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 MEMOIRS 
 
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 REAR-ADMIRAL 
 
 SIR W. EDWARD PARRY, K^. 
 
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 AN 
 
 LONGMAN, 
 
M E M 1 R S 
 
 OF 
 
 RE All- ADMIRAL 
 
 SIR W. EDWARD PARRY, KT 
 
 F.R.S. KTC. 
 
 lATK 
 
 BY JUS SON, 
 
 The Rev. EDWARD PARRY, M.A. 
 
 OP DALLIOL COLLEGE, OXFORD, 
 AND LATE TITTOR IN THE UNIVERSITY OF DURHAM. 
 
 / 
 
 ' Both Bex'g virtues were in liim nombined : 
 He had the firmness of the manliest mind, 
 And all the tenderness of woman-kind. 
 He never Itnew what envy was, nor hate ; 
 His soul was filled with worth and honesty. 
 And with another thin?, quite out of date, 
 Called mod-^sty." Villieks, Duke of BrcKiNOHAM, 
 
 of Sib THOMis Faibfax. 
 
 i; ;i 
 
 LONDON: 
 LONGMAN, BROWN, GREEN, LONGMANS, & ROBERTS. 
 
 1857. 
 
 The rif/ht of ffa)i*!afio» i» rf»fi'i:e(U 
 
'V 3 
 
 4ii07 
 
 THI 
 
 
 J 
 
■10 
 
 THE OFPICERS AND SEAMEN 
 
 OF THE 
 
 THIS MEMOIR OF A NAVAL OFFICER 
 
 IS DEDICATED, 
 WITH MUCH RESPECT, 
 
 BY 
 
 THE AUTHOK 
 
 / 
 
In addi] 
 which ar( 
 have bee] 
 Edward 
 interest, i 
 before th( 
 of Arctic 
 ment app 
 zealous pi 
 
 Those 
 subject of 
 public ca: 
 life, will, 
 circumstar 
 velopment 
 admire or 
 
 In dctii 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 In adding another to the numerous biographies 
 which are almost monthly issuing from the press, I 
 have been induced to hope that the Memoir of Sir 
 Edward Parry may liot be without its peculiar 
 interest, as the life of one whose name has long been 
 before the public, not only as the successful pioneer 
 of Arctic enterprise, or as holding important Govern- 
 ment appointments, but also as the constant and 
 zealous promoter of the welfare of his fellow-men. 
 
 Those who were personally acquainted with the 
 subject of this memoir, either in the course of his 
 public career, or more particularly in his private 
 life, will, it is lioped, be interested in tracing the 
 circumstances which led to the formation and de- 
 velopment of a character they may have been led to 
 admire or to love. 
 
 In dedicating this volume to seamen, it is my 
 
 ■ I 
 i ' 
 
 i 
 
Vlll 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 ■!l 
 
 earnest desire that those of that profession into 
 whose hands it may fall may find benefit and en- 
 couragement in the history of a naval officer, whose 
 first endeavour was to " serve God in his own gene- 
 ration," and to "adorn the doctrine of God his 
 Saviour in all things." Of his unceasing anxiety to 
 promote the highest welfare of the service, to which 
 he ever felt it an honour to belong, sufficient proof 
 will be found in the following pages. 
 
 It may be thought by some, that certain portions 
 of Sir Edward Parry's life have been passed over in 
 too rapid and cursory a manner. In all such cases, 
 the object has been to mention only such circum- 
 stances as serve to maintain the thread of the 
 narrative, or to exl ibit the main features of his 
 character, as illustrated in letters or otherwise. 
 
 In conclusion, I take this opportunity of heartily 
 
 thanking all those kind friends who have contributed 
 
 material for this memoir, as well as those to whose 
 
 advice and judgment, in preparing it for the press, I 
 
 feel myself largely indebted. 
 
 E. P. 
 
 Sonning, Berks. 
 .Tan. Uth, 1857. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 1790—1810. 
 
 Birth and parentage. — Childhood. — School life. — "Ville de 
 Paris." — Attachment to home. — Early religious character. 
 
 — First sea-fight. — " Tribune." — A prize. — " Vanguard." 
 
 — Danish gun-boats. — Recreation and study. — A tempta- 
 tion resisted. — Lieutenant's commission - - Page 1 
 
 ^ I 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 1810—1718. 
 
 foins the "Alexandria." — Danish gun-boats. — Polar ice. — 
 Astronomical studies. — Appointment to " La Hogue," and 
 voyage to Halifax. — Boat expedition up the River Con- 
 necticut. — Leaves " La Hogue." — Illness. — Returns home. 
 — Appointment to the " Alexander " under Captain 
 Ross ------ 28 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 rief sketch of arctic discovery previously to 1818. 
 j in the polar regions - , - 
 
 Life 
 53 
 
^ 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 1818. 
 
 The " Alexander " fitted out at Deptford. — Lieut. Franklin. 
 
 . — Sailing of the expedition under Ross. — Baffin's Bay. — 
 Lancaster Sound and Croker Mountains. — Return to Eng- 
 land. — Parry appointed to the command of a new expedi- 
 
 , tion -....- Page 74 
 
 CHAP. V. ' 
 
 1819—1820. 
 
 Parry's first voyage. — " Hecla " and " Griper " pass through 
 Lancaster Sound. — " Westward, Ho ! " — Winter at Mel- 
 ville Island. — Return home. — Promotion to commander. — 
 Freedom of Bath, &o. - - - - 100 
 
 CHAP. VL . ' ! 
 
 1821—1824. ' 
 
 Second voyage. — "Fury" and "Hecla." — John Gordon. — 
 Repulse Bay. — First winter at Winter Island. — Esquimaux. 
 
 — Iligliuk. — Discovery of the Strait of Fury and Hecla. — 
 Second winter at Igloolik. — Return to England. — Illness. 
 
 — Appointed Hydrographer to the Admiralty - 135 
 
 CHAP. VIL 
 1824—1825. 
 
 ■'{■'i 
 
 Third and last voyage for the discovery of a North- West 
 Passage. — Winter at Port Bowen. — Masquerade. — Loss 
 of the "Fury." — "Hecla" returns home. — Development 
 of religious character - - - - 180 
 
CONTENTS. XI 
 
 CHAP. VIII. 
 
 1826—1828. 
 
 Interest in religious societies. — Appointment to the command 
 of an expedition for the purpose of attempting to reach the 
 North Pole. — Marriage. — Sailing of the expedition. — 
 The "Hecla" left at Spitzbergen. — Boat and sledge 
 journey to the northward. — Return to the " Hecla." — 
 Homeward voyage. — Short tour on the continent. — Death 
 of his eldest child ... - Page 207 
 
 %]i^ 
 
 CHAP. IX. 
 1829—1834. 
 
 Appointment as Commissioner of the Australian Agricultural 
 Company. — Honorary degree at Oxford. — Voyage to 
 Sydney. — Life at Port Stephens. — Improvements eflfected 
 in the colony. — Excursions into the interior. — Mother's 
 death. — Building of a church at Stroud. — Farewell sermon 
 at Carrington. — Return to England - - 238 
 
 t ; 
 
 i:!' 
 
 CHAP. X. 
 1835—1840. 
 
 Appointment as Assistant Poor Law Commissioner. — Congham. 
 — Death of eldest daughter. — Resignation of office of 
 Poor Law Commissioner, — Appointment as Comptroller of 
 steam-machinery. — Death of youngest child. — Assaad Y. 
 Kayat. — Death of Lady Parry. — " Parental character of 
 
 God 
 
 9'7S 
 
Zll 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 'I 
 
 f 
 
 CHAP. XL 
 
 1841—1845. 
 
 Second marriage. — Caledonian Canal. — Removal to Hamp- 
 stead. — Religious character. — Views on the importance of 
 prayer. — Rugby. — Public meetings. — Religious influence. 
 -~ Lowestoft. — Homburg. — Resignation under anxiety and 
 suffering. — Duties at the Admiralty. — " Erebus " and 
 
 " Terror." — Letter from Franklin 
 
 Page 295 
 
 CHAP. XIL 
 
 1846—1852. 
 
 Haslar 
 
 314 
 
 CHAP. XIIL 
 
 1852—1855. 
 
 Summer at Keswick. — Bishop's Waltham. — Speech at Lynn. 
 — Bellot testimonial. — Greenwich. — Lecture at South- 
 ampton. — Illness. — Voyage to Rotterdam, and up the 
 Rhine. — Ems. — Death. — Conclusion - - 359 
 
 Mi! 
 
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 BIRTH AND 
 — " VILLE 
 R13LIG10US 
 — A PRIZE. 
 CREATION 
 LIEUTENAN 
 
 William E 
 Hillier P arr^ 
 December 1 1 
 of coneidera 
 writings on p 
 His mother 
 
 * A memoir 
 "Lives of Britii 
 
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 '•ft . 
 
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 MEMOIRS, 
 
 
 &c. &c. " ,, 
 
 
 - -/ ... ■ 
 
 •' ^ ' -Xy- ' CHAPTER I. ^. '■-.. 
 
 BIRTH AND PARENTAGE. — CHILDHOOD. — SCHOOL LIFE. 
 — "VILLB DE PARIS." — ATTACHMENT TO HOME. — EARLY 
 
 RELIGIOUS CHARACTER. FIRST SEA FIGHT. — "TRIBUNE." 
 
 — A PRIZE.— " VANGUARD." — DANISH GUN-BOATS. — RE- 
 CREATION AND STUDY. — A TEMPTATION RESISTED. — 
 lieutenant's COMMISSION. , „ 
 
 ■i^.. »j 1790—1810. '-; 
 
 William Edward Parry, fourth son of Dr. Caleb 
 j Hillier P arry, and ^arah, his wife, was bom at Bath, 
 [December 19th, 1790. His father was a physician 
 of considerable celebrity, and the author of numerous 
 writings on professional and other scientific subjects.* 
 His mother w.is the daughter of John Rigby, Esq., 
 
 
 ■A 
 
 * A memoir of Dr. Parry, of Bath, is to be found in the 
 I" Lives of British Physicians." Family Library, No. XIV. 
 
 "' \ -^i"^-? 
 
 
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 ■ l—W M lli f J w i l llill II Willi I III ~ " l 't~ i«»i.W >*■■» « 1*1 -al^.' 
 
 ^,^■^*»*• 
 
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 li 
 
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 < I 
 
 2 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 of Lancaster, and the grand-daughter of DrJCaj^lor 
 of Norwich, well known aa a Hebrew scholar, and 
 the writer of several theological works. It is need- 
 less to trace back the pedigree further ; but ** Sitric 
 of the Silken Beard,"* whose name stands over the 
 crest of the family, was no unfitting ancestor for 
 one who encountered perils worthy of an old sea- 
 king, and who adopted for his watchword in life their 
 other brief but expressive motto, — " try." 
 
 Edward, as the boy was always called, received 
 the first rudiments of education in the Grammar! 
 School of Bathj, under the tuition of Dr. Morgan,! 
 then head master. That he did not, even aT an 
 early age, neglect the opportunities of improvement 
 there afforded, may be inferred from his knowledge 
 of the Latin and Greek languages, which was by nol 
 means contemptible, and which must have been, fori 
 the most part, acquired before leaving school ; for,! 
 though he continued the perusal of classical authorsl 
 afterwards, it was apparently only to a limited extent] 
 the chief portion of his time being then devoted td 
 mathematics, and other branches of study more imj 
 mediately connected with the naval profession. 
 
 For the history of his boyish years we are mainlj 
 
 * Preface to Gray's poem, " The Fatal Sisters/' 
 
 that, to extj 
 sition, he ui 
 ^f every 
 often fail in 
 
 li!: 
 
 W' 
 
SCnOOL LIFE. 
 
 dependent on the recollections of his youngest and 
 only surviving sister. ** He was," she says, " a very 
 forv^ard child, and showed great aptitude in acquiring 
 and retaining knowledge. His love of music, and ex- 
 cellent ear for time and tune, were also early mani- 
 fested. I have heard his mother say, that, at four 
 years old, he would catch any air after once hearing 
 it, and that he would sing * Rule Britannia* with 
 all the spirit and energy of a man." When he was 
 five years old, being taken by his parents to pay a 
 visit to a lady of their acquaintance, and allowed to 
 run about the house in search of amusement, he was 
 shortly discovered alone in the library, astride on a 
 large globe. " What, Edward I" exclaimed his kind 
 hostess, " are you riding on the globe?" " Oh yes," 
 replied the delighted boy, with glistening eyes and 
 upraised arms, "Aou? I should like to go round it I" 
 Almost prophetic words, and never forgotten by 
 those who then heard them. 
 
 He is represented as enjoying great popularity 
 among Dr. Morgan's pupils ; and this we can well 
 understand to have been the case, when we know 
 that, to extreme gentleness and amiability of dispo- 
 sition, he united a remarkable delight in boyish sports 
 of every description. However school-boys may 
 often fail in appreciating the excellence of a character 
 
 B 2 
 
 ^ \ 
 
 I ,1 
 

 i 
 
 € MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. I'ARRY. 
 
 t, 
 
 .nnccompiiJilcJ by a readiness to engage in the more 
 active amusement ' of boyhood, they are never slow 
 to admire mental worth, when combined with phy- 
 sical superiority. Such a happy union of qualities 
 was found in young Parry. ** A time for every- 
 thing " seems to have been his motto in his earliest 
 years, as well as in later life. 
 
 We find him pictured to us at this time a hand- 
 some boy, with a profusion of golden curls, his ( ora- 
 plexion tanned by constant exposure to the cUii, and 
 good-nature beaming in every glance of his dark 
 hazel eye. Tall and athletic beyond his years, he 
 was never known to abuse his strength in persecuting 
 those weaker than himself, but was, on the contrary, 
 the willing champion of the oppressed. His sister 
 relates that, on one occasion, he came to his father, 
 as was always his custom under any difficulty, and 
 said, " Father, I want your advice ; I can't bear to 
 
 see that big boy G beating and ill-treating little 
 
 H . I have rescued him once or twice, and this 
 
 morning G turned upon me, and we fought, and 
 
 I think I should have beaten l\im if the school-bell 
 had not rung. He has chal'?Tif:''. i -j^ on S i'dayl 
 on Lansdowne, and all the big boys are to be pre- 
 sent. Do you think I should meet him?" His 
 ffther, after a few moments' reflection, asked him 
 
1803.] 
 
 ««VILLE DE PARIS." 
 
 the ago of his antagonist ** Fifteen," was the reply. 
 " And you are not yet t wclvc ? Try all you can 
 to avoid a battle, an^ by cxjm tulation to prevent 
 his tormenting your little friend; but, if nothing 
 else will do, you must fight ; but be cool, and do 
 not give way to anger." He went, and returned 
 Ntjliifioufl, but with a dislocated finger; for this, 
 however, he cared little, "for now," said he, " little 
 
 II will be safe." 
 
 He was not originally intended for the naval pro- 
 fession, but for that of a physician, and, indeed, 
 until within a few days of going to sea, had i ever 
 himself had any other view. The decision wnich 
 finally fixed his future course was made very sud- 
 denly. Miss Cornwallis, an intimate friend of Dr. 
 Parry and his family, had often advised, and even 
 solicited^ that Edward should be allowed to become 
 a sailor, feeling confident that his character and 
 tastes were well adapted for an active life of that 
 description. Admiral the Honourable W. Corn- -. 
 wallis, this lady's near relative, was in command of T 
 the Channel fleet, off Brest ; and when the " Ville 
 de Paris " (Captain Ricketts) was on the point of i 
 leaving England to join that fleet, as the flag-ship, ^ 
 it was yielded to her representations that the boy 
 should be allowed to make trial of a sea-life, at least 
 
 
 B 3 
 
6 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1803. 
 
 for one cruize. When asked his own choice, he 
 professed himself ready to do whatever his parents 
 wished, and was, accordingly, in June 1803, through 
 the kindness of the Admiral, appointed to the " Ville 
 de Paris," as a volunteer of the first class. 
 
 The evening before he left home to join his ship, 
 it so happened that a play was to be performed by 
 the members of Dr. Morgan's school in aid of some 
 charitable object. Edward had always shown coa- 
 slderable talent in this line, and frequently, with the 
 aid of his sisters, would act scenes from Shakspeare, 
 and Mrs. H. More's sacred dramas. On this occa- 
 sion his services were called into requisition by his 
 schoolfellows, who were well aware of his skill in 
 acting; and, in the course of the evening, he sus- 
 tained three different characters, each with great 
 applause from the spectators. They would have 
 been surprised, could they have foreseen the strange 
 use to which this talent was to be turned in the 
 future scenes of the profession on which he was 
 about to enter. 
 
 Early the next morning he left Bath, accom- 
 panied by an old and faithful servant of the family, 
 with whom he travelled to Plymouth, and who did 
 not leave him till he saw him finally settled in the 
 " Ville de Paris." To Parry all was new. He had 
 
 m\ 
 
1803.] 
 
 "VILLE DE PARIS." 
 
 never before beheld the sea, and his experience of 
 naval matters had been confined to the small craft 
 
 on the river Avon. Thomas B , on his return 
 
 to Bath, described how his young master seemed 
 almost struck dumb with astonishment at his first 
 sight of the sea and of a line-of -battle ship, but how, 
 after a while recovering himself, he began eagerly to 
 examine everything around him, and to ask number- 
 less questions of all who were inclined to listen. 
 While so engaged, he saw one of the sailors de- 
 scending the rigging from aloft, and, in a moment, 
 before the astonished servant knew what he was 
 about, he sprang forward, and, with his wonted 
 agility, clambered up to the mast-head, from which 
 giddy elevation he waved his cap in triumph to 
 those whom he had left below. When he regained 
 the deck, the sailors, who had witnessed the feat, 
 gathered round him, and commended his spirit, tell- 
 ing him he was "a fine fellow, and a true sailor, 
 every inch of him." We can well imagine with 
 what gratification the various members of his family 
 would receive the account of this and every other 
 incident connected with his first entry on his new 
 career, and how eagerly they would hail his conduct 
 on this occasion as a happy omen of future success. 
 He never allowed an opportunity to pass without 
 
 B 4 
 
 ■ I- 
 
 
 
 !l 
 
 i !• 
 
 ■ 
 
8 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1803. 
 
 !. ;i. 
 
 
 K 
 
 writing to those most interested in his welfare ; and 
 his letters, from the first, breathe throughout a wil- 
 lingness to disregard the necessary discomforts of a 
 sea life, and to be pleased with all he saw around 
 him. 
 
 "We lave" (he writes, shortly after joining the flag- 
 ship) " everything to make us happy ; and, I assure you 
 that, if we are not so, it is our own fault. . . . You 
 cannot think how many little conveniences there are on 
 board a ship, which you would not suppose there could 
 be. In many of the cabins we can read, write, draw, &c., 
 without feeling the motion of the ship. If you want to 
 take a walk, you have only to walk the quarter-deck 
 for half an hour ; if you want any violent exercise, run 
 up to the main-top-gal]ant-mast-head, and I am sure it 
 will do you as much good as w alking from 27. Circus, 
 Bath, to Summer Hill." 
 
 Parry was peculiarly fortunate in making his first 
 trial of a sailor's life under the command of officers 
 who were desirous and capable of winning the esteem 
 and affection of those placed under them. Our 
 young volunteer, in his letters, speaks most warmly 
 of the kindness he experienced from the officers of | 
 his ship. " The Admiral and Captain Ricketts," he 
 writes, "are most kind to me. They are always 
 doing something to make me comfortable." He 
 
 liiii 
 
1804.] 
 
 "VILLE DE PARIS." 
 
 9 
 
 found a true friend in one of the lieutenants of the 
 ship, the Hon. Charles Powys, of whom he thus 
 
 speaks : — 
 
 " January 4. 1804. • Ville de Paris.' 
 
 . . . . " You cannot imagine how kindly I have been 
 treated by Mr. Powys. Ever since I have been in this 
 ship he has left nothing undone to make me happy, in 
 which he has certainly succeeded. If ho ever sees me 
 the least melancholy, he is uneasy till he has discovered 
 the cause. He is always displeased if I do not ask him 
 for anything I want, as he says it shows a want of con- 
 fidence in him. In short, in him I have found a friend, 
 to whose kindness I am in great measure indebted for 
 ray present happiness, and whom, I trust, I shall never 
 forget as long as I live. I look on him as a kind of 
 prpp and support to me in my first setting out. By 
 going into his cabir - by his instructions in seamanship 
 (which he is always ready to give me) — by reading 
 English and Latin with him, 8sc. &c. — I really believe 
 that I learn as much in a day as, without him, I should 
 do in a week." • 
 
 This officer, whose kindness had so won the heart 
 of his young shipmate, left the "Ville de Paris" in the 
 course of this year (1804), and, not many months 
 after, was carried off by fever in the West Indies. 
 The tidings of his death were received by his youth- 
 ful friend with the liveliest feelings of sorrow. 
 
 
 
 
 i. 
 
 ; '^ ' 
 
 i 
 
 / f 
 
10 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRT. [1804. 
 
 " Oct. 10. 1804. 
 
 . ..." I am sorry to say I have received very me- 
 lancholy news. My dear friend Mr. Powys is no more. 
 This account the Admiral has just received. Few people 
 feel it so much as myself, as nothing could exceed the 
 kindness with which he treated me during the whole 
 time he was on board. ... To him I owe almost every 
 little advantage I have had since I have been here, of 
 whom, when I think, and while I write, my heart as 
 well as my eyes are brim full." 
 
 ^) 
 
 From the day when his servant left him on board 
 the " Ville de Paris," in Plymouth Harbour, he 
 adhered firmly to his resolution of letting nothing 
 hinder him in a diligent attention to his studies. In 
 the prosecution of these, he was much indebted to 
 the watchful care paid to the education of the junior 
 officers by the Rev. W. Morgan, Chaplain of the 
 ship, afterwards Chaplain of the Royal Naval School 
 at Greenwich. 
 
 He writes : — 
 
 " April 7. 1804. 
 
 " I am going on with my French and navigation, and 
 beginning to make use of my * Dictionnaire Marine.* I 
 first write down in English any part of the ship's duty 
 with which I am acquainted, and then translate it into 
 French. At the same time I go on with navigation ; 
 
 1 
 
1805.] 
 
 "VILLE DE PARIS." 
 
 11 
 
 and though I have for some time left off Euclid, I shall 
 now (by Mr. Morgan's advice) continue to devote part of 
 my time to it, as it gives me an insight into Plane 
 Trigonometry, which is connected with almost every 
 branch of navigation, and may, therefore, as well be 
 learnt out of one book as another. I have been glad to 
 find that I have forgotten very little of my Latin, not 
 that I can say as much of my Greek. I find, however, 
 that I can translate the Greek Testament pretty tolerably. 
 My father says that amongst other books which he 
 intends to send me is a Greek Testament. I have one 
 already, but it is so small that they have been obliged to 
 make use of the old abbreviations, which, in learning 
 Greek, I had never known.' " 
 
 ^f 
 
 \ f'i 
 
 'A'^ 
 
 
 1; i 
 
 During the whole of his service on board the 
 " Ville de Paris," this ship was employed in cruizing 
 about the Channel, being chiefly occupied in blockad- 
 ing the French coast in the neighbourhood of Brest 
 and Ushant. The eyes of England were at this time 
 fixed upon Boulogne, in expectation of an invasion 
 by Buonaparte, and the movements of the French 
 fleets were anxiously watched by the British Admirals. 
 Parry joined, with all a sailor's ardour, in the enthu- 
 siastic longing felt by all for a collision with the 
 enemy, and his youthful eagerness for such an event 
 displays itself in many of his letters. " No more 
 news of Mr. Bony yet, and the wind has been fair 
 
 ;■ I 
 
r 
 
 12 
 
 MEMOIRS OF Sill W. E. PARUY. 
 
 [1805. 
 
 for hiin lately. If he does not make haste, he will 
 lose all the balls and plays, and he will not like that." 
 Not the least attractive part of his youthful cha- 
 racter is to be seen in his constant clinging to home 
 ties. His almost childish delight at receiving letters 
 and parcels from Bath, and the eagerness which he 
 showed for intelligence respecting those most dear 
 to him, are early signs of his appreciation of domestic 
 enjoyment, and the value of family union. We can 
 scarcely doubt that the recollection of those days had 
 their share in the unfailing punctuality observed by 
 him, in after life, in corresponding with the absent 
 members of his beloved family circle, especially with 
 that dear son, whose lot was cast in the same pro- 
 fession as his own. The following letter is only 
 a ample of many to the same effect : — 
 
 li 
 
 I 
 
 " My dearest Mother, 
 
 " I have again been made truly happy by a dear long 
 letter from my dear mother, and my sisters have been 
 good and regular correspondents, for which I do not 
 know how to thank them. Whilst I see others on board 
 frequently hoping to receive letters by every opportunity 
 that offers, and almost as often disappointed, I have the 
 satisfaction of receiving three or four, and never going 
 without one. Indeed, so happy and fortunate have I 
 been in this respect ever since I have been in the navy. 
 
 Hi 
 
1805.] 
 
 ATTACHMENT TO HOME. 
 
 13 
 
 that 'Parry's receiving letters* has beccJie quite a 
 proverb, and my not receiving any, when an opportunity 
 offered, next to a miracle. I wish, my dear mother, I 
 could tell you anything worth telling. One thing, which 
 I know will delight you as much as anything you can 
 hear from me, is, that I am as happy and comfortable as 
 possible. Happy, I certainly am, as to my situation ; 
 most particularly so, as to my dear, dear relations — that 
 is my greatest happiness. My own immediate comforts 
 are nothing in comparison with what I feel for the hap- 
 piness of those I love." 
 
 This strong tie of home affection was doubtless 
 intimately connected with the growth of his religious 
 character. In this respect. Parry was singularly 
 favoured. His home was not merely a happy one, 
 but he had been trained under the watchful eye and 
 judicious care of an affectionate and pious mother, to 
 whom he, in his turn, was devotedly attached, and 
 whose Christian influence he knew well how to ap- 
 preciate. ** If," he used to say to his sisters, " we 
 are not what we ought to be, it is not for want of 
 our dear mother's prayers, for we are the children 
 of prayer — of never-ceasing prayer." The religion 
 of his early years was, indeed, widely different in 
 character from that of his later life; and of the 
 expansion and enlightenment of his views, which 
 
 1^ 
 
 '1 1 
 
 I i 
 
 i'f 
 
14 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 afterwardri took place, we shall have occasion to 
 speak at a later period. Meanwhile, the influence 
 for good, resulting from youthful training, is mani- 
 fested in many of his early letters, which exhibit 
 a conscientious wish to follow the good for its own 
 sake, and a seriousness of feeling not often found in 
 one so young — the germ of the earnest desire of the 
 man to employ all his energies of mind and body 
 for the furtherance of God's glory, and the spiritual 
 welfare of his fellow men. This may be seen in 
 the following, penned the year after he went to 
 sea, on the occasion of the death of one of his 
 brothers : — 
 
 m 
 
 ir;l 
 
 " My dearest Father and Mother, 
 
 " You may well imagine my feelings on receiving 
 this morning the accouiiu of dear Frederick's death. 
 I hope that God, of His infinite mercy, will give us all 
 fortitude to bear so great a misfortune. I trust that 
 whenever we begin to relapse into grief, He will be our 
 support, and will enable us to make the reflection, ' God 
 who laid the affliction on us will give us power to bear 
 it.* He has done it, and what He does must turn out 
 eventually for our good." 
 
 till 
 
 I 
 
 iiii^iiilli 
 
 On one occasion only was the " Villc dc Paris " 
 engaged in action during the time he belonged to 
 
1805.] 
 
 FIRST SEA FIGUT. 
 
 15 
 
 her. On the 22nd August, 1805, a few weeks ^^te- 
 vious to the battle of Trafalgar, in obedience to 
 Napoleon's positive orders, the French Admiral in 
 Brest left that harbour with twenty-one sail of the 
 line, to attack the sixteen under the command of 
 Admiral Cornwallis, in hopes that the combined 
 French and Spanish fleets under Villeneuve would 
 arrive from the southward, and ensure the destruction 
 of the British blockading squadron. The expected 
 reinforcements, however, never appeared, having 
 taken refuge in Cadiz, after Sir R. Calder's action ; 
 and Gantheaume returned to Brest Harbour, with- 
 out having ventured beyond the protection of the 
 batteries in Bertheaume Roads. Although the En- 
 glish Admiral was unable to bring the enemy to a 
 general action, some of the ships were actually en- 
 gaged for a short time, and among these the flag-ship. 
 Of this, his first experience in actual warfare. Parry 
 thus speaks : — 
 
 U 
 
 !:/ 
 
 / 
 
 " The account which the newspapers 
 have given you is rather exaggerated. ... It cer- 
 tainly was the prettiest sight I ever saw in my life. It 
 is astonishing how little fear one feels after the very 
 beginning of an action. Every one is busy thinking of 
 injuring, not of being injured." 
 
16 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1806. 
 
 I 
 
 In the early part of 1806 he left the " Villc do 
 Paris," bearing with him the highest character at 
 the end of this, the first stage of his professional 
 career. The opinion entertained of him by Admiral 
 Cornwallis is recorded in the following terms: — 
 " Parry is a fine, steady lad. I never knew anyone 
 so generally approved of. Ke will recei * e civility 
 and kindness from all while he continues to conduct 
 himself as he has done, which, I dare believe, will be 
 ns long as he lives." 
 
 His next appointment was as Midshipman of the 
 '* Tribune," frigate. Captain (afterwards Sir Thomas) 
 Baker. This second period of his nautical experience 
 shows an unabated energy and perseverance in fitting 
 himself for the requirements of his profession, by a 
 zealous discharge of cli ty, aiid attention to the im- 
 provement of his time. 
 
 It was not long before his good resolutions were 
 put to the test. He had not been many daya on 
 board his new ship, when his Captain paid him the 
 compliment of selecting him to perform the duties of 
 day-mate, which position seems to have prevented 
 him from giving so much of his time to his books as 
 formerly. It gave him, however, a practical insight 
 into that portion of a naval officer's duties which 
 otherwise he could not have had. 
 
1806.] 
 
 " TRIBUNE." 
 
 17 
 
 •• ♦ Tribune,' ofF Belle Isle, Juno 21. 1806, 
 
 " I am going on very comfortably in my new situation. 
 * Early to bed, and early to rise,' is my maxim at present. 
 I find, however, that I have not, on the whole, so much 
 time of my own as when I kept watch ; for now I can- 
 not be sure of a minute in which I am not liable to be 
 
 sent for on a liundrcd different occasions 
 
 I have, in a former letter, given you a true account of 
 my situation with regard to the duty I have to do. I 
 often regret our not having any church or prayers here, 
 which is one of the comforts to which I have been so 
 constantly accustomed on board the *Villo de Paris.' 
 However, the outward show is not of much use ; and 
 while I can enjoy the comfort of a good conscience, and 
 of addressing myself, when I please, to my Creator, and 
 the happiness of reading books, which will serve to teach 
 me the religion I profess, I do not see much reason to 
 I lament the want of a black gown, a pulpit, or an organ. 
 My more quiet and composed hours shall be employed in 
 I my duty to my Maker and Heavenly Father, whilst I 
 shall be endeavouring, on occasions of duty, to please my 
 (officers and companions. I have lately got into a habit 
 [of tracing any little uneasiness I may experience at any 
 jtime throughout, from the causes to their consequences 
 md effects. By this means, I always can derive some 
 >ood from it, and I never leave off without acknow- 
 ledging that * Every thing is for the best,' or without 
 Uianking, in my heart, the goodness of my Creator, for 
 ihat very uneasiness (as I was at first pleased to call it), 
 
 
 
 
 'Ih 
 
 :)■ : 
 
 
18 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIB W. E. PAREY. 
 
 [1806. 
 
 m 
 
 11 
 
 iiifiiiiiiiii 
 
 which is always but a real blessing in disguise. I 
 could mention fifty instances of this, as they have mado 
 a strong impression on me, and I now make it my usual 
 plan. I am determined never, if possible, to bo angry 
 or discontented at any of these things which every day 
 take place, for that is only, in other words, to call in 
 question the goodness of God." 
 
 At this period he speaks of an expected action, 
 and vividly describes his own feelings under the im- 
 mediate prospect of battle. 
 
 " Off Belle Isle, Juno 3. 1806. 
 
 " Yesterday, at dinner, the captain said he expected 
 an action every day, as the * Regulus ' (74) and two 
 other French ships (frigates) are expected here, so you 
 can imagine how anxiously we are looking out for them; i 
 I am, for my own part, prepared in every way, both in 
 my duty as a Christian and as an officer. The former i 
 will bo my comfort, in the idea that God is always 
 present, and that (should it please Him to save my lifo 
 through these dangers) my trust will be in Him ; and 
 the latter will, I know, not fail me, unless the former 
 does. I assure you, that whenever I may go into action, I 
 I shall never do so thoughtlessly. I shall always carry 
 in my mind who is my Protector and my Friend ; whilstl 
 my body is doing my duty as an officer, my heart shallj 
 be raised much higher, and shall be secretly (at least toj 
 the world) imploring a blessing from my Heavenly! 
 Father. Thus prepared, what have I to fear on such an] 
 occasion as going into action ? I am not naturally 
 
1806.] 
 
 ANXIETY TO MEET THE ENEMY. 
 
 19 
 
 cowai'd, and this, added to the knowledge of the Being 
 who protects nic, should make me bold indeed ! " 
 
 After having discharged the duties of " day mate " 
 for nearly three months, ho was advanced to the 
 signals, a post more to his taste than the former, 
 and one which he had before filled in the " Ville de 
 Paris," where his attention and quickness of eyesight 
 had already earned him distinction. He does not 
 ftiil to express his gratitude to " good Captain 
 Baker" for his kindness. The following anecdote 
 further illustrates the good understanding between 
 them. He had been invited, in his turn, to dine with 
 the captain, and, in the course of conversation, a 
 difference of opinion arose between them respecting 
 some of the rigging attached to the mainyard. After 
 ;Some little discussion, Parry apparently yielded to 
 the judgment of his superior officer; but, after about 
 an hour's interval, when the guests returned to the 
 cabin for coffee, he produced a small rough model of 
 [the points in dispute, which he had prepared in the 
 Imean time. This gave such certain evidence that 
 le had been in the right, that the captain good- 
 laturedly acknowledged himself fairly beaten by his 
 lidshipman. 
 
 For two years the " Tribune " was employed, as 
 [he ** Ville de Paris " had been, in cruising off the 
 
 c 2 
 
' u 
 
 20 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1808. 
 
 li 
 
 wm 
 
 French coast. He displays the same anxiety as 
 before to meet the enemy, and have his name men- 
 . tioned in the home despatches. At one time he 
 dwells on the disappointment caused by the escape of 
 a large fleet of French merchantmen, off the coast 
 of Brittany ; and, subsequently, with proportionate 
 V glee on the capture of a French vessel, on board of 
 which he was himself placed as prizera aster. Such 
 a charge was a position of no small gratification to a 
 youngster of seventeen, and he always retained a 
 lively recollection of the event. The cargo of the 
 captured vessel consisted of salted sardines and 
 French wines ; and he used to relate, with his wonted 
 humour, how he and his prize crew feasted on the 
 , former, till their excessive thirst drove them to the 
 wine, as a dire necessity under the circumstances I 
 In the spring of 1808, Captain Baker was pro- 
 \ raoted from the command of the " Tribune " to that 
 of the "Vanguard" (74), which belonged to thci 
 \ Baltic fleet. Though, for many reasons. Parry 
 would have preferred remaining in a frigate, to 
 serving in a line-of-battle-ship, he was anxious to 
 follow his old captain. To his great delight, the] 
 desired exchange was effected without diflSculty. 
 
 The "Vanguard" returned to the Med way ini 
 November, and, having obtained leave of absence, 
 
 "I only wiJ 
 i^ould be convl 
 
, I 
 
 1809.] 
 
 DANISH GUN-BOATS. 
 
 21 
 
 • ! ! 
 
 he spent Christmas at his father's house in Bath. 
 He writes on his return to his ship : — 
 
 " Well ! it is indeed just like a dream, it seems im- 
 possible that a day or two should be sufficient to change 
 one's situation so completely ; yet I am very happy. I 
 am myself possessing a thousand blessings, of which many 
 others are almost ignorant, or of which they know only 
 sufficient to be convinced that they want them ! " 
 
 In the spring of 1809, the "Vanguard" sailed 
 once more for the Baltic, but not under her former 
 commander. Captain Baker relinquished his com- 
 mand, in consequence of his marriage, and Captain 
 Glyn was appointed to succeed him. Sorry as our 
 young sailor was to lose one who had always treated 
 him so kindly, it was not long before he attached 
 himself to his new captain, with feelings of respect 
 land gratitude. They were soon engaged in active 
 work. It required all the vigilance of the British 
 captains to protect their convoy from the formidable 
 flotilla of gun-boats which had been prepared by the 
 [Danes. During this summer. Parry commanded a 
 
 jun-boat attached to the " Vanguard," and came 
 frequently into collision with the enemy, whose 
 
 )owers of annoyance he knew how to respect. 
 
 "I only wish," he writes, "«he people in England 
 i^ould be convinced that these Danish gun-boats are not 
 
 C 3 
 
 § ■ 
 
 |!>i 
 
 r .''.^'^ 
 
 iii 
 
 4 I ■- ; 
 
22 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIK W. E. PAURY. 
 
 [1809. 
 
 JiBiii 
 
 gun-boats, or would give them some more respectable 
 name ; for they really are the only kind of vessel which 
 the English navy have reason (not to dread, but) to 
 guard against. It is a shame that a British squadron 
 should be obliged to confess themselves annoyed by 
 boats ! But they are not gun-boats, and there the dis- 
 grace ends." 
 
 His taste for music proved to him at this time a 
 source of great pleasure, in the hours of relaxation 
 from duty. His violin, on which instrument he was 
 anxious to become a proficient, was his companion 
 during this summer cruise in the Baltic. 
 
 " I have been practising three or four hours to-day on 
 the fiddle. I don't know whether I improve or not, but 
 I will do all I can, for there are so many scraping and 
 blowing constantly about me, that the idea of playing as 
 badly as they makes me quite sick. Music is a delight- 
 ful thing, and I would sacrifice almost everything, ex- 
 cept my other duties, to become a good or tolerable 
 player. I have never forgotten what I have been told, 
 viz. that * musicians are often great heathens.' I there- 
 fore never sufier the fiddle to utter a syllable of com- 
 plaint more than six days out of seven. On the seventh, 
 it must keep its groans to itself." 
 
 It was, doubtless, in reference to the musical dis-l 
 cord, here described as reigning in the " "Vanguard's"! 
 gun-room, that he was accustomed, in after life, to] 
 
1809.] 
 
 TASTE FOR MUSIC. 
 
 23 
 
 relate a jesting remark, intended as a compliment to 
 his own instrument, made to him by one of the 
 senior officers of the ship, that he constantly heard 
 from below " the notes of many JiddleSf and one 
 violin ! " 
 
 The following letter, on the same subject, is in- 
 teresting, from the characteristic feeling which it 
 also displays for another's sorrow. 
 
 "•Vanguard,' Great Belt, Aug. IS. 
 
 . . . . " I am sorry to say I am just oii the point 
 of losing the most pleasant and amiable companion I 
 
 have had in this ship, viz. Lieut. B . I have had 
 
 so many pleasant evenings in playing the violin, accom- 
 panied by the flute, which he plays very prettily indeed, 
 that I shall often miss him. His health is so very bad, 
 and his constitution so extremely weak, that he is 
 obliged to go to England by the first opportunity. 
 Every one esteems him, and he will be universally 
 lamented. His complaint has, indeed, more of the 
 appearance of consumption than any thing else, and I 
 agree with himself in supposing that he is not long for 
 this world. He has neither father nor mother, but is, 
 with his sisters, under the care of guardians. We are 
 particularly fond of a tune called, *The Sicilian Ma- 
 riner's Hymn,' which is one of the most solemn and 
 beautiful I ever heard. It was played at the burial of 
 one or both of his parents. I could see the tears gush 
 
 c 4 
 
 
 .... I 
 
 .fil^: 
 
24 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1809. 
 
 vi I' 
 
 from his eyes as we were playing it, and he was obliged 
 to leave off. I could not help keeping him company in 
 the latter part of his performance." 
 
 Music, however, was not the only recreation in 
 which he indulged. His love for Cowper, men- 
 tioned in the following, remained the same through- 
 out life, and he often declared that he regarded him 
 as the chief of poets. 
 
 "I have just been going on with Cowper*s Poems. I 
 never was so much delighted with anything in my life. 
 Though I have read them before, yet I never fully en- 
 tered into and understood them properly. I am sure you 
 would split your sides sometimes, to see me when I am in 
 ecstasies with reading them. I laugh, I cry, and always 
 end with saying, * What a most excellent man and Chris- 
 tian he must have been, and how well acquainted with 
 mankind ! ' " 
 
 These lighter pursuits, though so congenial to his 
 taste, he never permitted to interfere with his pro- 
 fessional duties. He speaks with real pleasure of 
 the appointment of an efficient naval instructor, 
 under whom he might improve himself in the study 
 of mathematics and navigation; and he always 
 showed a similar anxiety to exert himself in the 
 acquisition of every species of knowledge which can 
 be of advantage to a seaman. 
 
 
r! 
 
 1809.] 
 
 A TEMPTATION RESISTED. 
 
 25 
 
 " My dear Father, 
 
 " It gives me the most sincere pleasure to know, 
 that your thoughts on the subject of pilotage coincide 
 exactly with what appears to me so reasonable. I have 
 often taken great pains to make the inquiries you 
 mention, viz., the marks, shoals, dangers, and methods of 
 avoiding them, and have been as often astonished to 
 find that few, or none, seemed the least inclined to assist 
 me in these occupations, though, thereby, they would be 
 instructing themselves. The fact is exactly as you say, 
 that they are too lazy to attend to this most necessary 
 branch of sea-knowledge, because they are not expected 
 to know it. Yet, to see the situation in which ships are 
 sometimes placed, you' would suppose that no man, in his 
 senses, would fail to make himself master of so invalu- 
 able a knowledge as that of pilotage."^ 
 
 The age of nineteen, according to the regulations 
 of the naval service, was the earliest period at which 
 a lieutenant's commission could be held. It seems, 
 however, to have been a common practice to fore- 
 stal the requisite age by a false representation, and 
 this Parry was repeatedly urged to do, the six 
 years of his service having expired some months 
 before he reached his nineteenth birthday. To all 
 such solicitations he turned a deaf ear, being too 
 upright and straightforward to take advantage of 
 a practice, which, however usual, was still unfair 
 and untruthful. His determination to abide by the 
 
 r 
 
 ■ I 
 
26 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR AV. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1809. 
 
 
 m 
 
 decision of his better judgment is shown in the 
 
 following : — 
 
 " ' Vanguard,' Belt, June 4. 1809. 
 
 " I have made up my mind very com- 
 fortably to wait six months, till my nineteenth birth- 
 day. It is very astonishing to me, that I am every day 
 abused by somebody or other, for not going to pass my 
 examination at once, as soon as I have served my six 
 years. They tell me I could certainly pass for nineteen 
 or more, if I chose to try ; all this I know very well, but 
 there is so much to be said in opposition to it, which 
 seems much more sensible, that the may as well say 
 nothing more about it." 
 
 And again^ — 
 
 "Six midshipmen have passed their examinations, 
 which is not a customary thing at sea, but has been 
 granted by the Admiral, as we are at so great a distance 
 from England. One or two of them were much under 
 age, and I have been not a little railed at, on this and 
 many other occasions, for not having done the same. I 
 expect to see all these receive commissions before I pass, 
 but I do not care for that, I am very well satisfied to 
 wait." 
 
 The time, however, at length arrived. The " Van- 
 guard" returned to the Downs in December, and 
 Parry went up to town, where he remained in 
 lodgings until the ordinary examinations were con- 
 cluded. He passed for lieutenant on the 3rd of 
 
// 
 
 1810.] 
 
 lieutenant's commission. 
 
 27 
 
 January, 1810, and, through the kindness of Lord 
 Lowther, one of the Lords of the Admiralty, ob- 
 tained his commission two days after. " I have at 
 length," he wrote to Bath, « the happiness of telling 
 you that you may now call me Lieutenant 
 Parry ! " 
 
 I t 
 
 OK 
 
28 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1810. 
 
 CHAP. II. 
 
 JOINS TUB "ALEXANDRIA." — DANISH GUN-BOATS. — POLAR 
 ICE. — ASTRONOMICAL STUDIES. — APPOINTMENT TO "LA 
 HOGUE," AND VOYAGE TO HALIFAX. — ^BOAT EXPEDITION 
 UP THE RIVER CONNECTICUT. — LEAVES " LA HOGUE." 
 —ILLNESS. — BERMUDAS. — RETURNS HOME. — APPOINT- 
 MENT TO THE "ALEXANDER" UNDER ROSS. 
 
 1810—1817. 
 
 Early in February, 1810, Lieut. Parry proceeded 
 to Sheerness to join the "Alexandria" frigate. Cap- 
 tain John Quilliam. This vessel being of the 
 smaller class of frigates, a lieutenant's cabin would 
 necessarily be of very limited size ; but to a young 
 officer, the possession, for the first time, of a retreat 
 he can call his own, is a matter of no small import- 
 ance. Parry's first business was the furnishing of' 
 this, his " Castle," as he termed it. 
 
 "'Alexandria,' Sheerness, February 19. 1810. 
 
 " I think I cannot better employ myself, for half-an - 
 hour after breakfast, than by giving you a description of 
 my cabin, which is now nearly complete. I told you it 
 
 llSII'i 
 
1810.] 
 
 SAILS FOR THE BALTIC. 
 
 29 
 
 was about six or seven feet square. Its door (which 
 opens into the gun-room, where we dine, &c.) is in the 
 middle of one of its si^'^^s, and on the right is a small 
 window, looking also into the gun-room ; facing you, as 
 you go in, is a very pretty chest of drawers, and over it 
 is my library, which makes no shabby appearance, I 
 assure you. Just over the middle of the drawers is a 
 small window, not a foot square, from which proceeds all 
 the light which my cabin possesses. Upon the back row 
 of books stands a small oval looking-glass, ' neat but not 
 gaudy.' The bed-place is converted in the day-time 
 into a very convenient and pretty sofa. Next the 
 washing-stand is a small table, which, like the table 
 in the hall at the Circus, lets up and down^ Let not 
 the table in the Circus think itself degraded by such a 
 comparison, for, be it known, mine is made of cedar; 
 Lebanon itself never produced a finer piece of stuff! for 
 the sake of distinction, call this table * Lebanon.' Under 
 ' Lebanon ' are boots, &c. — over it are hung my sw ord, 
 dirk, work-bag, — and immediately over the middle of it 
 is the brass branch candlestick, which, you may remem- 
 ber, I got at Bath ; and, last, though not least, over the 
 candlestick is hung the little picture of the * Alexandria,* 
 which, among other things, serves constantly to remind 
 me of thv ^fjppiness I have enjoyed at Bath." 
 
 4. 
 
 W:\ 
 
 W-> I 
 
 In March the "Alexandria" left the Nore, with a 
 convoy for the Baltic. After a long continuance 
 of unfavourable winds, they reached the Great Belt, 
 where they received information that the Swedish 
 
30 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 tl8lO. 
 
 ports were closed against them. " The very name 
 of Belt," writes Parry, " suggests the idea of gun- 
 boats ; " and it was not long before these formidable 
 foes showed themselves as much on the alert as 
 ever. The "Alexandria" was frequently engaged 
 with the Danish schooners and gun-boats, which 
 being armed with 32-pounder8, were often more 
 than a match for the 12-pounders of the British 
 frigate. It was seldom, indeed, that they ventured 
 to come to close quarters with the men-of-war, 
 but it was not possible for the latter to prevent 
 the loss of some of their convoy on a dark night. 
 The boats of the enemy were so small as to escape 
 detection for some time, and the merchant vessels 
 under the protection of the British flag, especially 
 those of foreign nations, showed great carelessness 
 and inattention to orders, in many cases keeping 
 no night-watch. It was therefore no matter of 
 surprise, that, on the first alarm, some of the con- 
 voy should be seen already "taking their leave," 
 while the difficult navigation of the Belt rendered 
 a recapture by night next to impossible. 
 
 During the first part of this year, the "Alex- 
 andria " was stationed off Carlscrona, where the 
 Swedes, though not yet actually at war with Eng- 
 land, were making active preparations for defence 
 
 
1811.] 
 
 STAY AT CROMARTY. 
 
 81 
 
 
 f 
 
 by sea and land, " in case," says Parry, "we should 
 be inclined to Copenhafjen them." The Swedish 
 fleet in the harbour consisted of thirteen sail of 
 the line, and the entrance was secured by a chain 
 across. "That fleet," he writes, in May, "ought to 
 have been in Yarmouth Roads by this time." 
 
 The " Alexandria " returned to the Thames in the 
 winter, and in January of the next year was placed 
 on the Leith station, under the command of Captain 
 Cathcart, for the protection of the Spitzbergen whale 
 fishery. During the two years spent on this service, 
 they were again continually annoyed by the gun- 
 boats of the enemy. 
 
 In the winter of 1811-12, the "Alexandria" 
 remained for some weeks at Cromarty. The hos- 
 pitality of the Scotch rendered this stay pleasant to 
 the officers of the ship, especially to Parry, who, in 
 company with the captain and surgeon, enjoyed a 
 " cruise " of several days in the neighbourhood. 
 He was much delighted with Inverness, and the new 
 Caledonian Canal. This he pronounced "a truly 
 grand undertaking," little thinking that his own 
 name would one day be officially connected with it. 
 
 In the course of the year 1812, being still 
 engaged in the protection of the fisheries. Captain 
 Cathcart received orders to proceed as far as 76° N., 
 
 1 
 
82 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [l8I2. 
 
 and to return with the last of the whalers at the 
 close of the season. 
 
 " We must" (writes Parry to his sister), "in anticipa- 
 tion of this freezing cruise, make up our minds to oheat 
 the summer as comfortably as we can among the bears 
 and seals on the ice. What curiosities shall I bring 
 you back ? would you like an island of ice ? a few white 
 bears as pets, or half-a-dozen seals ? Of all these, wo 
 shall perhaps see plenty before we return." 
 
 In the preceding autumn he had recorded, as 
 worthy of especial remark, that phenomenon, witli 
 which he afterwards became so familiar, the appear- 
 ance of the sun above the horizon at midnight, and 
 in this summer he made his first acquaintance with 
 the ice of the Northern latitudes. While holding on 
 their course towards Bear Island (which lies midway 
 between Spitzbergen and North Cape), their pro- 
 gress was suddenly arrested by immense quantities 
 of floating ice. For a few hours they persevered, 
 steering a devious and difficult course between the 
 frozen masses, but it soon became evident that 
 further advance was out of the question. Baffled in 
 their attempts to reach Bear Island, they turned 
 towards North Cape, which had been their cruising 
 ground during part of the former year. Even the 
 bleak outline of the snow-capped hills of Lapland 
 
1812.] 
 
 LAPLAND 
 
 33 
 
 was lialleil as an old and welcome friend, after the deso- 
 late expanse of the ice-fields they had just quitted. 
 " The very snow itself seemed familiar to us." 
 
 " On the 26th of June," ho writes, " wo observed seven 
 or eight small vessels lying in a narrow harbour. Wo 
 got thorn out the samo evening without opposition, and 
 had a few hours' run on shore into the bargain. This, 
 in Lapland, was a new thing to me. The whole scene, 
 which our little expedition presented to the eye, was 
 such as could not fail to make an impression on the 
 mind. From the top of this hill wo had an extensive 
 prospect of the surrounding country, which differed 
 little in appearance from the sea coast. 
 
 " Tiio sea was smooth, and scarcely a sound could bo 
 distinguished, but now and then the voices of some of 
 our party, who were busily employed below. To make 
 the whole more romantic, the hour was that of midnight, 
 and, what does not often happen, I believe, in modern 
 romances, the sun was two or three degrees above the 
 horizon. Close to the shores of the harbour stood a 
 little hut, in which the door could barely be distinguished 
 from the windows, or the chimney from either. The hut 
 was composed principally of turf, and its top was as 
 green as could be expected, at so short a distance from 
 the North Pole. Its inhabitants consistcMl of an old 
 Norwegian woman, two or three children, one cow, and 
 two sheep. We begged a little milk, and this she cheer- 
 fully gave, in a vessel which might be a pattern of 
 cleanliness to the dairies of southern and more refined 
 
 D 
 
 ( , 
 
 / ;;;; 
 
H 
 
 I' t]l 
 
 34 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1812. 
 
 countries. I can scarcely imagine human nature in a 
 condition much lower than this, at least in Europe ; yet, 
 if happiness be truly defined, the poor Norwegian woman 
 has, probably, as large a share of it as we, who think our- 
 selves so much more highly favoured." 
 
 The following was written to hia sister, after his 
 
 return from the coast of Norway : — 
 
 "Augustas. 1812. 
 
 . ..." I have a little way of talking seriously now 
 and then, and, if such moments can, with propriety, be 
 called melancholy, that melancholy is the most delightful 
 
 sensation I experience. Trust me, my dear , if some 
 
 folks could read my thoughts on death, and on the 
 glorious prospect of eternity, they would not believe I 
 was a sailor. I fear our profession is not unjustly taxed 
 with deficiency in this important point,— nay, an English 
 sailor and his religion are, proverbially, about as opposite 
 as Calais and Dover. This puts me in mind of a little 
 anecdote, which, when I was left behind the other day 
 at Gottenberg with some prizes, I intended to have com- 
 mitted to paper I was on shore, in the office of 
 
 a person whose business it is to take the oaths and de- 
 positions of the captors of the enemy's vessels. I was 
 sitting down, waiting till my turn came, and accidentally 
 took up the Testament which was lying on the table. I 
 read for a few moments, when the man of law gravely i 
 (and, as he thought, wittily) remarked, ' That is not I 
 the kind of book, sir, that exactly suits you ! ' It went| 
 to my soul 1 " 
 
 ^or some 
 ' hours of a nj 
 the fixed sU 
 ' importance ol 
 
1812.} 
 
 ASTRONOMICAL STUDIES. 
 
 35 
 
 In the study of astronomy Parry had always 
 taken great pleasure. The following is dated 
 Leith, September, 1811 : — 
 
 " It is a fashionable question to ask if you 
 
 have seen the comet. You must know that I am rather 
 proud on this subject, for I discovered it, at sea, some days 
 before receiving any intelligence of its having been seen 
 elsewhere. I first saw it, and pointed it out to the 
 surgeon of the ship, on the night of the beautiful central 
 eclipse of the moon. It was not then very distinct, 
 owing to the superior brilliancy of the moon at her full ; 
 and I only then remarked, that I was confident there 
 wa? no planet, or any fixed star of the first or second 
 magnitude in that spot, directly under the Great Boar. 
 On the night after, I again saw it more clearly, and, two 
 days after, the paper mentioned it. Since then, as the 
 moon has been gradually waning, it has been more and 
 more beautiful. . . . Astronomy is a delightful science ; 
 independently of the knowledge it conveys as a science, 
 it carries with it, to the mind of a human creature, the 
 strongest lessons of humility ; at one view it sets forth 
 the incomprehensible and infinite power of his Creator, 
 and his own insignificance." 
 
 For some time past, he had employed the tedious 
 hours of a night-watch in studying the situation of 
 the fixed stars in the Northern Hemisphere. The 
 importance of being able to obtain the latitude and 
 
 V 2 
 
 
36 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1813. 
 
 r! 
 
 f 
 
 !, 
 
 i; 
 
 longitude by night as well as by day, " of observing 
 by more suns than one," could not, he thought, be 
 too highly estimated. The result of his observations 
 afterwards* appeared in a small volume, entitled 
 "Nautical Astronomy,'* His own experience had 
 convinced him of the want of some elementary work 
 on this subject, and this he desired to supply. " I 
 have seen," he says, " two or three books on the 
 subject, but, from the manner their authors have 
 treated it, they must have considered their readers 
 as so many Herschells. They take so much know- 
 ledge for granted, that, if the learner possesses it in 
 reality, he will not thank ihem for their instruction." 
 
 On several occasions, also, he occupied himself 
 with preparing accurate charts of the northern navi- 
 gation. Surveys of different localities on the shores 
 of the Baltic had been sent by him to the hydro- 
 grapher of the Admiralty ; and, while on the Leith 
 station, he forwarded to the same quarter charts of 
 Balta Sound and Voe, a harbour on the north-east 
 coast of Shetland. 
 
 In January, 1813, Lieut. Parry left the "Alex- 
 andria," not without considerable regret. He writes | 
 from London : — 
 
 "I mean to go down to the 'Alexandria' again tliisj 
 evening. I cannot well leave her these three or four] 
 
 days, as ] 
 
 setth'ng a 
 
 three yea 
 
 another, i 
 
 experienci 
 
 nected wil 
 
 sensibly at 
 
 variety of j 
 
 one may \ 
 
 something 
 
 I know ev 
 
 know the le 
 
 :t^ 
 
1813.] "LA. HOGUE." — "SCEPTRE." 37 
 
 days, as I have lots to do in the packing way, besides 
 settling a hundred little things, which a residence of 
 three years in one house^ and a sudden removal to 
 another, necessarily bring with it. Nobody, without 
 experiencing it, can conceive the peculiar feeling con- 
 nected with this kind of change. One becomes so in- 
 sensibly attached to a ship, in which one has seen such a 
 variety of good, bad, and indifferent, that, however much 
 one may wish, for good reasons, to leave her, there is 
 something inconceivably gloomy in the act of doing so. 
 I know every plank in the ' Alexandria * as well as I 
 know the letters of the alphabet." 
 
 He was next appointed to H. M. S. " La Hogue " 
 I J "•. Captain the Hon. Bladen Capel, then at Halifax. 
 'y-.::.iig the past year, exertions had been made to 
 procure for him an appointment to that station, 
 Sir F. Laforey having promised him his patronage, 
 cculd this be effected. No opportunity, however, 
 occurred, and another officer received the expected 
 vacancy, returning home with the rank of com- 
 mander. 
 
 While the ** Sceptre " (84), which was now to 
 convey him to Halifax, was detained at Portsmouth 
 by contrary winds, Parry, for the first time, beheld 
 a steam-engine at work, in the dockyard of that 
 port. 
 
 D 3 
 
M 
 
 38 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1813. 
 
 ;| 
 
 "Portsmouth, Feb. 26. 1813. 
 
 .... "I "have, this morning, been to see the bloc . 
 machinery worked by steam m the dockyard. I cannot 
 express to you how I have been delighted with this 
 masterpiece of human invention. I never before saw a 
 steam-engine ; but was rather pleased with myself in 
 finding that, with the previous knowledge I had acquired 
 of this wonderful moving-power, I could point out to my 
 companion the uses of its several parts, as soon as I saw 
 them, having several good plates of it in Ferguson, 
 Imison, Gregory, &c. The extent to which it is here 
 applied in the formation of blocks, &c., does not strike 
 me as anything more than a tolerable knowledge of me- 
 chanics might naturally have suggested, when once the 
 steam was made to perform its office in so wonderful and 
 perfect a manner as it there does. The whole, however, 
 conveys the most grand idea of the indefatigable in- 
 dustry of man. ... I am confident that, if we live 
 twenty years, we shall see steam applied to a hundred 
 different purposes on board a ship ; I may be wrong in 
 the method of applying it, but I am sure that much is 
 to be done by steam in a ship." 
 
 This, his first voyage across the Atlantic, was 
 performed quickly, owing to favourable winds. 
 
 "We have," he writes, "taken frequent and excellent 
 observaaons on our passage, by night and day, and I 
 have had a famous opportunity of using my instruments, 
 which I may safely pronounce to be excellent. The 
 theodolite I have, of course, had no occasion to use ; it 
 
I J » 
 
 1813.] VOYAGE ACllOSS THE ATLANTIC. 
 
 39 
 
 13 a sweet little instrument. The sight of a full moon, 
 ■■ \At about sunset, in these latitudes, is one of the most 
 sublime I ever saw : the clearness with which it is seen 
 is, I suppose, to be attributed to the rarity of the atmo- 
 sphere. We did not alter a sail during tne whole of our 
 passage, and we made the shortest, but one, that was ever 
 made with a convoy. . . . Independently of our nautical 
 observations, I can safely say, with a clear conscience, 
 that I have not been idle on the passage. I don't think 
 there is a Lieutenant in His Majesty's navy more fond of 
 writing than I am, and I am sure there is not one who 
 knows how to make a worse pen ; but, like Sterne, I 
 have only commenced my tour in the world, and 1 shall 
 mend as I go on. I have been so happy as to meet 
 with a brother officer, who, like myself, * knows only that 
 he knows nothing,' and we have gone hand in hand to- 
 gether in our occupations. We have been going through 
 Euclid again. He plays the flute, and we have our regu- 
 lar duets together : astronomy, mechanics, and chemistry 
 have not been neglected, as far ^as reading will convey 
 knowledge, without experiments in these delightful 
 sciences." 
 
 At Barbadoes, he was kindly received by Sir. F. 
 Laforey ; but the latter, being now superseded in his 
 command by Sir J, B. Warren, no longer had it in 
 his power to serve his young friend. He regretted 
 that Parry ** had not come out twelve months sooner, 
 for, in that case, he would have been twelve months 
 
 T) 4 
 
40 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1813. 
 
 a commander." Tliis was a great disappointment, 
 
 mi' 
 
 but regret was useless. 
 
 " H. M. S. ' Sceptre,' Barbadocs. 
 
 April 23. 1813. 
 
 " You will believe me, when I say, that I do not re- 
 pine at having missed what, to us. seems to have been a 
 golden opportunity. We know not what might have 
 happened, had I been promoted eighteen months ago, 
 instead of six months hence ; I might have proved one 
 of those intolerable little-great-upstart captains, which, 
 on vert/ strict examination, are to be found in our navy. 
 ! i I might, I say, have been so ; I will not answer for 
 myself that it would not have been the case. I consider 
 this (and every other event of my life) as one of the in- 
 numerable means which an unseen Providence employs 
 to educe great good from little evils ; we see it in a 
 thousand instances, and, if we cannot always trace out 
 the good which results, it is because the creature cannot 
 follow the Creator.'* 
 
 The ** Sceptre" arrived at Halifax the 2nd of June, 
 1813. On the day previous, "the glorious 1 st of June," 
 the celebrated action between the " Shannon " and 
 the " Chesapeake," off Boston, had taken place ; and, 
 a few days later. Captain Broke, who had been 
 severely wounded, entered the harbour of Halifax 
 with his prize, anchoring amid loud cheers from the 
 ships and spectators on shore. " Halifax," writes 
 Parry, " is in such an uproar, that I do.ibt whether 
 the folks will ever recover their tranquillity." 
 
m 
 
 1813.] 
 
 HUKRICANE AT HALIFAX. 
 
 41 
 
 The "greater part of this autumn was spent in 
 cruising off Nova Scotia. In November, a violent 
 hurricane visited Halifax, driving from ' 'leir anchors 
 all the men-of-war and merchantmen in the harbour, 
 w/hich presented a scene of d solation and distress 
 seldom witnessed. 
 
 " The merchant-vessels," he says, " first set the ex- 
 ample, and, in a few minutes, every man-of-war was 
 driving from her anchors. I think we should have held 
 out, but for other vessels that came upon us in pretty 
 quick succession ; at length our turn came, and away we 
 Avent on shore, in a very soft, convenient place. It was 
 indeed so soft, and the rain so violent, with a pitch-dark 
 night, that we did not know for some minutes that we 
 were on shore. We lay there that night, and got off the 
 next morning, having received no damage whatever. I 
 have been thus circumstantial in ' La Hogue's ' adven- 
 tures, because I know that it will amuse my father, and 
 make my dear mother easy." 
 
 In the following spring, Lieut. Parry was engaged 
 in a successful boat-expedition, attended with con- 
 siderable danger. On more than one occasion, the 
 enemy had endeavoured to destroy the British ships 
 by means of " Torpedos," a species of " infernal 
 machine ; " and, during one night in April, an attempt 
 of this kind was made on '* La Hogue," then lying 
 off New London. "This," he writes "ended in 
 
 A- \ » .! i 
 
4ft 
 
 MEMOIRS OF Bin W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1814. 
 
 V..u^ 
 
 A( 
 
 smoke, or rather in no smoke at all, for all the 
 effect was the ducking of half-a-dozen people by 
 the column of water forced up in the explosion." 
 \ At the same moment, a boat was detected by the 
 \ ** Maidstone " frigate, containing one man, who pre- 
 tended to have come off for the purpose of selling 
 provisions. The lateness of the hour, however, and 
 his muffled oars, combined with something uncom- 
 mon in the appearance of the man himseh', raised 
 the suspicions of the Captain, who detained him 
 in irons. The man would not allow that he had 
 any share in the attempt to blow up the ship, but, 
 after a few days, offered, in consideration of being 
 set at liberty, to j^dot the boats of the squadron 
 up to Pettipague Point, in the river Connecticut, 
 where several American privateers and letters of 
 marque were lying. ** Torpedo Jack," as the sailors 
 had dubbed their captive, was willing to prove the 
 honesty of his intentions, by going himself, hand- 
 cuffed, in one of the boats. An expedition was 
 planned accordingly, consisting of six boats from 
 " La Hogue,'* " Maidstone," and " Endymion," under 
 the orders of Captain Coote, of the " Borer " brig. 
 Parry commanded one of the boats, being third 
 in seniority of the officers engaged ; and the account 
 of this gallant exploit, for which a medal was 
 
1814.] 
 
 BOAT EXPEDITION. 
 
 43 
 
 after war Js awarded, may bo given in his own 
 words : — 
 
 "We proceeded in the * Borer' to the mouth 
 of the river, where she anchored, and we left her, 
 at 10 o'clock at night, in six good boats, containing 
 120 men, of whom 40 were marines. We had only 
 six or eight miles to row, but, on account of the tide, 
 which at this season of the year always runs out 
 of the river, did not get up to the shipping till 
 break of day, and landed without opposition, !f\fter 
 warning the inhabitants, that, if a single shot were 
 fired in the neighbourhood, the tow^n should be 
 burnt. To make a short story of it, we were em- 
 ployed in burning vessels from daylight, at about 
 half-past four, till noon, when we hauled off into 
 the stream of the river, in two of the finest vessels 
 that were afloat. In these we lay four hours longer, 
 eating and sleeping, within pistol-shot of the woods, 
 in order to refresh ourselves for any further exer- 
 tions which it might be necessary to make ; when, 
 lo, and behold I we saw a boat, with a flag of truce, 
 coming out from Lyme, which place, with a point on 
 the opposite side of the river, formed its narrowest 
 part, and, we could perceive, was destined to be the 
 grand rendezvous of their force, in their attempt to 
 atop our going back. The boat came alongside the 
 
 ,'.■'•. * • 
 
 
 m 
 
 ']*■- ■ 
 
 i 
 
 f 
 
 1 
 
 
 i; 
 
 ! 
 
 i 
 
 
 : 
 
44 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1814. 
 
 ,':■ •'! 
 
 schooner, where we were now all assembled (having 
 burnt the brig which had grounded) ; and such an 
 oflScer, bearing such a letter, nobody ever heard 
 of or saw, — a cobbler's hand, and many words 
 wrongly spelt ! It was to demand a surrender. The 
 style in which this was demanded was enough to 
 make us hold it in the greatest possible contempt, 
 which the answer that Captain Coote gave him 
 was sufficient to show. Three cheers for Old Eng- 
 land, before the boat was out of hearing, was the 
 most expressive answer to their presumi){;uous de- 
 mand ; and I verily believe that there was but one 
 mind amongst us upon the occasion. Captain Coote 
 determined upon our remaining where we were in the 
 schooner till dusk, then to set fire to her, and push 
 down the river. She made the twenty- seventh which 
 we destroyed* Whilst daylight lasted, they were 
 afraid to bring anything against us where we then 
 lay, for we should have landed immediately, and dis- 
 persed them ; but, as soon as it was dark, and we 
 were just on the point of leaving her, they com-> 
 menced a heavy fire of field-pieces and musketry 
 from the woods close abreast of us. The tide was 
 running at the rate of three or four miles an hour in 
 our favour, and we were soon away from the 
 schooner. The grand point, at which their chief 
 
I 
 
 1814.] 
 
