern region. The death of the dogs made the tasks of the men more laborious, as the duty of drawing the sledges now devolved upon them. The pro gress of the excursion parties was, likewise, much slower after we had lost the services of the canine teams, as th,e sledges could not be drawn more than ten or fifteen miles per diem by the men^ while the dogs drew them, with ease, from forty to sixty miles. a ..v"iil ixt \ ^■1. CHAPTER lY. OUR SITUATIOir BSCOBOCS MORS AND MORI VNFLBASANT — THI AROTIO WINTER 8BTS IN — INTENSE COLD, AND ITS SURPRISING EFFECTS — POLAR SCENERY — DREADFUL SUFFERINQS OF OUR EXCURSION PARTIES — WE ARB VISITED BT THE SAVAOE^ ESQUIMAUX — THEIR PERSONAL APPEARANCB| DRESS, MANNERS, AND CHARACTER. The inoreasing darkness and cold made long exennions fnm the ship too periloQs to be thought of during the remainder of the winter. The sun had disappeared on the 16th of October ; its last beams were seen shining rather dimly on the tops of the highest hills four days later, and this was our latest glimps^ of the celestial luminary, until the arrival of the 24th day of February, in the following year, (1854). From the time of the sun's disappearance, the atmosphrTe became darker and darker every day. The twilight, which app'jared at the commencement of the Arctic night of three thousand hours, and whidk was visible daily about 12 o'clock M., became dimmer and dimmer, from the early part of November to the middle of January, when it was a little brighter on the southern horizon, at noon, than It was af mid* mght. Only for a small part of each month, did the moon oifer us the use of her pallid lamp, which sufficed, however, to show the vast desolft' tion which surrounded us, and to give a more ghastly and appalling effect to the funeral silence which hung over the scene. The mountains, which bounded the horizon on one hand, were covered with a shroud< like mass of snow, relieved at some particular points by a few black cli£& — the precipitous form of which would not afford a lodgment for the snowy mantle. The moonlight gave a singular, I had almost said an unnatural briU liancy to the night — the radiance of the lunar orb being much increased by the reflex from the white surface of the sea and land. When the moon disappeared, "primeval darkness" seemed to return. The aurora borealis was often visible, but its light was too feeble to 2iav0 any perceptible effect on the " solid darkness." 4 49 '! -I'D ,| m Ml ttiili ■ ■ '11 rlK: 60 bomntaq's narrative of tub qrinxell expedition. The cold increased simultaneously with the darkness. Mercury wM frozen from the latter part of November to the end of March. The exhalation from our lungs bv^gan to congeal on our whiskers and mous- taches as soon as we left the ship, and our beards, which we cultivated as a useful article of dress, becaL-ro solid masses of ice, giving us all thA appearance of venerable patriarchs , even our'eyelids were encased with ice formed by the freezing vapor ; the hair and all the clothing near the head were coated with a thick frost, like a wedding cake. 'Whenevei we looked at each other, we could scarcely refrain from laughing, ilthough our sufferings generally disposed us to be serious. Any arti- cle exposed to the air was almo3t immediately congealed ; mercury, spirits and molasses became solid, or acquired a gum-like consistence. Inside the ship, everything which was not directly exposed to the heated air soon obtained a coating of ice. Our occupations on board were various ; some of us passed several hours of each day In making scientific observations, and preparing for the spring journeys. Some employed themselves in reading, writing letters, &c. Various pas- times were devised, chiefly for the entertainment of the seamen, to whom this tedious imprisonment seemed to be an almost insupportable affliction. Among other amusements, we had private theatricals, and several of our performers might have been termed north-stars, as they succeeded iu eliciting thunders of applause from the Arctic audience. • Our people enjoyed better health and more comfort during the win- ter than we had much reason to expect. When daylight began to re- turn, we were amazed at the strange and rather cwful appearance of each other's faces. Our complexions ha4 become so pallid that we all looked like a company of ghosts, such as that which Homer represents Mercury as conducting to the infernal shades. This appearance I as- cribe to the long absence of the solar light; it was not discoverable by the lignt of the lamps. On the 24th day of February the sun once more shone on the tops of the mountains, and a few days later his beams began to gild the tops of our masts. The re-appearance of the blessed luminary was hailed with the enthusiastic cheers and acclamations of our people, with the display of flags and other demonstrations of grateful joy. The long absence of light and heat, those two important elements of life, could not fail to have some depressing influence upon our minds ; but all sadness and discontent vanished as soon as the light of day came once more to cheer us in this frozen wilderness. For the greater part cf the time the sky was perfectly unclouded. Although we now had glimpses of sunlight, the cold was unabated. In 5 H o '41 fl i; 1111I33 ■ONHTia't NAUAnn OI TBI OBOTNILL IZPIDITIOH. M SmI lome of the coldest weather we experienced wm in the month of Febnuory, after the Arctic dawn had conunenoed. On lereral occaeiow within this month, the temperatare was more than Q0° Fahrenheit below lero. Such a low temperature would have been insupportable by any human constitution, perhaps, had it been accompanied by wbd ; bul fortunately, the atmosphere was generally calm on the coldest days. The harbor in which the brig wintered was so well sheltered from rough weather that my observations on the temperature can give no perfect idea of the severity of the season in more exposed situations. Com* parisons of the temperature observed in the early pari of the season by our sledge parties, showed that the cold was more severe by several degrees outside of the harbor than it was within, though all possibU care was taken to secure our thermometers firom any local or artificial influence which might be produced on shipboard. It was our general practice to place the thermometers on posts stuck in the ice hundreds of yards from the ship. The principal occupatioxl of the officers and men now consisted ia making active preparations for the spring journeys. Among the equip- ments provided were canvas boots, blanket-bags, large enough for one man to sleep in, reindeer skin stockings, mittens of the same material, and canvas tents of improved construction, the inside of which was far more comfortable than that of an ordinary tent Many other articles, of minor importance, were also provided for our vernal excursions. About the 17th day of March, a party, well equipped in every respect, was ready to leave the ship. Tbia party consisted of eight persons, who were commissioned to make a deppt of provisions, (about five hundred pounds of pemmican,) on the opposite side of the channel in which our ship was stationed. This channel takes a north-easterly direction. It was found expedient to cross it in a northern direo* tion and to establish the depot on the north-west shore The provisions thus deposited, were intended for the use of another party, which had been appointed to continue the search to the north and west from that point which had been reached by the party sent out in the preceding autumn. The severe cold and the difficulties of the icy path, made their journey the most punful and troublesome one, that was ever accom< plishod by mortal man. To give some idea of the ismbarraasments, occasioned by the frigid atmosphere which our travellers met with, it may be mentioned that it required more than two hours to cook a meal or boil a littie coffee, and when these articles were prepared, it was neces- sary to swallow them as expeditiously as possible, or they would be froien before they went down. The lodging, on the first mght of the :lf mi u 64 80NNTi|^*S NARRATIVB OF THE GRINNEUi EXPEDITIOIT. raonnion, was tolerably comfortable ; each sleeper being enveloped in the fur clothing which he usually wore, placed Umself in a blanket-bag, and then stretched himself on the buflfalonskin mattrass on the icy floor of the tent, after which he tucked himself under the buffalo^kin cover lid. These arrangements answered very well for several nights, but the evaporation from the bodies of the sleepers became condensed on the blanket-bags and buffalo-skins, which acquired a lining of ice as soon as the men emerged from them in the morning, and after this, these bed- clothes were stiffly frozen, when they were required for use at night. The tent was covered on the inside with frozen vapor, which hung in large floes, and fell off like a heavy shower of snow, with the slightest shaking. The temperature inside of the tent, when the whole party was in it, was seldom warmer than 20° below zero ; while on the outside, the ur was twenty or thirty degrees colder. A few miles from the ship, the travellers found the ice exceedingly rough and full of ridges or hummocks, which made travelling very laborious. Very often it required great exertions to get the sledge over the hummocks, and sometimes thb could not be done without un. loading. The labor of these operations was so great that, notwith- standing the severity of the cold, the men were often thrown into pro- fuse perspirations, and this was soon followed by freezing, the clothes bemg frozen together so firmly that they were not thawed asunder until the men entered their sleeping-bags. So many hardships and obstacles defeated the objects of the journey, and the traveU^rs, finding that they could not reach their point of destination at the prescribed time, returned to the ship. Their progress had been distressingly slow and toilsome. When they had proceeded about forty miles, the feet of several of the party were badly frost-bittdn after a day's march over the ice, with the temperature of the air 40° or 50° below zero, and a fresh wind blowing from the north-east. On the following morning the iTeet of four of the party were found to be so badly frozen as to make it impossible for them to walk. The other four were not able to trans- port them on the sledge, and so it became necessary to leave one to take charge of the sick, while three went back to the ship for assistance. After a painful journey of thirteen hours they arrived at the ship, and almost immediately after started again at the head of a new paity, to carry comfort and succor to their disabled comrades. This last party, on account of the haste with which it was fitted out, could not be very well equipped for the journey, and the sufferings of the poor fellows are not to be described. The temperature during the whole time they were en rovtCy was more than 40° below zero ; and to make SONNTAG^S NARRATIVE OF THE QRINNELL BXPEDniOlT. 55 and matters still worse, there was a hard and piercing wind. Nevei*theleaa they reached the tent, and succeeded in conveying the half-frozen occu< pants back to the ship, where two of them died a few days after, mor- tification having supervened in their frozen limbs ; and two others lost several toes each. It was a long time before the other members of this party recovered from the effects of the severe hardships and expo* sures to which they had been subjected. The unfortunate issue of this journey occasioned considerable delay in the fitting out of another excursion party, which did not leave the ship before the last day of April. In the meantime the ship was visited by some savage Esquimaux, of very wild and grotesque appearance. While we were sailing up the channel, about thirty miles south-westerly from our winter harbor, we descried an Esquimaux hut, which exhi- bited all the signs of having been inhabited a short time previous. Some fresh meat and two bags containing blubber were found in it. Besides this, many other ruins or remains of Esquimaux habitations were found : also, graves, fox-traps, and other indications of a country lately inhabited, were discovered all along the coast. We were con- vinced, therefore, that this large tract of country must have been very densely populated at some former and not very remote period. The Esquimaux savages who visited us came in sledges drawn by dogs ; about seven or eight of the quadrupeds being attached to each sledge. These people were dressed in "jackets" or jumpers of foxskin, with hoods to protect their heads from the weather. Under their hooded jackets they wore vests or shirts of seal-skin, or the skin of some aquatic bird. They had likewise short pantaloons or " inexpres* Bibles," made of the hides of polar bears, and boots of seid-skins, and dog-skin stockings completed their picturesque apparel; to procure which they seemed to have made extensive drafts on the animal kingdom. Their hands were covered with bear-skin mittens. . The fur side of all the skins, except those which composed their stockings, were turned outwards. They had long black hair, which was divided in the middle, and hung down on each side to their waists. Their complexion was a light-brown. Their eyes were large, or rather long, and appeared to be placed in a more oblique position than the eyes of the human species usually are ; the outer angle being elevated towards the forehead. Their noses were invariably small, broad and flat. The large mouth exhibited a set of strong white teeth; their cheeks were extremely fat, and had a puffed-out appearance, but theit . hands and feet were small, though not exactly of a shape which I should call delicate. Some of them had small beards, but the minority of : [J '■ .1 ■I 1 11 ■ij !:v 56 SONNTAO'S N.JIRATIVE OF THE GRINKELL EXPEDITION. them were unprovided with such ornaments. In stature, they wero not much below the average height of Europeans and the men of the United States. There were several females among the party, whose appear- anc^ was not at all fascinating, but some of the sailors, who are apt to have eccentric tastes in such matters, endeavored to improve theic acquaintance with these Arctic ladies ; and I suspect that they found them less frigidly repulsive than their climate. These visitors approached our ship on both sides, having left their sledges at some distance. They appeared to be but little alarmed or embarrassed on finding them selves in strange company, and we were soon enabled to carry on an intelligible conversation through Mr. Petersen, our Danish interpreter, and the Esquimaux boy whom, as mentioned before, we shipped on the southern coast of Greenland. They showed a great fbncy for articles or utensils composed of wood or iron, and were much delighted with several small presents of that kind. Everything on board seemed to excite their curiosity ; they were very inquisitive, and tormented us with questions on every subject which occurred to them. One thing seemed to surprise them in a high degree, viz: that we should come on such a long journey without bringing any women with us, and they remarked that our condition must be very cheerless and disconsolate in the total absence of the other sex. Nothing, (they averred,) could induce them to submit to a similar privation. Their conversation, the details of which will not answer for publication, occasioned much merri- ment among our junior compamons. These savages appear to be of a sanguine and jovial disposition, and their visit afforded a very accepta- ble relief to the tedium and monotony of our polar life. They showed very little relish for tea, coff^ or any article of diet on board of our vessel, and what surprised us still more — they did not tax our li^id hospitality, showing no inclination for brandy, spirits, &c. They would drink nothing but pure water, an example of teetotalbm which we cer- tainly did not expect from them, as we had heard some account of the bibulous propensities of savage tribes in general. The stories told by some travellers respecting the fondness of the Esquimaux for train oil, as a beverage, appear to be slanderous and without foundation ; none of those whom we met were inclined to any such practice, but treated all invitations to imbibe such greasy liquids as a mere joke. It is generally believed that people of a merry temper are disposed to be honest ; but this characteristic description would not apply to our Esquimaux visitors. They laughed almost incessantly, but were always on the alert when an opportunity to steal something was presented to them. Knives, forks, spoons, and other small metallic articles, seemed """"''l'l"SIIM'll|'lll'liIf lipiit !i;iii!BiS:iiii| 'ii i I iPiiPiii' li'lli I II I '! BK II i III ; liilfjlfiSiii '' iiiii i'li it 11^ I'lll 11 1 1! i''lli ii I 'HIlM III ' III il'; ill ! I I !lii;lii|'illli| II iS!i|i!i|iiil|i!i|!i!illlli!ll|i!!i^ il:!|t!;';f!ii!|;'l'| fil ii: i I' ll'lTHrl'lii' i'llih' 'i' il' "'I'll iiM lii'! iillliillllllil |i!l giiiiiii iJll'l: Ihliilllill ,!i 'I! •II III I'!" ¥t ^^memmmtr^wmmmm fl f I 1 < ,• 1 • ■ ' \ ■ 1 • *> 1 #. # ■\ 1 . t ■ I *^ yM:^^A :..^ sonntag's narrative of the orinnell expedition. ■'■■ni to be the principal objects of their cupidity. Some aspired to more considerable larcenies, attempting to possess themselves of our buckets, tinware, crockery, &c., and one fellow put himself to the trouble of con- veying half a barrel of coal to his sledge, with the intention of carrying it off. In short, their love of thieving was no inordinate, that no por* table' article was safe within their reach, and they were as adroit in these felonious operations as any well trained '^ prig" in the christiamsed cities of Europe or America. When detected in a theft, they returned the stolen article very good-humoredly, without exhibiting the least shame or compunction. One of our india rubber boats, which had been left on the ice about six miles from the ship, had been found by them, and they immediately cut it open ; the floats which were left around it were likewise cut in two by these worthy gentlemen. This was pro- bably done from motives of curiosity, the same feeling which impels children to dissect their toys, in order to discover what is inside of (hem. The Esquimaux will sometimes attack boats, for the purpose of rob- bing them, if the crews are not sufficient in number to protect them- selves. In Sir John Franklin's second expedition, July 1826, the crews of two boats were attacked by hundreds of these savages, who attempted a general massacre 6f the Englishmen, but did not succeed. On another occasion. Captain Franklin himself was beset by two power- ful chiefs in one of his own boats. They grasped him by the shoidders, and held him fast ; he shook them off several times, and stood on the defensive until a third chief grasped him by the arm, and thus prevented him from using his knife or pistol. They then attempted to paddle the boat to the shore. Captain Franklin being still held firmly by some of their party. As if to pacify him, the chiefs tapped him gently on the breast repeating the word " Seyma." As they approached the beach, two omeaks, filled with women, met them, and filled the air with excla- mations of delight on account of the prize which they supposed their countrymen had obtained. The Captain having been thus secured, as they thought, on shore, the Esquimaux men stripped themselves to the waists, drew their knives, and rushed to the other English boats, as if resolved on murder and pillage. Lieut. Back, and his crew, resisted manfully, and succeeded in rescmng many articles from the grasp of the robbers. However, the English were overpowered, and one of the Esquimaux had the audacity to snatch Franklin's knife and cut the buttons from his waistcoat. Many times during this scuffle the savages tried to carry off the box of astronomical instruments, but one of tiie sailors socurod it by tying it to his leg, resolved, that, if they took it r -t'lj' m ..4 1 '■ 1 1 :i-ii ,^' eo BONOTAa'a HABkATIVK OF THE ORINNELL BZPBDITIOir. '' ' 'III I ' r; !■ away, he would be dragged off with it. The crews of the boato were harassed and maltreated in this way for several hours, until the commander directed his interpreter to tell the Esquimaux that he would order his men to shoot all of them who came within reach of their muskets. This had the desired effect; the thievish villuns desisted from their cpeAtions; but they had already stolen many things of incalculable value to the exploring party. ^ This account will show that the Esquimaux know how to make thenv* selves unpleasant neighbors and disagreeable guests, when they take a fancy to do so, and a fiiur opportunity offers. it f •• t ■1 , Engliflh CHAPTER y. ^if 4::j •om Aooomrr or thb bsquduuz dogs— yreEiB singular habits and QBBAT UTILIT7 — FURTHER AOOOUNT OT THB UANNBKS, CUSTOMS, AND SUPERSTITIONS OF THB SAVAGE ESQUIMAUX — WE OBTAIN ANOTHER DOG>TEAM, AND SEND OUT TWO NEW TRAVELUNG PARTIES, ONE COM HANDED BT DR. KANE IN PERSON. The Esquimaoz dogs, so highly celehrated for iheir utility as draught animals, We an extremely wolfish appearance. The head is long, the nose black, they have stiff, upright ears, like those of the wolf, and their hair or fur very much resembles that of tiie last named animal Some of their habi^ are very remarkable. Every day they held regup lar meetings, for what purpose we could not ascertun. One of the canine assemblage, who appeared to be the orator of the day, began to howl in a very impreSMve manner, curving his back and fixing his eyes very earnestly on the sky. Aftdr a while all the others began to howl likewise, producing a grand concert of vocal music, which the human portion of the auditory had not taste enough to appreciate. Their general appearance at tiiese meetings is melancholy ; the chief speaker, or solo performer, might, to a fanciful observer, be supposed to com- mence the performance wiiJi a descant on the troubles and afflictions incident to a dog's life in the polar regions ; after which, the whole con- gregation umte in a grand chorus, to express their perfect agreement with the orator's views and sentiments. , Notwithstanding all this display of fine feeling and delicate sensibi- lity, these dogs sometimes exhibit a viry cruel and ferocious temper. Troops of them have been known to attack men and to devour children who happened to fall in their way. Greenlanders are sometimes killed by them, and when this happens, every bone of the victim is cleanly jncked by the hungry brutes. In fact, to a solitary traveller the appear- ance of a troop of them is scarcely less formidable than that of a gang of wolves. Their size is very littie less than that of a Newfoundland dog ; 61 m pj'* S.- !