 BOAT EXPEDITION. 
 
 45 
 
 force was collected, as I before mentioned, was 
 near Lyme, and its opposite bank (about two 
 miles and a half below us), and thither we drifted 
 silently, without rowing, which would have warned 
 them of our approach. We observed them lighting 
 their fires on the beacli, which enabled them to 
 see when we passed the ferry, not by the light 
 whirli they threw on the water, which was in- 
 considerable, but they could see when any object 
 passed between them and the fires opposite. This 
 was very quickly the case with us, and a heavy 
 fire commenced. "We pulled rapidly past them in 
 a few minutes, and then considered ourselves safe 
 enough. When we went up the night before, we 
 landed at a fort at the mouth of the river, and, 
 finding no guns, merely threw down the flagstaff, to 
 let them know we had been there. We knew, how- 
 ever, that they would have had time enough to 
 get guns here now. When we came abreast of it, 
 they opened a third fire, but with no effect. Our 
 only loss, in this truly well conducted retreat, has 
 been two killed belonging to the " Maidstone," and 
 one wounded of " La Hogue." Several privateers, 
 [ which woidd very soon have been ready for sea, 
 were destroyed. Reckoning at the rate of lOZ. per 
 ton, the value of the damnge done would be near 
 
 ,; I r 
 
'2- * 
 
 46 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. FARRT. 
 
 [1814, 
 
 f 
 
 m 
 
 I f 
 
 50,000?. ; and, as an immcnac quantity of stores 
 were also burnt, it will not be above the mark 
 to value the whole at 60,000/. sterling. We have 
 not yet seen the New London account of it, but 
 we hear that they are astonished. Independently 
 of the stir we made there (five or six leagues from 
 this place), we have also been actually the means 
 of driving the American squadron from their an- 
 chorage several miles up the river. We imagined 
 they must have gone up for the purpose of sending 
 a large force from i hence, round to Sayboro' to 
 cut us off in our retreat ; if they did go, they 
 were a day behind. Such is the outline of this 
 little but well conducted affair, of which you will 
 soon see the official account." * 
 
 In the summer of 1814, Sir J. B. Warren waa 
 succeeded in his command by Sir A. Cockrane, and 
 a more vigorous blockade of the American porta 
 commenced. " La Hogue " was still stationed off 
 New London, and, with the rest of the squadron, 
 kept the whole coast in a state of alarm. Little, 
 however, was actually done, the American ships of 
 
 ♦ The brave leader of this expedition, Captain Coote, was shortly 
 afterwards lost at sea, greatly regretted by all, and by none more 
 than Parry, who spoke of him as a " pattern to all the Captains of 
 His Majesty's Service." 
 
 
1814.] 
 
 EUllOFEAN AFFAIKS. 
 
 47 
 
 war in the Connecticut river not venturing out to 
 sea. At length Commodore Decatur, finding it had 
 been impossible to break the blockade, even in 
 the winter, and, despairing of effecting it in the 
 summer, prudently relinquished his inactive situation, 
 and sent the crews of his ships round by land to 
 man the " President " and others elsewhere. 
 
 The prospect of peace, held out by the abdication 
 of Napoleon, was hailed with joy by Parry, though 
 it seriously impaired his expectations of promotion, 
 so long delayed. He writes, under date of JuK 20. 
 1814,— 
 
 " How glorious has been the issue of European wTivs 
 to our beloved country I She has calmly and res )lutely 
 held out, in support of the common cause of nations, 
 against the arm of despotism, which, but for her, might, 
 ere this, have laid Europe under contribution. Heaven 
 be praised ! she has been the means of leading back other 
 nations, one by one, to a sense of their true interest, and 
 has brought them to stand forth in defence of everything 
 that should be dear to them. We may now, indeed, 
 boast of being Englishmen, for all Euroni' is our debtor. 
 I don't much like the Elba business ; what say you to it ? 
 Buonaparte will never, I think, be in quiet while he 
 nves, — it would be very odd if he were ! We don't hear 
 what the Emperor of Austria says to all this. Indeed, we 
 only get scraps of English news from the American 
 papers." 
 
48 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRF. 
 
 [1815. 
 
 " La Hogue " now returned home ; but Parry, 
 " anxious " as he was " to visit once more the shores 
 of old England," determined to remain on the North 
 American station, as the most likely means of ob- 
 taining his long-desired step. He was, consequently, 
 appointed to the "Maidstone " (36). The Peace of 
 Ghent, the news of which arrived early in January, 
 1815, proved, as he had anticipated, a still further 
 obstacle to the attainment of his wishes, and the 
 letters written by him at this time show, painfully, 
 the sickening effects of " hope deferred." Unwilling 
 to quit his present station, and so lose the " poor, and 
 indeed almost hopeless, chance of promotion," he suc- 
 cessively joined the " Ardent " (64), " Carron " (20), 
 and "Niger " (38). In November, 1815, he writes: — 
 
 " I am almost tired of shifting myself and my baggage 
 so often. However, it cannot be helped, and we ought to 
 endeavour to feel contented, when we are doing the best 
 we can. You see, my dearest parents, that I am still 
 acting on that principle, to which I trust I have hitherto 
 adhered, viz. : the doing what, under existing circum- 
 stances, seems to me to be most right. ... I have acted 
 on this fixed principle through all my changes and ex- 
 changes." 
 
 The same conscientious attention to present duty 
 appears in a letter, written at this time, on the 
 
1815.] 
 
 STATE OF HIS HEALTH. 
 
 49 
 
 subject of punctuality, which formed so marked a 
 feature of his character throughout life : — 
 
 "I find I am more punctual to my leave than any- 
 body else thinks necessary. This unpunctuality may be 
 of serious consequence if anything should happen ; and, 
 though a captain may wink at it, it is not he, but I 
 who should suffer from it ; besides, it is a bad habit, and 
 a person who stays a week beyond his leave now will, 
 the next time, probably stay ten days, and so on." 
 
 His health, in the early part of his life, was 
 excellent. "Asa lieutenant," he has said, " I used to 
 wonder what a headache meant I" Once, however, 
 during this period, while on his way from Bermudas ' 
 to Halifax, in the Menai, Captain Pell (now Sir 
 Watkin CPellj Commissioner of Greenwich Hos- 
 pital), he was seized with a severe attack of inflam- 
 mation. The kindness of Captain Pell, who im- 
 mediately placed his own cabin at the disposal of the 
 invalid, left a deep impression on his mind, and he 
 always spoke most warmly of the attentions he 
 received from this officer. Upon landing, he obtained 
 three months* sick leave, the first part of which was 
 passed at the hospital. At Halifax he made many 
 friends, and received so much kindness, that he 
 declared, when the time came for him to join his 
 
 £ 
 
50 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1817. 
 
 \ 
 
 ship, that it was like "leaving home." With the 
 admiral's secretary, Charles Martyr, Esq., he, at this 
 time, formed a tie of the closest intimacy. ** I know 
 not," he says, " a young man in the world, for whom 
 I have such high esteem and respect. If you knew 
 him for twenty years, I will answer for your dis- 
 covering in him, every day, something new to 
 admire." The friendship thus formed continued 
 after their return to England, and remained un- 
 broken until Mr. Martyr's death, which occurred 
 some years later. The sorrow which Parry felt at 
 the loss of this valued friend proved, as will be seen, 
 the means of marking the advance and development 
 of his own religious principles. 
 
 Early in 1817, he was recalled to England, in 
 consequence of a severe family affliction. His father 
 had, in the preceding October, been seized with a 
 paralytic attack, which deprived him of the use of j 
 his right side, and reduced him, for the remaining six 
 years of his life, to a state of great suffering and 
 helplessness. His father's illness, and his own 
 despair of promotion, combined to render this the 
 gloomiest period of our sailor's life ; but, when the i 
 cloud which overhung his fortunes seemed most I 
 impenetrable, an opening unexpectedly occurred, 
 which threw a gleam of encouragement over his I 
 
 darkened 
 the foreru 
 At the 
 of active 
 yet on the 
 employmei 
 discovery, 
 in Africa, 1 
 this service, 
 was prevent 
 Clapperton 
 tion con tin I 
 African disc 
 About th| 
 returned to 
 subject. Tl 
 when his ey 
 relative to ai 
 Northern R 
 to his letter, 
 was concerns 
 Africa or the 
 was addressee 
 of the Admi 
 •irctic discovi 
 
 li 
 
1817.] 
 
 RETURN TO ENGLAND. 
 
 51 
 
 darkened professional prospects, and finally proved 
 the forerunner of success and renown. 
 
 At the conclusion of the war, and, consequently, 
 of active service on a foreign station. Parry, while 
 yet on the coast of America, had been anxious for 
 employment in some expedition for the purpose of 
 discovery. A project of exploring the river Congo, 
 in Africa, being in contemplation, he volunteered for 
 this service, but, owing to his detention at Bermudas, 
 was prevented from joir ing it in time. The travels of 
 Clapperton had interested him much, and his atten- 
 tion continued to be occupied with the subject of 
 African discovery. 
 
 About the close of the year 1817, in which he 
 returned to England, he wrote to a friend on this 
 subject. The letter was written, but not ported, 
 when his eye fell on a paragraph in the newspaper 
 relative to an expedition about to be fitted out to the 
 Northern Regions. He seized his pen, and added 
 to his letter, by way of postscript, that, as far as he 
 was concerned, " Hot or cold was all one to him, 
 Africa or the Pole." The friend to whom the letter 
 was addressed, showed it to Mr. Barrow, Secretary 
 of the Admiralty, and the well known patron of 
 arctic discovery. In a few days, Parry, still a 
 
 £ 2 
 
 ! I 
 
 'm' 
 

 ( =■'.■ 
 
 rfii.'J 
 
 !■* Jt 
 
 I lis 
 
 62 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. [1817. 
 
 lieutenant, was appointed to the command of 
 the " Alexander" discovery ship, under the orders of 
 Commander John Koss in the "Isabella," "for the 
 purpose of exploring Baffin's Bay, and ascertaining 
 the probabilities of a North-West Passage to the 
 Pacific." 
 
53 
 
 CHAP. in. 
 
 BRIFF SKETCH OP ARCTIC DISCOVERY PREYTOUSLT TO 
 1818. — LIFE IN THE POLAR REGIONS. 
 
 One day, early in the month of June, 1576, when 
 Greenwich was a royal residence, three small ships 
 lay moored in the river, opposite the palace. A 
 queen of England stood at one of the windows, 
 waving her hand, in token of farewell, to an officer 
 standing upon the deck of the larger vessel. Nearly 
 three hundred years afterwards, when another queen 
 sat on the throne of Elizabeth, a naval officer, 
 travelling in all haste from the north of our island, 
 arrived at daybreak in London, and announced to 
 the world, that the North- West Passage had been 
 discovered. These three centuries, which elapsed 
 between the departure of Sir Martin i robisher 
 from Greenwich, and the arrival of Lieutenant 
 S. G. Cresswell in London in 1853, with despatches 
 I from Captain M*Clure, fo*m an interesting opisode 
 in history, being the time occupied iu the solution 
 I of that problem, which Frobisher pronounced to be, 
 
 E 3 
 
 ;■'■.' 
 
54 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 h n: ■:■;, 
 
 in his day, " the only greiit thing left undone in the 
 world." 
 
 The discovery of the continent uf America, at the 
 close of the fifteenth century, onened out a wide 
 fieJd for nautical enterprise. The ilourishii;.<:;' *^rade 
 of Spain and Fortijigal hi the Indian Seas y imu- 
 lated the merchant;; of Englsind to seek a shorter 
 passage thither than that by th?- Cape of Qood 
 Hope. Hence a series of expeditions, at greater or 
 less intervals, for the discovery of a " North-West 
 l*«^fc3age to Cathaia and lands Orientall." Even 
 before the reign of Elizabeth, some attempts had 
 been made towards this object. In the time of 
 Henry VII., Sebastian Ciibot, then only twenty- 
 three years of age, considering it "a thing more 
 divine than human, to sail by the west into the 
 east, where spices do growe, felt in his heart a great 
 flame of desire to attempt some notable thing."* 
 In those days, however, so little was known of the 
 continent of America, which lay as a great barrier 
 between the shores of England and the East Indies, 
 that Cabot, after sailing " as far as the 56th degree 
 under our pole," and '* finding, to his great dis- 
 pleasure, that the land still continued " to the north, 
 
 * Shillinglaw. Narrative V. ctic Discovery. 
 
 retraced 
 Florida, si 
 which mig 
 some accoi 
 was stoppt 
 that he du 
 "the days 
 nyghte." ( 
 prevented J 
 rebellion oi 
 Scotland, 
 efforts to 
 imitate his 
 one of the j 
 countrymen 
 leave to En^ 
 this new fie 
 do Corterea 
 from Lisbon 
 next year, 
 coast of La 
 several of th 
 unknown re 
 to follow up 
 niore, Hij. 
 --s he, too, ] 
 
 W0 
 
SKETCH OP ARCTIC DISCOVERY. 
 
 55 
 
 retraced his steps to the southward, as far as 
 Florida, still hoping to come across some opening, 
 which might suit his purpose. It is mentioned, in 
 some accounts, that his progress to the northward 
 was stopped by " such coulde and heapes of yse," 
 that he durst pass no further; also, that he found 
 "the days very long, and, in a manner, without 
 nyghte." On his return to England, Cabot was 
 prevented from prosecuting his discoveries by the 
 rebellion of Perkin Warbeck, and the war with 
 Scotland. The impulse, however, given by his 
 efforts to arctic research, stirred up others to 
 imitate his example. Portugal was, at this time, 
 one of the great naval powers of Europe, and the 
 countrymen of Vasco di Gama were not likely to 
 leave to England the sole enjoyment of the fruits of 
 this new field of enterprise. Accordingly, Gaspar 
 de Cortereal, a Portuguese of high rank, sailed 
 from Lisbon in 1500, and returned to that port the 
 next year, having made his way as far as the 
 coast of Labrador, and bringing back with him 
 several of the natives, as trophies of those hitherto 
 unknown regions. He sailed again the next year 
 to follow up his discoveries, but was never heard of 
 iiiore^ His brother Michael went in search of him, 
 V s he, too, never returned. A third brother offered 
 
 E 4 
 
 
56 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 to follow, but the King Emanuel refused to permit 
 him to tempt a similar fate*, and the loss of the two 
 Cortereals will ever remain one of the impenetrable 
 mysteries of arctic story, a foretaste of that more 
 prolonged tragedy which has been witnessed by our 
 
 own generation. 
 
 Frobisher was the first Englishman who sailed in 
 command of an expedition for the discovery of a 
 North-West Passage, Cabot being of Venetian 
 extraction, though his nautical fame was gained 
 under the English flag. The first voyage of the 
 former was signalised by the discovery of the strait, 
 which bears his name, but its more immediate 
 results were singular. Among the curiosities 
 brought home by him was a piece of black stone, 
 in appearance much like ordinary sea coal. This, 
 on being thrown into the fire, and " quenched with 
 vinegar," sparkled like gold. The news soon spread, 
 like wildfire, that the " New Oountrie " was to 
 prove a mine of wealth, and two expeditions w^re 
 successively fitted out by Frobisher, for the purpose 
 of obtaining ore ; the last was oit a large scale, em- 
 bracing a scheme of settlement, which, however, 
 ended in nothing. The supposed precious metal 
 
 * Shillinglaw. Narrative of Arctic Discovery. 
 
il 
 
 SKETCH OP ARCTIC DISCOVERY. 
 
 57 
 
 seems to have been, iu reality, nothing more than 
 particles of micaceous sand, or, according to 
 another conjecture, the glistening mineral known as 
 Labrador spar. 
 
 The bursting of this glittering bubble left the 
 minds of our countrymen, once more, open to the 
 consideration of the less visionary object of Arctic 
 exploration. Repeated failures only served to 
 kindle afresh the " flame of desire " to accomplish the 
 long-sought passage between the two great oceans. 
 In the two centuries, which succeeded Erobisher's 
 last voyage, many expeditions were fitted out at the 
 public expense, and many more at the cost of 
 private individuals, who formed themselves into 
 companies for this purpose.* Among the discoveries 
 to which these gave rise, thoso of Davis, Hudson, 
 and Baffin, are most worthy of mention. The 
 latter was the first to circumnavigate the extensive 
 bay, or rather sea, which bears his name, and, to the 
 accuracy of his observations, testimony has been 
 repeatedly borne by later navigators. To him we 
 
 * The first company of merchants ever incorporated by char' /. 'i 
 England is said to be one formed in 1553. Their capital was. july 
 6000/., with which three ships were fitted out under the command o* 
 Sir Hugh Willoughby, who, with his whole ship's company, was 
 frozen to death off the coast of Lapland, in attempting to force a 
 north-east passage to India.— Quar^. Rev. viii. p. 12.^. 
 
 
 i.'^) 
 
 %• aA 
 
58 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIU W. E. PARRY. 
 
 I 
 
 11 
 
 owe the discovery of Smith's Sound, which, there is 
 now (ivery reason to believe, is the passage sepa- 
 rating Greenland from the opposite coast, thereby 
 provi'i'.: tl o truth of Burleigh's conjecture, that 
 " Cirovj'jiuade is an islande." It was Baffin, too, 
 who laid down on our charts the name of Sir James 
 Lancaster's Sound, the entrance of which remained 
 barred to Eunp?'-' enterprise for two centuries, 
 until its icy gates opened to admit the " Hecla" and 
 *' Griper" under Lieut. Parry. 
 
 In all the northern expeditions of the sixteenth 
 and seventeenth centuries, England held far the 
 most conspicuous place. At times, however, her 
 example roused the emulation of other countries to 
 enter the lists oi arctic discovery. \s early as the 
 reign of Francis I., a French squadron, undt 
 Cartier, visited the Gulf of St. Lawrence, and 
 gave the first impulse to the colonisation of Canada. 
 The Dutch, in 1594, despatched three successive 
 expeditions, undc r the ill-fated Barentz, along the 
 nortliern shores of Russia, penetrating as far as 
 Nova ./embla. The Danes, also, a nation of brave 
 seamen, in the seventeenth century, stimulated by 
 the successes of H idson and Baffin, sent out several 
 expeditions '. he same direction; all of which re- 
 sulted in dipistei and disappointment. Behring, 
 
SKETCH OF VKCTIC DISCOVERY. 
 
 59 
 
 w!io has given his nan to the strait which divides 
 the two great continents of Asia and America, was 
 also a Dane by birth ; but his discoveries were made 
 under the auspices of Russia, and owe their origin 
 to the energetic mind of Peter the Great. The 
 Empress Catherine, in sending out the expedition 
 under his command, was only following out the 
 wishes of her imperial husband, who, on his death- 
 bed, had drawn up instructions for the purpose.* 
 Behring, like Barentz, fell a victim to disease, in the 
 midst of the scene f^f all his hopes and disappoint- 
 ments, and his crew returned with difficulty to their 
 native country. 
 
 "We now come to the commencement of the 
 present century ; and here we may pause for a 
 mo'tient to see what had been done towards the dis- 
 covery of the North-West Passage. The existence 
 of a polar sea could not be doubted ; for Hearne and 
 M kenziet had viewed it from its southern shore 
 at the mouths of the Coppermine and Mackenzie 
 rivers. The western entrance of this sea had been 
 opened by Behring ; and, towards the close of the 
 last century. Captain Cook crossed its threshold, and 
 penetrated as far as Icy Cape. The eastern door 
 was entirely closed and unknown. Between the 
 
 ♦ Shillinglaw, p. 142. f I" 1772 and 1789. 
 
60 
 
 MEBiOIHS OF SIR W. E. 1 ARPY. 
 
 west shore of Baffin's Bay and Icj^' Ccpe, the chart 
 presented a blank, broken only by the headlands, 
 which marked the estuaries of the two great rivers 
 above named. 
 
 With the nineteenth century, a new era dawned 
 on arctic history. Within a space of thirty -five 
 years, from 1818 to 1853, successive expeditions 
 left our shores, each resulting in varied success, and 
 tlie contribution of much valuable scientific informa- 
 tion ; until, at length, the crew of M*Clure's ship 
 passed homeward through Lancaster Sound, having 
 entered the Polar Sea from the western side. 
 
 To the late Sir John Barrow, secretary of the 
 Admiralty, is owing the practical revival of this 
 interesting question in the minds of our countrymen. 
 He strongly urged the necessity of accomplishing 
 that discovery to which our old navigators had led 
 the way ; and of not allowing others, especially 
 Russia, " a naval power of but yesterday," to snatch 
 from Britain the honour of solving this great 
 problem. But the strongest argument urged was 
 the increased probability of success, arising from the 
 disruption of the vast fields of ice, which, for more 
 than four centuries, had blockaded the shores of Old 
 Greenland. This fact was fully attested by tlie 
 reports of whalers and others, who, while they found 
 
 ' 
 
LIFE IN THE POL.VIl RKGIONS. 
 
 01 
 
 the higher latitudes compamtivoly free from ob- 
 struction, met with icebergs and islanda of packed 
 
 ice far to the southward of their original fast- 
 nesses. 
 
 In consequence of these considerations, a plan was 
 drawn up by Sir John, then Mr. Barrow, which re- 
 sulted in orders being issued by the Admiralty, for 
 the preparation of four ships, to be appropriated to 
 the service in question, — two, for the search of a 
 passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific ; and two, 
 to proceed from the Sea of Spitzbergen towards the 
 North Pole. 
 
 Having thus briefly traced the history of former ex- 
 peditions for the discovery of a Nortli-West Passage, 
 it may be well to consider the peculiar character- 
 istics of the service on which the crews of these 
 ships were employed. 
 
 It is a strange life on which the seaman enters, 
 when once his vessel has made the ice of the 
 Northern Seas. Till that moment, the dangers he 
 has encountered have been such as his nautical 
 experience has taught him to avoid or meet; but, 
 the ice once around him, all is changed. At this 
 critical moment, when he feels that the perils of an 
 almost untried and uncertain navigation call for 
 every aid that his skill can suggest, he is, gradually, 
 
 ^il 
 
62 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 deprived of that friendly help, which he has always 
 regarded as his mainstay in the hour of need. Each 
 day, as he approaches nearer to the magnetic pole of 
 the earth, the compass becomes more sluggish, until, 
 at length, it is " thrown aside as useless lumber." * 
 The wind rises to a gale, and, instead of the rocks 
 and shoals^ which, in other seas, offer, if we may so 
 say, only a passive resistance to the sailor's course, 
 here loose frozen masses dash against the vessel's side, 
 with a violence which no skill or chart can avoid. 
 Well might the British mariner, two centuries ago, 
 be affrighted by the " very loathsome noise " f so new 
 to his ears, when an arctic navigator of our own 
 days describes it as such, that " the orders of the 
 officers and men could scarcely be heard," J as they 
 toiled through the heavily-laden breakers. 
 
 Strange too and magnificent, in approaching the 
 portals of the Northern Ocean, must be the first 
 eight of the huge floating mountains of ice, past 
 which the vessel glides, — their upper snow-capped 
 surface, of alabaster white, sparkling in the sun, and 
 contrasting with the beautiful azure of the base. 
 
 bl 
 
 pi 
 
 ♦ PaiTy's Voyages. 
 
 + Waymouth's "Voyage in 1602. Shillinglaw, p. 76. 
 J The late Admiral Bccchey's Narrative of the voyage of the 
 «« Dorothea " and " Trent," in 1818. 
 
LIFE IN THE POLAR REGIONS. 
 
 63 
 
 against which the surf is dashing.* These giants of 
 the North are, at once, the friend and foe of the ad- 
 venturous navigator. Now he courts their proximity, 
 making fast to them for security, or slowly hauling 
 past their huge sides; while, at other times, he 
 steers wide of the glistening masses, fearing lest, 
 like the fabled rocks of Grecian story, they should 
 meet and crush his frail bark, or, perchance, lose their 
 balance, and fall upon him. In this latter case, it is 
 but short warning that is given. The sound of a 
 voice, the firing of a gun, or a blow with a boat- 
 hook, is often enough to detach the loosened frag- 
 ments, and endanger the L^uilibrium of the whole. 
 Down into the sea, with a no ^ as of thunder, falls 
 the mountain, for a moment disappearing from view ; 
 then, suddenly, in the midst of a cloud of foam, 
 shooting up again into the air. For a while it rocks 
 to and fro, as if uncertain of its new position ; into 
 which, at last, it gradually subsides, while streams of 
 water pour from its surface, glistening with emerald 
 hues in the rays of the sun.f 
 
 A^arious and fantastic are the forms assumed by 
 these mountains of ice, to deceive or amuse the 
 sailor. At whiles, the cry of " a sail " startles him, 
 
 * See account of Parry, Scorcsby, and others. 
 
 t Journal d'un Voyage aux ISIcrs Polaires, par J. K. Bellot. 
 
64 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARUY. 
 
 and, half doubting, half hopeful, he prepares his 
 packet of home letters, all to no purpose. Again, 
 his fancy spreads before him, gorgeous in tints of 
 gold and emerald, a palace not unworthy of fairy- 
 land, with crystal colonnades, and diamond- studded 
 gates, — or, once more, it is a huge pavilion that 
 meets his eye, from whose entrance he almost expects 
 some uncouth form to issue, to do the honours of 
 the North, and welcome the strangers to his frozen 
 abode.* 
 
 In these regions all is rude and colossal. The 
 huge ice-mountain, itself hundreds of feet in height, 
 is but a small fragment of a vast glacier on the shore, 
 extending often for two or three miles inland. I'he 
 separation of the berg from its parent field has been 
 described by an eye-witness of the avalanchi . 
 
 " This occurred on a remarkably fine day, when 
 the stillness of the bay was first interrupted by the 
 noise c" the falling body. We had approached one 
 of these atupendous walls of ice, and were endea- 
 vouring to search into the innermost recesses of a deep 
 cavern near the foot of the glacier, when we heard 
 a report, as of a cannon, and, turning to the quarter 
 from whence it proceeded, we perceived an immense 
 
 • Journal d'un Voyage aux Mers Polaires, par J. R. Bellot. 
 
LIFE IN THE POLAR REGIONS. 
 
 65 
 
 ', of the front of the bers;, sliding down from the 
 
 'o» 
 
 piece 
 
 height of 200 feet, at least, into the sea, and dis- 
 persing the water in every direction, accompanied 
 by a loud grinding noise, followed by a quantity of 
 Nvater, which, being previously lodged in fissures, 
 now made its escape in numberless small cataracts 
 over the front of the glacitr." * 
 
 AH in keeping too with the scene are the wonders 
 of animated nature. Here, spouting the water from 
 his nostrils, a whale lies basking on the surface of 
 the sea, until, alarmed by the unwonted intrusion 
 on his solitude, he suddenly dives head foremost, 
 lashing the water into foam with his broad-forked 
 tail. There, the scene will be diversified by a 
 walrus, formidable with its huge tusks and ponderous 
 bulk, reclining leisurely on the brink of the ice, or 
 moving sedately about in one of the pools of water. 
 A little further on, a seal is lying in wait at the 
 edge of a hole, watching his opportunity to dive 
 after a fish ; while above, on a ledge of the berg, or 
 rock, a great white bear, himseiC on the look out for 
 the seal, alarmed by the dip of oars, or the strange 
 [sound of human voices, plun^^es head foremost into 
 the sea, over a precipice many feet in height. Should 
 
 * Beechey's Narrative. 
 

 6«^ 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 his visitors be at leisure for a chase, he is not let off 
 thus easily; and the excitement of a bear-hunt is 
 usually too attractive for the opportunity to be al- 
 lowed to slip. 
 
 The eye of the mariner is now directed upwards, 
 and here Nature seems, in a manner, to change her 
 course, and work signs and wonders in the heaven 
 over head. Now, the sun appears no longer circular, 
 but of an oval form, — or, perhaps, there is no longer 
 one sun in the sky, but two suns mock his won- 
 dering gaze ; and, in like manner, at night, two moons 
 shed their silvery beams on the glistenmg icebergs, 
 past which the vessel glides in her phantom-like 
 course.* Again, the whole of one quarter of the 
 heavens is illuminated with golden rays, dimming the 
 radiance of moon and stars, while flickering shafts of 
 light shoot swiftly upwards to the zenith. The 
 ignorant native of these frozen shores, when he sees 
 these glittering portents, cries aloud to his comrades, 
 that " the spirits of the air are rushing by." The 
 wiser British seaman gazes in scarce less wonder at 
 the sight, but he knows that he is nigh the " birth- 
 place of the Aurora Borealis." f 
 
 Onward speeds the ship,- -but now the ice gathers 
 
 * Parry's Voyages, Bellot's Journal, &c. 
 t Quarterly Review, xviii, p. 492. 
 
 closer, anc 
 and more 
 is entirely 
 where a v( 
 for scores, 
 of extricati 
 high and d: 
 again dash 
 groaning, a 
 The skill < 
 Beechev re] 
 ship was so 
 heaviest gal 
 
 tolled so C( 
 
 muffled, for 
 associations 
 when the pe 
 reality, most 
 two ships, a 
 I ill closely-pac 
 
LIFE IN THE POLAR REGIONS. 
 
 67 
 
 closer, and her situation becomes, each hour, more 
 and more perilous. Once caught in the " pack," she 
 is entirely at its mercy. Instances have been known, 
 where a vessel has drifted, helplessly and hopelessly, 
 for scores, nay, hundreds of miles, without possibility 
 of extrication.* At times, she is violently heaved up, 
 high and dry, above the surface of the ice, and then 
 again dashed down into the hollows, her timbers 
 groaning, and her masts quivering with the shock. 
 The skill of the seaman is of no avail. Admiral 
 Beechev relates that, in one case, " the motion of the 
 ship was so great, that the ship's bell, which, in the 
 heaviest gale of wind, had never struck of itself, now 
 tolled so continually, that it was ordered to be 
 muffled, for the purpose of escaping the unpleasant 
 associations it was calculated to excite." Often 
 when the perilous crisis seems furthest off, it is, ^n 
 reality, most imminent. On the 2l8t August, 1853, 
 two ships, a steamer and a transport, were drifting, 
 I in closely-packed ice, at the entrance of Wellington 
 
 t- 
 
 * The American searching expedition under Lieut, de Haven, 
 
 lin 1851, was carried, in this way, from the mouth of Wellington 
 
 IChaimel, through Lancaster Sound, some way down Baffin's Bay, 
 
 JTlic "Resolute," abandoned in 1853, a little to the south-east of 
 
 Melville Island, was afterwards found in Davis Straits, having 
 
 iriftcd a distance of about 1200 miles. Sir James Clarke Ro£;.i, in 
 
 1849, drifted, in the pack-ice, from Leopold Island to Pond's Bay. 
 
 pbout 300 miles. 
 
 F 2 
 
68 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 Channel. There was scarcely any wind, and none 
 dreamed of danger close at hand. All at once, the 
 watch on board the transport were alarmed, by the 
 sudden and unaccountable closing in of the ice 
 around them. There was not even time to give 
 notice to the sleepers in the hammocks below, when 
 they were awakened by the fearful sound of the ice 
 crashing in at the bows. In less than fifteen 
 minutes from the first alarm, the " Breadalbane " 
 v/as crushed, and engulfed in the heaving ice, her 
 crew having only just time to escape with their 
 lives.* The spectators of the catastrophe, from the 
 deck of the " Phoenix," scarcely knew that anything 
 unusual had occurred, when the transport sank 
 before their eyes, her pendant fluttering in the 
 breeze, as she vanished from their view. 
 
 But, for the present, let us suppose these dangers 
 to have been avoided, and that the long arctic 
 winter is now fast approaching. As the brief 
 summer draws to a close, the vessel, still slowly 
 advancing through the intervals of open water, is 
 gradually arrested in her course by the rapid forma- 
 tion of the " young ice " on the surface. Often, 
 with all sails set, and a fair breeze astern, she 
 
 remains 
 
 Gulliver, 
 
 antagonis 
 
 convenier 
 
 union jad 
 
 few hours 
 
 the uppe: 
 
 prospect 
 
 helpless c 
 
 still shorte 
 
 hues of g( 
 
 attend the 
 
 sunf, as t 
 
 of darkness 
 
 the masthe 
 
 The drearj 
 
 Day after c 
 
 vessel atte 
 
 Before mai 
 
 tube, the b 
 
 vinegar are 
 
 Beyond 
 cheer the a 
 calm weath 
 
 Sir Edward Belcher's Despatches, 1853. 
 
 t 
 
 
LIFE IN THE POLAR REGIONS, 
 
 remains motionless, reminding the baffled crew of 
 Gulliver, helpless in the toils of his Lilliputian 
 antagonists.* The warning is not slighted, and a 
 convenient spot is selected for winter quarters. The 
 union jack is hoisted on shore, and the ship is, in a 
 few hours, firmly frozen in, her topmasts struck, and 
 the upper deck securely housed over, with the 
 prospect of well nigh three quarters of a year of 
 helpless durance in her icy fetters. Shorter, and 
 still shorter, grows the scanty daylight. Magnificent 
 hues of gold, purple, and crimson, in the clear sky, 
 attend the rising and setting of the slowly departing 
 sunt, as though to compensate for the long period 
 of darkness now so near at hand. At length, from 
 the masthead, his orb is seen to set for the last time. 
 The dreary, sunless night of three months has begun. 
 Day after day, the cracking timbers of the imprisoned 
 vessel attest the gradual descent of the mercury. 
 Before many days the mercury itself is frozen in the 
 tube, the beer refui^es to ferment, and the spirits and 
 vinegar are congealed into a solid mass in the cask,$ 
 Beyond the shelter of the vessel, there is little to 
 cheer the already sufficiently depressed spirits. In 
 calm weather, it is possible to stir abroad without 
 
 * Parry's Voyages, 
 t lb. 
 
 t lb. 
 
 f 3 
 
 t 
 
 1 
 
 • 
 
a 
 
 1 Ml 
 
 '! 
 
 '■"■■■'1 
 
 70 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 any serious inconvenience. But there is not much 
 to tempt one outside. With the exception of a few 
 gaunt wolves, whose hungry howl is constantly 
 heard near the ships, and the little Arctic fox, in his 
 winter coat of snowy white, the animals, which 
 might have lured the hunter to the chase, have left 
 the bleak inhospitable coast for a more genial 
 southern region. To seaward, all that meets the 
 wearied eye is one monotonous surface of ice, un- 
 broken, save by a few "hummocks" thrown up, 
 here and there, above the general level, — while the 
 shore presents one waste of dazzling snow. When 
 the snowdrift is stirred by the wind, exposure, as 
 in the ** tourmente " of the Alps, becomes almost 
 certain death. If the imprudent straggler at length 
 succeeds in making his way back, his looks are wild, 
 his words indistinct and rambling, like those of a 
 drunken man, and he is fortunate, if he escape with 
 the loss of his frostbitten fingers, stiffened to the 
 shape of the musket stock, or staff, which he carries 
 in hi J hand.* For the use of those who venture to 
 a distance from the ship, finger-posts are planted on 
 neighbouring heights, pointing towards the winter 
 quarters. But the strange refracting power of the 
 
 * Parry's Voyages. 
 
LIFE IN THE POLAR REGIONS. 
 
 71 
 
 atmosphere is a constant source of deception. To 
 guide his stepy in the waste, the traveller singles out 
 with his eye t V it he conceives to be a lofty rock, at 
 some distance, but, after a few paces, stumbles over a 
 small stone in his path. A bear, to all appearance 
 is descried, watching the ship with hungry eyes from 
 the top of a clifF. A party is hastily formed, who arm 
 themselves with guns and pikes, and sally forth for 
 the chase, dividing into two bands to cut off Bruin's 
 retreat. Meanwhile the animal decamps, and all 
 marvel at the unwonted agility of the unwieldy 
 monster. But the mystery is soon solved. A sailor 
 pursues, and, in a few minute^, returns, holding in his 
 hand a small Arctic fox, the real object of all these 
 alarming preparations.* 
 
 But even a Polar winter has, at last, an end. A 
 seaman climbs a hill, and reports that he has actually 
 seen the sun, whose beams, jre many days, once 
 more fall on the housings of the imprisoned ship 
 His orb is yet, in reality, below the horizon, and his 
 first appearance is owing to refraction, but it is 
 enough, — the long night is over, and the hearts of 
 all are gladdened. It is long before his rays gain 
 any power, but, when this is once the case, the scene 
 
 ♦ Bellot's Journal. 
 F 4 
 
\}fd 
 
 m 
 
 72 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. VARllY. 
 
 chanjrea rapidly. The snow vanifahes from the ground, 
 giving place to beds of the ^^arlet poppy, and the 
 purple saxifrage, while the constant and cheerful 
 note of the snow-bunting, the " redbreast of the 
 North," resounding on all sides, reminds his listeners 
 of a brighter country, the fields and hedge-rows of 
 home. Now the reindeer return to their haunts, 
 and the fox is found with his white winter-fur already 
 speckled with grey. Herds of musk oxen frolic, 
 with awkward gambols, in tl>o midst of luxuriant 
 mossy pastures, which almost present the appearance 
 of a pleasant English meadow.* On land. Nature has 
 already burst her chains, but the ice in the harbour 
 of refuge is still many feet thick. The thaw, how- 
 ever, is telling each hour, and the loud reports of the 
 parting masses, every now and then, announce its 
 steady progress. The brief summer is already half 
 over, ere the saw anc^ blasting cylinder have done 
 their work ; — but, at length, the ship glides from her 
 prison, at first slowly and half doubtfully, as though 
 cramped by long confinement, and then, as the 
 channel widens, more confidently. Her crew take a 
 last look, scarcdy a regretful one, at the well-known | 
 cliffs marking the boundaries of their captivity. 
 
 * Parry's Voyages, Bellot's Journal, &c. 
 
 Three cli 
 Icy Cape 
 more, on 
 Arctic na 
 Such i 
 features, i 
 
LIFE IN THE POLAR REGIONS. 
 
 T» 
 
 Three cheers for Old England, and three more for 
 Icy Cape, or Lancaster Sound, and they are, once 
 more, on their way, and all the hopes and fears of 
 Arctic navigation have again ''prung into life. 
 
 Such is a Polar winter, and such, in its main 
 features, is life within .he ' * circle. 
 

 IMAGE EVALUATION 
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.74 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 
 .Of:' «^in" ':;<"'?•■ 
 
 ■ ■•' -'-■f ti!:--',";(v4 .isr^f i-t; 
 
 :>i- -4^ ,M^SJ;rr 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 .-, ./f. rf.: 
 
 the " alexander " pitted out at deptford. — lieut, 
 franklin. — sailing of the expedition under ross. 
 — Baffin's bat. — Lancaster sound and croeer 
 
 MOUNTAINS. — ^return TO ENGLAND. — ^PARRT APPOINTED 
 TO THE COMMAND OF A NEW EXPEDITION. , 
 
 i 
 
 Of the two expeditions^ fitted out in the year 1818, 
 for the purpose of Arctic discovery, that, consisting 
 of the " Isabella" and " Alexander," with which 
 Parry was connected, was intended, as we have seen 
 in the preceding chapter, to explore Baffin's Bay, 
 and to seek an opening in the same quarter, where 
 former explorers had failed ; while the " Dorothea " 
 and " Trent," under Captain Buchan, were to take 
 the bolder course of steering for Behring's Straits 
 across the North Pole itself. 
 
 The second in command of this latter expedition 
 was Lieut. Franklin, Parry's acquaintance with 
 whom dates from this period, when both were 
 engaged in fitting out their respective vessels at 
 Deptford. Franklin, in age four years his senior, 
 
 PI 
 
 if 
 m 
 
 hi 
 
1818.] 
 
 ]uIEUT£NANT FBANKLIN; 
 
 75 
 
 had earned considerable distinction in the late war, 
 and both were now about to make their entry on 
 the stage of Arctic enterprise, with which their 
 names were to be for ever associated. The ac- 
 qu^ntance, thus commenced, afterwards ripened into 
 the unbroken friendship of two kindred natures, 
 for nearly forty years. "When the fate of the 
 " Erebus " was yet uncertain, none felt more keenly 
 than Sir Edward Parry the torturing anxieties of 
 prolonged suspense. To use his own words, his lost 
 friend was in "his sleeping as well as his waking 
 thoughts,'' and, among his own most treasured me- 
 morials, was found one paper, with the touching 
 endorsement, — "Dear Franklin's last letter to me, 
 July 10th, 1845." He thus records his first im- 
 pression of his friend's character. "With Lieut. 
 Franklin I have had a good deal of conversation, 
 and I think him the most clever man of our 
 cloth, as far as I can yet judge, with whom I 
 have conversed for some time." 
 
 Lieut. Parry, now for the first time in command 
 of a vessel, set himself diligently to the task of 
 gaining information upon subjects more immediately 
 connected with the peculiar service to which he 
 had been chosen. In this he was aided by the 
 kindness of many influential friends. An intro- 
 
 :i,.!:V 
 
 >i 
 
 .) 
 
 m vt 
 

 y "i 
 
 16 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 duction to Sir Joseph Banks was followed by an 
 invitation to make free use of his library, a liberty 
 of which the young officer gratefully availed him- 
 self. " Sir Joseph*s invitations," he wrote, ** are 
 not like those of fashionable life, but are given 
 from a real desire to do everything which can, in 
 the smallest degree, tend to the advancement of 
 every branch of science." 
 
 Of the continued kindness of his warm friend and 
 patron, the secretary of the Admiralty, he also 
 writes : — 
 
 " I called upon Mr. Barrow, who immediately sent for 
 me, and shook hands like a twenty years' acquaintance, 
 and conversed with me, for half an hour, upon the North- 
 West Passage, islands of ice, bears, Baffins, Hudsons, &c. 
 I mentioned to him having seen, while coming from 
 America last April, islands of ice in a low latitude, at 
 which he caught, as an additi« confirmation of the 
 reported breaking up of that boay to the northward, and 
 desired me to give him a full account of the situation in 
 which I saw them." 
 
 His time was now spent chiefly at Deptford, where 
 no pains wore spared in rendering the ships as strong 
 as wood and iron could make them, for encountering 
 the pressure of the ice, and in providing for the 
 comfort of officers and men. 
 
 "Everybody," he writes, "is desirous to anticipate 
 , our wishes in this respect, from the highest to the lowest 
 
1818.] 
 
 DEATH OF HIS SISTER. 
 
 77 
 
 that are employed in our equipment I do not 
 
 mind telling you that the " Alexander " has obtained, 
 among the officers, the name of the " Yacht," from the 
 very superior accommodations we have to those of the 
 other ships. Indeed, I never saw anything more snug and 
 comfortable ; but this circumstance should not be men- 
 tioned, as people might fancy I gave myself the credit of 
 it, whereas the truth is, that, during the progress of our 
 equipment, the officers of the dockyard, the principal of 
 whom I knew before, have attended to my wishes in 
 everything, an advantage the others could not possibly 
 have." » 
 
 In the midst of these active preparations, he re- 
 ceived tidings of the death of his beloved sister, 
 Lady Eardley Wilmpt. The tidings affected him 
 deeply, but he did not suffer these feelings to in- 
 terfere with a vigorous attention to his more im- 
 mediate duties, as will be seen from the following : — 
 
 "Deptford, March, 1818. 
 " My dearest Parents, 
 
 " If it were not that I knew you would expect a 
 
 letter from me to-morrow, I should have been tempted 
 
 to tear up that which I despatched to-day, and which 
 
 was, literally, written chiefly upon a cask, while our men 
 
 were at dinner. After the most busy day that I think I 
 
 ever passed in my life, how happy am I to be able to sit 
 
 * The "Alexander" was fitted out in the Dockyard, and the 
 other ships in Merchant Docks. 
 
 rrs 
 
78 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 down quietly in my lodgings, to attempt to answer the 
 many anxious inquiries you have lately made respecting 
 our expedition ! I consider it to be our business to collect 
 materials, and to preserve those materials in as perfect a 
 state as possible, for the examination of scientific men 
 when we retnrn ; noting down the * habitat,' a precaution 
 I remember my dear father to have given me some years 
 ago. I shall let nothing escape me that comes within 
 my reach, and I hope to be able to produce, on our 
 return, a tolerable collection for the learned to work 
 upon. I will take care to procure everything mineral, or 
 fossil, that I meet with. My hammer stick, which has 
 been much admired, is hanging up in my cabin, and will, 
 I hope, bp often brought into use during the summer. 
 Indeed, I shall never go on shore without it, for it will 
 be useful as a weapon, as well as in the other way. 
 
 " The observations upon the magnet will form one of 
 the most interesting objects of the expedition. A variety 
 of compasses are prepared for us, and great expectations 
 are formed of the results we are likely to obtain in high 
 northern latitudes. The connexion observed, in many 
 instances, between magnetism and electricity, and between 
 these and the Aurora Borealis, is very curious, and it 
 is expected, that the observations we shall be enabled to 
 make may throw considerable light upon it. There are 
 great speculations on foot, as to what effect may be 
 anticipated upon our compasses, when we approach the 
 Magnetic Pole. 
 
 " You will easily believe how deeply I felt the conclu- 
 ding page of my dearest father's letter. Whether it 
 shall please God, that I am ever, in this world, to have 
 
 "V 
 
1818.] 
 
 SUNDAY AND DIVINE SERVICE. 
 
 79 
 
 the happiness of seeing you again, is at the disposal 
 of Him, who * doeth all things well.' " 
 
 The interest, excited in the public mind by the 
 contemplated expedition, had attracted large crowds 
 of visitors to Deptford, and the decks were thronged 
 with sight-seers from morning till night. When the 
 ships dropped down to Woolwich, he says, " We have 
 the 'Alexander' to ourselves, for the first time since 
 she was put into commission." 
 
 On the first Sunday of the voyage, the "Alexan- 
 der's" ship's company were mustered, in the gun- 
 room, for Divine Service, a duty never omitted, 
 except in cases of urgent necessity. 
 
 "Seamen," he writes, "with all their imperfections 
 on their heads, are certainly a very attentive congrega- 
 tion. It may be said, in opposition to this, that, in a 
 man-of-war, they are afraid to be otherwise, but the 
 * Alexander ' is not yet enough a man-of-war to pro- 
 duce attention by any such means ; and I never saw 
 a more orderly congregation than that to which I 
 read prayers to-day. Nothing could be more satis- 
 factory and creditable than the attention of my men. 
 It really was delightful, and, you may depend upon it, 
 that nothing but very bad weather shall prevent my 
 constantly attending to it. If it edifies one man only of 
 my crew, it cannot be said to be of no avail, but I am 
 sure it will do more. At all events, I am doing a duty. 
 Let us trust with implicit confidence in that God, whose 
 eye is everywhere, and whose mercy and beneficence 
 
80 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 // 
 
 are equally conspicuous, whether we traverse the frozen 
 regions of the north, or bask in tho sunshine of our 
 native plains." 
 
 On the 3rd of May, the shores of Shetland were 
 left behind, and, on the 26th, they rounded Cape 
 Farewell, the southernmost point of Greenland, 
 passing, however, at a considerable distance to 
 the southward of it. The sailing qualities of the 
 two vessels, which had appeared nearly the same 
 on the passage from the Nore to Lerwick, were 
 now proved to be very unequal. The sluggishness 
 of the "Alexander " was a continual source of regret 
 to Parry, not merely from his natural eagerness 
 to press onward towards the field of discovery, but 
 because his ship was unable, like her consort, to 
 spare the time for heaving to, occasionally, for the 
 purpose of obtaining soundings, and making observa- 
 tions on the direction of currents, &c. 
 
 In a polar voyage, the sight of the first iceberg is 
 an event of some interest, and, on the same day that 
 they rounded Cape Farewell, they passed a berg at 
 the distance of a few miles. The lively imagination 
 of the " Isabella's " crew traced, in its fantastic peaks, 
 some resemblance to the Lion and the Unicorn of 
 the Royal arms, which was, at once, interpreted as an 
 omen of good luck. A few days later, the ice of 
 
1818.] 
 
 DESCRIPTION OF SCENERY. 
 
 ai 
 
 erg 18 
 that 
 
 jrg at 
 
 ation 
 
 eaks, 
 
 »rn of 
 
 as an 
 
 flce of 
 
 Davie' Strait was fairly entered, and the ships, at 
 times, completely stopped. " The masses, or lumps 
 of ice," Parry writes, " sometimes resemble the huge 
 piles of stone at Stonehenge, two upright pieces 
 supporting a third placed horizontally upon them." 
 
 Whenever advance was rendered impossible by 
 the state of the ice, the delay was turned to account, 
 for the purpose of making observations. The usual 
 practice was to make the ships fast to one of the 
 many icebergs in the neighbourhood, which was 
 then converted into a site for the temporary obser- 
 vatory. The strange character of the scene, which 
 met the eye at these times, was as though one had 
 entered on a new world. 
 
 "The magnificence of the view is far beyond any 
 description I can give of it. One half of the horizon, 
 that to the eastward, was occupied by the bleak hills of 
 Greenland, and some of its islands not more than two 
 miles from us. Within a few miles all round us, the 
 water was clear ; but the whole of the western jl Jiilaon, 
 from land round to land, was covered with innumerable 
 masses of ice, packed close together. Here and there, a 
 tremendous berg appeared, each assuming some peculiar 
 fantastic shape. If the scene around were grand, that 
 upon the iceberg was not less interesting. In one part, was 
 to be seen a group attentively employed in making the 
 requisite observations ; in another, a party of sportsmen, 
 firing at the numerous loons, mallemukes, kittewakes, 
 
 G 
 
 f 
 
82 
 
 MEMOTRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 '4 '^ 
 
 &c. Below, were the boats taking ice on board for 
 water ; here and there, a sailor or two amusing themselves 
 in sliding down from the top of the ice to the valley 
 below. The whole scene was extremely interesting and 
 novel. We were employed in executing some of the 
 most important objects of our mission, and this, alone, 
 would have made it delightful." * 
 
 On one occasion, while waiting for the sun to 
 break through the overhanging veil of mist, tho 
 interval was employed by the officers in a mock 
 fight with snow-balls. 
 
 " Some who had gained the summit of the berg, on 
 which they could only just manage to sit, as upon a 
 saddle, looking down an almost perpendicular cliff, 
 perhaps 90 or 100 feet high, into the sea, on the opposite 
 side to that which they had mounted, thought proper 
 to pelt with snow those who had not been so bold, or so 
 quick in ascending. A sharp conflict ensued, the assail- 
 ants returning the fire, as they continued to mount, till, 
 at length, the summit was gained by all, and a truce pro- 
 claimed by both parties. These are trifling incidents, 
 and may, perhaps, be considered by some as unworthy a 
 place in a journal of this kind ; but, to one who witnessed 
 the scene, and reflected on it, on the spot, it could not 
 but induce some pleasing considerations. To see the 
 officers of both ships joining, with the utmost good 
 humour, in such amusements, was a pleasing proof of 
 the good understanding that existed between us, ftnd the 
 
 * Lieut. Parry's Journal. 
 
 fii . 
 
 ' '! 1 
 
1818.] 
 
 VISIT FROM ESQUIMAUX. 
 
 83 
 
 cheerfulness that animated all ; and one could not help 
 going a step farther, to consider that the same unanimity 
 which prevailed among us, in partaking of that relaxation 
 which our duty allowed us, might also be expected to 
 extend itself to thB most hearty co-operation, whenever 
 those difficulties should arise, which we have a right to 
 anticipate in the execution of the great object of our 
 
 mission 
 
 n 
 
 At Waygat Island, they fell in with a large fleet of 
 whalers, waiting for the ice to open to the northward. 
 
 ''Here, a proud sight to an Englishman presented 
 itself to our view ; for our surprise may, perhaps in 
 some degree, be imagined, when, on opening the land of 
 this island, as we ran along it, we saw a fleet of between 
 twenty and thirty sail of British ships at anchor, giving to 
 this frozen and desolate region the appearance of a flou- 
 rishing sea-port of some great European nation. Every 
 ship cheered us as we passed, and our men returned it." 
 
 While detained at Waygat Island, some Esqui- 
 maux came on board. John Sackhouse, the inter- 
 preter, or " Jack," as he was commonly called, acted 
 as master of the ceremonies on the occasion, and 
 Scotch reels were danced on deck, to the merry 
 strains of a Shetland fiddler. The likenesses of some 
 of the party were taken, and they seemed much 
 pleased on being shown the drawings. The behaviour 
 and manners of these poor people were very pleasing, 
 
 o 2 
 
 
 ''", \ ; 
 
 *■ i 
 
 
 f; • 
 
 
 p ■ 
 
 y 
 
 
 ^m 
 
84 
 
 MEMOIRS OT SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 J/ 
 
 and do high credit to the Danish missionaries residing 
 amonsT them. Some traits of their character deserve 
 to be recorded. Captain Ross, wishing to have some 
 of their dogs, desired they might be brought, in 
 return for which he promised to give them some 
 guns, powder, and shot, which they value highly for 
 killing game. 
 
 " To this they willingly agreed ; but, when they were 
 told they might take the guns with them Iherif and bring 
 the dogs to-morrow, they would not listen, but faithfully 
 brought the dogs the next day, and received their equi- 
 valent I believe this trait of honesty to be, entirely, the 
 effect of the instruction they have received from their 
 pastors, for every history of Greenland agrees in stating 
 that, though they are honest among themselves, they 
 think it no harm to cheat Europeans." 
 
 The ice, at length, began to separate, and, a breeze 
 having sprung up, preparations were once more made 
 to advance. Jack, however, was missing. He had 
 escorted his countrymen on shore, and had not yet 
 returned. A boat was sent in search of him, and 
 the poor fellow was found in one of the huts, with 
 his collar-bone broken. The accident had been 
 caused by the recoil of his gun, which he had over- 
 loaded on the strength of his own maxim, " Plenty 
 powder, plenty kill." 
 
 The ships now advanced slowly along the coast of 
 
 ^rr * 
 
1818.] 
 
 PROORESS OF SHIPS IMPEDED. 
 
 85 
 
 Greenland. Independently of the many tedious 
 stoppages caused by the closing of the ice, they were 
 continually delayed by the slow progress of the 
 " Alexander." The motion of the ice was so constant 
 and rapid, that a passage, through which the ** Isa- 
 bella " had passed, was often closed before her consort 
 came up in time to take advantage of the same 
 opening. When the wind failed, the ships were 
 towed by the boats, or " tracked " along the edge of 
 the floe, and the services of the ** Isabella's " fiddler 
 were again called into requisition, to play to the men 
 as they walked along. Nor was this species of navi- 
 gation less dangerous than tedious. One of the 
 whalers, which still accompanied them, was crushed 
 between two moving floes, and the crew barely 
 escaped with their lives. The ships, selected for the 
 expedition, had been built so strongly, that they 
 escaped unhurt from the pressure, which would have 
 stove in a weaker vessel. As it was, the violence 
 of these repeated shocks was such, that the whole 
 frame of the vessel trembled from stem to stern. 
 " We ought not," Lieut. Parry writes in his journal, 
 " to complain of the * Alexander's ' sailing, while she 
 stands these squeezes so well, for it would not be 
 easy to make a ship sail, even tolerably, with so 
 much additional timber in her." 
 
 G 3 
 
86 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. FARRT. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 On the 3l8t of July, in lat. 70° 33', a number of 
 whales were seen in all directions, and the boats, 
 being sent in pursuit, succeeded in killing one above 
 46 feet in length. On the same day, they parted 
 from the last whaler, the " Bon Accord/* of Aberdeen, 
 with three hearty cheers. The "Isabella** and 
 *' Alexander '* had now fairly entered the field of 
 discovery, and were left to pursue their course alone, 
 along a coast unvisited by any European since the 
 days of Baffin. The hopes of ultimate success, 
 entertained by Lieut. Parry himself, will be seen 
 from one of the last letters written by him, just 
 before parting with the whalers. 
 
 " H. M. S. • Alexander,' July 25. 
 « Davis' Straits. Lat. 75° 30', N. 
 " My dearest Parents, 
 
 " The Greenland ships having, at length, in this 
 latitude, found a plentiful harvest of whales, which are 
 now 'blowing' about us in all directions, the ice being open 
 for us to the northward, it is probable that we may here 
 leave them. In regard to our advance to the northward, 
 it may be eaid that the season has been just like any other ; 
 for the whimsicalities (as I cannot help calling them) of 
 the ice are such, that it is impossible to say, from the 
 appearance of the fields of it at one moment, how it will 
 be in ten minutes afterwards, so suddenly, and ap- 
 parently without any cause, does it sometimes open, 
 when it could bo least expected. There is one great 
 
1818.] PROSPECT OP ADVANCING NORTHWARDS. 87 
 
 reason, however, for thinking that we shall do wonders 
 in the next two months ; all the masters of the Green- 
 land ships allow that, at this very time, when their 
 business is finished in these parts, the most favourable 
 opportunities of getting on to the northward occur, and 
 they all look upon it as a business of little or no diffi- 
 culty. At this season the ice is very rapidly dissolving. 
 Every field is covered with innumerable pondSf or pools 
 of water, which are increasing in size, every moment, 
 from the warmth of the air, which is that of a spring 
 day in England. There is no doubt of our getting much 
 farther than any Europeans ever have been before, and 
 the general opinion amo ig us is (though it should not 
 be publicly expressed), that we shall winter very com- 
 fortably, somewhere on the coast of North America, i. e., 
 —if Baffin's Bay be a bay,— on the west coast of it. On 
 examining Baffin's own account very narrowly, how- 
 ever, we incline to the opinion, that, however, he might 
 have intended to imply that he saw the land all round 
 the north side of this bay, he has never said so. 
 
 "I enclose a paper upon the subject of magnetism, 
 which is a copy of duplicate letters I have written to Mr. 
 Barrow. This is a subject, which has, of late, proved 
 very interesting Since I wrote that letter, the varia- 
 tion of the compass has increased to 89°, so that the 
 North Pole of the needle now points nearly due 
 west! The dip of the needle is about 84° 40'. As the 
 needle is supposed to direct itself constantly to the mag- 
 netic pole, it follows that this pole must now be west of 
 us ; and, as the dip is not far from 90°, it follows, also, 
 
 G 4 
 
 .yji. 
 
 •il^ 
 
88 
 
 MEMOJRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 that it must be placed somewhere not very far from us 
 in that direction. The greatest variation observed by 
 Baffin here, 200 years ago (and the greatest, as he says, 
 in the world), was 56°, so that an amazing increase has 
 taken place during that interval. I have remarked to 
 you, in a former letter, two or three facts relating to 
 Baffin's journal, which prove his accuracy, as far as we 
 have yet gone, beyond any doubt. 
 
 "How delightful, my dearest parents, is this occupation 
 of mine ! J£ I could know that those whom I love most 
 dearly in England are well, I should not have a wish 
 ungratified. You know that God's mercy and protection 
 are not confined to one particular quarter of the globe 
 He has created, but that they are equally extended to 
 all. The dangers of the service on which I am engaged 
 (I mean danger as estimated by our short-sightedness) 
 are, in reality, nothing, unless sailing in the smoothest 
 water, and the finest climate, can be so considered. You 
 would be delighted to see our * two or three gathered 
 together ' in our little 'ihurch every Sunday, which the 
 men like very much, and which the service has only 
 prevented one or two Sundays since we left the Nore. 
 I keep a very regular journal of every occurrence, which 
 I never suffer to go one day behind, but put down each 
 circumstance as it happens. I think I never enjoyed 
 such uninterrupted and excellent health in my life as at 
 present. Adieu ! Let us trust firmly and uniformly in 
 God, and that He may ever bless you all, prays your 
 ever affectionate 
 
 "W.E. Parry." 
 
1818.] 
 
 PERILS FROM THE lOE. 
 
 89 
 
 A few d. ;» after leaving the fishing-grounds, the 
 two ships, becoming entangled in the ice, fell foul of 
 one another with a terrible crash. The strength of 
 their timbers was such, that they escaped without 
 material damage, but spars, rigging, and boats, were 
 literally torn to pieces. This danger, however, was 
 trifling in comparison with what followed. The floe, 
 to which the ships had been moored after the last 
 disaster, was found to be drifting towards some 
 stranded bergs, and all hands were set to work to 
 cut a dock *, for the security of the vessels in case of 
 a collision. The ice proved too thick for the saws to 
 make sufficiently rapid progress, and, as the next 
 resource, the ships were warped, with considerable 
 difficulty, along the edge of the floe to some dis- 
 tance. Hardly was this done, when the very part 
 of the floe, where the dock had been commenced, 
 came in contact with the berg with such violence, as 
 to be forced some fifty feet up its steep side, and 
 the broken fragments fell back on the ice with a loud 
 crash. Had the ships been docked there, they must 
 have been crushed to atoms, and no human strength 
 and skill could have saved them. 
 
 * To " cut a dock " is to saw out a hole in the edge of a floe, large 
 enough to contain the ship. The use of it is to secure the ship from 
 being " nipped " by the sudden advance of another floe. 
 
 n -il 
 
it 
 
 90 
 
 MEMOIBS OF BIB W, B. PABBT. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 On the 8th of Auguat, a landing was made on a 
 email island, about six miles from the mainland. 
 Here were some piles of stones, such as are commonly 
 found in the Esquimaux burial-grounds. The next 
 day, some of the natives were seen advancing rapidly 
 along the ice, in their sledges, towards the ships. 
 After some hesitation, they were induced by Sack- 
 house to venture on board, and great was their 
 astonishment at all that met their eyes. This tribe, 
 it seems, had never before had any communication 
 with Europeans, and, though their language was a 
 dialect of that spoken by Sackhouse and his country- 
 men of South Greenland, they appear to have been 
 cut off from all contact with their southern bre- 
 thren. Unlike the other tribes of the Esquimaux 
 race, they possessed no canoes, and the very name of 
 " Kajak " was unknown to them. Like Monte- 
 zuma's Mexicans before Cortes, they spoke of the 
 ships as living creatures, and mistook the movement 
 of the sails for the flapping of wings. " What great 
 creatures are these ? " they cried, " Do they come 
 from the sun or moon ?/* During several days, 
 while the ships were detained by the state of the ice, 
 they received several visits from their new friends; 
 but, at length, the wnnd opened a passage in the 
 barrier, and the water beyond was found tolerably 
 
U !< 
 
 1618.] 
 
 LANCASTER SOUND. 
 
 91 
 
 clear of ice. Some spray, which now, once more, 
 fell on the forecastle, was hailed as a pleasing 
 Doyelty, when the ships, so long entangled in the 
 floe, renewed their usual pitching motion. In this 
 way they passed the Wolstenholme and Whale 
 Sounds of BafiQn, and, at midnight, on the 19th of 
 August, the ** Isabella " and " Alexander " were off 
 the entrance of Smith's Sound, at the northern ex- 
 tremity of Baffin's Bay, but did not approach suffi- 
 ciently near the land to determine whether it were 
 only an inlet, or a strait leading into the sea 
 beyond. In the same cursory and unsatisfactory 
 way was passed the mouth of Jones' Sound, on the 
 west shore of the Bay. 
 
 On the 30th, a wide opening in the land to 
 the westward was observed, and the water being 
 deep, and entirely free from ice, the ships made 
 for the entrance of Lancaster Sound. The 
 expectations of many were now raised to the 
 highest pitch. The " crow's nest " was continually 
 visited throughout the day, and the eyes of all 
 strained to catch a glimpse of the land they eagerly 
 desired not to see at the end. " Here," writes 
 Lieut. Parry, in his journal, " Baffin's hopes of a 
 passage began to be less, every day more than 
 another ; here, on the contrary, mine begin to grow 
 
V?' 
 
 92 
 
 MEMOIBS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 i^i 
 
 strong. I think there is something in his account, 
 which gives cause to suspect he did not see the 
 bottom of Lancaster Sound, i, e., whether it were 
 really a sound or a strait, nor have we yet seen the 
 bottom of it." The next day, they were fairly within 
 the sound, the " Isabella " a few miles ahead of her 
 slower consort. " "We continued to run with all the 
 sail we could press on the ship. I never wished so 
 much that the ' Alexander * were a better sailer, for 
 the inlet looks more and more promising, the swell 
 comes from the north-west compass (that is, south- 
 south-west true), and continues just as it does in the 
 ocean. It is impossible to remark this circumstance, 
 without feeling a hope that it may be caused by this 
 inlet being a passage into a sea to the westward of 
 it." These hopes were still as high as ever, the 
 water as deep and free from ice as before, when, all 
 of a sudden, the " Isabella " tacked, and rejoined the 
 " Alexander." Both vessels retraced their course, 
 and Lancaster Sound was left behind. To those on 
 board the latter vessel, such a proceeding on the 
 part of the commodore was inexplicable. In Lieut. 
 Parry's journal, not a remark is made on what must 
 have been a severe blow to his confident expectations 
 of success ; but his voyage up the same sound, the 
 next year, is the best comment he could make upon 
 
1818.] 
 
 HOMEWARD VOYAGE. 
 
 93 
 
 the existence of the Croker Mountains, which the 
 imagination of the commander of the " Isabella " had 
 conjured up, as barring all advance to the westward. 
 
 The private journal of another officer on board 
 the " Alexander " is more emphatic on this point. 
 " Not any ice was to be seen in any direction, and 
 at 7 o'clock, the weather being remarkably fine and, 
 clear, land was not to be discerned between N. 21** 
 W. and N. 44° E. At this time, our distance from 
 the northern land was estimated at seven or eight 
 leagues, and from the southern six or seven leagues, 
 but, alas I the sanguine hopes, and high expectations, 
 excited by this promising a[)pearance of things, were 
 but of short duration, for, about three o'clock in the 
 afternoon, the * Isabella ' tacked, very much to our 
 surprise indeed, as we could not see anything like 
 land at the bottom of the inlet, nor was the weather 
 well calculated at the time for seeing any object at a 
 great distance, it being somewhat hazy. When she 
 tacked, the * Isabella ' was about three or four miles 
 ahead of us." 
 
 During the homeward voyage, little occurred 
 worthy of mention. In Davis' Straits, the ships 
 parted company in a heavy gale, but arrived at 
 Lerwick, within two hours of each other, on the same 
 day, October 30, just six months since they left that 
 
 r 
 
rpTf 
 
 I! 
 
 ^ 
 
 "'V 
 
 MEMOIRS OF BIB W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 port. Here they heard that the ** Dorothea " and 
 " Trent " had returned to England, having failed in 
 accomplishing their object. Both had been roughly 
 handled by the ice, and the former vessel, at one 
 time, was so disabled, as to be in a foundering con- 
 dition. 
 
 The following was the first letter written by Lieut. 
 Parry after his return : — 
 
 "Nov. 1. 1818. H.M. a 'Alexander,' Shetland. 
 
 " My dearest Parents, 
 
 " I am delighted at having an opportunity of con- 
 veying to you the intelligence of our arrival. A few 
 moments only are allowed me to write, and we shall be 
 in England, in a few days, ourselves. For the present, 
 therefore, I shall only say, that I have never had one 
 moment*s indisposition, and am now in the most perfect 
 health, and have done my duty. These are blessings for 
 which I am truly grateful to God, and for which your 
 thanksgivings will, I know, be offered to Him. If I 
 only knew that those I love in England were well, I 
 should be very comfortable. On the subject of our ex* 
 pedition I shall not say anything now, for reasons which, 
 by and bye, will be obvious. The unanimity that has 
 prevailed among us, and the excellent health every man 
 has enjoyed, is delightful. Adieu I God bless you all." 
 
 The return of the expedition sadly disappointed 
 the hopes of those, who had so sanguinely believed 
 
 in the 
 
 Boss h{ 
 
 ofBaffi 
 
 and, sc 
 
 navigat 
 
 from th 
 
 of findii 
 
 less posi 
 
 Of the i 
 
 and less 
 
 been sin 
 
 as regai 
 
 had bee 
 
 to convii 
 
 that mor 
 
 «I fe( 
 
 after lea 
 
 lately wi 
 
 polar ret 
 
 quished 
 
 chance o 
 
 shortly al 
 
 "That 
 
 sufficient i 
 not verj h 
 
[1818. 
 
 " and 
 led in 
 mghly 
 sit one 
 
 y con- 
 
 Lieut. 
 
 Shetland. 
 
 of con- 
 
 A few 
 
 shall be 
 
 present, 
 
 had one 
 
 perfect 
 
 sings for 
 
 ch your 
 
 n. If I 
 
 ,::•<. J OPINIONS ENTERTAINED BT PARRT. 
 
 95 
 
 ■\ 
 
 in the existence of a north-west passage. Captain 
 Boss had, it is true, found the headlands and sounds 
 of Baffin's Bay to exist as Baffin had described them, 
 and> so far, had restored the credit of that able 
 navigator, whose discoveries had been almost erased 
 from the map ; but he had declared the impossibility 
 of finding an opening to the westward, in terms no 
 less positive than those employed by Baffin himself. 
 Of the five sounds particularly named by the latter, 
 and less closely approached by Koss, three have 
 been since proved to be actual passages. But though, 
 as regarded the main question at issue, so little 
 had been accomplished, sufficient had been done 
 to convince some of those engaged in the expedition, 
 that more might easily be effected. 
 
 "I feel confident," writes Parry in his journal, 
 after leaving Lancaster Sound, "from all I have 
 lately witnessed, that the attempts at discovery in the 
 polar regions have always, hitherto, been relin- 
 quished just at a time when there was the greatest 
 chance of succeeding." In a letter written home, 
 shortly after his return to Shetland, he says : 
 
 "That we have not sailed through the North-West 
 Passage, our return in so short a period is, of course, a 
 sufficient indication ; but I know it is in existence, and 
 not very hard to find. This opinion of mine, which is 
 
ii 
 
 '*!! 
 
 :i ^' 
 
 11 
 
 96 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIB W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1818. 
 
 not lightly formed, must on no account be uttered out 
 of our family ; and I am sure it will not, when I assure 
 you that every future prospect of mine depends upon its 
 being kept a secret ...... Our ships are in as good 
 
 condition as ever, and, with a few stores, I should be 
 content to go again with them next April. I only wish 
 they would let me 1 ", 
 
 His opinion of the matter was, however, soon 
 known at head-quarters, and, doubtless, had con- 
 siderable influence in the measures promptly taken 
 by the Admiralty. He writes : — 
 
 " London, November 28. 
 
 " In my letter of yesterday, I purposely avoided telling 
 you that, on that day, I had, by Mr. Barrow's advice, 
 sent my card up to Lord Melville, Wednesday being the 
 day appointed for seeing officers. We, that is, Franklin 
 and myself, saw Mr. Hay, who acquainted us, from His 
 
 Lordship, that he would see us on Friday About 
 
 three o'clock. Lord Melville saw us, Franklin, as senior 
 officer, the first. He conversed with me upon our expe- 
 dition, and, what was more interesting to me, upon what 
 yet remained to be done. You must know that, on our 
 late voyage, we entered a magnificent strait from thirty 
 to sixty miles wide, upon the west coast of Baffin's Bay, 
 and — came out agaitiy nobody knows why I You know I 
 was not sanguine, formerly, as to the existence of a 
 north-west passage, or as to the practicability of it if 
 
\ 
 
 1819.] NEW EXPEDITION RESOLVED UPON. 07 
 
 it did exist. But our voyage to this Lancaster Sound, 
 as Baffin calls it, has left quite a different impression, 
 for it has not only given us every reason to believe that 
 it is a broad passage into some sea to the westward (pro- 
 bably that of Hearne and Mackenzie), but, what is more 
 important still, that it is, at certain seasons, practicable ; 
 for, when we were there, there was not a bit of ice to 
 be seen. This truth has been fully communicated to 
 Lord Melville by Mr. Barrow, who had, with his usual 
 discernment, immediately discovered it, without any in- 
 formation from me upon the subject. Lord Melville 
 conversed with me, pretty freely, on the probability of a 
 passage there." 
 
 Under these circumstances, it was not likely that 
 
 the energetic Secretary of the Admiralty would 
 
 allow the great question to rest, and, accordingly, in 
 
 December of the same year, two vessels, the " Hecla" 
 
 and "Griper" were selected, under the advice of 
 
 Parry himself, and taken into dock to be repaired and 
 
 strengthened for arctic service. 
 
 "Who is to command them," he says, "we do not 
 
 know yet, but it is plain that I shall have some finger 
 
 ; in this new pie, which is all I care about. It was also 
 
 very gratifying to find, on going to the Hydrographical 
 
 Office, that they were making copies of my charts of 
 
 j Baffin's Bay, in preference to any others." 
 
 It was not long before his highest hopes were 
 [confirmed. On the 1 6th January, 1819, he was, to 
 
 n 
 
MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARIIY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 his own intense satisfaction, appointed to the com- 
 uiand of tho " Ilecla," and of the expedition, Lieut, 
 liiddon being placed under his orders in the 
 ** Griper." 
 
 " There waa a great discussion at the Admiralty, as 
 Mr. Maxwell's letter informed us, before they would 
 finally decide who was to command the expedition. Mr. 
 Barrow was for me, and Sir G. Cockburn was well ' 
 clined towards me. The latter, however, being detr.- 
 mined to be governed by no feeling but the fitne^- -P the 
 person he should choose, was requested by Mr. liarrow 
 to take all the journals, and to form a judgment by 
 them. It was on this score that he told Lord Melville 
 that I was the person he should recommend, and I was 
 chosen accordingly. This is very gratifying to me and 
 to you all. I have the account from Mr. Barrow. You 
 will be pleased to hear that all our supplies will bo on 
 the same liberal scale as last year's expedition, which 
 is, indeed, taken as a sort of standard, and, as far as re- 
 gards the material part of the equipment, they cannot do 
 better." 
 
 He was not less gratified with the Admiralty 
 instructions, in which he was recommended to 
 attempt the passage, in thi^ 1\y:A, instance, through 
 Lancaster Sound. It will ' : .' '^liC. .er of suipriae to 
 many, as it was, no doubt, to Parry himself, that, 
 notwithstanding the confidence thus reposed in him, 
 
 promotic 
 now care 
 said, "a 
 caster Sc 
 
 ^^ 
 
1819.] 
 
 PROMOTION DELATED. 
 
 99 
 
 alty, as 
 would 
 1. Mr. 
 veil ' 
 
 I detf. • 
 isoPthe 
 
 barrow 
 nent by 
 Melville 
 id I was 
 me and 
 V. You 
 
 II bo on 
 1, which 
 ir as re- 
 mnot do 
 
 % 
 
 promotion was still delayed. For this, however, ho 
 now cared comparatively little. « When I look," he 
 said, " at the * Hecln ' and at the chart of Lan- 
 caster Sound, oh, what is promotion to this I " 
 
 miralty 
 ided to 
 througli 
 
 prise to 
 If, tliat, 
 
 in liiiD, 
 
 H 2 
 
.:. 
 
 '■■ I 
 
 ■ 
 
 m 
 
 100 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. FABRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 CHAP. V. 
 
 parby's first voyage "hecla" and "griper" pass 
 
 through lancaster sound. "westward, ho ! "— 
 
 winter at melville island. — return home. — pro- 
 motion to commander. — freedom op bath, etc. 
 
 '• I have not the smallest doubt, that a ship provided, as we were, 
 with abundance of provisions, warm clothing, and fuel, might winter 
 in the highest latitude that wo have been in, without suffering 
 materially cither from cold or disease." — Lieut. Parry's Journal in 
 H.M.S. "Alexander;' 1818. 
 
 1819—1820. 
 
 The " Hecla " and " Griper " were fitting out at 
 Deptford, the former in the very spot in the 
 dockyard where the "Alexander" had been com- 
 missioned by Parry in the preceding year. " I can 
 scarcely," he says, " yet bring myself to believe, that 
 one short twelvemonth has conferred upon me the 
 command in an expedition, of which I was then 
 proud to be second." The equipment of the ships 
 was left entirely to himself, and no pains were 
 spared in following out his instructions. In order to I 
 
 1819.] 
 
 expedit 
 light ei 
 was saic 
 ever bet 
 men, ir 
 placed i 
 was apj 
 without 
 consent, 
 officer, i 
 beside, i 
 two exj 
 with tvh 
 and undi 
 to serve 
 appointe 
 the shor 
 was inv€ 
 least in i 
 than tha 
 With 
 success t 
 
 "I rea 
 
 out under 
 respect, t] 
 wo should 
 
1819.] 
 
 "hecla" and "griper." 
 
 101 
 
 expedite matters, the work was carried on by torch- 
 light every evening, after the usual hours ; and it 
 was said, that the same amount of work had scarcely 
 ever been done in the yard, by an equal number of 
 men, in the same space of time. The confidence 
 placed in his judgment was so great, that no officer 
 was appointed to the vessels under his command, 
 without first consulting him, and without his full 
 consent. With the exception of Lieut. Liddon, an 
 officer, in Parry's opinion, of great promise, and one 
 beside, all had been employed in one or other of the 
 two expeditions of the previous year. Franklin, 
 with «vhom Parry would gladly have been associated, 
 and under whom he would have been well content 
 to serve, was not of their number, having been 
 appointed to the command of that land expedition to 
 the shores of the North American Continent, which 
 was invested with an interest, if not in its results, at 
 least in its adventures and misfortunes, even greater 
 than that which we are about to describe. 
 
 With such officers to serve under him, Parry felt 
 success to be doubly sure. 
 
 " I really think " (are his words) " that we are going 
 out under the most comfortable circumstances, in every 
 respect, that can be imagined. How delightful it is that 
 wo should all know each other, and, I may add, how much 
 
 ^iX' 
 
 w S 
 
:ii' 
 
 M: 
 
 ■■ li] 
 
 102 
 
 MEMOIBS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 bf>tter for the service ! All will, I trust, be confidence 
 and good humour. We are all looking to one object, and 
 I am certain there is not an officer on board who will 
 not do his utmost to attain it." 
 
 The ships were readily manned. No sooner were 
 they comnaissioned than crowds of volunteers offered 
 themselves, and the only diflSculty was that of 
 selection. When this was complete, no vessels in 
 the British Navy could boast a finer set of petty 
 officers, seamen, and marines, than the fourscore and 
 fifteen, who answered to their names at the muster 
 on board the ** Hecla " and " Griper," on the 
 morning of the 1st of May, 1819. "Perhaps," 
 writes Parry, " I ought not to praise my ship too 
 much, for it is something like praising one's own 
 child, but she really appears to me to be perfection 
 for this service. I believe she is as complete aa 
 human art can contrive. Oh! how I long to be 
 among the ice I " With the " Griper " he was not 
 so w^ell content, and, before the ships left the river, 
 he had actually contemplated the possibility of 
 leaving her behind altogether, and boldly proceeding 
 alone in his favourite " Hecla." On the passage to 
 the Nore. however, she answered better than had 
 been expected, and he abandoned the hazardous 
 project of a solitary arctic voyage : but her slow 
 
 •'; "5! 
 
 • f HI 
 
1819.] 
 
 SAILING OP THE EXPEDITION. 
 
 103 
 
 sailing proved, throughout the voyage, as great a 
 source of hindrance and vexation, as that of the 
 " Alexander " had been in the year before. 
 
 On the 11th of May, the ships left the river, and 
 passed the Orkneys on the 24th. Four days after- 
 wards, they were in sight of the small solitary crag 
 called Rockall. ** There is, perhaps," observes Parry, 
 "no more striking proof of the infinite value of 
 chronometers at sea, than the certainty with which 
 a ship may sail directly for a single rock liks this, 
 rising like a speck out of the ocean, and at the 
 distance of forty-seven leagues from any other land." 
 In obedience to the Admiralty instructions, bottles 
 were thrown overboard, each containing an account 
 of the situation of the ships, with the date, and a 
 request in six European languages, that whoever 
 found it would forward it to the Secretary of the 
 Admiralty. This was done, every day, during this 
 and subsequent voyages, except when the ships 
 were beset in the ice. On the 15th of June, they 
 had a view of Cape Farewell, at the extraordinary 
 distance of forty leagues. This was attributed to the 
 increased transparency of the atmosphere before 
 rain, aided by the well known effects of refraction ia 
 those seas. 
 
 As the ships advanced along the east side of 
 
 f^ 4 
 
-.* 
 
 104 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 // 
 
 Davis Straits, they found a uniform, and almost 
 unbroken, sheet of ice to the westward, interspersed 
 with numerous icebergs of a large size. Against 
 these the heavy southerly swell dashed the loose ice 
 with tremendous force, sometimes raising a white 
 epray to the height of more than a hundred feet, 
 ** accompanied with a loud roar, resembling the roar 
 of distant thunder, and presenting a scene at once 
 sublime and terrific."* They had now almost reached 
 the latitude of Lancaster Sound, but the barrier of 
 ice which intervenedjwas as obstinate as ever ; and, 
 for some time, all efforts to pierce it were in vain. At 
 night, the fog used to freeze so hard in the rigging and 
 sails, that some tons had to be shaken off in the 
 morning, before the ropes could be properly handled. 
 Once, the " Hecla " was nearly nipped between a 
 floe and an iceberg, against which a strong current 
 was driving the former. The boats were lowered 
 only just in time to tow the ship clear, for, one 
 minute afterwards, the ice came violently in contact 
 with the berg, surrounding it on every side. 
 
 Convinced, by his experience of the last year, of 
 the probable iexistence of clear water on the other 
 side of Baffin's Bay, Parry made one more strenuous 
 
 • Parry's Narrative of a Voyage for the Discovery of a North- West 
 Passage. 
 
1819.] 
 
 ARRIVAL AT LANCASTER SOUND. 
 
 105 
 
 effort to force a passage to the westward, and, this 
 time, his exertions were crowned with success. After 
 a whole week of most laborious and tedious sailing, 
 tracking, and towing, sometimes not making more 
 than four miles in one day, or a few hundred yards 
 in a night, the barrier was passed, and clear water 
 gained. Sir James Lancaster's Sound was now 
 open before them. The best months in the year for 
 the navigation of the northern seas were yet to 
 come, while the magnificent range of mountains at 
 the entrance of the Sound, recalling forcibly to mind 
 the events of the preceding autumn, inspired all 
 with feelings of animation and eager hope. On the 
 Slst of July, a party was sent on shore to a spot 
 which had been visited in the former year. The 
 flag-staff they had erected was still standing, and 
 the tracks of their own feet were as distinct as if 
 imprinted yesterday, showing that little or no snow 
 had fallen for the last eleven months. This, too, was 
 a favourable sign. " We were now " (writes the 
 commander of the expedition) "about to enter 
 and explore that great sound or inlet, which had 
 obtained a degree of celebrity, beyond what it might 
 otherwise have been considered to possess, from the 
 very opposite opinions which have been held with 
 regard to it We all felt it was that 
 
 II 
 
106 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 r-j 
 
 point of the voyage, which was to determine the 
 success or failure of the expedition." 
 
 A westerly wind and swell, setting down the 
 Sound, for some time tantalised these ardent expec- 
 tations of all on board the two vessels, in those days 
 unaided by the power of steam, now so invaluable 
 an assistance to deeds of naval enterprise. At length 
 the wished -for moment came. An easterly breeze 
 sprang up, and a crowd of sail was set, to carry to 
 the westward the impatient and eager discoverers 
 of seas, before unploughed by any keel, and of lands 
 on which the eyes of civilised men had never yet 
 rested. 
 
 " It is more easy to imagine than describe the almost 
 breathless anxiety, which was now visible in every coun- 
 tenance, while, as the breeze increased to a fresh gale, 
 Wo ran up the Sound. The mastheads were crowded by 
 officers and men, during- the whole afternoon ; and an 
 unconcerned observer, if any one could have been uncon- 
 cerned on such an occasion, would have been amused at 
 the eagerness, with which the various reports from the 
 * crow's-nest * were received, all, however, hitherto 
 favourable to our most sanguine hopes." 
 
 Various were the alternations of hope and fear. 
 Some flattered themselves " that they had actually 
 entered the Polar Sea," — others "began to calculate 
 the distance and bearings of Icy Cape," — while, 
 
1819.] 
 
 CROKER MOUNTAINS. 
 
 107 
 
 again, the cry of " land " from the masthead cast all 
 their hopes to the ground, until the dreaded barrier 
 was discovered to be " only an island of no very 
 large extent." Soon, however, it was evident to all, 
 that, as far as finding the entrance to the North- 
 West Passage was concerned, their efforts had been 
 crowned with complete success. Croker Mountains 
 had, phantom-like, faded into thin air before the bows 
 of the " Hecla.'* To a large opening in the northern 
 shore Lieut. Parry gave the name of Croker's Bay, 
 " being anxious to seize, as it would seem, the earliest 
 opportunity of making some compensation for having 
 transformed, as with a touch of Harlequin's wand, 
 the magnificent and insuperable range of mountains, 
 which a former expedition had assigned to one 
 * Secretary of the Admiralty, into a broad and unin- 
 terrupted passage (Barrow's Strait), bearing the name 
 of the other Secretary. In fact, neither mountain, 
 nor ice, nor any other obstacle, real or imaginary, 
 opposed the progress of Lieut. Parry." * 
 
 • Quarterly Eeview, xxv. p. 180. 
 
 After the return of the expedition to England, the following epi- 
 gram appeared in one of the morning papers : — 
 
 Old Sinbad tells us, he a whale had seen 
 So like the land, it seemed an island green ; 
 But Ross has told the converse of this tale, 
 The land he saw was — " very like a whale ! '* 
 
 .1 i 
 
 it 
 
 M 
 
108 
 
 MEMOIRS OF BIK W. E. FABRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 // 
 
 Hitherto, the water had been entirely free from 
 ice, but soon a compact body of floes was found 
 blocking up the passage to the westward. The 
 weather, which had been for some time rather 
 hazy, now cleared up, and a large opening was seen 
 to the southward, over which the dark " water-sky " 
 seemed to promise an open sea. In hopes that this 
 might lead to a clear passage, in a lower latitude 
 than that of Barrow's Strait, the ships stood down 
 the east side of Prince Regent's Inlet, so named 
 in honour of the royal personage, the anniversary of 
 whose birthday fell about this time. As they 
 sailed down this inlet, they were approaching rapidly 
 to the Magnetic Pole of the earth, afterwards visited 
 by Sir J. C Ross, then a midshipman on board the 
 " Hecla." The sluggishness of the compasses had' 
 been gradually increabiug ever since they passed 
 Lancaster Sound, and now they "witnessed, for 
 the first time, the curious phenomenon of the di- 
 rective power of the needle becoming so weak, 
 as to be completely overcome by the attraction 
 of the ship, so that the needle might now be said 
 to point to the north pole of the ship." For the 
 purposes of navigation, therefore, the compasses 
 were no longer of use, and the binnacles were 
 stowed away below, while, for magnetical observa- 
 
1819.] 
 
 WELLINGTON CHANNEL. 
 
 109 
 
 tion8, the compasses had to be removed to the sV^ore, 
 or the ice. 
 
 The hopes, which had been gradually rising with 
 the increasing width of the inlet, were soon rudely- 
 dashed to the ground, by the sight of an extensive 
 barrier of ice before them, beyond which no water 
 could be seen. They retraced their steps, accordingly, 
 to Barrow's straits, where, to their joy and surprise, 
 the barrier of ice, which had before stopped them, had 
 entirely disappeared. Fogs and light winds rendered 
 their passage slow, but, on the evening of the 22nd 
 August, they were off the mouth of a broad channel, 
 eight leagues in width, on the northern shore of the 
 strait. To this the name of the Duke of Wellington 
 was given : — 
 
 " The arrival off this grand opening was an event, for 
 which we had long been looking with much anxiety and 
 impatience ; for the continuity of land to the northward 
 had always been a source of uneasiness to us, principally, 
 from the possibility that it might take a turn to the 
 southward, and unite with the coast of America. The 
 appearance of this broad opening, free from ice, and of 
 the land on each side of it, more especially that on the 
 west, left scarcely a doubt on our minds of the latter 
 being an island, and relieved us from all anxiety on this 
 score. Every one felt that we were now, finally, disen- 
 tangled from the land which forms the western side of 
 
no 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 rhi'i 
 
 •nni rj 
 
 Baffin's Bay, and that, in fact, we had actually entered 
 the Polar Sea." * 
 
 The sea being still sufficiently open to the west- 
 ward, Parry did not consider himself justified in 
 exploring Wellington Channel. Their progress was 
 still much retarded by fogs, which obscured the 
 view at times so completely, that the " Griper " 
 could not be seen from the " Hecla " at the distance 
 of a cable's length astern. In the absence of the 
 sun, as well as of the compasses, the ship's course 
 could only be regulated by the direct? oij of the breeze, 
 which, fortunately, blew pretty steadily from the 
 eastward. Notwithstanding these difficulties, con- 
 siderable advance was made in the desired direction, 
 and, on the 3rd September, the cheering intelligence 
 was announced by Ppiry to Lis crews, that they had 
 become entitled to the first in the scale of rewards, 
 granted by parliament to those who should succeed 
 in penetrating to longitude 110° W. of Greenwich, 
 within the Arctic Circle. A promontory of Melville 
 Island, off which they were at the time, was named 
 by the men, " Bounty Cape," and hailed by all as 
 the first fruits of success. 
 
 Beyond this point was another cape, to which 
 
 * Parry's Narrative. 
 
1819.] 
 
 MELVILLE ISLAND. 
 
 Ill 
 
 the ice was so closely attached, that further advance, 
 for the present, seemed impossible. Fortunately, an 
 excellent harbour offered itself, and the ships were 
 brought to anchor in the " Bay of the * Hecla ' and 
 * Griper.' " This was the first spot where the ships 
 liad anchored since leaving Yarmouth Roads, and, as 
 it seemed to mark, in a very decided manner, the 
 completion of one stage of the voyage, the ensigns 
 and pendants were hoisted. " It created in us," 
 writes Parry, "no ordinary feelings of pleasure, to 
 see the British flag waving, for the first time, in 
 those regions, which had hitherto been considered 
 beyond the limits of the habitable parts of the 
 world." 
 
 It was now the 7th of September, and the season 
 for navigation was, evidently, fast drawing to its close. 
 Parry, however, felt that every moment of the time 
 which yet remained was precious, and determined 
 to extend his operations to the latest possible period. 
 The anchors were, accordingly, once more weighed, 
 and the ships crept slowly along the south shore of 
 Melville Island. The nights were already so dark, 
 that, deprived of the use of compasses, they could 
 not venture to move between the hours of ten and 
 two ; and, even in broad daylight, the dangers, to 
 which they were every hour exposed, were such as 
 
 pi 
 
 . i f 
 
112 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 // 
 
 might have daunted the stoutest heart. Once, a floe, 
 running against the ice to which the ** Hecla " was 
 secured, turned her violently round, as on a pivot ; 
 and, on another occasion, both ships narrowly escaped 
 destruction, being within a few hundred yards of the 
 place, where an enormous floe dashed against the 
 heavy grounded ice. A few days later, tlie 
 " Griper" was driven on shore by the action of the 
 ice, and was only got afloat again after severe 
 labour on the part of both crews. Lieut. Liddon 
 was then very ill, and Parry proposed to remove 
 him to the ** Hecla," until the " Griper " should be 
 afloat. To this offer he turned a deaf ear, and, in 
 the spirit of a true British sailor, declared he would 
 be the last, instead of the first, to leave his ship, and 
 remained, throughout the time, seated on the lee 
 side of the ship, giving the necessary orders. Tliese 
 continued mishaps brought all reluctantly to the 
 conclusion, that the time had arrived, when it became 
 necessary to look out for winter quarters. With 
 the concurrence of his officers, Lieut. Parry deter- 
 mined to regain, if possible, the " Bay of the * Hecla' 
 and 'Griper,'" which alone seemed to offer con- 
 venient shelter. This, however, was not so easy ; — 
 the ice in the bay had increased much since they 
 left it, though only a few days before, and, to add to 
 
[1819. 
 
 1819.] 
 
 WINTER HARDOUn. 
 
 113 
 
 a floe, 
 
 " \VU3 
 
 pivot ; 
 iscapcJ 
 of the 
 ist the 
 r, the 
 of the 
 severe 
 Liddon 
 remove 
 ould be 
 and, in 
 would 
 lip, and 
 the lee 
 Tliese 
 to the 
 became 
 With 
 deter- 
 Hecla' 
 er con- 
 fasy ; — 
 je they 
 add to 
 
 their diffieultlcB, the young ice was forming rapidly 
 on the surface of the water. Before they could 
 reach the harbour which had been selected in the 
 hay, it was necessary to cut a channel of more than 
 two miles in length, through which the ships were 
 drawn into their winter quarters. For three days, 
 both ships* companies were employed in this arduous 
 task, in which officers and men shared alike, while, 
 foremost among all, ever ready to devise expedients, 
 and, by example and word, to encourage the rest, 
 was Lieut. Parry himself. Up to their knees in 
 water, with the thermometer nearly at zero, not a 
 complaint was heard, and, when the ships at length, 
 at three p.m. on the 26th September, reached their 
 titation in Winter Harbour, the event was hailed 
 with three as hearty cheers as ever burst from the 
 lips of British seamen. 
 
 The most difficult part of Parry's task now began. 
 Hitherto, while the necessity of active exertion re- 
 niaineJ, and constant watchfulness of eye and hand 
 were requisite in the prosecution of the dangerous 
 voyage, it was comparatively easy for the commander 
 of the expedition to preserve the health and cheer- 
 fulness of the crews. Now, however, it needed all 
 the resources of a fertile mind, and an active exnmple, 
 to prevent the evil conseq^iences likely to arise from 
 
 I 
 
ij 
 
 I 
 
 m It 
 
 I, ..■ i- !!• 
 
 r 
 
 114 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W, E. PARRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 want of regular employment, during the dreary hours 
 of a northern winter. But Parry was fully equal 
 to the emergency. 
 
 " Having now reached the station where, in all pro- 
 bability, we were destined to remain for at least eight 
 or nine months, during three of which we were not to 
 see the face of the sun, my attention was immediately 
 and imperiously called to various important duties, many 
 of them of a singular nature, such as had, for the first 
 time, devolved on any officer of His Majesty's navy, and 
 might, indeed, be considered of rare occurrence in the 
 whole history of navigation." * 
 
 The security of the ships, and comfort of those on 
 board, was the first concern. Both vessels were 
 housed over with thick coverings, and ihe bertha 
 warmed, as well as the circumstances would allow, 
 by a current of heated air from an oven. The upper 
 deck was cleared, to leave room for active exercise, 
 when the weather should be too inclement to leave ! 
 the ships. On these occasions, the men were made 
 to run round the deck, to the tune of a hand organ, 
 or one of their own songs ; while, as a further safe- 
 guard against scurvy, they were obliged to drink, 
 each day, a certain quantity of lime-juice and water, 
 under the inspection of an officer. " This precau- 
 tion," says Parry, " may seem unnecessary to those I 
 
 ♦ Parry's Narrative. 
 
[1819. I 1819.] 
 
 WINTER HARBOUR. 
 
 115 
 
 ry hours 
 ly equal 
 
 all pro- 
 ast eight 
 re not to 
 nttediatelj 
 ;ie3, many 
 
 • the first 
 Qavy, and 
 ce in the 
 
 • those on 
 3els were 
 le bertha 
 lid allow, 
 
 he upper 
 exercise, 
 to leave 
 ere made 
 d organ, 
 her safe- 
 to drink, 
 Ind water, 
 s prccaii- 
 to those 
 
 who do not know how much sailors resemble children, 
 in all those points in which their own health and 
 comfort are concerned." 
 
 During the first few weeks after their arrival, 
 hunting parties were sent out, when the weather 
 allowed, and some deer and grouse were added to 
 the common stock, from which all shared alike ; but, 
 before the end of October, all the animals on 
 Melville Island had migrated to the southward. The 
 tedious monotony of the view beyond the ships may 
 well be imagined. 
 
 " When viewed from the summit of the neighbouring 
 
 hills, on one of those calm and clear days which not un- 
 
 frcquently occurred during the winter, the scene was 
 
 such as to induce contemplations, which had, perhaps, 
 
 more of melancholy than of any other feeling. Not an 
 
 object was to be seen, on which the eye could long rest 
 
 I with pleasure, unless when directed to the spot where 
 
 the ships lay, and where our little colony was planted. 
 
 The smoke which there issued from the several fires, 
 
 I affording a certain indication of the presence of man, 
 
 j gave a partial cheerfulness to this part of the prospect, 
 
 I and the sound of voices (which, during the cold weather, 
 
 could be heard at a much greater distance than usual), 
 
 served, now and then, to break the silence which reigned 
 
 around us, a silence far different from that peaceful com- 
 
 Iposure, which characterises the landscape of a cultivated 
 
 [country ; it was the deathlike stillness of the most 
 
 X 2 
 
lie 
 
 
 116 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1819. 
 
 dreary desolation, and the total absence of animated 
 existence. Such, indeed, was the want of objects to 
 afford relief to the eye, or amusement to the mind, that a 
 stone of more than usual size appearing above the snow, 
 in the direction in which we were going, immediately 
 became a mark, on which our eyes were unconsciously 
 fixed, and towards which wo mechanically advanced. 
 
 " Dreary as such a scene must necessarily be, it could 
 not, however, be said to be wholly wanting in interest, 
 especially when associated in the mind with the pecu- 
 liarity of our situation, the object which had brouglit us 
 hither, and the hopes which the least sanguine among us 
 sometimes entertained, of spending a part of our next 
 winter in the more genial climate of the South Sea 
 Islands. Perhaps, too, though none of us then ventured 
 to confess it, our thoughts would sometimes involuntarily 
 wander homewards, and institute a comparison between 
 this desolate region, and the livelier aspect of the happy 
 land which we had left behind us." 
 
 With so little variety on shore, and no prospect of 
 release for a period of several months, it became I 
 absolutely necessary to provide some amusements for| 
 the ships' companies. Lieut. Parry proposed, there- 
 fore, to his officers to get up a play occasionally.! 
 This proposal was readily seconded, and, under the 
 auspices of Lieut. Beechey, as stage manager, the 
 theatre on board the "Ilecla" contributed greatly 
 to preserve the general cheerfulness and good humouij 
 
[1819. I 181?.] THEATRIC AL PERFORMANCES. 
 
 117 
 
 mimated 
 bjects to 
 id, that a 
 ihe snow, 
 nediately 
 insciously 
 need. 
 5, it could 
 I interest, 
 the pecu- 
 rought us 
 among us 
 ' our next 
 jouth Sea 
 1 ventured 
 ;roluntarily 
 n between 
 the happy 
 
 rospect of 
 it became 
 imcnts for I 
 led, there- i 
 jasionally. 
 
 inder tlie 
 lagcr, the 
 
 jd greatly 
 Id hiunour, 
 
 which had hitherto subsisted. " In these amuse- 
 ments," he writes, " I gladly undertook a part 
 myself, considering that an example of cheerfulness, 
 by giving a direct countenance to everything that 
 could contribute to it, was not the least essential 
 part of my duty, under the peculiar circumstances in 
 which we were placed." 
 
 The first play was performed on the 5th of No- 
 vember, on which day the sun was seen for the last 
 time. These theatrical entertainments took place 
 regularly once a fortnight, and afforded mach amuse- 
 ment, though the thermometer on the stage was, 
 usually, many degrees below zero. Even the occu- 
 pation of fitting up the theatre, and taVing it to 
 pieces again, was regarded by the captain as a matter 
 of no little importance ; " for I dreaded," he says, 
 " the want of employment, as one of the worst evils 
 that was likely to befall us. As the stock of plr.ys 
 on board was rather scanty, consisting of only one or 
 two odd volumes, our authors set to work, and pro- 
 duced, as a Christmas piece, a new musical enter- 
 tainment." This had special reference to the service 
 in which they were engaged, being called the " North- 
 West-Passage : or, the Voyage Finished," and the 
 reader will not be surprised to learn, that the author 
 was none other than Parry himself. 
 
MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 CI8I9. 
 
 In order still further to carry out his object of 
 providing occupation and amusement, especially 
 for the officers, he suggested the idea of starting a 
 weekly newspaper, of which Captain Sabine should 
 be editor, to be supported by original contributions 
 from both ships. He was aware that, as a general 
 rule, such a paper might be open to objection in a 
 man-of-war, but his confidence in the discretion and 
 good disposition of his officers was too great for him 
 to apprehend any serious consequences; and the 
 issue proved that this confidence was not misplaced. 
 ** I can safely say," are his own words, " that the 
 weekly contributions had the happy effect of era- 
 ploying the leisure hours of those who furnished 
 them, and of diverting the mind from the gloomy 
 prospect, which would sometimes obtrude itself 0:1 
 the stoutest, heart." The " North Georgian 
 Gazette, and Winter Chronicle " was laid on the 
 public table of the officers' mess-room every Monday 
 morning, and its arrival was eagerly looked forward 
 to, as one of the events of the week. When the 
 ships returned home, the Gazette was printed by the 
 officers at the request of their friends, and of all the 
 contributions, whether of good-natured criticism, 
 humorous invention, or more serious feeling, those 
 from the pen of Parry yield to none. 
 
 I 
 
1819.] 
 
 "NORTH GEORGIAN GAZETTE. 
 
 119 
 
 Occupied in this way, the shortest day, or, to 
 gpeak more strictly, the depth of the long winter 
 night, came upon them. The return of each day was 
 only marked by a twilight for some time about noon, 
 during which they were able to walk out for an hour 
 or two. 
 
 " There was usually, in clear weather, a beautiful arch 
 of bright red light overspreading the southern horizon, 
 for an hour or two before and after noon, the light in- 
 creasing, of course, in strength, as the sun approached 
 the meridian. Short as the day now was, ifj indeed, any 
 part of the twenty-four hours could properly be called 
 by that name, the reflection of light from the sun, aided 
 occasionally by a bright moon, was, at all times, sufficient 
 to prevent our experiencing, even under the most un- 
 favourable circumstances, anything like the gloomy 
 niglit which occurs in more temperate climates. Es- 
 pecial care was taken, during the time the sun was below 
 the horizon, to preserve the strictest regul~ ity in the 
 time of our meals, and the various occupations which 
 engaged our attention during the day ; and this, together 
 with the gradual and imperceptible manner in which the 
 days had shortened, prevented this kind of life, so novel 
 to us in reality, from appearing very inconvenient, or, 
 indeed, like any thing out of the common way. It must 
 be confessed, however, that we were not sorry to have 
 arrived, without any serious suffering, at the shortest 
 day, and we watched, with no ordinary degree of 
 pleasure, the slow approach of the returning sun." 
 
 I 4 
 
 i 1't 
 
 Ifl 1 L 
 
 I ! II 
 
ti^i 
 
 
 120 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 r.18'20. 
 
 Christmas Day was raw and cold, with a good 
 deal of snow. Divine service was performed in both 
 ships, and, in order still further to mark the day, 
 some addition was made to the usual dinner of the 
 crews, who also enjoyed an extra allowance of grog, 
 to drink the health of friends in England. The 
 officers also met at a social dinner, and the day was 
 distinguished, as far as circumstances would permit, 
 with much of home festivity. A piece of English 
 roast beef, which formed part of their dinner, had 
 been on board since the preceding May, having been 
 preserved without salt, merely Ijy the cold. 
 
 Thursday, the 3rd of February, ivas an eventful 
 day for the crews of the imprisoned ships. A few 
 minutes before noon, from the refractive power of 
 the atmosphere, a glimpse was caught, from the 
 " Hecla's " maintop, of the sun, which had been 
 beneath the horizon since the 11th of November. 
 On the 7 th, his orb was fully visible, and, thougli 
 some months must still elapse before the ships could 
 be set free, preparations were made for the coming 
 summer, in the collection of stones for ballast, &c. 
 This month of February, notwithstanding the 
 presence of the sun to cheer them, was actually the 
 coldest they had experienced. On the 15 th, tlie 
 spirit in the thermometer descended as low as— 55° 
 
1820.] OBSERVATOKY DESTROYED BY FIRE. 121 
 
 almost the lowest degree that had ever been recorded.* 
 « Notwithstanding the low temperature of the ex- 
 ternal atmosphere, the officers contrived to act, as 
 usual, the play announced for the evening ; but it 
 must be confessed, that it was almost too cold for 
 either the actors or the audience to enjoy it, espe- 
 cially for those of the former, who undertook to 
 appear in female dresses." The ships, throughout 
 this winter, wee insufficiently warmed, and fuel 
 moreover was scarce. The bleak shore oiFered no 
 substitute, and their own stock was carefully hus- 
 banded, in case they might be obliged to spend 
 another winter in the ice. " It is a pleasure to me," 
 Parry would often say in after life, ** even to stir 
 the fire, — for I have known what it is to have to 
 hide the poker, lest our coals should be made to 
 burn too quickly." 
 
 One day towards the close of the month, a fire 
 broke out in the observatory on shore, and, in the 
 exertions made to extinguish the flames, many 
 severe frostbites were incurred. 
 
 
 * A yet lower degree of temperature was afterwards registered 
 by Sir John Richardson, at Fort Confidence, in 1848-9 ; and, still 
 more recently, by Dr. Kane, to the north of Smith's Sound. The 
 mean tcmperfiture of the three winter months at Melville Island was 
 -28° 36' I 
 
3ln~: 
 
 * m H 
 
 
 122 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1820. 
 
 " The appearance " (writes Parry) " which our faces 
 presented at the fire, was a curious one, almost every nose 
 and cheek having become quite white with frostbites, in 
 five minutes after being exposed to the weather ; so that 
 it was deemed necessary for the medical gentlemen, to- 
 gether with some others appointed to assist them, to go 
 constantly round, while the men were working at the 
 fire, and to rub with snow the part affected, in order to 
 restore circulation." 
 
 The month of March set in mildly, and the solid 
 ice, which had, for some time, lined the ship's sides, 
 from the accumulated vapour, began to melt. From 
 the lower deck of the " Hecla " more than 500 
 gallons of ice were carried away, being the accumu- 
 lation of less than four weeks. In like manner, on 
 opening the deadlights on her stern windows, more 
 than twelve large bucketsful of ice were removed 
 from between the double sashes. On the last day of 
 April, the temperature rose as high as freezing, or 
 what, to them, might rather be called the thawing 
 point, being the first time such an event had oc- 
 curred for nearly eight months. The contrast to the 
 previous excess of cold was so striking, that it 
 required all the Commander's authority to prevent 
 the men from imprudently throwing aside thjir 
 winter clothing, an alteration which might ha^P, Wen 
 attended with serious consequences. 
 
1820.] 
 
 RETURN OP SUMMER. 
 
 123 
 
 The expedition having been victualled only for 
 two years, of which one had now expired, Lieut. 
 Parry considered it -pedient to reduce the daily 
 allowance of food to two-thirds of the established 
 proportion. The cheerfulness with which this reduc- 
 tion was received by officers and men was most 
 gratifying to him, as an additional proof of the 
 zealous principle of duty, which had marked the 
 conduct of all under his command ever since they 
 left England. 
 
 The appearance of the first ptarmigan on the 
 12th of May, and the discovery of some tracks of 
 rein-deer and musk-oxen, were hailed with delight as 
 sure omens of returning summer. The "game 
 laws," as the men called them, were now revived, 
 every animal that was killed being regarded as 
 public property, and as such regularly issued, like 
 any other provision, without any distinction of 
 persons. The ice round the ship, six feet in thick- 
 ness, was now cut through with consideiable labour, 
 and, before long, the ships were once more afloat. 
 The ice in the harbour, and to seaward was, how- 
 ever, still as thick and as close as ever, and, when 
 Parry considered that in about three weeks the sun 
 would again begin to decline towards the southward, 
 he confessed that even his most sanguine expect a^ 
 
 I'^l 
 
 M 
 
 i'i 
 
124 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR \V. F. PARUY. 
 
 [1820. 
 
 I 
 
 - :i^i •*: 
 
 tions of the complete success of the enterprise were 
 somewhat staggered. The thaw, however, was nearer 
 at hand than they had reason to suppose. Early on 
 the morning of the 24th, one of the men reported 
 that he had felt a few drops of rain, an event hailed 
 with much satisfaction, nothing being so effectual as 
 rain in dissolving the ice. The same evening a 
 smart shower actually fell. So unaccustomed were 
 all to the appearance of water in a fluid state, that it 
 is stated that every person hastened at once on deck, 
 to witness so interesting a phenomenon. 
 
 To occupy the time which must elapse before the 
 ships could be set free from the ice. Parry spent a 
 fortnight on a journey into the interior of the island. 
 Thirty years afterwards, the tracks of lie cart wheels 
 were found by Lieut. M'Clintock, as distinct as 
 though they had been made the day before. The 
 ground being still deeply covered with snow, the 
 party suffered much from snow blindness, but the 
 time of their return to Winter Harbour was marked 
 by the rapid progress of the thaw. To seaward, the 
 ioe was already covered with pools of water, while, 
 on shore, the change was not less decided, the dreary 
 waste of snow having given place, as though by 
 magic, to large patches of an almost luxuriant 
 vegetation. 
 
 ii ■■, 'M 
 
[1820. 
 
 1820.] 
 
 DEATH OF A SEAMAN. 
 
 125 
 
 J were 
 nearer 
 irly on 
 ported 
 hailed 
 tual as 
 ning a 
 d were 
 that it 
 n deck, 
 
 On the 30th of June, Thomas Scott, one of the 
 " Hecla's " seamen, died. This was the only event 
 of the kind which occurred during the absence of 
 the ships from England, and the seeds of disease 
 seem to have been sown in his constitution for some 
 time past. 
 
 " On Sunday, the 2nd of July, after Divine Service 
 had been performed, the body of the deceased was com- 
 mitted to the earth, in a level piece of ground about a 
 hundred yards from the beach, with every solemnity 
 which the occasion demanded, and the circumstances of 
 our situation would permit. The ensigns and pendants 
 were lowered half mast during the procession, and the 
 remains of our unfortunate shipmate were attended to 
 the qrave by every officer and man of both ships. To 
 the performance of this last melancholy duty, under any 
 circumstances sufficiently impressive, the peculiarity of 
 the scene around us, and of the circumstances in which 
 we were placed, could not fail to impart an additional 
 feeling of awful solemnity, which it is more easy to 
 imagine than to describe. A neat tombstone was after- 
 wards placed at the head of the grave by Mr. Fisher, 
 who carved upon it the name of deceased, with the other 
 usual information." 
 
 It was not till the 1 st of August, after more than 
 ten dreary months of confinement, that the ice had 
 sufficiently loosened to allow the ships to escape 
 from Winter Harbour; and, even then, it was soon 
 
 iSlj- 
 
 f!r: 
 
 
 il 
 
12G 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. VARUV. 
 
 [182(1. 
 
 
 evident, that they had only a very narrow channel 
 through which to work their way to the westward, 
 between tlie land and the ice. For some days, they 
 gallantly persevered in forcing their way through 
 the floes, which seemed to increase in thick. less as 
 they advanced. The ships were often in danger of 
 being crushed to atoms. On one occasion, tlic 
 whole body of ice in the neighbourhood came 
 violently in contact with the piece of a floe close to 
 them. This, at once, split across in different 
 directions with a loud crash, and, presently after- 
 wards, they "saw a part, several hundred tons in 
 weight, raised, slowly and majestically, as if by the 
 action of a screw, and deposited on the top of the 
 field, presenting towards them the surface which had 
 split, and which appeared of a fine blue colour, and 
 very solid and transparent. This mass of ice was 
 forty- two feet in thickness, which will give some 
 idea of the difficulties of this portion of the 
 voyage, and the dangers to which the ships were 
 hourly exposed." Several times, all hopes of saving 
 the " Griper " were given up, and, once, they were 
 on the point of cutting large holes in her decks, in 
 order to allow the casks of provisions to float up 
 out of the hold, instead of sinking with the ship 
 in deep water. Her ordinary bad sailing qua- 
 
1820.] 
 
 HOMEWARD VOYAGE. 
 
 127 
 
 litic8 were now increased tenfold by the largo 
 «« tonguea " of ice, which adhered to the hulls of both 
 vessels, and which had to be constantly cut away, a 
 tedious and most laborious task. All their efforts, 
 however, to get beyond the south-west extremity 
 of Melville Island proved unavailing, and, convinced 
 at length of the impossibility of obtaining the desired 
 object, Parry, after consulting with the other officers 
 of the expedition, determined that any further 
 attempt to proceed in that direction would be 
 fruitless. 
 
 On the 26th of August, accordingly, the ships' 
 heads were turned to the eastward, and they were 
 favoured with so little interruption from the ice, 
 that in six days they had passed through Lancaster 
 Sound. They now fell in with some whalers, which, 
 in the course of the summer, had actually renohed 
 Lancaster Sor i, which before had always been 
 regarded as Inaccessible. From these they learned 
 the tidings of the death of King George IIL and of 
 the Duko of Kent. On the 26th of September, 
 they took their final leave of the ice, and, on the 
 30th October, Lieut. Parry landed at Peterhead, 
 and, in company with Captain Sabine, proceeded 
 without delay to London, to report his arrival at the 
 Admiralty. 
 
 'ii'iii 
 
 
128 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1820. 
 
 " Such was the excellent state of health, which we, at this 
 time, continued to enjoy, that, during the whole season of 
 our late navigation from Winter Harbour to the coast of 
 Shetland, being a period of thirteen weeks, not a single 
 case has been entered on the sick list, except from one 
 or two accidents of a trifling nature ; and I had the 
 happiness of seeing every officer and man on board 
 both ships, with only one exception, return to their 
 native country in as robust health as when they left it, 
 after an absence of nearly eighteen months, during 
 which time we had been living entirely on our own re- 
 
 sources. 
 
 » 
 
 !-:-';ii. 
 
 On his arrival in Scotland, Parry writes : — 
 
 "Haddington, Nov. 1. 182a. 
 " My dearest Parents, 
 
 " I have landed with Sabine, am well, and shall be 
 in London about Saturday. The mail could not carry 
 our baggage, or I should have preferred that conveyance, 
 but I am coming as fast as four horses can carry us. 
 We landed at Peterhead, not far to the north of Aber- 
 deen. Write to me at the Northumberland Coffee-house, 
 and, if it should have pleased God (for which I am quite 
 prepared) to make any alteration in our family, do not 
 hesitate to mention it at once. God's holy will be done! 
 I trust you are well and happy, as I am. I shall steal a 
 day or two to see you, immediately after the first bustle 
 
 is over. God bless you 1 
 
 " Ever your affectionate 
 
 "W. K. Pat?ry.' 
 
1820.] 
 
 PROMOTION. 
 
 129 
 
 The same day that the result of the expedition 
 was known at the Admiralty, Parry obtained his 
 promotion, so long delayed, to the rank of Com- 
 mander. 
 
 •♦ Admiralty Office, Nov. 4. 1820. 
 « Sir, 
 
 " I have this day received, and communicated to 
 my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, your letter, 
 dated in Davis' Straits the 5th of September last, and 
 forwarded to England by the ' Lee,' whaler, reporting 
 that the ships under your orders had, in the summer of 
 1819, succeeded in discovering a passage, through Sir. J. 
 Lancaster's Sound, into the Polar Seas ; that they win- 
 tered in lat. 74° 47' N. and long. 110° 47' W., near one 
 of a number of islands, which you named the " North 
 Georgian Islands," * and that not having been able this 
 season, from the quantity and magnitude of the ice, to 
 penetrate further to the westward than the meridian of 
 113° 47' W., nor to find any opening to the southward, 
 you had, in concurrence with the unanimous opinion of 
 the other y^rincipal officers of the expedition, determined 
 to return with the ships to England. And I am com- 
 manded by their Lordships to express to you their satis- 
 faction at your return, and at the extensive addition 
 which this voyage has made to the knowledge of the 
 Northern regions, and to acquaint you that, in appro- 
 
 * These have since been named the Parry Islands. 
 
 K 
 
 M- 
 
 '■■■■;('. ' 'i 
 
 1 •! ; - ■ 
 
 1 '■ :■' ■■■■ ! ■ i 
 
 
 ! 
 
 p 
 
 ; 
 lit 11 
 
 it u - 
 
 1 1 
 
 41 
 
 to I 
 
130 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1820. 
 
 ifiiljiiiii'Si 
 
 bation of your services, their Lordships have promoted 
 you to the rank of Commander. 
 
 " I am, Sir, 
 
 " Your obedient servant, 
 
 "John Croker." 
 
 Promotion, however, was not the most gratifying 
 result of his success in the Polar regions : — 
 
 " I know not " (he writes to his father) " where to 
 begin, in telling you the congratulations I have received 
 from friends and strangers, since my arrival in town. 
 What with visits, and what with letters, I have been 
 literally overwhelmed ; and I only hope that your poop 
 son's head may not be turned, past all remedy, by this 
 flattering reception ! Even strangers in the coffee room 
 introduce themselves, and beg to shake hands with 
 
 me. 
 
 » 
 
 One of the first honours conferred on him, after 
 his return, was the freedom of his native city, which 
 was duly presented in i n oak box, formed of a piece 
 of the "Hecla's" timber. The example of Bath 
 was afterwards followed by the corporation ofj 
 Norwich, and, in the spring of the next year, the 
 inhabitants of Bath presented him with a valuable 
 piece of plate, as a further proof of the " high sense 
 entertained by them of the perseverance and skill 
 he had evinced, and of the advantages which science, 
 navigation, and commerce might derive from his 
 
1820.] 
 
 ROYAL SOCIETY. 
 
 131 
 
 nautical enterprise and discovery." In February, 
 1821, he was unanimously elected a member of the 
 Royal Society. " A man," he wrote, *' of the name 
 of South* was elected at the same time, and a punster 
 remarked, that it was extraordinary that North and 
 South should meet at the Society in one night I " 
 
 At the annual meeting of the Bath and West of 
 England Society for the Encouragement of Arts, 
 &c., a motion, that Captain Parry should be ho- 
 noured with the society's silver medal, was superseded 
 by an amendment, that he should receive, in its stead, 
 the Bedfordean gold medal. The amendment was 
 "ferried unanimously, 
 
 ' the midst of all these deserved honours, and 
 while the tide of popularity was yet in full flow, 
 [| Parry was still mindful of Him, under whose provi- 
 tiential care his own exertions had been crowned 
 with so much success. On the arrival of the 
 "Hecla" and *' Griper" in the Thames, a public 
 thanksgiving was offered for their safe return, in the 
 Church of St. Mary-le-Strand, in consequence of 
 the following letter, addressed by the commander of 
 the expedition to the Rev. Mr. Ellis. 
 
 ♦ Sir James South, F.R.S. &c. 
 K i 
 
 iiili 
 
 i,! 
 
 i IS 
 
 I 
 
132 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1820. 
 
 « Sir, 
 
 "London, November 10th, 1820. 
 
 m 
 
 "Myself, the officers, seamen, and marine , who 
 have lately been employod in discovery in the Arctic 
 regions, are desirous of offering up our public thanks- 
 giving to Almighty God for the many, many mercies we 
 have received at His hands. I trust you will excuse the 
 liberty I have taken, in requesting you will inform me, 
 whether you can, with propriety, and without any ap- 
 pearance of parade or ostentation on our part, which I 
 am particularly anxious, on every account, to avoid, 
 perform that office for us at your church on Sunday 
 next. 
 
 " Should there be any objection to this, I trust you will 
 believe that I have solicited this favour in perfect 
 ignorance whether 't be proper or not, and with a sin- 
 cere desire to give the glory where alone the glory is 
 due. 
 
 " I must, once more, beg you to pardon the liberty I 
 have now taken, and remain. Sir, 
 
 " With great respect, 
 " Your obedient and humble servant, 
 « W. E. Parry, 
 "Commander of H. M. S. 'Hecla.'" 
 
 The narrative of this voyage to Melville Ishnd 
 was published by order of the Admiralty. Previously 
 to pablication, the whole was revised by his father, 
 whose mental activity, in the midpt of great bodily 
 suffering, was still unimpaired. " No one," it was 
 
1820.] 
 
 NARRATIVE OF FIRST VOYAGE. 
 
 133 
 
 said of this work at the time, ** could rise from its 
 perusal without being impressed with the fullest con- 
 viction that Commander Parry's merits, as an officer 
 and scientific navigator, are of the highest order ; 
 that his talents are not confined to his professional 
 duties ; but that the resources of his mind are equal 
 to the most arduous situations, and fertile in expe- 
 dients under every circumstance, however difficult, 
 dangerous, or unexpected." * 
 
 In a scientific point of view, the results of this 
 voyage are most important. On the subject of 
 magnetism, especially, the observations, constantly 
 and carefully registered, were the first which had 
 ever been made so near the magnetic pole of the 
 earth. No opportunity was ever omitted of gathering 
 information which the means at hand could supply, 
 and the exertions of the commander were ably se- 
 conded by those under him. The labours of Captain 
 Sabine, R.A., who accompanied the expedition as 
 astronomer, speak for themselves, being arranged in 
 a valuable appendix to the narrative. 
 
 Of his officers and crews Parry had, throughout, 
 but one opinion, nor were their feelings towards 
 himself less warm. 
 
 * Quarterly Review, vol xxv. 
 
 K .'i 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 .i 
 
 
 ^^^^^B'. 
 
 i 
 
 
 ^|h^' 
 
 ! 
 
 
 '?' 
 
 ; 
 
 ■ ; 
 
 
 i 
 
 
 I ; 
 
 ^iMti 
 
134 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1820. 
 
 J'* j 
 
 "You may inr^'i^ine" (he writes, just before the ships 
 were paid off) " Uie high gratification I experienced the 
 other day, in being received on board with three hearty 
 cheers. It is this which constitutes my truest satis- 
 faction, not a little enhanced by the happiness of seeing 
 them all safe and well at Deptford, among their families 
 and friends." 
 
 That th°se cheers were no empty compliment he 
 was soon in a position to prove. He had but to 
 hoist his pendant once more, and the first of the eager 
 crowd of volunteers who offered themselves were 
 the old seamen of the " Hecla " and " Griper." 
 
 |:-'f i 
 
II 
 
 135 
 
 CHAP. VI. 
 
 SECOND VOYAGE. — "FURY" AND " HECLA." — JOHN GOR- 
 DON. — REPULSE BAY. — FIRST WINTER AT WINTER 
 ISLAND. — ESQUIMAUX. — ILIGLIUK. — DISCOVERY OF THE 
 STRAIT OP FURY AND HECLA. — SECOND WINTER AT 
 IGLOOLIK. — RETURN TO ENGLAND. — ILLNESS. — AP- 
 POINTED HYDROGRAPHER TO THE ADMIRALTY. 
 
 Op the actual existence of a North- West Passage 
 it was hardly possible to doubt, after the success 
 which had attended the voyage recorded in the pre- 
 ceding chapter. However, the stubborn barrier of 
 ice to the westward of Melville Island, which had 
 checked the advance of the " Hecla " and " Griper," 
 seemed to render unadvisable any further attempts 
 to force a passage in so high a latitude, and Parry's 
 decided opinion was, that any future expedition 
 which might be sent out, ought to endeavour to 
 skirt along the northern shore of the Continent of 
 America. Of this coast, it must be borne in mind, 
 that nothing was then known, beyond the fact that 
 Hearne and Mackenzie had viewed the Polar Sea at 
 
 K 4 
 
 fx\ 
 
 I, I 
 
IS'J 
 
 MEMOIRS OP Sill ^y. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1820. 
 
 THiiM 
 
 the mouths of the Coppermine and Mackenzie 
 rivers. The north-east angle of the great continent 
 was, as yet, unknown ; and, in order to reach it, 
 a passage would have to be sought through some of 
 the channels which existed to the north and north- 
 east of Hudson's Bay. Kepulse Bay, at the north 
 extremity of " Sir Thomas Roe's Welcome," had 
 never been fully explored; and, by many, it was 
 thought not improbable that it might, after all, 
 prove to be not a land-locked bay, but a passage 
 leading into the Polar Sea beyond. In this direction, 
 therefore, it was proposed that the first' attempt 
 should be made. 
 
 The " Hecla " and " Griper " were paid off on the 
 21st of December, 1820, and, on the 30th of the 
 same month, Parry's commission was signed as Com- 
 mander of the " Fury " ; the " Hecla," Commander 
 Lyon, being again placed under his orders. The 
 Admiralty instructions coincided entirely with his 
 views on the subject of the desired passage, being, 
 in fact, founded on his own earnest representations. 
 Repulse Bay was to be first thoroughly explored, 
 and, failing to find a passage in that direction, he 
 was to coast along to the northward, examining every 
 creek or inlet that appeared likely to afford the 
 expected opening to the westward. 
 
 
 I 7 
 
1821.] PREPARATIONS FOR SECOND VOYAGE. 137 
 
 '• London, January 2. 1821. 
 " My dearest Parents, 
 
 " I commissioned the * gallant Fury bomb' yesterday, 
 and have already been overwhelmed with oflPers of 
 persons to accompany me in all kinds of capacities. 
 Two lieutenants are, by my desire, appointed to ' Fury,' 
 Nias and Eeid, who were both on the last expedition, 
 and accompanied me on our journey across Melville 
 Island. Lieut. Lyon, who has lately been travelling a 
 good deal in Africa, has been induced to accept the 
 command of the " Hecla," with a promise of instant pro- 
 motion to the rank of commander. He is spoken of, by 
 all who know him, as an exceedingly clever fellow, and 
 his drawings are the most beautiful I ever saw. Hooper 
 of course goes with me I hope Edwards, the surgeon, 
 will go, but I fear he has had enough of it. I would 
 give 100/. to have him, and I know, if he would go with 
 any one, he would go with me. My number of daily 
 visitors is now about doubled, half of them coming to 
 talk about the last, and the other half about the next 
 
 expedition ' Fury ' came into dock to-day, and 
 
 our men are beginning to find their way back again, 
 being very desirous of trying a third trip." 
 
 While engaged in fitting out his ships, as before, at 
 Deptford, he thus alludes to a Sunday spent at Green- 
 wich, on a visit to his friend Mr. Charles Martyr, 
 of Halifax, of whom mention was made in an earlier 
 chapter. 
 
 ii 
 
 Ij: 
 
 *:- ; i 
 
 it 
 
 i' 1 ' ' ■ 
 

 i %. 
 
 ■I 
 
 '■■J ' 
 
 ■.-■J ' 
 
 138 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 " I have just returned to town from Greenwich, where 
 I have spent a very pleasant day with the Martyrs. We 
 went to the chapel of the hospital, which is the most 
 beautiful Protestant place of worship I ever saw ; and its 
 beauty is not diminished by the association of ideas, pro- 
 duced by looking down from the gallery upon the aged 
 heads of more than a thousand British seamen, worn out 
 in their country's service, and for whom the gratitude of 
 their country has thus nobly provided." 
 
 Before leaving England, he was presented at Court 
 by Lord Melville, First Lord of the Admiralty, 
 From some cause or other, Parry had thought that 
 his Majesty felt little interest on the subject of 
 arctic discovery, and was, therefore, agreeably sur- 
 prised with the way iu which he was received. 
 
 " The king, whose manner instantly set me at my 
 ease, quite as much as if I had been in the presence of 
 any other gentleman, said, 'Captain Parry, I congra- 
 tulate you on your return from your enterprise ; I am 
 sorry I have not had an opportunity of seeing you 
 before, but I am happy now to add my tribute to that of 
 every body else.' Sabine came next, and his Majesty 
 was very civil to him also. Then came Lyon, as we had 
 ourselves arranged, and Lord Melville, who was close by, 
 introduced him as * about to accompany Captain Parry.' 
 ' Yes,' said his Majesty, ' and to share in his honours I ' 
 looking towards me as I was sidling off," 
 
II 
 II 
 
 1821.] *'FtIRY" AND "IIECLA" AT DEPTFORD. 139 
 
 While the ships still remained at Deptford, the 
 " Hecla " excited especial interest, for all, of every 
 degree, were anxious to tread the planks of a vessel 
 which had so recently borne the flag of Britain to 
 the unknown north, and had braved the rigours of 
 an Arctic winter. In order to oblige the numerous 
 applicants for admission, and, at the same time, as 
 some acknowledgment of the flattering reception he 
 had met with from the public. Parry determined to 
 give a grand entertainment on board the "Fury." 
 The idea was hailed with glee by all, and Monday, 
 the 17th of April, fixed upon for the day. Under 
 the direction of the captain himself and his first 
 lieutenant, both of whom enjoyed the " spree " fully 
 as much as the youngest on board, all hands were 
 set to work, and the ships gaily decorated with flags 
 and green branches for the occasion. It was ar- 
 ranged that the upper deck of the " Fury " should 
 be the ball room, while the hulk, outside of which 
 she lay, was tastefully fitted up as a kind of general 
 promenade. The sun shone brightly on the assem- 
 bled guests, and, aided by the enlivening strains of 
 the Artillery band, the festivities were prolonged to 
 so late an hour, that the moon had already risen 
 on the dancers before the first boat quitted the 
 ship. 
 
 If , 1 
 
 liii ; ■ ■ 
 
 ll'V; •■ : 
 
 
140 
 
 MEMOlltS OF SIR W. E. PAKRY. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 1 TTf 
 
 On the 27th April, the ships were ready for sea, 
 and the wind fair for the Noro ; but it was Friday, 
 and Parry, though eager enough to be off, was 
 unwilling to cast even the shadow of an evil omen 
 upon his enterprise, by loosing his sails on that day 
 of the week. The next morning the wind changed, 
 and, after waiting in vain two days for it to shift 
 to a favourable quarter, the ships were towed aa 
 far as the Nore, and finally left the river on the 8th 
 of May. His forbearance in not leaving Deptford 
 on an unlucky day was thus rewarded by the curioua 
 coincidence, that they bade farewell to the Thames 
 on the same Tuesday of the year as that on which 
 they had sailed on the former voyage. " This is 
 pleasing," he writes, " because sailors are super- 
 stitious, and have a great fancy for lucky days, 
 with which I always think it best to comply, if 
 possible." 
 
 While the ships were on their way down the 
 river, a melancholy accident occurred. John Gordon, 
 one of the " Fury's " seamen, had accompanied the 
 former expedition, and, during the long winter at 
 Melville Island, had derived such benefit from the 
 instruction received on board, that, from a reckless, 
 swearing man, he became an altered character. 
 The rest is given in Sir E. Parry's own words, in a 
 
 -J!f 
 
 ail 
 
1821.] 
 
 JOHN GORDON. 
 
 141 
 
 lecture delivered at Southampton the year before liis 
 
 death. 
 
 " I have his fine, tall, powerful figure now before mc, 
 stalking across the ice, when it was breaking up with 
 violence, almost under his feet, with tlio end of a six- 
 inch hawser over one shoulder, and an axe on the other, 
 to make a hole in the ice for an anchor, to secure the 
 ship from danger, often requiring unusual activity and 
 nerve. In such cases, John Gordon vvjis the man always 
 called for, and the man always at hand. The year after 
 our return to England, a fresh Arctic Expedition was 
 fitted out, under my command, and, to my great • itisfac- 
 tion, one of the first men who presented themselves t < 
 accompany me was John Gordon, to whom I gladly ga/e 
 one of the best petty officer's ratings. And I reckoned 
 greatly on the example such a man would set to all of my 
 crew. But God, in his mysterious providence, had ordered 
 it otherwise. When the ship had dropped down to 
 Gravesend, Gordon was sent in a boat, one morning, to 
 lay a kedge anchor. In throwing the anclior out of the 
 boat, one of the fiukes caught the gunwale, bringing it to 
 the water's edge. The tide running very strong, Gordon 
 saw that the boat must be swamped, and the crew greatly 
 endangered, if the anchor were no<^ r- stantly released. 
 He flew from the stern-sheets past the other men, and, by 
 the utmost effort of his own muscular power, lifted the 
 anchor clear, just in time to save the boat. But, in so 
 doing, he neglroted his own personal safety. As the 
 anchor ran down, the bight of the hawser got round his 
 body, and dragged him out of the boat, — and we have 
 
 4 
 
142 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 never seen John Gordon from that moment to this ! I 
 cannot describe the sensation this melancholy catastrophe 
 occasioned in the ship, for Gordon was respected and 
 beloved by all." 
 
 Owing to contrary winds, it was a considerable 
 time before the ships were clear of the Orkneys. 
 
 . " However " (Captain Parry writes), " I do not in the 
 least regret our detention, as I am certain we are too 
 early for commencing our operations in Hudson's Straits, 
 and it gives me an opportunity of confirming the good 
 accounts of myself and our ships to a later date. My 
 dearest mother anticipated, in one of her letters, our 
 having commenced our regular Sunday church-service 
 on board the * Fury.' This was not the case, however, 
 till to-day .... Nothing can, possibly, be more de- 
 lightful than our little church. We had, while last in 
 England, the Morning Hymn and hundreth psalm added 
 to our organ, the former to be played at the commence- 
 ment of the service, the latter at the end of the Litany, 
 which adds a good deal to the solemnity of the whole, 
 as does also a regular chaplain performing the service in 
 his gown." * 
 
 Nothing of consequence occurred during the 
 passage across the Atlantic ; the ships, whose sailing 
 qualit;ies were well tested in the gales which they 
 encountered, were found to be of very equal powers, 
 
 # The Rftv. George Fisher accompanied this expedition, as 
 Chaplain and Astronomer. 
 
m 
 
 [1821. 
 
 lis! I 
 strophe 
 ed and 
 
 ierable 
 
 >t in the 
 
 are too 
 
 Straits, 
 ;he good 
 ite. My 
 ters, our 
 h-service 
 however, 
 nore de- 
 e last in 
 llm added 
 
 »mmence- 
 Litany, 
 
 ,e whole, 
 
 iervice in 
 
 ling the 
 le sailing 
 |ich they 
 powers, 
 
 ledition, as 
 
 1821.] 
 
 DAVIS* STRAITS. 
 
 143 
 
 an advantage fully appreciated by Parry, who, 
 on his two previous voyages, had had his patience 
 sorely tried by the sluggish movements of the 
 « Alexander " and " Griper." On the 14th June, 
 they fell in with the first iceberg in Davis' Straits, 
 about seven degrees to the east of the mouth of 
 Hudson's Straits. Here, the " Nautilus " transport, 
 which had accompanied them from the Nore, was 
 dismissed, bringing home the last despatches and 
 letters. Among the latter was the following from 
 Captain Parry to his parents, which, though, in some 
 of its expressions, differing materially from what he 
 would have written in later life, exhibits a tone of 
 deep religious feeling : — 
 
 "H.M.S. 'Fury,' oflf Hudson's Straits. 
 