■ S,/' -i Nil :fl Hi 62 SONNTAU'S NARRATIVE OP TUB GRINNliLL EXPEDITION. W ;iii i they have long bushy tails, which they carry in an elevated position over their backs, except when they are fatigued or hungry. By this sign the wayfarer may often judge when an attack by them is to be apprehended. For, unlike pirates or buccaneers, who hoisi their flags when they design to make an assault, these c^aine freebooters of the North lower their caudal banners when starvation impels them to battle. The representatives of the c&nine race in this region do not bark, as civilized dogs are accustomed to do. Barking is one of those acquire- ments of the species which come by cultivation and an improved state of society ; although, like it is with many other improvements which follow in the track of civilization, its blessings or benefits are not very obvious. ill" ;:•.,,„.•• ESQUIMAUX DOG — IN HARNESS. When these dogs are taken into service by an Esquimaux, they are fed by their employers, in the summer season, once or twice in each week. In winter, their supply of food is still more scanty and unfre- quent, except when they are engaged in actual service, at which times their tasks are very severe. In these circumstances they are supplied with one full meal every day, or every second day, at farthest. Their food is similar in kind to that used by their masters, consiAting, !»i!i r t ;■; ! 1 F i 1 pwii - [ T r "- i i T :^ ^ ^ l »l ^^ ^» 'H lte^u>B a iti^ gaa Mill \ , SONNTAQ'B narrative Of THE ORINNBLL BXPEDITIOV. 66 for the most part, of the flesh of the seal, bear or walnu, but this meat IS seldom or never given to the dogs unless it happens to be in a spoiled condition. The dogs are sometimes fed with pieces of walrus akin, frozen and cut up in small shreds. When seals happen to be very plentiful, a whole one, stripped of the blubber, is sometimes given to the dogs. However, as these animals have large appetites, they often suffer greatly on account of a deflksienoy of food. When anything eatable is thrown to them it is commonly torn to pieces and swallowed before it reaches the ground. When they are feeding, their ferocity is such that they would kill each other while fighting for the pronsions, if whips and staves were not in coiistant use to keep them in order ; on this account some of the men, armed with weapons of terror and punishment, are obliged to superintend their Scythian banquets. When these brutes are harnessed for service, each dog b attached to ihe sledge by a line of seal or walrus skin. All run in one rank, at equal distances from the sledge. They are guided and controlled by the voice of the driver and the whip. Their speed and power of tra«- tion are wonderful. A team of six or seven dogs will draw a sledge, laden with three men and baggage, at the the rate of fifty or sixty miles per day. On the ice; when it is level and there is not much snow on it, the progress is usually eight or ten miles per hour. Every dog keeps his place in the Tsxk with great precision, unless thrown out by some unavoidable cause ; in that case, he inmiediately leaps back into his proper station. When travelling over rough ice, or hummocks, the Esquimaux dismounts and goes behind the sledge, where he takes hold of two pieces of wood which project like the handles of a plough. By this means, he guides the sledge, and helps it over the ridges and ine- qualities of the route. The sledge is supported on two runners, composed of wood and bone, the part which touches the ice being constructed entirely of the last* named material. Many pieces of both substances are lashed together with thongs of seal skin, s6 as to obtain a length of about seven feet, and a breadth of eight inches. These runners are formed in a very artis* tieal manner, care being taken that the leathern strips which fasten the work together should not be exposed to any friction, as that would soon separate the parts. In front, the runners are slightly turned up. Pieces of wood and bone, about eighteen inches in length, are lashed oross-wise to these runners. At the back of the sledge there are two upright posts, about two feet long, to the tops of which a transverse bar is fastened. This dorsal fixture, when it is covered with a buffalo skin, fupports the back of the driver, and when the travelling is very much 6 >i i m 66 sonntaq's narrativb of the ORINNELL IZPlDinOV. I I ll! embarrassed with hillooks and ridges of ioe, the same fixture serres for a handle, by means of whioh the dismounted traveller maj lift his vehicle over the obstacles of the road, as I have mentioned before. The transverse bar is used, moreover, to hang hunting lines on, when the Esquimaux driver is engaged in a venatic enterprise. These hunt< ing lines are made by cutting the skin of a seal from the dead body of ithe animal, not lengthwise, as usial, but around the carcass, and re- moving it in a narrow spiral strip. In this way a very strong lasso is obtained ; and one great advantage of this kind of lines is that they will not break when they have been soaked in water and afterwards frozen stiff. On the sledge a large seal-skin bag, similar in construo- tion to one of Uncle Sam's mail-bags, is placed as a receptacle for pieces of meat, knives, and other articles intended to be used on the iourney. The Esquimaux tourists usually carry some kind of arms with them, likewise, when travelling. Their principal weapons, on such occasions, are a lance and a harpoon. The staff or shaft of each of these weapons is commonly formed of the horn of the narwhal, seve- ral pieces of which are lashed together so as to make a pole about two inches in diameter and five or six feet long. The lower part or handle is made of ivory. Thp blade is of iron, and is shaped like a half-moon. These spears and harpoons are used both in hunting and warfare, and they have no other implements, except their knives and hunting-lines, for either occupation. The seal-skin boats, or kaiaktj which are used by the Esquimaux of the Danish settlements, on the western coast of Oreenland, are notiknown, or at least not used by the savage tribe which I am now describing. The dress of the Esquimaux women who visited our ship differed very little from that of the men ; the principal variation was that their panta- loons were shorter and their boots higher. Their hair was gathered up in knots, and tied on top of their heads. As I have hinted before, their personal beauty, either of form or feature, was not of the most attractive character ; but they>found some admirers among our sailors, whose attentions did not occasion any outbursts of jealous passion among the males of the visiting party. Their tang froid in these cir- cumstances was as admirable as that of any married gentleman ot France or Italy. In joviality of disposition the Esquimaux women even transcend the men, although the latter are the most jolly fbllows that ever my ** conversation coped withal," in any climate, rank, or con- dition. They were all, male and female, very hospitably received on board of our vessel. It appeared from their conversation that they had no other idea of the object of our expedition than that we cams enres for rlifb his I before, m, when ese hunt- body of , and re- ; lasso is hat they fterwards oonstruo- taole for 1 on the of arms s, on such each of bal, seyfr* bbout two >r handle alf-moon. fare, and ing-lines, are used coast of kge tribe ''^4f;-: ':i: II' I I I 11 iiji !^^ h ■ \ . V • . >. ' • f ■ u f e • 1 I n \ h t 1< w ' 0] b« bi Ii ai / h< w cl fl( \ h< >.^ yr di b( . 8b fo CO ' lo ' ' ' ; in V-' BQNNTAG'S NARRATIVB of THB GRINNBLL EXFEDirrCN. 69 to iheir country for the purpose of hunting, which is the only business or pursuit of which they have any notion. No^ being able to compre- hend the operations of weaving, they believed the linen, cotton, or woollen cloths on board of the ship to be the skins of some kinds of animals. White linen they supposed to be the skins of our own coun- trymen, a m'-stake wUch was veryjr complimentary to the fair com- plexions of the Anglo-Saxon race. Bread they took to be the dried meat of the musk ox, an animal of which many remains, skulls espe- cially, are seen in that country, though no living specimens are now to be found. The ori^ of the white race is thus accounted for by these savages : An Esquimaux woman once had the ill-luck to give birth to several de- formed children. Being ashamed of her offspring, she put them into a shoe, and set them a-drifb in the sea. The shoe increased prodigiously in bulk, changed its form, and became a ship, and the mis-shapen Esqui- maux brats became men and women of a burlesqued pattern, with hideously pale faces, and forms of an unseemly outline, unlike that of their elegant and handsome Esquimaux ancestors. From this account of our origin, you may judge how they estimate the beauty and excel- lence of the Oausasian branch of the human family. They tell a somewhat ima^ative story, concerning the sun and moon, which exceeds in extravagance any parable of Grecian or Egyptian origin. The sun, as they report, was once a fair Esquimaux maiden, bearing the pretty name of Melina. The moon was formerly her brother. She had often observed, when the light in the hut was extin- guished, that she was approached and caressed by some unseen lover. In order to discover who he was, she sttuned her hand with lampblack, and when her invisible adorer made his next nocturnal visit, she applied her h&nd to his face, and made a mark by which he might be distinguished when the lamp was re-lighted. By this means she discovered that her clandestine lover was her own brother. Horrified at this discovery, she fled from the hut, pursued by the iniquitous young rascal, who chased her over sea and land, until they came to tiie verge of the horizon, where she sprung up into the sky, or was conveyed thither by some divinity, who pitied her misfortunes. Her form was now changed, and became still brighter and more beautiful than it was before. In short, she was transformed to the solar luminary. The wicked lad, who still followed, was changed in like manner to <^e moon, and the chase is still continued through the azure fields of heaven. The face of the incestuous lover still bears the mark of lampblack ; the same mark which the inhabitants of other countries have mistaken for " the man in the moon." i J' r il I 70 sonntag's narrativb of THB OBIKNELL EXFBDinOir. Our Esquimaux guests informed us that they had seen an unusual appearance in the skies, some years ago, (referring to the solar eclipse of 1825,) and they concluded from thence that the two lovers (the sun and moon) had come in actual collision at last. The eclipse, as it appeared in that latitude, greatly alarmed them, their seers and wise men predicting that it would be followed by disastrous consequ^ces. A correct view of this natural phenomenon as it presented itself to Captain Franklin and his companions on board of their ship, in Baffin's Bay,will be found below. ^ i ill. If ■ 'iJ ' I :il BOLIPBB OF THE SUIT. The drawing was made by one of the party and is certified to be perfectly accurate. A belief in the metempsychosis prevails in this country ; but the inhabitants are too fond of animal food to a^opt the rule and regimen of the Pythagoreans. They suppose that the soul of a deceased Esqui- maux passes into some animal of a certain species ; and they pretend to know, in every case, what species it* is. The relatives of the deceased, therefore, ^or a certain length of time, abstain from the flesh of that species of which some individual is supposed to be the present abode of their departed frienu. Unluckily they do not know what individual contains the transmigrated spirit, and so it is a matter of conscience with them to reject as food all animals of the kind, lest they should happen to devour their own kindred. They have many ceremonies which correspond with the mourning of civilized people for the death of their relations. When an interment takes place, all the hunting apparatus and the personal equipments of the deceased are buried with him, according to the custom of the abo> flONNIAa'tl NARRATIVE OF THE GRINNELL EXPEBITION. 71 rigines of the southern portions of the American continent. For some days after the funeral no fire is kept in the hut inhabited hj the sur- viving relations of the deceased. The mourners keep their, heads covered for a certain time with the hoods of their jackets. They weep a great deal, even a long time after their departed friends are buried, especially when they happen to be the subject of conversation; and all strangers who are present at the time are expected to weep likewise. We obtfuned some dogs from the Esquimaux, in exchange for knives, poles and planks. These dogs, togetiier with a few which survived the winter on ship-board, were sufficient to form one team. The expe- dition, therefore, had the use of one dog-sledge, at least, with seven powerful dogs to draw it. This sledge, and another drawn by men, were fitted out for another excursion, the travelling party, in this case, being commanded by Dr. Kane lumself. It left the ship about the latter end of April, intending to pursue the search as much as possible according to the plan which has been mentioned before in this narra* tive. But only a few days after the party started, the leader was taken sick, and was obliged to return. This party, and the preceding one of autumn, 1863, had followed the north-eastern shore of Smith's Sound ; or more properly, the sea-coast above that locality. Still another party, consisting of two persons only, with the dog- sledge, was now sent out, with instructions to cross the channel in a northerly direction, and to search the north-western coast. This party travelled in the month of May, carrying with them scarcely anything l:V but the OUR SMALL BOAT. n* I m:.~' 911 SONNTAQ'S narrative of tug QRINNELL EXPEDITIOir. ' except a suflSciency of provisions, consisting entirely of pemmican, to serve themselves and the dogs for one fortnight, and two blanket-bags for sleeping in. The ice was still much in the same condition as was observed by the party which left in the preceding March. The same route which that party had taken was now followed up, the travellers proceeding with as much rapidity as possible over the unequal surface, the ridges and hillocks of ice often compelling them to dismount and lift their sledge over the obstructions. In this way they succeeded in crossing the channel, which is about seventy miles wide, and they made land on the western coast, in latitude 79° 60'. Their provisions and eiiuipraents were not sufficient to justify them in attempting a journey towards the north ; they therefore proceeded southwardly, along the west coast, and explored about forty miles of the coast-line without meeting with any traces of Sir John Franklin. The mountains on this coast are much higher than those on the eastern coast. Several deep bays and two islands were discovered. The interior of these islands appeared to be covered with a glacier, and in this respect, the country resembled that on the east side of the channel. The snow was yery deep, which made the travelling extremely laborious ; but a much greater discouragement now presented itself. The stock of provisions Avas exhausted, as it was impossible to carry a large amount of them on our sledge, and two men, together with seven dogs, require a considerable stock of victuals in a climate like this, where every indi- vidual eats four times as much as he could in a more temperate region. For the last two days of the journey, the travellers were obliged to put themselves on very short allowance, and, of coarse, were much less able to endure the cold. That these privations in ihe way of eating were rather severe may be judged from the fact that they were obliged on the last days of their journey, to breakfast, dine and sup on their own seal-skin boots and pantaloons ; dishes which cannot be supposed to have been very palatable or digestible ; and, besides, these articles of apparel could not very well be spared for the purposes of refection, when the low temperature of the air made a large supply of clothing necessary. They journeyed for the last seventy miles of their trip, with no better provision than that which has just been mentioned, cutting pieces from their boots and pantaloons, and masticating these dainty morsels as they proceeded. The reflex of light from the surface of the snow affected their eyes to that degree that they were almost blinded, and suffered severely from pains in the visual organs. One of them was entirely deprived of sight during the latter part of the jour ney and for several days after his return. It strikes me that this o d o a U o c w M K H o mican, to txket-bags >n as was rhe same bravellera surface, ount and seeded in bey made lions and i journey ilong the e withouji IB on this 3ral deep e islands > country was very . a much )rovi8ion8 of them require a irery indi- te region, bliged to much less of eating e obliged on their supposed 3 articles refection, clothing leir trip, entioned, ; these e surface >e almost One of the jour that this SOVNTAG'S NARBATIVB of the ORINNXLL XXPBDinOK. 76 tnoonvenienee might have been prevented, in some measure, at least, b J wearing a shade of thin green silk over the eyes, to mitigate the in- tensity of the light. I would recommend Arctic travellers who find themselves in similar circumstances, to try the experiment. Owing to these various difficulties, the party was obliged to return to the ship sooner than was intended. The hardships endured by those who undertook these excursions, always caused sickness, more or less severe ; indeed, nothing less than experience could convince me that the human constitution can support such trials as I have seen it subjec- ted to in the high northern latitudes. At the time to which reference is now made, it was constant daylight. The sun which had set, for the last time that season, on the 19th day of April,, was now constantly above the horizon. Even at midnight, its altitude was not less than twelve degrees, while its meridian altitude was thirty-five degrees, which was the greatest elevation it attuned, except in November and January, when it may have ascended two degrees higher. The apparent movement of the sun, as witnessed from this point, is in a circle, not much inclined towards the horizon, below which, during the continuance of the Arctic day, it never sets. Notwithstanding the continuous sunshine, the thermometer always indi- cated a temperature much below the freezing point, in tiie shade. During the first part of June, and even in the warmest days of July, the temperature was seldom more than forty degrees above zero. BLBDaa PARTY RBTUBNIKa. M,« I 'P 76 SONNTAO'S NARBATIVE OF THE aRINNELL EXPEDITION. ;! ill.;!': iFjIliii ''i w m •;m\: If m Before the last-mentioned party returned from their journey across the channel, another sledge, drawn by men, was sent out on the same route which was taken by Dr. Kane in the preceding autumn. When the party with the dog-sledge returned, that sledge with its canine team and several men, was sent after the party which last left the ship. The dog-sledge detachment overtook Uie other near the southern extremity of the large glacier, which I mentioned as having been dii^ coverd in the autumn preceding. Near this locality, while the men were sleeping in their tent, which had been pitched on the ice, a large white bear, who had been attracted to the spot by curiosity, perhaps, or the dmell of the provisions, put his head into the door of the tent, and saluted the inmates with a growl which awakened them and made them start to their feet very promptly, to receive their unexpected guest with due courtesy. As the sleepers were enclosed in their blanket-bags, and other dormitory appliances, it was some time befolre they could make any demonstrations, either of a friendly or a hostile character, and Bruin, in the meantime, forced hia way inside of the tent, and deliberately smelled of each occupant, as ladies smell chickens in market, to ascertain if they are fresh and wholesome articles of food. The travellers were considerably annoyed, and, to say the truth, very much alarmed by this unseasonable visit, especially as no means of defence could be thought of in the exigency of the moment. Their rifle and shot-gim, the only weapons they possessed, had imprudently been left on the outside of the tent, and none of them had a knife large enough to be useful in this emergency. In these env barrassing circumstances, one of the men bethought him of the expe* dient of lighting a box of lucifer matches, and applying it to the nose of the bear. This offensive operation only made the intruder raise hia Iiead, and stare at the offender with a stern and vindictive aspect, as if to check his audacity and presumption. In the meantime, another member of the party remembered a boat-hook, which was stuck in ths snow at the back of the tent, on the outside ; and, in order to obtain the use of it, he cut a hole in the canvas with his pen-knife, and, to hia great joy, found that the instrument was within his reach. He grasped it, drew it into the tent, and made a resolute punch with the spear-like weapon at the bear's countenance, which manoeuvre caused the animal to retreat to the sledge, where he began to devour some of the dried seal's flesh, which had been provided for the subsistence of the travel* lers. The man with the boat-hook followed him, and with another punch drove him to the distance of several yards from the sledg.e, when another of the party seized the rifle, took aim and fired. The bear IH' tm. I \ i .^\. SOnfEAO'S VABBATIVI 01 TBB eRimriLL JXPIDrnOH. 