 "June 22. 1821. 
 " My dearest Parents, 
 
 " The time being near at hand when the transport 
 will finally leave us for England, I gladly commence my 
 letter, which will probably convey to you the last infor- 
 mation of our movements which can reach you for a 
 long time. I feel, in this event, as if a second separation 
 were about to take place from those most dear to me in 
 the world ; but I also feel that the Being, who has 
 hitherto kept us, will keep us still, however distant we 
 are from each other, and to whatever length of time it 
 may please God to continue our separation .... I 
 thank God that I am in excellent health, to enable me to 
 
 m 
 
 I 'If 
 
 ii,. 1 1 
 
144 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 ■.liiFiii 
 
 perform, by His gracious assistance, the duties of the 
 station to which He has called me. I trust I am duly- 
 thankful for His mercies to me, for the success He has 
 granted me, and for any future worldly prospects ; but I 
 am much more thankful that 1 can safely say I never 
 felt so strongly the vanity, uncertainty, and comparative 
 unimportance of everything this world can give, and the 
 paramount necessity of preparation for another and a 
 
 better life than this My dearest Parents, may 
 
 God, of His infinite mercy, bless, protect, and make you 
 happy ! He is my witness, that I would willingly lay 
 down the life He has given me to secure your happiness 
 or comfort, if these can be expected in this life. 
 Whether we are to meet again here, God only knows, but 
 but of this He has assured us, that we can, by earnestly 
 imploring His grace and assistance, and by our own best 
 endeavours, secure to ourselves a meeting where shall 
 be joy and happiness, without a single drawback, for 
 ever and ever. Once more, God bless you ! He who 
 knows the secrets of all heiirts can alone know the deep 
 and ardent affection of your grateful and affectionate 
 son, 
 
 "W.E. Parry." 
 
 On the second day after parting with the trans- 
 port, the ships entered Hudson's Straits ; but their 
 progress was much impeded by ice and dense mists, 
 which overhung the bleak northern shore, along 
 which they made their way. 
 
 f 
 
1821.] 
 
 HUDSON S STRAIT. 
 
 145 
 
 of the 
 n duly 
 He has 
 ;but I 
 t never 
 arative 
 and the 
 and a 
 ;s, may 
 ike you 
 
 igV lay 
 ippiness 
 lis life, 
 ows, but 
 larnestly 
 )wn best 
 ire shall 
 )ack, for 
 He who 
 ;he deep 
 ictionatc 
 
 " It requires," writes Parry, " a few days to be passed 
 amidst scenes of this nature, to erase, in a certain degree, 
 the impressions left by more animated landscapes, and 
 not till then, perhaps, does the eye become familiarised, 
 and the mind reconciled, to prospects of utter barrenness 
 and desolation, such as these rugged shores present." 
 
 They were, at this time, completely beset, and 
 drifted about at random with the tides ; while the 
 swell of the Atlantic, setting down the strait, every 
 now and then separated the masses sufficiently to 
 dash the ships against the ice alongside, with a force 
 that no vessel strengthened in the ordinary way 
 could have withstood. As they worked their way 
 slowly to the westward, they fell in with a tribe of 
 Esquimaux, whose rude manners strongly contrasted 
 with those of any they had before seen, and whose 
 filthy customs disgusted all on board. 
 
 " On the whole," (Parry says,) " it was impossible for 
 us not to receive a very unfavourable impression of the 
 general behaviour, and moral character, of the natives of 
 this part of Hudson's Strait, who seem to have acquired, 
 by an annual intercourse with our ships for nearly a 
 hundred years, many of the vices, which, unhappily, 
 attend a first intercourse with the civilised world, with- 
 out having ^imbibed any of the virtues or refinements 
 which adorn or render it happy." 
 
 L 
 
 1 ( 
 
 ' 1 
 
 1 
 
 ! 
 
 ■ 
 
 1 ^kL£ 
 
 
 t 
 
 1 
 
 i 
 ] 
 
 i 
 
 
 \%- 
 
146 
 
 '':l 
 
 
 I''''! 
 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 The difficult navigation of Hudson's Strait occu- 
 pied a whole month, for it was not until August 2nd 
 that they reached the north-east corner of South- 
 ampton Island. Of the existence of a passage to 
 the north of this island many doubts had been 
 raised. Eighty years before, the name of " Frozen 
 Strait " had been laid down in the charts, upon the 
 authority of Captain Middleton, but some at horae 
 had impugned his honesty, and boldly asserted that 
 this strait was a chimaera of his own imagination. 
 Such being the case, it rested now with Parry to 
 choose between Middleton and his accusers ; in other 
 words, to decide whether he should at once assume 
 the strait in question to be a reality, or take the 
 more certain but circuitous course ound 'the 
 south of Southampton Island, by which the dis- 
 tance to be traversed before reaching Repulse Bay 
 would be increased to nearly 150 leagues. After 
 the most anxious consideration, he determined to 
 pursue the bolder course of attempting the direct 
 passage of the Frozen Strait ; " though," he con- 
 fessed, ** not without some apprehension of the risk 
 he was incurring, and of the serious loss of time 
 which, in case of failure, either from the non- 
 existence of the strait, or from the insuperable 
 obstacles which its name implied, would thus be 
 
1821.] 
 
 REPULSE BAY. 
 
 147 
 
 inevitably occasioned to the expedition." The result 
 proved that he was right in preferring the ocular 
 testimony of his predecessor to the speculations of hia 
 accusers. The Frozen Strait, which Middleton had 
 seen, but not attempted, was found to exist, and to 
 he by no means unworthy of its disagreeable name. 
 Slowly, but surely, the discovery ships made their 
 way through the floes and hammocks, rendered more 
 dangerous by the prevailing fogs. The only dis- 
 covery, worthy of mention, was a magnificent bay, 
 free from ice, and " possessing many advantages that 
 would have rendered it invaluable in a more tempe- 
 rate clime." This was named after the Duke of 
 York, having been entered on the birth-day of his 
 Royal Highness. Leaving this inviting spot, they 
 continued their course as before, until, the weather 
 suddenly clearing up, they found a continuous shore 
 immediately ahead. They had, in fact, without 
 being aware of it, actually entered Repulse Bay. 
 A boat was at once detached from the " Hecla " to 
 row round the further extremity, nere alone, 
 from the overlapping of one or two headlands, the 
 smallest hope of a passage could exist. The party 
 soon returned, and rev» >rted that Repulse Bay was 
 true to its name, so that all conjecture on th^ir 
 subject was now set at rest for ever. 
 
 I- 2 
 
 i'-i 
 
 ^- 
 
 IM 
 
 'i^--rfU^i 
 
 i-h 
 
 i ! 
 
V 
 
 148 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 Cl821. 
 
 ijil 
 
 1^ , f, 
 
 The first problem of the voyage being thus solved, 
 the grand object still remained, viz.. to " get hold " 
 (as Parry expressed himself) ^'of tho north-easjt 
 corner of America." Thus nuich., however, had been 
 gained, that they had at hst 'got holcV of the 
 continent itself, and th; shipj, accordingly^ v; passed 
 the mouth of tli:': bay, and proceeded northwards. 
 But they were not yet clear of the strait of ill- 
 omened nan>e. " The ob.-tructions and difficulties 
 to be encountered w< re as little <-uown as the 
 <Teography of this part of the coast of America, along 
 the line of which Captain Parry was directed to 
 keep, in proceeding to the northward, and to examine 
 every creek and inlet, wluch might afford a prac- 
 ticable passage to the westward. In fulfilling this 
 part of his instructions, never, since the voyages 
 of Vancouver along the north-west coast of America, 
 was a line of unknown coast explored with more 
 indefatigable zeal and perseverance, or with more 
 minuteness, under the most appalling difficulties."* 
 The tides now encountered were so strong, and the 
 ice-laden eddies so violent, that the ships were some- 
 times completely turned round, to the imminent risk 
 of the rudders, and, indeed, the whole framework of 
 
 * Quarterly Revr- ■ ol. xxx 
 
1821.] 
 
 BOAT EXPEDITIONS. 
 
 149 
 
 the vessels. But this was not all ; for, after having, 
 with infinite labour, advanced some distance to the 
 north, through the labyrinth of ice, the floe to 
 which they were attached drifted southwards, and 
 actually carried them back to the same spot where 
 they had been a month before. Under these vexatious 
 circumstances, 
 
 "To consider," (Parry writes,) " what might have been 
 effected in this interval, (which included the very best 
 part of the navigable season,) had we been previously 
 aware of the position and extent of the American Con- 
 tinent, about this meridian, is, in itself, certainly unavail- 
 ing, but it serves to show the value of even the smallest 
 geographical information, in seas where not an hour 
 must be thrown away, or unprofitably employed. Nor 
 could we help fancying, that had Bylot, Fox and Middle- 
 ton, by their joint exertions, succeeded in satisfactorily 
 determining, thus far, the extent of the continent of land, 
 the time, which we had lately occupied in this manner, 
 might have been more advantageously employed in 
 rounding, by a more direct route, the north-east point of 
 America, and even in pursuing our way along its 
 northern chores." 
 
 Till the end of September, the whole time was 
 spent in the examination of several deep creeks on 
 the coast. In this difficult and tedious task the 
 f"nm;ujdcr '^ct a worthy example to all. On one 
 v)Ccasion, he was absent from the ships eight, on 
 
 L 3 
 
 '^ I 
 
 li: 'I 
 
 ■*ri t 
 
If 
 
 
 ■■■ '}' 
 
 li'" 'A' 
 
 I 
 
 // 
 
 1'^. 
 
 w! 
 
 150 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 another, nine days and nights, and the extent of coast 
 actually discovered, and laid down on the charts, 
 amounted to two hundred leagues. The following, 
 from the pen of one of the " Fury's " officers, 
 testifies to his cheerful endurance on these trying 
 expeditions, as well as to the affectionate anxiety for 
 his personal safety, felt by those under his com- 
 mand : — 
 
 "September, 1821. 
 
 "Captain Parry determined, the moment we could 
 get the ship out of her present situation, to proceed once 
 more in the boats, and examine the coast to the south- 
 ward, until he should reach Gore Bay ; directing that 
 the ships should follow in that direction, whenever the 
 ice permitted. A boat from each ship having been pre- 
 pared, with eight days' provisions. Captain Parry, accom- 
 panied again by Mr. Ross and Mr. Sherer, in the 
 ' Hecla's ' boat, with Mr. M'Laren, assistant surgeon of 
 the * Hecla,' left us at four o'clock, on the 14th September, 
 to pursue his examination. 
 
 " On the morning of the 21st, the ships were got under 
 way, and all sail made to the southward, keeping as 
 close to the western, or right hand shore of the inlets, as 
 possible, in order to avoid missing the boats, should they 
 be on the return. On the morning of the 22nd, the 
 wind came from the northward, and gradually freshened 
 to a stiff breeze, continuing throughout the day, with 
 occasional showers of sleet and snow. In the evening 
 the weather became more inclement, and a very heavy 
 
1821.J 
 
 BOAT EXPEDITIONS. 
 
 151 
 
 fall of snow added considerably to the anxiety we began 
 to feel on account of Captain Parry and his party, 
 who were victualled for eight days, and had been absent 
 seven. 
 
 " The whole of the 23rd passed without any sign or 
 appearance of the boats, and (though T felt sure Captain 
 Parry had not neglected such precautionary measures as 
 would enable him to extend his resources for a day 
 or two,) the idea ol their being reduced to the necessity 
 of even a short allowance of provisions in such a climate, 
 at this season, exposed, as they were, to all its inclemen- 
 cies, was sufficient to excite all our commiseration and 
 sympathy, independently of the more fearful considera- 
 tion, that some serious disaster might be the cause of 
 their delay. With these feelings, we were delighted to 
 hear that Captain Lyon intended to get under way at 
 daylight, and run to the southward to look for them. 
 The weather moderated in the course of the d 7, and 
 the wind became light, and drew round to the westward. 
 At daylight on the 24th, the ships' anchors w< t 
 weighed, and all sail made along to the land to the 
 southward. We had not gained above six or eight 
 miles, when the wind became directly contrary, and 
 when the night closed in, without any appearance of the 
 boats, our anxiety was increased to a most alarming 
 degree. A large body of ice had been observed to the 
 southward the whole day, and we became apprc .^lisive 
 that this might cut them off, and would equally prevent 
 our approach to them. A thousand fearful consequences 
 of such, or other similar disasters were haunting our 
 
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 t ' 
 
 ■•)| 
 
 M ' 
 
 m n 
 
 ! !1 
 
 ' : I 
 
 '^ .. 
 
 •K 
 
 ft> Ak 
 
152 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 P 'N ' .' 
 
 1^ ', 
 
 imaginations, whet), at 7.50 p.m. the flash of a musket 
 was observed at some distance from us. A blue light 
 was immediately burned from the ships, lights hoisted, 
 and muskets flashed, and, in a fow minutes, we had the 
 hui>;^i it. . «o be fully assured of its being our boats re- 
 turning, by their burning a port-fire. It is necessary to 
 be placed in a similar state of anxiety, to understand the 
 joy which diffused itself over every countenance, and 
 which was st'U bo?-:'' *^"ned, when, at 9 o'clock. Captain 
 Parry and all his people got on board the ships, in ex- 
 cellent health, without having suffered a want, privation, 
 or inconvenience of any kind. The obstruction they had 
 met from ice had been the cause of frequent delays, and 
 they had, on this morning, been obliged to carry their 
 boats for a mile and a half on land, before they could 
 proceed ; but, at the first detention, Captain Parry re- 
 duced the allowance of bread, &c., and, as they had been 
 fortunate in procuring two rein-de-; besides haic aid 
 grouse, there was no luck of provision, and they d 
 sufficient for two days, besides the venison, now remain- 
 ing." 
 
 The season was now fast drawing to a close ; the 
 rain froze as it fell, rendering the decks and ropes 
 a^ smooth and . ij)pery as glass, while the increasing 
 darkness, added to the rapid formation of the young 
 ice, gave too evident notice that winter was close 
 at hand. Acco'dingly, a convenient bay in a small 
 island, off '' ^ entrance of Lyon inlet, was selected 
 for winter quai rs. On the 8th of October, the 
 
1821.] 
 
 WirTER ISLAND. 
 
 153 
 
 // 
 
 w 
 
 remain- 
 
 sliips were moved iiu ) their places, through a canal 
 cut for the purpose, and, in a few hours, firmly 
 frozen in. 
 
 An arctic winter was, by this time, no novelty 
 to the crews of the •* Fury " and ** Plecla," and the 
 experience of Winter Harbour had taught Captain 
 Parry the best means to be employed, for the pre- 
 servation of health and comfort. The theatre, from 
 w^'ch so much amusement had been before derived, 
 was now ** rigged out" afresh, on a grander and 
 more commodiou scale, with its decorations much 
 increased ; while the improved mode of warming the 
 ships, by means of Sylvester's stoves, prevented the 
 inconvenience they had before experienced from the 
 cold. 
 
 " It must not be supposed " (writes one of the officers), 
 "that the pleasure afforded by these exhibitions arose 
 <*rom the great merit of the performers, and the excel- 
 
 iice of the acting. The audience were a class ready 
 to be amused by any novelty, and, in an especial manner, 
 to be gratified by seeing the ofiicers, to whom they 
 were in the habit of looking up with respect and obe- 
 dience, voluntarily exerting themselves for their sole 
 amusement. The exertion was not matio in vain ; the 
 men were amused, and to their hearts' content. It is 
 impossible to witness such a scene, without being im- 
 pressed with a full conviction of its value, and without 
 
 pi 
 
 1^;; 
 
 ? i 
 
 I:' 
 
154 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. P\Ui4Y. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 i '-'■: . 
 
 Ill ' ! m 
 
 ■m 
 
 :M- t 
 
 expressing a hope, that nothing mij^I.t tteprive the men 
 of this occasional relief from ennui, the natural and 
 baneful attendant on an uninformed mind, during the 
 long and tedious winter." 
 
 Of one play, " The Poor Gentleman," acted on the 
 17th of December, Parry observes, that "it was 
 performed by the officers in so admirable and feel- 
 ing a manner, as to excite uncommon interest among 
 the men, and to convince him, more than ever, of tlie 
 utility of their theatrical amusements." These en- 
 tertainments were occasionally varied by the exhibi- 
 tion of an excellent magic lantern, presented to 
 the commander, for the use of the expedition, by 
 a lady, who persisted in keeping her name a secret 
 from those whom she was thus serving. On other 
 evenings, Parry, who had no notion of being idle 
 himself, or of allowing others to be so, succeeded 
 in mustering, alternately in his own cabin, and in 
 that of Captain Lyon, a very respectable orchestra, 
 in which his own violin took not the least con- 
 spicuous part. On these occasions, the doors of the 
 cabin were thrown open, that the ship's company 
 outside might enjoy the music. 
 
 " More skilful amateurs " (says Parry) " might have 
 smiled at these, our humble concerts ; but it will not 
 incline them to think less of the science they admire, to 
 
1821.] 
 
 SCHOOLS ESTABLISHED. 
 
 155 
 
 be assured, that, in these rcmoto and desolate regions of 
 the globe, it has often furnished us with the most plea- 
 surable sensations which our situation was capable of 
 affording. Independently of the mere gratification to 
 the ear, there is, perhaps, scarcely a person in the world 
 really fond of music, in whose mind its sound is not, 
 more or less, connected with his far distant homo." 
 
 For a couple of hours, during those evenings 
 which were not thus occupied, a school for teaching 
 the men reading and writing was established on 
 the lower deck of each of the ships, that in the 
 "Fury" under the superintendence of the purser, 
 Mr. Hooper. Attendance was quite voluntary, but 
 so good a use was made by the seamen of the 
 advantages thus afforded, that, when the expedition 
 returned to England, there was not a man on board 
 who could not read his Bible. 
 
 In the midst of these occupations, the shortest 
 day passed over their heads, without any of the 
 interest which it had excited on a former occa- 
 sion. 
 
 " In fact," (as Parry observes,) " our winter was no 
 longer an experiment ; our comforts were greatly in- 
 creased, and the prospect of an early release from the 
 ice as favourable as could be desired. In short, what 
 with reading, writing, making and calculating observa- 
 tions, observing the various natural phenomena, and 
 
 4 
 
 !>l ' 
 
156 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1821. 
 
 ^ 
 
 '^hii 
 
 taking the exercise necessary to preserve health, nobody 
 felt any symptoms of ennui, during our imprisonment in 
 winter quarters." 
 
 "With one exception, the health of the crews con- 
 tinued excellent. Scurvy, the great enemy of the 
 polar voyager, was kept at a distance by the use 
 of antiscorbutics, liberally supplied to the expedi- 
 tion. To these was added a regular growth of 
 mustard and cress, in boxes filled with mould, which, 
 owing to the superior warmth of the ships, was 
 now carried on on a larger scale than before. An 
 amusing incident is connected with the preserva- 
 tion, during the voyage out, of the mould in which 
 these vegetables were grown. While the ships were 
 detained at Kirkwall, a boat came off to the "Fury" 
 with some sacks full of earth, which the ship's 
 carpenter, (an Aberdeen man, who had formerly 
 belonged to the merchant service,) was ordered to 
 stow away below. At this he ventured somewhat 
 to grumble, and to question the utility of the 
 article in question. ** Never mind I " says his mate, 
 
 John P , from whom the account comes, ** never 
 
 mind I Depend on it the Captain has something in 
 his head, and it '11 be all right I" The obnoxious 
 sacks were, accordingly, stowed away, but, during the 
 voyage across the Atlantic, they proved too much 
 
 
1822.] 
 
 THE carpenter's DILEMMA. 
 
 157 
 
 for the carpenter's patience, and, at length, he or- 
 dered P to throw the lumber overboard, as a 
 
 mere fancy on the part of the Captain, no longer 
 remembered. P shook his head, but his supe- 
 rior was determined, and away went the bags, not, 
 however, into the sea, but, at all events, out of sight. 
 Days and months passed, and the affair was for- 
 gotten. Winter Island was reached, and the ships 
 were frozen in. One day, an order was given to the 
 carpenter to provide some long shallow boxes. This 
 (lone, — "Now then, my man," says the Captain, 
 " for those sacks of earth ! " Down comes the un- 
 fortunate carpentp" +'^ his mate, in a state of ludi- 
 crous perplexity, "Eh! ^ , but what will we 
 
 do, man? — Here's the skip^^-' singing out for the 
 sacks we heaved overboard I " " We, indeed ! " 
 
 says P , " but, never mind, it's all right ; they 
 
 never went overboard at all I " and, doubtless, many 
 of his messmates had cause, at Winter Island, to be 
 grateful to him that it was all right. 
 
 Christmas Day was now past, and the new year 
 had already commenced, wheu a circumstance un- 
 expectedly occurred, which served still further to 
 while away the tedium of the yet remaining months 
 of imprisonment, and gave, moreover, to this second 
 voyage a character of its own. On the 1st of 
 
 ... , ■,. 
 
 iiii 
 
 i ! r 
 
 i' !.i r: 
 
ft^l 
 
 i-S 
 
 
 
 f' 'I 
 '! 1 > 
 
 ''-'if. ' 
 ^ i ^, < 
 
 •■■■ I*!' 
 
 158 
 
 MEMOIHS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1822. 
 
 February, the look-out on board the " Hecla " re- 
 ported that a party of strange people were advancing 
 over the ice towards the ship, from the westward. 
 The glass being directed towards them, they Avere 
 found to be Esquimaux, and some appearance of 
 huts, at a distance of about two miles in the same 
 direction, was then, for the first time, discovered. 
 Parry, with two or three officers, and a few men, at 
 once set out to meet their unexpected visitors, with 
 whom they were, shortly, on most intimate terms. 
 Nothing could exceed their orderly and quiet be- 
 haviour, contrasting strongly with their brethren of 
 Hudson's Strait. They appeared, at a distance, to 
 have arms in their hands, but these proved, on nearci 
 inspection, to be a few blades of whalebone, intended 
 as a peace-offering, or for barter. Seme of the 
 women of the party, whose handsome oiotlies of 
 deerskin attracted the notice of the officers, began, 
 to the astonishment of the latter, to strip, for the 
 purpo o of selling their garments, though the ther- 
 mometer was at 23° below zero. It soon appeared, 
 however, that there was nothing very dreadful in the 
 matter, as each had a complete double suit. Parry 
 now expressed, by signs, his wish to accompany 
 them to their huts, with which request they willingly 
 complied, some going on before to fasten up the 
 
 I 
 
 ''if- 
 
 i ! 
 
1822.] 
 
 ESQUIMAUX. 
 
 159 
 
 dugs, lest tliey should run away at the sight of so 
 many strange faces. The Esquimaux village, if it 
 may be so calle-^; consisted of five huts, with a com- 
 plete establishment of canoes, sledges, and dogs, 
 and about sixty men, women, and children, seemingly 
 as settled as if they had been there for months. It 
 puzzled Parry, not a little, to divine how they had 
 escaped notice on board the ships, where so many 
 eyes were continually on the look out for anything 
 that could afford variety or interest. But the pro- 
 blem was solved some days after, when, having re- 
 quested their newly-made friends to go through the 
 process of building a hut, it was accomplished so 
 speedily, as to show that a very few hours would 
 suffice to complete the whole village as it stood. The 
 party now entered one of the huts, all of which were 
 formed entirely of snow and ice. After creeping 
 through two low passages, having each its arched 
 doorway, they found themselves in a small circular 
 apartment, of which the roof was a perfect crched 
 dome. From this room tLree doorways led to as 
 many others of a similar form, lighted by rouud 
 windows of ice, neatly fitted into the roof. The 
 women were seated on their beds of skins, each with 
 her little fireplace or lamp, and surrounded by her 
 domestic utensils, while the children crept behind their 
 
 
 
 { 
 
 i ' 
 
 ! i 
 - 1 
 • ! 
 
.( :.' 
 
 I 
 
 160 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIK W. E. PARRY. 
 
 Cl822. 
 
 mothers, alarmed at the sound of unknown voices, 
 and the sight of so many strangers. 
 
 The respectful and goodhumoured behaviour of 
 these poor people made a favourable impression ou 
 their guests, which was not lessened during the 
 almost daily intercoui'se which now ensued. With 
 one or two exceptions, their honesty was always 
 strikingly displayed. If a glove or handkerchief 
 were dropped, or left behind in the huts, they would 
 restore it to the owner, often taking the trouble to 
 travel to the ships for the purpose. On one occasion, 
 some of the " Hecla's " officers bought two dogs, 
 which made their escape to their old quarters. The 
 next day, after the departure of the Esquimaux 
 from the ships, it was found that they had left 
 the same animals carefully tied up on board. Their 
 integrity will appear the more remarkable, when 
 we consider that nearly all the articles, even those 
 of trifling vahie, which met their eyes, were as 
 much prized by them, as gold or jewels would 
 have been by civilised people. Their delight iu 
 mrsic was unbounded, and the fiddle on board the 
 " Hecla," as well as the organ, were endless sources 
 of amusement. One day, Parry paid a visit to the 
 huts, and prevailed on one of the women to sing him 
 a song, which she willingly did, and displayed a 
 remarkably soft voice, and an excellent ear. Her 
 
 'h '. & 
 
1822.] 
 
 ILIGLIUK. 
 
 161 
 
 name was Iligliuk, and, almost every day, she 
 showed some "resh symptom of the superiority of 
 understanding, for which she was so remarkably 
 distinguished. While the majority of her country- 
 men would stand stupidly at the armourer's ibrge, 
 caring only to have some spear-heads fashioned by 
 his means, Iligliuk would watch every stroke of the 
 hammer, and each blast of the bellows, showing 
 plainly that her attention was occupied with the 
 utility and' apparent simplicity of the process. The 
 following anecdote, related by Parry, displays a 
 pleasing trait of her character. 
 
 " She had promised to cover for me a little model of a 
 canoe, and had, in fact, sent it to me by the serjeant of 
 marines, though I had not rightly understood frcm the 
 latter from which of the women it came. Believing that 
 she had failed in her promise, I taxed her with it, when 
 she immediately defended herself with considerable 
 warmth and seriousness, but without making m^ com- 
 prehend her meaning. Finding that shvi was wasting 
 her words upon me, she said no more till an hour after- 
 wards, when, the serjeant accidentally coming into the 
 cabin, she, with the utmost composure, but with a de- 
 cision of manner, peculiar to herself, took hold of his 
 arm to engage his attention, and then, looking him 
 steadfastly in the face, accused him of not having faith- 
 fully executed her commission to me. The mistake was 
 thus instantly explained, and I thanked Iligliuk for her 
 
 M 
 
 i •• 
 
 !■■! 1 
 
 M 
 
 
\ 
 
 162 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1822. 
 
 ^ 1 
 
 Ifj ! 
 
 \i\ 
 
 canoe ; but it is impossible for me to describe the quiet, 
 yet proud satisfaction displayed in her countenance, at 
 having thus cleared herself from the imputation of a 
 breach of promise." 
 
 It occurred to Parry, that the superior intelligence 
 of this Esquimaux woman might be advantageously 
 employed, for the purpose of communicating some 
 .knowledge of the geographical outline of the coast, 
 along which they were to make their way, when the 
 ice broke up. The first attempt of the kind was 
 made by placing several sheets of paper before her, 
 and roughly drawing, on a large scale, an outline of 
 the land about Repulse Bay and Winter Island. 
 This being done, the pv^ncil was placed in her hand, 
 and she, soon comprehending the nature of her task, 
 continued the outline, naming the principal places 
 as she proceeded. The scale being large, it was 
 necessary, as she arrived at the end of one piece of 
 paper, to tack on another, until she had, at length, 
 filled a dozen sheets, and had completely lost sight of 
 Winter Island at the other end of the table. Her 
 ready comprehension induced Parry to try again on 
 a smaller scale, and this succeeded better. As she 
 traced the windings of the coast to the northward of 
 their present quarters, 
 
1822.] 
 
 iligliuk's vanity. 
 
 Id3 
 
 "It would have amused an unconcerned looker-on," 
 (Parry writes,) " to have observed the anxiety and sus- 
 pense depicted on the countenances of our part of the 
 group, till this was accomplished, for never were the 
 tracings of a pencil watched with more eager solicitude. 
 Our surprise and satisfaction may, therefore, in some de- 
 gree, be imagined, when, without taking it from the 
 paper, Iligliuk brought the continental coast short round 
 to the westward, and afterwards to the S. S. W., so 
 as to come within three or four days' journey of Repulse 
 Bay. . . . Being desirous of seeing whether she would 
 interfere with Wager River, as we knew it to exist, I 
 requested her to continue the coast line to the south, 
 when she immediately dropped the pencil, and said she 
 knew no more about it." 
 
 The north-east point of America was, in fact, 
 found afterwards to be where Iliglivk had repre- 
 sented it. Meanwhile, the spirits of all concerned in 
 the expedition were raised, by the expectation of 
 jBnding the desired passage at so short a distance to 
 the north of Winter Island. 
 
 Iligliuk had, however, her failings, and the chief 
 of these was vanity, — a feeling which, as may be 
 supposed, was not a little increased by the attentions 
 she received from her European friends. The fact 
 is, that, before the time came for the Esquimaux to 
 leave Winter Island, she was quite spoiled. Parry 
 remarks of her . — 
 
 • 
 
 M 2 
 

 164 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. TARRY. 
 
 [1822. 
 
 " I am compelled to acknowledge that, in proportion as 
 the superior understanding of this extraordinary woman 
 became more and more developed, her head (for what 
 female head is indifferent to praise ?) began to be turned 
 with the general attention and numberless presents she 
 received. The superior decency, and even modesty, of 
 her behaviour had combined with her intellectual quali- 
 ties to raise her, in our estimation, far above her com- 
 panions ; and I often heard others express, what I could 
 not but agree in, that for Iligiiuk alone, of all the Esqui- 
 maux women, that kind of respect could be entertained, 
 which modesty in a woman never fails to command in 
 our sex. Thus regarded, she had been always freely ad- 
 mitted into the ships, the quarter-masters at the gang- 
 way never thinking of refusing entrance to the 'wise 
 woman,' as they called her. Whenever any explanation 
 was necessary between the Esquimaux and us, IligHuk 
 was sent for as an interpreter, and she thus found herself 
 rising into a degree of consequence, to which, but for us, 
 she could never have attained. Notwithstanding a more 
 than ordinary share of good sense on her part, it will not, 
 therefore, be wondered at, that she became giddy with 
 her exaltation. In short, Iligiiuk in February, and 
 Iligiiuk in April, were, confessedly, very different per- 
 sons, and it was at last amusing to recollect, though not 
 very easy to persuade oneself, that the woman who now 
 sat demurely in a chair, so confidently expecting the 
 notice of those around her, and she who had at first, 
 with eager and wild delight, assisted in cutting snow for 
 the building of a hut, with the hope of obtaining a single 
 needle, were actually one and the same individual." 
 
1822.] DEPARTURE OF THE ESQUIMAUX. 
 
 165 
 
 The end of May had now arrived, but there was, as 
 yet, no prospect of release for the ships. On shore, 
 vegetation seemed labouring to commence, but the 
 snow still I ; thickly in most parts, while, to sea- 
 ward, appearances were even less promising. During 
 their former winter at Melville Island, there had 
 been, before this period of the season, several hours 
 of hard rain, changing the white surface of the ice 
 to a greenish colour, and aiding most eiFectually in 
 its dissolution. The Esquimaux were, however, 
 now about to leave the ships, and to migrate to their 
 summer place of residence to the northward. They 
 had, throughout, been treated with great kindness, 
 and, on more than one occasion, when the seal 
 hunters had returned empty handed for days together, 
 the whole party had been saved from actual starvation 
 by supplies of biscuit dust from the ships. In their 
 barterings, they had sho\\ cd, from the first, a child- 
 like simplicity in their wilun^^^ness to part with their 
 most valuable possessions, but Parry had taken good 
 care that they should be no losers in the end, and 
 now, at the final leave-tuking, he presented them 
 with several valuable gifts. The immediate results of 
 so sudden an influx of wealth seemed likely to be 
 serious, especially to the women, whose joy sent 
 them into hysterical fits of immoderate laughter, 
 
Ifi6 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1822. 
 
 succeeded by floods of tears. As they lOVcd oflF 
 with their sledges, drawn by themselves, for want of 
 a sufficient number of fl' rs, these light-hearted 
 people greeted their benciuctors with three cheers, 
 in the true Kabloona (English) style. They were 
 soon out of sight, and the voyagers were once more 
 alone. 
 
 At length, on tlie 2nd July, after having nearly 
 completed the ninth month at Winter Island, the 
 ships, partly by means of channels laboriously cut 
 through the ice, and partly 1 y the action of the wind 
 drifting the heavy ice from the land, finally effected 
 their escape, and stood to the north, up Fox Channel. 
 On one side, the shore was completely lined with ice, 
 while, on the other, huge floes were drifting rapidly 
 ubout with wind and tide, leaving a channel of a few 
 hundred yards in width, which, however, was often 
 quite blocked up. Once, the ships were swept 
 against each other, nd, after some grinding and 
 squeezing, they considered themselves fortunate in 
 escaping with the loss of one of the " Hecla's " boats, 
 which was torn in pieces by the " Fury's " anchor. 
 On another occasion, the friction of the ** Hecla's " 
 hawsers was so great, as nearly to cut through the 
 bittheads, and, ultimately, to set them on fire, so that 
 it was necessary for men to stand by with buckets 
 
 Ak.:^ 
 
.( ; 
 
 1822.] 
 
 FOX CHANNEL. 
 
 167 
 
 of water. The pressure, at the same time, made 
 her heel over considerably, and lifted her stern up, as 
 with a wedge, several feet above the water. As she 
 righted, the rudder was unhung vith a sudden jerk, 
 and the ship drove several liilles to the south, before 
 it could be again secured. To these dangers was 
 added the constant iei.. gum being beset, or 
 
 drifted back as before, "' ^ tbo labour of weeks. 
 This mortification, how^ •« ey were spared. On 
 
 the 12th of July, the examu .aion of a wide opening 
 in the shore led to the discovery of a large fresh- 
 water river, its deep banks richly clothed with 
 vegetation, and forming, in one place, a magnificent 
 cataract, upwards of a hundred feet in height, which 
 was honoured with the name of the secretary of the 
 Admiralty. After leaving Barrow River, they were 
 favoured with an uninterrupted run of fifty miles, 
 no unimportant event in this tedious and uncertain 
 navigation. Here, the large herds of walruses, 
 which lay huddled together on the loose pieces of 
 field ice, confirmed them in their belief, that they 
 were now approaching Igloolik, the country of 
 Iligliuk and her companions. The passage to the 
 westward, of which she had given promise, could 
 not be far off; and, accordingly, on the next day, 
 they found themselves off a wider opening than any 
 
 vf'-^ 
 
 3M 4 
 

 IMAGE EVALUATION 
 TEST TARGET (MT-S) 
 
 1.0 
 
 LI 
 
 I^ IM |2.5 
 
 150 ■^" ■■■ 
 
 m lit 
 
 
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 6" 
 
 ► 
 
 
 7 
 
 Hiotographic 
 
 Sciences 
 Corporation 
 
 23 WIST MAIN STRCCT 
 
 WEBSTIR.N.Y. I4S80 
 
 (716) R72-4S03 
 

 \ 
 
 X 
 
 -!^ 
 
168 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1822. 
 
 they had yet discovered. Their vexation may be 
 discovered, wheo, instead of a navigable channel, 
 one unbroken sheet of ice, stretching from shore to 
 shore, met their expectant eyes. For nearly a 
 month, they were thus stopped at the very thresh- 
 old of the North- West Passage. During this period, 
 repeated excursions were made on foot, to explore 
 the shores of the strait of which they had so long 
 been in search, and the first actual sight of which 
 Parry thus describes : — 
 
 " At half past five, on the morning of the 18th August, 
 we arrived at a peninsula which promised to prove of 
 high interest, for it appeared to lead to the very spot, 
 where, from the set of the tide and the trending of the 
 coast, the strait was most likely to be found: and it 
 presented, at the same time, a geological character 
 differing from any we had before met with. We now 
 turned nearly due north, and, after passing over a mi)e 
 and a half of rocky country, we arrived, at about 7 a.m., 
 at the ultimate object of our journey, the extreme 
 northern point of the peninsula, overlooking the nar- 
 rowest part of the desired strait, which lay immediately 
 b,elow us, two miles in width, and apparently very deep. 
 Beyond us to the west, the shores again separated to the 
 distance of several leagues, and, for more than three 
 points of the compass, in that direction, no land could be 
 seen to the utmost limits of a clear horizon, except one 
 island, six or seven miles distant. Over this we could 
 
 J f I 
 
1822.] 
 
 STRAIT OP PURY AND HECLA. 
 
 169 
 
 I 
 
 not entertain a doubt of having discovered the Polar 
 Sea, and, loaded as it was with ice, we already felt as if 
 we were on the point of forcing our way through it, 
 along the northern shores of America. 
 
 " After despatching one of our party to the foot of 
 the point for some of the sea water, which was found 
 extremely salt to the taste, we hailed the interesting 
 event of the morning by three hearty cheers, and by 
 a small extra allowance of grog to our people, to drink 
 a safe and speedy passage through the channel just 
 discovered, which I ventured to name, by anticipation. 
 The Strait op the Fury and Hecla. Having 
 built a pile of stcnes at the promontory which, from its 
 situation with respect to the continent of America, I 
 called Cape North-Easi, "^e walked back to our tent 
 and baggage, these having, for the sake of greater ex- 
 pedition, been left two miles behind, and, after resting 
 a few hours, set out on our return." 
 
 A light easterly breeze at length enabled the ships 
 to struggle through the newly discovered strait for 
 some distance. The main body of the ice was, how- 
 ever, almost as firm and impracticable as ever, while 
 the " young ice," the certain herald of winter, was 
 already forming on the little open water that re- 
 mained, and was hourly engaged in connecting afresh 
 the masses, whose partial disruption had vainly 
 raised their hopes. A few days more decided the 
 matter. So rapidly, in fact, was the season closing 
 
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 170 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1822. 
 
 in, that it was for some time doubtful, first of all, 
 whether the ships would be able to retrace their 
 course, and get free of the strait again, and then, 
 whether they could escape being frozen up at sea. 
 At length, after beating about, among the floating 
 ice, for many stormy days, and losing several 
 anchors, they were, finally, on the last day of 
 October, hauled into their second winter quarters, at 
 the island of Igloolik. Here they found themselves 
 again among the Esquimaux, among whom they 
 recognised the familiar faces of some of their former 
 friends. One of these, whom the sailors had christ- 
 ened ** John Bull," was so overjoyed at meeting the 
 friendly '* Kabloonas " once more, that he actually 
 sent, by one of the sailors, a piece of sealskin, as a 
 present to ** Paree," being the !irst offering of real 
 gratitude, without expectation of a return, which he 
 had ever received from these people. 
 
 In this good company, the dreary winter was 
 passed as cheerfully as the somewhat gloomy 
 prospects of the expedition would permit. As to 
 their operations during the coming year, Parry was in 
 great perplexity, but his doubts, at length, resolved 
 themselves into a definite scheme of a daring and 
 hazardous nature. This was to send the " Hecla " 
 home, and, taking from her stores a year's provisions, 
 
1823.] 
 
 IGLOOLIK. 
 
 171 
 
 to continue his voyage alone in the ** Fury." For 
 the greater part of the winter, he kept his plan to 
 himself, and when, at length, he made it known, not 
 a murmur was heard from any one of the gallant 
 crews he commanded. Each was willing to return, 
 or to remain, as his commander should decide. In a 
 long letter to his parents, written at this time, to be 
 transmitted to them by Captain Lyon, he thus 
 expresses in simple, yet manly terms, his determina- 
 tion not to relinquish the main object of his voyage 
 without one more struggle, and breathes the spirit of 
 that calm reliance on a higher power, in which his 
 resolution had been taken. 
 
 " I, yesterday, communicated to all in both ships the 
 determination to which I had long ago come, of sending 
 the ' Hecla ' to England, and continuing our efforts in 
 the * Fury ' singly. Nothing can exceed the lively and 
 animated bustle now going on in our little colony, and it 
 is a source of very great gratification to me, at this par- 
 ticular period, to see the good health generally enjoyed 
 by us. May God continue to us His all-merciful guid- 
 ance and protection ; and I cannot despair of still, ulti- 
 mately, effecting our object. I am determined, however, 
 with the continued assistance of Providence, to show 
 that perseverance has not been wanting in this enter- 
 prise, and no consideration shall induce me to relinquish 
 it, while a reasonable hope of success remains. What- 
 ever the event may be, our efforts shall be worthy of our 
 
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 i ' 
 
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 172 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1823. 
 
 country, and our return, I trust, at least not inglorious. 
 What the issue is to be, is in much better hands than 
 ours to determine. . . . The * Hecla ' will tell you our 
 story as far as it goes. For the concluding part of the 
 tale, which is * in the womb of time,* our dear friends in 
 England must patiently wait for the next post, which I 
 trust may be via Kamschatka. They will not fail to 
 feel comfort in knowing that we are ever under the 
 guidance of Him, * who is about our path, and about our 
 bed, and spieth out all our ways.' " 
 
 Probably, had this intention been carried out, the 
 fate of the " Erebus " and " Terror " might have 
 been forestalled by that of the " Fury." Only a few 
 days, however, before the liberation of the ships, a 
 circumstance occurred, which effected a total change 
 in his views. The scurvy, which had hitherto been 
 unknown, save in a few cases among the officers, 
 whose sedentary pursuits rendered them less gene- 
 rally attentive to habits of regular exercise, now 
 made its unwelcome appearance most unequivocally 
 among the men. The surgeon was consulted, and 
 his opinion being, decidedly, against the wisdom of 
 keeping either of the ships out a third winter. Parry's 
 better judgment prevailed over his zeal in the cause 
 of discovery, and, with a passing sigh for the Polar 
 Sea, which lay at the western gates of his newly 
 discovered strait, he resolved to make the best of his 
 
1823.] 
 
 RETURN HOME. 
 
 173 
 
 way home, in company with the " Hecla." He was 
 further confirmed in this change of determination by 
 a last sight he took of the strait, where the barrier of 
 ice remained as firmly, and apparently as hopelessly, 
 fixed as ever. The unexampled lateness of the 
 season also convinced him of the little progress he 
 could hope to make in an onward direction, during 
 the coming summer. As it was, it was not until the 
 end of the second week in August that the ships 
 were finally released, and, even then, the singular 
 mode of their progress southward, from Igloolik to 
 their old winter quarters at Winter Island, proved 
 how little could have been effected in a contrary 
 direction. The wind failing, and the ice closing in 
 around them, they were, without the smallest possi- 
 bility of exertion on their own part, drifted at 
 random down Fox Channel, now driven among 
 shoals, with only a few inches of water to spare, now 
 whirling round a headland, at the rate of two or 
 three knots an hour. Nor was this all. The season 
 was so far advanced, that, at one time, it seemed by 
 no means improbable, that, though on their way 
 home, they might be detained for a third winter in the 
 ice, almost within sight of open water. At length, 
 Hudson's Straits were passed, and they bade fare- 
 well to the last iceberg in Davis' Strait. 
 
 1 !' 
 
 m :t.. 
 11' 
 
 m 
 
 1 i 
 
 J li 
 
174 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1823. 
 
 " It can scarcely be imagined," (Parry wrote, on their 
 homeward voyage across the Atlantic,) "by those who 
 have not been similarly situated, with what eager interest 
 one or two vessels were, this day, descried by us, being 
 the first trace of civilized man that we had seen for the 
 space of twenty-seven months." 
 
 On their arrival at Lerwick, they were warmly 
 greeted by the inhabitants, eager to welcome them 
 back to their native country. 
 
 " I feel it impossible," (he continues,) " adequately to 
 express the kindness and attention we received, for the 
 three or four days that we were detained in Bressay 
 Sound by contrary winds. On the first intimation of 
 our arrival, the bells of Lerwick were set ringing, the 
 inhabitants flocked, from every part of the country, to 
 express their joy at our return, and the town was illu- 
 minated at night, as if each individual had a brother or 
 son among us. On the 12th of October, being Sunday, 
 the officers and men of both ships attended Divine 
 Service on shore, when the worthy minister, the Rev. 
 Mr. Menzies, who was before well known to many of us, 
 oflPered up, in the most solemn and impressive manner, a 
 thanksgiving for our safe return, at the same time calling 
 upon us, with great earnestness, never to forget what we 
 owed to Him, * who had been about our path and about 
 our bed.' The peculiarity of the circumstances under 
 which we joined the congregation, the warmth of feeling 
 exhibited by every person assembled within the sacred 
 walls, together with the affectionate energy of the 
 
1823.] 
 
 DEATH OF DR. PARRY. 
 
 175 
 
 preacher, combined to produce an effect, of which words 
 can convey but little idea, but which will not, easily, bo 
 effaced from the minds of those present on this affecting 
 occasion." 
 
 The joy of his return to his native shores was, this time, 
 saddened by a severe, though not unexpected blow. 
 The first letters, which, as usual, awaited him at the 
 Scottish ports, conveyed the intelligence of the death 
 of his father, whose health, already much impaired, 
 had, from the time of the departure of the expedition, 
 gradually declined, until March 22nd, when he died. 
 The news affected him deeply, but his official duties 
 prevented him from at once hastening to his bereaved 
 home; and he posted, as before, in all haste to 
 London, to present his papers to the Admiralty. 
 The letters he had received in Scotland also brought 
 the tidings of his youngest sister's marriage. She 
 was then living near London, and saw him on the day 
 after his arrival in town. As might be expected in 
 one \;hose affection for home ties was always so 
 peculiarly strong, he was deeply depressed in spirits, 
 and she observed that he could neither eat nor speak. 
 The next day, she was summoned in haste to his 
 hotel, and found him already in the delirium of high 
 fever. For some days he was in considerable danger, 
 
 and his sister and brother-in-law, with his friend. 
 
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 I* 
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 Pi 
 
 176 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1823. 
 
 Mr. Martyr, were constantly with him, but his 
 critical condition was carefully kept from his mother's 
 car, until the crisis was passed. The meeting 
 between the widowed mother and her beloved son 
 was most affecting, as the former lifted up her 
 heart; in solemn thanksgiving, to Him, who had 
 mercifully preserved her from further bereavement. 
 
 The following letter, one of the first he wrote 
 after his recovery from this illness, was in reply to 
 the congratulations of his friend Franklin on his 
 own safe return. The latter had himself returned 
 the year before, from the perilous expedition, with 
 Sir John llichardson, to the shores of the Polar Sea, 
 which has made their names for ever memorable in 
 the annals of arctic adventure. 
 
 " Stamford Hill, October, 23. 1823. 
 "My dear Franklin, 
 
 " I can sincerely assure you, that it was with no 
 ordinary feelings of gratification, that I read your kind 
 letter of congratulation on my return. Of the splendid 
 achievements of yourself, and your brave companions in 
 enterprise, I can hardly trust myself to speak, for I am 
 a^pprehensive of not conveying what, indeed, can never 
 be conveyed adequately in words, my unbounded admira- 
 tion of what you have, under the blessing of God, been 
 enabled to perform, and the manner in which you have 
 performed it. To place you, in the rank of travellers, 
 above Park, and Hearne, and others, would, in my esti- 
 
i 
 
 , but h*i8 
 18 mother's 
 meeting 
 eloved son 
 jd up her 
 , who had 
 lavement. 
 
 he wrote 
 in reply to 
 :lin on his 
 If returned 
 iition, with 
 
 Polar Sea, 
 jmorable in 
 
 vas with no 
 d your kind 
 ;he splendid 
 mpanions in 
 k, for I am 
 
 can never 
 ded admira- 
 
 God, been 
 you have 
 
 travellers, 
 in my esti- 
 
 1823.] 
 
 LETTER TO FRANKLIN. 
 
 177 
 
 mation, be nothing in comparison of your merits. But, 
 in you, and your party, my dear friend, we see so sub- 
 lime an instance of Ciiristiim confidence in the Ahnighty, 
 of the superiority of moral and religious energy over 
 mere brute strength of body, that it is impossible to con- 
 template your sufferings, and preservation, without a 
 sensation of reverential awe ! I have not yet seen your 
 book, and have only read the Quarterly Review. Your 
 letter was put into my hand at Shetland, and I need not 
 be ashamed to say that I cried over it like a child. The 
 tears I shed, however, were those of pride and pleasure ; 
 — pride, at being your fellow-countryman, brother 
 officer, and friend ; pleasure, in seeing the virtues of the 
 Christian adding their first and highest charm to the un- 
 conquerable perseverance, and splendid talents, of the 
 officer and the man. I have a promise of your book this 
 day from my brother-in-law Mr. Martineau, with whom 
 (surrounded by all my family,) I am staying for a week 
 at Stamford Hill. I cannot, at present, enter into any 
 shop business, — I mean geographical details, but I long 
 very much to see the connexion between our disco- 
 veries. Ours are small, for our success has been small 
 on this occasion. Briefly, (for the doctors insist up m 
 it,) the north-eastern portion of America consists of a 
 singular peninsula, extending from Repulse Bay in 66^° 
 lat. to 69|°, and resembling a bastion at the corner of a 
 fort, the gorge of the bastion being three days of Esqui- 
 maux journey, across from Repulse Bay to Akkoolee, 
 one of their settlements or stations on the opposite, or 
 Polar Sea side. This great southern indentation corre- 
 
 N 
 
 |13-'.|« 
 
 ! 1' 
 
 fl 
 
178 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 ri823. 
 
 sponds, I imagine, with your route, which led you into 
 
 66^°, I think, in proceeding eastward, but I have really 
 
 BO vague an idea of your proceedings, geographically, 
 
 that I can, at present, say very little to gratify curiosity 
 
 concerning the connexion of our discoveries. I shall 
 
 have volumes to say, or write, to you hereafter, but do 
 
 not be alarmed at the supposition of my expecting 
 
 volumes from you in return. 
 
 " I shall only add that I am, my dear Franklin, 
 
 "Your ever faithful, and most sincerely admiring 
 
 friend, 
 
 «W. E. Parrt." 
 
 He had now attained the rank of Post Captain, 
 having been promoted during his absence, as soon as 
 the twelve months of service as Commander had 
 expired. The result of the late expedition, though 
 unsuccessful as to its ultimate object, had at least 
 shown what route was to be avoided, in the search for 
 a practicable passage to the westward ; while to give 
 up the matter, at that stage, would have been, in 
 Parry's opinion, to lose all the benefit of the expe- 
 rience already gained at the cost of so much toil, and 
 of which other nations might possibly take advantage, 
 to snatch from England the glory of the great dis- 
 covery. It was, therefore, soon generally understood 
 that a third expedition would be sent out, of which 
 Parry would again take the command. Upon his 
 
1883.] 
 
 HTDROORAPUICAL OFFICE. 
 
 179 
 
 3d you into 
 have really 
 graphically, 
 fy curiosity 
 38. I sball 
 fter, but do 
 J expecting 
 
 Parry.'* 
 
 38t Captain, 
 ;, as soon as 
 
 recovery from his illness, Lord Melville offered to 
 
 him the situation of Hydrographer to the Admiralty. 
 
 He was, at first, unwilling to accept an office which 
 
 would shut him out from active service, whether in 
 
 the arctic seas, or elsewhere, but this difficulty was 
 
 soon obviated. 
 
 "London, Nov. 26. 1823. 
 
 "Lord Melville has said and done so handsomely about 
 the Hydrographer's situation, insisting on keeping it 
 open for mo, even during an expedition, that I have, 
 literally per force, accepted it, and shall be appointed 
 probably this day. How I shall get through the work, 
 and another rcjuipment, and my book, I know not ; but 
 of this I must make the best I can, having, in fact, no 
 choice. It will, in short, be ^fag^ but, of course, highly 
 flattering for the present, and beneficial for the future. 
 Another expedition is not quite determined on, but will 
 be soon, I have little doubt." 
 
 This was written in Novenaber; and, before the 
 end of the year, the " Hecla " and **Fury" were 
 again pelected to renew the search for the North- 
 West Passage, and Parry was once more in his old 
 place, and at his old occupation, fitting out his ships 
 in Deptford Dockyard. 
 
 I 
 
 S:i M 
 
 N 2 
 
 il 
 
 U I. 
 
180 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. [l824. 
 
 CHAP. vn. 
 
 
 
 i 
 
 THIRD AND LAST VOYAGE FOE THE DISCOVERT OF A 
 NORTH-WEST PASSAGE. — WINTER AT PORT BOWEN. — 
 
 MASQUERADE. LOSS OF THE *' FURY." " UECLA" 
 
 RETURNS HOME. — DEVELOPEMENT OF RELIGIOUS CHA- 
 RACTER. 
 
 1824—1826. 
 
 A TEW days before Parry received his commission 
 for the expedition now to be recorded, he was 
 honoured with the freedom of the city of Winchester. 
 In acknowledging the compliments contained in the 
 speech of the Mayor, he spoke as follows : — 
 
 " The merits, which you have kindly attributed to me, 
 are such only aa, I trust, would have been found in every 
 British seaman, and every Christian commander, under 
 similar circumstances. It has, indeed, been my fortune, 
 under Providence, to meet with some success in my en- 
 deavours. To the zealous co-operation of my brother 
 officers, and the exemplary conduct of the faithful men 
 entrusted to my charge, it has (under the same superin- 
 tending care) been owing, that even our comparative 
 
 \\'t I 
 
— "uecla" 
 igious cha- 
 
 1824.] 
 
 THIRD VOYAGE. 
 
 181 
 
 failures have not, perhaps, been altogether without 
 benefit to our country. By these, any future attempt 
 may, in some measure, be directed, and the attainment 
 of the desired object, to a certain extent, rendered more 
 easy. Should any call be made on our future exertions, 
 the liberal and friendly, nay, affectionate reception v/e 
 have experienced at home cannot fail to encourage us in 
 our labours." 
 
 As soon as it was settled that another expedition 
 should be sent out, the next point to be determined 
 was, in what particular direction the new attempt 
 should be made. Franklin's recent perilous journey 
 to the mouth of the Coppermine River had established, 
 beyond a doubt, the position of the northern coast 
 of America, and along this coast it was still Parry's 
 opinion that the passage must be sought, in pre- 
 ference to the higher latitude of Melville Island. 
 But the question was now raised by some at home, 
 whether, considering the difficulties experienced in 
 the late voyages, it would not be wiser to reverse 
 the mode of operations, by seeking to enter the 
 Polar Sea from the west through Behring's Straits, 
 rather than from its eastern entrances, as heretofore. 
 Of this proposition Parry, at once, signified his 
 unqualified disapproval, and concluded a letter on the 
 subject to Lord Melville with these words: "The 
 information lately obtained makes it less advisable 
 
 p.- \ 
 
 Is*' 
 
 .'^■J. 
 
 ;! 1 
 
 1 't 
 
182 
 
 M£MOIBS O? SIR W. £. PARRY. 
 
 [1824. 
 
 than ever for England to m . i the attempt from any 
 but the Atlantic side; because it is obvious, that 
 any difficulties of a more than ordinary nature 
 should be encountered at first, while the resources 
 are complete, the ships uninjured, and the energy of 
 the crews wholly unimpaired." This decided opinion, 
 coupled with his own experience of the hopeless 
 barrier of ice near Melville Island, and in the Strait 
 of the Hecla and Fury, reduced the question 
 to very narrow limits. The only other known 
 opening which remained, was that of Prince Regent's 
 inlet, visited by himself in his first voyage. It is 
 true that the ice to the southward had then presented 
 an unpromising appearance ; but the channel was 
 wide, and the well known rapidity with which, 
 under ordinary circumstances, changes in the state 
 of the ice occur, even from day to day, during the 
 summer, made it not unlikely that it would be found 
 more favourable on a second visit. These views he 
 strongly urged on the Admiralty, and, as might be 
 supposed, his advice was favourably received, and 
 formed, as before, the basis of his instructions for the 
 coming voyage. ** The confidence," such were their 
 words, ** which we are justified in placing in your 
 juQ^ment and experience, determine us to authorise 
 and direct you to pursue the course which you 
 
1824,] 
 
 EXPEDITION LEAVES THE NORE. 
 
 183 
 
 consider most promising, namely, through Prince 
 Regent's Inlet." 
 
 The success which had attended the entertainment 
 on board the " Fury " in 1821 emboldened Parry to 
 repeat the attempt now, on a larger scale than before. 
 This time, both ships were gaily dressed out, and 
 the proceedings varied by a concert on board the 
 " Hecla." Several of the best performers had 
 volunteered their services, and seemed, to their 
 delighted hearers, as though really inspired for the 
 occasion beyond their usual powers of pleasing. 
 As the twilight closed in, a novel and brilliant effect 
 was produced by coloured lamps hung amongst the 
 rigging, and along the bulwarks of the vessels. " It 
 certainly was," writes Captain Parry's sister, " a 
 beautiful sight, and, under other circumstances, we 
 should have thoroughly enjoyed it." 
 
 The ships sailed from the Nore on the 19th of 
 May, 1824, and in ten days were off the Orkneys, 
 whence he thus writes to his mother. 
 
 " * Hecla,' off the Orkneys, May 30. 
 " My dearest Mother, 
 
 "Being, by a very curious coincidence, off the 
 Orkney Islands, on the same day that we took our de- 
 parture from them three years ago, an opportunity oflfers 
 of sending a few lines on shore, and of this I gladly take 
 advantage, though I have only to say that we are all 
 
 N 4 
 
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 f: 
 
 
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 '-'\ 
 
 i ^ii 
 
184 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1824. 
 
 well, comfortable and happy, and about to begin our 
 voyage across the Atlantic with a fair breeze and most 
 charming weather. We shall not put in here if I can 
 help it, and the present wind is so favourable, that there 
 will probably be no occasion for it. Everything is as 
 complete as possible, and I do not know a thing that we 
 want. My own health is perfectly good, and I am sure, 
 my dearest mother, that even you, with all your anxiety 
 and affectionate solicitude for me, would, if you could see 
 me, acknowledge that I am, in every respect, as com- 
 fortable as your heart could wish. I have only time to 
 add my dearest love to all that are dear to me, from, my 
 
 beloved mother, 
 
 " Your fondly affectionate son, 
 
 « W. E. Parry." 
 
 He took the same opportunity of writing a few 
 last words to his friend Franklin, who was already 
 meditating a second journey to the scene of his 
 former sufferings on the north coast of America. 
 
 " God bless you," he concludes, " my dear friend, m 
 all your noble undertakings ! May He be your guide 
 and support in every difficulty and danger, and bring 
 you back in health, with renewed honours, to the 
 numerous friends, to whom you are justly dear." 
 
 On the 18th of June they fell in with the first ice 
 in Davis' Strait, and, about this time, an incident 
 occurred, strongly illustrative of his great natural 
 coolness in the hour of danger. It was Sunday 
 
^ 
 
 1824.] 
 
 COOLNESS IN DANGER. 
 
 185 
 
 forenoon, and, with the exception of a small watch 
 on deck, the ship's company were mustered below 
 for divine service, at which, in the absence of a 
 chaplain, he officiated himself. He had finished the 
 morning service, and had nearly reached the con- 
 clusion of the sermon, when the quartermaster came 
 hastily down the hatchway, and whispered a few 
 hurried words in his ear. Parry, without exhibiting 
 any signs of emotion, asked some questions in a low 
 tone, and bade him return to his post. He then 
 reopened his book, and continued his sermon as 
 though nothing had occurred, concluding with the 
 blessing. Then raising his hand, he said, " Now, 
 my lads, all hands on deck, — but mind, no bustle!" 
 On reaching the deck, it was found that a mist, 
 which had been hanging over them all the morning, 
 had lifted, showing the land right ahead, and now 
 only a short distance off. Parry, whose apparent 
 indifference had only resulted from his persuasion 
 that, according to the quarter-master's report, no 
 immediate danger was to be apprehended, now took 
 up his usual post, and promptly issuing the needful 
 orders, the ship's course was altered, and the danger 
 avoided. " We knew we could always trust him I " 
 are the emphatic words of one of his own seamen, 
 present on the occasion ; and those who know what 
 
 n 
 
186 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. £. FABRY. 
 
 [1824. 
 
 seamen are, will scarcely wonder that volunteers were 
 never wanting for any service in which he was en- 
 gaged. His example was no less conspicuous, in 
 the contempt of fatigue and the power of endurance. 
 " I have known him," says the same seaman, who 
 acted as his steward, " pass hour after hour on the 
 * spike-plank ' without going below, in all weathers, 
 often, for hours together, taking no refreshment of 
 any kind, but a glass of lemonade with one teaspoonful 
 of rum in it. I was often very nearly doubling the 
 allowance, but, thinks I, he is sure to find me out, 
 he's so sharp, and then he'll never trust me again, 
 which I couldn't bear I " 
 
 The unusual severity of the season retarded the 
 ships beyond all expectation. The difficulties of the 
 icy barrier, through which they had, on a former 
 occasion, pushed their way across Baffin's Bay, were 
 now increased ten-fold, and, more than once, they 
 were in fear that the winter would overtake them, 
 before they had even passed the entrance of Lan- 
 caster Sound. It would be needless, after the 
 accounts of the former voyages, to enter into a detail 
 of the vexatious trials of patience, to which, for more 
 than two months, they were thus subjected. At 
 length, however, these exertions met with their 
 deserved reward ; they entered Lancaster Sound, 
 
1824.] 
 
 PORT BOWEN. 
 
 187 
 
 and, on the 27th September, had fairly rounded the 
 north-east corner of Prince Regent's Inlet. Had 
 they been fortunate enough to reach this point a few 
 weeks earlier, as might reasonably have been hoped, 
 they would, in all probability, have been able to have 
 pushed through the ice to the southward of the 
 inlet, and, perhaps, have wintered on some part 
 of the American coast ; but the season for naviga- 
 tion being now almost at an end. Parry determined 
 to winter at Port Bowen, a convenient harbour on 
 the east coast of the inlet, which he had himself dis- 
 covered in 1819. 
 
 This was the fourth winter which it had been the 
 lot of our voyagers to pass in arctic regions, and 
 was, in some respects, even more dreary than those 
 of former years. At Melville Island all was new, 
 and the spirits of all engaged were buoyed up by the 
 hopes which the success of the voyage so far had 
 inspired ; while at Winter Island and Igloollk, the 
 presence of the Esquimaux afforded sufficient interest 
 and amusement to prevent the time from hanging 
 heavy on their hands. At Port Bowen there was a 
 total absence of all human creatures, save themselves, 
 indeed, almost a total absence of animal life, while 
 at the same time they were still on old ground, not 
 having, as yet, passed even the threshold of discovery. 
 
 I 
 
If , . 
 
 
 Ill 
 
 1 
 
 p 
 
 
 11 '!> 
 
 1 ^ 
 
 >■ I 
 
 188 
 
 MEM01L?F OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1824. 
 
 " The account of a winter passed in these regions " 
 (Parry writes in his journal,) " can no longer be ex- 
 pected to afford the interest of novelty it once possessed, 
 more especially in a station already delineated with 
 tolerable geographical precision on our maps, and thus, 
 as it were, brought near to our firesides at home. Inde- 
 pendently, indeed, of this circumstance, it is hard to 
 conceive any one thing more like another, than two 
 winters passed in the higher latitudes of the polar 
 regions, except when variety happens to be afforded by 
 intercourse with some other branch of * the great family 
 of man.' Winter after winter here assumes an aspect so 
 much alike, that cursory observation can scarcely dis- 
 tinguish a single feature of variety. The winter of more 
 temperate climates, and even in some of no slight severity, 
 is occasionally diversified by a thaw, which at once gives 
 variety and comparative cheerfulness to the prospect. 
 But here, when once the earth is covered, all is dreary, 
 monotonous whiteness, not merely for days and weeks, 
 but for more than half a year together. Whichever way 
 the eye is turned, it meets a picture, calculated to im- 
 press upon the mind an idea of inanimate stillness, of 
 that motionless torpor, with which our feelings have 
 nothing congenial ; of anything, in short, but life. In 
 the very silence there is a deadness, with which a human 
 witness appears out of keeping. The presence of man 
 seems an intrusion on the dreary solitrde of this wintry 
 desert, which even its native animals have, for a while, 
 forsaken." 
 
 The schools were now again set on foot, under 
 the superintendence of Mr. Hooper, purser of the 
 
V' 
 
 18240 
 
 EVENING SCHOOLS. 
 
 189 
 
 « Hecla,** and it was pleasant to find that the benefit 
 was not confined to the score or so of individuals, 
 whose want of scholarship brought them to the school 
 tables on the " Hecla's " lower deck in the long 
 evenings, but extended itself to all the ship's com- 
 pany, " making the whole," writes Parry, " such a 
 scene of quiet rational occupation as I never before 
 witnessed on board a ship." 
 
 " I do not speak lightly," he continues, " when I ex- 
 press my thorough persuasion, that, to the moral effects 
 thus produced on the minds of the men, were owing, in a 
 very high degree, the constant, yet sober cheerfulness, 
 the uninterrupted good order, and even, in some measure, 
 the extraordinary state of health, which prevailed among 
 us during the winter." 
 
 Of one of the Sunday evening schools Mr. 
 Hooper writes in his journal : — 
 
 " I have been, this evening, gratified beyond measure 
 by the conduct of my school. We assembled as usual, 
 and Captain Parry read to us an excellent sermon. We 
 then read over three or four times the second lesson for 
 the day, and I expounded it to the best of my ability. 
 After this, we went to prayers, and, having closed, I 
 wished them good night as usual, when my friend John 
 Darke (one of the ' Hecla's seamen) said he wished to 
 say a few words. He then returned to his knees, and, 
 in a few simple but affecting words, returned thanks for 
 the blessing enjoyed by himself and shipmates in a 
 Christian captain, and a Christian teacher, imploring the 
 
 1] 
 
190 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1824. 
 
 '•'Mt. 
 
 i 
 
 m 
 
 blessing of God in behalf of both Captain Parry and 
 myself. After this, he desired, for himself and ship, 
 mates, to thank me for the trouble I had taken, and the 
 countenance of every one spoke the same thing, and 
 showed that they had deputed him to do this." 
 
 The officers and men of the present expedition 
 having almost all served on the former voyages, it 
 was thought expedient to devise some novelty in the 
 way of amusements, which all acknowledged were 
 " by this time almost worn threadbare." They set 
 their wits to work, and, at length, Captain Hoppner 
 of the " Fury " proposed a general masquerade. 
 The notion was at once eagerly caught up and 
 acted upon, with the utmost zeal, by all parties. 
 None were more delighted than Parry himself. 
 
 " It is impossible," (he writes,) " that any idea could 
 have proved more happy, or more exactly suited to our 
 situation. Admirably dressed characters of various de- 
 scriptions readily took their part, and many of these 
 were supported with a degree of spirit and genuine 
 humour, which would have not disgraced a more refined 
 assembly, while the latter might not have disdained, '^and 
 would not have been disgraced, by copying the good 
 order, decorum, and inoffensive cheerfulness, which our 
 humble masquerades presented." 
 
 When the proposal was communicated to the 
 ships' companies, they heartily responded to the 
 
1824.] 
 
 MASQUERADES. 
 