79 WM shot in the head, uid died almoit immediately. It wm a large animal, much larger than any individual of the speoies exhibited at the menage- ries. The traTellen cooked some of the fleeh, wliiich proved to be very nnotttotts, but not unpleasant to the taste. All vrho partook of it, how- ever, were very siok afterwards. It appears that the livtr formed a part of the mess which our travellers obtained from the carcass of thia bear ; their sickness is attributed to this circumstance, as it is a general belief among the Greenlanders that the livers of bears are poisonous. No Greenlander can be persuaded to eat this part of the animal, and those of our people ^ho used it for food, even in small quantities, experienced some disagreeable effects afterwards. The usual conse* quences were nausea, vomiting, and eruptions of the skin ; and, as Uieae symptoms invariably followed the eating of bear's liver, it is highly probable that the opinion of the Esquimaux, in relation to its unwholesome qualities, is well founded. By the way, it may be re- marked that the flesh of the polar bear is far inferior, as an article of diet, to the meat of the black bear, which is found in more southern latitudes. The former has a fishy taste, which b offensive to some palates, and besides, the meat is harder and more indigestible than that of the black bear. After a journey of several days continuance, the travellers arrived at the provision depot, which had been made, (as I related before,) in the autumn ; but they found, to their great disappointment, that Una depot had been overhauled by burglarious bears, notwithstanding great precaution had been used to secure the property from depredation. An enclosure had been made with stones, blocks of ice and snow, and the whole was cemented together by throwing water on the pile, which being instantly frozen formed a compact mass. The roof of tita enclosure was formed in a similar manner; but the bears were cunning and skillful enough to force an entrance and carry off the spoils. All the provisions left for our use was of such a quality as their ursine lordships contemptuously rejected ; and it seemed that they had taken a malicious pleasure in playing indelicate tricks with some of the victuals which they did not consider good enough to be eaten. At thb point, the dog-sledge was laden with as much provisions as it could conveniently carry, and was despatched on a journey towards the north, with a travelling party consisting of two persons. They followed the direction of the glacier, which runs ahnost due north, and after some very toilsome travelling over rough ice, they came to the entrance of another channel ruiming to the north, in lat. 80°, long. 67° w. from Greenwich. In this channel they found open water and abundance of I ! -i ''^ il 80 SORMTAO'S JfARRATIVB OF TUI QftlNNlLL UPEDinOir. i4 h ■ 'li. I :'li' living animalB, espeoialljr squatio birds. On the eastern shore, there was much ioe, of a formation so rugged as to prevent them ftrom ooiy tinning their joumej, for more than ninety miles in a northerly direction. At this point, there b a precipitous cape, and beyond this all appearance of ioe ceases. The channel is between thirty and forty miles wide, and the land on the west side appeared to be quite elevated ; so much so that it was seen, at a very great distance, in a northerly direction, from the last point which this travelling party was able to reach. From what has been stated it will be perceived that the situation of this high land must be north of 82° latitude. A gale from the north, which blew for a long time, did not bring any ice down the channel. From this we may conclude that there must be a mass of open water beyond this point. Remiuns of Esquimaux inhabitants, consisting chiefly of an old sledge, were also found on the eastern coast of this channel. liiiiiiii If h 1 '■ CHAPTER VII. HUMBSRS or WALKUSKS OR SEA-H0RSK8 ARB DISOOVERBI). — DESORIP* TION or TBI APPBARAMOB, HABITS, AND PBOULIARITIBS Or THESI ANIMALS. — SUHMBR SOBNBRT IN tHB ARCTIC RBQIONS. — VBGBTATION. —ANIMAL LirB.— ARCTIC BIRDS, BEARS, rOXBS AND RABBITS. In the channel apolcen of at the close of the last chapter, vast nnmbers of walrases were discovered. As thpse animals have not been yw^ accurately described by travelers and natural historians, I will here give the reader a description, which may not bo found unin- teresting. The walrus is much larger than an ox. Though its forma- tion is similar to that of the seal, or sea-calf, and other amphibious animals ' — it is never found out of the water, ' except when reposing on the ice. The skin of the walrus is covered with short hair, like that of the seal ; its mouth resembles that of the lion ; the head is small in proportion to the sise of the body, which is very bulky and unwieldy. The upper part of the face is very much like that of the human species ; and the animal wears a kind of mustache, which gives him a military aspect, like that of a French officer. They have no external ears ; but are provided with four feet. Long tusks project from the mouth, one on each side, and. these are as good ivory as the teeth of the elephant. •The female is often seen lying on floes or cakes of ice watching the gambols of her yopng brood, which are usually two in number. When fishermen approach, or any other object alarms her maternal sensibili- ties, she takes up her interesting offspring, one at a time, and pitches them into the sea ; after which she herself plunges in, seizes her babes in her affectionate arms, and disappears unAr the ice, or water. Tho femal» of this species, as well as of many others, is more ferocious than the male, especially when she conceives it necessary to act in defense of her young. On such occasions, she is sonifetimes provoked to make an attack on the fishermen who approach her place of resort ; she then tosses her cubs from her, and with all her force rushes against the side of the boat, as if with the design of crushing it by the colli- sion. In combat, this animal is what some people would term *' an Vgly customer." It is impossible to kill one unless you can succeed in striking it on the forehead. At all other points they are nearly invuU 6 81 1 N ■n I' I ; hi r 82 SONNTAO'S NARRATIVE OF THE GRINNELL EXPEDITION. I WU.i-:; i m-:k ncrable. Walrases are more numerous on the western coast of Spitz- bv<;rgen tban in Baffin's Bay, Behring's Straits, or any other part of the Arctic seas with which I am acquainted. In fine weather, they resort in large numbers to large pieces of ice floating about the edges of the great marine glaciers. Hundreds of them are often seen in a herd, and many different herds may be in view at the same time. They appear to enjoy themselves very much, tumbling about on the ice and making the air resound with their bellowing, which much resembles that of bulls. When they fatigue themselves with these diversions, they betake themselves to repose ; but these wary animals, before they resign themselves to slumber, always take the precaution of appointing a sentinel to arouse them on the approach of any danger. So univer- sal is the observance of this precaution, amongst the species, that no sleeping herd, however small, is ever seen without one wakeful fellow in their midst, who stretches his long neck in the air to the full extent of the muscles, every half minute, and looks around him with a glance of anxious scrutiny. In case of any alarming appearances, the faith- ful sentinal begins by attending to his own safety ; and, as these ani- mals alwayc lie huddled closely together, the motion of one is imme- diately communicated to the whole group, which instantly begins " to make tracks" toward the water. Having arrived at the edge, they pitch in head-foremost, sidewise, and in every imaginable posture — such is their hurry to escape from the object of their terror. On some occasions, however, they show none of the timidity which is imputed to them in this description. In the year 1818, Captain F. W. Beechy, while on an expedition to the Arctic seas, had a furious assault made upon one of his boats by a herd of walruses, or sea- horses, as they are sometimes called. It required great activity and perseverance on the part of the boatmen to beat them off. They rose in great numbers about the boat, snorting with rage, and rushing on to meet their enemy with grdki intrepidity. They attempted to npset the boat by hooking their tusks to the gunwales, or by butting against the sides with their heads. It was with great difficulty that the men could prevent the boat from being capsized by these operations. Old whal- ers believe that these assaults, which are not of rare occurrence, are conducted and directed by some particular walrus of a daring and chi* valric disposition, worthy to be the commander of such a warlike band. The attacks are managed with as much order and military tact, (to say the least) as many of those which were made by the combined troops of France and England, at Sebastopol. In the case, which w« have just been speaking of, the herds were so numerous, and one de- it of Spitz- er part of ither, they ; the edges seen in a ime. They he ice and resembles diversions, before they appointing So univer- es, that no eful fellow full extent th a glance , the faith- these ani- le is imme- >egin8 "to edge, they ture — such dity which 8, Captain i a furious 9S, or sefr* stivity and They rose ihing on to upset the gainst the men could Old whal. rence, are g and chi> like band, y tact, (to combined which we d one de- o H CO »fl M ^ H ► H W o •sfl V a ts CO o H ta O o i: SONNTAa'S NABBATTVl 01 THX OBINNKUi XZPIDITIOV. 85 isobment after another came on so rapidly, that the party who stood on the defensive had scarcely time to load a musket ; and no other weapons except fire-arms could have the least effect on such hard- skinned assailants. The purser of the English boat fortunately had his gun loaded ; and when the whole crew were nearly exhausted with the futile exercise of striking and punching at their assailants, he snatched up his piece, thrust the muzzle down the throat of the leader, and fired into his bowels. The wound proved mortal, and the captaia of the marine corps fell back among his companions. The latter d»> sisted from the attack to assemble round their dying chief, and offer him their condolence and assistance. They actually bore him off with their tusks and assiduously prevented him from sinking. In the year 1608, one of these animals was taken alive to England, where it was exhibited to the king and court, but it died soon after its , arrival. While on the journey last spoken of we saw a great many bears ; but as they were very shy, we succeeded in killing but two of them, viz., an old female and her cub. The meat was given to our dogs. This traveling party returned to the ship about the Ist of July. By this time the thawing season, or Arctic summer, had commenced. The water ran in large streams from the hills and formed pools on the sur* face of the frozen sea. These ponds were very great obstructions to the passage of the sleds; and, at several places, they were almost im- passable. Snow- blindness was a great affliction and in ; onvenience to all our traveling parties, the disease being both troubK;?o;re and pain- ful. The party which had separated from this cnu on ^1 > south sid« of the glacier had returned to the ship some time before, ail of them so much blinded that they were scarcely able to find the v^ j.y back. As the season advanced, the appearance of the ot Antry began ^J un- dergo a change. The snow disappeared from the south bide v/f those hills which were nearly perpendicular, showing the dark barren rock without any superincumbent soil or any appearance of vegetatiotu The white mantle of winter still overspread the more sloping declivi- ties, and the almost horizontal shelves — so that the hills presented alter- nate horizontal stripes of white and dark brown, or gray. At the bottom of the ravines were large pools of water, formed oj the torrents of melted snow which descended from the mountains, with great power and velocity, leaping from rock to rock, and forming vcij brilliant cascades which fell into the capacious reservoirs below. Each cascade was attended by a wreath of mist or water-ksloud, which in re- ceiving the rays of the sun, assumed all the colors of the rainbow. k Ill ■■.[1 !i i! ii'-i'-;:' !l. .'! IliV « flOVNTAO'S NARRATIVX Of THX OBINNIU. EXPIDITTOIT. The lively motion and variegated colors of the objects, the thunder-Iiks found of the falling water and the rolling stones over which it flowed, formed a most striking contrast with the horricT gloom and stillness of the Arctic winter through which we had so lately passed. It was like a transition from death to life, and produced a feeling of buoyancy and •xhiliration I cannot describe. ' At some favored spots — the rocks which flanked or surrounded the cascades were covered with a luxuriant growth of moss, very green and beautiful, and occasionally a dwarflsh willow was seen projecting from the clefts, in which some little mold had accumulated. The stem of these willows was seldom thicker than a man's little finger. We saw, besides, a few poppies; and a beautiful little flower which sprang up in some places from the thin soil formed on the surface of the rock. We I observed that this flower made its appearance as soon as the snow dis* appeared from the ground, and its life must have been of short dura- tion, for we never saw it in any place which had been freed from the snow long enough to become perfectly dry. Occasionally, likewise, we met with small bunches of scurvy grass {cochlearia)^ which much resembles the W9'>>r :'rt.:< }i a >pearance and character. It is an edible plant, and we s )< tr 'met o'^t '^ned enough of it to make a salad — a very great delicacy j people in our situation, who had tasted no fresh ve- getables for oiany months. In every place where there was any &oil, something green appeared ; and the process by which nature tries to produce soil in these stony, desolate regions, is truly wonderful. At first, on the naked rock the stone-moss begins to form — this is so closely connected with the stone on which it grows, that it appears to be a com- pound of mineral and vegetable substance — the dry, small, and almost invisible leaves appear, at a short distance, like red, green, yellow, or black spots; as these molder away, they are succeeded by a more dense and compact growth of green moss. After a considerable time this also decays, leaving a thin mold on the rocky surface ; and this mold becomes thicker and more susceptible of vegetation every year. From this statement it must appear that vegetation is slowly but con- stantly advancing in these regions ; and, be the cause what it will, it is obvious to me that the climate itself is gradually improving, and Chat the time must come when all this ground will be inhabitable. As more depth of soil is obtained, higher orders of plants and herbs will ap- pear — birds visit the locality, and a deposit of manure makes still further improvement in the productive energy of the ground. In all places which have been frequented by birds or the Esquimaux, the vege- tation is always most luxuriant, and very often in such localiti .3 the ONNTAG'S MARRATIVI Of THB QBINNELL EXPEDITION. 87 earth is covered with large plots of grass. The Esquimaux leave traces of their presence at every place which they have visited. Ruins of their huts— circles of stones with wbich^they fasten their summer tents to the ground — bones and skulls of the sea and land animals in which these people make their prey — and sometimes human skulls are iound at the places where they once fixed their residence. The advance of summer made a revival in the animal kingdom like- wise. The little snow bird was the first feathered immigrant from more southern regions — snipes, ducks, geese, loons, and several species of gulls soon followed, for the purpose of depositing their eggs, which are easier protected here from predatory animals, than in the country where these fowls pass their winter. The charming little ptarmagan which passes the winter in this climate, now changed its plumage. The raven alone underwent no variation — for that "gentleman in black," who inhabits all climates, never changes his sable habiliments. This increase of ani- mal life was not so much observed near the ship, as it was more to the south, where the water was open. Although it was now near the middle of July, the ship was 'surrounded with a belt of ice forty miles in breadth, which separated it from the open sea. Foxes, which could often be seen and caught in winter, now became scarce. These animals are very different from the foxes of our own country — they are of two distinct varieties ; one kind is white, and the other dark bluish gray. They are smaller than the foxes of southern latitudes ; the blue ones, as they are called, have a very fine fur. They feed chiefly on birds, which they catch with great dexterity. Some- times they follow the bear as jackalls do the lion — to pick up the remnants of the iarger animal's banquets. During the winter the foxes thronged about our ship and made strenuous efforts to break open the store-house in which our provisions were deposited on one of ^he smull islands, situated near our winter harbor. We caught numbers of them in stone traps ; some of them were kept alive and domesticated on board, where they ran about the deck and became the pets of the sailors. They are easily tamed, and when permitted to range through the vessel they destroyed the rats and mice very effectively. In fact, no cat or terrier could perform this duty more faithfully. The rabbit of this country differs greatly from the common^ Ameri- can rabbit — being much larger, (some of them weighing more than ten pounds,) and they are perfectly white. We saw no walrus ; they are very scarce, or perhaps there are none of them on the eastern coast of Baffin's Bay. We saw some foot-aiarks there, which were either those of a wolf or of a very large dog. Several reindeer were shot. 'fill I i' 1 ii ■ I'l' 'i'l 1 in; '::\\ ^ 1 i I '^ i ! i |.i'Sf! ! '■'■1 !'''ii 1 1 ;! ' "; ; ■ ■ ■ i ■'■■, \ " 88 SOMNTAQ'S MARRATIVB or the GBINNCLL IXPKDITI05 These animals are very soaroe and very shy in this northern country. The Esquimaux never catch any here, as they cannot approach them near enough for the purpose. The flesh of these deer, and that of the seal, was very useful to the ship's company as a remedy for the scurvy, some slight oases of which appeared among us in the spring months. < tt :.' ^.ii .'I « ,.=.{ .7o ; J- ' - 1 T- .I--' ^= ' IHBXB aBAVBS DISOOYEBED BT OAPT. PKNHT. i! ' nl, '-i '■■■• ■,» I r. II a country, •oach them id that of dy for the the spring BTWT. I'.liiili I'" i«l* ', ■ ^ ,'!?:, Hi' |j..l.,;iJ'Wai:iliii»i !i?i^« 1 1 1 M ::i| i h;.;;' 1 ■ !'II!P:'1:'',' t 1 f i 'll'' i 1. i , 1 : 1 CHAPTER VIII. TBRRIFIO WATXR SPOUT.— A TBRILLIKO BOSirs. — ^LARGB FIRB BALL PREOIPITATBD INTO THB SBA.-H3BAI.8, AND THBIR MODS OP HIDING WBARISOMB JOURNBT ACROSS THB ICB. — ^HOW THB BSQUIMAUX HUNT BBALB. — WATER TORRENTS.— WB PREPARE TO SPEND ANOTHER WINTER IN OUR SHIP, WITHOUT FIRES AT NIOHT. — GREAT SUFFERING. — FAILURE OF DR. KANE'S PARTT TO RBAOH BEECHT ISLAND. 11' While we were off Clermont Tonnere, we li»d a narrow escape from a water-spout of more than ordinary sise. It approached ns in a Tery awful and imposing manner, accompanied by heavy rain, thunder and lightning. The obscurity of the atmosphere prevented us from seeing the dangerous marine prodigy until it was very near the ship. As soon as we were within the sphere of its influence, a gust of wind struck the ship so suddenly that she was almost thrown on her beam-ends. All hands were immediately engaged in taking in the sails ; but before this could be done, some of the canvass, especially the fore top-sail, was split into shreds. The wind blew with astonishing violence, momenta- ri^ changing its direction, as if it were sweeping around in short spirals. The rain, which fell in torrents, was precipitated in curves, with intervals of cessation. ' Amidst this thick shower, the water-spout was discovered. It extended, in a tapering form, from a dense stratum of cloud to within thirty feet of the water, where it was hid by the foam of the sea, which was whirled upward with a tremendous gyration. These water-spouts are of common occurrence in the northern seas. In 1826, a similar spectacle was witnessed by Captain Beechy'a explor- ing party, which was then detained by the ice in the Arctic ocean. Captain Beechy, in his report of this phenomenon, says that just before the watcr-spout appealed, a large fire-ball was precipitated into the sea. One of his boats was so completely enveloped in lightning that Lieu- tenant Belcher thought it advisable to get rid of the anchor by hanging it some fathoms under the water, and to put the seamen's muskets under a cover. From the account given by their ofBcers, who happened to be at some distance from the ship at the time of the occurrence, it appears that the column of the water-spout first descended in a spiral form, until it met the column ascending from the sea. A second col- 91 ■iy;; 92 bonntaq's narbativi or t^c qrinnsll expidition. nmn, and a third, were afterward formed at a short distance from the first ; and finally, these all united in one large column. This again separated into three small spirals, and then dispersed. )'f WAIBR-SPOUT. ' I' 1 J i In oar wearisome journey across the ice, we had little time to hunt for animals. A considerable number of seals was shot during the spring and summer. They lie scattered about on the ice during these seasons ; but they always take care to be near an " air hole," so that thej may creep in and make their escape as soon as any living thing apprcaches them, or the slightest noise is heard. The hunter must, there foi(*, be very ranch on the alert, if he hopes to come within shooting distance before they retire from his observation. The Esqui- maux creep along the ice, screened from the sight of the seals by an interposing hummock, and by this means approach near enough to spear or harpoon the animals. But the hunter employed on board of our flhip made use of a small sledge, on which was a square screen of white cotton cloth, measuring about four feet each way, behind which he con- cealed himself, pushing the sled along before him until he came near enough to the seals to obtain a good shot. In the middle of the screen was a small hole through which the rifle was pointed and fired at the nnsuspecting animals, who were not sufficiently acquainted with the tricks of human rascality to shield themselves from the unseen danger. When the; seal is not killed on the spot, he usually contrives to get into the water and effect his retreat, before the hunter can overtake him. Up to the middle of July the ice continued unbroken for oq^ny miles around our vessel, and it became doubtful whether it would be suffi- ciently broken up during that season to liberate the ship from her gelid ON. ice from the This again g^^t time to hunt during the luring these >Ie," so that any living The hunter come within The Esqui- seals by an ugh to spear oard of our een of white hich he con- I came near f the screen fired at the 3d with the leen danger. 9 to get into ;ake him. n\^ny miles dd be suffi> )m her gelid :! 5 -a|it! '> IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) // % A {/ .f the winter. 18 on the ship nany of the ;he wood that f our able and le most ener- ling the state performance re, it was ne- small cabin, ed. In this ns of the ship t water would ithin ten feet keeping the "n b i ■ORNTAO'S RARSATtyi Off TBI cmiiniBiii KZPmiTIOir. 101 ■lattTMses drjf u the condensation of moisttire on the tides and in the hottoms of the bunks prodaeed a constant dampness among the bed* ding. The scarry, in a severe and dangerous form, prevailed among our people. All of the company, except foor or five, were disabled bj this disease, at one time or another, daring the winter ; and the greater .number of them were sick with it almost without intermission. About the end of October, two bears, an old she-one and her cnb, were killed very near the ship ; and although at some former periods we had rejected the flesh of the white bear as unsavory and unwhole- some food, we were now glad to obtain a supply of it, as fresh meat of any kind had become quite a rarity. These bears afforded ns about a thousand pounds of meat of an antiscorbutic quality; whereas our only animal food before we succeeded in killing these creatares, were salted pork, beef, seal's flesh, &c., all of which, on account of its saline nature, tends to produce the scurvy and to aggravate the disease where it already exists. > These bears had evidently been impelled by hunger to approach our ship. Their object appeared to be the robbing of our depoeitory of provisions ; and in this enterprise they exhibited a boldness which was worthy of a better cause. When they were first discovered, they had mounted a pile of provision barrels situated about thirty yards from the ship ; and the old she-one backed down from the heap with one of the barrels grasped in her fore legs. When she had descended to the ice, she emptied out the contents of the barrel, and by significant ges- tures and her own example, invited her cnb to make a hearty repast. In the mean time, all the men and dogs on board had been mustored to repel the robbers, and the dogff commenced tha>attack with admirable resolution. The old bear finding that she must fight for her dinner before she would be permitted to eigoy it, seised the large dogs in her fore paws and pitted them to a considerable distance, apparently with the greatest ease. As for her biped enemies, she appeared to treat them with supreme contempt, as objects too insignificant to deserve her notice; and even the repeated volleys discharged from our fire-arms for a whi^le made no perceptible impression on this haughty and heroic old lady. After a while, however, she began to think that something serious was to be apprehended even from us. One of oar shots badly wounded her ; but she was not yet disabled, and she began to beat a retreat in good order. But her flight was retarded by the inability of her cub to keep pace with her, one of its legs having been broken by a pistol ball from a Colt's revolver, fired by Dr. Kane. Two well-trained Es- quimaux dogs started in pursuit of the retreating animals, and annoyed T>''f: 102 ■OMMTAO'S MABBATIYI Or TBI OBINlfBLL BIPKOITIOIT- 'i!:!!i 4m old one on both sidei. One dog wpuld assail her on the right, and when ahe turned that way to defend herself, the other would make hit assault on the left ; and so they kept up the battle, assailing the retreat- ing party on each flank alternately, and with such good generalship^ that the bear seemed to have the worst of the engagement and the dogs to require no aid from their human auxiliaries. Nevertheless one of our men leveled his musket at the unfortunate brute, and the bullet inflicted a wound which made her perfectly helpless, so that she was immediately dispatched by tha combined forces of men and dogs. This we regarded as a more signal and complete victory than that which was obtained over the JRuttian bear by the combined forces of France and England. POLAB BBAB. The winter, at the very commencement, was unusually cold, even for that climate. In November and December, the temperature was often from 60° to 60° below sero. Snow was much more abundant than it was in the first winter of our icy captivity. Cold gales of wind were also right, and I make hii the retreat- ;eneraUihip> ad the dogs less one of the httllet At 8he was and dogs. that which I of France 1, even for was often It than it were also ■OMMTAO'l XAIBATIYI Of THB OMRNILIi BXPIDITIOir. 10$ Tvrj frequent. The Etquimanx ■nffered a good de»l from the lererity of the weather. At etrly m November they began to emigrate to the north ; thia to the uninitiated will seem to be an anaooonntable move* ment ; bat by way of explanation, I may itate that the freeiing begins southwardly. About 77** latitude, strong currents and the absenco of " paok-ice" keeps the water longer open ; and for hunting the walrus, these savages find that the edge of the ice is the most favorable locality. There are, between latitudes 76* and 78<* 20', about ten little Esqui- maux villages, each containing from two to five huts, but they are not all inhabited at the same time. These huts are moet commonly built of stone, and they are always situated near the water. They have a dome-like shape ; the diameter of the interior being about eight feet and the height about five feet. The roofs likewise ai 9 made of stone, and in the construction of them the Esquimaux show a peculiar art. Some- times large whalebones are used for timber or rafters to support the stone roof. All unnecessary holes and crevices in these dwellings are carefully stopped up with moss; and in winter the whole building is covered with a thick layer of snow. The way in which they put this on is somewhat artificial. With a sort of a hatchet made of the tusk of a walrus, the Esquimaux architect cuts out blocks of snow about a foot square from planes where this gelid material has been drifted in piles or ridges by the wind. These blocks are used for tiling and stuccoing their dwellings ; and being very neatly put on, they give the building somewhat the appearance of white marble, besides making it more air- tight and comfortable. A long tunnel, built of the same materials as the hut, forms the en- trance. This tunnel, or vestibule, is just wide and high enough for a man to creep through ; and the floor of the hut is elevated about one foot above the floor of the tunnel, leaving a small aperture through which the Esquimaux enters his habitation, the passage being almost as difficult as Hans .Spiegler (in German story) found the entrance to Paradise. The hole or portal is never more than a foot high, and about as broad as the master of the mansion's shoulders; so that if any larger ' individual were to attempt to follow him, he would probably be stuck fast in the gateway. At three sides of the hut (the entrance being on the fourth side), there are elevated platforms, (or bunks, as the sailorn would call them,) which do the duty of bedsteads, beneath which pro- visions, boots, hunting implements, and all sorts of lumber are stowed away. The platforms, bedsteads, or bunks (or whatever title you may choose to give them), are heaped with dried moss and grass or hay 106 BONIITAO'S VABBATrVl OF TBI OBTNNKLL IXPEDITION. — -whioh makef a warm and luzarioas oonoh. It is a oustom among these people to go to bed with their boots on, though the same trick in civilised countries is regarded as symptoifiatio of an ad^/r.nced stage of intoxication. The Esquimaux likewise wear their mittens in bed; and as both boots and mittens are pretty well staffed with moss or dried hay, the hands and feet of the sleeper are well protected from the attacks of Jack Frost. The sleeping bunks occupy so much space in the interior of the hut, that little more than a square yard is left clear of the incumbrance, and in this small vacancy all the domestic opera- tions of the family must be performed. Their mossy couches are cov- ered with sheets or blankets made of seal-skins or bear-skins, and the walls of the hut are tapestried with the same articles. These skins in the summer time are removed from the huts and used for cover- ing tents, in which these savages reside during the warmer season. Across the top of the hnt several poles are extended, on which the skins are stretched to be 'dried in the process of preparing them for use. t'i J OHAPfCBE X. ■ AROnO SPORTSMANSHIP. — ^FRBQUBNT VISITS OF THE BSQUIMAUZ. — LIFl IN TBB BSQUIMAUZ HUTS. — MODBS OF COOKING, OOOEINO UTBNSILS, BTC. — OCCUPATIONS OF MBN, WOMBN, AND OHILDRBN. — LAZINESS AND OLUTTONT OF THB BSQUImIuX. — ^THBIR HUNTING BZCURSIONS : DIF- FICULTIES AND DANGERS THBRBOF.-^INTBRESTINa ANBODOTB OF TWO TOUNG BSQUIMAUZ HUNTERS. A FEW ptarmsgan and rabbits were shot, while we had snffioient day- light to answer the purpose of hunting. This duty devolved chiefly on Mr. Petersen, our Danish interpreter, and Hans, the Esquimaux boy, whom we had shipped on the south coast of Greenland. They were both good marksmen and were very fond of the sport, in spite of all the incon- veniences which attended it in that region. The flesh of the animals which they " bagged" was eaten raw ; and even in that state, it was found much' more wholesome than the salt provisions to which we had been confined, and which had been the means of introducing the scurvy among our people. As soon aa this fresh meat was obtained, the in- valids on board began to recover. The Esquimaux savages now began to honor us with repeated visits. They brought with them some fresh walrus meat, and bartered it for knives and other small articles of merchandise with which we were able to supply them. We sent Hans and one of our men with the dog-sledge to one of the nearest settlements of our savage neighbors ; they carried with them some articles of traffic for which we wished to obtain more fresh provisions in exchange. This mission proved very successful, and we obtained thereby an abundance of wholesome victuals, the effiact of which on our sick people was wonderful. In less than a month after the arrival of these supplies all the invalids were much better^ and some of them were soon restored to perfect health. Mr. Petersen, after his return to the ship, furnished us with some other particulars concerning the Esquimaux mode of living, which may be interesting to the reader. During the dark season, their huts are very well lighted by means of two large lamps, which are placed oppo- site the entrance on the edge of the platforms or sleeping bunks de- scribed in the preceding chapter. These lamps are made of soft stent 107 108 BONNTAO'fl NARBATITX Of THB OBINNBLL XZPBDITIOir. .''.:m lis and are neaorly in the fonn of a half moon ; the hollow part inside is about an inch deep and twelve or fifteen inches long, and this is filled with blabber or oil, the wick being of dried moss, which is first rolled ont in the hands to a string-like shape* Over each lamp hangs a pot of an oblong shape abont three inches deep, which is likewise made of stone ; it is suspended &om the rooi^ and is used for melting snow for drinking water, and also for cooking the meat, this being the best and only contrivance they have for that purpose. Around these lamps stand the crockery-ware or table equipments, consisting of two or three little round vessels made of seal-skin stretched over a framework of bone (which serve them in lieu of cups and saucers), and certain substi- tutes for plates which are made of the shoulder bladebone of the walrus. They have a kind of forks also, which are nothing more than pieces of bone pointed at one end. Sometimes they use metallic knives obtained from Europeans ; but if they have none of these, knives rudely constructed of bone are made to answer the purpose. Near the roof, above the lamps, is a small frame composed of transverse pieces of wood or bone, resembling our unglased window-sash, which lies in a horisontal position, and is used for drying the clothing. By the side of each lamp; there generally sits an Esquimaux woman, the mother of a family, (two families usually occupy each hut,) w^o keeps the lamp trimmed and attends to the boiling of the meat or the snow-melting. The snow which is intended for conversion to drinking water is cut in square cakes of abont one foot in size, and in this form is piled up in the hut ready for use. Within the small interior of one of these huts from eight to ten people usually reside, and sometimes a larger number. The animal heat of the occupants, with the radiation of two or three large lamps, raises the temperature, even in the coldest days of winter, to 90° or 100° above lero. In consequence of this excess of warmth, the inmates strip themselves quite naked, and sit or lie in crowds on the bed-place or bunk, avoiding the floor, where the cold air always settles. Here the women are seen attending to their domestic avocations ; the men, when at home, are either sleeping or eating, and the children are waddling about and eating likewise, whenever they have an opportunity. The whole forms a group which an admirer of unadorned human nature might contemplate with pleasure; but to most spectators who have seen a better style of living and more favorable specimens of the human race, the sight is any thing but agreeable. In one of these huts you have an opportunity to inspect the anatomical structure of these people to the best advantage, as their personal charms are not concealed under r. t iBside is bis is filled first rolled sngs a pot BO made of ig snow for be best and bese lamps iro or three mework of tain substi- one of the more than Be metallic bese, knives Near the irerse pieces ch lies in a vox woman, i hut,) w^o meat or the to drinking n this form 9 ten people heat of the I, raises the 100° above mates strip bed-place or Here the ) men, when re waddling unity. The man nature B who have f the human se huts you these people sealed under I * I t H < BONNTAO'8 RABaAtlYI OF TBI OBIMNKLL SXPXLITIOK. Ill f<''^ mj kind of drapery. The huge square head, the iniucnLr and almost herculean arms, and the well-developed breast of the Esquimaux, form a striking contrast with the thin, short legs and small feet. The upper part of the figure is that of a giant : the lower part is that of a child. Although I am not of a reiy facetious temper, I never could look at these undraperied figures without laughing. Their appearance reminded me of those incongruous pictures which are seen in the comic almanacs. The disproportionate form of the Esquimaux has been observed by former travelers, and it has been accounted for by referring to the circumstance that the men of this tribe pass a great part of their time in their boats or kaiaks, in which their upper limbs are exercised by rowing, while their legs remain perfectly inactive. But this expla- nation will not answer the purpose. The Esquimaux of the northern coast of Greenland, in whom this personal deformity is most conspi- cuous, have no kaiaks, and never learn to handle the oar. They exei>- , oise their legs I believe nearly as, much as their arms ; for when travel- ing they run as much behind the sledge as they ride in it; and, what is still more to the purpose, the children have the same corporal peculiarity before they begin to exercise either their legs or their arms. I will say nothing about the corresponding formation of the womenj as delicacy forbids to touch on that branch of the subject ; but it appears to me that the oddity of shape observed among these people is hereditary and a peculiarity of the tribe. The occupations of the women, while they are in the hut, or tent, are not much varied ; the females attend to the lamps, (as observed before,) they do the cooking, sew the men's clothing, and attend to the children. Their maternal affections appear to be very strong ; but no ^ signs of attachment or endearment among grown people — ^husbands and wives, for instance — are ever witnessed by strangers. Perhaps the men, like French and Italian gentlemen, are ashamed to be seen in the act of kissing their own wives ; but we never could discover that they were at all acquainted with the art of kissing, or that any practiced it in any circumstances whatever. My young readers of both sexes may find it difficult to believe this statement, but it is nevertheless true to the letter. The children assist their mother in the preparation of skins for wear- ing apparel ; the boys make fox-traps, which they set along the beach. The flesh of the fox is considered as a delicate article of food, and the^ ■kin of this animal forms an important part of the winter clothing. The men are excessively addicted to loaferism and gluttony. They take no more out-door exercise than is absolutely necessary to supply I? .: ! *•: 112 MNRTAO'S NABBATITX OF THS ORIMNELL IXPBDITIOir. ili ':fll their families with foole distance rey, when a a in the sea f the waves, ipened to be alms which soon becaniA ^ 8 0' VOIfNTAO's NARRATIVl OF THl ORIMIIILL BZPIDITIOir. 116 detnohed from the snrronnding ice uid floated in the open water, heing driven about by the winds. There wai not even snow enough on the berg to make a hut, so they were obliged to encamp on the naked ice without any shelter ; with no protection from the cold except the clothing they had on, and no means for making a fire. Their only food was the raw flesh of a walrus, and the froito blood of the animal was their only drink, if it may so be called. In this condition they lived twenty days ; when the gale ceased, and soon after the berg was again sur> rounded by young ice strong enough to bear them, whereby they were enabled to reach the, shore. The place where they landed was abont thirty miles distant from the spot from which the iceberg had started, and they were the first, perhaps, who ever traveled so far on the same kind of conveyance. The feet of both of these persons were frost- bitten ; but one of them visited our ship a short time after this ad- venture, and he was then as well as ever. Other hunters have been obliged to abandon their dogs on the ice, at times when it broke up so rapidly that they were compelled to fly for the preservation of their lives. As lasy as the Esquimaux are by nature or habit, their situation compels them to bestir themselves occasionally ; but their indolence and ill-luck combined often reduce them to a deplorable state of starvation. During December of 1854, and the first two months of 1855, the kinds of game which they are accustomed to hunt were very scarce, and the wretched savages sobered terribly for want of food. Such was their necessity that they were . compelled to slaughter their dogs and make butcher's meat of tliem ; but as these animals were as lean and emaciated as so many poets, an inconsiderable amount of food was obtained from their dead bodies, and the quality of the viands was such that they would not have been acceptable to any stomachs ex- cept the well-toned ones of the Esquimaux. Dr. Kane's celebrated suppers on fricasseed rats were much more savory. During this season of scarcity, the want of blubber with which to supply the lamps on whioK the Esquimaux depend for light and warmth in their huts, com- pelled the poor creatures to sit in the cold and dark. However, the famine lasted only for a few months ; and as the Esquimaux resembles in constitution the bear, the anaconda, and other voracious animals, they can endure hunger or a scanty supply of food for a long time, without much apparent inconvenience, taking care to make themselves amends by excessive gluttony when a plentiful supply of food is ob- tained. ^t t CHAPTER XL B8QVIHAUX HUKTIVO. — BBAR BAITINa BXTRAORDIVART. — WALRTTS CATCHING. — SIKGULAR CUSTOMS. — BSQUIHi^UZ OBNEROSITT AKD BB- NBVOLENOB. — ^FOURIBRISM IN ORBBNLAND. — OUR SITUATION BE00MB8 DBSPBRATB.— ABANDONMENT 01 IHB SHIP AND THB MAIN OBJECT Of THB EXPEDITION. When the Esqoimanx go on a bear hunting expedition, the first object is to discover Bruin's tracks on the ice. When these are seen, the dogs attached to the sledges go in pursuit at full speed. As soon as the bear appears in sight the dogs are released from their harness, and soon overtake the object of pursuit. They attack him on all sides, or rather menace him with battle, but take good care to keep out of his reach, seeming to understand that they are no match for the enemy at close quarters. In fact, the Polar bear can kill a large dog with a single stroke of his paw. While the bear is engaged with the dogs, turning around and around to repel them on all sides, the Esquimaux approaches and takes a fair opportunity to pierce the side of the beast with bis lance.. Hut one stroke is not sufBcient to kill him, and the hunter must withdraw his spear and make another thrust. As soon as the bear is wounded he turns furiously on the hunter, disre- garding the insults of the dogs. At this critical moment all the cau- tion, skill, and tact of the hunter are required to save his own life. He watches every motion of the bear, steps aside to avoid hia first on- slaught, and before the creature can wheel around the lance is again bu- ried in his side. It often requires many such wounds to dispatch a bear, or even to unfit him for battle. During the whole fight the wounded bear groans in a horrible manner, and the incessant howling of the dogs in- creases the frightful din of the combat. Considering how imperfectly the Esquimaux hunter is armed — ^his bone-tipped lance being but an awkward and comparatively ineflScient weapon — it certainly requires some chivalric spirit to undertake such a combat ; and it is really a matter of surprise to find the human combatant generally successful, as the advantages seem to be on the side of the bear. When the ani- mal is slain he is immediately cut open by the victor, and the entrails are given to the dogs. By the joint efforts of the hunters and the 116 / ■ONRTAO'l RABBATITB Off TBI OUlTlflll. IlPIDinOir. IIT dogf the earouf of a beur ii loon mtde » We skeleton, eter j eatdble portion being doTonred with utoniihing celerity. The walnis ii canght by harpooning, m which operation the Eeqni- manz exhibit some dexterity. The hnnten keep a watch on the edge of the ice, and as soon ai a walms shows himself above water the har- poon is launched at him. This instrument is fastened to one end of a •tout strip of seal skin, the other extremity of which is wound about the hunter's body. His feet are planted firmly against a small hum- mock of ice, to prevent the animal from drawing him into the water. As soon as the harpoon is fastened in the body of the walrus, it divH below the surface, as the whale does in similar circumstances, but soon after reappears to ^ke' breath. At this moment the hunter hauls in Che slack of his line and stabs the animal with his lance ; and this he does every time the walrus' appears on the surface of the water, until it is killed. It sometimes happens that when the walrus is wounded he grows desperate, and comes up on the ice to make battle with his foe. But his form is so unwieldy and his motions so clumsy, when he is out of the water, that he is easily dispatched by his antagonist. The white whale, narwhal, and sea unicorn, are killed in a similar manner. There is a singular law or custom among the Esquimaux in relation to the division of game, when several persons are present at the time it is killed. He who givep the first wound is entitled to the best part of the animal when it is killed ; but every person who is on the spot, whe- ther he assists in killing the beast or not, is entitled to a share. On other occasions much liberality is shown by these people. When one of them has caught any animi^, he dispenses a portion of it to his less successful neighbor. Likewise, when the autumnal hunting is unsuo- cessful among the inhabitants of the southern villages, they migrate to the northern settlements, the residents of which share with them, not their provisions only, but the use of the huts, sleeping conve- niences, and every thing else which their necessitous circumstances re- quire. I fear that so much brotherly kindness is rarely to be met with in Christian communities. A sort of socialistic system seems to pre- vail among these savages, but they have not yet attained to the last refinement of Fourierfte philosophy — the community of wives; and kt is to be hoped that they will long remain ignorant of that modern improvement in man's social and domestic relations. The philanthropy of the Esquimaux is not confined to a narrow sphere. Their benevolence shines not only on their own countrymen, but 00 strangers likewise. Many persons attached to our expedition bear in I '^f' 118 lOmrTAO'l NAUATITI Off THE OklNNKUi BXPCDITIOM gratefbl remembranM the mtnj acts of kindneis and friendly attentioa they received from these tot di$ant "eavBgei." It hai already been mentioned, that the flreih meat which had been •applied to u» by the Esqnimanz waa the meant ot restoring many of onr people who were tick with the soarvy. This waa a oiroumstanoe of great importance to the suooeso of onr enterprise, as some of the men who had been sick, and apparently at the point of death, soon became able to travel, or to make preparations necessary for a long journey in boats. We had now abandoned all hopes that the ship would be libe- rated from the ice that season ; and truly it appeared not very impro- bable that she had found her final resting place. In the preceding year, the sea had not opened within less than forty miles of the Ad- ftanee ; and, as the last winter was much more severe than the first one which we passed in that locality, there was good reason to suppose that the ice would not break np this year as far as it did in 1855 ; and, in that ease, the escape of the ship would be still more difficult, and, in &ot, hopeless. The subsequent event proved that these expectations were well founded. Our provisions were almost exhausted, and our fuel was entirely copsumed. Every piece of wood which could possibly be taken from the ship withbut making her useless, had been burned before the middle of May. Writing desks, fancy boxes, and mi|ny other articles- of considerable value, were likewise devoted to the flames. Some of onr salt pork, which had become rather the worse for long keeping, was also appropriated to the same use. I verily believe that we would have burned whole cords or tons of the most popular books of the day, (especially novels and poetry,) or any other combustible matters, if it had been within our reach. i-i..f, x'CJ 'liK We found, in short, that it was impossible to hold out another season, and no alternative remained for us but to abandon the ship and to attempt a passage in boats to those seas which are frequented by whaling vessels, or to the Danish settlements on the northern coast of Greenland. A council of the officers being called, it was unani- mously resolved that this retrogressive movement was imperatively necessary, and the only measure that could possibly save us from a horrible death by starvation. The reader will perceive that the jour- ney now concluded on was a virtual abandonment of the main object of our expedition. We had, in some respects, been more fortunate and successful than most of our predecessors in the navigation of the polar iSeas; we had penetrated farther in a northern direction than any navigator, Captain Parry only except/)d, had ever done before ; but it 7 liS BONMTAa'S MAABATIYl Of THl OBIITinELL IZFIDITIOW. 