 191 
 
 call, and, in their own phraseology, ** passed the word 
 forward to prepare for action," The preparation of 
 the different characters was, in itself, a fund of 
 amusement, occupying several days. " Well, Jack," 
 one would say, "I've put my considering cap on, 
 and I think as how I've rummaged up summut 
 queer I" and nondescript enough was the usual 
 result of these cogitations I Before the first enter- 
 tainment, which was to be held on board the " Fury,* 
 the chief topic among the men was, as to what part 
 "the captain" would take. They knew him well 
 enough to expect something worth seeing, and, at 
 the same time, to be sure that they should feel at 
 ease in his presence. Conjectures grew more rife as 
 the festive day approached. He was well scanned 
 by many curious eyes, as he emerged from his cabin 
 and went down the ship's side, but he was well 
 wrapped up in a large boat cloak, and all that could 
 be seen was his violin, which he held under his arm ; 
 so curiosity had to wait till all arrived at the mas- 
 querade hall, on the " Fury's " lower deck. And 
 now the fun commenced in good earnest; the 
 captain himself, for some time at least, attracting 
 the attention of all. The cloak had been thrown 
 aside, and there stood the facsimile of an old marine 
 with a wooden leg, well known to all, who used to 
 
 ' '.ii 
 
 ! I 
 
 i Ii| 
 
 I fr 
 
102 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1824. 
 
 sit with a fiddle, begging for halfpeii(!C, on a road 
 near Chatham. The part was admirably t<ii8tnine(]. 
 ** Give a copper to poor Joe, your iionour, win -'a 
 lost hid timbers in defence of his king iid counLiy !" 
 and then would come a scrape on the fiddle, and a 
 stave dolefully drawled in a cracked voice. The 
 appeal was not ir vain, and the coppers fell fast 
 into his hni. In n mother part of the deck stood a 
 neat pubin.*, liouse bar, at which a steady seaman 
 aoted iH John Barleycorn, and supplied liquor in 
 moderation to those who presented tickets, with 
 which they had been provided for the purpose. 
 Mine host had a ready tongue, and it may be 
 supposed there was no lack of customers at the sign 
 of the "Fury, No. 1., Arctic Street." The affair 
 ended with a dance, in which the whole of the 
 motley assemblage joined with right good will; 
 Turks, sweeps, Quakers, rnd old clothes men, footing 
 it as merrily as though the scene of the festival 
 were Portsmouth instead of Port Bo wen : and pre- 
 senting a strange contrast to the dreary waste with- 
 out, where an arctic winter still held undisputed 
 reign over the desolate shore and frozen waste of 
 waters. At length, four bells (ten o'clock) is struck, 
 the boatswain's chirp is heard above the din, 
 ** Away there, Heclas ! " and, in another hour, not a 
 
f 
 
 1824.] 
 
 OBHKUVATIONR. 
 
 193 
 
 sound is heard on l>oai\i cither ship to break the 
 stillness of the long polar night. Next day, the 
 votes were taken, and it soon appeared that, from 
 the captain's cabin to the forecastle, there was but 
 one opinion, viz., that " this time, at least, the right 
 nail had been hit on tiie head, and no mistake 1 " 
 During these entertainments, which took place 
 regularly at stated intervals, ilternately on board 
 both ships, not a single in^ race occurred of anything 
 that could interfere v ith ti regi lar discipline, or at 
 all weaken the respect of tlie i len towards their 
 super ''^rs. ** Ours, in fact,' vrry observes, ** were 
 m.asqu 'trades without licentio* ss, carnivals without 
 excess I " 
 
 Duriiig the long winter moi s of imprisonment, 
 the officers of both ships found ample employment 
 in the scientific observations, wh 'h their vicinity to 
 the magnetic pole rendered pan. ularly important. 
 The observatory had been erected ^'i shore, as soon 
 as the ships were secured in their vvinter quarters, 
 and the interest in these occupations was so great, 
 that its neighbourhood, before long, presented the 
 appearance oFa small village, from the number of 
 houses set up for the reception of magnetic needles. 
 The interesting fact was discovered that, since their 
 last visit in 1819, the variation had increased by as 
 
 o 
 
 :i! 
 
 
*. •! 
 
 ^- i: 
 
 194 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1824. 
 
 much as nine degrees, i. e, from 114° to 123**. Close 
 attention was also paid as usual to the various me- 
 teorological phenomena, and it was remarked that 
 falling stars were very frequent, especially in the 
 month of December. The Aurora Borealis, though 
 frequently seen, was not often very brilliant ; and, as 
 on previous voyages, the needles were never affected 
 in the slightest degree during its continuance. 
 
 " Once," (Parry writes,) " while Lieutenants Sherer 
 and Eoss, and myself were admiring the extreme beauty 
 of this phaenomenon, we all, simultaneously, uttered an 
 exclamation of surprise, at seeing a bright ray of the 
 Aurora shoot suddenh- downward from the general mass 
 of light, between us and the land, which was distant 
 only three hundred yards. Had I witnessed the phaeno' 
 menon by myself, I should have been disposed to receive 
 with caution the evidence, even of my own senses, as to 
 this last fact ; but the appearance conveying precisely 
 the same idea to three persons at once, all intently en- 
 gaged in looking towards the spot, I have no doubt the 
 ray of light actually passed within that distance of us." 
 
 The extreme facility with which sounds are heard 
 at a great distance in cold weather has often been 
 remarked, and a well authenticated instance of this 
 occurred during the winter at Port Bowen. Lieut. 
 Foster, of the " Hecla," had occasion to send a man 
 from the observatory to the opposite shore of the 
 
1825.] 
 
 RELEASE OF THE SHIPS. 
 
 195 
 
 !3°. Close 
 rarious me- 
 larked that 
 ally in the 
 alis, though 
 ant ; and, as 
 jver affected 
 ance. 
 
 aanta Sherer 
 treme beauty 
 y, uttered an 
 iit ray of the 
 \ general mass 
 h. was distant 
 Bd the phseno- 
 ►sed to receive 
 1 senses, as to 
 ying precisely 
 intently en- 
 no doubt the 
 ance of us." 
 
 ads are heard 
 as often been 
 stance of this 
 iwen. Lieut. 
 send a man 
 shore of the 
 
 harbour, a distance of 6696 feet, or about one mile 
 and a fifth, in order to fix a meridian mark, and 
 placed a second person half way between to repeat 
 his directions. This he found on trial to be quite 
 unnecessary, as he could easily converse with the 
 man at the distant station. The ther -ometer at the 
 time was eighteen degrees below zero, and the weather 
 calm and clear. 
 
 On the 20th July, the ships were released from 
 their winter quarters, and stood across to the west 
 shore of Prince Regent's Inlet, along which they 
 now coasted to the southward. This land had been 
 named by Parry, in his former voyage. North Somer- 
 set, in honour of his native county, but the '* Hecla" 
 and " Griper " had not on that occasion explored it, 
 having kept to the east shore of the inlet. 
 
 "Hence," (he writes,) "it was the general feeling at 
 this period, that the voyage had but now commenced. 
 The labours of a bad summer, and the tedium of a long 
 winter, were forgotten in a moment, when we found our- 
 selves on ground not hitherto explored, and with every 
 apparent prospect before us of making as rapid progress 
 as the nature of this navigation will permit." 
 
 These bright gleams of hope, however, were soon 
 clouded. The ice to seaward gradually approached 
 the land, until it drove both ships on shore, in which 
 
 o 2 
 
 i ! 
 
 i .1 
 
 t,'! 
 
196 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [182.1. 
 
 process tlie " Fury " was swept irresistibly past 
 the " Hecla," only avoiding, by a few feet, a contact 
 which might have been ruinous to both vessels. 
 They were got off again at high water, but the 
 unfortunate " Fury " was so seriously damaged, that 
 four pumps constantly kept going were hardly suffi. 
 cient to keep her afloat ; and Captain Hoppner, with 
 his officers and men, were almost exhausted with 
 their incessant labours. Preparations were made 
 for heaving her down, to repair the injury to her 
 keel ; but, in the very act of so doing, a gale of wind 
 destroyed the basin which had, with great labour, 
 been constructed in the ice to receive her, and it was 
 found necessary to tow her out to sea, in which 
 service the " Hecla " herself was exposed to no little 
 danger. For a few hours the •* Fury " was kept, 
 afloat, by means of sails passed under her keel to 
 stop the worst leaks; but, on the 21st August, she 
 was once more on shore, and, this time, hopelessly 
 stranded on an open and stony beach, with her hold | 
 full of water. The officers and men of both ships 
 were now so harassed and worn out, as to be scarcely I 
 capable of any further exertion without rest, and 
 more than one instance occurred of stupor arising 
 from excessive fatigue, amounting to a certain 
 degree of failure in intellect, rendering the individual | 
 
1825.] 
 
 LOSS OF THE "FURY." 
 
 197 
 
 SO affected quite unable, at first, to comprehend an 
 order, though still as willing as ever to obey it. A 
 survey was held on the stranded vessel, and the 
 unanimous opinion of her officers confirmed that 
 to which Parry had reluctantly come, that she must 
 be abandoned. This was rendered more vexatious by 
 the unusual absence of ice to the southward, as well 
 as the navigable sea, indicated in that direction by a 
 dark *' water-sky." The condition of the " Fury," 
 however, forbade all hopes of being able to take 
 advantage of these favourable prospects, and Parry 
 saw that one course only was open to him in this 
 extremity. 
 
 "Our resources only being sufficient to hold out to 
 the autumn of the following year, it would have been 
 folly to hope for final success, considering the small 
 progress we had already made, the uncertain nature of 
 the navigation, and the advanced period of the season. 
 I was, therefore, reduced to the only remaining conclu- 
 sion, that it was my duty to return to England, in 
 compliance with the plain tenor of my instructions. 
 But," he adds, "it was with extreme pain and regret 
 that I made the signal for the ' Fury's ' officers and men 
 to go for their clothes, which had been put on shore with 
 i the stores." 
 
 Every spare corner of the "Hecla" being required 
 I for the accommodation of a double complement, the 
 
 (> 3 
 
 ll^ 
 
 
 U 
 
198 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1825. 
 
 ?1i 
 
 greater part of the " Fury's '' stores were left eitlier 
 on board her, or on shore. These preparations at 
 length concluded, the boats were hoisted up, and the 
 " Heck's " head turned to the north-eastward. 
 
 On the 12th of October, Captain Parry landed at 
 Peterhead, from which place he posted to London to 
 present his papers at the Admiralty, whence lie 
 announced his arrival to his mother in these 
 
 words : — 
 
 "London, Oct. 16. 1825. 
 " My beloved Mother, 
 
 " I have tried every means of communicating to 
 
 you that I am safe and well, and so are all belonging to 
 
 the expedition, though unsuccessful, and having lost 
 
 the 'Fury.' This is one of the accidents to which all 
 
 such attempts must be liable, and from which God's 
 
 providence alone has hitherto preserved us \Ye 
 
 left the poor old ' Fury ' full of water. God has been 
 
 still very merciful to us, especially to me. All tlie 
 
 * Hecla's ' people return, by His good providence, better 
 
 than when wo left England, and only two of the ' Fury's' 
 
 have been lost, one by accident, and one by a disease 
 
 incurable in any place, and under any circumstances." 
 
 In compliance with the customary regulations of 
 the service, a court-martial was held, at Sheerness, on 
 the commander and officers of the ''Fury." "By a 
 curious necessity," Parry wrote, '^ there not being 
 cnptains enough to form the court, I sat as a 
 
n 
 
 1825.] 
 
 RELIGIOUS CHARACTER. 
 
 199 
 
 Oct. 16. 1825. 
 
 imstances. 
 
 member myself, although it was, in fact, on myself 
 that the responsibility rested ! " The interest excited 
 by the affair was eo great, that the " Gloucester," on 
 board of which the court was held, was crowded 
 with persons desirous of witnessing the proceedings, 
 and of learning the particulars of the disaster. 
 After going through the form of acquitting Captain 
 Hoppner and his officers, a flattering encomium was 
 passed on the exertions of all engaged in the expedi- 
 tion. As to the loss of the vessel under his 
 command, Parry remarks, that the only real cause 
 for wonder was his long exemption from such a 
 catastrophe, in a service involving such constant and 
 unavoidable risk as an arctic voyage. 
 
 The developement of Captain Parry's religious 
 cliaracter, differed, in some respects, from the expe- 
 rience of others. In many cases, there seems to be 
 some turning point, as it were, in the life, dividing 
 the old from the new. Here, the change appears to 
 have been far more gradual, and yet that there was 
 such a change is very evident. Whilcj hitherto, 
 " virtue " had been his watchword, it was, hencefor- 
 ward, a simple, childlike faith in the merits of his 
 Saviour ; while, in former years, he had been content 
 to bow reverently before the footstool of the Creator, 
 he was now led to cling confidently, and yet humbly, 
 
 o 4 
 
 J -I 
 
 m 
 
 
 j ■; [I 
 
 ! '< 
 
200 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1825. 
 
 fk si 
 
 '^\i 1 
 
 to the Cross of his Redeemer. Such a statement 
 may, perhaps, seem inconsistent with the high moral 
 character and unmistakeable piety of his early 
 years : but, little as he was accustomed to speak of 
 his own inner feelings, no one who knew him can 
 doubt that he, himself, regarded the religion of his 
 early life as widely differing from his later expe- 
 rience. The former was but an imperfect, vague, 
 undeveloped service, the latter was as " a light 
 shining more and more unto the perfect day." It 
 might be said of him, as of Cornelius, that he had 
 been a " devout man, one that feared God, and prayed 
 to God always," but that, henceforth, it was given 
 to him to know " the way of God more perfectly." 
 And to the influence of more than one immediate 
 cause may we trace its developement at this time. 
 His father's death had had, as we have seen, a strong 
 effect upon him, and would, doubtless, lead him to 
 inquire, with greater anxiety, into the grounds of 
 his own belief. Under these inquiries he was not 
 left alone to the struggles of his own heart, but 
 found in Mr. Hooper, whose name has occurred 
 more than once in these pages, one ever ready to 
 oflPer sympathy and help ; so that, during the winter 
 spent at Port Bowen, a close tie of Christian friend- 
 ship was formed between them. A pocket edition 
 
f' / 
 
 1825.] 
 
 RELIGIOUS CHARACTER. 
 
 201 
 
 of the New Testament, which Captain Parry had in 
 his possession during this voyage, contains the fol- 
 lowing entry on the first page in his own hand- 
 writing: " Began to read the New Testament every 
 evening, from June 3rd, 1824." This is followed by 
 a succession of dates, extending through two years, 
 being the days on which the Testament was recom- 
 menced in regular order, amounting to seven times 
 in all. To this simple reading through and through 
 of the New Testament did he ascribe, more than to 
 any other means, the i^rogressive change in liis re- 
 ligious views, applying to himself the words of the 
 Psalm, " The entrance of Thy Word giveth light." 
 
 The following extracts are from Mr. Hooper's 
 private journal. 
 
 " Jamiari/ 23rd, 1825. — My esteemed friend is more 
 earnestly alive than ever to the importance of living 
 for another world, and not for this alone. His views 
 become every day more clear. We have much delight 
 in conversing ; and, 1 hope, under the influence of God's 
 Holy Spirit, in increasing each other's knowledge on re- 
 ligious subjects. I frequently spend half an hour with 
 him after our school, and find some of the time thus 
 passed both precious and delightful." 
 
 ^^ February \3th. — Captain Parry is most earnest in 
 his desire to awaken the people to the importance of 
 eternity, on which subject his own views have, in the last 
 
''■ 'i 
 
 202 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [IS25. 
 
 few months, materially expanded, and, under the divine 
 blessing, I have confident hopes of benefiting many 
 of them by our mutual endeavours." 
 
 That these efforts, on the part of these Christian 
 brother officers, were highly appreciated by those for 
 whose benefit they were intended, may be seen from 
 the two following letters from a seaman on board 
 the " Hecla," the first written at the time, and the 
 other addressed to Mr. Hooper some years after- 
 wards. 
 
 " H. M. S. ' Hecla.' Port Bowcn, Dec. 1824. 
 
 "I must be plain and honest in my declarations. The 
 Lord has been pleased to supply us sinful and unworthy 
 creatures with a Christian and faithful captain, and 
 preacher of the most sacred and Holy Gospel, and, like- 
 wise, a good Christian teacher, in this wild and solitary 
 place, and shall we still rebel against such a good God 
 as this, and go on in sin ? Shall I not, with my small, 
 but most grateful acknowledgements, contribute some- 
 thing towards the support of religion ? This, sir, I 
 should wish to keep secret from the world, for ' in your 
 alms-giving, let not your right hand know what your 
 left hand doeth.' But I am so circumstanced now, that 
 this I cannot avoid, and if you will have the goodness to 
 write how it should be done, the sum of lOZ. shall be 
 given, as you think well of. May the Lord be with you, 
 and with my spirit, and I am. Sir, 
 
 " Your obedient and very humble servant, 
 "John Dakke. Seaman." 
 
■ / 
 
 1825.] 
 
 DEATH OF MR. MARTYR. 
 
 203 
 
 "I respect you and Captain Parry so far, that I 
 
 would lingly lay down my life freely to serve you. 
 
 I cannot bear to lose sight of the persons in whom I 
 
 have such friends, and who, by the grace of God, have 
 
 been the means of saving my soul. 
 
 " J. D." 
 
 Shortly after the arrival of the " Hecla " in 
 England, in 1825, Parry underwent a severe trial in 
 the death of his esteemed friend, Mr. Charles Martyr. 
 The following letter, written towards the close of his 
 fatal illness, is indicative of the expansion of his own 
 religious views. 
 
 "Dear Charles Martyr, of whose value, as a friend, 
 you are fully aware, is, I fear, no less than dying, and I, 
 who would die for him, cannot, as yet, go to Chatham to 
 see him. Yes, he is, I believe, going to reap his reward, 
 and to receive a crown of glory. He is, my dear friend, 
 the happiest man in England, I believe, at this moment. 
 The calm composure with which he contemplates his 
 dissolution, is, I am told, most delightful. He says he is 
 sure the God he has endeavoured to serve will never 
 'leave nor forsake ' his wife and children. He speaks of 
 it, not as many do, in general dependence on God's 
 mercy, but in the sure and certain hope that it will be 
 so. His, in short, is faith, the true scriptural faith, and 
 by this he trusts, through the merits of his Saviour, to 
 enter heaven himself, and feels certain that He, without 
 whose permission not a sparrow ftills (o the ground, will 
 preserve from want those whom he leaves behind, who 
 
 
 ■;;r ! 
 
 
 * ■ ■> 
 
 
 ■■;• 1 
 
 
 
 
 ... J 
 
 
 
 
:(: 
 
 
 i 1 ■ 
 
 I- 
 
 V 
 
 204 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARKY. 
 
 [1825. 
 
 are of more value than many sparrows. You, my dear 
 friends, will forgive my intruding all this upon you, but 
 the object of my present affliction is not unknown to you, 
 and you can deeply appreciate every feeling of mine 
 upon the occasion." 
 
 After Mr. Martyr's decease, Parry had the melan- 
 choly satisfaction of testifying to the worth of his 
 departed friend, in an article for the " Christian 
 Observer," and the spirit which pervades every page 
 is a still further illustration of the remarks we have 
 ventured to make upon his own religious viewt*. 
 The memoir concludes with these words : — 
 
 " At length his happy spirit was released, and returned 
 to God who gave it. Thus, at the the early age of 
 thirty-three years, this faithful servant of God 'fell 
 asleep in Jesus.' He is now delivered from the bondage 
 of corruption, into the glorious liberty of the children of 
 God. Now, freed from all darkness, and doubts, and 
 fccars, ho is drinking, from the pure fountain of life and 
 happiness, draughts of unmixed and uninterrupted feli- 
 city. His warfare is ended, and he is wearing a crown 
 of glory, ' tlie prize of the high calling of God in Christ 
 Jesus.' " 
 
 * The voyage of 1824, resulting in the loss of the 
 " Fury," was the last expedition in which Parry was 
 engaged for the discovery of a North-West Passage, 
 his next public service having a different end in 
 
1825. 
 
 'TORTF- VEST !• s3Ac 
 
 205 
 
 10U3 Views. 
 
 view, though it le^ liim i o more into similar 
 scenes. Still, whil the gv at problem remained 
 unsolved, his own exertions had not been without 
 brilliant result. Even his failures served as land- 
 marks to guide the steps of those who folhwed in 
 his track, and the extent of his success, on ground 
 liitherto unexplored, had, in u great meajure, ex- 
 hausted the more difficult part of the undertaking, 
 leaving to his successors only the glory of completing 
 the last link in the chain of discovery. He lived 
 just long enough to see this link added, as he felt sure 
 would eventually be the case. 
 
 " I feel confident," (he writes, at the close of his nar- 
 rative of this voyage,) " that the undertaking, if it bo 
 deemed advisable at any future time to pursue it, will, 
 one day or other, be accomplished ; for, setting aside the 
 accidents, to which, from their very nature, such attempts 
 must be liable, I cannot but believe it to be an enter- 
 prise well within the reasonable limits of practicability. 
 It may be tried often, and often fail, for several favour- 
 able and fortunate circumstances must be combined for 
 its accomplishment, but I believe, nevertheless, that it 
 will ultimately be accomplished. Happy (he adds,) 
 I should have considered myself in solving this inter- 
 esting question, instead of leaving it a matter of specu- 
 lation and conjecture ; happy shall I be also, if any 
 labours of mine in the humble, though it would seem 
 necessary, office of pioneer, should ultimately contribute 
 
 M 
 
 i1 
 
 l4 
 
206 
 
 MEMOIRS OF am W. E. PAUUY. 
 
 [1825. 
 
 to tho success of some more Tortunato individual ; but 
 most happy should I bo, to bo again selected as that 
 individual. May it still fall to England's lot to accom- 
 plish this undertaking, and may she ever continue to 
 take tho lead in enterprises i utendod to contribute to tho 
 advancement of science, and to promote, with her own, 
 the welfare of mankind at large. Such enterprises, so 
 disinterested as well as useful in their object, do honour 
 to the country which undertakes them, even when they 
 fail ; they cannot but excite the admiration and respect of 
 every liberal and cultivated mind ; and the page of 
 future history will undoubtedly record them, as in every 
 way worthy of a powerful, virtuous, and enlightened 
 nation.' " 
 
207 
 
 CHAP. VIII. 
 
 INTEREST IN RELIGIOUS SOCIETIES. — APPOINTMENT TO 
 THE COMMAND OF AN EXPEDITION FOR THE PURPOSE 
 OF ATTEMPTING TO REACH THE NORTH POLE. — MAR- 
 RIAGE. — SAILING OF THE EXPEDITION. — THE " IIECLA " 
 LEFT AT SPITZBERGEN. — IIOAT AND SLEDGE JOURNEV 
 
 TO THE NORTHWARD. — RETURN TO THE " HECLA." 
 
 HOMEWARD VOYAGE. — SHORT TOUR ON THE CONTINENT. 
 — DEATH OF HIS ELDEST CHILD. 
 
 1826—1828. 
 
 Immediately after his return from the expedi- 
 tion recorded in the last chapter, Parry resumed his 
 duties as hydrographer at the Admiralty. On the 
 15th February, 1826, the freedom of the city of 
 Lynn was voted to him by the corporation, " in 
 testimony of the high sense they entertained of his 
 meritorious and enterprising conduct." 
 
 At this time, his interest in religious societies 
 seems to have been first awakened. The Society 
 for promoting Christianity among the Jews, the 
 Church Missionary, and the Naval and Military 
 
 I 'i 
 
 rl 
 
.% 'J 
 
 208 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. TARRY. 
 
 [1826. 
 
 i: 1 
 
 Bible Societies, are frequently mentioned in his 
 letters, the latter especially, for which he spoke at 
 the annual May meeting of this year, besides taking 
 an active part in the formation of an association at 
 Chatham. 
 
 " I have often wished " (he remarked on this occasion), 
 " when paying my usual visits to our little schools, that 
 the friends of the Naval and Military Bible Society, or 
 even its enemies, (if any such there can be,) could for a 
 moment have been transported to the ' Hecla's * lower 
 deck. They would there have seen a whole ship's com- 
 pany gradually drawing round the school tables, to hear 
 the word of God expounded, they would have seen each 
 individual listening with eager and mute attention, and, 
 literally, those who came to scoff remaining to pray. 
 I cannot expect, ladies and gentlemen, to convey to your 
 mind the interest of such a scene, with all the associa- 
 tions arising out of our peculiar situation, but the recol- 
 lection will ever be to me one of the strongest, and, I 
 may truly say, the sweetest of my life. The effect was 
 simply this, that the very best men on board the ' Hecla,' 
 — those, I mean, who were always called upon in time of 
 especial difficulty and danger, — were, without exception, 
 those who had thought the most seriously on religious 
 subjects ; and that, if a still more scrupulous selection 
 were to be made of that number, the choice would, 
 without hesitation, fall on two or three individuals emi- 
 nently Christian. Such has been the result of my own 
 observation and experience. Should I be employed on 
 
1826.] 
 
 SPEECH AT THE BIBLE SOCIETY. 
 
 209 
 
 a similar service, and were you to ask what men I would 
 select, I would say, ' give me the best Christians,' for 
 then we should be strong indeed, strong in the Lord, and 
 in the power of His might." 
 
 In thus openly espousing the cause of religion, he 
 felt that he was now, as it were, nailing to the mast 
 the colours of his Christian profession. 
 
 " My speech at the Bible Society " (he writes,) " has 
 been talked of very sneeringly at this great house (the 
 Admiralty), but oh! how insignificant does all within 
 these walls appear, when the imagination turns, but for 
 a moment, to the assembled hosts of heaven, and men, 
 and angels ! In this I had long ago counted the cost, 
 and am, I trust, ready, in dependence on other strength 
 than my own, to bear much more reproach than this. 
 Pray for me, my dear friend, that my strength fail not, 
 and that I may be encouraged and supported by God's 
 Holy Spirit, in every humble endeavour to advance His 
 glory, and the salvation of men's souls ! " 
 
 After the unsuccessful termination of the recent 
 efforts to discover the North- West Passa2!:e, it seemed 
 useless, for the present, to pursue the attempt further ; 
 but this did not hinder Parry from turning his 
 attention to another quarter, where success seemed 
 more hopeful. The interesting experiments which 
 bad been made, during the late expeditions, in the 
 I neighbourhood of the Magnetic Pole, had induced 
 
 p 
 
 «'ji-- 
 
 m 
 
 
 m 
 
 
 
 m 
 
 n 
 
S il 
 
 ,,■ .fr 
 
 ^'il 
 
 IH 
 
 210 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. x'ARRT. 
 
 [l82G. 
 
 many scientific men to speculate on the possibility 
 of carrying out similar observations at the very 
 pole of the earth itself. Parry employed the few 
 leisure moments he could snatch from the duties 
 of his office in drawing up a statement respecting 
 the practicability of effecting this object by means of 
 sledge boats, as had been before proposed by his 
 friend and brother officer. Captain Franklin. Of 
 the difficulties involved in the scheme he was fully 
 aware ; but, as he remarked in a letter to Franklin, 
 then himself absent from England on arctic dig- 
 covery, "the true reply to all doubts is, go and 
 see!" The memorial, when completed, was laid 
 before Lord Melville and the Lords of the Admiralty, 
 supported by a recommendation from Sir Humphry 
 Davy, the president of the Royal Society, to whom 
 Parry, as a member of the Society, had communi- 
 cated his views. As might be anticipated, some 
 opposition was at first made to the scheme, but, after 
 further discussion, the objections were overruled, 
 and Parry was appointed to the command of an] 
 expedition "for the purpose of attempting to reacli] 
 the North Pole." 
 
 " Admiralty, July 8. 1826. 
 
 *• I am in the highest possible spirits, being quite re- 
 joiced in the prospect of some new and honourable employ- 
 
1826.] 
 
 MARRIAGE. 
 
 211 
 
 ment, better suited both to my tastes and early habits 
 than the present sedentary occupation of my office. I was 
 yesterday the whole day at Woolwich Dockyard, and 
 went on board my dear old * Hecla,' to determine on a 
 few trifling alterations which must be made in her. I 
 feel very great interest in this expedition, more than 
 in any former one, as it is my own plan, and unique in 
 its way." 
 
 On the 23rd of October, Captain Parry was 
 united in marriage to Isabella Louisa, fourth 
 (laughter of Sir John (afterwards Lord) Stanley, of 
 Alderley Park, Cheshire. The ceremony was per- 
 formed in the parish church of Alderley, by the 
 Rev. E. Stanley (afterwards Bishop of Norwich), 
 I with whom Captain Parry had for some time been 
 I on terms of intimate friendship. A silk ensign, 
 worked for the expedition by the bride herself, was 
 hoisted on the church tower. When hauled down, 
 this was carefully folded up, not to be again un- 
 [furlecl, as they fondly hoped, except at the North 
 *ole itself. 
 
 On the 18th of November, the "Hecla" was 
 formally commissioned for the approaching voyage to 
 
 Spitzbergen. 
 
 "November 20. 1827, 
 " On Saturday, at 10 o'clock, we set off for Deptford, 
 [nd found Ross there waiting our arrival. The day was 
 
 F 2 
 
 I 
 II 
 
 I 
 
 t 
 
 
Si ''8 >*-J. 
 ■? i ,- - ? Il 
 
 
 i 
 
 212 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 wet, but Isabella does not mind trifles. As everybody 
 knew that she was coming, a great number of our former 
 people had collected on board the * Hecla,* and the access 
 to her had been made very convenient by steps, &c. 
 The form of commissioning is merely hoisting the 
 pendant, and when a ship is paid off the same is hauled 
 down. I cannot express to you the pride withwhicli 
 she hoisted, and I saw her hoist it. Everybody who was 
 by was quite delighted. This is just what seamen 
 delight in." 
 
 This expedition was as popular as its predecessors, 
 and so many were found desirous of sailing under 
 Parry's command, that, with the greatest care to 
 select none but first-rate hands, the ship was com- 
 pletely manned in three days after the hoisting of 
 her pende.nt, as many men being refused as would 
 have served to man her a second time. 
 
 Though obliged, by his duties at the hydrographer's 
 office, to reside in London while the " Hecla " wa? 
 fitting for service. Parry found leisure to go down 
 to Deptford from time to time. On one occasion he 
 was accompanied by his wife, who for several days 
 took up her quarters with him on board. She 
 
 writes : — 
 
 "Februaiy 22. 1827. H. M. S. 'Heck' 
 " I delight in having returned to the bells and tlie I 
 sentry's * All's well,' at night ; there is sometliing so 
 comfortable in the sound I have now also some 
 
,H.M. S.'Heck' 
 
 1827.] THE "HECLA" READY FOR SEA. 213 
 
 idea of what it is to be amongst ice. The river is quite 
 full of it. The first evening I heard the sound of the 
 ice grating along the ship's side, I could hardly believe 
 the noise, like thunder, was caused by the ice. That 
 sound has now ceased, for the ice is firm and quiet, and 
 the boats are employed in cutting their way through, to 
 open a communication with the shore. They are nearly 
 two hours in getting two boats' length, which will give 
 you some idea of the labour. Mr. Ross and the officers 
 seem to delight in it, and perhaps, if I had seen as much 
 of it as they have, I should not think more of real ice 
 than they do of this," 
 
 On the 25th of March, 1827, the "Hecla" was 
 ready for sea, and Parry, having bid farewell to his 
 ^Yife in London, went down to Deptford, accom- 
 panied by some members of her family, one of whom 
 
 writes : — 
 
 " The boat was waiting for us, and we went on board, 
 where we found the deck crowded with the boats, &c, 
 Parry immediately went into his own cabin, and soon 
 came out again in full uniform, in which I had never 
 seen him since I knew and loved him. After breakfast, 
 we read his Admiralty instructions, and dwelt with com- 
 fort on the page enjoining him not to attempt to per- 
 severe, even with the prospect of success, at the risk of 
 
 life or lives The door opens, and Mr. Ross's eager 
 
 face looks in, with an expression of more than usual joy, 
 -— * The steamboat is ahead, sir ; we are all ready ! * In 
 
 p 3 
 
 
 ill* 
 
 :l ■? 
 
 \.v..\ :? 
 
214 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 another minute he comes again, with * Captain Boxer's * 
 compliments, sir, and he is here with his gig, if he can 
 be of any use ! ' The offer was accepted for us. We 
 went up, and, taking a hasty glance at the busy deck, 
 and all those happy, sanguine faces, we shook hands, and 
 were seated in the slung chair. We then rowed along, 
 side, cheered by all the ships as we passed, till we 
 arrived opposite Greenwich Hospital. The pensioners 
 were arranged along the shore, and the * Hecla ' cheered 
 them first, and they returned the compliment. By this 
 time she was getting ahead of us, so we rested on our 
 oars, and watched her as she gradually left us. Parry 
 still standing in the gangway, leaning with one hand on 
 the side, and looking as if he were, indeed, in his proper 
 place, with that commanding and dignified composure 
 which marks his manner on all great occasions. I felt 
 then as if I did not wish to see him again, and as if that 
 were the proper place to lose sight of him. The way in 
 which he gets through all business, all worries and de- 
 tails, with so few words and such little trouble, so much 
 consideration and decision, is very striking j and he says 
 that, with all he is now leaving, he is happier in going 
 out than he has ever been before." 
 
 Whilst giving this account of the circumstances 
 attendant on his embarkation, it will not be uninter- 
 esting to the reader to be made acquainted with 
 some of the more secret feelings of his mind, as 
 
 * Cflptain Boxer then commanded the " Hussar " frigate. 
 
r. [1827. I 1827.] 
 
 LETTERS. 
 
 215 
 
 expressed in his letters at this time, from which it 
 may be seen how rapidly his religious views were 
 now maturing. The following were written to his 
 wife, after the " Hecla " had left Deptford. 
 
 " Sheerness, April 3. 1827. 
 
 " Let God continue to have a place in every thought, 
 and, in exchange, you will be sure to receive His peace 
 ' which passeth all understanding.' Yes, it is indeed His 
 strength, not our own, which has enabled us to bear this 
 trial of separation, and it should, and, I trust, will teach 
 us how utterly unable we are to do anything of ourselves* 
 but that His grace is sufficient for us." 
 
 "Hecla,' at sea, April 4. 1827. 
 
 " You will be glad to hear that I leave England without 
 
 a single letter unanswered. I think I must have written 
 
 nearly fifty since I saw you ; but this, you know, is 
 
 no new thing. How I shall dwell with delight on the 
 
 communion between you and L . Live, boih of you, 
 
 in the constant spirit of prayer. Do everything with 
 prayer flowing from your hearts. In your going out, 
 and in your coming in, — whatever you do, let a little 
 •fervent, though silent, prayer ascend to His ear, who 
 never refuses to listen to us. This is not, as some 
 would tell us, gloom and melancholy. Who is — who 
 can be so cheerful as the Christian ? None. He has a 
 peace which the world can neither give nor take away. 
 Dwell as much as possible, in your reading, on the very 
 wonderful scheme of redemption by Christ, a scheme which 
 
 p 4 
 
 s 
 
216 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1827, 
 
 * " . 
 
 
 
 none but G od could have devised. Continue, as you now 
 do, to weigh every verso of scriptuie which you read, 
 and you will find new beauties, and n<' ' proofs of the 
 tender mercies of God displayed in the atonement of the 
 Saviour, as you proceed with this delightful study. You 
 are quite right in supposing you will have difficulties ; 
 but take your Bible in your hand, and see if the whole 
 New Testament does not predict the very thing which you 
 may be experiencing. Therefore, be of good cheer, God 
 will be with you, you need not fear who is against you. 
 Weigh frequently in your mind the enormous dispropor- 
 tion which exists between time and eternity, and how 
 lighter than nothing will all the little trifles appear to 
 
 you, with which we are so apt to tease ourselves 
 
 I am afraid you will find me a more unread man than 
 over, for I do not see a chance of my being able to read 
 any book but one, our book, the book. It is astonish- 
 ing how very little I have read on the expeditions. 
 Ignorant people imagine we have such a quantity of 
 leisure time, but I have never found the daylong enough 
 for all I wished to do." 
 
 " Good Friday, April \Z. 1827. — On this day last year, 
 I wrote my letter to Lord Melville, proposing this expedi- 
 tion. It was an eventful day ; occupied, I well remember, 
 iu writing my letter, and making everything about it as 
 complete as I could. To-day, though now employed on 
 the very expedition I was then so anxious for, I have 
 been endeavouring to turn my thoughts to a much more 
 important event, I mean the crucifixion of our blessed 
 Saviour, as on this day." 
 
T. [1827. I 1827.] THE "HECLA" LEFT AT flPITZBERGEN. 217 
 
 The voyage to Ilammerfest, in Norway, was 
 effected easily, with fair winds. In this harbour 
 they remained some time, for the purpose of obtaining 
 reindeer, which they hoped might be useful in 
 dragging the boats over the ice.* Leaving Hammer- 
 fest, they arrived, on the 12th of May, off the shores 
 of Spitzbergen, where a long and vexatious delay 
 awaited them. To provide for the safety of the 
 ship, as well as that of the boats on their return, it 
 was absolutely necessary to find a safe harbour, in 
 which the ** Hecla," with her diminished crew, might 
 be left, and the boat expedition know where to rejoin 
 her. Several convenient bays were passed, but all 
 their efforts to reach them proved ineffectual, from 
 the large fields of thick ice which pressed closely on 
 the si)ore. So tantalising was this unlooked-for 
 hindrance to the departure of the boats, that Parry 
 was tempted, more than once, to give up the thoughts 
 of seeing the " Hecla " safe in harbour before leav- 
 ing ; but, perhaps fortunately for all, the rough state 
 of the ice to the northward rendered it impossible for 
 the men to make any progress with the boats. 
 More than a month was thus lost in the attempt to 
 find an accessible anchorage, when, at length, Treu- 
 
 * These reindeer were not employed, in consequence of the rugged 
 nature of the ice, as described hereafter. 
 
218 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. B. PARRY. 
 
 [1327. 
 
 %'l ' 
 
 'M 
 
 I i 
 I I 
 
 renberg Bay presented itself, in all respects suitable 
 for their purpose. " I cannot," writes Parry, " de- 
 scribe the satisfaction, which the information of our 
 success communicated to every individual on board. 
 The main object of our enterprise now appeared 
 almost within our grasp, and everybody seemed 
 anxious to make up, by renewed exertions, for the 
 time we had unavoidably lost." The ship was 
 quickly secured, and every precaution taken to pro- 
 vide against the contingency of her being driven to 
 sea again by the ice. Lieut. Foster was left in 
 charge at Treurenberg Bay, and, all arrangements 
 being completed, at five p.m. on the 21st of June, 
 the two boats, *' Enterprise " and "Endeavour," 
 respectively commanded by Parry, and his lieutenant, 
 James C. Ross, bade farewell to their comrades on 
 board the ship, and, with the usual salute of three 
 hearty cheers, set out for the northward. 
 
 The boats employed on this novel service were 
 fitted with strong '" runners," shod with smooth steel, 
 in the manner of a sledge, to the forepart of which 
 the ropes for dragging. the boat were attached. The 
 crew of each consisted of two officers and twelve men, 
 of whom two were marines. For three days tliey 
 sailed through the open water, but the ice gradually 
 gathered round them, until, at length, they were 
 
1327.] 
 
 BOAT AND SLEDGE JOURNEY. 
 
 219 
 
 compelled to haul the boats up on to the floe, and the 
 actual labour of the expedition now comraenced. 
 Unless compelled by circumstances to act otherwise, 
 the usual plan was to travel only by night, when the 
 snow was harder than during the day time. It will, 
 however, be remembered that the daylight was con- 
 stant, and that the terms * day ' and * night * were only 
 relative; indeed, several of the men declared they 
 never knew one from the other, during the whole 
 excursion. 
 
 
 < '■■-: 
 
 "When we rose in the evening, we commenced our 
 day by prayers, after which we took off our fur sleeping 
 dresses, and put on those for travelling. We made a 
 point of always putting on the same stockings and boots 
 for travelling in, whether they dried during the day or 
 not, and I believe it was only in five or six instances, at 
 the most, that they were not still wet, or hard frozen. 
 This, indeed, was of no consequence, beyond the discom- 
 fort of putting them on in this state, as they were sure 
 to be thoroughly wet in a quarter of an hour after re- 
 commencing 3ur journey, while, on the other hand, it 
 was of vital importance to keep dry things for sleeping 
 in. Being ' rigged' for travelling, we breakfasted upon 
 warm cocoa and biscuit, and, after stowing the things in 
 tlie boats and on the bledges, we set off on our day's 
 journey, and usually travelled about five hours, then 
 stopped an hour to dine, and again travelled four, or five* 
 or even six hours, according to circumstances. After 
 
220 
 
 MEMOIUS OP SIR W. E. PARUY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 
 'm 
 
 this, wo halted for tho night, aa wo called it, though it 
 was, really, early in the morning. The boats were placed 
 cloao along-sido each other, with thoir sterns to the 
 wind, the snow or wot cleared out of them, and tho sails 
 placed over them as awnings. Every man then immedi- 
 ately put on dry stockings and fur boots, after which 
 wo set about the necessary repairs of boats, sledges, and 
 clothes, and went to supper. Most of the officers and 
 men then smoked their pipes, which served to dry the 
 boats and awnings very much, and usually raised tho 
 temperature of our lodgings ten or fifteen degrees." 
 
 This, it may be remarked, was the only part of 
 their daily occupation in which Parry himself took 
 no share. He used often to relate, that, when the 
 others produced their pipes, he was wont to regale 
 himself with the scent of a bottle of eau de Cologne, 
 to which, in consequence, the men gave the name of 
 " the captain's pipe." 
 
 "This part of tho twenty Pour hours " (the narrative 
 continues) " was often a time, and the only time, of real 
 enjoyment to us ; tho men told their stories, and ' fought 
 all their battles o'er again,' and the labours of the day, 
 unsuccessful as they too often were, were forgotten. A 
 regular watch was set, during our resting time, to look 
 out for bears, or for the ice breaking up around us, as 
 well as to attend to the drying of the clothes, each ma 
 alternately taking this duty for an hour. We then con- 
 cluded our day with prayers, and having put on our fur 
 
1827.] 
 
 BOAT AND SLEDGE JOURNEY. 
 
 221 
 
 dresses, lay down to sleep with a degree of comfort, 
 which perhaps few persons would imagine possible under 
 such circumstances, our chief inconvenience being, that 
 we were somewhat pinched for room, and therefore 
 were obliged to stow rather closer than was agreeable. 
 After wo had slept seven hours, the man appointed to 
 boil the cocoa roused us, when it was ready, by the sound 
 of a bugle, when wo commenced our day in the manner 
 before described." 
 
 The rough nature of the ice, conabined with the 
 softness of its upper surface, rcnderetl each day's 
 work very tedious and laborious. Often, their way 
 lay over small loose rugged masses, separated by little 
 pools of water, obliging them constantly to launch 
 and haul up the boats, each of which operations re- 
 quired them to be unloaded, and occupied nearly a 
 quarter of an hour. More than once, they were 
 upwarvls of two hours in advancing one hundred 
 yards, and the snow was often so soft as to take them 
 above their knees at every step, so that they were 
 sometimes five minutes together in moving a single 
 empty boat with the united strength of the whole 
 party, and the men, in dragging the sledges, were 
 obliged to crawl on all-fours, to make any progress 
 at all. In parts, the ice was composed, on its upper 
 surface, of irregular needle-like crystals, which, 
 becoming loosened by the thaw, rendered it very 
 
its 
 
 222 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 fatiguing to walk over, besides cutting the soles of 
 the boots, on which account the men called it " pen- 
 knife ice." In all this troublesome work Parry 
 took an active lead. Whenever the boats landed on 
 a floe, he and Ross used to walk on ahead to select 
 the best road. On arriving at any point of more than 
 usual difficulty, they would mount one of the highest 
 " hummocks " near, to obtain a better prospect. 
 
 " Nothing could well exceed the dreariness which such 
 a view presented. The eye wearied itself in vain to find 
 any object but ice and sky to rest upon. From want of 
 variety, the most trifling circumstance engaged a more 
 than ordinary share of our attention, a passing gull, or a 
 mass of ice of unusual form, became objects which our 
 situation and circumstances magnified into ridiculous 
 importance, and we have since often smiled to remember 
 the eager interest, with which we regarded the most 
 insignificant occurrences." 
 
 lu the course of one day's travelling, the only 
 notice of animal life consisted in their having " heard 
 a rotge," * while, at another time, a couple of small 
 flies upon the ice, were an event in the day's journey 
 considered worthy of notice. It may well be 
 imagined, then, how cheering it was, to " turn from 
 this scene of inanimate desolation to the two little 
 
 • A species of arctic bird otherwise known as the " Uria Alle," 
 or " little auk." 
 
r. [1827. 
 
 the soles of 
 led it " pen- 
 ;^ork Parry 
 ;s landed on 
 jad to select 
 of more than 
 f the highest 
 rospect. 
 
 58 which such 
 n vain to find 
 From want of 
 igaged a more 
 ising gull, or a 
 cts which our 
 ato ridiculous 
 i to remember 
 ded the most 
 
 ng, the only 
 aving " heard 
 uple of small 
 day's journey 
 lay well be 
 ) "turn from 
 the two little 
 
 the " Uria AUe," 
 
 1827.] 
 
 BOAT AND SLEDGE JOUENET. 
 
 223 
 
 boats in the distance, to see the moving figures of 
 the men winding with their sledges among the 
 hummocks, and to hear, once more, the sound of 
 human voices breaking the stillness of this icy 
 wilderness." 
 
 Urged on by the example of their commander, 
 the men, in spite of all these discouragements, 
 laboured with the greatest cheerfulness and good 
 will. All hoped, and none more confidently than 
 Parry himself, that the rugged ice, over which they 
 were now toiling, would prove but the introduction 
 to the smooth continuous plain of the main ice, 
 which the accounts of former navigators had led 
 them to expect to the north of Spitzbergen, Day 
 after day, however, went on, and no signs of im- 
 provement were visible for some distance to the 
 northward, when it became, by degrees, painfully 
 evident to both the commander and his officers, that 
 another obstacle to the completion of their purpose 
 had unexpectedly arisen. This consisted in the 
 southerly drift of the whole body of ice, over which 
 they were laboriously tracking their way, owing to 
 the wind, which blew steadily from the north or 
 north-west. The observations carefully made, at 
 the close of each day's hard work, showed too clearly 
 that often less than half of the actual distance tra- 
 
 !; 
 
 M 
 
224 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIB W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 veiled could be regarded as progress in a northerly 
 direction. This mortifying truth was, for some time, 
 kept from ihe knowledge of the men, who used, 
 however, good humouredly to remark that they 
 were " a long time getting to this 83° I * " For a few 
 days more they persevered, in the face of heavy 
 snow-storms, and torrents of rain, which Parry had 
 never seen equalled, but, the drift of the ice con- 
 tinuing as great as ever, he was, at length, compelled 
 to confess that further labour were useless. Between 
 the 22nd and 26th of July, they had dragged the 
 boats only ten or twelve miles, and were, after all, 
 actually three .; / j southward of the point they had 
 reached on the nrst of these days. " In fact," says 
 the author o^' " Voyages within the Arctic Regions," 
 " the commander of the expedition, the officers and 
 men, had, all of them, been laboriously and uselessly 
 employed for thirty-five days of continuous and 
 most fatiguing drudgery, to be compared in its effect 
 to nothing less than the labour of rolling the stone 
 of Sisyphus, the floe on which they were traversing, 
 as they supposed, ten or twelve miles one day, 
 having rolled them back again ten or twelve miles, 
 and often more, the next." 
 
 ♦ On reaching the parallel of 83° N. lat., the expedition would 
 have been entitled to a reward of 1000/., by Order in Council. 
 
f. 
 
 [1827. I 1827'] HIGHEST LATITUDE EVER ATTAINED. 225 
 
 a northerly 
 p some time, 
 , who used, 
 k that they 
 * For a few 
 tce of heavy 
 jh Parry had 
 the ice con- 
 th, compelled 
 3SS. Between 
 
 dragged the 
 ere, after all, 
 (oint they had 
 In fact," says 
 ctic Regions," 
 [e officers and 
 
 and uselessly 
 intinuous and 
 
 d in its effect 
 [ling the stone 
 
 ite traversing, 
 liles one day, 
 
 twelve miles, 
 
 One day's rest was given, for the men to wash and 
 mend their clothes, while the officers occupied 
 themselves in making observations in the highest 
 latitude which had ever been reached, viz. 82° 40' 23".* 
 At this extreme point of their journey, their distance 
 from the "Hecla," after five weeks travel, was 
 only 172 milesj to accomplish which they had tra- 
 versed upwards of 290 miles with the boats. In- 
 cluding, however, the journeyings backwards and 
 forwards with the stores, they reckoned the whole 
 distance over which they had gone at about 660 
 statute miles, "being nearly sufficient to have 
 reached the Pole in a direct line." 
 
 It was now the 27 th of July ; the day was warm 
 land pleasant, forming a cheerful contrast to the 
 weather they had lately experienced. ** Our ensigns 
 and pendants," Parry writes, " were displayed dur- 
 ling the day, and, sincerely as we regretted not 
 [having been able to hoist the British flag in the 
 Ihighest latitude to which we had aspired, we shall 
 perhaps be excused having felt some little pride, 
 in being the bearers of it to a parallel considerably 
 3eyond that mentioned in any well authenticated 
 fecord." 
 
 expedition would 
 |r in Council. 
 
 * The highest latitude actually reached in this expedition was on 
 lie 23rd instant, viz, 82° 45'. 
 
 Q 
 
226 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. I'ARRY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 "Bc'Tveen ? and 9 p.m. on the 27th July, in latitude 
 82| v' '■ (he wvote, in a short note addressed to his wife 
 on the spot), " we dined, with our flags flying in hoth 
 boats, and after dinner, when I had given * the Km, 
 God bless him ! ' as a toast to be drunk with a small 
 extra allowance of grog, our friend Ross desired to give 
 a toast, — ' Mrs. Parry ! ' Need I say that it was enthu- 
 siastically drunk, with three times three ? The Serjeant 
 of marines, a very fine fellow, then begged to propose 
 the health of Sir John Stanley, also of Mr. Stanley, 
 whose prayers, he was sure, had been fervently offered 
 up for our safety .... I am sure you will value i 
 little account, written under such circumstances, even i 
 though 7tot at the Pole." 
 
 The next day, at half-past four in the afternoon, 
 they set out on their return to the southward, 
 and the commander of the expedition spoke tlie 
 feelings of the whole party, ia remarking that, 
 " dreary and cheerless as were the scenes they were 
 about to leave, they never turned homewards witl 
 so little satisfaction as on this occasion." 
 
 The southerly drift of the ice, which had before 
 retarded their advance, was now, of course, in their 
 favour, but the actual difficulties of each day were 
 the same as ever, and the men suffered much froD 
 snovvblindness and chilblains, which last became 
 serious from the irritation produced by walking, 
 
lY. [1827. I 1827.] 
 
 RETURN TO THE ** HECLA." 
 
 227 
 
 ily, in latitude 
 sed to his "wiffe 
 flying in )3otli 
 en 'the King, 
 : with a small 
 desired to give 
 t it was enthu. 
 ? The Serjeant 
 ;ged to propose 
 )f Mr. Stanley, 
 fervently offered 
 will value this 
 imstances, even| 
 
 the afternoon, 
 the southward, 
 tion spoke tlie 
 •emarking that, 
 ;enes they were 
 lomewarda witli 
 
 ich had hefore 
 course, in theii 
 each day were 
 ,red much froia 
 Ich last became 
 id by walkinjl 
 
 and made some of them quite lame. Some excite 
 ment was caused one day by the sight of a bear, 
 who, however, escaped, to the great disappointment 
 of the hungry travellers, as they " had already, by 
 anticipation, consigned a tolerable portion of his 
 flesh to their cooking kettle, over a fire of his own 
 blubber.'* To make up for the loss, however, an- 
 other bear was killed by Lieut. Ross a few days 
 afterwardsj when a laughable scene ensued. " The 
 animal had hardly done biting the snow, when one 
 of the men was alongside of him with an open 
 knife, and, being asked what he was about to do, 
 replied that he was going to have some of him 
 to put into the pot, which happened to be boiling 
 for supper. In short, before the bear had been 
 dead an hour, all hands were employed in discussing 
 the merits of his flesh." This sumptuous feast was 
 I followed by the evils of indigestion, as far as the 
 [men were concerned ; which they, amusingly enough, 
 [persisted in attributing to the quality, rather than 
 the quantity of the meat they had been eating. 
 Notwithstanding these excesses at first. Parry was 
 really glad of this additional supply of meat, having 
 )bserved for some time that the men were not 
 so strong as before, and would be the better for 
 lore food. Another bear, attracted by the fire, 
 
 Q 2 
 
 il 
 
228 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 was wounded, but, "luckily for us," he remarks, 
 " escaped." 
 
 The southward journey over the ice occupied a 
 fortnight, when, at a quarter before seven in the 
 morning of the 11th of August, they heard, for 
 the first time for seven weeks, the sound of the 
 swell of the open sea, dashing with heavy surges 
 against the outer margin of the ice ; and, in another 
 hour, the boats were again fairly afloat. On arrivino' 
 at Table Island, where provisions had been depo- 
 sited for their return, they found that the bears had 
 eaten all the bread, which occasioned a remark among 
 the men, in reference to the quantity of the flesli 
 of those animals they had eaten, that " Bri7in is only I 
 square with us I " In sailing to Walden Island, the 
 boats were caught in a severe gale and snow storm; 
 and when, after rerching the island, they were un- 
 loaded, the officers and men, who had been fifty-six I 
 hours without rest, had barely strength left to haul 
 them on shore. A day v.as spent upon the island! 
 to recruit the strength of the party ; when they re- 
 embarked, and, after some few days of bad weather,, 
 finally arrived at Treurenberg Bay, at half-past 
 four, P.M. on the 21st of August, after an absence 
 of sixty-one days, and were met with that vvarDi 
 welcome from all on board the " Hecla," which, m 
 
1827.] 
 
 HOMEWARD VOYAGE. 
 
 229 
 
 parry truly says, " can alone be felt and not de- 
 scribed." Considering the constant exposure to wet, 
 cold, and fatigue, the whole party were in good 
 health, though all had, for some time past, become 
 gradually weak and thin, the day's allowance having 
 proved barely sufficient for persons engaged in the 
 constant and severe labour to which they had been 
 exposed. 
 
 On the 28th of August, the "Hecla" weighed 
 anchor for England, but was so long delayed on 
 the north coast of Scotland by contrary winds, that 
 Parry left her anchored at the Orkneys, and proceeded, 
 in H. M. revenue cutter, the " Chichester," to Inver- 
 ness, and thence by land to London, where he lost 
 no time in laying before His Royu. Highness the 
 I Duke of Clarence, then Lord High Admiral, a 
 1 report of his proceedings. By a remarkable coinci- 
 dence, Captain Franklin returned from his Polar 
 Expedition along the north coast of America at 
 Ithe same time, landing at Liverpool on the same 
 dny that Parry reached Inverness. They arrived 
 [at the Admiralty within ten minutes of each other, 
 [and moat joyful was this unexpected meeting between 
 
 Ithe two friends. 
 
 "AdmiraltVj September 29. 1827. 
 
 " You will be delighted to know that the Duke and 
 
 the Admiralty have received me most warmly, and I 
 
 Q 3 
 
 .^1^- 
 
 :l I 
 
 iili 
 
230 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. K. PARRY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 have already received a letter from the secretary, ex- 
 pressing his Royal Highness's satisfaction at our exer- 
 tions. The Duke himself proposed to me a fortnight's 
 leave of absence, which I have got " 
 
 Letter from Lord Melville to Captain W. E. Parry, 
 
 "Melville Castle, 29th September, 1827. 
 " My dear Sir, 
 
 " Though you have not succeeded in the achieve- 
 ment of the main object of your expedition, it has, cer- 
 tainly, been from no want of the most extraordinary 
 exertions en the part of yourself, and your boat's crews. 
 You may, probably, have perceived that I was never 
 very sanguine as to the result of the attempt, and I am 
 not surprised, therefore, that the obstr.cles proved to be 
 of such a nature as even you could not overcome. I 
 rejoice greatly at the safe return of the ' Hecla ' und her 
 crew, and I have the honour to remain, -my dear sir, &c. 
 
 " Melville." 
 
 Owing to the continuance of southerly winds, the 
 " Hecla" did not arrive in the Thames till the 6th of 
 October. On the 17th, the Lord High Admiral 
 inspected her, as well as the boats which had been 
 employed on the late expedition over the ice. On 
 the 1st of November the ship was paid off, and, 
 for the last time. Parry hauled down his pendant. 
 The attempt to reach the Pole had, it is true, been 
 unsuccessful, but it was still an enterprise, of which 
 
'ARRY. [1827. ■ 1827.] 
 
 VISIT TO ALDERLKY. 
 
 231 
 
 ;he secretary, ex- 
 tion at our exer- 
 » me a fortnight's 
 
 n W. E. Parry, 
 
 \x September, 1827. 
 
 d in the achieve- 
 iition, it has, cer- 
 ost extraordinary 
 rour boat's crews. 
 :hat I was never 
 attempt, and I am 
 cles proved to be 
 inot overcome. I 
 Hecla ' und her 
 , my dear sir, &c, 
 Melville." 
 
 lerly winds, the 
 js till the 6th of 
 High Admiral 
 ^hich had been 
 \v the ice. On 
 paid oif, and, 
 In his pendant, 
 (t is true, been 
 )rise, of wliicli 
 
 all engaged in it might well feel proud. " No suc- 
 cessor on the path of arctic adventure has yet 
 snatched the chaplet from the brow of this great 
 navigator. Parry is still the jhampion of the 
 north."* At this day, through the graceful com- 
 pliment of recent navigators f , the land nearest 
 either pole, on which the eye of civilised man has 
 ever rested, bears the name of him who unfurled 
 his country's flag at a higher latitude than any, 
 before or since, have been able to reach. 
 
 Immediately after his first interview with the Duke 
 of Clarence, and while the " Hecla " was still detained 
 in the north, Parry, having obtained leave of absence, 
 left London, and repaired to Aiderley. His arrival 
 was expected, and at Monk's Heath, a short distance 
 from the Park, where the mail stopped, he was met 
 by a large concourse of persons, headed by the Rev. 
 E. Stanley, and other members of his wife's family, 
 who, with a large body of Sir John Stanley's 
 tenantry, had come thus far to salute him on his 
 return. " By this time," he writes, " the people 
 in the mail had found me out, and really this 
 
 * Times, January 20. 1856. 
 
 f The Parry Mottntains were discovered by Sir J. C. Ross, in the 
 Antarctic llcgions, in 1841, and the same name was given by Dr. 
 Kane, in 1853, to a mountain visible to the north of Smith 
 Sound. 
 
 Q 4 
 
 \v. 
 
232 
 
 MEMOIllS Oi SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1827. 
 
 meeting, under such circuiii8tance8, was quite over, 
 coming." Thus, amidst merry peals from the tower 
 of Alderley Cimrch, and the firing of guns, he 
 reached the Park. About three hours afterwards, 
 Mrs. Parry arrived from Sir John's seat, Penrhos, 
 in Wales. She had received the tidings of her 
 husband's safe return on her journey homewards, 
 little anticipating, when she set out, the joyful 
 meeting which awaited her. 
 
 The fortnight's leave over, he wna obliged to 
 return to town, and soon afterwards paid a visit to 
 Prince Leopold, at Claremont, to which the following 
 letter refers : — 
 
 " Claremont is a charming place, and I enjoyed myself 
 
 extremely I must not forget the little princess 
 
 Victoria. She is what you would call a very dear and 
 loveable child, with manners so ladylike and superior, 
 that you would know her, at once, to be something more 
 than an ordinary girl, and yet possessing all the innocent 
 playfulness and simplicity of a child. She and her 
 mother sat down quietly to the piano yesterday, after 
 breakfast, and sang, with remarkable sweetness and 
 taste, some beautiful German duets, and some Tyrolese 
 airs, which I had not heard before." 
 
 » In the autumn of the year after his return from 
 Spitzbergen, he spent a brief holiday, snatched from 
 the duties of the hydrographer's office, in a short 
 
1828.] 
 
 TOUIl ON THE CONTINENT. 
 
 233 
 
 s obliged to 
 aid a visit to 
 
 trip to the Continent. Hia nephew, the Ilcv. 
 Tiiomas Gamier, who was hia companion, remembers 
 well " the interest which hia presence everywhere 
 excited, and the eager rush, at points where it was 
 known he was to appear, to catch even a passing 
 glimpse of the English arctic navigator. At Paris, 
 he was anxiously sought out by all the distinguished 
 men who happened to be there, and he regretted 
 much, that the shortness of his stay rendered it 
 impossible to avail himself of more of the flattering 
 invitations he received. One evening was spent 
 with the venerable Cuvier, at whose table he found 
 himself surrounded by a brilliant circle, chiefly com- 
 posed of members of the Royal Institute of France." 
 At the particular request of the late king of the 
 French, then Duke of Orleans, he paid a visit to the 
 Chateau of Neuilly, where he was treated with the 
 utmost honour, the Duke alluding particularly, and 
 with evident feeling, to the kindness his brother, the 
 Comte de Beaujolais, had fori .erly received from Dr. 
 Parry at Bath. In the course of a walk through 
 the grounds, " Mademoiselle," the Duke's sister, 
 proposed a boat expedition on the lake, and playfully 
 suggested that the party should consider themselves 
 embarked, under the command of Captain Parry, in 
 an attempt to reach the N /ith Pole ! On returning 
 
 A 
 
 !:■ 
 
 'I 
 
 ,i ..i 
 
 III 
 
 u 
 
 Hi 
 
234 
 
 aiEMOlUS OF 81U W. E. I'AKUY. 
 
 [IS28. 
 
 to the house, the Duchess presented her children to 
 him, and, for upwards of half an hour, he was occupied 
 in answering their eager questions about his voyages. 
 *' It was," he writes, ** a delightful group, as they 
 stood round their mother, and T can never forget 
 the sight, associated as it is with all the reverses 
 their parents have suffered, and with the events of 
 the revolution." Doubtless his memory would recur 
 to this scene, when, just twenty years afterwards, 
 during his command at Haslar, the wife of one of 
 these youthful princes landed at the Clarence Yard, 
 a fugitive from the shores of France, and an innocent 
 victim of the revolution, which had again driven her 
 royal father-in-law into exile. 
 
 Attentions of the same gratifying kind awaited 
 him everywhere, during his progress through Belgium 
 and Holland. " The mention of his name alone," 
 says Mr. Gamier, " was sufficient to secure for us 
 ready admission to every building of interest, whether 
 fortress, palace, or museum. Public officials seemed 
 to vie with one another in showing him respect, Uid 
 in no instance was his travelling luggage examined, 
 or even opened, on the various frontiers. During 
 the homeward passage from Rotterdam, his vigilance 
 and skill were called into requisition, and proved, 
 without doubt, the means of saving the steamer and 
 
M 
 
 1828.] 
 
 DEATH OF HIS KLDEHT CHILI). 
 
 235 
 
 all on board. The nighfc was so dark and temfrs- 
 tuoua, that many of the passengers refused to go 
 below, until it was known that Captain Parry had 
 resolved to remain on deck ; and well was it for us 
 that he did so. His practised eye soon discovered, 
 that the captain had mistaken the light on the 
 Goodwin sands for that of the North Foreland light- 
 house, so that the ship was rapidly hurrying towards 
 those terrible shoals, and it required no little firmness 
 on his own part to induce him to alter her course." 
 
 S!'ortly j>^ter his return from the Continent, he 
 underwent a severe trial in the very sudden death 
 of hi=< infant son, born soon after his return from the 
 N( "th, and then just a year old. He thus writes at 
 this time, in acknowledgment of a letter of sympathy 
 from a Christian friend : — 
 
 " November 12. 1828. 
 " The blow has been a sudden and severe one. Our 
 beloved child died in his mother's arms, in two minutes 
 from the first seizure ! We were at first stunned by this 
 dispensation. We had been wrapped up in this darling 
 child, — in short, it was an idol, and God saw that, in 
 the creature, we had not sufiiciently kept in view the 
 Creator. We have been brought to feel that it is indeed 
 God's hand, and that it is good for us to be afflicted. 
 God grant that we may be so exercised by this chasten- 
 ing, that it may indeed ' yield the peaceable fruits of 
 
 J 
 
236 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1828. 
 
 righteousness ! " For my own part, I can already bless 
 God that He has spared him all the sin and suffering his 
 father has gone through, and secured his portion among 
 the angels in Heaven." 
 
 And again, a few weeks later, after the «,dditional 
 affliction of his wife's critical illness at the birth of a 
 second child, wbich survived only a week, he 
 writes : — 
 
 " Need I say what have been our feelings during all 
 this trial ? Need I assure you that it has brought us 
 much, very much, nearer to God, through Christ, — that 
 it has taught us to feel more assuredly our lost state 
 without a Saviour, and the mercy, the infinite loving 
 kindness of God, in providing such an one for us ? " 
 
 Many years afterwards, on the sudden death of his 
 stepdaughter's first child, he thus referred to his own 
 early loss, in a letter to her husband : — 
 
 " Northbrook, January, 1853. 
 
 " I need not say how our thoughts have 
 
 been drawn out towards you, and to our gracious God 
 for you, in this your hour of most bitter trial. I know 
 few things so hard for flesh and blood to bear, as the 
 loss of a first dear child. The experience has been my 
 own, a first lovely babe taken in an instant! I can 
 sympathise with you very keenly in the remembrance of 
 that event, which has perhaps been more deeply im- 
 pressed on my mind than any other in my life, though it 
 
16?8.] 
 
 CHRISTIAN RESIGNATION. 
 
 237 
 
 i death of his 
 d to his own 
 
 happened foui* and twenty years ago. But if I remember 
 the sorrow, I remember a^so the consolation, — the 
 mother still spared, the babe with Christ, another lamb 
 gathered into the Saviour's fold, safe for ever, happy 
 and glorious in the presence of the Lord. May the 
 comforts of God's Holy Spirit be abundantly vouchsafed 
 to you, in this, the first great trial of your married life I 
 It will, I am persuaded, draw you closer to Him, who hath 
 given, and taken away, and, then, you will together bless 
 God for it to all eternity." 
 
 
 !i 
 
 m 
 
» 
 
 .^\- 
 
 f . 
 
 238 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1829. 
 
 CHAP. IX. 
 
 APPOINTMENT AS COMMISSIONER OF THE AtJSTRALUN 
 AGRICULTURAL COMPANY. — HONORARY DEGREE AT 
 OXFORD. — VOYAGE TO SYDNEY. LIFE AT PORT STE- 
 PHENS. IMPROVEMENTS EFFECTED IN THE COLONY.— 
 
 EXCURSIONS INTO THE INTERIOR. dOTHER's DEATH. 
 
 — BUILDING OF A CHURCH AT STROUD. FAREWELL 
 
 SERMON AT CARRINGTON. — RETURN TO ENGLAND. 
 
 1829—1834. 
 
 It was a remark of Sir Edward Parry, in his later 
 years, that the course of his former life reminded 
 him of a series of dissolving views, or the uncon- 
 nected images of a dream, so varied were the 
 changes, and so strange the contrasts which it pre- 
 sented. Of this nature was the new scene on which 
 he was called to enter at this stage of his history. 
 The desolate ice-fields of the North, and the dreary 
 polar winter, were now to give place to the luxu- 
 riant vegetation and burning suns of an almost 
 tropical climate, and, instead of the companionship 
 
iS29.] AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURAL COMPANY. 239 
 
 of a few wandering tribes of Esquimaux, he was 
 about to fix his abode, for upwards of four years, on 
 the outskirts of an Australian forest, amongst the 
 convicts and aborigines of New South Wales. 
 
 In consequence of the mismanagement and neg- 
 lect of the agents resident on the property of the 
 Australian Agricultural Company *, the directors 
 had, for some time, been anxious to secure the 
 services of some one of sufficient ability to restore 
 matters to a proper footing, and whose known 
 character and name would, at the same time, be a 
 guarantee against the evils from which they had 
 before suffered. With these views they offered the 
 post to Captain, now Sir Edward Parry, for he and 
 Franklin had, on the 29th of April, 1829, received 
 the honour of knighthood at the hands of His 
 Majesty George IV. For some time past. Sir 
 Edward's health had suffered considerably from 
 close attention to the duties of the hydrographical 
 office, and this, combined with other reasons, had 
 induced him to desiie some other uc -nation. All 
 
 m 
 
 • The Australian Agricultural Company was established in the 
 year 1824, under an Act of Parliament, and incorporated by Royal 
 Charter, with a grant from Government of a million acres of land, 
 for the purpose of promoting the growth of fine merino wool, and 
 other agricultural produce suited to the climate of Australia. 
 
 s-f 
 
240 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1829. 
 
 professional difficulties were overruled by the kind 
 assurance of Lord Melville, that his acceptance of 
 the Company's offer should in no way interfere with 
 his future prospects. Accordingly, in the spring of 
 1829, he received his appointment as Commissioner 
 of the Australian Agricultural Company in New 
 South Wales. 
 