121 rnnst not be concealed that all attempts to make » satisfaotorj explo- ration of those seas and the adjacent regions hare hitherto failed ; and before I proceed farther with this narrative, I will endeayor to account for these failures in a manner which, I hope, will give the reader a true exposition of the grand difficulties and apparently insurmountable obstacles which have constantly frustrated the endeavors of the most able, resolute, and energetic of the Arctic navigators. I '' :f .0fv^ ti fiv ■■3.iH M I I '■--■' r$ Ais.vK,;.;'* fft* ■•7--> •■Pvrr.'Kjci:**; ,«'',»>bUj*.y;i?rt> .*{» # fiJ^O' ^;'?|J nu^ CHAPTER XII. SHE REASONS WHT ALL ARCTIC EXPEDITIONS HAVE BEEN FAILURES.— CAPTAIN parry's EXPLORATIONS THE MOST SUCCESSFCL. — SUQOES- . TIONS FOR A NEW PLAN OF ARCTIC EXPLORATION. — THE PO^iSIBILITY OF REACHINil THE NORTH POLE. — HOW THAT OBJECT MAT BE EFFECTED. The nearest approach to the North Pole ever made by an European or American navigator, was the memorable achievement of Cap- tain Parry, on the 28d day of July, 1827, when he reached the high northern latitude of 82° 45'. The day was one of the warmest and most pleasant that Captain Parry had experienced in that slimate ; and had it not been for the soft state of the ice and the strong southerly current, which operated against the northern progress of Captain Parrj 's party, it is conjectured that he might have continued his jour- ney to the pole Use^f. In a letter to the British Admiralty, dated London, Nov. 25, 1845, Captain Parry declares his belief in the practicability of reaching the - North Pole by traveling over the ice ; and he attributes his failure in 1827, solely to the causes spoken of above, viz., the mushy condition of the ice and the strong adverse current. Captain Parry thinks that an approach to the North Pole is not a matter of such difficult attainment as is generally supposed, provided the undertaking is begun and carried on in the right manner. All who have devoted much attention to the sub. ject,. are thoroughly convinced that the Pole may be reached. Why then, it may be asked, has this object never been accomplished ? It appeals to me that the ill success of Arctic expeditions in general admit of an easy explanation. None of these expeditions have been suitably prepared for the explorations intended. After remaining for a winter, or two winters perhaps, fastened up by the ice, every exploring party has been compelled to return for want of a sufficient supply of pro- visions and fuel. The account I have given of Dr. Kane's .failure in this enterprise is, in the most material points, a repetition of the his- tory of every former undertaking of the same kind. The adventurers are invariably driven back by bunger and cold, from the effects of 122 ■» 'i«l ■if fail: FAILURES.— h. — SUGOES- POSSIBILITY 31 HAT BE m European >nt of Gap- ed the high rarmest and tlimate; and ig southerly of Captain ,ed his jour- 7. 25, 1845, caching the lis failure in 7 condition inks that an itainment as i carried on to the sub. ihed. Why •lished ? It ral admit of en suitably or a winter, oring party iply of pro- s .failure in of the his- kdventurers effects of > >=-Ji ,: m - ■■ * f me atte * - BO t ice \ ,/ grea obvi I"' '' ^ :-^^;-^'S"- ^- ' ■ ,■"■ : ' 11 1 ■-■ " ^■■■" '■-) ''-■■'"' " " ^ / 1, one intl r," ' ""■ ■■■_ ■ . ■ .. ■ • - the last- with .■ ► » ■ « '. f of tl ", ' ' ^ ^ [-- : ''■ y ' '' * ^ first joui 1 • any k 1 ■ # .. \ ■OmiTAO I NABKATIVl 01 TBI GEIMNXLL KZPIDITIOir. 126 trhioh, with better management, they might have been protected for a much longer time. ' The best plan for conducting a Polar expedition that has ever been proposed, is the following : — Only one ship should be engaged in the enterprise ; in this ship the exploring party should go to Spitsbergen, as Captain Parry did in the ffecla. But the time of starting should not be too early in the season ; for it was to that error chiefly that Captain Parry imputed his failure. The first object, or the main object for the first year, would be to find secure winter-quarters as far north- ward as possible. For this purpose it would be necessary merely to reach Hakluyt's Headland by the end of June. This would afford a sufficiency of time to examine the more northern lands, especially about the Seven Islands, where, in all probability, a secure yiook might be found to serve as a station for the ship, and a starting point for the proposed expedition — which from thenqe would proceed by sledge conveyance over the ice and snow. This starting point might be fixed some forty or fifty miles in advance of the place where Parry's first winter-quarters were established. The winter might be passed in various preparations for the spring journey, and in magnetic, astronomical, and meteorolo< gical observations, which, being made in that latitude, would be of great interest and importance. The expedition should leave the ship about the middle of April, when the ice would present one hard and unbroken surface, over which, as I confidently believe, a progress of at least thirty miles per day might be made with little difficulty. Among the advantages of this course, I may mention that it would be attended with comparatively little exposure to wet and to that disease so .annoying to Arctic travelers, called snow-blindness. Besides, the ice at this season would probably be stationary ; and thus the two great difficulties which Parry's party had to encounter would be entirely obviated. It would likewise be advisable to establish depositories of provisions one hundred miles in advance, by sending out a party for that purpose in the latter part of the winter, or at the beginning of spring, before the journey of the exploring party is commenced. By this means, the last-named party could begin the journey without being overburdened with luggage, as they would depend on the provision depot for a part of their supplies. With regard to the mode of traveling, it may be remarked, in the first place, that expedition would be highly necessary, as the whole journey would have to be completed before the end of May ; or before any disruption of the ice or any material softening of the surface should I / ill ? I P i' '; .5 126 SONNTAQ 8 NARRATIVE 01* THE QRINNELL EXPIPITIOIfc take place. Daring tho absence of the exploring party snppUea of pro* visions might be stationed along the route for the nse of that party on its way back to the ship. With respect to the draoght-animalf to be used in this enterprise, I think that reindeer are far more eligible than dogs. The former have more speed and greater powers of endurance than the latteV ; they are more healthy animals, equally aa tractable, and require much less food ; and the latter would be an important con- sideration, as it would be desirable to carry as small a load of proven- der as would answer the purpose. A supply of these useful creatures might be obtained at Hammerfisk, an the passage ; and I think there wouid be no difficulty in keeping them aliye during the winter, as they could be fed on such farinaceous food as the resources of the ship could supply. Nothing can be more admirable (the operations of the " iron horse" alone excepted) than the performance of the Lapland reindeer in har- ness. This deer is the paragon of traveling quadrupeds. Its docility is wonderful ; the Arabian courser is not susceptive of better training. With a simple collar of skin around his neck, a single trace of the same materifl attached to the pulk, or sledge, and passing between his legs, and one rein fixed, like a halter, around his neck, this intelligent crea- ture is perfectly under the command of an experienced driver, and is able to perform astonishing journeys over the softest snow. His motions are more easily directed than those of the horse. When the rein is thrown over on the off side of the animal he immediately sets off at full trot, and he stops short the moment it is thrown back to the near side. Shaking the rein over his back answers all the purpose of the whip. For his maintenance the animal requires only four pouivds of clean moss /)er diem^ but in case of necessity they can travel five or six days without food; nor does this abstinence seem to affect their health or good spirits. The case is very different with dogs, which require a large amount of animal food-^a sort of provision which is often very hard to procure; and besides there is such a difference in the ability of the two, seeing that six or seven dogs are required to perform the same amount of work which one reindeer can execute with apparent ease. The only drink required by these deer is snow, tiiich need not be melted for the purpose. They can sleep on the nak^d ice ; and, in short, they are the least troublesome and expensive animals that ever entered into the service of mankind. A reindeer can travel eighty miles in one day without much exertion, l^'rom what has been said I think it will appear that these animals would be of immense -dvantage to un Arctic expedition ; and the great wonder is that a riORk BONNTAO'S NARRATIVI Or THX ORINNBLL KXPBDITIOir. 127 pplies of pro* ;hat party on nimals to be I eligible than of endurance aa tractable, nportant con- kd of proren- Hammerfisk, ij in keeping lb farinaceous "iron boree" indeer in bar- Its docility tter training, e of the same veen his legs, telligent crea- driver, and is i snow. His . When the nediately sets n back to the he purpose of y four pouivds travel five or io affect their )x dogs, which ision which is i difference in e required to I execute with 9 snow, • hich he nak^d ice ; nsive animals aer can travel rhat has been e of immense ider is that a truth 80 very obvious has not forced itself on the attention of every man who has attempted to explore any part of the Polar regions. The distance from Hakluyt's Headland to the Pole is six hundred geographical miles. Supposing that the traveler should proceed but twenty miles in twenty-four hours, only one month would be required to enable the adventurer to place his foot on the very pivot of the earth's axis. He might remain there a month, if necessary, to collect all desirable information, and then return in one of those easily- constructed canoes which are made and used by the Esquimaux on the southern coast of Greenland. The southwesterly currents, within a fortnight, or less time, perhaps, would Iwing him back to Spitzbergen. I am aware that many persons will see great difficulties and perils in attendance on the plan of exploration here proposed. But where is the undertaking which promues either glory or profit that has no attendant risks or inconveniences? To the timid and irresolute objector, I will make the same answer which was given by that brave old navigator. Sir Martin Frobisher, when his friends would have per- suaded him not to engage in a northwest passage. " It is the only thing in the world (said he) that is left undone whereby a man of mode- rate abilities may become famous." We may still say that the North Pole is almost the only thing in the world about which we know nothing ; and the time has come (according to my views) when our ignorance on that subject admits of no apology. c ■ ■#• U '"'■,?. V /' .V*dtl'f5^'S.<*: W •'*'■!-"" ' fi tV^f ' ri'»f •/ «*\ji;'v.: ' ^ ♦%' -:4» ■; I >-. -T '"*•>,■: ':' ;' o'r.-ii'' , ^i v!-:M CHAPTER XIIL AK ITTBMTT TO ANSWER THB QUESTION, "OF WHAT USB ABB ARCTIO EXPLORATIONS?" — ^*'WILL THEY PAT?"— HINTS POR ENTERPRISING CAPITALISTS AND TANKEB SPECULATORS. — ADVANTAGES OF POLAR RESEARCHES TO THE CAUSE OF SCIENCE — AN OBJECT WORTHt OF THB ' NOBLEST AMBITION. — OBSERVATIONS TO BE MADB AT THB POLB. " What advantage wonld the world derive from a thorough exploration of the Polar regions ?" I am sorry to say that this question, or some- thing like it, is often asked by men who pretend to intelligence and good judgment. The utilitarianism of this age is often extravagant in a high degree. Some people can see no use in any thing which does not immediately put money into their pockets. Pecuniary profit is the only consideration. A dollar-producing enterprise, whatever may be its objects and tendencies in other respects, is altogether glorious with them, and every thing else is a stumbling-block and foolishness. In order to meet the objections which such people make to Polar explora- tions, we may remark that the enterprise may " pay well," according to the common commercial acceptation of that phrase. We do not know what valuable productions of nature may be obtained from the lands or seas in the immediate neighborhood of the North Pole. If a tract were once opened, or a practical route and available means of travel and transportation were once devised, who knows what new fields would be opened for commercial enterprise ? Who can estimate the value of the Polar fisheries, or the Polar fur trade ? Who knows what handsome sums might be realized by conveying passengers to a spot where every object would be novel and curious ? The day may come when excursions to the Pole may be as much within the scope of Yankee contrivance, as Fourth of July excursions to Washington city or the Falls of Niagara. Who knows but that a veritable sign-post may be erected by some " Down East" speculator on the very turning-point of the terrestrial sphere, where a house of entertainment may be estab- lished, with a table richly furnished with all the delicacies of the cli- mate, and a bar well stocked with choice liquors, for the convenience of those who may prefer the North Pole, as a place of summer retreat, 128 T-'V ({'■ ■,"l ARS AROTIO iNTBRPRISINa C8 OV POLAR RTHt 07 THB iB POLB. ;h exploration tion, or some- elligence and travagant in a rhich does not profit is the tever may be glorious with )li8hness. In i*olar explora- 11," according We do not ned from the h Pole. If a bble means of hat new fieldi I estimate the iO knows what ;er8 to a spot lay may come ope of Yankee n city or the i-post may be :ning-point of may be estab- nes of the cli- 3 convenience mmer retreat, ■OirMTAO's NARRATITI Or TBI OEIMimX KXPKDITIOM. m J to Gape May or Saratoga Springs ? What an opportunity for a *' good inTOHtment" is here suggested ! But apart from all considerations of a mere pecuniary nature, there are oth^r objects connected with Polar discorery which should claim some attention from the men of this refined and intellectual generation. Dr. Samuel Johnson once said that the man who had seen the great wall of China might be considered as shedding a lustra on his grand- children. But, after all, what a comparatively insignificant thing is the wall of Ohina ! Many of our small-beer poets and traveling news- paper correspondents, in their desperate struggles for distinction, and their anxiety to obtain piquant materials for a paragraph, have scaled the broad parapets of the China wall and promenaded its summit for miles together, without being one jot or tittle the wiser or better for such achievements. How much more glorious in the estimation of every truly wise man, would be that individual who should succeed in placing his foot on the extreme point of the earth's axis ; and what a lustre would he shed on his descendants to the third and fourth generations ! To stand where no mortal man has trodden before — to perform what many adventurers and heroic men have attempted iiL vain — to walk over the most remarkable spot on the earth's surface — these, I should think, are objects which ought to satisfy any rational ambition — far more excusable objects of ambition than the slaughter of armies and the subjugation of empires. As the land adjacent to the Pole is all terra incognita^ it is impos- sible to say what additions to the stores of natural science ft visitor to those regions might be able to make. Certain it is, however, that a new and wide field would be opened for his investigation. Every thing there would be novel ; and that circumstance alone would be well calcu- lated to stimulate his attentive faculties. The difficulties which would present themselves to the investigator may be appreciated at home ; but they would be greater or less according to circumstances of which we know nothing. We know not, for example, whether the Pole i? , covered with open water, or icy sea, or dry land ; nor do we know which of these three conditions would be most favorable for investiga- tion. It may be presumed, however, that an open sea would be, in several respects, the most disadvantageous. In the first place, it would in all probability be so deep that the ship would be unable to anchor ; and the current might be too strong to permit her to keep stationary long enough to make accurate observations. In the second place : if she could not maintain her position steadily at one point, the con&'mander would experience a new embarrassment, vis., aa every meridian must I -i Its fONNTAO's NARRATtn OF THE ORfNMLt IXPfDmOH. I extend BouthvArdly, he would be apt to lose that on which he had ap- proached the Pole — and consequently he would be at a loft how to shape his course homeward. The occurrence of this strange diflSculty will naturally present itself as one among many novel phenomena which will arrest the adventurer's attention, and the following observations would probably occur to him on the spot. The time of day (to use that phraseology for want of any other that would be more appropriate) would no longer be marked by any apparent change in the altitude of the sun above the horizon ; be> ciiuse to a spectator at the Pole no such change would appear, except to the small amount of the daily change of declination. Thus, not only to the eye, but also for the practical purpose of obtaining the time by astronomical observations, the sun would appear throughout the twenty- four hours neither to rise nor fall, but to describe a circle round the heavens parallel with the horizon. Therefore, the usual mode of ascer- tnining the time would utterly fail ; and indeed, however startling may be the assertion, it is nevertheless true, that time, or the natural dis- tinction of time, would be no more. This will appear from the con- sideration that»the idea of apparent time refers only to the particular meridian on which an observer happens to be placed ; and is marked or determined only by the distance of the sun, or some other heavenly body, from that meridian. Now, as an observer at the Pole is on no one meridian, but is stationed at a point where all meridians meet, it is evi* dent that " apparent time" for him has no existence. Before Sir John Franklin left England on his last voyage to the Arctic regions, his attention was naturally directed to the beat means of insuring his return from the Pole on the right meridian. The only two practicable methods which occurred to him, were : — 1. By the help of the compass : 2. By means of chronometers. From the observations which have already been made in regions far toward the North it may be considered that at the Pole, the magnetic needle would freely tra- verse, and that the compass would retain all its efficiency. For, as it is to the magnetic pole and not to the pole of the earth, that the needle is directed, and as the dip of the needle amounts to but 82° 22' at the most northerly point which has ever been reached, it is probable that the horizontal or directive force of the needle would remain strong and efficient at the Pole, and, consequently, that the magnetic bearing of any point on the globe might be ascertained by the instrument even at the Pole itself. Captain Parry on his voyage through Barrow's Strait observed some remarkable phenomena in relation to the movements of the magnetic e had ap- 88 how to qeht itself venturer'8 ar to bim ant of any narked by rizon; be- , except to I, not only le time by he twenty- round the ie of asoer' rtling may tatural dis- m the con- I particular I marked or ir heavenly 18 on no one >t, it is evip g^age to the beat means , The only By the help observations )rth it may I freely tra- For, as it ,t the needle ° 22' at the robable that a strong and } bearing of lent even at )Berved some ;he magnetic r V BOtTNTAO's NARRATIVI OF THB GRINNELL EXPEDITION. 13.S ^ -!::.i ^^^i ■m\ needle. The north end of the needle at one time pointed directly to the south, and then shifted to the southeast. The counteractive influences of the iron on shipboard made the compass entirely useless in that locality, as the attractive power of the iron nullified the directive force of the needle. But we need not apprehend that such effects would be witnessed at the Pole of the earth. For the reason specified above, this inconvenience would be very unlikely to occur at the extremity of the earth's axis, because the central point of attraction to which the needle is directed lies in a much lower latitude. Our readers may be aware that Oaptain Ross actually visited the magnetic pole, or the point so designated, and planted the British flag on the spot. Hence it appears (hat there is a sufficient difference of position between the magnetic pole and that of the earth to make the mariner's compass an available instrument at the latter. The other method of insuring the return of an exploring party on the right meridian, is by tneans of the chronometer. It is evident that to a spectator at the Pole, the sun, at the precise moment of apparent noon at any given place, would appear exactly in the direction of that place ; and consequently that the time of noon at that place ascertained by the chronometer, would be a certain indication of the right direction. But as watches are usually made with the hours on the dial plate marked from one to twelve only, a difficulty might arise in distinguishing 12 o'clock at noon from the hour of midnight, in a place where there is perpetual sunshine and no change in the altitude of the solar orb to distinguish one time from another. To avoid the possibility of such a mistake, it would be necessary to use a chronometer, the dial-plate of which would be marked with all the hours from I to XXIV ; the hour- hand making but one revolution in the whole period. Then, when the chronometer indicated apparent noon at Greenwich, the sun would be exactly over the meridian of that place, and the same rule would serve for any other place of known longitude. \ It is impossible to say what benefits to the cause of science might result from an accurate examination of large tracts of sea or land, whii^h had never been examined before. But with respect to the enter- prise now under consideration, there is one object of very great impor-' tance, in a scientific point of view, which might be attained by a visit to the Pole, vii., the measurement of a Degree of the Meridian, com- mencing from the Pole itself. Many readers of this narrative are aware that the form of the earth has, long since, been ascertained to be that of an oblate spheroid, having its equatorial diameter much longer than its polar diameter; or, in more popular language, the earth is 186 HOirMTAa's NABEATIVX OIT THX QRINNXIiL EXPEDITION ; tnrnip-shsped, being flattened or depressed at the poles. But it still remains a matter of doubt, in what degree this flattening exists ; and there is no concluBive way of settling that question except by the ac- tual measurement of a degree at the Pole, and comparing it with the length of a degree at the Equator. The attainment of this object alone would be an ample compensation for the labor which would be required to effect it. If a sufficient length of line could be measured on one of the meridians which are clustered at the Pole, the operation would require the most rigid attenticm, as the accuracy of many future calculations would depend on the precision of that measurement. The ellipticity of the earth may be ascertained by the swinging of a pendulum, but this method is liable to some objections. It is an ope^ ration which may be conducted by one person however, whereas the actual measurement of the meridian line would require several persons ; and, as an increase of gravitation takes place from the Equator to the Pole, it is desirable that the requisite observations should be made at the latter point, or as near it as possible. But a ship on an open or icy sea would not afford a convenient locality for these experiments. Should land, or any portion of it, however small, be found at the Pole, or nea» it, all the required observations might be conducted to a racoessful issue. It may be presumed that if any such land exists, it is not of a mountainous character, as no icebergs are ever sent down from that quarter. These masses -are known to be the products of glaciers on the sides of high mountains and in the intermediate ▼alleys, especially those glaciers which exist in Spitsbergen and Green- iMid. On a piece of land, at or adjacent to the Pole, the pendulum may be swung, and the rise, fall, and direction of the tides may be observed. It would be interesting also, to examine the nature of the soil and its vegetable productions, the disposition of the strata, and the mineral products, if any. And, if the land be of sufficient extent, the meri- dional distance may be measured. . The tides at the Pole would be a deeply interesting . act for exa- mination ; and many other important matters, such as magnetic pheno- mena, atmospherical electricity, and the aurora polariiy with various other meteorological facts, would claim the attention of the scientific observer. I hope, therefore, that the ultra-utilitarians themselves will concede that Arctic discoveries are of practical importance enough to justify the labo.- and expense which may be necessary to prosecutt them to a successful result. >wu ^ii'U \ \ -=,^'"t^>■-^ ■■•■'> ■"'("■■*, Y'' ■f'fvSi^ at it Btill istB; and y the ac- ; with the ject alone ) required on one of aid require ftlculationa nging of a is an ope^ hereas the al persons ; lator to the )e made at an open or rimentB. lund at the Quoted to a exists, it is sent down le products ntermediate and Green- idulum may )e observed, soil and its the mineral t, the mori- 9Ct for exa- netio pheno- with various he scientific imselves will le enough to to prosecutt CHAPTER XIV. DEVOTIONS ON SHIPBOARD. — WE BID A FINAL ADIEU TO THE *^ AD- VANCE." — THE OBLEBRATBD BOAT JOURNET COMMENCED.— APPALL- ING DANaEBS 07 THIS ENTERPRISE. — TERRIBLE SUFFERINGS. — NAR- ^ ROW ESCAPE FROM DROWNING. — DISTRESSING ACCIDENT. — DEATH AND FUNERAL OF THE CARPENTER. — A GRAVE UNEXPECTEDLY PROVIDED. Having resolved to abandon the ship, we all applied ourselves to making the, most active preparations for our journey over the ice, which promised to be a very toilsome and unpleasant enterprise. Pro- visions were put up in canvas bags, made to fit under the seats of the boats in order that they might occupy as little space as possible. The mode of raveling we had decided on was by sledge conveyance, as long as the ice should be found solid enough to answer that purpose ; and after we had crossed the icy girdle which surrounded the ship, our plan was to proceed in the boats, (three in number,) which we were obliged to carry with us, as heavy and unwieldy as they were. To oarry out this design, we constructed three sledges, each one large and long enough to carry a boat. The boats were placed on the sledges m the same positions which they would have assumed in the water. Our sick people and the provisions were then placed in the boats, each of which was very heavily laden ; and indeed to prepare them for the hard service they would be required to perform, it was necessary to strengthen the boats by additional planks and timbers, which of course greatly increased the weight. While these preparations were going on. Dr. Kane himself made two final attempts at exploration in a northern direction, his principal ob- ject being to cross the channel and to continue the examination and search which had been commenced in the preceding year. In pur- suance of this plan, he commenced his journey in a dog sledge with two Esquimaux attendants, one of them doing duty as a guide, and the other as driver of the dog team. But when he and his savage com- panions had proceeded to the distance of a few miles from the ship, some bear- tracks were unfortunately discovered on the ice — and then no persuasions or inducements could prevail on the Esquimaux guide and driver to proceed one yard further in the direction which Dr. 187 188 bonntaq's narrative of the grinngll expedition. Kane Tvished to travel. They held to the opinion that the capture of a bear was an enterprise of infinitely more importance than any project which could engage the attention of Dr. Kane. The Doctor was en- forced, therefore, much against his inclination, to accompany his ardent companions on a bear-hunt, from which, when the first opportunity offered, he returned to the ship, very much out of humor with the Es- quimaux race in general, and with his late guide and driver in particular. His second attempt was equally unsuccessful, though from a different cause. The condition of the ice, a few miles from the ship, was such as to make sledge traveling impossible ; the whole surface being covered with hummocks and hillocks, over which the vehicle could not pass. These attempts having failed, the Doctor turned all his attention to that hazardous boat-journey which had been resolved on as the only means of extricating his company from the certain destruction which menaced them in their present situation. The preparations for this journey having been completed, all hands were assembled on the deck of the ship for the last time. Our com- mander then made a solemn and impressive address to the company, reminding them of the obligations which they owed to Divine Provi- dence for their preservation through so many dangers, and admonish- ing them to implore Almighty God for guidance and protection in the still greater perils through which they were about to pass. This address being finished, Dr. Kane read an appropriate and beautiful prayer, which had been written by the Protestant Episcopal Bishop of New York, expressly for the use of the Arctic expedition. There was some- thing in these devotional exercises, or rather in the circumstances which attended them, which was well calculated to impress every auditor with feelings of reverential awe; and never perhaps did the incense of prayer ascend to the Throne of Grace from hearts more truly contrite and sincere, though our best and only temple was a dismantled ship clasped in the horrid embrace of the icy ocean. Many of the wor- shipers there assembled had lately risen from beds of sickness, and some of them were still afflicted with a painful and dangerous disease, with the gloomy probability before them that their last hours would be spent far away from home and kindred, with no sympathizing friend to whisper words of hope and consolation in the hour of death, and no pious drops of affection to soothe the anguish of their last moments. Even the wild and grotesque appearance of the worshipers, in their uncouth fur garments, added to the solemnity of the scene, by forcibly reminding us of our isolated condition, far removed from all hope of succor and aid from our own species. But we remembered that we *9 O CO o o n ► < o H > o o it IS P capture of my project or was en- his ardent ipportunitj ith the Es- , particular, a different I, was such ing covered 1 not pass, tion to that only means sh menaced 1, all hands Our com- i company, vine Provi- admonish- ction in the ?hi8 address ful prayer, lop of New B was some- ances which auditor with incense of uly contrite antled ship of the wor- ckness, and ous disease, irs would be izing friend ath, and no it moments, ers, in their , by forcibly all hope of ired that we SONNTAO'S NABRATIVli OF THK ORTNNSLL BXPEDITION. 141 were still in the hands of that powerfal and benevolent Being vrhoso dominion extends even to the uttermost parts of the earth, and this assurance inspired us with hope and confidence ; for we knew that no calamity could befall us, and no destruction overtake us, without his permission. It was in the afternoon of May 17, that, after the performance of the acts of devotion just spoken of, our journey was commenced. The atmosphere was very much obscured by a dense fog, and Nature her- self appeared.to assume a gloomy and foreboding aspect. We began to experience the formidable difficulties of our undertaking at the very outset. Our dog teams were useless at that time, as the strength of the animals was altogether unequal to the task of drawing the heavily laden sledges. It was necessary therefore that the men themselves, or such of them as were not disabled by sickness, should be employed in the severe labor of drawing the sledges through the deep snow with which the frozen surface of the sea was covered. A canvas strap was attached to each sledge, and the men, taking this strap on their shoulders and marching in Indian file, drew the ponderous load along by dint of great exertion, their progress being most discouragingly slow, scarcely exceeding half a mile per hour. A small troop of pio> neers, armed with shovels and axes, went before, to free the track as much as possible from obstructions. When one sledge, with its superincumbent boat and* lading, had been dragged by the tedious and laborious process I have described, to the distance of about one mile, the whole party returned to ii^ring the se- cond boat in the same manner ; and so with the third, and last. In some places it was necessary to use levers to force the sledges over hummocks, and other obstructions which could not atherwise be passed. Dr. Kane, in the mean time, was engaged in conveying provisions in the dog sledge to a point some distance ahead, where, as soon as he had deposited one load, he returned for another. By the time at which the third sledge was drrgged up to the spot whei3 the two others were waiting, the men were all so thoroughly fatigued that nothing more could be done that evening, although we had advanced scarcely one mile from the ship. To afford the men an opportunity for repose, canvas covers or awnings were placed over two of the boats, and all hands, (except one who was appointed to keep watch) " turned in," as the sailors say, or in the phraseology of the land service, went to bed. Meanwhile the watchman, who also exercised the functions of cook, prepared a pot of hot tea for the refreshment of his comrades when thoy should turn out. I 142 BONNTAO'8 NARRATIVE Of THE ORINNELL EXPEDITIOIT. The slow progress we made was disheartening, especially when we considered that, in all probability, the immense platform of ice over which we were traveling became more extensive every day, as the freez- ing process was still going on. The difficulty of traveling increased every day — the ice becoming rougher as we proceeded southward. At many places the current beneath had worn or washed the ice away, making it too thin and frail to afford us a safe pathway. Several times the sledges broke through, and it required our most strenuous exertions, for hours at a time, to place them again on ice that was solid enough to support them. Of course, the men broke through with the sledges, and several of them had very narrow escapes from drown- ing. One in particular disappeared under the ice, and we had given him up for lost, when to our great surprise and gratification he ap- peared at another opening, and was dragged out in a state of insensibi- lity, from Which he recovered in about half an hour. Besides the danger attending these accidents, the repeated wettings which the men received were seriously afflictive — as the water in which they were submerged was of the temperature of melting ice, and we had no con- veniences for warming ourselves or drying our apparel. Another great trouble to us was the prevalence of snow-blindness among our party ; as this disease, besides producing a great deal of suffering, occasioned much delay and inconvenience, because every person afflicted with the malady was compelled to keep his eyes closely bandaged, and to be led along by some other member of the party who had the use of his eyes. And there was yet another cause of distress ; our ^ rovisions began to grow scanty, and that which we had was not of a very agreeable or wholesome quality. We suffered very much from this cause, especi- ally during the last days of our journey ; and we might have been absolutely starved had we not, by a fortunate accident, met with seve- ral Esquimaux hunters, who charitably supplied us with some sea-birds which they had killed ; and on these we subsisted for several days pre vious to our arrival at open water. The temperature, which was below zero when we left the ship, became warmer every day; in consequence of this change, the snow became soft or mushy, and our men were obliged to travel all day with wet feet. As snow appears to have a peculiar tact in penetrating through every thing, our seal-skin boots afforded us very little protection from the damp and cold. As stated above, our progress seldom ex- ceeded two or three miles per dieniy except on several particular occa- sions, when we happened to be favored with a fair and strong wind. • .: .^,.;.J^, • o i o i n o o r. f when we )f ice over B the freez- l increased ward. At J ice away, J. Several t strenuous ;e that was hrough with Tom drown- i had given tion he ap- of iusenaibi- Besides the ich the men , they were had no con- Qother great ; our party ; \ occasioned ted with the tnd to he led of his eyes, ons began to or lause, especi- t have been Bt with seve- wnQ sea-birds ral days pre ship, became mow became ill day with penetrating ble protection } seldom ex- rticular occa- strong wind. m 'mmB [■I IT" II ri 1-. 'I I I I I I II 'I 111 .i;!i,::i."';ii:|: :■:!'; ill : |!!|ii^i'|l|Si.N::i'i ilii'istiii-'i^ilistikpillii |.M. '!,,,.l!.. ILllI,. ^'!|1,;!>.,|||||,,| '^'^-■■■-il'i^i'Sl^l!!;;: '' i:i:iiii:!''u";fe!'ii !. iliiiiiii mml>i I! ' 1. 1 rill , Iiiiili'i li. ' li'.'iK il "il'!'l|i|l!; Nilll,li,]lp| ' "r;iil.'l!l'vi mi 1:1 iiillilSpiiiiiliiiJIi!!!'! lii'i: 'ii'i ki !! I ^;i,'',ii.,;iil :!ii'. :. ;i. !!!i|i!iiJI;!j!j'S'l|l'1i't!'il! ■"" 'iliiiiifipii^^iliili lijuiiil! i!i i;i!iliilfjil!li!i|i^: :l!:i;; i!^: '":;,:;■ ' 'iliiiti|!ii|i Sill!! I !iSifiii!!ii||i|;! Ji|i|ii{ii;.ii'i!iiiiii!ii!iiii!!lii iliiiii liilli'ii rifr.' i 1 '!• .. m i.l.'::ii:!!;:ira' i'iiilf lili! II I! Ilil': w |l;{ iVi. 1 ;" I' 1 1 1 1 t ■ I g b Ci 1 1 , tc fc P a1 oi C tl w oi ol P' »] lONNTAO'g NARRATIVl Of TBI ORINNKLl. EXPCDITIOtf. 145 / At such titnei lails were hoisted in the boats, and all hands getting aboard, We skimmed over the ice with considerable rapidity, but ex- perienced some difficultj in keeping the boata on the right course, for want of suitaMe steering apparatus. Sometimes our sledge-boats, when propelled in this manner, would be driven into huge snow-drifts, from which they could scarcely be extricated with all the exertions that we were able to make. On one of these occasion!!!, our carpenter, Mr. Ohlsen, while making great efforts to return one of the boats to the right track, ruptured a blood-vessel and died in consequence two days afterward. His death was an irreparable loss to the Expedition, which had often been extri- cated from g"eat difficulties by his energy and ingenuity ; indeed, there was no man of the party whose individual efforts had been of greater service to the enterprise. The circumstances attending his death, as well as the loss of his valuable services, made a very painful impression on us all. Latterly he had shown a very anxious desire to return to his family, and he exerted himself more th^n ever to accomplish this object ; but when the principal obstacles were surmounted, and we were almost within view of the open sea, this most unfortunate accident took place, effectually cutting off ail hopes of his return to his wife and children. When he pecceived that his speedy death was inevitable, the only feel- ings of regret which seemed to disturb the tranquillity of his last moments, were apprehensions for the welfare of his family, and the painful thought that he must die so far away from the dearest object of bis affections. After he had breathed his last, the company halted for several hoars to provide means for his interment. These means were scanty indeed, for we had not even boards enough to make a coffin ; but a tomb was provided for him in a manner most unlocked for and surprising to us all. We happened to be in the neighborhood of a smal^ isolated spot of ground called Littleton Island, which had formerly been discovered by Captain Inglefield. As this offered a suitable place for burial, we took the corpse on shore ; and you may judge what was our astonishment when almost the first object we discovered on this island, was a grave^ which Nature herself had excavated from the rock ! The form and size of this sepulchre were exactly adapted to the melancholy purpose which we came thither to accomplish ; and while we performed the funeral rites of our deceased companion, a feeling of superstitious awe seemed , to pervade the whole company, as we stood around the tomb which appeared to have been miruculously provided for the occasion. We l! J I hr !i i' I 10 \m 146 ■OlfNVAO's NARRATIVE OF THE ftRINNELt. KXPBDITIOir. corered the grave Trith moss and itones, securing it from the depred** tion of wild boasts ; and this was the only monument we oould afford to the memory of a man who had perished in the service of the cause of science, and who better deserves to be held in grateful remembrance than many whose epitaphs and dubious panegyrics are recorded on brass and marble. m. aid afford to he oaase of membrftnce recorded on CHAPTER XV. ARRIVAL AT OPEN WATER. — EMBARKATION. — ADVENTURES AT 8EA.