 A fortnight before the time of his embarkation, 
 the honorary degree of D. C. L. was conferred on 
 him and his friend Franklin by the University of 
 Oxford. Those who have witnessed the saturnalia 
 of an Oxford " Commemoration " will easily imagine 
 the shout of honest congratulation with which the 
 roof of the Theatre would ring, to greet the manly 
 bearing and stout English hearts of these two brave 
 seamen, and how cordially the recitation of the 
 concluding lines of the appropriate prize poem for 
 the year would be received : — 
 
 " But fairer England greets the wanderer now, 
 Unfading laurels shade her Parry's brow ; 
 And on the proud memorials of her fame 
 Lives, linked with deathless glory, Franklin's name!"* 
 
 • " Voyages of Discovery to the Polar Regions. A Prize Poem 
 recited in the Theatre, Oxford, July 1. 1829, by ' Legh Claughtoii, 
 Trinity College." The motto selected for the poem was from Aristo 'i 
 Acharn., 
 
 ♦• Xeifiepia rk w,.'i7/uoTo " (" Wintry doings these ! ") 
 
r. 
 
 [1829. 
 
 1829.] 
 
 HONORARY DEGREE. 
 
 241 
 
 jy the kind 
 ;ceptance of 
 iterfere with 
 ;he spring of 
 Jommissloner 
 iny in New 
 
 embp.rkation, 
 conferred on 
 Jniversity of 
 ;he saturnalia 
 ;asily imagine 
 ith which the 
 pet the manly 
 ese two brave 
 tation of the 
 ize poem for 
 
 now, 
 iw; 
 
 klin's name 
 
 i"« 
 
 A Prize Poem 
 Legh Claiighton, 
 vas from Aristo'.'i. 
 
 these ! ") 
 
 He often alhitled with gratification to the honour 
 bestowed upon him by this University. " You must 
 not forget," he would laughingly remark, if his scholar- 
 ship were called into question, " that I, too, am an 
 Oxford Doctor ! " and would relate, at the same time, 
 that^ the gown he wore was the same as that used 
 by Marshal Blucher on a similar occasion. 
 
 A few days before leaving England, he received 
 the following letter fiom Franklin : — 
 
 ♦' Gedling Hall, Notts, July 9. 1829. 
 " My dear Parry, 
 
 " I cannot allow you and Lady Parry to leave the 
 shores of England, though it is +o embark in a very 
 interesting pursuit, without once more expressing that 
 you will bear with you the hearty good wishes and best 
 desires of Lady Franklin and myself, and that our 
 prayers will often be oflPered up to the throne of mercy 
 and grace, for every blessing to attend you. We shall 
 be especially mindful of you, when we repeat that beau- 
 tiful portion of the Litany, which implores the Al- 
 mighty's protection on ' all that travel by laud or by 
 water.' Let us, too, request an interest in your petitions 
 t . the same fountain of love, for I feel that there is scarcelv 
 I any portion of Scripture more cheering and delightful 
 than that which assures us * that the fervent, effectual 
 [prayer of a righteous man availeth much.' I am sure 
 thu* you will not consider these sentim .' misplaced, in 
 a letter addrr-3' d to yourself, for they are the dictates 
 [of ray heart. 
 
 R 
 
 t i 
 
 I8!|1 
 
 Is! 
 
 •y 
 
'V«( 
 
 % 
 
 242 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1829. 
 
 " You will have a wide field for the exercise of Christian 
 virtues, and I am sure you will have full experience of 
 the delight arising from contributing to the moral im- 
 provement, and consequent happiness, of those under 
 your command. When I reflect on the change which 
 WAS jffeote'i, by my little party, on the habits and man- 
 miP=i of the people among whom we found ourselves, Iby 
 having their various improper acts pointed out, and the 
 ex'jTople of better conduct shown them, and this, too, 
 during a hasty progress through the wilds of America, I 
 feel convinced that your efforts and attention to the 
 moral instruction of those who will be settled around 
 you will be abundantly rewarded; and that, in the 
 evening of your life, you will look back upon the portion 
 of your time you may spend in Australia with the 
 warmest feelings of gratitude and joy." 
 
 On the 20th of July, the ship " William,*' in 
 which Sir Edward and Lady Parry were passengers, 
 left the Thames, and he thus wrote to his mother 
 from the Downs : — 
 
 " My dearest Mother, 
 
 "You may be assured that we are as comfortable | 
 as possible, and go forth in confident assurance of being 
 under the protection of the Almighty, whose tender! 
 mercy is over all His works, in all parts of His creation 
 alike. . . . We met, at the inn at Gravesend, several] 
 missionaries. Enp:Iish, French 3,nd German, one of whom, 
 Dr. Philip, I ■ i jw before, f*r\d all of whom are goin.' 
 out to Afri'. t, or the East Indies. They had a dinncrl 
 
 
IRY. [1829. ■ 1829.] 
 
 VOYAGE TO AUSTRALIA. 
 
 243 
 
 ;ise of Christian 
 1 experience of 
 the moral im- 
 of those under 
 ) change which 
 tiabits and man- 
 id ourselves, by 
 ted out, and the 
 a, and this, too, 
 ds of America, I 
 attention to the 
 e settled around 
 md that, in the 
 upon the portion 
 istralia with the 
 
 « William;' in 
 fvere passengers, 
 to his mother 
 
 ire as comfortable 
 isurance of being 
 ty, whose tender 
 ts of His creation 
 ravcsend, several | 
 nan, one of whom, 
 whom are going I 
 hey had a dinner 
 
 for themselves and friends, amounting to about fifty 
 persons, and, after dinner, Dr. P. came to me, and, in the 
 name of all, invited mo to come into the room, and see 
 those who were just embarking. I did so. They all 
 stood up, the moment I entered the room, and greeted 
 me cordially. Afterwards, they drank my health, and I 
 had to make a little speech, but was too much affected to 
 gay much ; in fact, it was altogether quite overpower- 
 ing, when I considered what sacrifices these pious and 
 devoted men were ibout to make, for the sake of Christ 
 and His Gospel.'' 
 
 " Ship ' ■William,' at sea, Sept. 3. 
 " On Sundays we always have our little 
 church service on deck. I stand chaplain, and always 
 use your dear Bible and Prayer-book in one, which 
 1 have used in all my voyages for the same purpose. 
 All the passengers and crew attend, and I trust it may 
 be the means of good to some. Our captain is an 
 amiable, kind, and religious man, which is a very great 
 comfort, and everybody on board is as obliging as 
 possible." 
 
 On the 20th of October they reached the Cape of 
 Good Hope, where they remained a few days ; and, 
 on the 13th of December, the *' William" entered 
 Sydney Harbour, "of which," says Sir Edward, 
 "words can never describe the beauty." He and 
 Lady Parry took up their temporary abode at 
 Government House, in consequence of an invitation 
 
 U 2 
 
 ,il 
 
•244 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1829. 
 
 from General (now Sir Ealph) Darling, to whom 
 they had carried introductions from England ; and^ 
 after a few days, he proceeded alone to Port 
 Stephens, to arrange matters for their future resi. 
 dence there. At the end of nine days, he was 
 summoned back by an express, bringing the tidings 
 of Lady Parry's confinement with a twin son and 
 daughter. On his return to Sydney, he found that 
 both mother and children had been in a very cri- 
 tical condition, but were now doing favourably under 
 the affectionate and devoted attention of their kind 
 hostess Mrs. Darling, to whose fostering care he 
 always ascribed, under God, the preservation of his 
 little boy's life. 
 
 On the 28th of March, they embarked once more 
 in the " Lambton," a small cutter belonging to the 
 Company, and arrived safely at Carrington, after a 
 voyage of fifteen hours. As soon as the vessel hove 
 in sight, signal guns were fired on shore, and shortly 
 afterwards a boat put off, manned by the officers of 
 the Company, who were desirous of testif/ing their 
 respect for the new Commissioner by rowing him and 
 his family to land. At the moment of landing, a 
 salute was fired in honour of their arrival, and the 
 Union Jack hoisted on the flag-staff. Such was the 
 welcome to their Australian home. 
 
1630.] 
 
 PORT STEPHENS. 
 
 245, 
 
 The harbour of Port S<''^phcns, situated about 
 ninety miles to the north of Sydney, is guarded at 
 its entrance by two conical hills, called by the 
 natives Yacaba and Tomare. The estuary itself is 
 about fifteen miles in length, and, near the centre, is 
 contracted to the width of an English mile. Within 
 these narrows lies Carrington or Carribeen *, the 
 settlement of the Australian Agricultural Company. 
 Half a mile farther to the west stood Tahlee, the 
 residence of the Commissioner. The house, a long 
 low building, with a verandah in front, was on the 
 side of a steep, grassy slope, with lemon and orange 
 trees interspersed, reaching down to the water's 
 edge. The front windows commanded a beautiful 
 view of the harbour, and of several thickly wooded 
 islets With which its surface was studded. The 
 ground iram: • ^tely around the settlement was irre- 
 gular and undulating, and more or less covered with 
 trees, which formed the outskirts or ne of those 
 forests knowr,. throughout Australia, as " the Bush." 
 Through this there were no regular roads, or even 
 paths, but the native horses were able to make 
 their ;\ , over the trunks of fallen trees, and ine- 
 
 * Narrative of the voyage of H. M. S. " Beagle," in 1839, by Captain 
 Stokes, K.N. 
 
 R 3 
 
I 
 
 J ii8fa.it 
 
 246 
 
 MEMOIRS or SIR W. E, TATIRY. 
 
 [1830. 
 
 qualities of the ground, such as an i^nglish horse 
 would shrink from attempting. 
 
 Beautiful as was the country in the immediate 
 neighbourhood of Tahlee, these natural advantages 
 were more than counterbalanced by the moral aspect 
 of the community, over which Sir Edward was now 
 called to preside. It was, in truth, to use his own 
 words, " a moral wilderness," and to the cultivation 
 of this unpromising;;; soil he and his wife resolved to 
 apply all their energies. The people around them 
 consisted of three distinct classes first, the officers 
 and servants of the Company ; secondly, the convicts, 
 working also in the employ of the Company, or 
 acting as domestic servants in the officers' families, 
 tha ^'^ the Commissioner himself included; and, 
 lastly, e nati\ >, whose home was in the " Bush," 
 and whose encampments were often found within a 
 few yards of thn settlement. 
 
 " There are," \ rote Lady Parry, " a great number of 
 natives about the place, and they have an encampment 
 between us and the village, their huts being formed of 
 two pieces of bark placed upright against each other. 
 They appear to be very harmless, quiet people, quite 
 different from those near Sydney, who are so very bad 
 and horrible looking. I cannot, indeed, say much as to 
 the appearance ot our native? for they are all hideous, 
 and none of them wear any clothing, except some of | 
 the women, who throw a blanket over their shoulders, 
 
1830.] 
 
 TAHLEE, 
 
 247 
 
 when thoy can get one. I am now becoming rather more 
 used to this, and I think 1 may even learn to admire a 
 
 little native black child. I often long for to see 
 
 the small black things, running about like little imps." 
 
 Owing to the neglected state of this part of the 
 colony (luring the administration of Sir Edward's 
 predecessors, the condition of the free population, 
 in a moral and religious point of view, was hardly 
 superior to that of the ignorant savages by whom 
 they were surrounded. Immorality and drunkenness 
 prevailed to a fearful extent, schools were a thing 
 unknown, and, at the first establishment of divine 
 service, scarcely a score of persons were found 
 willing to attend, and none of the women. 
 
 " It is so new a thing to them," Sir Edward writes, 
 "to have any one to take an interest in them, that they 
 hardly know what to make of it. They have been 
 wholly without instruction, and, I fear I may almost say, 
 without example, either religious or moral, for more than 
 four years, since the first settlement at Port Stephens, 
 literally sheep having no shepherd. It cannot, therefore, 
 be a matter of wonder that they are all running wild. 
 This applies more particularly to the poor children, many 
 of whom have not even been baptized ! It is a great 
 pleasure to us to think that we may, with God's blessing, 
 prove instruments of much good to these poor people." 
 
 The first step taken towards the introduction of a 
 better state of things was the establishment of a 
 
 R 4 
 
 1 1 
 
 
248 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. TARRT. 
 
 [l830. 
 
 regular service on Sundays. There was no church 
 nearer than Sydney, ninety miles distant, nor any 
 chaplain belonging to the settlement. Under these 
 circumstances. Sir Edward fitted up a carpenter's 
 shop in the village as a place of worship, and decided 
 on conducting the service himself. ** His manner," 
 says Mr. Ebs worth, his friend and assistant in the 
 colony, *' in conducting the services of the Church, 
 was remarkable, and those who never heard him lost 
 a rich treat. I scarcely ever heard the liturgy read 
 with so much reverence, feeling, and apparent de- 
 light. He seemed at home the moment he entered the 
 reading desk, and when reading some more than 
 usually solemn parts of a sermon, it was quite over- 
 powering. The fruit of his labours will be fully 
 known only in the eternal world." He also managed, 
 by degrees, to form a respectable choir, the members 
 of which used to meet frequently, in bis own house, 
 to practise. Under tlie superintendence of Lady 
 Parry a school was opened, which was soon well 
 attended, and a lending library established. The 
 following were written during the first few months 
 of their residence at Port Stephens : — 
 
 Lady Parry to Sir Edward's Mother. 
 
 "Tahlec House, July 7. 1830. 
 " I wish you could see your dear Edward in his minis- 
 terial capacity on Sunday. It is not necessary for mc to 
 
1830.] 
 
 TAHLEE. 
 
 249 
 
 say lio docs it well, for ymi can oasily imngino how ho 
 would fill such a situation. God grant that his preach- 
 ing may bo blessed to some of these poor ignorant crea- 
 tures ! For four years they have never heard the word 
 of God preached to them, and have really appeared to 
 live * without God in the world.* There is always now a 
 full congregation, and, I must say, a most attentive one. 
 Our school is also going on as well as we could wish, and 
 wo have forty-two scholars. No little heathen could 
 have been more ignorant, but I hope that, in future, 
 God's name and word will bo more known and loved 
 than hitherto. Earnestly do wo pray that this may be 
 the case. We must expect to meet with disappointments 
 and trials, but, when we consider whose work wo are 
 doing, no difficulties ought to discourage us. May God 
 give us strength to persevere ! You might, perhaps, sup- 
 pose that our greatest difficulties arise from the convicts, 
 but I must say that we have not found this to be the 
 case. The free people are far the worst, and most diffi- 
 cult to manage, because they think they may do as they 
 like ; and, while they set such a bad example, we cannot 
 wonder that the prisoners do not improve. For the 
 latter wo have set up an adult school. Some of them 
 wished to learn to read, and we were anxious to encou- 
 rage them, as a means of keeping them out of mischief, 
 and amusing them in the evening." 
 
 Sir Edward Parry to W. H. Hooper, Esq, 
 
 " Port Stephens, May 13. 1830. 
 "I trust wb are, by God's assistance, making some 
 religious impression. The Bible was sadly neglected, I 
 may say almost unknown, before we came. By the libe- 
 
250 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [Ib30. 
 
 I'. 
 
 I. .' 
 
 rality of our excellent Naval and Military Bible Society, 
 we have distributed upwards of a hundred Bibles, and as 
 many prayer books from * The Society for Promoting 
 Christian Knowledge ; ' and the more we distribute, 
 especially among the convicts, the greater [seems to be 
 the demand. It has been a great happiness to be able to 
 say hitherto to all around us, * Whosoever will, let him 
 
 take of the water of life freely I I can only 
 
 add at present, send out more Bibles ! I never before 
 so fully felt the truth of its being * indeed the sword of 
 the Spirit.' Indeed, in this country, almost more than in 
 any other, whatever fruit is brought forth, God shows 
 that the praise and glory are, as they ought to be. His 
 alone; for, to all human appearance, and^by all merely 
 human means, reformation is impossible." 
 
 The task of reformation proved, indeed, n* easy one. 
 The almost total want of proper discipline, which 
 had previously existed in the settlement, rendered it 
 a matter of no small difficulty to introduce a new 
 system of order and regularity. This, however, 
 Parry was determined to effect ; and though there 
 was, at the outset, much to dishearten, his judgment 
 and firmness by degrees triumphed over all obstacles, 
 while the genial kindness of his disposition, and his 
 evident desire for the general welfare, gained tlie 
 respect and affection of all. He regarded nothing as 
 too trivial to occupy his attention which could, in 
 any way, tend to promote innocent enjoyment, but 
 
V / 
 
 1830.] 
 
 TAHLEE. 
 
 251 
 
 sought, on the contrary, to draw closer, in little 
 things, the bond which united him to his people. 
 He took great interest in the formation of a cricket 
 club, and a game was played every Saturday after- 
 noon, which was a holiday, and as often in the week 
 as a sufficient number of hands could be mustered. 
 Some of the men were natives of Kent and Hamp- 
 shire, and were delighted to be thus reminded of 
 home and old times. Occasionally, when business 
 permitted. Sir Edward would take part in the game 
 himself. 
 
 Lady Parry's birthday w^as always a gala day in 
 the settlement, and Sir Edward writes of the first 
 festival of the kind : — 
 
 " We had a large dinner and ball of all the Company's 
 servants resident here, being the first time anything of 
 the kind had been given. Isabella and I danced away with 
 them first, to set them going, and then, I believe, they 
 would have danced the whole night, if we had allowed 
 them. Our great object is to make them all sociable and 
 happy among themselves, which has not hitherto been the 
 case." 
 
 The following refer to the Christmas festivities 
 in the first year of their residence at Tahlee. 
 
 " December 23. 1830. 
 " Yesterday was the breaking up of our school. To 
 celcbrato the day, and reward the little people for their 
 
 14 
 
252 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 ]1830. 
 
 good behaviour, we gave them a dinner, after distributing 
 the prizes. We had a kind of tent rigged up for the 
 occasion, on the middle of the flat at Carribcen, which is 
 a place something like an English common, in the middle 
 of the settlement. The people were all delighted with 
 the idea, having had no fetes of any kind since they 
 came to the country ; and the head carpenter entered 
 into it with great spirit, decorating the place with boughs 
 and bunches of wild flowers, which, to an English eye, 
 we^c greenhouse plants, and some of the rarest kind. 
 There were flags flying at each end, and an ensign upon 
 a flagstaff a little way off. It had a beautiful eifeet 
 altogether, with the woody scenery around. Fifty-two 
 children sat down to dinner, and no Cheshire children 
 could have done greater justice to the beef and plum 
 pudding. The parents were all invited to be present, 
 and looked as pleased as the children. After dinner, we 
 set them to play at different games. They have never, 
 a- yet, had any among themselves, therefore we had to 
 teach them, but they are lively children, and soon entered 
 into everything with great spirit. Races for sixpences 
 afforded much amusement, and football, at which games 
 blacks and whites joined, both old and young. Mr. 
 Ebsworth is an excellent assistant, and was quite de- 
 lighted, himself, to see anything like an "'^ngiish fete. 
 This was, I think, the general feeling. They all said it 
 reminded them of England, and was the first thing of 
 the kind Port Stephens had ever witnessed. We intend 
 to have a day for the prisoners, with wheelbarrow 
 races, 8ec, that they may partake of the pleasure's and 
 
1830.] 
 
 CHRISTMAS FESTIVITIES. 
 
 253 
 
 gaities of Christmas ; for, though they are prisoners, and 
 many of them very bad, encouragement is by no means 
 thrown away upon them, and they leel kindness, and 
 improve by it as much as other people." 
 
 " December 27. 
 " Christmas Day is passed, and, so far, all has gone on 
 happily. We have commemorated it with pleasure and 
 interest, though in this distant land, and have endea- 
 voured to make it as much like English Christmas as 
 possible. We did not wisli for your frost and snow, 
 though we did wish that the sun had not been quite so 
 hot, — the thermometer being 87° in the shade of our 
 verandah ! Our singers had prepared hymns for the 
 season, and on Christmas Eve we had the carols, which 
 they sang very well indeed, going round to all the houses, 
 seventeen in number, where every one seemed quite 
 happy to be once again reminded of England. We also 
 had our church decorated with evergreens ; we could 
 not get holly or yew, but there is a shrub which is very 
 common here, like the laurel, only, I think, handsomer, 
 and which quite answered our purpose. It was a beautiful 
 evening, and, when we were all sitting out on our lawn, 
 we could not help thinking of the difference of your 
 climate to or.rs just then." 
 
 Towards the close of this first year of his residence 
 at Port Stephens, Sir Edward, in a letter to Sir 
 John Stanley, thus describes the nature of the diffi- 
 
254 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 Ll830. 
 
 culties he had encountered in the colony, and the 
 result of his exertions : — 
 
 «^ 
 
 •I may truly say that my official duties have been 
 most arduous, demanding all the thought, and temper 
 and decision I can muster, and, now and then, a great 
 deal more. I found the Company's affairs, on my arrival, 
 in a loose and disjointed state, as circumstances had led 
 me to expect, and it is only by keeping a tight rein that 
 I can succeed in effecting anything. The consequence 
 of the absence of strict and systematic government for 
 so long a time naturally was, that any attempt to bring 
 things into order, and to put down the innumerable 
 abuses which existed, caused no small kicking. I have, 
 however, a tolerable share of obstinacy in my composi- 
 tion, and have gone steadily on, inquiring into every- 
 thing myself, and endeavouring to apply a remedy 
 wherever I have found a grievance or an abuse of any 
 kind. I have, of course, had many battles to fight, and 
 many disagreeable tilings to encounter, but I hope that 
 I begin to see improvement, to encourage and repay my 
 exertions. They begin, at least, to know that they 
 cannot easily ' get to windward ' of me ! 
 
 " You must not, however, imagine, from what I have 
 just said, that all I have been doing is of the character 
 above mentioned. I trust we can both truly say that 
 nothing which kindness could effect has been left un- 
 done, or at least untried. In our character of the parson 
 of the parish and his wife, we have visited, admoniyhed, 
 and assisted every body within our reach. In the truest 
 
RY. Ll830. 
 
 lony, and the 
 
 ties have been 
 it, and temper, 
 1 then, a great 
 , on my arrival, 
 stances had led 
 tight rein tliat 
 he consequence 
 government for 
 ttempt to bring 
 le in numerable 
 Icking. I have, 
 in my composi- 
 ing into every- 
 pply a remedy 
 ,n abuse of any 
 es to fight, and 
 but I hope that 
 e and repay my 
 know that they 
 
 1830.] 
 
 TAHLEE. 
 
 255 
 
 Christian and missionary spirit, my beloved Isabella has 
 gone into every cottage, promoting, by every means in 
 her power, the comfort of every family, peace among 
 quarrelling neighbo'^rs, and the temporal and spiritual 
 welfare of every human being around us. She has been 
 a mother to the numerous poor children who, when we 
 arrived, were running about wild, idling, swearing, and 
 going to ruin as fast as possible ; and it is now a 
 delightful and cheering sight to see forty-eight of these 
 daily receiving education, under her directions and super- 
 intendence, and becoming well-behaved, and well-in- 
 structed children. At a distant station, about twenty- 
 five more children are receiving education, for whom a 
 regular school-house is now building. My duties as 
 parson have also been somewhat arduous. I have 
 written one, and preached two sermons every Sunday, — 
 christened a great many children (some of them four 
 years eld), — churched numbers of women, — visited the 
 sick, — buried the dead. In all these things, as indeed in 
 everything else, we trust that a new tone, and a beneficial 
 one, has been given." 
 
 The success which attended their efforts for the 
 well-being, spiritual and temporal, of those around 
 them, together with the domestic happiness of their 
 Australian home, combined to render the years spent 
 at Tahlee amongst the brightest of their married 
 life. In the regular employment of each day, weeks 
 and months flew so rapidly, that, when the time of 
 
mM 
 
 256 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1830. 
 
 Sir Edward's engagement with the Company ap. 
 proached its close, they could scarcely believe that 
 more than four years had passed since they landed at 
 Sydney. One day varied little from another. Sir 
 Edward rose, each morning, between five and siy. 
 ** It was quite enlivening in the morning," says Mr. 
 Ebs worth, *' when all were well, to hear his footstep, 
 as he came from the nursery, singing and whistling 
 in the highest degree of delight." With the punc- 
 tuality which he always enjoined on his household, 
 at eight o'clock all who could attend met in the 
 parlour for family prayers, — "no formal ceremony, 
 and few sights more cheering to see." Breakflist 
 followed, and the forenoon was occupied in writing 
 letters, despatches, and general orders, or in giving 
 audience to the officers of the establishment. On the 
 latter he enjoined the same punctuality which marked 
 his own movements. If a gentleman came after the 
 time which had been agreed upon, he would good 
 humouredly remark, on his entrance, " Here comes 
 
 the late Mr. ! " and the gentle reproof was 
 
 seldom taken amiss. An early dinner separated the 
 business of the morning from that of the afternoon, 
 for his official duties usually oc3upied him until tea- 
 time, to which meal Mr. Ebs'vorth, or some of the 
 officers, with whom Sir Edward was anxious to be 
 
 \ 
 
RY. 
 
 [1830. 
 
 1^30.3 
 
 TAHLEE. 
 
 25V 
 
 Company ap- 
 r believe that 
 ;liey landed at 
 another. Sir 
 
 five and siy. 
 ng," says Mr. 
 r his footstep, 
 and whistling 
 ith the punc- 
 his household, 
 id met in the 
 11 al ceremony, 
 e." Breakflist 
 lied in writino; 
 , or in giving 
 ment. On the 
 
 which mavkei] 
 came after the 
 le would good 
 
 " Here comes 
 e reproof was 
 
 separated tlie 
 
 the afternoon, 
 
 him until tea- 
 )r some of the 
 
 anxious to be 
 
 on intimate terms, were often invited. The evening, 
 if fine, would perhaps be spent on the lawn, ia front 
 of the verandah, where the spreading brandies of a 
 laro-e castor-oil tree affordcil a pleasant shade. ^' It 
 is scarcely possible," are ]Vlr, Ebsworth's words, " to 
 depict a more delightful family scene than the lawn 
 before Tahlee, on a fine summer evening. Chairs for 
 the elder portion of the family were placed around {«, 
 table, on vdiich were grapes, melons, and other fruits, 
 which Sir Edward would dispense, not forgetting 
 the children, who were usually i)laying about in 
 the smooth grass. I never saw such haj)piness, nor 
 do I ever expect to see it again in this world." At 
 other times, Sir Edward would read aloud in the 
 drawing room. " No one," says Mr. Ebs worth 
 again, " could excel him in reading, and I have heard 
 people remark, on these occasions, that * he ought to 
 have been a bishop instead of a sailor ! ' Sometim.cs 
 Lady Parry would play on the piano. Sir Edward 
 acoompanying her on the violin, or with his fine 
 numly voice, which harmonised very sweetly with 
 hers." At nine o'clock, all assembled once more for 
 prayers, and shortly afterwards retired to rest. 
 
 Sometimes Sir Edward was obliged to leave home 
 
 for days, or even weeks together, to conduct explor- 
 
 ^ ino or surveying expeditions iido the interior. At 
 
 8 
 

 258 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1830. 
 
 these times, the want of his presence was greatly felt 
 in the settlement, and other eyes than those of his 
 wife would joyfully hail the Union Jack, hoisted on 
 the flagstaff close to Tahle. nouse as the signal of 
 his return. " It is not only at the Church services," 
 writes Lady Parry, during his absence, " that niy 
 husband's presence is wanted. I think it is a general 
 feeling, throughout the settlement, amongst allpartle?, 
 that nothing seems to go on with spirit when he is 
 away, and no one looks so contented and comfortable 
 as when he is at home, watching over their concerns 
 and interests." Of one of these expeditions slie 
 writes again : — 
 
 "We heard tidings from our absent party three davj 
 after they left us, and they were going on prosperouslj, 
 having reached the Myall River. They are obliged to 
 make short journeys each day, as they are accompanied 
 by eight pack bullocks, which carry all their goods, and 
 proceed slowly, as they are travelling throng!; an iin- 
 tracked country, and have frequently to cut tL ir ^vay 
 through the bush. Their party consists of twelve, in- 
 cluding blacks, of whom they have taken three, as they 
 are of great service in the 'bush, when they fall in with 
 other natives. They have two tents to pitch at night, 
 and everything was arranged most corafortabl;y . It was 
 like a large caravan moving, when they set out,— all the 
 bullocks in a string, each laden, {imJ a man to every 
 beast, the attendants with guns olung over their 
 
 t .«'»! 
 
1830] KXCtJRSIONS INTO THE INTERIOl!. 259 
 
 shoulders, and the others riding. The blacks were 
 dressed for the occasion, and looked so proud of them- 
 selves! They soon get tired of their clothes, but always 
 want to have them at first, and it is one of the induce- 
 ments to make them go. 
 
 "We are now in the middle of winter, but we have 
 had no cold at all as yet, the thermometer having never 
 been below 50°, but it feels colder here than it would 
 do at that temperature in England, from our being 
 accustomed to such hot weather." 
 
 On one occc"'ion, on a trip to the colliery of New- 
 castle, when the party, who v/crc, as usual, on liorsc- 
 liack, had to wade through a swamp, the guide 
 remarked that " there was, after all, a good bottom." 
 "No doubt," replied Sir Edward, whose horse, 
 already up to the girths in mud, gave a fresh plunge 
 at the moment, — " no doubt, but I have not found 
 it yet ! " 
 
 Another time the party were caught in a flood, 
 produced by the heavy rain. They had encamped, 
 for the night, by the side of a creek, and Sir Edward 
 was standing at the door of the tent, watchino- the 
 rising of the stream below them, when, all at once, 
 lie saw the water coming down " like an immense 
 wave," and, in a few minutes, they were up to their 
 knees in water. The dray which accompanied 
 them was made fast to a tree, to prevent its being 
 
 8 2 
 
¥m-i 
 
 2G0 
 
 MEMOIRS OF Slli W, E. rARUY. 
 
 [1S31, 
 
 ■|i 
 
 w lohccl away, and the bullocks were turned loose to 
 shift for themselves. Such of the party as were aide 
 swam over the creek, and the rest were hauled across 
 by means of a rope secured to a tree on either i'1 
 Tliese events were only regarded as interc ling ,u. 
 cidents in bush travelling, but, in he course of the 
 summer of 1831, a circumstance occur, cd ^ ' niiy 
 alarming in its nature, though very chr •^'^ . nf 
 
 Australian life. 
 
 Ladt/ Parry to Lady M. Stanley. 
 
 "December 19. 1831. 
 " We have lately expcrionccd another disadvantage of 
 a newly cultivated country, and have witnes.scd what I 
 liave only heard of before, and read in Cooper's novels.-. 
 I mean the burning of the woods, and it is, indeed, a 
 fearful and extraordinary sight. For the last fortnight, 
 the whole country around has been in a blaze, ami 
 between this place and the Gloucester, a distance of more 
 than seventy miles, there is scarcely a blade of gras.s left; 
 it is one continued black plain, and the stems of tlie 
 trees are all scorched and blackened. We were in lioptj 
 we should have escaped, near the house, but, after two or 
 three days, we saw there was but little prospect of our 
 avoiding the general destruction. Just as avc were 
 coming home from church, last Sunday, a man came 
 running to say that the fire had reached his house, ami 
 was rapidly approaching our garden. Tmniodintcly a'l| 
 
 ? ! 
 
1831.] SCHOOL ESTABLISHED AT STROUD. 2r>l 
 
 hands wcro sent off to save tho poor garden, and ) am 
 liappy to say, succeeded, though it wns only by a 
 fow minutes. Edward made tlicm set firo to a broad 
 space all round, and this was only just completed vvlien 
 the lire reach( d tho place wo had burnt, and, finding no 
 food to supply its flames, turned oiT in another direction. 
 It was fearful to hear tho crackling sound, as it came on 
 through tho bushes, and iho volumes of smoke nearly 
 bliniied us all. While .ii: ''It- 3 wore raging on tho 
 hills around, it was a most curious sight at night. Tho 
 shores of tho harbour were brightly illuminated, whilo 
 the largo masses of fire upon the horizon lighted up tho 
 sky all round. We shall have plenty of occupation, for 
 same time to come, in cutting down tho trunks of the 
 burnt trees, and the beauty of our domain is quite spoilt 
 for the present." 
 
 Carrington was not the only part of the settlement 
 which profited from the residence of the Commis- 
 sioner and his family. At Stroud, a village about 
 twenty-five miles distant, situated on the banks o"^ 
 the river Karuah, a school was also established, 
 under the direction of a master brought from Sydney. 
 Lady Parry thus describes a visit they paid to this 
 place, the beauty of which exceeded even that of 
 Talilee. 
 
 "Tahlcc House, March 17. 183L 
 " On Tuesday last we set off in tho boat for Booral, 
 mQ of the Company's farms, about twenty miles distiinl, 
 

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 23 WEST MAIN STREET 
 
 WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 
 
 (716) 872-4503 
 

 -""o 
 
 Z 
 
262 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [182 
 
 where the river navigation ends. The scenery is 
 beautiful the whole way, and I quite longed to get out 
 of the boat, every moment, to examine the beautiful 
 vines and plants wliich were glowing along the shores, 
 all quite new to me. Our boat, the six-oared gig, had 
 an awning, a very necessary comfort with an Australian 
 sun shining full upon us. At Booral we remained two 
 hours, and I met there an old Alderley acquaintance, 
 
 Daniel B , who had been transported for poaching; 
 
 and when I asked whose pheasants he had been taking, 
 he said, * Sir John Stanley's I ' Even though a convict, 
 I felt quite kindly disposed towards him, and glad to see 
 one whose face reminded me so strongly of old Alderley! 
 The distance from Booral to Stroud is about eight miles, 
 along a most beautiful bush road, and in many parts you 
 might almost fancy yourself in an English park, the 
 trees being not too close, and interspersed with green 
 slopes. I heard, for the first time, many of the birds of 
 which I have read, — the ' bell-bird,' and the * coachman's 
 whip.' The former is always found near fresh water, so 
 that his note is a cheerful sound for travellers. We also 
 saw quantities of cockatoos and parrots. The situation 
 of Stroud is very charming, but I had no wish to live 
 there instead of Tahlee, for the sea is everything. We 
 paid a visit to every cottage, and made the most of our 
 day. I enjoyed my expedition very much, though I was 
 not sorry to return home, for this is not a country where 
 one likes to leave home for long. It is impossible to feel 
 sure that all will continue quiet and without alarm, 
 when surrounded by such characters, though we have 
 never yet experienced any danger." 
 
-i; 
 
 1832.] 
 
 HIS mother's death. 
 
 263 
 
 Reference has frequently been made to the pecu- 
 liar tie of devoted affection that existed between Sir 
 Edward and his mother. So acutely had she felt 
 the trial of their present separation, that, at first, 
 there seemed danger of her health giving way : but, 
 for two years, he was permitted to maintain the 
 most intimate communications with her, although 
 obliged, by the pressure of official duties, to forego 
 almost all other private correspondence. His fondest 
 hope was that, on his return home, he might once 
 more embrace this beloved parert, and present to 
 her his children born in a distant land. This expec- 
 tation was, however, not to be realised. In the 
 month of May, 1832, he experienced the severe 
 shock of seeing, in the columns of a Sydney paper, 
 the announcement of hor death. By some accident 
 the private letters had been delayed, and greatly was 
 the blow aggravated by its coming in so unexpected 
 a manner. Some extracts from his last letter to 
 his mother may not inappropriately be here given. 
 
 / '. 
 
 
 "Port Stephens, February 1. 1832. 
 " Be assured, my dearest mother, that you are very 
 much in our thoughts. We may truly say, that some of 
 our happiest moments are those in which our thoughts 
 and conversation turn upon those we love so dearly in 
 England. It is impossible to express how thankful 
 
 s 4 
 
4» 
 
 264 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1832. 
 
 we are to receive such continued good accounts of your 
 restored health ; and we pray, as you do, that, if it so 
 please our Heavenly Father, we may all be permitted to 
 meet again in England. But we also feel, as you do, 
 that He will so dispose every event, that it may be most 
 conducive to our good, and to his own glory, and are con- 
 tent to leave all that concerns us, entirely and unre- 
 servedly, in His hands Every day of my pilgrim- 
 age here convinces me, more and more, that we should, 
 from the beginning of life to its end, feel and act as 
 pilgrims seeking a * better country, that is, an heavenly.' 
 To make this our homo and rest, is to act in direct op- 
 position to the plain precepts of the Lord and Master 
 whose name we bear. The first and principal business 
 of life ought, unquestionably, to be a preparation for 
 death, in the manner, and by the means, which God has 
 graciously revealed to us in the Bible : and oh ! what 
 unspeakable comfort is to be found in that blessed 
 volume ! How wonderful is the scheme of redemption 
 through Christ, and h'--'- astonishingly suited to our 
 necessities ! What in,^ ibable consolation to the con- 
 trite sinner in that one assurance, that * God was in 
 Christ reconciling the world unto himself, and not im- 
 puting their trespasses unto them ! ' May we 
 
 all be counted worthy to be written in the Lamb's book 
 of life, and it matters little how few, or how many, the 
 days of our pilgrimage may be here on earth." 
 
 The following letters, addressed to his brother and 
 sisters, were in answer to those containing the par- 
 ticulars of his mother's death. 
 
1632.] 
 
 LETTERS. 
 
 265 
 
 "Port Stephens, July 16. 1832. 
 " My dear C , 
 
 "I need not say with what deep and solemn 
 interest we have perused, and reperused, every line of 
 your description of our sainted mother's death. Dear, 
 tender, affectionate, pious Parent ! as long as we have 
 hearts to feel, thy beloved memory will be fondly che- 
 rished by all thy children ! Deeply as we have felt this 
 separation (for such it is even to us at this great distance), 
 
 we cannot but feel, my dear C , how selfish is our 
 
 sorrow, and how indescribable the gain to her for whom 
 we grieve ! Could we behold and have communion with 
 her glorified spirit now, what cause should we see for 
 thankfulness and joy on her account I Her long pil- 
 grimage is ended, she has fought the good fight, she has 
 finished her course, henceforth there is * laid up for her 
 a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous 
 Judge, shall give her at that day.' .... God, of his 
 infinite nercy, grant that we may thus be allowed to 
 close our lives, whether long or short, and thus *fall 
 asleep in Jesus,' even as she has done." 
 
 "September 12,1832. 
 
 " Hard as the lesson is, my dear sisters, for flesh and 
 blood to learn, it is most certain that * whom the Lord 
 loveth He chasteneth.' Every day's experience shows 
 me, more and more, that aflliction constitutes the prin- 
 cipal means which the Almighty is pleased to employ to 
 bring us to Himself, through His son Jesus Christ, who 
 is, emphatically, the way, the truth, and the life. Oh, 
 my beloved sisters, if we are deemed worthy, at the 
 
266 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1833. 
 
 h 
 
 last, though His merits and righteousness, to bo received 
 into the blessed flock of Christ, with what joy and 
 gratitude shall we look back on these 'light afiiic- 
 tions,' which are, comparatively, * but for a moment,' 
 and which, if rightly used, as the infliction of a gracious 
 Parent, will work for us * a far more exceeding and 
 eternal weight of glory ! 
 
 f ft 
 
 The want of a regular church and minister be- 
 coming more and more felt each day, especially as 
 the time drew near when Sir Edward's connexion 
 with Port Stephens would cease, he determined to 
 take active measures to supply the need. He felt 
 that he could not leave a better legacy to those over 
 whose interests he had so long watched, and whom 
 he was now about to quit for ever, than a building 
 consecrated to the service of Him whose glory had 
 been his constant aim. A site was accordingly de- 
 termined upon, not at Carrington, but at Stroud, as 
 being more central, and the principal settlement in 
 the Company's grant. Monday, April 29th, 1833, 
 was a day long remembered in the colony. At the 
 appointed hour of eleven, a large concourse of people 
 from the different villages assembled together, when 
 the first stone was laid by Sir Edward, and a suitable 
 service, selected for the occasion, read by the Eev. 
 C. P. Wilton, chaplain of Newcastle. " You may 
 
1833.] 
 
 BUILDS A CHURCH AT STROUD. 
 
 267 
 
 imagine," said Lady Parry, "what an impressive 
 occasion it was altogether, and what our feelings 
 were. In dedicating this little chapel to God, 
 earnestly indeed did we pray that He would send 
 down His blessing upon it, and permit His Holy 
 Spirit to dwell in that place, and bring forth the 
 fruits of true holiness, so that peace, and *tho 
 Gospel of peace ' may reign throughout this settle- 
 ment, when we are far away." 
 
 "Our little church," wrote Sir Edward, after an 
 interval of two months, " is making rapid progress, and 
 we expect the frame of the roof will be up in another 
 month or six weeks. God grant that some faithful 
 minister of Jesus Christ may be found to preach the 
 word of God within its walls ! I think it will cost me 
 nearly — /., but we are not afraid of our ever wanting 
 the money, or our children after us. I wish we were 
 more willing to spend and be spent in God's service. 
 The time is short, even at the best, and we must * work 
 while it is called to-day, for the night cometh, when no 
 man can work ! ' " 
 
 A letter from Lady Parry, just a month later, 
 shows the pleasing way in which these hopes were 
 realised. 
 
 "August 1. 1833. 
 
 " We have lately had a visit from a person, towards 
 whom we feel no small degree of interest. You may 
 imagine the interest we have experienced, in becoming 
 
I I 
 
 268 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1833. 
 
 acquainted with the Rev. Mr. Price, when I tell you 
 that we are hoping to receiva him amongst us as om- 
 minister, and are going to deliver up the spiritual care 
 of our little flock to his charge. We have introduced 
 him to all our people, and were very much pleased with 
 his manner to them all." 
 
 In the spring of the next year. Sir Edward'a 
 engagement with the Company came to a close, 
 and Col. Dumaresq*, a man in all respects sucli as 
 he would himself have selected, was appointed hia 
 successor. The feelings of regret with which he 
 prepared to leave a country, which had been a sphere 
 of such enlarged benevolence, and the scene of so 
 much domestic happiness, were not, as the following 
 letters show, by any means unmixed : — 
 
 Sir Edward Parry to Sir J, Franklin. 
 
 " You will, I am sure, be desirous of knowing whether 
 my coming to this country has answered my expectations. 
 In point of emolument, I answer that it has. But the 
 
 • On the death of Colonel Dumaresq, which occurred a few years 
 later, Captain Philip Parker King succeeded to the management of 
 the Company's affairs. Captain King, himself a native of Australia, 
 and well known as the surveyor of the Australian and South 
 American Coasts, had reached his Rear Admiral's flag just before 
 his death, which took place February 28th, 1856. This event, which 
 was very sudden, caused unfeigned and universal regret in Australia, 
 for, both in public and private life. Admiral King had secured the 
 cordial regard an d respect of all. 
 
1833.] 
 
 LETTERS. 
 
 269 
 
 country is so dreadful an one in a moral point of view, 
 and the duties I have had to perform have been often so 
 painful, that I certainly should not have undertaken the 
 oiRce, had I known what it was. Still, we have, I trust, 
 been the means of doing much good, not only to the 
 worldly concerns in which we have been engaged, but, 
 we hope, to the religious and moral well-being of our 
 little community." 
 
 To F. Cresswell, Esq, 
 
 "Now that we are about to quit this country for 
 England, it almost looks like a dream that we have been 
 here at all. We can hardly believe that we have been, 
 already, nearly four years and a half absent, and you may 
 imagine with what pleasure, and yet with what fear and 
 trembling, we now venture to look forward to seeing our 
 dear friends at home once more. We cannot contemplate 
 our voyage of 16,000 miles, with four little children, 
 without considering it a great undertaking, but we en- 
 deavour to commit them and ourselves unto God, 'as 
 unto a faithful Creator ' and Almighty Friend. You 
 will be gratified to hear that the affairt t ' the Company, 
 whose concerns I came out to control, are assuming the 
 most cheering and satisfactory aspect. I have the satis- 
 faction of feeling that my exertions have been the means 
 of cleansing an Augean stable, which, even to myself, 
 seemed hopeless, for the first two years of my residence 
 in this colony. But it has cost me more than the four 
 years I have spent here, having told on me like ten." 
 
270 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARKY. 
 
 [lft.14. 
 
 On Sunday, the 9th March, 1834, Sir Edward 
 preached his farewell sermon at Carrington. Tlie 
 text was from St. Paul's address to the Ephcsian 
 elders at Miletus (Acts xx. 32.); and deeply solemn 
 and affecting must have been the words, which then, 
 for the last time, fell from the lips of one, who, like 
 Paul, "through evil report and good report," had 
 faithfully discharged the trust committed to him, 
 and whose face his hearers were now about to " see 
 no more " in this world. Earnestly and affectionately 
 he urged all to ponder deeply on the words of 
 eternal life, which, by the grace of God, he had 
 sought to impress upon their minds in that " carpen- 
 ter's shop ; " while, at the same time, he humbled 
 himself for what might have been left undone on his 
 part. ** How different," he said, " must my language 
 be from Paul's ! How many occasions have I neg- 
 lected of pressing on your attention the concerns of 
 eternity ! But, though I desire to be humbled in 
 self-abasement before you, and in the sight of God, 
 for this, I may, perhaps, be permitted to say that, 
 during more than four years, I have entertained a 
 sincere desire to promote your spiritual welfare!" 
 " At the conclusion of the sermon," says Mr. Ebs- 
 worth, "I was walking from Carrington towards 
 Tahlee with Col. Dumaresq, when the latter re- 
 
f ; 
 
 1834.] 
 
 RETURN TO ENGLAND. 
 
 2n 
 
 marked to me, * I have travelled a great deal during 
 my life, and mixed much with men, but (pointing to 
 Sir Edward, who was walking a short distance 
 in front)] in all uiy travels I never met with his 
 equal 1'" 
 
 In June, 1834, Sir Edward and Lady Parry, 
 with their four children, embarked at Sydney in the 
 " Persian," and arrived at Gravesend in the following 
 November, after a voyage of five months. ** I feel 
 it a surprise, every time I see Parry," are the words 
 of one who met him shortly after his return. " There 
 seems to be a power of simplifying whatever comes 
 near him, — an atmosphere in which trifles die a 
 natural death, — a single-hearted steadfastnef's that 
 does one good to look at. He is like a rock in his 
 firmness and fixedness of purpose, and yet so ready 
 to take into consideration the other side. He spoke 
 with candour and moderation of all the people who 
 differed with him in Australia, like a man who 
 had too much to do with the practical and real parts 
 of things to dwell upon technicalities. I was not 
 surprised to find him in such delight with * Abbott's 
 Corner Stone,' which he was reading aloud to him- 
 self, it is so exactly like his own earnest, simple 
 sincerity. But I was grieved to see the languor of 
 his manner and look, and to hear him talk of not 
 
I 
 
 M 
 
 l;> ;'' 
 
 I h 
 
 •V- 
 
 272 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARUY. 
 
 Cia.u 
 
 being up to a night journey in the coach, or to 
 business of nny kind, for that he had never felt well 
 since he landed. He looks^ indeed, as he says he 
 feels, ten years older." 
 
 Towards tlie close of the same year, the directors 
 of the Australian Agricultural Company invited him 
 to a public dinner, and presented him with a hand* 
 some service of plate, in testimony of the high sense 
 they entertained of the benefits conferred by him 
 upon the colony, during his residence there. 
 
 "At Port Stephens" (we quote from one* who 
 visited that place some years later), " Sir Edward 
 Parry found a wilderness, but left it a land of hope 
 and promise. Long will his name be remembered 
 with love and reverence, for services which can never 
 be requited by earthly reward. His reward must 
 be from on high, in that recognition of a good and 
 faithful servant, who, while fulfilling the charge 
 of an earthly stewardship, remembered the yet 
 higher trust of a heavenly commission, and, planting 
 his Master's vineyard with scions of the * tree of 
 * * life,' reared a church in the barren deserts of fi 
 heathen land. Sir Edward Parry laboured as a 
 
 missionary among the convict servants of his ex- 
 
 \ 
 
 * The author of " The Prisoners of Australia.** 
 
lUY. 
 
 1834.] 
 
 "PRISONEUS OF AUSTRALIA." 
 
 273 
 
 I coacli, or to 
 never felt well 
 as he sa^^s he 
 
 ', the directors 
 ly invited him 
 i with a hand' 
 the high sense 
 ferred by him 
 there. 
 
 rom one * wlio 
 
 «*Sir Edward 
 
 a land of hope 
 
 )e remembered 
 
 hich can never 
 
 8 reward must 
 
 of a good and 
 
 ig the charge 
 
 )ered the yet 
 
 , and, planting 
 
 f the * tree of 
 
 1 deserts of a 
 
 laboured as a 
 
 nts of his ex- 
 
 tensive establishment, contending with a thousand 
 difficulties ever incident to a spiritual reform. 
 He erected a small but beautiful church on the 
 rich borders of the calm Karuah, where a dock 
 soon gladly assembled, to join in the sweet incense 
 of prayer and praise, where never prayer was heard 
 before ; and his example animated others to do the 
 
 like It was at the close of a beautiful 
 
 Sabbath day, that I once sallied forth for an 
 evening's stroll, and almost unconsciously wandered 
 to a convict's hut, which stood on the borders of 
 the coast. Attracted by the sound of voices, as 
 of children reading, I paused to listen, and, al- 
 though too far from the dwelling to hear distinctly, 
 I saw, through the open doorway, what was passing 
 within. The father of the family, a convict, sat 
 near the entrance with a young child on his knee, 
 while three older ones were grouped around him, 
 reading from the Scriptures, which from time to 
 time he explained to them. Unwilling to intrude 
 upon a family thus engaged, I returned home, un- 
 perceived by those who had thus attracted and in- 
 terested me, but on the following day I heard, from 
 the lips of his wife, the circumstances of the convict's 
 transportation. Providentially, he had been assigned 
 to the service of the Agricultural Company, and. 
 
 -?a?l 
 

 F '! 
 
 274 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1834. 
 
 Tinder the Christian teaching of Sir Edward Parry 
 and his wife, had been led to see the folly of worldly 
 wickedness, and the deep importance of those better 
 things, which now formed his highest privilege and 
 consolation. These blessing* were among the many 
 fruits of the missionary exertions of Sir Edward 
 Parry and his now sainted wife, who both lived in 
 thr* grateful affections of many a chastened heart, 
 long after they had ceased to take a personal share 
 in the interests of that far distant colony." 
 
 
275 
 
 CHAP. X. 
 
 APPOINTMENT AS ASSISTANT POOR-LAW COMMISSIONER. — 
 CONGHAM. — DEATH OF ELDEST DAUGHTER. — RESIGNA- 
 TION OP OFFICE OP POOR-LAW COMMISSIONER. — AP- 
 POINTMENT AS COMPTROLLER OP STEAM MACHINERY. — 
 DEATH OP TOUi«GEST CHILD. — ASSAAD T. KATAT. — 
 DEATH OF LADY PARRY. — "PARENTAL CHARACTER OF 
 
 GOD. 
 
 1835—1840. 
 
 ■ ■ 
 
 Towards the end of the year in which Sir Edward 
 returned from New South Wales, a vacancy having 
 occurred in the representation of Bath, he received a 
 formal invitation, from some of the most influential 
 members of his native city, to allow himself to be 
 nominated as a candidate for the vacant seat. He 
 had, however, nothing of a party spirit in him, and 
 he felt that his previous life had so little qualified 
 him for the efficient discharge of Pa;rliamentary 
 duties, that he had no hesitation in declining so 
 flattering an offer. The state of his health, which 
 for some time had been much impaired, induced him, 
 
 T 2 
 
 I ■ 
 
 Hi 
 
 1;^ 
 
 1 : 
 

 m 
 
 !;,;l 
 
 |l 'ni 
 
 276 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PAURY. 
 
 [1835. 
 
 at first, to desire a period of relaxation from work of 
 any kind ; but the prospect of a comparatively idle 
 life, even for a limited time, proved so irksome, that, 
 after some consideration, he applied for the vacant 
 post of Assistant Poor-Law Commissioner in the 
 County of Norfolk. 
 
 "Winchester, Jan. 31. 1835. 
 " From my late masters (the Directors 
 of the Australian Company) I have received the most 
 useful testimony, because their recommendation affects 
 my character and abilities in the management of civil 
 affairs ; whereas a very good Polar navigator, in which 
 capacity alone I am publicly known, might make a very 
 bad Poor-Law Commissioner. As for the work in that 
 position, which is said to be most laborious, I have 
 worked pretty hard all my life, and do not expect to be 
 exempted from hard work, so long as the Almighty is 
 pleased to give me bodily and mental power for doing 
 it." 
 
 In March, 1835, he received the appointment as 
 Assistant Commissioner, for which post there were 
 upwards of a thousand candidates. The act, passed 
 in 1834, to remedy the abuses which existed under 
 the old Poor-Law Administration, rendered the 
 duties of the situation arduous, and often very 
 unpleasant, by bringing him into contact with those 
 who were unwilling to acquiesce in the new order of 
 things. These duties, moreover, involved a kind of 
 
1835.] 
 
 POOR-LAW COMMISSION. 
 
 277 
 
 migiiMjiry life from one part of the county to 
 nnother, which precluded the possibility of any fixed 
 residence with his family. He was continually 
 obliged to be absent from home on business, and, 
 even when there, was usually employed from morn- 
 ing till night in official correspondence. 
 
 " April 3. 1835. 
 " I am hard at work ' insensing ' myself, from six in 
 the morning till eleven or twelve at night. I have 
 dined out nowhere, and am, every hour, picking up some 
 useful information relating to my new vocation. I feel 
 it to be an arduous task, but I also feel that in a short 
 time I shall be au fait at it, and each day I see more of 
 its importance, and take a greater personal interest in 
 the subject, in proportion as I see with my own eyes 
 more of the wretched system which has been tolerated 
 so many years." 
 
 At the end of the first two months. Lady Parry 
 
 writes : — 
 
 "Mattishall, June 10. 1835. 
 
 . " It is wearisome work for Sir Edward, 
 and I wish he could have a little more repose, but he gets 
 on very tolerably with his duties, and, though difficulties 
 and troubles occur occasionally, he says he sees his way 
 very clearly, and seems to be going on satisfactorily ; but 
 it requires much more time and caution, as may be ex- 
 pected, when so many different characters are concerned. 
 Every day's work, and every new place he goes to, makes 
 him see more clearly how great the necessity was for 
 
 T 3 
 
n 
 
 278 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PAURY. 
 
 [1835. 
 
 some change. He finds this county full of the most 
 violent party spirit, but he contrives to steer quite clear, 
 and lets them all see he belongs to no party, but is 
 desirous of doing his duty according to what appears to 
 him right, uninfluenced by any political or party spirit. 
 He has had one or two very satisfactory meetings lately, 
 and we have been told that he has overcome the preju- 
 dices of several enemies of the new system, in some of 
 the parishes he has lately visited." 
 
 The following, from Sir Edward himself, is to the 
 same effect : — 
 
 •♦ Mattishall, Aug. 8. 1835. 
 " It is astonishing how little opposition we have met 
 with, considering how mighty a change it is which we 
 are employed in bringing about, and how opposed the 
 new measures are to every person's notion on the 
 subject, both among poor and rich. In this county, I 
 have the satisfaction of finding chat the prejudice is fast 
 wearing away ; and, though it will, for some time, con- 
 tinue to be up-hill work, I see no real difficulty in 
 bringing the measures into complete operation, if the 
 government will only support and strengthen us." 
 
 In the early part of the year 1836, they removed 
 from Mattishall to Congham Lodge, near Castle 
 Kising. This was, on many accounts, a pleasant 
 change; and they found much refreshment and 
 comfort in the friendship of the Hon. and Kev. 
 W. J. Brodrick, Rector of Castle Rising, and his 
 
IIRY. [1835. I 1836.3 
 
 OFFICIAL RESIGNATION. 
 
 279 
 
 wife. It soon, however, became evident that Sir 
 Edward's health was entirely giving way under the 
 pressure of work ; and his medical advisers declared, 
 positively, that total rest of body and mind was 
 absolutely necessary. Under these circumstances, 
 he was at length induced, with much reluctance, 
 to tender his resignation to the Central Board oi 
 Commissioners in London. In accepting his resig- 
 nation, the Commissioners expressed thei. regret, 
 " on their own account, personally, but still more on 
 account of the loss of his public services, the value 
 of which they had learnt fully to appreciate, from 
 the many proofs they had received of the discreet, 
 judicious, and efficient manner in which he had 
 conducted his operations in Norfolk." 
 
 " The commissioners'* (he writes to his brother,") "have 
 behaved in a most kind and handsome way, and evinced 
 a very gratifying reluctance to part with mo as one of 
 their assistants. But the case has become so clear that 
 I have sent in my official resignation, and expect to be 
 relieved from my labours, which I require more and 
 more. It is comfortable in one sense, but uncomfortable 
 in another, to know that my success in this county has 
 been considerable. It would, certainly, have been more 
 agreeable to have reaped the full benefit of my exertions, 
 but this cannot be helped, as I am so unstrung that I 
 must have rest. . . . You will not wonder that I should 
 
 T 4 
 
Pi 
 
 m 
 
 hs-i 
 t;,:|ljl 
 
 i;ii 
 
 280 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PAURY. 
 
 [1836. 
 
 be sick of the very sight of pen and ink, when I tell yon 
 that, for months past, I have been writing about sixty 
 letters a week, by way of filling up the intervals which 
 can be spared from other duties; the latter involving 
 the travelling of 1600 miles per quarter, chiefly in a 
 gig- 
 
 The second year spent in Norfolk was marked 
 by a severe family trial. The scarlet fever, which 
 had for some time raged like an epidemic in the 
 neighbourhood, visited Congham Lodge, and proved 
 fatal to their eldest daughter, Isabella, one of the 
 twins born on their arrival at Sydney. Almost im- 
 mediately before her death, he wrote to his friend, 
 
 Mr. Cresswell : — 
 
 " Congham Lodge, March 4. 1836. 
 " My dear Cresswell, 
 
 " When the event is to take place is only known 
 
 to Him who orders it, but we have no longer any hope 
 
 of our beloved child's life. Lady Parry has had a bitter 
 
 night, but not the worse — certainly, I should say, the 
 
 better — for having been permitted to see her dying child. 
 
 For my own part, I long to feel that my child is safe 
 
 for ever in the Saviour's arms. You and I, my dear 
 
 friend, well know there is nothing in this world for 
 
 which we should desire to detain her." 
 
 
 Her death occurred on the 6th of March, and she 
 was buried in the chancel of Castle Rising Church, 
 " one of the lambs of Christ's blessed flock." " Them 
 
ge, March 4. 1836. 
 
 1836.] 
 
 DEATH OF ELDEST DAUGHTER. 
 
 281 
 
 which sleep in Jesus shall God bring with Him " 
 is the motto on the little marble tablet, which marks 
 the place of her interment. 
 
 " In the course of about seven weeks, we had thirteen 
 cases of the complaint which carried off our beloved 
 child, though it was variously modified in different in- 
 stances. We had, at one time, seven in bed at once, 
 until no more beds could be found, and we had to hire 
 almost a duplicate set of servants to supply the place of 
 those who were ill, including two nurses. You may 
 imagine, therefore, what an hospital our house has been, 
 and, as Lady Parry has herself been confined to her 
 bed during most of the time, the visiting of every room, 
 and the dispensing of all the medicines, fell upon 
 myself." 
 
 They left Congham in December of the same 
 year. 
 
 [ " We dined" (Lady Parry writes in her journal,) " at 
 Castle Rising Rectory, on our farewell visit. Before we 
 left it, we four met in the study, and had a parting 
 prayer. We know not when we shall meet again at 
 this dear place ; but no distance can separate us from 
 such dear friends, and, in spirit, we shall often meet. 
 This last day was a very painful one altogether, for this 
 place is now endeared to us by a tie which can never be 
 broken." 
 
 The day before they left Norfolk, Sir Edward 
 wrote the following to a friend, who had been 
 
282 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1836. 
 
 Tit'- f P 
 
 '■1 
 
 in great anxiety about one of her children, under 
 scarlet fever : — 
 
 « 
 
 " Congham, Dec. 6. 1836. 
 My very dear friend, 
 
 "You were indeed right in supposing that I 
 
 could not leave Congham without a parting line. How 
 
 well do I know (I flatter myself few people know 
 
 better) the conflict which your dear child's illness has 
 
 raised in your mind I The waters have been deep and 
 
 troubled, but I trust that the encouraging words, 'Itis 
 
 I, be not afraid,' have sounded in your ears, and 
 
 strengthened your heart, throughout the whole of it. 
 
 Oh, the weakness of our faith ! We are not satisfied 
 
 with the dispensations of a Saviour, whom we know to 
 
 be all-merciful, as well as almighty. How exactly our 
 
 conduct resembles that of our children towards ourselves ! 
 
 And, then, to think that our Father cannot err in His 
 
 correction ! It is, indeed, a thought full of comfort, — 
 
 all His correction working for His own glory, and our 
 
 salvation. I trust that this trial has, as I have no doubt 
 
 it has, brought the reality of eternal things more clearly 
 
 before you ; for, just in proportion as this is the case, 
 
 are we led to see the love of God in such events. May 
 
 that love be more and more clearly manifested to you, 
 
 and may you be led to trust Him more unreservedly, who 
 
 is worthy of all our trust, for He is faithful who hath 
 
 promised I " 
 
 The first month after they had left Congham was 
 spent at Alderley. In February, 1837, Sir Edward 
 
1837.] COMPTROLLER OP STEAM MACHINERY. 283 
 
 n, Dec. 6. 1836. 
 
 was employed for a short time, by the Admiralty, 
 in the organisation of the Packet service between 
 the Liverpool, Holyhead, and Dublin stations. For 
 this purpose, he went down with Lady Parry and 
 one of his children to Holyhead ; and, while he was 
 engaged in going to and fro between that port and 
 Dublin, they remained at Penrhos, Sir John Stan- 
 ley's seat in North Wales. This engagement, how- 
 ever, did not last long ; and his health soon became 
 80 far improved that he was anxious to be once more 
 actively employed. While on a visit at Basing 
 Park, in Hampshire, the seat of his brother-in-law, 
 Joseph Martineau, Esq., an opportunity presented 
 itself. The introduction of steam power into the 
 navy had wrought a great change in the service, 
 during the quarter of a century which had elapsed 
 since he, for the first time, saw an engine at work 
 in Portsmouth dockyard. A new department was, 
 about this time, formed at the Admiralty, and the 
 superintendence offered to, and accepted by Sir 
 Edward, under the title of Comptroller of Steam 
 Machinery. As his duties required him to be in 
 close communication with the Admiralty, he now, 
 for the first time, made a permanent home in London, 
 and purchased a house in Devonshire Place. While 
 this was preparing for their reception, Lady Parry 
 
 ;y 
 
284 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [Ib37. 
 
 till 
 
 
 
 iii 
 
 'i\ 
 
 anil her children spent a few weeks in the autumn 
 at Worthing. The youngest child, born shortly 
 after the fatal illness of her sister at Congham, — 
 " lent to them," to use their own words, " to 
 comfort them for the loss of their beloved child,"— 
 had, for some time past, been drooping, and much 
 had been hoped from the beneficial effects of sea air. 
 It was, however, ordained otherwise ; and her parents 
 were, once more, called upon to resign themselves, in 
 humble submission, to the decree of a higher will. 
 Sir Edward thus acknowledges a letter of sympathy 
 from Mrs. Fry, with whom he had, for many 
 years, been on terms of the most affectionate friend- 
 ship : — 
 
 "Admiralty, Sept. 16. 1837. 
 " My dear friend, 
 
 "It was very kind of you to call upon me 
 
 yesterday, and I truly regret having been over at the 
 
 Admiralty, when you came to my office in New Street. 
 
 I need not say how welcome a cordial your sympathy is 
 
 to my dear wife and myself, on such an occasion as that 
 
 of our late loss, — a loss for us, for the present, — to our 
 
 dear babe incalculable gain. We have now four little 
 
 ones safe, quite safe within the fold, and I assure you 
 
 that we bless and praise God for it. When we see all 
 
 the sin and sorrow around us, we ought to esteem it a 
 
 happiness when our little ones are removed from it all, 
 
 at an age when there can be no reasonable doubt of 
 
y, Sept. 16. 1837. 
 
 f ; 
 
 1837.] 
 
 LETTERS. 
 
 2S5 
 
 their safety. I am thankful to say that my wife has 
 kissed the rod on this, as on former occasions, with the 
 sweetest Christian submission. She has been enabled to 
 see, once more, with peculiar clearness, the love, the 
 tender and undoubted love of God, in this trial. She 
 receives it as an assurance that she is still His child, 
 and that He will not leave her to herself. Hers is the 
 simplest, and most childlike faith, and she reaps its pro- 
 mised reward, on such occasions as this, * peace and joy 
 in believing.' 
 
 " On Monday I brought to town the remains of our 
 dear babe, and laid them, until the morning of the re- 
 surrection, beside those of the two others who died in 
 London at an early period, three in one grave, of whom 
 this lived longest ! * Them that sleep in Jesus shall 
 God bring with Him.'" 
 
 The same to F. Cresswell, Esq. 
 
 " What bitter, bitter lessons we need, to bring us to ' 
 God at all ! That we do need such chastisement is most 
 certain ; for we know that all smaller trials pass away 
 as a morning cloud, leaving no substantial trace behind 
 
 them No matter how rough the way, if 
 
 heaven be the end of it : only let us make sure work of 
 it, for we have no time to lose ; and may every event be 
 blessed to us, whether prosperous or adverse ! " 
 
 m 
 
 ] 
 
 About this time, Sir Edward took great interest 
 in the cause of Christian education in Syria. Assaad 
 
 ■ ) 
 
 ■! • 
 
286 
 
 MEMOIRS OF BIR W. £. PARRY. 
 
 [1837. 
 
 
 'U^ *« ■• "< I'll 4 
 
 .:*! 
 
 Yacoob Kay at*, a native of that country, had accom- 
 panied the Persian princes to England, in the 
 capacity of interpreter. He was then, as he con- 
 fessed, much struck with the position held by women 
 in El njlish society, and, when he returned to Syria, 
 felt a great desire to raise his countrywomen from 
 their ignorant and degraded position. From 'h%i 
 time, his Christian principles, before merely nomiL:!^ 
 ripened into a zealous desire to promote tli.* i* ujfje of 
 Christianity in his own country. In these views 
 he was further encouraged and strengthened by a 
 pious American missionary, with whom he became 
 acquainted, and the result was that he returned to 
 England to gain assistance in his labour of love, 
 which he desired to promote especially by the for- 
 mation of schools. At Sir Thomas Troubridge's 
 house in London, he was introduced to Sir Edward, 
 and, ever afterwards, received from him a cordial 
 support in his plans. Assaad was, himself, a man of 
 considerable intelligence, and in many respects well 
 fitted to carry out the benevolent scheme in which 
 he had embarked. A. Rociety was formed, and in its 
 proceedings and res'i!t - Ftr Ed war ^^ -^Iways took a 
 warm and active iiiteiest. More than once, he 
 
 * Now English Consul at Jaffa. 
 
iRBY. [1837, I 1837.] 
 
 ASUAAD y. KAYAT. 
 
 287 
 
 invited a large coinpany of friends to his house in 
 London, in ord( r to give Assaad an opportunity of 
 interesting others in the cause of Syria. 
 
 " These reunions," says the Kev. W. Niven, honorary 
 secretary of the Society, "were admiraljlv conducted, 
 Bnd were marked by a delightful spirit of Christian 
 kindness and good feeling. On one occasion 1 well re- 
 member the presence of the late Mrs. Fry, Mr. Houro of 
 Hampstcad, and others, who had long been honoured 
 labourers in the great field of Christian philanthropy, 
 and whose feelings seemed warmly called forth in the 
 cause of Syria and her fallen churches." 
 
 15; 
 
 Another feature in Assaad's plan wa^ to select a 
 few promising Syrian youths, and to send them to 
 this country for education. These young men, on 
 their arrival in England, were hospitably received by 
 Mr. Niven, until a suitable home could be provided 
 for ihem. He relates, — 
 
 " I took several of them, in succession, to the Admi- 
 ralty, for the purpose of introducing them to Sir Edward 
 Parry, and I cannot forget the truly paternal ki adness 
 anu cordiality, with which he welcomed these young 
 strangers. His manner showed me that, as he looked on 
 them in their Eastern costume, the remembrance )f all 
 that we owe to their native country, and the hope that 
 they might be instrumental in promoting its regenera- 
 tion, were evidently present to his mind." 
 

 288 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARUY. 
 
 [1839. 
 
 The time was now at hand, when Sir Edward 
 
 was to be called upon to undergo a yet more severe 
 
 trial than any which had hitherto befallen him, in 
 
 the loss of her, who, for nearly thirteen years, had 
 
 been the partner of all his joys and sorrows. In the 
 
 spring of 1839, Lady Parry, with her children, who 
 
 were all suffering from severe whooping cough, went 
 
 down to Tunbridge Wells for change of air, Sir 
 
 Edward's duties at the Admiralty allowing him to 
 
 be with his family only for a few days at a time. 
 
 In May, she was confined with twin sons, who 
 
 lived only a few hours, and, soon afterwards, it 
 
 became but too evident that the mother's strength 
 
 was failing, and that she could not long survive. In 
 
 the midst of this severe anxiety. Sir Edward wrote 
 
 as follows : — 
 
 "Tunbridge Wells, May 12. 1839. 
 
 " Your note, my dearest friend, has reached me here 
 to-day. Indeed, you would not reproach me for not 
 writing, if you knew the deep waters I have been in 
 since I saw you, and the deeper still I am now passing 
 through. Of my dear wife's state now I can scarcely 
 venture to think, much less to write. I believe that her 
 precious life hangs on the most fragile thread ; but I 
 know that the dear Redeemer's everlasting arms must 
 be around His own child, and that ' it is well ! ' I feel 
 now that I can do little more than pray, and my faith in 
 the efficacy of prayer continues to increase with the 
 
li 
 
 RUY. [1839. I 1839.] 
 
 DEATH OP LADY PARRY. 
 
 289 
 
 urgency of my necessity. I earnestly entreat your 
 prayers, my dear friend. Wliile I write, those of the 
 congregation in the church are ascending, I trust, to 
 the throno of grace for her. May the Lord hear and 
 accept them, in the multitude of His tender mercies, for 
 
 Christ's sake ! Will you kindly write to ^ and , 
 
 and earnestly desire their prayers ? I need not say how I 
 shall value them." 
 
 Shortly before her confinement, which took place 
 on Saturday morning, the 11th of May, her children 
 were brought to her. The eldest of these was only 
 nine years old, and little could they realise that this 
 was the last time they would ever behold her on 
 earth. She did not see them again, and, in her 
 weakened state, could scarcely bear to speak of them. 
 "When Sir Edward, who was praying by her bedside, 
 alluded to "his dear children on earth," she, with 
 great difficulty, exclaimed, " Oh no ! I cannot bear 
 that ! " He replied, gently, *' Yes, my love, we will 
 commit them to our Heavenly Father," and she 
 became at once composed. "Jesus," he continued, 
 "is with you, I am sure He is." She replied earnestly, 
 but faintly, " He is." From time to time, he re- 
 peated her favourite texts, and among otliers, " look- 
 ing unto Jesus, the Author and the Finisher of our 
 laitli." " Yes," the repeated, "—and the Finisher ! " 
 At three on Monday morning, the lingering spirit 
 
 u 
 
 wmu ^ 
 
 .1 .. i 
 
290 
 
 MEMOIKS OP SIR \V. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1839. 
 
 ¥mf 'i" 
 
 I HI 
 
 m^m 
 
 was released. Sir Edward desired that none but 
 himself should inform his children of her death, and 
 gave orders that they should be sent to him, when 
 they came down at the usual time to breakfast. 
 The elder ones were, in a measure, prepared for the 
 announcement by the evasive answers of the ser- 
 vants to their questions, but they can never forget 
 the deep solemnity of his manner, as he rose up from 
 the sofa, on which he had been lying, and, evidently 
 with a strong effort of self-command, said, " My dear 
 children, it has pleased God to take your dear mamma 
 to Himself I " He then laid his head once more on 
 the sofa, and gave way to his sorrow, as they had 
 never seen him do before. He soon, however, re- 
 covered himself, and, rising once more, led the way 
 into the chamber of death. There, while all knelt 
 around the bed, he poured forth his full heart to 
 God, praying that this chastening might bring forth 
 " the peaceable fruits of righteousness " in his now 
 desolate home. She was buried at Tunbridge Wells, 
 and a tablet was erected, in Trinity Church, bearing 
 the same text which she had herself selected for the 
 resting place of her little girl in Castle Eising 
 church, 1 Thess. iv. 13, 14. That he himself was 
 not one of those who " sorrowed without hope," and 
 that to him, at least, the consolations of religion 
 
1840.] 
 
 LETTERS. 
 
 291 
 
 were a living reality, the following letter, written at 
 
 this time, plainly shows : — 
 
 " Admiralty, May 24. 1839. 
 " My dear , 
 
 "Your kind and Christian sympathy is indeed most 
 soothing and welcome under this heavy bereavement, 
 and I sincerely thank you for it. You have pointed to 
 the only source of consolation, — to Him who is, emphati- 
 cally, ' the God of all consolation.' Blessed be His name, 
 I have found Him on this occasion faithful to His pro- 
 mises, ' a very present help ' in my time of trouble. No 
 words can express the comfort derived, at such a time, 
 from the confident assurance that my beloved wife was 
 a true child of God, and that, therefore, she is now in the 
 bosom of her Saviour whom she loved, safe, with six of 
 our little ones, in the Redeemer's fold, and for ever ! " 
 
 After the death of his wife. Sir Edward continued 
 to reside in Iwndon, his sister living with him, and 
 undertaking the charge of his four children. The 
 following is addressed to the eldest, during his first 
 half year at school, and is a sample of the way in 
 which he ever strove to keep alive in their minds 
 the memory of her whom they had lost, and to 
 impress upon them the necessity of walking with 
 God: — 
 
 •' Tunbridge Wells, May 13. 1840. 
 "My dear E •, 
 
 " I do not know whether I told you that I hoped 
 
 , to spend this solemn day here ; if not, you will be sur- 
 
 u 2 
 
292 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. rAIlRY. 
 
 [1840. 
 
 ■ 
 
 ijlj Jp III 
 
 
 
 
 1 
 
 "S^S^^H 
 
 
 Kf-iVKf 
 
 '■Mu 
 
 
 r'iit 
 
 
 ijn 
 
 
 
 PHy 
 
 
 prised at the date of this letter. I felt that I should 
 be happier here than anywhere else, on the return of the 
 day when it pleased God to take your precious mother 
 from us, and to receive her to Himself for ever. I am 
 now writing very near her tomb, at which, as well as in 
 the church, I have spent some quiet and pleasing hours 
 to-day. I have also been putting to rights the little 
 shrubs at the two ends of the tomb. It is a very great 
 gratification to me to be here on this day, and I wish, my 
 dear boy, to remind you, on this occasion, of all your dear 
 mother's anxious desires and earnest prayers for your 
 welfare, — most especially, your spiritual and eternal 
 welfare, — the good, not merely of your body, but of your 
 never-dying soul. I earnestly hope that those prayers 
 will be abundantly answered, and that you will not fail 
 to add your prayers to hers. You are now of an age, 
 
 dearest E , to think seriously of your soul, and to 
 
 read your Bible with a sincere desire to become ' wise 
 unto salvation.* God bless you ! 
 
 " Your most affectionate Father." 
 
 Some years before this time, Sir Edward had 
 employed his few leisure moments in noting down, 
 as they occurred to him, thoughts on the character 
 of God as our Father. This occupation he had 
 latterly laid aside, under the pressure of official 
 business. In the course of the year after Lady 
 Parry's death he again took it up, and his evenings 
 at home were generally employed in completing the 
 
n 
 
 1840.] "PARENTAL CHARACTER OP GOD." 
 
 293 
 
 tionate Father." 
 
 treatise, and preparing it for the press. He used 
 to sit at the table in the drawing-room, with his 
 children round him, and employed them occasionally 
 in searching out the chapter and verse of any text 
 to which he had occasion to refer. In this occupa- 
 tion he took great pleasure, the subject being one 
 of which his heart was full, and, moreover, connected 
 in his mind with the memory of her, whose loss had 
 led him to see more of the love of God in His 
 dealings with His children. 
 
 "Three years ago," (he says in the preface to the 
 "Parental Character of God,"*) " I was encouraged and 
 assisted to begin writing down, as they occurred, my 
 thoughts on the parental character of God, by one, who 
 was not only the chief comforter of my earthly pilgrim- 
 age, the sharer of every joy, and the alleviator of e^ery 
 sorrow, but a faithful counsellor, companion, and friend, 
 through many a rough and stormy path in our journey 
 (as I trust) towards a better and more enduring inherit- 
 ance. She has since been called to possess that inherit- 
 ance, to behold face to face the Saviour, whom not 
 having seen she loved, and to realise the glorious pro- 
 mises made to the children of God. I now, in accord- 
 ance with her expressed wish, print these thoughts, 
 
 * This little volume was, at first, printed for private circulaton 
 only, but afterwards published by Hatchard and Sons, Piccadilly. It 
 has since been translated into French and German. 
 
 u 3 
 
291 
 
 MEMOIRS or SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 
 
 
 [1840. 
 
 which have infused no small comfort into my own cup, 
 iu the humble hope that they may not be without use to 
 others, and, above all, that they may, in some degree, 
 show forth the praise, and promote the glory of Him, 
 who is emphatically * the Father of mercies, and the God 
 of all comfort.' " 
 
 It '^^-i 4 
 
 \P- 
 
295 
 
 CHAP. XI. 
 
 /7 
 
 SECOND MARRIAGE. — CALEDONIAN CANAL. — REMOVAL TO 
 HAMPSTEAD. — RELIGIOUS CHARACTER. — VIEWS ON THE 
 
 IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER. RUGBY. — PUBLIC MEETINGS. 
 
 — RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE. LOWESTOFT. — HOMBURG. 
 
 RESIGNATION UNDER ANXIETY AND SUFFERING. — DUTIES 
 AT THE ADMIRALTY. — " EREBUS " AND "TERROR." — 
 LETTER FROM FRANKLIN. 
 
 1841—1845. 
 
 On the 29th of June, 1841, Sir Edward Parry was , 
 married to Catharine Edwards, daughter of the Rev. I 
 R. Hankinson, Rector of Walpole, Lynn, and widow \ 
 of Samuel Hoare, Jun., Esq., of Hampstead. In ' 
 this second period of his married life, he felt, each 
 day, increasing cause of thankfulness to Him who 
 had thus permitted him to fill the void which had 
 been left in his heart and home, and to supply, to 
 an extent not often witnessed, the loss which his 
 children had experienced in their mother's death. 
 In the course of the autumn of the same year 
 
 u 4 
 
296 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1841. 
 
 he was employed, by Sir Robert Peel's government, 
 in drawing up a report on the state of the Cale- 
 donian Canal, and the advantage which might 
 result from opening its waters to larger vessels. 
 This involved a visit, not merely to the canal itself, 
 but also to the chief seaports of Scotland and the 
 north of England, where he was occupied in gather- 
 ing evidence from those persons who might be ex- 
 pected to profit most by the proposed measure. 
 The duties of each day were sufficiently arduous 
 to occupy his whole time, and he confessed that 
 the responsibility and work, which devolved on him 
 singly, might with advantage have been entrusted 
 to ** three commissioners, with all their parapher- 
 nalia of secretaries and clerks, rather than to one 
 person." 
 
 " I have," he v, ^ Ites on his return, " been marvellously 
 preserved, prospered, and helped, in the business of my 
 late excursion, having travelled 1600 miles without one 
 accident or delay, examined and recorded the evidence 
 of more than a hundred persons, and been at work 
 every week-day, from seven in the morning till nine at 
 night." 
 
 The "report drawn up by him, after this survey, 
 resulted in the completion of the Caledonian Canal, 
 which was reopened in April, 1847, and has been 
 
1842.] 
 
 REMOVAL TO IIAMPSTEAD. 
 
 297 
 
 in operation since that time, with all the advantages 
 of increased depth of water, and other at mmoda- 
 tions for the transit of larger vessels. 
 
 In April, 1842, Sir Edward let his house in 
 London, and came to reside at Heath End, Hamp- 
 stead, for the benefit of his health, which for some 
 months had been seriously impaired. The addi- 
 tional distance from his office at the Admiralty was 
 compensated by the gain of fresh air, and greater 
 retirement. " I cannot express," he wrote, " how I 
 continue to enjoy, and, I am sure, to profit by, the 
 lovely views from Hampstead, and its charming air." 
 Among the advantages of this change of residence 
 he always reckoned the friendship and ministry of 
 Lady Parry's brother, the Rev. R. E. Hankinson, 
 incumbent of Well-walk Chapel, and his letters 
 contain frequent mention of his visits to " the dear 
 people at Elm Row," as a source of peculiar plea- 
 sure. 
 
 The five years of Sir Edward's residence at Hamp- 
 stead present few events worthy of notice. We 
 have not now to record his conduct amid the stirring 
 scenes of a polar voyage, or while holding a re- 
 sponsible and honourable position in a distant colony. 
 It remains for us, here, to exhibit other features of 
 his character, which can scarcely fail to be equally 
 
298 
 
 MEMOIUS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1842. 
 
 III! 
 .1 
 
 If 4 
 fell -" 
 
 ii 
 
 i 
 
 interesting to many ; to portray tlie private life of 
 un English gentleman, — of one, in whom consistent 
 piety was the predominant principle, and whose 
 influence was ever ready to extend itself beyond the 
 inner circle of his own more immediate interests and 
 occupations. 
 
 The first point to be noticed is the prayerful spirit 
 in which he entered upon all the duties of life, and 
 which pervaded his whole conduct. 
 
 When, after some hesitation in the choice of a 
 public school, he had determi^od upon sending his 
 eldest son to Rugby, he was not content with pro- 
 viding merely for his temporal welfare. Soon after- 
 wards, he took the lead in drawing up an ad- 
 dress to the parents and guardians of Bugby 
 boys, proposing thnt a special time in each week 
 should be set apart for the purpose of offering up, 
 in private, their joint petitions for the welfare of 
 the school in general, and their own children in 
 particular. This address formed the model for a 
 similar proposal of " Union for prayer in behalf 
 of the Navy," which he drew up some years later, 
 and in which he was joined by several distinguished 
 naval officers. 
 
 Another no less striking example of the import- 
 ance he attached to the efficacy of prayer will be 
 
 ^S) 
 
 IH' 
 
1842.] 
 
 IMPORTANCE OF PRAYER. 
 
 2 9 
 
 found in his conduct with regard to the public mect- 
 inga of the various societies which at this time he 
 attended, when his official duties would permit. 
 He was not content, as too many frequently are, 
 to take his place unprepared on the platform, or, 
 relying on habitual fluency of speech, to leave even 
 the words of his address to the happy inspiration 
 of the moment. The spirit in which he entered 
 upon such duties is manifest in the following, 
 addressed to Lady Parry : — 
 
 " You must not think yourself cheated, if I send you 
 but a shabby scrap to-day, when I tell you that, never 
 liking to enter lightly upon saying even a few words at 
 a religious meeting, I have been occupying an hour or 
 so, this morning, in thinking and praying over the little 
 I propose to say to-morrow evening. I always think 
 this due to the holy cause which such a society as the 
 Missionary has in view, and I know you will understand 
 and appreciate this feeling." 
 
 And, on another occasion, — 
 
 " Will you be sure to be with me, very specially, in 
 prayer, at six precisely to-morrow evening, that I may 
 have words, and power, and grace to plead our Master's 
 cause, in the spirit of our Master Himself? " 
 
 It would have been strange, indeed, had such a 
 spirit been content to confine itself to his own 
 family, or to an occasional speech at a religious 
 
300 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. TARRY. 
 
 [1844. 
 
 1 1 w: 
 
 I 
 
 
 ™*fi. -.1 
 
 mM 
 
 meeting. Wc find it, accordingly, seeking a yet 
 wider range, and extending its influence in an 
 earnest desire to employ all his energies, wherever 
 he might be, whether in business or recreation, in 
 the service of his Master, and in aiding the efforts of 
 others in the cause of true religion. " His residence 
 with US," writes the Rev. F. Cunningham, of a 
 summer visit to Lowestoft, in 1844, "was so marked 
 by his graciousness and benevolent pursuits, that 
 the whole population became interested in him. His 
 departure by the steamer I have not forgotten, for 
 it was one of much feeling on both sides. His stay 
 with ua was, I may truly say, a time of instruction 
 to us all." 
 
 The following was written by Sir Edward, after 
 his return from Lowestoft : — 
 
 " My dear 
 
 "Admiralty, August, 21. 1844. 
 
 " You will have gathered from C 's communi- 
 cation that our visit to Lowestoft answered more than 
 well. It was a prosperous, privileged, and deliglitful 
 one. Those most dear people at the Vicarage are so 
 entirely after our own hearts, that we seemed to live in 
 an atmosphere of constant enjoyment. Enjoyment, how- 
 ever, often involves responsibility, and I am sure we 
 ought to feel this deeply, considering the remarkable 
 spiritual advantages we were receiving at that delightful 
 
ii' 
 
 RY. 
 
 [1844. 
 
 1845.] 
 
 IIOMnURG. 
 
 301 
 
 jceking a yet 
 fluenco in an 
 gies, wherever 
 ' recreation, in 
 g the efforts of 
 * His residence 
 riingham, of a 
 was 80 marked 
 pursuits, that 
 d in him. His 
 , forgotten, for 
 des. His stay 
 I of instruction 
 
 Edward, after 
 
 lagust, 21. 1844. 
 
 — 's communi- 
 rered more than 
 , and delightful 
 Vicarage are so 
 seemed to live in 
 
 njoyment, how* 
 I I am sure we 
 
 the remarkable 
 it that delightful 
 
 place I never saw anything like the unbroken chain 
 of laborious pastoral work, which is there going on every 
 (lay, from morning to night. It is a constant succession 
 of faitliful effort for the salvation of souls, and this not 
 only Wy themselves, but by the many instruments which, 
 as you know, it is their peculiar forte to raise up and 
 cultivate. It is, indeed, almost impossible not to dcsiro 
 to help such people in their work and labour of love!" 
 
 "We have, here, the key to his conduct on all such 
 occasions, viz., a firm conviction that seasons of 
 leisure have their duties, no less than the hours spent 
 in the office. Another instance of the kind is af- 
 forded in the following, written from Ilomburg, in 
 Germ.any, to which place he had gone, in the next 
 year, for his annual holiday : — 
 
 " Ilomburg, July 17. 1845. 
 
 " We have had a most charming walk to a little village 
 called Dornholzhausen, about a mile and a half from 
 Homburg, to visit the delightful pastor of a French 
 congregation, resulting originally from the revocation 
 of the Edict of Nantes. His name is Privat, a pious, 
 laborious, simple-minded minister of Christ. Ho is a 
 Swiss, from Geneva I believe, and has been here three 
 
 years, on a salary of only 33/. Mr. R , who was with 
 
 us, and who belongs to the Committee of the Foreign 
 Aid Society, was very desirous of ascertaining whether 
 anything could be done for religion in this place. M. 
 Privat named two things, which may possibly be effected 
 
 ;ll^ 
 
 Hi 
 
302 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. TARRY. 
 
 [1845. 
 
 I '■ if 
 
 if attempted cautiously : first, a colporteur to dispose of 
 the Scriptures ; secondly, to place Bibles in the rooms of 
 the several hotels. To these two objects we propose 
 now to direct our attention, with M. Privat's help, and, 
 if we find that money is wanted, I think we can easily 
 raise a few pounds for this good work. 
 
 ** When we rose to take leave of our good minister, he 
 said, * Can you spare one or two minutes longer, that we 
 may pray together ? ' To this we, of course, joyfully 
 consented, and nothing could exceed the sweetness and 
 spirituality of the prayer, which he offered up in English. 
 We took leave of him, as you may suppose, with no 
 ordinary feelings of Christian love, leaving with him 
 some French and German tracts, and a German copy of 
 my little book.* Truly, that village is a pleasant little 
 oasis in this spiritual wilderness, and very fervently did 
 
 dear T G remember the pastor and his flock 
 
 in our family prayer this morning." 
 
 On his return to England, he succeeded in raising 
 a sum of money for the increase of M. Privat's 
 salary, ** as an expression of Christian sympathy, 
 and to enable him more efficiently to discharge the 
 duties of his sacred office." A grant of copies of 
 the New Testament, in French and German, was 
 also obtained from the British and Foreign Bible 
 Society, which the landlords of the different hotels in 
 
 * The " Taiental Character of God." 
 
1845.] 
 
 PERSONAL TRIALS. 
 
 303 
 
 Hombui'g undertook to place in their rooms, as Sir 
 Edward had desired. 
 
 In the midst of these labours of love and useful- 
 ness, the crowning grace of his Christian character, 
 calm trust and submission in the midst of anxiety 
 and suffering, was made to shine forth most brightly 
 under the pressure of a two- fold trial, of the severity 
 and extent of which only his most intimate friends 
 were fully aware. 
 
 During his residence at Port Stephens, he had 
 invested a sum of money in the Bank of Australia, 
 and intelligenc'j now reached England of the failure 
 of that concern, owing to the negligence or fraud 
 of the directors. The bankruptcy of the proprietors 
 resident in the colony made it evident that the 
 whole pressure would fall heavily on the English 
 shareholders. For some months, he was kept in a 
 state of the most painful suspense, while, to use his 
 own words, " bankruptcy stared him in the face, and 
 that without fault or imprudence on his own part." 
 It must be remembered that, at that time, the ques- 
 tion of limited and unlimited liability was not under- 
 stood as it is now. 
 
 The prospect of serious pecuniary embarrassment 
 was not, however, the only trial which he had to 
 bear at this period. For some time, he had been 
 
 j.^i 
 
■Si I 
 
 m'- 
 
 304 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1845. 
 
 i tli« 
 
 ^mg% 
 
 
 S I'Mvii 
 
 threatened with symptoms of a malady of the most 
 
 painful and alarming nature ; and, in the early part 
 
 of the year 1845, he underwent an operation, which 
 
 was attended with complete success. The following 
 
 letters, written at this time, exhibit a strikinjr 
 
 picture of Christian submission under this severe 
 
 personal discipline. 
 
 " Admiralty, January 1. 1845. 
 
 "Many thanks, my dear H , for your kind remem^ 
 
 brance of me and mine at this blessed season. I truly 
 rejoice that you and yours are enabled to say, 'surely 
 goodness and mercy have followed us all the days of our 
 life ! ' From my heart, I can respond to this declaration. 
 Our path has been strewn with thorns, and clouds still 
 rest upon our horizon ; but, in the midst of these, we have 
 been, and still are, sustained by seeing a Father's tender 
 hand in every trial, and by the certain assurance that 
 He will make all things work together for our best good. 
 A painful complaint, and a fearful apprehension of bank- 
 ruptcy, are no small trials of 'mind, body, and estate,' 
 and yet I can, with sincerity, aver that I have never 
 known more of the 'peace of God which passeth all' 
 natural ' understanding,' than since these visitations 
 have come upon me. I trust this is because our minds 
 are stayed upon God." 
 
 " Dearest Lady , 
 
 " You will grieve at my account of the Bank of 
 Australia, but it is the Lord's will ! We English share- 
 holders are equally innocent of the catastrophe, and 
 
* 
 
 RY. [1845. 
 
 f of the most 
 ;he early part 
 iration, which 
 rhe following 
 it a striking 
 3r this severe 
 
 anuary 1. 1845. 
 [ir kind remem. 
 season. I truly 
 to say, ' surely 
 the days of our 
 this declaration, 
 and clouds still 
 )f these, we have 
 , Father's tender 
 I assurance that 
 )r our best good. 
 lension of bank- 
 ody, and estate,' 
 at I have never 
 lich passe th all' 
 liese visitations 
 cause our minds 
 
 1845.] 
 
 LETTERS. 
 
 305 
 
 of the Bank of 
 e English share- 
 catastrophe, and 
 
 helpless under it. It is not pleasant to flesh and blood 
 to have the prospect of * beginning the world again,' as 
 it is called, at the age of fifty -three, and after a life of 
 toil ; but I do not believe my children will ever be suffered 
 to want, and, as for myself, ' the time is short ! * " 
 
 "London, February 16. 1845. 
 "My dearest Children, 
 
 " It is rarely that I write a letter on a Sunday, 
 but I think I may be permitted to pen a few lines to you 
 this evening, for T long to tell you how thankful I am to 
 the Giver of all good, our gracious and heavenly 
 Physician, for the success which He has been pleased to 
 give to the means used last week for the restoration of 
 my health. I desire to ascribe it all to His unmerited 
 goodness, and to devote myself more entirely to His 
 service, who has dealt thus tenderly with me : and may 
 you also, my dearest children, feel, both now and ever, 
 that * every good and every perfect gift cometh down 
 from theJFather of lights, with whom is no variableness, 
 neither shadow of turning ' ! I have not been allowed to 
 go out yet, but this is only a matter of precaution, as I feel 
 perfectly well. There is, however, a good deal more to 
 be done for me, and I do not expect to be released till 
 the end of this week. I am, myself, getting very home- 
 sick, and long to see you all again, but God's time is the 
 best time for this and everything." 
 
 " My dearest Mrs. H — , 
 
 " You will be sorry to hear that an adverse judg- 
 ment has been pronounced by the Privy Council in our 
 
 X 
 
 ]'\ 
 
 'I r 
 
306 
 
 MEMOIRS OF Sill W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1845, 
 
 long-pending case of the Australian Bank, and vrc pro. 
 pose to call a meeting of our proprietors to consult as to 
 what can bo done by us. The aifair has now, as you 
 will perceive, reached a very serious point, involvino- to 
 ourselves individually — wo know not what; but oh! 
 could you see what peace has been vouchsafed to us 
 in this trial, you would rather envy than pity us under 
 it! Indeed, it has been a season of refreshing, strengthen- 
 ing, I trust I may say of holy confidence in our gracious 
 God, and an abiding assurance that this trial comes no' 
 from man's hands, but from Him who ' makes all things 
 work together for good to them that love Him.' We 
 both desire not to be permitted to say one word, to do 
 one act, or to think one thought, in this grave mattci' 
 but wliat is agreeable to God's own mind and Avill, and 
 that He will bless and sanctify it to us, and our dcii 
 children. 
 
 " What a mercy that this trial is not the consequence 
 of sin, and that God has been pleased to chasten us in 
 this manner rather than by bereavement ! In short, my 
 dear friend, we are not only submissive, but joyful under 
 this blow, and though we are aware that the worst is 
 really yet to come, we trust and pray to be preserved in 
 the same faithful spirit, and to be enabled to glorify God 
 even in tlie fire, and to adorn His doctrine in all things. 
 We earnestly ask the prayers of our friends that this 
 may be given us, and all the rest we cheerfully and 
 thankfully leave in His hands, who is willing and able to 
 undertake for us in every time of need." 
 
 Strikingly did he experience that the faith, now 
 80 strongly exercised, was not in vain. After an 
 
[1845. I 1845.] 
 
 LETTERS. 
 
 307 
 
 interval of some months, matters were so arranged 
 with respect to the Bank o^ Australia, that his 
 personal loss, though heavy, was considerably less 
 than he had feared; and, singularly enough, some 
 years later, he recovered from Australia itself 
 nearly the whole amount of his loss, by the sudden 
 and unexpected rise in the value of property which 
 he held in the Peel River Settlement. 
 
 These letters afford, in themselves, sufficient proof 
 that the religion, which could produce the fruits of 
 such unshaken and unquestioning resignation to the 
 will of God, must have been grounded on something 
 more than merely general principles of piety. 
 The next, addressed to a friend in whose spiritual 
 welfare he took especial interest, shows, yet more 
 strongly, the nature of the foundation on which his 
 hopes rested, and may be regarded as a confession of 
 faith on the part of the writer himse'.. 
 
 " My very dear friend, 
 
 " The description of your present state of religious 
 feeling is most interesting to our hearts, and we truly 
 find warmly sympathise in all you say about it. We 
 have, in fact, watched your mind and views, in this most 
 important particular, with greater attention and interest, 
 for years past, than you are yourself aware. We were 
 solicitous about you on this score, because we had ob- 
 s^crved that, with a devout and pious mind, the ministry 
 
 .y I 
 
 i: 
 
 X 2 
 
.-,;>, ':'<! 
 
 >■ >i* 
 
 308 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [184,'i. 
 
 at had exercised a decidedly bad influence upon 
 
 you. Your regard for the minister had plainly led you 
 to accept, too readily, the doctrines of his ministry, 
 which we believe to be essentially erroneous. 
 
 " The doctrine of Sacramental Grace, though very ac- 
 ceptable to the natural heart of man^ is, clearly, a device 
 of the devil to ruin souls. It is much easier to accept 
 the Sacraments as the way to heaven, than to receive 
 into the heart, by humble faith, the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 who ordained the Sacraments. The 'Tractarians' utterly 
 lose sight of Christ himself, out of an erroneous rever- 
 ence for his ordinances. In short, the whole doctrine 
 which they uphold, and which has sent Manning, and 
 many other earnest men and women, to Rome, degrade? 
 Christ, rnd sets up the ministry, and the ordinances, and 
 man's own poor miserable works in His place. Yon 
 have found that this doctrine caii never give peace to 
 the conscience, and comfort to the soul convinced of sin. 
 No, my dear friend, there is nothing but the blood of 
 Jesus Christ that can cleanse from sin, there is nothing 
 but simple, humble, childlike faith in His all-sufficient 
 merits, and all-prevailing intercession, that can afford 
 consolation, hope, peace ! ' Joy in believing,' is the only 
 real joy to be obtained by man in this life, because faith 
 is the only source of joy which God has been pleased 
 to promise, and to open to man. Jesus is ' the Way. 
 THE Truth, and the Life ' ! Let us seek no other way, 
 my dear friend, nor mix up any other ingredient, so to 
 speak, in the hope of our salvation — Jesus, ' the Author 
 and Finisher of our faith.' And let 11=; constantly .seek, 
 
w- 
 
 1845.] 
 
 DUTIES AT THE ADMIRALTY. 
 
 309 
 
 by prayer, the aid of His Holy Spirit, that best * gift,' 
 which he has ' received for men,' and which he has pro- 
 mised to give to them that ask Him. May that gift be 
 
 ours, my dear , inclining us to keep close to the 
 
 Saviour, and to be ever looking unto Him as our 
 Refuge, our Hope, our All in all ! Ever believe me, 
 " Your truly attached friend in Christ, 
 
 " W. E. Paury." 
 
 life, because faitli 
 
 Our obje?t^ thus far, has been to give the reader 
 an insight into the private life and character of Sir 
 Edward Parry. It must not, on that account, be 
 supposed that the years of his life at Hampstead 
 were, in any way, a season of leisure or retirement. 
 On the contrary, the duties of his office, at first 
 sufficiently arduous, became each day more laborious. 
 Since the time of his appointment as Comptroller of 
 Steam Machinery, the application of steam power in 
 the Navy had become almost universal. Among 
 the most important improvements effected was thci 
 introduction of the screw-propeller, now justly re- 
 garded as indispensable in every man-of-war. Those 
 who took an interest in this invention, and were, 
 consequently, able to form a judgment on the subject, 
 acknowledge that its success in the Koyal Navy 
 (which led to its adoption in the merchant service) 
 was, in no small degree, owing to Sir Edward's 
 
 X n 
 
310 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1845. 
 
 constant and earnest advocacy. Certainly, few were 
 more sanguine in their expectations of its ultimate 
 success, and none more energetic in the support of 
 its claims at the Admiralty. 
 
 The year of the visit to Homburg, of which men- 
 tion has been made, was one ever memorable in the 
 history of Polar enterprise, being marked by tlie 
 sailing of the ill-fated " Erebus " and " Terror " from 
 the Thames, on the 26th May. In all the prepa- 
 rations for this expedition Sir Edward took an active 
 part, being consulted by the Admiralty on all points 
 of importance connected with the fitting out of the 
 vessels. It may be imagined with what eager interest 
 he regarded the departure of his friend Franklin on a 
 service, " to which," as he once expressed himself, " he 
 had devoted the best years of his own life." On his 
 return from Homburg, in the autumn of 1845, lie 
 found awaiting him the following letter, written by 
 Franklin just a fortnight before the " Erebus " and 
 " Terror " were seen, for the last time, by a whaler, 
 waiting for an opening in the ice to enable them 
 to reach Lancaster Sound. 
 
 " Wlialo Fish Island, July 10, IS-l,";. 
 " My dear Parry, 
 
 " Having had the pleasure of seeing the last cask 
 
 of provisions hoisted from the transport into the ' Erebus, 
 
RRY. [1845. I 1845.J LETTER FROM SIR J. FRANKLIN. 
 
 311 
 
 land, July 10, 1845. 
 
 I have come down to write to you. Wo are now, in 
 every way, full and complete for three years, but, of 
 course, very deep, and should draw seventeen feet, when 
 the boats and anc.o.s are up. The magnetic men were 
 landed with their instruments, as were also the other 
 observers, on the Boat Island, at the spot you occupied, 
 and you can fancy them all in full play. I am happy 
 also to tell you that their results give the latitude and 
 longitude of their position within a few seconds of those 
 vou assign to it. 
 
 " I find that the principal people are absent from Disco, 
 so that I have had to obtain whatever information about 
 the ice to the north, that is to be picked up here, from a 
 Danish captain, who is in charge of the Esquimaux at 
 this station. 
 
 " Nothing can be finer than the weather we have had 
 here for all our operations. I think it must be favour- 
 able for the opening of the ice, and we all feel happy in 
 the idea that we shall be quite in time to avail ourselves 
 of any openings westward of Barrow's Strai'j. During 
 my passage from England, I have carefully read over 
 parts of your voyages, as well as some notes of Richard- 
 son's and my own, which were made on the occasion of 
 Back's expedition, deduced from our previous observa- 
 tions at, and about. Point Turnagain ; and I am inclined 
 to think from these, and from the observations of Dease 
 and Simpson, that there exists much land between 
 Wolhiston and Banks' Lands, which, I hope, may bo 
 found to be separated into islands ; and, if so, I trust we 
 may be able to penetrate through a channel between them. 
 
 X 4 
 
 '-ii'»^?i5^^ 
 
 !!■ 
 
II 
 
 
 312 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1845. 
 
 
 
 a ' 
 
 " It would do your heart good to see how zealously tlic 
 officers and men, in both ships, are working, and how 
 amicably wo all pull together. Knowing what an ex- 
 cellent instructor and fellow-worker Crozicr was, and 
 will prove, to Fitz-James, I have left the magnetic ob- 
 servations of the ' Erebus ' to the latter, who is most 
 <i8siduou8 respecting them. I have also endeavoured to 
 encourage each of the officers to take some one branch 
 or other under his more immediate care, from whicli, I 
 trust, he will ultimately reap real, substantial benefit, so 
 that my share of the work, at present, seems to be moio 
 the training and overlooking of these gentlemen than 
 doing the work itself. I have now, for instance, at the 
 tables in my cabin, a lieutenant constructing the plan of 
 the survey he has made of the islands of which this 
 group is composed, and Mr. Goodsir, the assistant-sur- 
 geon and naturalist, with hia microscope minutely 
 examining, and sketching the Crustacea Molluscoe, and 
 which he describes at once, whilst the colours are fresh. 
 He is very expert at dredging, and has found many 
 rare, and some unknown creatures, with too long names 
 for me to write. Beyond this table lie lots of skinned 
 birds, the handiwork of the surgeon, who is skilled in 
 such subjects. Around the deck of the cabin arc 
 arranged the ships' stores of preserved potatoes, packed 
 in neat tin cases. With the above description you will 
 be able to bring me before your mind at this moment, 
 and, in turning my head, I recognise i/ou\ like as life, 
 in your picture. 
 
 " Again, my dear Parry, I will recommend my dearest 
 
1845.] 
 
 LETTER FROM SIR J. FRANKLIN. 
 
 313 
 
 wife and daughter to your kind regards. I know that 
 they will heartily join with many dear friends in fervent 
 prayer, that the Almighty Power may guide and support 
 us, and that the blessing of His Holy Spirit may rest 
 upon us. Our prayers, I trust, will be offered up, with 
 equal fervour, for these inestimable blessings to bo 
 vouchsafed to them, and to all who love the Lord Jesus 
 in sincerity and truth. I humbly pray that God's best 
 blessing may attend yourself. Lady Parry, and your 
 family. Believe me, ever, 
 
 "Your affectionate friend, 
 
 " John Fkanklin." 
 
 f: 
 
 mend my dearest 
 
 !: 1 i 
 
.1. 
 
 314 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. TARRY. [l84c. 
 
 J 
 
 CHAT. XII. 
 
 IIASLAR. 
 
 tM 
 
 IP' 
 
 m 
 
 Ml 
 
 1846—1852. 
 
 It was now more than eight years, since Sir Edward 
 had been appointed to the post of Comptroller of' 
 Steam Machinery at the Admiralty. His health 
 had, latterly, derived much and lasting benefit from 
 the skilful and generous care of his friend and early 
 schoolfellow, F. Salmon, Esq.; but it soon became 
 evident that he could not much longer stand the 
 severe and increasing pressure of work, to which he 
 was daily subjected. Accordingly, on the 1st of 
 November, 1846, he wrote a letter to Lord Melville, 
 First Lord of tho Admiralty, accepting, conditionally, 
 a proposal for retirement, which had been recently 
 offered to post captains. It would have been a 
 matter of surprise, had his long and importiuit 
 services been recompensed with rctiremont, at a 
 
 li' 
 
1846.] 
 
 HASLAR. 
 
 315 
 
 time of life when his powers of body and mind were, 
 under ordinary circumstances, as vigorous as ever. 
 Almost hj return of post, h^ received an answer 
 from his lordship, in which he expressed *' the high 
 esteem he felt for Sir Edward's personal and private 
 character," and, "lamenting the cause which had 
 induced him to make an application for retirement," 
 offered to his acceptance the post of Captain- Super- 
 intendent of the Royal Clarence Yard, and of the 
 Naval Hospital at Haslar. It is almost needless to 
 say that the offer, made in so handsome a manner, 
 was gratefully accepted. He felt that the position 
 was one in every way congenial to his tastes, as 
 bringing him, once more, into immediate connection 
 witli members of his own profession ; and, on the 
 2nd of December, he received his official appoint- 
 ment to Haslar. 
 
 On th< iime day, all the officers of the establish- 
 ment were, according to the usual custom, separately 
 intro.luced to him by his predecessor, Captain 
 Carter. Among the number of these was Sir John 
 Richardson, the friend and companion of Franklin, in 
 his perilous expeditions along the northern shores 
 of tlie continent of America, with whom Sir Edward 
 was well pleased to renew hu acquaintance under 
 circumstances which necessarily brought them into 
 
 l:il 
 
 : ;i 
 
 IL 
 
316 
 
 MEMOIBS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1846. 
 
 daily intercourse. Of this first interview one of the 
 officers speaks as follows : — 
 
 " I had never seen Sir Edward Parry before, and was 
 singularly struck with his handsome and commanding 
 appearance, tempered by an expression of benevolence, 
 of which none of his portraits give a correct idea. His 
 manner to us all was most cordial, and the few kind, 
 hopeful words addressed to each had a very winning 
 effect. Upon the occasion of my first visit to his house, 
 when I was introduced to Lady Parry, I recollect that 
 my companion and I were so much pleased with our 
 reception, that I was ungracious enough to remark after 
 leaving, ' this is much too pleasant to last, and by and 
 bye we shall see an alteration ! ' I had the happiness of 
 meeting them often afterwards, at their own home and 
 elsewhere, and never without feeling the injustice of 
 what I had said. If their manners were charming to us 
 at first, succeeding experience found them unchanged." 
 
 The house of the Captain Superintendent at 
 Haslar was a large building with two wings, in the 
 centre of a terrace occupied by some of the other 
 officers of the Hospital. From the front door a 
 straight carriage road led along an avenue of small 
 trees to the chapel, a somewhat unsightly white- 
 washed building, immediately behind which was the 
 noble quadrangle of the Hospital itself. At the back 
 of the house was a lawn and garden, opening into a 
 
RY. 
 
 [1846. 
 
 1847.] 
 
 HASLAR. 
 
 317 
 
 e\v one of the 
 
 »efore, and was 
 d commanding 
 )f benevolence, 
 rect idea. His 
 I the few kind, 
 t very winning 
 sit to his house, 
 I recollect that 
 eased with our 
 to remark after 
 ast, and by and 
 the happiness of 
 • own home and 
 the injustice of 
 ! charming to us 
 n unchanged." 
 
 )erintendent at 
 o wings, in the 
 le of the other 
 e front doov a 
 ivenue of small 
 msightly white- 
 which was the 
 f. At the back 
 , opening into a 
 
 paddock of some acres in extent. From the lawn a 
 lifyht staircase led up the side of the house to a 
 balcony outside the drawing-room windows, com- 
 manding a beautiful view of Spithead, and the 
 opposite const of the Isle of Wight from Bcmbridge 
 to Cowes. 
 
 While the house at Haslar was being prepared 
 for the accommodation of his family, Sir Edward 
 resided, for three months, at Auglesey-ville, about a 
 mile distant, and it was not until the month of May 
 that he finally took possession of his new home. 
 
 " My dear H- 
 
 " Haslar, February II. 1847. 
 
 " Your friendly letter is most gratifying to us, 
 and I hasten to reply to your kind queries respecting 
 us, and our movements. I am permitted, by the mercy 
 of our gracious God, to give a very prosperous account. 
 Indeed, all our movements seem to have been most gra- 
 ciously ordered and controlled, so that we can say 
 'i.iercy and truth have followed us' at every step. 
 Whether from the change of air and place, or the relief 
 from heavy work, cr both together, I am thankful to 
 say that 1 am wonderfully well for me, and I only 
 desire to employ my improved powers to the glory of 
 God, and the benefit of my fellow-creatures. Our 
 position at Ilaslar is highly interesting, and we pray to 
 bo made God's honoured, though unwoi hy, instruments 
 
 u 
 
318 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 1' a 
 
 [1847. 
 
 of good to the inmates. The lunatic department is pai-- 
 ticularly so, and very valuable, and I am much in it. 
 
 " When your letter came yesterday. Lady Parry was 
 organising a ladies' association for making clotlie-^ for 
 those poor famishing Irish ; and we are systematically 
 bent on saving 1/. a week from our housekeeping, to 
 send, in money, as our own contribution. I have just 
 proposed to the Admiralty to send a great quantity of 
 old, useless sailors' clothes from Clarence Yard to 
 Ireland for the same purpose. It is charming to hear 
 what you and yours are doing towards the same object, 
 and I rejoice to see that it is almost universal. May the 
 Lord bless the endeavours, and ' stay the plague ! '" 
 
 It will be readily supposed that one of Sn 
 Edward's first objects at Haslar, as before at Po . 
 Stephens, would be to take an active interest in tlie 
 spiritual, no less than the temporal welfare of the 
 patients in the Hospital. " We are," he wrote to u 
 friend, " thank God, flourishing, and entrusted with 
 many talents, for which we shall have to render an 
 account when the Master comes to reckon with His 
 servants. Our position is, indeed, full of near and 
 touching interest, and we are tempted not unfre- 
 quently to say, or, at least, to think, ' who is suffi- 
 cient for these things ? ' " With the exception of the 
 lunatics, to whom one wing of the establishment 
 was devoted, the same individuals seldom reniuiiied 
 
 
 ^mm 
 
RY. 
 
 SUNDAY EVENING LECTURES. 
 
 319 
 
 .rtmcni is par- 
 mucli in it. 
 ady Parry was 
 ing clothes for 
 systematically 
 Dusekeeping, to 
 . I have just 
 •eat quantity of 
 ,rence Yard to 
 larming to hear 
 the same object, 
 ersal. May the 
 3 plague!'" 
 
 at one of Sn 
 
 before at ?o . 
 
 interest in the 
 
 welfare of tbe 
 
 " he wrote to a 
 
 entrusted witli 
 
 ive to render an 
 
 •eckon with His 
 
 ull of near and 
 
 ited not unfre- 
 
 J 
 
 'i.:l 
 
 exception of tlie 
 le establisbmcnt 
 jcldom rcnvaineJ 
 
 uiuler his control for many weeks together, but the 
 number of patients actually within the walls at one 
 time usually amounted to several hundreds. De- 
 sirous of providing these with an opportunity of 
 religious instruction, independently of the regular 
 services conducted by the chaplain, Sir Edward, 
 on the second or third Sunday after his arrival at 
 Haslar, commenced, with the chaplain's consent, a 
 series of Sunday evening lectures, which were con- 
 tinued during the whole time of his command. These 
 were always well attended, upwards of a hundred 
 patients being sometimes present, besides others 
 connected with the establishment, and a large com- 
 pany from the neighbourhood. A few minutes before 
 five, the party used to assemble in one of the large 
 wards of the hospital, and punctually, almost while 
 the clock was striking the hour, Sir Edward entered 
 the room with his large Bible under his arm, and 
 lok his seat at a table prepared for him. His 
 lectures which, during five years, included the Para- 
 bles of our Lord, the Lord's Prayer, the Gospel of 
 St. John, and the Acts of the Apostles, were always 
 carefully prepared during the previous week. At 
 first he spoke from notes, but these were by degrees 
 enlarged, until the whole was written out word for 
 word. Tlie lecture, which lasted about three quarters 
 
 i: : 
 
 r 
 
 
 If 
 
 1 I 
 
320 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 of an hour, was preceded and closed with prayer. 
 "I have listened to many eminent clergy r^^n," ai\; 
 the words of one of the medical officers of the Hos- 
 pital, " but to none who surpassed Sir Edward Parry 
 in the power of commanding attention. His delivery 
 was pleasing and earnest, his voice clear, sonorous, 
 and such as went to the heart. I remember one 
 remark of his that especially caught my attention, 
 viz. ' that^ while death occasionally visits all houses, to 
 an hospital men come to die ! ' In such repute were 
 these lectures held, that numerous visitors found 
 their way to the officers' houses in order to have the 
 satisfaction of attending thein." 
 
 Those who were privileged to spend a Sunday at 
 Haslar will not soon forget that evening hour spent 
 in the ward, and the interesting group of pale and 
 eager listeners to the truths of the Gospel wiiich 
 fell from his lips. It was a sailor speaking to sailors 
 of the things of eternity. 
 
 " Oh how exquisite," writes a frequent visitor, " and 
 unlike other things were those Haslar readings ! I love 
 to dwell upon every incident connected with them,— Iiis 
 taking his station at the table on the little raised plat- 
 form, and reverently kneeling before them all, to ask 
 silently a blessing, then seating himself with his Bible 
 and exposition, and looking round upon his sailor au- 
 dience, to see that all were comfortable, and as ncp.r to 
 
RUY. 
 
 1 with prayer, 
 lergy "'-^cTij" aiv; 
 rs of the Hos- 
 Edward Parry 
 , His delivery 
 clear, sonorous, 
 remember one 
 b my attention, 
 its all houses, to 
 acli repute were 
 i visitors found 
 rder to have the 
 
 nd a Sunday at 
 ning hour spent 
 Dup of pale and 
 3 Gospel which 
 making to sailors 
 
 ent visitor, "and 
 readings ! I love 
 a with them,— iiis 
 little raised plat- 
 them all, to ask 
 If with his Bible 
 )on his sailor an- 
 e, and as ncnr to 
 
 SUND\Y EVENING LECTURE. 
 
 321 
 
 him as could be, that they might hear the better, — tho 
 oitentivo looks of the men, his plain but beautiful teach- 
 ing, with familiar illustrations such as all could under- 
 stand, — his deep earnestness, as one who had their souls' 
 interest at heart, — his kind words to the sick, — and, 
 when the little service was ended, the clustering round 
 of those who had come to listen, and to witness this 
 interesting scene ; then, the walk home of the large 
 party, increased by some privileged ones, young officers 
 and others, who had been invited to spend the evening 
 with him. And lastly, that happy Sunday evening, who 
 could describe it ? How sweet it is to call it all into 
 vivid remembrance, — the large party sitting down to 
 tea, the conversation suited to the day, refreshing, easy, 
 flowing, the adjournment to the drawing-room, reading 
 aloud of some choice book, — then the singing of hymns, 
 —his singing, with heart, and soul, and voice, — his ex- 
 treme happiness and enjoyment of the whole, — the 
 ^vonderful charm there was over it, so that we could not 
 bear to break the spell when night came and time of re- 
 tirement, — the prolonged good nights, and reluctance to 
 separate, feeling how intensely happy we had been ! " 
 
 Many a token did Sir Edward receive that his 
 labours had not been " in vain in the Lord." The 
 following was addressed to him in the third year of 
 his command at Haslar : 
 
 " H. M. S. 
 
 -, March 3. 1849. 
 
 « Sir, 
 
 " I beg you will pardon me the liberty I take in 
 writing to you, but I know you will appreciate my 
 
 i 
 
 $ 
 
 nil; 
 
 
 i i 
 
 :N 
 
H M jt, 
 f!'. :* ?*i 
 
 '.i 
 
 322 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 present feelings, and sympathise with me. Oh 1 may 
 God bless j ou, and further you with His continual help, 
 and give you grace to continue that good work, the 
 lectures on Sunday evenings, to the enlightening and 
 edifying of more souls ! 
 
 " I was in the Hospital three months ago, and attended 
 your lectures every Sunday evening, and, I bless the 
 Lord, it was the means of bringing one poor soul, to see 
 his u-i worthiness, and his need of a Saviour. During the 
 time I attended your lectures, you made a very serious 
 impression on me. May God bless you for it, and may 
 the words be sown on good ground, and bring forth 
 fruit abundantly ! I pray God will enlighten me with 
 His Holy Spirit, and guide my wandering feet ; and He 
 will do it, for God is a God of prayer, and always more 
 willing to give than we to ask. I know that it will be 
 gratifying to you to learn that there is one who has 
 profited by your kind endeavours, and may there be 
 many more is the prayer of your obedient humble 
 servant," 
 
 " J. H. Master's Assistant." 
 
 In his almost daily visits to the sick wards, Sir 
 Edward never allowed an opportunity to pass of 
 dropping a word of spiritual comfort to the sufferers. 
 When any patient asked to see him, he continued 
 his visits daily, until the man died or was discharged 
 from the Hospital, and many an hour, during his five 
 years at Ilaslar, did he thus spend reading by the 
 
CLARENCE YARD BATTALION. 
 
 323 
 
 ter's Assistant." 
 
 bedside of a sick or dying seaman. On one occasion, 
 a man, who had been prevented by the v/eather from 
 attending the Suijday evening lecture, had heard 
 such a report of it from a friend .at he ventured to 
 forward a request, through the matron, that he might 
 1)6 permitted to have it to read by himself. The 
 favour was at once granted^, Sir Edward himself 
 bringing it to the man as he lay in bed. The subject 
 which htid thus attracted the attention of his friend 
 was the narrative of St. Paul's shipwreck at Melita.* 
 The organisation of tlie Dockyard battalions was 
 first commenced during the time of Sir Edward's 
 command at Haslar, and the labourers and artisans 
 employed in the Clarence Yard were formed into a 
 separate corps, of which he received his commission 
 as colonel -commandant. Under the zealous superin- 
 tendence of Major T. T. Grant, Storekeeper of the 
 lard, the " Royal Clarence Yard Battalion " was, in 
 au unusually short time, rendered as effective as its 
 small numbers would allow ; and the men were more 
 than once complimented on their appearance by 
 military officers of high rank, under whose inspection 
 they passed. Sir Edward was not a little proud of 
 his soldiers, and was frequently present at the regula f 
 
 * The lecture to which allusion is here made will be found in the 
 Appendix. 
 
 Y 2 
 
 I pi 
 
 ■ 1*1 
 
M 
 
 ', t 
 
 324 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR \V. E. PARRY. 
 
 ;« /■ 
 
 drill which took place three times a week, as well as 
 at the occasional field-days on Anglesey common. 
 In the intervals of his work at his office, he miglit 
 often be seen diligently studying his text-book of 
 military evolutions, " getting up liis lesson," as lie 
 termed it, " for the afternoon's performance." Once, 
 they were honoured by being allowed to attend the 
 Queen, on her landing at the Clarence Yard, instead 
 of the usual guard of honour, on vvh'.ch occasion Sir 
 Edward received Her Majesty, not in his usual capa- 
 city of Captain-Superintendent, but in his colonel's 
 uniform, at the head of his gallant battalion. A few 
 days previously to the well known 10th of April, 
 1848, all the regular troops stationed in or near 
 Gosport were summoned to London, in anticipation 
 of the expected Chartist demonstration, ard, during 
 their absence, the Clarence Yard Battalion performed 
 all the usual military duties at the different stations 
 on the west side of the harbour. Considerable 
 apprehensions were entertained there, as elsewhere, 
 as to the result of the day's proceedings in the me- 
 tropolis, especially as information had been received 
 that the expected insurgents had resolved, in tiie 
 event of success, to attack the dockyards, and bum 
 the naval stores. Constant telegraphic communica- 
 tions were kept up with the Horse Guards during the 
 
SEARCH FOR FRANKLIN. 
 
 325 
 
 whole day, and Sir Edward was not a little relieved 
 when apprised of the success of the precautions 
 taken by Government. "We were all of us ready," 
 he wrote to hia son afterwards, " and, depend upon 
 it, we should have done our duty; but it was an 
 anxious time for some of us ! " 
 
 Upon the return of Sir James C. Ross from the 
 arctic regions in 1849, and the report of his failure 
 to discover any traces of Franklin, Sir Edward was 
 continually summoned to London, to consult with 
 the Admiralty as to the best mode of contin?:ing the 
 search for the missing vessels. This was a subject 
 in which, from his own polar experience, and his 
 anxiety respecting the fate of his friend Franklin, 
 his own feelings were deeply involved. " I have to 
 make my report to-day," he writes to one of his 
 children, " and I trust that I may be led, by a better 
 wisdom than my own, to give sound and judicious 
 advice." 
 
 The arrival of Captain Austin in England, with the 
 relics discovered by Captain Ommaney at Cape Riley, 
 was to him an object of peculiar interest, and it was 
 his own and Sir John Richardson's careful reports 
 on the subject, which ultimately settled the question 
 of their connection with the long lost " Erebus " and 
 " Terror." It may well be conceived with what 
 
 T 3 
 
 
326 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 eagerness he followed the steps of the senrchinfr 
 expeditions, and the gradual advance of geographical 
 nowleJ ge in those regions to which' he himself had 
 opened the way. He eagerly perused the graphic 
 account, in Lieut. M'Clintock's journal, of the visit 
 paid by that officer to the scenes of his own early 
 discoveries at Melville Island. He read the journal 
 aloud to his family in the course of one evening, that 
 they might share with him in the absorbing interest 
 of the Bubjpct. They saw that he could scarcely 
 restrain his emotion, as the narrative detailed the 
 first sight of the well known rocks of Winter 
 Harbour, and the finding of his own records beneath 
 the cairns, and when it proceeded further to de- 
 scribe the place of his encampment during the spring 
 journey across that island, where the bones of the 
 ptarmigan, on which he and his companions had 
 feasted, still lay scattered on the ground, bleached 
 with the frosts of thirty winters. He was not a little 
 gratified with the compliment paid to the accuracy of 
 his own account, ** which," to use the words of one 
 of the officers, "they carried with them like a 
 Murray's Handbook," and by the aid of which the 
 exploring party were led to the very spot where the 
 wheels of his own broken down cart had been left, 
 and on which they had for some days confidently 
 
VUUY. 
 
 the eearchinir 
 of geograi)hical 
 
 he himself had 
 ^ed the graphic 
 lal, of the visit 
 
 his own early 
 read the journal 
 tie evening, that 
 sorbing interest 
 1 could scarcely 
 ive detailed the 
 oka of Winter 
 records beneath 
 
 further to de- 
 uring the spring 
 he bones of the 
 companions had 
 round, bleached 
 ) was not a little 
 ) the accuracy of 
 ;he words of one 
 th them like a 
 id of which the 
 
 spot where the 
 t had been left, 
 [lays confidently 
 
 RELIGIOUS SOCIETIES. 
 
 327 
 
 reckoned, as a welcome addition to their almost ex- 
 hausted stock of fuel. 
 
 While at Ilaslar, Sir Edward gave his full support 
 to the different religious societies of which he was a 
 member. At Gosport and Portsea he was con- 
 tinually called upon to take the chair at their pro- 
 vincial meetings. " The very sight of him," says a 
 friend, " as he entered a public meeting, what anima- 
 tion and life it seemed to give I A sort of electric 
 pleasure was instantly produced, and a glowing smile 
 lighted up every face as it looked up to his. I have 
 felt this often in going with him." In none did he 
 feel a more lively interest than the British and 
 Foreign Bible Society, at the meetings of which in 
 the neighbourhood he usually presided. 
 
 " I love the Bible Society," he said on one occasion, 
 " as one of the most valuable, and, under God's blessing, 
 the most successful instruments for promoting His 
 glory, and the highest welfare of men ! I love it, 
 because I see that, in these times, men are peculiarly apt 
 to depart from the simple truth as it is in Jesus, and to 
 aim al being wise above that which is written. I love 
 it, because it unites in one common object the different 
 denominations of Christians among us. With whatever 
 regret we may contemplate the fact of such difference, 
 yet a fact it is, and, I suppose, always must be, while 
 the world lasts. For my own part, though I entertain 
 
 Y 4 
 
 1 
 
 I 
 
328 
 
 MEMOIUS OF SIK W. E. rAUUV. 
 
 an ardent and increasing lovo for the Churcli of which I 
 am a member, — though I luivo a sincere, and, I trust, a 
 conscientious lovo for her articles, her liiurgy, ami her 
 discipline, — yet I do not see why all this is to prevent 
 my joining, where I can, heart and soul, with those who 
 differ from me in this respect 1 " 
 
 At the time of the well-known ** Papal Aggros- 
 aion " in 1850, a meeting was held nt Gosport for tlie 
 purpose of presenting an address to Her Majesty. 
 The chair was taken by one of the magistrates, and 
 the resolution embodying the proposed address, 
 moved by Sir Edward Parry, in an energetic speech 
 expressive of his own willingness to take a foremost 
 place in resisting a movement, which he felt to be 
 opposed to " the Protestant throne, the Protestant 
 liberties, and, above all, the Protestant faith of his 
 country." 
 
 " On these grounds," he concluded, " I cordially 
 approve of the address proposed to bo presented to our 
 most gracious Queen — and I heartily hope, and I fer- 
 vently believe, that these arrogant pretensions will turn 
 to our good, — that they will serve to rouse that noble 
 Protestant spirit which has been so long dormant among 
 us, but which the events of the few last weeks have 
 proved not to be extinct. I confidently anticipate 
 that an universal burst of honest English Protestant 
 indignation will be unanimously sent forth, through the 
 whole length and breadth of our land, such as will pro- 
 
bailors' home. 
 
 329 
 
 tluco among ourselves a reaction in favour of good, old- 
 fashioned, scriptural truth, while it thunders in the oars 
 of that presumptuous Pontiff, to teach him that, however 
 cunning he may think the game he is playing, lie has, 
 for once, made a false move, — to teach him that 'the 
 wise are' sometimes * taken in the\r own craftiness,' — to 
 teach him, in short, by a practical lesson, that England, 
 Protestant England, is not prepared, — though some of 
 her recreant sons may have led him to expect that she 
 is prepared, to be trampled under foot, to bo held in 
 bondage, either ef soul or body, by any foreign Po- 
 tentate!" 
 
 id, " I cordially 
 
 In the foundation, at this time, of a Sailora' lonie 
 at Portsmouth, Sir Edward took an active pai.t. Of 
 the great importance and value of the^o nstitutions 
 he was fully convinced, and always condemned in 
 the strongest terms the idea, entertained by not a 
 few naval officers, that the character of British sea- 
 men would be lowered in the eyes of the world, by 
 any attempts to improve their moral and social 
 condition on shore. He, on the contrary, made it 
 his constant aim to impress jpon them the fact, that 
 a Christian sailor was not only a better and a 
 happier man, but a better seaman also. 
 
 " In advocating the cause of the Portsmouth Sailors' 
 Home," he said, at a meeting at Bath in support of that 
 institution, the year before his death, " we do, in fact, 
 
330 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 ' \ 
 
 desire to advocate a most important principle, I mean 
 that of the necessity of establishing Sailors' Homes not 
 only at Portsmouth, but at all our seaports, — not to be 
 limited to this or that class of seamen, to sailors of the 
 Royal Navy or those of our vast mercantile marine, but 
 applicable to all who bear the name (may I not say, the 
 honourable name) of British seamen ! " 
 
 The chief feature in Sir Edward Parry's religious 
 life, which could scarcely fail to impress itself on all 
 who were brought into contact with him, was its 
 eminently natural and consistent character. It was 
 not with him as a garment put on at particular seasons, 
 or for stated purposes, but was, as it were, engrained 
 into the very constitution of the man, — the main- 
 spring of every thought, word, and deed, in private 
 as well as in public. At the same time, few have 
 ever exhibited a more striking refutation of the 
 charge, often brought against religion, of a tendency 
 to cast a shade of gloom over the pleasures of life ; 
 for his piety was as cheerful and genial as it was 
 active and practical. Its simplicity, also, was no less 
 conspicuous. Plolding the love of Christ to sinners 
 as the foundation of his faith, and looking to the 
 glory of God as his constant aim, the subtle reason- 
 ings of theologians, and the discussion of theoretical 
 difficulties, had no charm for him, nor could he be in- 
 duced to enter on any subjects of controversy, which 
 
HASLAK. 
 
 331 
 
 he did not consider to be of practical importance ic the 
 Christian character. To him Christ was "all in 
 all," the Atonement the central and ruling principle 
 of his creed;, while the living fruits of his own 
 Christian example formed an evidence of the earnest- 
 ness and depth of his religious character, which even 
 those who differed from him in points of doctrine 
 were constrained to acknowledge. Allied, as he 
 undoubtedly was, by conviction and feeling, to the 
 views held by the Evangelical party, — ever ready to 
 proclaim his distaste to the sentiments of the so- 
 called " Tractarian " school, and willing to hold out 
 the right hand of fellowship to his dissenting brethren, 
 where he felt he could meet them on common ground, 
 — it was, at the same time, impossible, to accuse him 
 of undervaluing the dignity of the Church of Eng- 
 land, either in its services, on whose beauty and 
 spirituality he loved to dwell, or in the position held 
 by its authorised ministers. If a clergyman were 
 staying in his house, no arguments would induce 
 him to occupy his usual post at family prayers ; and, 
 on one occasion, being anxious to complete a course 
 of scriptural exposition which he had commenced, 
 he was not ashamed, humbly and touchingly, to 
 request permission of his own son, then just or- 
 dained, to allow him to continue for a few days 
 
 ! '■ 
 I ill- 
 
332 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 longer in the place which, for the future, he con- 
 sidered as the right of the latter. 
 
 To his own family the five years of their life at 
 Haslar present one unvarying picture of domestic 
 enjoyment. For the first time since his residence 
 at Port Stephens, he was enabled to combine official 
 duties with the daily interests of the home circle, 
 and he reckoned this as not the least of the advan- 
 tages consequent on his new position. When he 
 left Hampstead, his second son was just entering 
 the Navy, and the eldest still at Rugby. At the 
 end of his sojourn at Haslar, the latter was shortly 
 about to take his degree at Oxford, his step-daughter 
 already married, and his own eldest daughter en- 
 gaged; and it was to him a matter of unceasing 
 thankfulness thus to have been able to watch over 
 the spiritual, no lesLi than the temporal welfare of 
 those so dear to him, as they grew up around him, 
 and emerged from childhood into the responsibili- 
 ties of riper age. The following letters, written 
 at this period, form an interesting sample of his 
 aifectionate intercourse with them, and of the earnest 
 manner in which he always strove to impress upon 
 them the necessity of acting up to their Christian 
 profession. 
 
//• 
 
 lire, he con- 
 
 their life at 
 of domestic 
 his residence 
 mbine official 
 home circle, 
 )f the advan- 
 1. When he 
 just entering 
 grby. At the 
 jr was shortly 
 step-daughter 
 daughter en- 
 of unceasing 
 watch over 
 ral welfare of 
 3 around him, 
 e responsibili- 
 tters, written 
 sample of his 
 of the earnest 
 impress upon 
 ;heir Christian 
 
 CORRESPONDENC] 
 
 333 
 
 To his eldest Son, at Rugby. 
 
 "Haslar, Juno 5. 1847. 
 
 « My dearest E , 
 
 " I had not time last night to assure you, half as 
 strongly as I wished to do, of the happiness I experi- 
 enced in receiving. Mr. C 's most welcome announce- 
 ment, and your own, on the subject of your prize. This 
 was an honour which I had not ventured to anticipate 
 for you, believing that we had no right to think of it, at 
 your present standing in the Sixth. Let us be thankful, 
 my dear boy, for this success, and let it be our purpose 
 and endeavour to dedicate every success and every 
 talent to God's giory ! I trust that nothing will come in 
 
 the way to prevent my accepting Mr. C 's invitation 
 
 to be present at the Speeches : I should very greatly 
 enjoy it. In this case we should, of course, come home 
 
 together. 
 
 "Ever your affectionate father, 
 
 «W. E. Parry." 
 
 To his Daughter^ at school. 
 
 "August 9. 1847. 
 "Most thankful am I, my dearest child, that it has 
 pleased God to place you in a situation so likely to be 
 advantageous to you ! Nothing but this conviction 
 would have induced us to part with you from under our 
 own roof, and from under our own eye, but we do feel so 
 much confidence in those in whose charge you are 
 placed, that we cannot entertain a doubt that, under 
 God's blessing (without which all human plans and 
 
334 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 means are unavailing), you will derive much benefit 
 from your present position. Above all, let us be in 
 constant prayer to God that this step may be blessed to 
 your eternal, as well as temporal good. There is 
 nothing to be done, and nothing to be expected without 
 this. 'We can do nothing of ourselves,' says the 
 Apostle, 'but we can do all things through Christ 
 strengthening us.* ' Prayer moves the hand that moves 
 the world.' 
 
 " We had a beautiful review of our battalion at 
 Clarence Yard, by Prince Albert, on Saturday. Tlie 
 men performed capitally. The Prince was with us an 
 hour or more, and expressed high gratification. God 
 bless and keep you, my beloved child ! and ever believe 
 me, 
 
 " Your fondly affectionate father, 
 
 « W. E. Parry." 
 
 To the same, on her birthday. 
 
 "Haslar, September 15. 1848. 
 
 " My precious L- 
 
 " This is not only my regular day for writing to 
 you, but it is a day of so much interest to us both, — 
 interest for eternity, as well as for time, — that I am 
 desirous of making my letter to you to- day the first act 
 of the day, next to that which I have already performed 
 of i]nploring God's best blessing on my child, and the 
 child of so precious and beloved a mother. My prayer 
 
 to God has been, my dearest L , that you may be 
 
 His child as well as ours, — * a member of Christ, a 
 child of God, and an inheritor of the Kingdom of 
 
Y. 
 