— ARRIVAL AT HAKLDYT'S ISLAND. — OREAT SPORTSMANSHIP. — DRkART ASPECT OF THE COAST. — ^THE TRANSPORTATION OF ROCKS BY ICEBERGS. — SCARCITY OF PROVISIONS. — LAROB SUPPLIES OF DUCK BQQS. — WANT OF FUEL TO COOK 'tHEM. A FEW days after the sad accident recorded in the last chapter, we reached the edge of the open water, which, in that direction and at that time, was eighty miles from the ship ; but, as we had been com- pelled to proceed in a circuitous course, we must have traveled over two two hundred miles of ice. But as soon as we arrived at the open sea a heavy gale from the southwest set in, which broke up the ice at the edges without floating it away ; and, for several days, the boats were obliged to retreat, in order to find a secure position on the fast ice, as the breaking up at the edge was continued by the heavy swell from the southwest. The open sea, which now rolled before us in all its majesty, presented a grand spectacle, and a very agreeable one to us. The large, unincumbered expanse of water was bounded only by the hori- zon; no other limits were discoverable even from the tallest ice-hills. The dark color of this watery expanse was to us an object of curiosity, so strongly was it contrasted with the white surfaces of ice and snow to which we had been accustomed for two years. The change was a most grateful relief to the diseased eyes of some of our people, who had been almost deprived of the sense of sight by the dazzling brightness of the snow and ice. Large icebergs were seen in rapid motion ; the high, white-capped waves breaking on them and dashing the spray aloft, while the sun- beams, glancing through the misty showers^ imparted to them all the richest and loveliest tints of the rainbow. On the morning of the nineteenth day of June the gale had ceased, and the boats were launched from the icy embankment. A light breeze, which soon increased to a moderate gale, relieved the men from ne labor of the oar. All were in good spirits, as no discouraging jstacles were now opposed to our progress. Within the first day after '6 had betaken ourselves to the boats we proceeded almost as far on 147 148 80NNTAO 8 NARRATIVB OF THE GRINNELL EXPEDITION. )V our homeward course as we had done in the preceding month; and this we did with scarcely any exertion at all, whereas our month's journey ever the ice was a labor worthy of Alcides himself. In thr- afternoon, after a run of about fifty miles, we were brought up by a collection of ice, which, being broken up in small pieces, was a com- plete obstruction (though a temporary one) to our passage. All hands then turned in and took a comfortable nap of eight or ten hours, leaving but one of our party to keep watch. On the next morning the ice had opened sufficiently to give us a clear track. When- we had proceeded, with all sails set, a little more than fifteen miles, and were but a short distance from a small island called Hakluyt, a gale from the south sprung up, and soon became so violent that we deemed it prudent to steer for the land. After immense labor (having to work against a head wind) and no little danger, we reached the island, in struggling to gain which we had consumed several hours. One of our boats was nearly filled with water, and all of them had sustained damages which made repairs necessary. On this island we were compelled to remain two days, before the ice and wind permitted us to proceed on our voyage. The coast which had been in sight to the eastward during a groat part of our trip, is one of the most desolate that imagination ever por^ trayed. Mountains, from one thousand to two thousand feet in height, rise from the sea and extend almost without intervals "long the whole coast. These mountains are covered with snow, where the sides are not too precipitous to retain it. The precipices show the dark naked rook, unrelieved by a single tree, bush, or ^ny sign of vegetation. The few valleys which appear between these mpuntains are occupied* by those rivers of i«e called glaciers which emerge from the great ice basin, which covers all the interior and extends to the sea, squeezing through every passage, and heaping up those immense mountains of floating ice with which these waters abound. In no part of the world is the aspect of nature so repulsive. Nothing is visible but ice, water, and rock. In the midst of these ice streams, which often present, at ^he point of junction with the sea, a face of more than ten miles in breadth, .sometimes are seen dark rocky peaks of great height and completely surrounded by ice. The semifluid rivers of ice being divided into two branches by these peaks, are reunited after they have passed by the obstruction, but a black line extends from the point of reunion to the sea. This black line consists of the stones and rubbish which the glacier carries away from the sides of the peak, and afterward inserts them in the icebcrgH formed on the coast. By these again they are \ ; nth; and ' mouth's . In thr b up by a as a com- AU hands rs, leaving he ice had proceeded, >ut a short the south prudent to against a struggling > boats was ages which [ to remain led on our [)g a groat I ever por- in height, the whole sides are ark naked tion. The cupied • by great ice squeezing untains of the world ice, water, )re8ent, at miles in leight and ng divided passed by reunion to which the ird inserts they are %■ KINNTAQ's MARaATIYI OF THX GaiMNIUi XXPIDmOK. 151 conveyed over seas to remote shores, where they are deposited on the bottom when the icebergs melt. Some of these stones or boulders are as large as medium-sized houses. It sometimes happens that they are de- posited by icebergs on planes or platforms of rock of a very different kind, situated at the bottom of the sea, thousands of miles from the place of their origin. Here they remain isolated, and when the land rises, as it now does in Sweden, Norway, and the west coast of South America, the boulders are brought to light and attract atten- tion by their singularity, as no similar rocks perhaps are to he found within a compass of several hundred miles. Such phenomena, not very long ago, caused much embarrassment among geologists, who were un- able to explain how these masses of stone were transported to such great distances from the sites of their original location. It is a curious speculation, but not a very improbable one, to suppose that those large masses of stone, evidently of foreign origin, which are now found on 'he* plains of northern Germany, and in other parts of Europe; an J ob, more than a thousand years ago, supplied altars for Druidical ' ..aiice, were transported by erratic icebergs at some very remote time, from the mountains of the Polar regions. These tran- sportations are certainly among the most wonderful operations of nature. After we left Hakluyt Island, (our first resting place subsequent to our embarkation,) our progress was less rapid than it was on the first day of our voyage in the boats. Immense quantities of drifting ice often interrupted our passage ; and, on several occasions, we were com- pelled to lay by for several days at a time. At the commencement of our trip we shot a great number of birds called little auks, which in our straitened circumstances were considered as tolerably palatable food. These birds migrate, every spring, from the latitude of Labra- dor to the regions of the high north, where they perform their incuba- tion, returning with their brood in September. Their nests are placed on the slopes of the hills and artfully concealed under stones, so that it is almost impossible to find them. These fowls are very numerous ; the flocks of them being even larger than those of the wild pigeons, which visit some parts of the United States. The mountains and seas are often covered for many miles with the auks ; millions of them at a time must have heen in sight from our boats. They were so densely crowded together that the most unskillful or unlucky gunner could not fail to make a good shot. This was rare sport for those who liked it. Scarcely troubling ourselves to take aim, we blazed away, and very often twenty or thirty auks were killed by each discharge of the gun. The quantit;^ ah I !■ 152 BOMNTAa 8 NABBATTVK OF THE aBINNELE. XXPIDniOkr. of these birds coneamed by our party was enormous. Each of ns &te from three to six at a meal, and all of the men who could be spared from the service of the boats were almost constantly employed in pre- paring them for the kettle. Lest this account should cause us to be suspected of ogre-like voracity, let me remark that the auk is not larger than a snipe, and that we had nothing to eat with them — ^no vegetables, and very often no bread. Besides, the Arctic breezes, as I have mentioned in another place, have a surprising effect in sharpening the appetite. ARCTIC DOG SLEDGE — FULL GALLOP. i But this abundant supply of birds was of short continuance. As we increased our distance from the shore the auks became scarcer, and very soon we saw no more of them. Had it not been for this fortu- nate supply of birds, it is p'robible that our stock of provisions would have been exhausted before we could have reached any place wherd fresh supplies might be obtained. As it was, we were compelled to content ourselves with very short rations, consisting of two ounces of bread and a spoonful of lard for each meal. Such small allowance of [irovisions did not agree very well with the large amount of work which our men were required to perform. The consequence was that many of them became sick, and all of them were too weak to execute their tasks in a very efficient manner. About the middle of July we reached another little island called Dallrymple Rock, where we procured a good supply of fresh provisions. 1 'I of na &te be spared id in pre- ns to be ak is not them — no lezes, as I harpening 4 acce. As arcer, and this fortu- ions would lace yrheri mpelled to ounces of owance of ork which that many cute their ind called provisions. Ill ,: ^'^1 BONNTAO'S NABRATiyi Off TBI OUNMIU. BXPKDITION. 155 This island is a great place of resort for eider dnoks, and here we found their eggs in great abundance. During the two or three days of our abode on this island, where we were detained by the closely packed ice and the want of favorable winds— several thousands of these duck eggs were collected from this small rooky island, which is little more than a mile in circumference. These eggs are nearly twice as large as hen's eggs, the shells are of a greenish color, and the taste of the enclosed ali- ment is very much like that of v^e c< n duck eggs, rather stronger perhaps; but as our stomachc re si. ^ likewise, they "'<*. not daunted by the flavor of the eggs. The nests of these ducks are of a drcular form, and are composed entirely of eider-down, which the bird plucks from her own breast for the purpose of forming her " procreant cradle." The stock of eggs which we laid in at this place furnished Ds with provisions for several days, but afforded very little variety in the way of eating. We breakfasted, dined, and supped on eggs, and on eggs only, except a small allowance of bread at each meal. However, we had a tufficienejf of eggs, and that to people in our situation was a blessing for which we felt bound to be grateful. But another difficulty now occurred to us. Our fuel had become very scarce, and we apprehended that we should soon be unable to get our eggs cooked. Before we left the United States we laid in a large stock of pork fat, intended for lamp fuel and other combustible pur- poses ; but this article had now become extremely (Scarce. It was re- solved, therefore, in solemn conclave, that the lard fuel should be reserved for the purpose of boiling our tea, and that the eggs should thenceforth be eaten raw; which resolution was carried into effect, much to the discomfort of some of our party. CHAPTER XVI. Wl ASRIVI AT A SPOT WELL POPULATED BT FEi^HEr.BD BIPEDS.— . OREAT SLAUGHTER OF THE INEABITAMTS.— WE EXPECT TO MEET WITH WHALERS, BUT ARE DISAPPOIKTED. — VEXATIOUS DECEPTIONS PRACTICED ON US BT THE lOEJbEBGS. — ARRIVAL AT MELVILLE BAT. — DIFFICULTIES OF NAVIGATION AT THAT POINT. — THREE WHITE MEN ARE DISCOVERED ON AN ISLAND. — ARRIVAL AT A DANISH SET- TLEMENT THE END OF THE FAMOUS BOAT JOURNBT. • '■■; I Just at the time when all our eggs were used up, our progress was effectually stopped by large floes of ice which adhered to the shore, and were too thin to admit of the transportation of our boats over them on sledge-runners as formerly. All that we could do, therefore, was to wait patiently until, by the action of the wind and waves, this obstruction should be broken up or removed. We landed on the coast, where we were detained for three weeks; bMt fortunately the place afforded us an ample supply of food. Thi' tcality was a "rookery" of loons, situated among some cliffs, which rice from one thousand to fifteen hundred feet perpendicularly from the sea. The loon is a ma- rine bird which migrates, like the little auk, to high northern latitudes, in the summer season, for the purpose of depositing its eggs and hatch- ing them. The rooky precipices were covered with these animals. On every little projecting shelf of the rock the birds were seen in close ranks, sitting on their eggs. Very often fifty or more of them were ranged in one straight line with their breasts toward the se&. They do not build any nests, but hold their eggs on their feet, and so perform the operation of hatching them. They execute this maternal office with admirable patience. The water from the melting snow often runs from the rocks above directly under them ; but they seem to disregard this inconvenience. The noise made by the vast congregation of birds which frequent these rocks is almost stunning, exceeding the roar of Niagara ; millions of the feathered performers being engaged in the grand concert. Their melody, however, is not of the most fascinating kind. To say the truth we did not like their music, and therefore we felt no compunction or remorse when we fired among the vocalists, and silenced some of them most effectually. When a gun is discharged into the rookery, so many birds fly up that the sky seems to be filled with 156 ■ONIVTAO'a NARRATIYl OF TBI ORnfinLL UPIDITIOJf. m BIPEDS.— . TO MEET ECEPTI0N8 MELVILLE lEB WHITE NISH 8E1V ogresB was the shore, }oat8 over therefore, ^aves, this the coast, the place " rookery" lousand to n is a ma- 1 latitudes, and hatch- mals. Oa m in dose them were e&. They so perform rtial office often runs > disregard tn of birds ie roar of ;ed in the fascinating erefore we :ali8ts, and larged into filled vith them, considerably thicker than " the leaves which strew the autumnal floods in Valambrosa," and the horison, for a time, is scarcely visible. But the vast numbers which rise on their wings make no perceptible diminniion of the less timid crowds which remain on the rocks. From two to five, and sometimes more, are killed at every shot ; and such is the thronged condition of the birds, that it makes little difference whether yon take aim or not. As the startled flocks rise up at the report of the gun, immense quantities of eggs are thrown into the sea ; nor is this the only waste, for at least a half of the birds which are shot fall on the shelves of the rook where they were sitting, and remain there, far beyond the reach of the gunner. A sufficient number however fell down on the ice or water at the foot of the cliffs, and these were reserved for the uses of our culinary department. The average weight of a loon is about two pounds. The legs, wings, and bill of this bird, like those of the little auk, are black. The breast is white. Two of them are often seen fighting on the surface of the water, and they are so intent on their belligerent operations that nothing else can attract their notice until the dueT is ended. While these fights were going on, a man in a boat often approached the scene of battle, and took possession of one or both of the combatants with perfect ease ; their warlike ardor not allowing them to perceive the advance of their common enemy. While we were waiting under these cliffs for the breaking up of the ice, we feasted luxuriously on loons and their eggs — and likewise put up for future use several bags full of uue birds, which were cleaned and dried for the purpose. In the meanwhile, a watch was kept for whaling vessels, as we were Dow in the track which is frequented by ships engaged in that service. Several times we were all excited by the report that a ship was in sight, but in all cases this proved to be a mistake. The object which our man on the lookout mistook for a ship, invariably proved to be an iceberg; and the mistake was excusable, for the bergs are very deceptive when seen at a distance, assuming aU \maginable forms, and old sailors ar^ often deceived by their close resemblance to ships in full sail. The de- lusion is sometimes most wonderful ; the spectator sees, or imagines he sees the mast, sails and rigging all traced out with the greatest pre- cision, the dark lines which help to make out the picture being nothing more than the stones, earth, and rubbish which are incorporated with the ioe. I have often been startled by the appearance of magnificent buildings I'ising from the sea ; and not until I had been repeatedly taught by experience that the appearance was fallacious, could I be persuaded that the splendid object before me was merely an iceberg. I 168 BONNTAO'S MABBATIVI 01 THK ORINNILL IXPIDITIOir. ! ; After many such excitements and disappointment!, the ice opened inffioiently to let the boats pass. We then worked our way slowly along the coast, passing another communivy of little auks and observing a constant succession of dreary mountainous scenery such as I have described in the preceding chapter. The position of the ice was always changing with the changes of the tides, closing in toward the shore when the tide set in that direction and opening again when the tide set outward. We were obliged therefore to be always on ihe alert, laying by and sheltering ourselves in the cover when the ice pressed in toward the shore, and proceeding onward as expeditiously as possible when the track was reopened. Warping along in this way made severe labor for the men, who were kept actively employed so long as the passage remained unobstructed, which was sometimes from twelve to fifteen hours. The time allowed them for repose was seldom more than five or six hours per diem. By the nineteenth day of June we reached Cape York, at the en- trance of Melville Bay. This bay is an indentation on the coast of Greenland of sixty miles in depth. It lies south and east of Cape York and to the north of a poiiit called the Devil's Thumb. From this point to Cape York the water is generally covered with immense fields of ice, called by navigators the " land-ice," or " fast-ice of Melville Bay," along the edges of which the whalers work their way to the north. Outside of this vast ice-cake are moving fields of ice composed of slabs or pieces of all sizes, which are broken up by the motion of the water and their collision with each other. This last-mentioned ice is called by sailors " the middle pack," it is in constant motion, being driven about oy the winds and currents. This collection of ice ib formed by the dis- charges from the several channels of Lancaster, Jones', Smith's, and Whale Sounds, which discharges are accumulated at this point by the currents flowing in various directions. On the west coast of Greenland or east side of Baffin's Bay, a current sets in and runs northward until it approaches Cape York, when it turns to the west. When it reaches Lancaster Sound it unites with a current proceeding from that channel, and both together run southward along the western side of Bafiin's Bay or the east coast of North America. There is a large expanse of slack-water between the current running northward on the east side of the Bay, and that which runs south ktard on the west side. In this slack- water the ice carried out by thtfse cur- rents is accumulated, and forms those large tracts of movable ice called the Middle Pack. By southerly and westerly winds this pack is driven toward the fast-ice, and then the passage through Melville ET. ice opened ray slowly I observing as I have was always , the shore the tide set lert, laying 1 in toward e when the evere labor the passage I to fifteen than five or at the en- ;he coast of ist of Gape From this nense fields of Melville the north, sed of slabs f the water is called by Iriven about . by the dis- Jmith's, and oint by the f Greenland ;hward until n it reaches lat channel, Jaffin's Bay 3nt running s south ttard y th«e cur- ie ice called lis pack is gh Melville o o a ► H m i SOIfNTAO's NARRATTVI 01 TBI OKIirinELIi EXPIDITIOIV. 161 B»7 is shot up. Bat it is opened again by irinds from the north and east, and then there is an nnobstruoted track for ships between the fast- 106 'and the " paok." Often when the wind changes, and from other causes, the paok ice is driven in suddenly and unexpectedly, and then the ships which happen to be in the passage are in a very dangerous situation, as we have explained in a former part of this narrative. For the most part of the time our little fleet of boats was favored with fair winds and a free passage through these accumulations of ice. Only on a few occasions were we obliged to resort to our sledge runners to transport the boats over ice cakes which shut up our passage. At one time we were full seventy miles from the nearest land. Wo again found it necessary to economize our provisions in this part o> our voy- age, and all hands were put on the very short allowance of two ounces of broad for each individual, at a meal. In this exigency, the marges- manship of Mr. Petersen, the Danish interpreter, afforded ns unex- pected relief. He had the good fortune to kill a large seal, which supplied us not only with meat, but also with fat or blubber for fuel. The whole company was much revived and inspirited by this timely supply of provisions, whereby the men were enabled to do more worl , and our progress was somewhat accelerated. On the third day of August the boats were again in open water, moving onward quite briskly under the impulse of a fresh breeze from the north. Our squadron now consisted only of twp boats ; the third one, the lattle Dinghy was cut up for firewood soon after we entered Melville Bay. She was smaller than the other two boats, and much less swift. Finding therefore that she only retarded our movements, we condemned her to the flames ; and we were rather glad to have a fair excuse foi supplying ourselves with such capital fuel. The crew of the condemned boat was equally divided between the other tr'i, so each of our remaining boats had eight men. The fourth of August was a memorable day. In the afternoon of that day we saw the first white men which, with the exception of our own party, we had seen for more than two years. The sight of th^se persons was almost as grateful to us as if tlie^ had been our own kindred. The manner of our meeting with them was as follows. While we were sailing among some s&tall islands, human voices were heard, and soon, through the spy-glass, we discovered a tent on one of the islands; shortly after we observed the masts of a large boat ; and then three men were discovered on the side of a hill. So eager were we to exchange greetings with them, that all hands betook themselves to the oars, and the boats were made to shoot with arrow-like s^viftness to the 11 162 BONNTAO'S NARRATIVE OF THE GRINNELL EXPEDITION. shore. The strangers proved to be three Danes, who had oome thither in a very large boat to procure oil and blabber from the Eaqnimaux* whose rammer habitations are scattered about on these islands. Our new acquaintances were from the northernmost Danish settlement, called Upernavik. They behaved in the most hospitable manner, oflfering us three luxuries which we had almost forgotten, viz., coffee, beer, and tobacco, all of which were thankfully accepted. According to the estimate of these Danes we were sixteen Danish miles, equal to seventy-five statute miles from Upervavik. It ! : t ■' SEALS. ' We made a halt for several hours with these persons, partaking of the refreshments which they freely offered us, after which we re-embnrked and steered directly for the settlement, which we reached on the eighth of August, having been much incommoded on the last days of ou^ voy- age by the densest fog that ever came under my observation. Our arrival made a tremendous sensation among the people of the settlement, who all assembled on the beach to receive us, and wonder at our outlandish and almost unearthly appearance. Mr. Petersen, our interpreter, was a resident of this place, and his wife and children were among those who throned the beach to give us a welcome. The meet- thitber nimaux, 8. Our tlement, manner, ., coffee, ccording equal to ^ ling of the embarked the eighth »f ouf voy- ple of the ,nd wonder tersen, our ildren were The meet- OUB RUDDER-POST, AFTER A SEVERE "NIP." BONNTAO'S NABBATXVX OT THE ORINNUX XXPIDITION. 165 Dg of Mr. Petersen and his relations, some of whom probably never jxpected to see him again, was joyful to themselves and affecting to the spectators. The joy of his wife was the more excessive, because she had been impressed with the belief that he would never return, the dangers of Arctic travel being much magnified by her affectionate solicitude. Our boats were hauled up on shore, and our people slept in them that night for the last time. 1 wb m j ! M 'li' ! .m 1. ■ r-li; M i i CHAPTER XVII. OUR COOL RECEPTION AT UPERNAVIK.— THE ESQUIMAUX TREAT US HAKD- BOHELT. — THE OURIOUS RELIGIOUS NOTIONS OF THESE PEOPLE. — THEIR GOVERNMENT. — THEIB STRANGE DUELS. — ^IMPROVEMENTS IN THEIR MODES OV LIVING. The governor of the settlement, Mr. Fleischer, was absent, and, without his permission nothing could be given out of the public stores. We were compelled, therefore, to live for several days on the provisions which we had brought with us from the north, hoping that we should fare better when the governor had returned. We were quartered in a loft over a storehouse, and our mode of living was not ruch more stjlish and comfortable than it had been for the preceding three months in the boats. The Esquimaux iiihabitants and the priest, Mr. Kragh, showed us much kindness. Observing that the loft in which we lodged was too cool to be agreeable, they invited us to their tents, giving us permission to sleep on the floors, but they were unable to afford us any bedding ; we were constrained, therefore, to use that which we had brought with us from the ship. We remained here about three weeks, waiting for the Danish vessel which makes an annual visit to the settlement. On the arrival of this vessel a passage for the whole company Was engaged. The vessel was a brig called the Mariana^ of about two hundred tons burden. On her departure she was freighted with seal skins and oil ; and as the cabin was merely large enough to accommodate three per- sons, it was appropriated to Dr. Kane and two of his ofiScers. The others were lodged a-midships, i^mong the oil casks, but the captain endeavored to make the whole party as comfortable as possible. The Esquimaux inhabitants of the Upernavik settlement appeared to be sorry to part with us. In justice to them I must say that they had treated us much better than the other settlers did, though the latter pretend to more civilization. As I became more intimately acquainted with these singular people, I felt disposed to like them better. Of all savages, so called, they are, perhaps, the most amiable — especially those of them who have been least in correspondence or contact with civilized nations. While we remained at this settlement I applied myself to 166 SONNTAG 8 NAKRATXYB Off TBI GEINNILL XXPIDITION. 167 us HAND- BOPLB.— [BNTS IN tent, and, ilic stores, provisions ire should tered in a ore stylish aths in the gh, showed ed was too permission f bedding ; ought with iraiting for ment. On B engaged, ndred tons IS and oil ; three per- cers. The the captain )le. t appeared J that they h the latter acquainted er. Of all (cially those ith civilized myself to the study of the Esquimaux character ; and being under the necessity, like my comrades, of passing much of my time in the Esquimaux huts, I had very good opportunities .for learning various particulars con* oerning their customs, religious impressions, &c., which, not being com- prised in my former accounts of these tribes, may be here introduced, with the hope that they will be as interesting to my readers as they were to myself. All the Esquimaux tribes depend on the sea, or the productions thereof, for their subsistence : their places of residence, therefore, are always near the coasts or on small islands. Their dwellings are sparsely distributed over a large space ; thus the tribe which inhabits the shores at the head of BafiSn's Bay occupies a coast line extending more than three hundred and fifty miles, yet there are not more than twenty huts, arranged in clusters of from three to five, within that extent of ground, and the population is probably less than two hundred persons, including men, women, and children. Their life is subject to many vicissitudes, perpetually alternating between a feast and a famine. They are never moderate in prosperity, but always patient in adversity. 17o prospect of want can make them economical. When they have food, they use it freely, and indeed extravagantly; and when they have little or nothing to eat, they submit to their privations with admirable fortitude and resignation. They subsist for the most part on animal food ; viz., the flesh of the bear, walrus, seal, and fox, and occasionally certain aquatic birds ; but when pressed by hunger, they devour the few edible herbs and roots which their sterile country affords, and especially the lichen, or moss, which is found on some of the rocks ; and it sometimes happens that they are obliged to maintain themselves for months together on this '* lenten entertainment." The religion of the Esquimaux is, of all curious systems of theology, the most curious. Nevertheless they are not polytheists, demon-wor- shipers, nor even idolaters, in the common acceptation of that term. They believe in one supreme deity, whom they call Toongarsoon ; like- wise in a devil, who is of the feminine gender, but whose proper name (if she has one), I could never ascertain. Their god is supposed to reside in a handsome stone dwelling, situated somewhere in the sea. His occupation, according to their notion, is a very benevolent one : for he is said to keep large herds of seals, sea-horses, &c., for the express purpose of providing entertainments for the souls of good men, which are transported immediately after death to the apartment assigned to them in the marine palace where his godship resides. A large apart- 1^8 bonntag's naeoativk of the obinnkll expedition. nent of this palace ia said to be fitted up with cooking apparatus, all on the most extensive scale ; pots and kettles of such huge dimensions, that walruses, sea-unicorns, seals, &c., ii|i large numbers, are boiled oi baked therein every day, to furnish a perpetual banquet for the happy spirits of deceased Esquimaux hunters, or such of them as have behaved themselves with tolerable propriety while in the flesh. Hence it will appear that the Esquimaux heaven consists of a never-ending feast of fat things, an eternity of well-cooked walrus-meat and seal's blubber. The devil (the female one, remember), is supposed to be an unworthy sister of the divine Toongarson. She resides at some distance from her brother's palace, on an island, where game of all kinds is very scarce, where she takes charge of deceased sinners, who, under her domestio management, fare worse, if possible, than the inmates of some of the cheap boarding-houses in New York. In fact, these delinquent spirits suffer the pangs of starvation, and their cries and shrieks of agony are often heard above the howling of the Arctic gales and the angry roar of the mountain torrents. •■ The Esquimaux are almost the only people in the world who have no government. Every man among them is absolutely his own master. They have indeed a nominal patriarch or chief-officer of the tribe, who is called Noolegook ; but his office is a sinecure, and his prerogative is not to enforce obedience but to give advice. His advice is given freely and seldom gives offense, for the Esquimaux have not learned that it is an insult to offer a man good counsel ; however, they often adopt the rule which is operative on a majority of our species, that is, to accept no advice which does not accord with their own opinions. They acknowledge no law except public opinion, and this seems to have great weight with them. Grimes are seldom committed because they are disgraceful and inconvenient, the criminal being shunned and abhorred by his fellow-countrymen. ' Injuries are sometimes but not always punished by acts of private resentment ; but the principal way in which their vengeance is exhibited is by making their enemy ridicu- lous. For this purpose he is invited by the, offended party to meet at a certain time and place where the matter in dispute becomes the subject of a satirical controversy, a number of persons being assembled to hear and decide according to the real merits of the case. The accuser then makes a speech full of biting sarcasm, in which the conduct of the accused is represented in the most unfavorable light ; and when this harangue is finished, the opposite party rises and makes another speech, intended to throw back all the odium and contempt on his opponent. In this way the discussion is continued until an overwhelming laugh is I as, all on nensions. boiled 01 he happy ) behaved oe it will ; feast of lubber, unworthy ) from her ry scarce, r domestio me of the ent spirits agony are ingi'y roar who have wn master, tribe, who rogative is ven freely d that it is adopt the ;, to accept s seems to ed because unned and es but not incipal way emy ridicu- } meet at a the subject ed to hear iCHser then uct of the when this ber speech, K)nent. In g laugh ia ;■ i.-t ■ONITTAO'l NABKATnn Off TBI OmiimilX IZPIDITIOir. 171 raiMd at the expense of one of the controrenialiatf, wlio makei a hasty retreat, parsned by the scoffs and jeers of the whole auditory, while hi« opponent, triumphantly olaims the victory. All disputes and quarrels among these people are settled by this whimsical mode of duelling ; and the wordy contest being over, the opposing parties are generally reconciled and as good friends as ever By the arrival of the annual ships at Upemavik, the Esquimaux A residents were supplied with various articles of food which they covet exceedingly, particularly coffee, which they consume in great quantities when they have become accustomed to its use. It is fortunate for them that they have not the same passionate fondness for alcoholic liquor ; but, as I have said before, they have no relish for any thing of the kind. As soon as the lading of the ship was deposited in the storehouse, the Esquimaux customers thronged to the place with the commodities for which they receive Ef^opean productions in exchange. Soon after a fire was kindled before every tent, and scores of Esquimaux women were employed in the preparation of coffee. They make it very strong, and drink it without milk or cream of course, as these articles are not within their reach ; but for the purpose of sweetening the beverage, they hold small pieces of sugar candy in their mouths as the Netherland ladies do ESQUIMAUX AND HIS KYAIE. when they drink tea. While their store of coffee lasts, they drink the liquid preparation ten or twelve times per day. The Ebquimaux of this settlement do not live in stone houses lik« 1T2 •ONNTXa's NAUATIYI Ot TBI ORINNELL XXTBDITION. those on the northern coast ; their dwellings are made of sods or tarf, nnd have wooden roofs and sleeping bunks of the same material; though the interior of the huts are arranged, in other respects, much like those of the northern tribes. At this settlement it is no uncommon thing for marriages to take place between Danish men and Esquimaux vomen ; the consequence is that a mixed breed is produced, which is superior in some particulars to the original stock on either side. The women of the mixed races are much handsomer than those of pure Esquimaux blood, the latter being scarcely distinguishable from the men except by their dress. , The Esquimaux of this locality have begun to learn some of the arts and to appreciate some of the comforts of civilized life. Their houses are kept very neat and clean ; the sides or walls are sometimes papered or covered with pictures, chiefly of German or Danish production, representing southern landscapes, agricultural scenes, cities, soldiers and other objects, o;' whi<^ these people can have but a very faint conception, as t^ey are so very unlike any thing that may be seen in their own desolate country.. Some of the huts have, in addition to the common Esquimaux lamps, very convenient iron stoves, which are exported to this region by the Greenljund Trading Company. These stoves, as a matter of policy, are sold to the natives at very low prices, because the use of them makes less consumption of oil, and the company obtain larger supplies of that commodity for exportation to Denmark, Sweden, and other European countries. ' A priest and a schoolmaster are stationed at this settlement, and the Esquimaux children are taught to read and write in their own language, for which a suitable alphabet has been contrived. Like the tribes of the north, the Esquimaux of Upernavik change their places of residence twice in each year, occupying their huts in winter and tents in summer. Their tents are made of prepared seal skins stretched on poles. )V. lods or turf, 9 material ; peots, much ) uncommon . Esquimaux ed, which is r side. The lose of pure le from the have begun comforts of the sides or Y of German agricultural pie can have f thing that luts have, in ; iron stovei, ig Company. i at very low ' oil, and the :portation to ent, and the rn language, he tribes of of residence in summer. es. i CHAPTER XVIII. DRESSES AND DBOOKATIONS OF PQUIMAXTX LADIES. -AN IN0ENI0U8 SIGNAL, OR A BBAU-OATOHINO OONTRIVANCB. — ADMIRABLE CON- 8TRU0TI0N OF THE ESQUIMAUX BOATS. — REINDEER HUNTINQ BT WATER. — ^WB PROCEED IN A DANISH SHIP TO DISCO ISLAND. — OUE HOSPITABLE RBCBPTION.— ARRIVAL OF CAPTAIN HARTSTBIN'S EXPE- DITION IN SEARCH OF DR. KANE. — WE EMBARK FOR THE UNITED STATES. — ARRIVAL AT NEW TORE.— CONCLUSION OF THB NARRATIVE. Thb women of this Ibttlement aim at some elegance in theii style of dressing. Their boots are made of tanned seal skin of various colors, white, red, yellow or violet, and profusely embroidered. They wear pantaloons of tanned seal skins, ornamented with colored strips of the same kind of leather. Their jackets or jumpers, are composed, some- times, of printed cotton cloth or calico, and sometimes of woolen cloth embroidered with silk tape or colored galoons. Their garments exhibit as much variegation of colot*, if not as much richness of material, as the dresses of the ladies who promenade Chestnut street and Broadway. All of them wear an unsightly knot of hair on the tops of their heads, which counteracts all their efforts to look pretty. Around this top- knot the married ladies wind a narrow blue ribbon; the unmarried ones use a red ribbon for the same purpose ; and this ornament answers the purpose of a sign or signal to advise male spectators that the wearer is still in the matrimonial market ; and I dare say some of the young ladies of other countries would be glad to avail themselves of a similar mode of advertising. The head-dress is completed by tying a colored silk-handkerchief, neatly folded, around the brow, like the ancient tiara or diadem. These ladies are fond of bijouterie; few of them being seen without rings in their ears and on their fingers. Near the tents are low stands or racks made of wood, on which the sledges and kaiacks are placed when they are not required for use. The kaiack, or Esquimaux boat, deserves a particular description. It consists of a light wooden frame, covered with tanned seal skins : the length is about eighteen fe^c ; their greatest breadth on deck, is from eighteen to twenty-one inches, and their greatest depth about ten inches. The wooden strips of which the framework is composed, when 173 174 ■OHMTAO ■ HABRATf^'l Of TBI OHIITNKU. BZPIDITIOlf. \ ■ '. , ; iepurtt«, are not thicker than a man'i finger. The leal hides which cover this fVame are sewed together with the tendons or sinews of the same animal. The deck is formed in a similar manner and of the same materials, bat has a circular hole in the middit*, through which the boatman sqaeeies his lower extremities, which are prettj well secured from wet and cold, while the other parts of his person are protected from the weather merely by his ordinary wearing apparel. The hole in which the boatman sits has around it a seal skin rim or belt about two inches wide, which the man ties around his waist, and so makes his little bark perfectly water-tight, above deck and below it, whereby he is enabled to float her in the roughest seas, as it is impdssible for his boat to sink. On the deck immediately behind the boatman is an air- tight bag or bladder, made of seal skins, which is kept inflated, and is intended to be attached to the line of the harpoon, for the purpose of retarding the progress of the animals which the boatman may succeed in harpooning. Before the Esquimaux boatman a stand or reel made of bone is fixed to the deck, and on this the harpoon-line is coiled. The harpoons and lances are also carried on deck. The kaiacker, or boatman, is dressed in water-tight seal skin clothing. He propels his kaiack through the water by means of a paddle about one foot long, having a blade on each end. In these boats the Esquimaux can move at the rate of five miles or more per hour ; and, on long journeys, they average from thirty to forty miles per day. When land or ice inter- rupts his progress, the boatman takes his kaiack out of the water, ana carries it, with all its freight, on his shoulder or back. Besides their kaiacks, the Esquimaux have boats of a larger size called oomiaks. These are their family boats, and are used for the conveyance of the women and children. The oomiaks are made in all respects like the kaiaks, differing from the latter in size only; and are rowed or paddled by the women themselves, as the men seldom or never accompany them on their excursions. The Esquimaux of Upemavik use their boats when they hunt the reindeer, as these animals sometimes b.etake themselves to the water when they are pursued, and continue therein until they are so much fatigued with swimming that they are easily overtaken. They are so numerous on the mainland that four or five thousand of them are killed in one season by the inhabitants of a single settlement. After leaving Upemavik we had a quicic passage, in the Danish ship, to Godhaven or Lively, on Disco Island, where the Royal Inspector of North Qreenland resides. This place has quite a respectable appear- ance ; it contains, besides many huts and small buildings, some eight «. •OVIITAO'S MABBATnn Off THl OUtrNSIX IXPIDmOW. 17« hidat which itewi of th« of the same I which the rell secured e protected The hole r belt about 10 makes his whereby he sible for his in is an air* ated, and is I purpose of nay succeed r reel made le is coiled, kaiacker, or propels his e foot long, ix can move irneys, they ice inter- water, ana esides their id oomiaks. ance of the ots like the or paddled ipany them y hunt the the water re so much !hey are so I are killed anish ship, ispector of le appear- ■some eight or ten handsome wooden houses of considerable sise, boilt in the modern style ; the sight of which made us feel almost at home. Among the residents of Oodharen, beside* the Inspector, are the OoTernor, Mr. Sanderson, and his Assistant, Mr. Olrick, and several other gentlemen of education and refinement, who treated us with the greatest hospi* tality — doing all in their power to compensate us for the hardships and deprivation of comforts, to which we had so long been subjected. Certainly the kindness of their behavior to us will always be held in grateful remembrance by every member of our party. A Danish ship visits this place once every year ; and we were for- tunate enough to find it there when we arrived. This ship is sent from Copenhagen for the purpose of supplying the settlers with clothing, provisions, newspapers and letters from their friends in Denmark. As the good people on the island receive their newspapers but once in a year, it may be supposed that they are not well posted up in the affairs of the world at large. A short time before the Danish vessel intended to start on her home- ward trip, two other ships were reported to be seen standing for the harbor. They were soon made out to be a propeller and a bark ; and we doubted not that these were the vessels belonging to the American expedition under Captain Hartstein, which had been sent out to search for Dr. Kane and his party. We had heard some account of this expedition while we remained at Upernavik. As soon as the vessels came near enough to satisfy us respecting their identity, several boats were manned for the conveyance of our company on board. When we reached the bark, which was towed by the steamer, we met with a hearty and joyful reception from Captain Hartstein and the officers under his command. They had past our boats in Melville Bay while we were returning ^nd Captain Hartstein ^as proceeding northward, but it so happened that we did not come within sight of each other. They approached within forty miles of our deserted ship, when their progress was stopped by the fast ice. They then returned on the west side ; and as no traces of our expedition were found, they intended to return to the north, and renew their search during the winter and the succeeding spring and summer. Their voyage had been quite a rough one, as the condition of their ships sufficiently testified. These iressels remained for several days in the harbor of Godhaven, where the officers were most generously entertained by the gentlemen of the place. All the members of Dr. Kane's expedition being received on board, we started for New York, and arrived at that city, after a very quick passage, on the eleventh day of October, 1855. m 17)^ am/nAQ*9 narratzw ov ths aanmBU. mxnsanmi^ To mtoif q£ the friends whom we had left in the United States when we engftged in this arduous enterprise, our safe return was equally gr»> tifying and unexpected. Our protracted absence had confirmed manjr persons in the beilief that we had perished in the realms of perpetual ice. Some did not even admit that we had sacrificed ourselves in a good cause, but judged that we had paid 'with our lives the just penalty of our presumptipn in attempting to search that dark corner of otQation, where Mature shrouds herself in an impeAciMible tabernacle of ic'<). To our own perceptions this happy restoration to our homes and friends was a fortunate event for on more than one occasion during our absence we had almost ceased to hope for such a consummation. We had passed through scenes of severer suffering, perhaps, than any human beings ever endured before ; we had lived through a succession of hardships which thousands and tens of thousands of our fellow-men could not have survived; we had be<9n literally buried in the ice,, and could deliver ourselves fn.m that frightful inhumation only by attempt- ing a journey which nothing but desperation could have prompted uu to undertake. Need I say that our hearts glowed with emotions of gratitude to God when we found ourselves restored to the blessings of a temperate climate, social intercourse, and domestic comfort ; blessings which, by long privation, we had learned to appreciate according tc their worth. .... THE B9D. Ik ¥ ir; Itotes wkm qiwUy gr». rmed insnj r perpetaal anelves m 3S the just lark oorner I tabernacle homes and lion daring mmmation; 1, than any i succession fellow-men he ice,. and )y attempt- rompted us motions of ilessings of '» icording tc