 COKKESPONDENOE. 
 
 335 
 
 nucli benefit 
 let U3 be in 
 be blessed to 
 1. Tiiere is 
 lected without 
 res* says the 
 irough Christ 
 ,nd that moves 
 
 r battalion at 
 aturday. The 
 7&a with us an 
 ification. God 
 id ever believe 
 
 late father, 
 \ TE. Pakry." 
 
 tember 15. 1848. 
 
 y for writing to 
 t to us both,— 
 ae, — that I am 
 day the first act 
 ready performed 
 ^ child, and the 
 ler. My prayer 
 tat you may be 
 ber of Christ, a 
 he Kingdom of 
 
 Heaven.' This was ever her most fervent and incessant 
 prayer for you, that you might be born again, — born of 
 the Spirit, as well as of water, — that Christ may be made 
 unto you wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctificati^n, 
 and redemption : that you may be justified, pardoned, 
 and accepted through faith in Him, who is the Way, the 
 Truth, and the Life, whom to know is life eternal ! 
 
 " There was no feature in your dear mother's charac- 
 ter more remarkable, and more lovely, than the sim- 
 plicity, the child-like simplicity, of her faith in Jesus, — 
 her abhorrence of, and shrinking from, anything like 
 mystification in the doctrines of the everlasting Gospel. 
 ' Looking unto Jesus * was her motto, the word of God 
 her standard and guide. * Thus saith the Lord ' was to 
 her a sufficient, and never failing rule of life. She would 
 have recoiled with disgust at that grievous heresy, that 
 most baneful and dangerous semi-popery, now so common 
 in our own Church, called * Tractarianism," which is a 
 system of setting up the Priesthood, and what is called 
 ' the Church,' and keeping out of sight the great Head 
 of the Church, — of putting human imaginations (in the 
 shape of what is called tradition) side by side, and on a 
 level with the infallible word of the eternal God, — of put- 
 ting the observance of the sacraments in the place of the 
 righteousness and death of Christ, as r : aeritorious ground 
 of hope in the great concern of salvation, and thus making 
 religion a business of outward forms and ceremonies, 
 instead of a business of the heart. All this is a sad, sad 
 perversion of the iiuth as it is in Jesus, and we know 
 from experience now that it lc«ls to all the erio- - and 
 
 ! 1 
 
 
« •t^.l^l 
 
 
 '(> ■'} ':M ft 
 
 
 ■JJllls ■""7' r *'"*|. 
 
 
 
 
 33f? 
 
 MEMOIRS 0¥ SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 superstitions, and idolatries of the church of Rome. 
 Beware then, my beloved child, of this fatal, and, I fear, 
 increasing device of the great adversary of souls. 
 * Scv^rch the Scriptures,' for tliejr nvh jible to make you 
 wise unto salvation, through ffdth in Jes-u?. Christ. I 
 send you a valuable little tract, ^\llich I wish you would 
 read attentively, coDsparinL. it with %s liat y i krov of 
 the Crospel, for that ij the stindard by which alone we 
 must mi-asure tnuh. * To the Law and to the Testimony ' 
 &c. (Isaiah viii. 20.) 
 
 '' Ever your most lov'og father, 
 
 " W. E. Pakry." 
 
 To his Son, at sea. 
 
 " My precious C- 
 
 "October 21. 1849. 
 
 " Though you will receive another note from me 
 by this same post, yet I cannot refrain from writing 
 you a few lines more on this your sixteenth birthday, to 
 assure you how fervently I have poured out my heart 
 this morning in prayer to God, that you may be pre- 
 served from all evil and danger of soul and body, and 
 may be brought into the fold of the good and great 
 Shepherd, Jesus Christ, and that we may all, at length, 
 meet in His eternal and glorious kingdom, through His 
 merits and mediation ! 
 
 "I have been reading over your letters from St. 
 Helen's, just before you left England, one of which was 
 written this day two y ars, October 21. 1847, and I 
 humbly desire to bless I praise my God for the po 
 
 fe'-i'' 
 
 
Y. 
 
 CORUESrONDENCE. 
 
 337 
 
 ch of Rome. 
 .1, and, I fear, 
 try of Bouls. 
 5 to make you 
 lur^ Christ. I 
 \&h you would 
 
 ; y^i kr.OVf of 
 
 rhich alone we 
 he Testimony ' 
 
 r father, 
 
 W, E. Parry." 
 
 >ctober2l. 1849. 
 
 sr note from me 
 n from writing 
 ith birthday, to 
 ed out my heart 
 rou may be pre- 
 il and body, and 
 good and great 
 ay all, at length, 
 om, through His 
 
 letters from St. 
 ne of which was 
 21. 1847, audi 
 rod for 1;he F" 
 
 perity which has attended you from that time. To Him, 
 I shall commit you, ray boy, in confidence that He will 
 ever be with you, and make all things work together for 
 your best good. Only be careful to honour Him, and 
 He will honour you, for that is His promise, and not one 
 promise of His will ever fail. Be especially careful of 
 your language, not to slip, as people often do, into any 
 habits of profane expressions ; nothing can be more un- 
 gentlemanly, as well as unchristian. Constantly remem- 
 ber that you are actually in the presence and in the sight 
 of God, and that * He spieth out all our ways.' Honour 
 Him by reading His word, and by daily prayer. Seek 
 Him as * your Father who is in Heaven.' Go to Him in 
 every difficulty or trial. Speak to Him freely, though 
 reverently. Tell Him all your wants ; and the promise 
 is, ' seek, and ye shall find, ask, and ye shall have ; * and 
 may His blessing attend you evermore! Ever, my 
 
 dearest C , 
 
 " Your loving father, 
 
 « W. E. Parry." 
 
 To Lady Parry ^ after parting loith his sailor Son. 
 
 "Haslar, Jan. 31. 1851. 
 
 " . . . . Now T must give you some 
 little account of our day thus far, which, in the inidst of 
 much that is sorrowful in our partings, demands our 
 warmest gratitude to Him, who ordcreth all things 
 well! 
 jf*if ■ The duy, as you were aware, cleared up just as we 
 Were star.'ng to go on board the * Sprightly' steamer, to 
 
 z 
 
It 
 
 
 338 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 meet the Admiral. If we had been superstitiously in- 
 clined, we should have called it a good omen, but it was 
 cheering, and I hope we were thankful to Him who sent 
 
 it. Our precious C 's leaving home was a rcallv 
 
 trying thing. He was greatly overcome in taking leave 
 of all, sisters, servants, everybody. I really did not 
 know how to stand it myself, and felt it more than a 
 comfort, a real mercy, to have to take him on board 
 
 with dear E , and to have to rough it a little in boat?, 
 
 vessels, &c. The Admiral came before half-past ten, 
 and off we went, taking not more than twenty minutes 
 to reach the ' Amphitrite ' at Spithead. The captain 
 was most kind, and, indeed, all seemed as favourable for 
 our beloved boy as we could desire. He at once mixed 
 with the other mids, 8cc., and, though we knew his heart 
 was half breaking (as I am sure mine was) at our part- 
 ing, he behaved like a man, and, after two or three leave 
 takings, we came away with the Admiral, getting back 
 to my office at half-past twelve. I feel it to be an event- 
 ful day, and when faith is weak, — as, alas ! it often is, — 
 I could give way to many forebodings of never seeing 
 my boy on earth again ; but I earnestly desire and piay 
 to commit it all to Him who careth for us ! " 
 
 To the same. 
 
 " February 1, 1851. 
 " My dearest , 
 
 " I have just returned from the sea wall, where I 
 
 have been straining my eyes, through the fog, to catcli 
 
 a last sight of the ' Amphitrite ! ' After watching licr 
 
 for about an hour and a quarter, knowing that she must 
 
 I 
 
I) ■ :. 
 
 il 
 
 ir. 
 
 ;rstitiou3ly in- 
 len, but it was 
 Him who sent 
 3 wa3 a really 
 in taking leave 
 really did not 
 it more than a 
 him on board 
 alittleinboat?, 
 3 half-past ton, 
 twenty minutes 
 . The captain 
 IS favourable for 
 le at once mixed 
 e knew his heart 
 was) at our part- 
 YO or three leave 
 ral, getting back 
 it to be an event- 
 as! it often is,- 
 of never seeing 
 y desire and pray 
 us I " 
 
 Tobrwary 1. 1851. 
 
 sea wall, where I 
 
 h the fog, to calcli 
 
 iter watching licr 
 
 ■ring that she must 
 
 CORRESPONDENCE. 
 
 330 
 
 oo soon, having a fine E.N.E. wind, at length, at a 
 quarter to five, I saw the sails loosed, and, at five 
 minutes after five, she was fairly under way. I spent 
 that hour and half in prayer for my precious boy ; and, 
 when the ship was moving, I knelt down on that black 
 stone seat, and poured out my whole heart, with strong 
 tears and crying, in his behalf. I felt as if I never 
 knew what prayer was before ! We sent him letters to 
 Plymouth this morning, and I shall now write another 
 line. And now I must say good bye, and join our little 
 party at home. May the Lord be with you ! " 
 
 To his Son, at sea. 
 
 "Haslar, December 12. 1851. 
 " Oh ! how we shall think of our 
 beloved sailor this Christmas, and of the happy, happy 
 time we were permitted to enjoy last year ! May it 
 please God to give us su^h another Christmas, in His 
 own good time and place ! I am sure you will li! the 
 proposals contained in the printed papers which I send 
 you.* It is impossible to say what may not be the 
 effect of united prayer, and the world, and the men of 
 the world, little think what they owe to the prayers of 
 God's servants ! 
 
 " I have been very busy in our Arctic Committee to 
 inquire into the results of the late expediti*. ; nd, in 
 our report, we recommend another expedition by way of 
 Wellington Strait." 
 
 * " Proposal of Union for prayer in behalf of the Navy."^ 
 
 z 'i 
 
 ■ '>.; 
 
340 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR \V. E. PARRY. 
 
 To the same. 
 
 "Ilaslar, Juno 13. 1852. 
 "T need not pay how wc sympathise with you in the 
 aiccarugeracnts and difficulties you meet with, on board 
 a ship, in your religious course. This is what might bo 
 expected. Our Lord always gave his disciples reason to 
 expect tliis. Look at Matt. x. 24 to 28. Look also at Matt. 
 V. 10, 11, 12. "^'lese passages show that He who know 
 all things, and what men's hearts are made of, knew that 
 his followers would meet with such discouragements. 
 The particular kind of opposition varies with all the 
 various circumstances in which men are placed, but the 
 principle is the same ; — it is the same evil heart of 
 unbelief, which sets itself up agmnst God, and will not 
 receive Christ into the heart. Your great security, as 
 well as comfort, will always be in prayer. This is oui' 
 chief defence against the w''^^ edness of n ' n, and tlie 
 devices of Satan, and the reason of this is, tli t wo can 
 do nothing in our own strength, and need vjntinual 
 supplies of strength from above, and this Divine f* ngih 
 is only to be had by continual asking for it." 
 
 To his eldest SoUy on first going to Oxford. 
 
 " Haslar, September 4. 1849. 
 "My 'dearest E , 
 
 " Wc received your letter with great pleasure and 
 
 interest, f'^- we cannot but feel this to be a great crisis 
 
 in yo • life, — indeed, except in ordination, there can 
 
 scartciy bt any greater. It is, in fact, emerging, as it 
 
 were, from boyhood to manhood, with all the increase of 
 
/•' 
 
 CORRESPONDENCE. 
 
 341 
 
 duties, rosponsibili ', and dangers, which that change 
 involves. It will b> very desirable for you to endeavour 
 to see your way, by God's help, upon all important 
 points, before you go up to Oxtord ; so that you may 
 have your mind ready made up as to the lino you are to 
 take, and the conduct you are to pursue, in all essential 
 matters. I am persuaded that much depends, in such 
 cases, on the first start ; for what is easy, comparatively, 
 at the outset, is very difficult afterwards, and may 
 subject you to the charge of inconsistency. Be cautious, 
 then, at first. Make no acquaintance, much less com- 
 panions, incur no expense, commence no habit, which 
 you will afterwards disapprove, and which it Avill require 
 a great and ./ksome effort to get rid of. Cest le 
 premier pas qui coute ! " The principle to keep in view 
 is preparation for the sacred profession, the high and 
 holy calling, upon which, if it please God, you hope, ere 
 long, to enter. Let everything tend to that as to a 
 centre, and then you cannot go very wrong. The 
 question, ' Is this or that worthy of one who aspires to 
 the sacred office of a Minister of Christ ? ' will settle 
 many difficulties, and resolve many doubts, and make 
 many ' crooked things straight ' in your mind. Accustom 
 yourself to aim high, not merely in learning, but in the 
 objects and ends you propose to yourself in life, and all 
 with immediate reference to the life tli;it will never end ! 
 God bless and keep you, my dearest E , is the fer- 
 vent prayer of 
 
 " Your affectionate and loving father, 
 
 " W. E. Parry." 
 

 M 
 
 ■■4*1 iM 
 
 ■.r ( 
 
 1.^.' 
 
 W I, 
 
 Mi ' 
 
 342 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIB W. E. PAUIIY. 
 
 It would have been difficuU or any to have fomul 
 religion a restraint, when it was presented in the 
 attractive garb which it wore at Huslar. A happier 
 home could nowhere have been found, and never 
 were lighter hearts, or brighter faces, than tliosc 
 which gathered on the lawn in the evening of tiie 
 Midsummer holidays, or round the drawing-room 
 table on a Christmas night. 
 
 Of public balls and theatrical exhibitions Sir 
 Edward always disapproved, " not that I mind the 
 plays or the dancing," he would say, " but because of 
 the moral evils attendant on the one, and the habits 
 of dissipation, and craving for excitement, produced 
 by the other." Of amusement, however, there ^Ya3 
 never any lack at Haslar. At the annual festivities, 
 marking the birthdays which clustered round tlio 
 Christmas season, " he was," to use the words of a 
 spectator, " the very life and moving spring." 
 Tiiese entertainments were always eagerly antici- 
 pated by young and old, for the company were of all 
 ages, "grown-up children's parties," as he used to 
 call them. In the tableaux vivants, his inventive 
 genius was taxed as severely as it had been thirty 
 years before on board the " Hecln." Of the ciia- 
 rades none were ever so successful as those in whici! 
 ho himself appeared, and his entrance was nlwavs 
 
// 
 
 IIASLAR. 
 
 343 
 
 jrreetcd with shouts of delight. I cannot even now 
 rcciill," says a friend, *'his inimitable performance 
 of an old gipsy woman, without laughter; or his 
 Irishman, and his conversation improvised for the 
 occasion I" In the intervals between the scenes, ho 
 (lid not object to propose a quadrille, or country 
 dance, himself selecting a partner, not unusually 
 tlie smallest child in the room, and taking the first 
 turn "down the middle and up again." On an 
 onlinary evening during the holidays, when the 
 liouse was usually full of guests, he was always the 
 first to propose amusements, in whicli all who wished 
 might join. In summer, he would swing the 
 children in the paddock, or join in "trap-ball" or 
 " rounders " on the lawn. In winter, these more 
 active games were exchanged for social amusements 
 in the drawing-room. Of these the most popular 
 was one well known at Haslar as the " American 
 game," or an exercise in impromptu verses. The 
 best of these compositions were immortalised in a 
 book kept for the purpose, and, as the subjects 
 usually referred to the prominent events of the day, 
 tiiG collection soon formed a species of family 
 chronicle, and many of the lines long survived as 
 liouschold words on the lips of the different mem- 
 ])cr3 of the domestic circle. These compositions, 
 
 z 4 
 
 
344 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 fr ^ 
 
 usually of a humourous nature, occasionally partook 
 of a graver character, one in particular, composed 
 by Sir Edward himself, when his sailor son was at 
 home — the only occasion at Haslar, on which he 
 had the happiness of seeing all his children gathered 
 round him at Christmas, — was written with much 
 feeling, and not without some poetical taste.* 
 
 On all his household Sir Edward enjoined the 
 same regard to punctuality which marked his own 
 movements. Whatever fell to his share in the way 
 of correspondence, or the execution of commissions, 
 however trifling, was always committed to writing, 
 nor would he undertake anything without a memo- 
 randum of this kind. His mornings were spent at 
 
 * We subjoin the verses to which allusion is here made. It must 
 be remembered that the subject was prescribed by the rules of the 
 game, which in this instance required, in addition, the introduction 
 of the word " birthday." 
 
 " Lives there the man, who can presume to say 
 Where we shall bo another Christmas day ? 
 What mortal eye can penetrate the veil, 
 That hides in mystery our next year's tale, — 
 Where our next birthday may, perchance, be past. 
 Or whether we've already seen our last ? 
 But, though our birthdays come no moi'c on earth. 
 Oh, leR us strive to attain that hetter birth ! 
 Be it our aim to meet on that blest shore, 
 Where birthdays, meetings, parting.*, are no more ! 
 
 December 25. 18"o.'' 
 
i'U. 
 
 HASLAR. 
 
 345 
 
 his office in the Hospital, but even the hours devoted 
 to business did not entirely separate him from inter- 
 course with the different members of his family. 
 He had always an affectionate word of greeting for 
 any who chose to look in upon him at his work. If 
 particularly occupied at the moment, he would bid 
 themtake a seat, until he had completed what he 
 was about; then, pushing back his chair from the 
 table, and raising his spectacles on to his forehead, 
 with a cheerful " now then I " he would devote a 
 few minutes to conversation. In a particular drawer 
 of his table he kept a paper of sugar-plums for the 
 younger children, and his bright " good bye," to old 
 as w^ll as young, wu" usually preceded by a display 
 of his secret store o " good things. " Here," he 
 would say, "this is all the hospitality I have to 
 offer ! " 
 
 His present position was peculiarly congenial to 
 liimseif. A sailor amongst sailors, he was in his 
 element. It was a pleasure to see him standing on 
 the drawing-room balcony, for a few minutes before 
 the dinner-bell rang, or on his favourite walk alonoj 
 the sea wall, watching through his spy-glass a vessel 
 coming in to Spithead, or following the gracefid 
 movements of the yachts, which, in the summer, 
 enlivened the sparkling waters of the Solent. At 
 
 !|| 
 
346 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PAKRY. 
 
 f <f 
 
 the time of the annual Ryde and Cowes regattas, he 
 delighted to organize a party of his children and 
 guests for a voyage in his " yacht," as he playfully 
 called one of the sailing-vessels belonging to the 
 Clarence Yard, to share in the excitement of tlie 
 gala day. To all who were present at such excur- 
 sions these were golden hours. These nautical 
 expeditions were sometimes exchanged for a pic-nic 
 to the Isle of Wight. The spot usually selected 
 was the ' landslip ' near Bonchurch, and he took 
 especial pleasure in introducing a stranger to the 
 beautiful scenery of that locality. 
 
 It was not, however, merely to the partial eyes of 
 his own home-circle that the private life of the 
 beloved head of the ftimily was invested with such a 
 peculiar charm. The officers of the Hospital, and 
 the guests who, from time to time, r\ir.gled in the 
 happy domestic party, were all able to bear witness 
 to the atmosphere of unaffected Christian love and 
 cheerfulness which he ever seemed to difTuse around 
 him. The following letters will be read with in- 
 terest, as expressing the impression left on the minds 
 of some of those who knew him at Ilaslar : — 
 
 From a friend. 
 
 " I know not how, adequai' ly, to ex- 
 press the loss wc ail sustained in the tcrminntion of denr 
 
HASLAR. 
 
 347 
 
 Sir Edward's service at Haslar. I have often wished it 
 might be among the possible things that he should have 
 been permitted to remain, he seemed so eminently fitted 
 to the place, i^id the place to him. Though we know 
 that no one man is essential to any one work, still, most 
 assuredly, certain men are permitted to be greater in- 
 struments of good in some situations than others, and it 
 seemed to me that the loving, large sympathy with all, 
 whether high or low, who came within the influence of 
 my valued friend, rendered hiin more than ordinarily 
 adapted for the superintendence of a sick hospital. 
 Personally, I can never revert to that period without 
 very deep emotion, for I always look upon his lesidence 
 there as a most wonderful ordering of events, as far as 
 I was concerned. 
 
 "I have the whole family constantly before me, and 
 never was there a more warmhearted, or united house- 
 hold. The spirit of the head pervaded all the members, 
 as I remember some visitor once remarked, ' how happy 
 all were at Haslar,' and he ' wondered whether it were 
 religion, or the sea, which made it so pleasant ! * There 
 was all the good ordering of ' the service,' but without 
 one atom of the * Quarter-deck,' as we may say. I have 
 frequently remarked to others, that, in analysing the 
 how and the why of so aiucli, and so many things being 
 effected, and that no one duty was ever sacrificed to 
 another, I mainly accounted for it in the fact, that tliere 
 was no delay in tho performance of that which had 
 been determined upon as right or fitting to do. Whether 
 it were but the fulfilment of a promise in sending up a 
 
 !l!l 
 
 IP 
 
348 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 packet of sugar-plums to a child in the nursery, or the 
 most important piece of business, it was done or provided 
 for on the instant. 
 
 "1 believe it will never be known how many were 
 comforted, in the extremity of pain and weakness, by his 
 intercourse and his prayers. In fact, I have heard him 
 say that it was almost more than he could bear, to be so 
 constantly applied to, in the most trying hours of suf- 
 fering, for his was a tender spirit, tte)ugh strong in the 
 fiiith which is alone strength ; but still more was he 
 tried, at times, by appeals of mental agony, never failing 
 to testify of the fullness of that salvation offered for all 
 men. He did not cry ' peace,' where there was no 
 peace, yet love, in its most extended sense, pervaded liis 
 every thought and act. Few in their generation can 
 better say, ' Lord, thy pound has gained ten pounds ! ' I 
 think his five and a half years at Haslar was not among 
 the least happy or satisftictory periods of his pilgrimage. 
 Indeed, I have heard him say, ' what can a man wish 
 for more ! ' " 
 
 From a medical officer of Haslar Hospital. 
 
 "A great advantage in Sir Edward Parry's official 
 character was his easiness of access. One was sure of a 
 k nd reception, an attentive hearing, and, if the request 
 were reasonable, a satisfactory reply ; but, with all his 
 gentleness and urbanity of manner, he commanded sticli 
 respect, that no man was ever treated by inferiors with 
 greater deference. Often have officers gone to him witli 
 a crotchet of doubtful advantage, and they would } ielti 
 
 i 
 
r. 
 
 HASLAR. 
 
 349 
 
 'sery, or tlie 
 5 or provided 
 
 J many were 
 ikness, by his 
 ve heard him 
 bear, to be so 
 hours of suf- 
 strong in the 
 more was he 
 , never failing 
 affered for all 
 there was no 
 1, pervaded his 
 reneration can 
 en pounds ! ' I 
 ?vas not among 
 liis pilgrimage. 
 nn a man wish 
 
 l^ospital. 
 
 Parry's official 
 3 was sure of a 
 if the request 
 it, with all his 
 •mmanded such 
 ,' inferiors with 
 jne to him with 
 ipy vvould yiehi 
 
 their opinions to his judgment. One whom I knew well, 
 and not much given to yielding, used to say to me, ' I 
 Avould not hav^e given so and so up for any man but Sir 
 Edward Parry !' I feel sure, too, that a culprit brought 
 to receive his censure, would sooner have faced any 
 noted Tartar in the service. 
 
 " Such a system of precept and example did not fail 
 in yielding fruit, and the improvement in the tone of 
 morals among certain classes employed in the hospital 
 was most manifest. Sir Edward was not content with 
 mere precept. Only show him how good was to be 
 done, and he was sure to be earnest in support of it, 
 hoth by his purse, and personal exertions. His charity 
 seemed unbounded. He gave so liberally, and so fre- 
 quently, in a place where the calls were many, th? t his 
 example stimulated others, and shamed into giving some 
 who would have said ' no ' to an application for aid. 
 One, like himself, a liberal giver, the late Dr. Anderson, 
 often and often has said to me, * I am ashamed to go 
 near Sir Edward Parry with a tale of distress, he meets 
 my wishes so readily, and bestows so largely ! ' " 
 
 From Sir Harry Verney, Bart. 
 
 " Claydon House, Bucks. 
 "March 12. 1856. 
 
 "It was during the latter period of Sir Ed ward Parr j's 
 life that I knew him the most intimately. In the spring 
 of 1852 my boy was appointed to the 'Victory,' vrhile 
 waiting for orders to join his ship in the Mediterranean, 
 and I used to indulge myself by running down to Ports- 
 
 V A 
 
 If ' 
 1% 
 
350 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. rARRY. 
 
 
 mouth, as frequently as my Parliamentary occupation.^ 
 would permit. He had a keen sense of the dangers and 
 temptations to which a young midshipman at Portsmoutli 
 Is exposed, and his house afforded a most kindly, cheer- 
 ful, sheltering home to any who had the happiness of 
 being known to him. It was his delight to see ofHcors 
 of the sister professions sitting round his ample table, 
 which so easily stretched longer and longer as his young 
 naval and military friends dropped in. Ho seemed to 
 think that he could never have too many, and that they 
 could never come too often, and his conversation, so 
 lively and animated, so full of point and anecdote, was 
 very attractive to all : to the joung it possessed a pecu- 
 liar charm, while over all his intercourse, and in his de- 
 portment, there was tlic unmistakeable impress of the 
 man of God. 
 
 "But it is with those who were admitted to his 
 Sunday evening Bible readings with his invalid sailors, 
 that there will remain a recollection which will not 
 quickly fade. Those who saw will not easily forget that 
 manly form, and earnest, expressive, handsome counte- 
 nance, as he read the word of God, and then his own 
 well considered, interesting comment, many a seaman 
 sitting round in calm attention, his eyes fixed on his 
 f:uperior officer, who was urging on his attention words 
 that perhaps he had rarely heard, and never attended to, 
 since he quitted his mother's cottage. I can hardly con- 
 ceive any occasion more likely to be useful to the spiri- 
 tual interests of old and young than those services. Tlic 
 line countenances of the men, many of them recovering 
 
IIASLAR. 
 
 $?t 
 
 from severe sickness, their earnest, engrossed attention, 
 the admirable prayer and exposition of my honoured 
 friend, formed altogether a scene of deepest interest, 
 which I v/as thankfil to have the opportunity of fre- 
 quently witnessing, and which I hoped would be in- 
 delibly fixed in the memory of my son." 
 
 From the Rev. G. E. L. Cotton^ Master of Marlhoroncjh 
 
 Colleye. 
 
 " The College, Marlborough. 
 
 "Oct, 6. 1856. 
 " My dear Parry, 
 
 " When you expressed your Avish tliat I should 
 contribute a letter to the memoir of your father, I 
 doubted, at first, whether my intimacy with him had 
 been sufficiently close to make my observations of any 
 value. Yet, on consideration, it occurred to me that 
 the impression which his cliaracter made on a person 
 who had not known him till it was matured by age and 
 experience, and whose connection with him, though con- 
 fidential, was comparatively limited, might be of service 
 in affording a truthful and impartial picture of him,. 
 Therefore, I do not hesitate to comply with your wishes, 
 and the more \\o as I welcome any opportunity of doing 
 honour to the memory of one, for whom I entertain 
 such a deep and unfeigned respect. From my visits to 
 Hampstead and Ilaslar I have carried away a very dis- 
 tinct recollection of his character, and mode of life. 
 The most definite impression which I retain from this 
 intercouri?e with him is, that he was not only a true and 
 
} 
 i 
 
 M 
 
 352 
 
 MEMOIllS OF SIR W. E. rAURY. 
 
 V'' 
 
 ^T 
 
 1 i 
 
 f i 
 
 
 devoted Christian, but a most rare and striking example 
 of a Christian layman, who had been trained by .in 
 active and laborious professional career. For he was 
 one who, having mixed much in sociei.y, travelled mucli, 
 worked hard, known men of various ranks and stations, 
 holding, too, a secular office of considerable importance, 
 constantly employed in the details of practical business, 
 the father of a large family, discharging all his duties 
 admirably well, was, at the same time, penetrrttcd 
 through and through by a loving faith in God, and a 
 constant realisation of the teaching of the New Testa- 
 ment. 
 
 " I will go a little into detail to illustrate my meaning. 
 No one can have stayed with him at Hampstead, without 
 remembering the exact punctuality with which he left his 
 house every morning, precisely at the same minute, to 
 go down to his business at the Admiralty, nor at Haslar, 
 without admiring the perfect order which prevailed in 
 the Hospital, and his familiarity with its inmates and 
 all its arrangements, and with every detail of the work 
 done in the various departments over which he presided. 
 His neat and bold hand-writing, — the regularity with 
 which every letter was answered, — the care with which 
 every important document was preserved and copied, 
 and the packets of paper tied together, ticketed, and 
 arranged, in the drawers of his study table, were 
 sufficient proofs of his orderly habits. I remember 
 being sometimes even amused at the almost premature 
 zeal, with which packing and other needful preliminaries 
 were enforced, when any of the family were goinfi, to 
 
HASLAll. 
 
 3.03 
 
 ing example 
 ained by an 
 For he was 
 i,velled niucli, 
 and stations, 
 3 importance, 
 bical business, 
 all his duties 
 3, penetrated 
 in God, and a 
 ,c New Testa- 
 
 3 my meaning. 
 )stead, without 
 Uich he left his 
 iime minute, to 
 nor at Ilaslar, 
 ih prevailed in 
 ts inmates and 
 ail of the work 
 eh he presided, 
 regularity with 
 are with which 
 L>d and copied, 
 , ticketed, and 
 table, were 
 I remember 
 most premature 
 'ul preliminaries 
 were going to 
 
 leave Ijomc, — Avhcn you and I, for instance, took our short 
 tour in the Isle of Wiglit ; Jind in all matters, small and 
 great, his arrangements were such that every thing was 
 in its right place, and done at its right time. On tho 
 other ha. .. there was nothing of tho spirit of a martinet 
 about him, no undue importance attached to trifles but 
 a simple, clearlieaded method made the regularity of the 
 household natural without being troublesome or oppres- 
 sive. Indeed no one could imagine that this order 
 degenerated into a vexatious discipline, who had seen 
 your father's cheerful joyousness, when making some 
 excursion in a boat, or on foot, with all his children and 
 visitors about him ; or, still more, when he presided over 
 tho pleasures of a Haslar evening. Sometimes he would 
 employ his musical talents to increase those, by playing 
 on the violin, or singinjr some grand song of Handel's, 
 with the purest taste and deepest feeling, pouring 
 forth, for instance, in his fine, clear voice, the exquisite 
 melody of ' Lord, remember David ! ' Or again, when 
 some lighter or more general amusement was required, 
 he would get up a game of ' bouts rimes,' or some other 
 exercise of his guests' {il'^lities, or perhaps superintend 
 the children's performance of a charade. 
 
 "But, no doubt, the most impressive, and the most 
 characteristic scene at Haslar was when, on a Sunday 
 evening, he sat surrounded by sailors, inmates of the 
 Hospital, and read to them a chapter, generally, I think, 
 of the Gospels, with a few words of simple explanation 
 and earnest application. And this recalls me to the 
 crowning grace ind glory of his character, his devoted 
 
 A A 
 

 354 
 
 MEMOIRS OP Sill W. K. rATlIlY. 
 
 f 
 
 t h 
 
 Christian faith : yet I am unwilling to noti ■ this as a 
 Hei>arato head in the catalogue of his great and good 
 qualities; for, indeed, it wr^ not separate, but rather 
 pervaded his whole life, t ; i^ering by gentleness liis 
 firmness and decision, supporting all that he did by 
 earnest principle, and so controlling and leavening his 
 cheerful gaiety, that it became devoted Christian kind- 
 ness, showing itself in the effort to make all around 
 him happy, and, at the same time, to preserve their en- 
 joyment from the slightesi taint of evil. The same 
 striking qualities, which enabled hini to encourage and 
 sustain his men amiddt the rigours of an arctic winter, 
 were conspicuous in the gender form, natural to old age, 
 when he appeared among the sailors at Haslar, with his 
 tall commanding figure, and wide forehead, and white 
 hair, as their comrade, their chief, their helper, their 
 Christian friend. No doubt, he was strongly attached 
 to one particular party in the Church, but from his wid( 
 experience, his practical sense, his large and generous 
 lieart, and, not least, firm and vigorous habits, and 
 various knowledge, and active dealings with men, which 
 form the education f a sailor, he was truly catiiolic in 
 his love for Christian goodness, and always ready to 
 appreciate and reverence sincere and practical work, 
 heartily done for God's glory. There were few for 
 whom he had a deeper respect than for Arnold, and I 
 do not remember ever to have heard from him any of 
 those depreciating remarks and questionings, which some 
 men are apt to express, when discussing the character 
 and work of any one whose religious convictions are not 
 formed on precisely the same model as their own. 
 
Y. 
 
 IIASLAR. 
 
 355 
 
 tl ■ this as a 
 eat and g'jod 
 e, but rather 
 »ontlencss his 
 Eit he did by 
 leavening his 
 Christian lund- 
 ke all around 
 lervo their en- 
 ,1. The same 
 encourage and 
 i arctic winter, 
 ;ural to old age, 
 laslar, witli his 
 lead, and white 
 sir helper, tlieir 
 rongl) attached 
 at from his wide 
 re and generous 
 )us habits, and 
 svith men, which 
 truly catholic in 
 always ready to 
 practical worl?, 
 •e were few for 
 or Arnold, and 1 
 from him any of 
 lings, which some 
 ing the character 
 anvictions are not 
 their own. 
 
 Let mc add one word in conclusion, on his love and 
 care for his children, as shown during your education at 
 llugby. Happily your career there was, in all respects, 
 so prosperous, that I remember no occasion on which 
 any doubt or difficulty arose. J it I shall not soon for- 
 get his warm anxiety for your highest welfare, and the 
 good practical seuse wlr h he =:howed in every conver- 
 
 Ol 
 
 sation, and every ictt 
 sympathised in all 
 greatly in your scho* 
 near to his heart as the i. 
 
 I you. While he keenly 
 
 lool trials, and rejoiced 
 
 iea, there was nothing so 
 
 that you should grow up 
 
 to be an earnest Christian man, and, especially, a faith- 
 ful and devoted minister of the Church of England. 
 After I had left Rugby, and become Master of this 
 College, he wrote to me on the occasion of your or- 
 dination, begging that I would not forget to pray for 
 God's blessing on my old pupil, at so solemn a crisis of 
 bis life. This was the last letter which I ever received 
 from him. 
 
 " We can form no better wish for England than that 
 God should raise up, amongst her people, a devoted band 
 of men like him, — of laymen, who bring to the service of 
 Christ's Church not only the precious offering of zeal, 
 devotion, and self-sacrifice, but the practical wisdom 
 which has been formed by intercourse with men, and by 
 a wide experience of life. We then shall have no reason 
 to fear those tendencies of this age which many good 
 men regard with suspicion ; for our civilisation will be 
 no less refined than Christianised, our commercial spirit 
 will not degenerate into selfishness, and, in the midst of 
 
 A A 'i 
 
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 IMAGE EVALUATION 
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 •^'A^. 
 
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 1.25 1.4 1.6 
 
 
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 Photographic 
 
 Sciences 
 
 Corporation 
 
 33 WEST MAIN STREET 
 
 WEBSTER, NY. I45S0 
 
 (716) 872-4S03 
 

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 '^ .A. 
 
 vV 
 
356 
 
 MEMOIUS OF SIR W. E. PAKRY. 
 
 [1852. 
 
 all our improvements, material and social, we shall desire 
 above all things that the fear of God may penetrate our 
 government, our family life, and our education. Believe 
 me, my dear Parry, 
 
 " Ever affectionately yours, 
 
 " G. E. L. Cotton." 
 
 At one time, it had soemed likely that the rapidly 
 occurring vacancies in the list of admirals would, 
 by bringing Sir Edward to his flag, oblige him to 
 vacate his post of Captain-Superintendent before 
 the five years of his appointment were out : but, 
 towards the close of the time, these vacancies oc- 
 curred so seldom, that, when the December of 1851 
 came, he was still a captain. Under these circum- 
 stances, he was permitted by the Admiralty to pro- 
 long his present command, until he reached the rank 
 of admiral. At length, in May, 1852, his name 
 stood at the head of the list of post captains, so 
 that he was now, to use his own expression, " at 
 single anchor," and, a few weeks later, the announce- 
 ment of another death among the admirals struck 
 the final summons for him to leave his happy Haslar 
 home. Within the six weeks allowed for removal, 
 the last waggon load of furniture left the house ; and 
 on the 29th of July, Sir Edward and Lady Parry, 
 who alone of the family had remained to the last, 
 
1852.] 
 
 FAREWELL TO HASLAK. 
 
 357 
 
 L. Cotton." 
 
 drove away amidst the tears and unfeigned regrets 
 of those, to whom, during their sojourn at Haslar, 
 they had become deservedly endeared. 
 
 Sir E. Parry to his Son, 
 
 " My very dear E- 
 
 ' Hasl . No I — Basing Park, 
 
 30th July, 1852. 
 
 "The girls have given you an account of our 
 proceedings at Haslar up to their departure thence on 
 Tuesday. As soon as I had seen them off at the 
 station, we went th : whole round of T. T. L. visits in 
 the Hospital, and I need not say it was a bitter pill to 
 swallow. On Wednesday, we had a most laborious day, 
 in winding up our packing, paying bills, &c. ; besides 
 which, mamma read at the wash-house, and took leave of 
 her twenty-three poor washerwomen, amidst their tears 
 and blessings. She also made all her farewell calls on 
 the various families of inferior rank in the Hospital ; so 
 that we went to bed almost knocked up, but, a good 
 night being mercifully given us, we rose at half-past five 
 yesterday, — completed more "last arrangements," paid 
 many farewell visits aiid quietly dined together at half- 
 past one. All the Richardsons came and spent the last 
 hour with us. At length, we got into the pony-chair, all 
 the Terrace coming to the door to say the last " good- 
 bye," and off we drove to the station. Never, 1 believe, 
 did people part with more sincere regret, and you will 
 not wonder that we felt it a relief, when, at length, the 
 train was in motion for Fareham ! To God be all the 
 
 A A 3 
 
 i 
 
 '^i;!f 
 
358 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1862. 
 
 praise for innumerable mercies, received in that dear 
 place ! To Him be all the glory for any good He has 
 permitted and enabled us to accomplish there ! From 
 Him may we receive, for His dear Son's sake, pardon 
 for all our omissions and short-comings, sins, negli- 
 gences, and ignorances." 
 
 
 ■ !■ 
 I 
 
Y. 
 
 [18.')2. 
 
 359 
 
 ..^ $■ ■ 
 
 in that dear 
 ^ood He has 
 lere ! From 
 sake, pardon 
 sins, negli< 
 
 
 CHAP. XIII 
 
 SUMMER AT KESWICK. BISHOP's WALTHAM. SPEECH 
 
 AT LYNN. BELLOT TESTIMONIAL. GREENWICH. 
 
 LECTURE AT SOUTHAMPTON. ILLNESS. — VOYAGE TO 
 
 ROTTERDAM, AND UP THE RHINE. EMS. — DEATH. 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 1852—1855. 
 
 During the autumn of the year in which Sir 
 Edward left Haslar, he spent a few weeks with his 
 family at Keswick, in Cumberland, where he derived 
 much enjoyment from this his first acquaintance 
 with the beautiful scenery of the English lakes. 
 At the annual feast of the children of St. John's 
 schools, he suggested a boat excursion on the lake, 
 as an addition to the usual amusements of the day ; 
 and, himself embarking with the rest, led the pro- 
 cession from Keswick to Barrow ; " thus," to use 
 his own words, ** hoisting his admiral's flag for the 
 first time on Derwentwater ! " " The anniversary 
 
 ▲ A 4 
 
 piii 
 
 |iil 
 
 !i»V*^ 
 
360 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARllY. 
 
 I' 
 
 Li85:. 
 
 of our school-feast," writes the Rev. T. D. H. Bat- 
 tersby, " always carries back my thoughts to the 
 time when dear Sir Edward hoisted his flag in 
 my little boat, on the first of these happy oc- 
 casions. It was he who gave us the first impulse, 
 and we have kept them up ever since. I remember, 
 as well as if it were yesterday, his address to the 
 children on the terrace in front of Barrow House, 
 and many of them, I doubt not, recollect it too." 
 
 Towards the close of the same year, he went to 
 reside at Northbrook House, Bishop's Waltham, 
 Hants. To one, whose whole life had been spent 
 in active employment, the entire leisure he now 
 enjoyed was something totally new. He felt, in- 
 deed, to use his own frequent expression, "that 
 there was plenty of work in him yet ; " but he was, 
 at the same time, well content to leave his future 
 prospects in better hands. It was not in his nature 
 to be idle, even in retirement, and now in h; 3 own 
 resources he found ample occupation. He took an 
 active interest in ministering to the necessities of the 
 poor around him ; and the Rector, the Rev. W. Brock, 
 found in him, as the following testimony will show, 
 a ready supporter in all his plans for promoting the 
 spiritual as well as the temporal welfare of the 
 parish. 
 
Y. 
 
 Li85:. 
 
 1853. J 
 
 bishop's waltham. 
 
 361 
 
 D. H. Bat- 
 
 ights to the 
 
 his flag in 
 
 happy oc- 
 
 irst impulse, 
 
 I remember, 
 
 dress to the 
 
 rrow House, 
 
 t it too." 
 
 he went to 
 
 Waltham, 
 
 [ been spent 
 
 ure he now 
 
 He felt, in- 
 
 ssion, "that 
 
 but he was, 
 
 e his future 
 
 ti his nature 
 
 in h' J own 
 
 He took an 
 
 ssities of the 
 
 7. W. Brock, 
 
 y will show, 
 
 omoting the 
 
 fare of the 
 
 " I shall ever look back on the year that Sir Edward 
 Parry spent amongst us as the happiest of ray ministry. 
 He always seemed to me to leave the impression, whilst 
 he was here, of one who had been communing with God, 
 so that " his face shone while he talked with us," and his 
 very countenance was oftentimes a sermon. He looked, 
 as he was, a thoroughly happy Christian, and he certainly 
 made others happy around him. What also struck me in 
 his Christianity was the remarkable combination it ex- 
 hibited of manliness and simplicity. It came up exactly to 
 the requirements of the apostolic admonition : * Brethren, 
 be not children in understanding, howbeit, in malice be 
 ye children, but in understanding be men ! ' There was 
 all the wisdom and the courage of the man, whilst 
 there was also the docility, the gentleness, and the humi- 
 lity of the little child. I cannot but consider it to have 
 been a great privilege and responsibility, for which we, 
 in this parish, will have to give an account, that such an 
 example of genuine and practical Christianity should 
 have been brought before us, as that which his life and 
 character presented. Many will yet rise up to call this 
 faithful servant of God blessed, because they reaped the 
 fruit of his * work of faith, and labour of love.' 
 
 " The first occasion of his appearing amongst us in 
 public was when he took the lead at our annual meeting 
 for the Irish Church Missions. I shall never forget that 
 evening. What a thrill of thankful emotion gladdened 
 our hearts, as we listened to what I remember he called 
 his "Confession of faith " to the people whom he ad- 
 
3G2 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [185.1. 
 
 dressed so eloquently, and so affectionately I It was no 
 
 * uncertain sound' which that inaugural speech, if I may 
 so call it, conveyed to us. There could be no mistakinp; 
 it. The gallant speaker was not ashamed of Christ and 
 of His words, and he manfully unfurled his colours before 
 us, as a faithful soldier and servant of His Lord. He 
 then struck, so to speak, the key-note which was to 
 regulate the tone of his future residence in this parish. 
 Nobly did he take his stand, in the midst of his fellow- 
 parishioners, on the side of that Heavenly Captain, 
 whose name and word he delighted to honour ; while ho 
 set a fine example to laymen, in his position, of what lie 
 considered to be their duty and their privilege, viz., to 
 be labourers together with God, and to be helpers of 
 their pastor's joy, by. serving with him in the Gospel. 
 This, indeed, was his constant practice, during the whole 
 time he sojourned amongst us. His visits of mercy and 
 words of love are not forgotten. It was only the other 
 day, that, in two or three of the abodes of sickness and 
 infirmity which he so constantly visited, I heard the 
 hearty exclamations, when his name was mentioned, — 
 
 * blessed man,' — ' beautiful words he used to say to us,' 
 and the like. He lives in the memory of the poor, and 
 well he may, for he was, indeed, the friend of the poor. 
 How well he knew them ! How naturally ho entered 
 into their little world ! How deep, how affectionate, how 
 minute, were his fellowship and sympathy with the trials 
 of the poor man's life, and with the joys and sorrows of 
 
 his heart ! ^ 
 
 " Our school festival for the year 1853 was, perhaps. 
 
 / . 
 
V. 
 
 [isrj.'i. 
 
 185.3.] 
 
 KISIIOrS WALTUAM. 
 
 3G3 
 
 ^ 1 It was no 
 jech, if I may 
 no mistakinrr 
 )f Christ and 
 colours before 
 is Lord. He 
 «rhich was to 
 Q this parish. 
 )f his fellow - 
 inly Captain, 
 ur; while ho 
 a, of what ho 
 rilege, viz., to 
 be helpers of 
 1 the Gospel, 
 ing the whole 
 of mercy and 
 nly the other 
 sickness and 
 I heard the 
 mentioned, — 
 to say to us,' 
 the poor, and 
 [ of the poor, 
 iy he entered 
 ctionate, how 
 ?^ith the trials 
 id sorrows of 
 
 was, perhaps, 
 
 the happiest and liveliest wo ever had, and his presence 
 and activity, on that occasion, gave an impulse and a 
 buoyancy to our juvenile amusements, which will not bo 
 speedily forgotten. He was, indeed, our leader on that pa- 
 rochial * field-day,* and, by the animated interest which 
 he took in the sports and enjoyments of the children, and 
 in the dispersion of the prizes which his liberality had 
 provided, he endeared himself as much to the little ones 
 of the parish, as he had already done to so many of their 
 
 parents. * How judiciously,* says Mr. S , our valued 
 
 schoolmaster at the time, ' he arranged the amusements, 
 so that not a moment was unoccupied ! Sometimes, ho 
 was to be seen tying five or six sturdy boys in sacks for 
 a race, and then, engaging in a game of trap-ball with 
 some of the smaller ones. Here he might be, one 
 minute, superintending the girls at the swing, and there, 
 a minute after, throwing sweetmeats amongst the littlo 
 ones, his benevolent features sparkling with pleasure, as 
 
 he watched them scrambling for a share.' Mr. S 
 
 also mentioned to me an incident, connected with his 
 energy of character, which, he says, taught him a 
 valuable lesson on the necessity of being diligent in 
 doing our Master's work, without being captious as to 
 the exact way of its performance, or waiting till every 
 apparent diflELculty was removed. * It was one evening, 
 soon after the establishment of our school for adults, and 
 before its organisation was quite complete, when the 
 teachers were gathered into a little knot, discussing this 
 or that plan as the best to be pursued, that Sir Edward, 
 after listening for some time, said in his own energetic. 
 
3G4 
 
 MICMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1S5.3. 
 
 yet kind manner, * Well, it'a no use standing hero all 
 night, doing nothing I Let us begin, at any rate, and do 
 something I * Then, speaking to two or three men with 
 Bibles in their hands, * Come here, my men, and let mo 
 hear you read a chapter I ' and he took a seat on the 
 nearest stool, while the men stood around him, and com- 
 menced reading. The other teachers at once followed 
 his example, and the school was formed into classes. I 
 have always thought this little circumstance a sort of 
 epitome of his life. He was not only willing to do His 
 Heavenly Father's will, but to do it ' while it is called 
 to-day.' 
 
 "Gladly would I linger on scenes, the memories of 
 which are so * good and pleasant ' to dwell upon. Though 
 the retrospect has not been without its painfulness, as 
 having brought so vividly before me the sad blank left 
 in the parish by his removal from us, yet the brightness 
 of his path was such, that it is quite impossible to look 
 back upon it without profit, and without praise. As the 
 minister of the parish in which lie spent one year of his 
 useful life, I feel how deep have been my obligations to 
 him, and how sacred has been the privilege to have had 
 among us one who was so dear to Christ, who walked 
 closely with God, and whose talents, high station, and 
 exaiTfiple, were all so evidently consecrated to His ser- 
 vice I " 
 
 In the sjiring of 1853, Sir Edward was called to 
 attend the death-bed of his valued friend Dr. An- 
 derson, of Haslar Hospital. 
 
V. 
 
 [1S53. 
 
 l!il53.] 
 
 VOYAGE OP THE ** INVESTIGATOII." 365 
 
 ling hero all 
 ' rate, and do 
 ee men with 
 I, and let mo 
 seat on the 
 m, and com- 
 nce followed 
 ;o classes. I 
 ice a sort of 
 ig to do His 
 ^ it is called 
 
 memories of 
 
 Don. Though 
 
 ainfulness, as 
 
 id blank left 
 
 le brightness 
 
 sible to look 
 
 lise. As the 
 
 e year of his 
 
 )bligations to 
 
 to have had 
 
 who walked 
 
 station, and 
 
 1 to His ser- 
 
 as called to 
 k1 Dr. An- 
 
 ** I wish," ho wrote to his sailor son in the Pacific, 
 "you could have witnessed, as it was my privilege to do, 
 his calm confidence in the prospect of departure, founded 
 on his habitual trust in the mercy of God through 
 Christ Jesus. He said to me, only a few hours before he 
 died, ' I have nothing to do, — it is all done for me, — 
 Christ's work is a finished work, and in Him is my 
 trust I * Precious assurance of faith, when based upon 
 such a foundation, even upon the llock of ages ! " 
 
 The year of his residence at Bishop's Walthum 
 was marked by an event, to him of no ordinary- 
 interest. In the summer of 1853, the intelligence 
 reached England of the discovery of the North- West 
 Passage by Captain, now Sir R. M'Clure. Lieut. 
 Cresswell, the bearer of these important despatches, 
 was the son of one of his oldest friends, and he felt it 
 a source of no small pleasure and thankfulness, to be 
 able to hear the particulars of the voyage of the 
 " Investigator " from the lips of one, for whose 
 personal safety he had been not a little anxious. 
 Shortly after his return, Lieut. Cresswell came 
 down to Northbrook, and it may be imagined with 
 what intense eagerness every word of his account 
 was received by Sir Edward, and the interest with 
 which he pointed out to his family, on the chart, the 
 position of Mercy Bay, where the *' Investigator " 
 stiU remained hopelessly entangled in the ice, almost 
 
 fir 
 
 m 
 
366 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [I8r,n. 
 
 within eight of Cape Providence, the furthest 
 western limit of his own discoveries. ** My old 
 quarters at Melville Island," he remarked, "have 
 now become quite classic ground I " In October he 
 liad the gratification of attending a meeting in the 
 Town-hall of Lynn, in honour of the safe and 
 successful return of his young friend. It had been 
 intended that no one except Lieut. Cresswell should 
 have spoken on this occasion, but, at the conclusion 
 of his speech, Sir Edward was universally called 
 upon to address the meeting. \ 
 
 " It is now twenty-eight years," he said, as he rose to 
 comply with the call, " since I had the honour of re- 
 ceiving within these walls the freedom of the ancient 
 borough of Lynn. I can truly say that, from that mo- 
 ment to this, I have never witnessed any occasion 
 which has given me higher delight and gratification. 
 You see before you to-day about the oldest, and about 
 the youngest of arctic navigators, and I do assure you, 
 from my heart, that the feelings of the old arctic navi- 
 gator are those of the most intense gratification he ever 
 experienced in the course of his life. I rejoice to be 
 here to meet and support my dear young friend, as my 
 fellow townsman, for so I may call him, being myself a 
 freeman of your borough. I came 200 miles, and 
 would willingly have come 2000 to be present this day ! 
 How little I thought, when I stood on the western shore 
 of Melville Island, and discovered Banks' Land in the 
 
1833.] 
 
 SPEECH AT LYNN. 
 
 307 
 
 distance, that, in the course of time, tlierc woiilil conio 
 another ship the other way to meet rao, and to be 
 anchored in the Bay of Mercy ! But while we are re- 
 joicing over the return of our friend, and anticipating 
 thf ♦Humph that is awaiting his companions, we cannot 
 but turn to that which is not a matter of rejoicing, but 
 rather of deep sorrow and regret, that there has not 
 been found a single token of our dear long-lost Franklin, 
 and his companions. 
 
 " My dear friend Franklin was sixty years old when 
 he left this country, and I shall never forget the zeal, the 
 almost youthful enthusiasm, with which he entered on 
 that expedition. Lord Haddington, who was then First 
 Lord of the Admiralty, sent for me, and said, * I see, by 
 looking at the list, that Franklin is sixty years old. Do 
 you think that we ought to let him go ? * I said, * He is 
 a fitter man to go than any I know ; and if you don't 
 let him go, the man will die of disappointment ! ' He 
 did go, and has now been gone eight years. In the 
 whole course of my life, I have never known a man like 
 Franklin. I do not say it because we believe him to be 
 dead, on the principle de mortuis nil nisi bonuniy but 
 because I never knew a man, in whom different qualities 
 were so remarkably combined. With all the tenderness 
 of heart of a simple child, there was all the greatness and 
 magnanimity of a hero. It is told of him, that he would 
 not even kill a mosquito that was stinging him, and, 
 whether that be true or not, it is a true type of the 
 tenderness of that man's heart. But I will not detain 
 you longer. I hope you will pardon the loquacity of 
 
 It 
 
 I l;:i|. 
 
 i lipm 
 
I: 
 
 3G8 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1853. 
 
 an old, old arctic voyager. I must say that, when I 
 hear those stories I have hoard this morning, and read 
 of the way in which the last link of the North-West 
 Passage has been discovered, — that to which I devoted 
 the best years of my life, — it rekindles in my bosom all 
 the ardour of enterprise, aye, and much of the vigour of 
 youth I " 
 
 A few weeks later, he was called up to attend a 
 meeting in London, in order to second a resolution 
 moved by Sir James Graham, then First Lord of the 
 Admiralty, for the purpose of erecting a testimonial 
 to the memory of the gallant young Frenchman, 
 Lieut. Bellot, who lost his life, on the shores of 
 Wellington Channel, in the preceding summer. 
 The memorial, a simple obelisk of granite bearing 
 the name of Bellot, was afterwards placed close to 
 the water's side, in front of Greenwich Hospital, a 
 iitting site for this record of one, who, though a 
 foreigner, had nobly voluntered to aid in the search 
 for England's lost heroes, and whose zeal and 
 gentleness of disposition had endeared him to the 
 hearts of British seamen. / 
 
 . Sir Edward remained at Bishop's Waltham only 
 twelve months, for, towards the close of this year, he 
 was appointed by Lord Aberdeen to the Lieutenant 
 Governorship of Greenwich Hospital, to which place 
 
1854.] 
 
 LECTURE AT SOUTHAMPTON. 
 
 369 
 
 he came to reside on the 18 th January, 1854. A few 
 ueeks before th'b, he went down to Southampton, for 
 the purpose of delivering a lecture to the seamen of 
 that port. This had been undertaken at the request 
 of Archdeacon Wigrara, of Southampton, to whom 
 we are indebted for the following account : — 
 
 . . . . " I am certain he never thought of obliging 
 me. I and my interests were as little in his mind as 
 himself. His heart was in the cause. It was a work 
 for God. He felt it a privilege to be so engaged, and, 
 thoiigh his earnestness and attention to everything was 
 most gratifying, and though it immensely increased my 
 obligation to him, the animus of the chief agent was 
 so catching, that I then thought as little of him as he 
 did of me. Those who best know his career would say 
 this was a very simple illustration of the faculty, which 
 enabled him to influence the hearts of other men, and 
 imbue them with the spirit which moved his own. It 
 was, perhaps, the secret of the success which so con- 
 stantly attended his efforts, on far greater occasions 
 than that in which I was allowed to take a part. 
 
 " The day before the lecture, I went, accompanied by 
 Captain F. Gambier, to the Docks, and boarded every 
 ship, that the seamen might know, from the lips of a 
 naval officer, that Admiral Parry was coming to address 
 them, and to remind them who he was. When we en- 
 tered the ships, we were surprised to find bills posted up 
 to announce the address, not only on the upper deck, 
 but between decks, where, I was told, such notices were 
 
370 
 
 M£MOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 mm 
 
 not commonly allowed. The men generally knew vroV 
 what we came to tell. They anticipated our recom- 
 mendation by saying, at once, ' We mean to be there ! ' 
 and they kept their word. 
 
 " I had been told by many, that * a great mistake was 
 made,' that no common seaman would come up to the 
 Victoria (the great company) room, — it was a mile from 
 the shore, across the town, — it was not Jack's way to 
 show himself in assembly rooms, and I ought to have 
 engaged * the long room, by the water's edge,' &c. But I 
 had persisted that the occasion demanded the largest 
 area we could command, and so it proved. I stood with 
 Captain Gambler in Portland Terrace, just before the 
 appointed hour, and saw a steady flow of blue jackets 
 and working clothes of all hues, (for we do not aspire 
 here to naval uniformity of dress or neatness,) which 
 told me plainly there was no mistake, and that we 
 should have a room crowded with seafaring men, and 
 other working people more or less connected with the 
 Doc^^s. 
 
 " Here the whole order of things was reversed. On 
 common occasions, at our great religious meetings, 
 female attire and brightness form the adornings of the 
 room. Now the colours were changed indeed. Bonnets 
 there were next to none, and, instead of them, a close set 
 range of dark, swarthy, sunburnt faces, with eyes unpro- 
 tected by any covering, all intently gazing on the 
 speaker's countenance. It is needless to tell of what may 
 be read in the lecture, but my report would be deficient, 
 if it did not relate, first, the quiet, determined earnest- 
 
Y. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 IS-i^^ 
 
 LECTURE AT SOUTHAMPTON. 
 
 371 
 
 lly knew mvcI 
 [ our recora- 
 to be there ! ' 
 
 t mistake was 
 me up to the 
 IS a mile from 
 Jack's way to 
 ught to have 
 ;e,' &c. But I 
 d the largest 
 I stood with 
 ist before the 
 r blue jackets 
 do not aspire 
 itness,) which 
 and that we 
 ing men, and 
 cted with the 
 
 eversed. On 
 »us meetings, 
 rnings of the 
 3ed. Bonnets 
 3m, a close set 
 h eyes unpro- 
 zing on the 
 I of what may 
 d be deficient, 
 lined earnest- 
 
 ness with which every syllable of the address was 
 delivered, especially those parts which were of direct 
 religious bearing, and, secondly, the profound stillness 
 and breathless attention, with which every word was re- 
 ceived. Men wont to a short, sharp word of command, 
 and an instantaneous, active reply, — men given to yawn, 
 and loiter in listless apathy, when they have no ener- 
 getic work to do, — were there, for nearly two hours, 
 attent, without a motion, hanging on his lips. There was 
 not a momentary interruption, except for an occasional 
 expression of sympathy, or a quiet outbreak of heartfelt 
 applause. And yet, throughout the address, there was 
 a brightness and cheeriness, with a sailor-like ease, as 
 well as a self-possession on the speaker's part, which 
 often caused a smile, for an instant, to enliven many a 
 face. Of such a kind was the mention of the three 
 L's *, which a captain, under whom he had once served, 
 said should always be observed in running up channel ; 
 or, again, when he spoke of the eagerness with which 
 men sought admission into the Portsmouth Sailors' 
 Home, when all the beds were occupied, * pricking for 
 the softest plank ' on the boarded floor. But the main 
 character of the address was grave. The welfare of 
 souls was "ill the speaker's heart, and no one could mistake 
 his aim throughout. It was this fact, and the conviction 
 whieh possessed the whole room, that the best and 
 eternal interests of the service were what the Admiral 
 
 • Viz. "lead, lead, lead: " with reference to the importance of con* ' 
 tinual soundings. 
 
 B li 2 
 
 !iii!;;' 
 
 
 
372 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIB W. £. PARRT. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 iiilll 
 
 m 
 
 mainly desired to promote, that gave its peculiar 
 character to the address, and which, for an instant, 
 seemed well nigh arresting the progress of the speaker 
 himself, and overpowering many of his ' hearers. I 
 allude to the character, conversion, and death of John 
 Gordon. I shall never forget the thrill which ran 
 through the room, and the palpable triumph oT Christian 
 principle over all the ways of man's devising, which were 
 so commonly pursued by the company who confronted my 
 chair at that time, as Sir Edward said : * For my own 
 part, I can never think of that Christian seaman without 
 feelings of sincere affection, and his memory will be dear 
 to me as long as I live. But the loss was only ours, not 
 his. Gordon loved, and read, and prayed over his 
 Bible, and, so sure as that Bible is true, he is now safely 
 moored in that haven, where there are no storms to 
 agitate, no waves to roll, but all is rest, and peace, and 
 joy, for ever and ever ! Can it be necessary for me to 
 add that, if I commanded a ship again, it would be my 
 pride and pleasure to have her manned with John 
 Gordons ! ' 
 
 "The address delivered, men seemed to pause and 
 think. I have often remarked that the noisy applause 
 which follows a lecture or speech is often the least satis- 
 factory evidence of the effect produced. On this occa- 
 sion, there were manifest signs of a blessed return from 
 the word which had gone forth. The inquiry obviously 
 in the minds of the audience, as some of them looked 
 around, was * Who is next to speak ? * — * Where is the 
 man, who can reply to what we have heard, and thank 
 
Y. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 1S54.] 
 
 LECTURE AT SOUTHAMPTOX. 
 
 373 
 
 its peculiar 
 r an instant, 
 ' the speaker 
 
 hearers. I 
 
 sath of John 
 
 which ran 
 
 of Christian 
 , which were 
 mfronted my 
 For my own 
 man without 
 
 will be dear 
 ily ours, not 
 ed over his 
 s now safely 
 10 storms to 
 i peace, and 
 :y for me to 
 iTOuld be my 
 
 with John 
 
 > pause and 
 isy applause 
 e least satis- 
 )n this occa- 
 return from 
 vy obviously 
 them looked 
 Vhere is the 
 '., and thank 
 
 him for his address as is meet ? ' Captain Austin, K. N., 
 Government Superintendent of the Steam Navigation at 
 this port, rose, as had been arranged, and, in a few 
 hearty and appropriate terms, expressed what we all 
 felt, — * that we ought to be the better for what we had 
 heard.* 
 
 " The scene which immediately ensued took me, cer- 
 tainly, by surprise. A number of officers and men, 
 living in Southampton, who had served at various times 
 under the Admiral, came forwA^d, to remind him of the 
 part they had borne in his honourable career. Several 
 of them he recognised at once ; among them Lieut. 
 
 D , and a John Gordon, who said, on claiming 
 
 acquaintance, that * he was not the John Gordon who 
 was drowned.* * No,' replied Sir /Edward, as he shook 
 him heartily by the hand, * but I know you well enough. 
 You were my icemaster, and a very good hand at it 
 you were ! * 
 
 " The memory of this evening and its proceedings 
 will never be effaced from my mind. It was one of the 
 happiest and most profitable in my life ! " 
 
 The gratification felt by Sir Edward at his 
 appointment to Greenwich was mingled with other 
 feelings* None were more aware than himself^ that 
 the line of conduct which he had felt it his duty to 
 pursue at Haslar had exposed him to censure from 
 many, especially amongst those who knew him 
 only by report. He was, therefore, now more than 
 
 B B 3 
 
 m 
 
 m 
 
 Ir'i- i: 
 
374 
 
 MEMOIllS OF SIR W. E. rAUUY. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 m 
 
 
 ever anxious that, in entering upon a somewhat 
 similar position, he might be enabled to avoid all 
 unnecessary offence, and, at the same time, to 
 maintain his Christian consistencv. "We must all 
 pray," he said, more than once, before coming to 
 Greenwich, " that to us may be granted wisdom 
 from on high, for I feel that now, especially, is 
 needed the wisdom of the serpent no less than the 
 harmlessness of the dove 1 " How well he succeeded 
 IS best proved by the undoubted way in which, 
 during the short year and a half of his life at Green- 
 wich, he endeared himself to the hearts of all. " Had 
 we never known him," one writes, " we should have 
 been spared the sorrow we now feel at the thought 
 of losing so dear a friend, yet we can never regret or 
 forget the circumstances which gave us the great 
 privilege of knowing, even for so short a time, so 
 rare, so inestimable a character as that of dear Sir 
 Edward." Sir John Liddell, late Medical Inspector 
 to the Hospital, writes : — 
 
 ^ " When Sir Edward Parry was selected to fill the very 
 important post of Lieutenant-Governor of the Royal 
 Hospital for seamen at Greenwich, high expectations 
 were formed, from his former distinguished career, of his 
 great usefulness to that noble Institution, the cradle and 
 the grave of England's best seamen ; but these expecta- 
 
Y. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 1854 ] 
 
 GREENWICH. 
 
 375 
 
 a somewhat 
 to avoid all 
 le time, to 
 V"e must all 
 I coming to 
 ted wisdom 
 especially , is 
 3SS than the 
 le succeeded 
 ' in which, 
 ^e at Green- 
 all. « Had 
 should have 
 :he thought 
 er regret or 
 3 the great 
 a time, so 
 of dear Sir 
 d Inspector 
 
 fill the very 
 the Royal 
 3xpectations 
 iareer, of his 
 B cradle and 
 2se expecta- 
 
 tions were more than realised by the energy and devotion 
 that he brought to the discharge of the public and social 
 business of the Hospital. He advocated the interests of 
 religion and morality with the energy of a wise and 
 philanthropic man, leaving us, who had the privilege of 
 his intimacy, only to admire, and do honour to the sin- 
 gular ability he displayed in the various occupations he 
 actually filled. His society and opinions were courted 
 by persons in the highest, as well as the humbler stations 
 of life; the former he frequently declined to visit, on 
 account of his health, the latter never ; nor was it only 
 in the way of advice that he served the poor, — he was 
 most liberal in relieving their distresses, and in a manner 
 so unostentatious, that it is only since his death that the 
 extent of his bounty has come to light. These virtues 
 were exercised perseveringly, under the pressure of the 
 severe sufferings of a hopeless and protracted disease, 
 which he endured, not only with the most perfect com- 
 posure, but even with cheerfulness, till the close of a life 
 that had been spent in unceasing efforts to raise the 
 character and extend the usefulness of the Royal Navy, 
 the especial object of his care ; whose improvement his 
 large, acute, and vigorous mind enabled him to see more 
 clearly than most men." 
 
 The following is from the pen of Admiral Hamil- 
 ton, late Secretary of the Admiralty : — 
 
 " Blackheath, Nov. 1856. 
 " I need no reminder of Sir Edward Parry, when I 
 write from a place so near Greenwich as this. Great, 
 
 IJ B 4 
 
 ill 
 
y. 
 
 376 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. TARRi. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 % 
 
 
 .■sill 
 
 I? 
 
 indeed, must have been the force of a character, which, 
 in a comparatively short period, made itself so exten- 
 sively felt. It shows what may be accomplished by a 
 constant mind, even when bodily powers are failing. 
 The remembrance of his exertions for the good of 
 others is often, I may truly say, an almost unwelcome 
 monitor to myself, for it has so happened that my name 
 has taken the place of his in several associations con- 
 nected with our service. We all need the injunction not 
 to * be weary in well doing,* and he seems never to have 
 wearied. Most glad am I that it fell to Lord Aberdeen, 
 as Prime Minister, to appoint him to Greenwich. I 
 think I may venture to say it was a satisfaction to 
 himself, to believe that, in conferring on Sir Edward 
 the reward of his character and services, he was, at the 
 same time, benefiting the Institution of which he made 
 him Lieutenant-Governor. How far his Lordship was 
 correct in his belief may be judged from the manner in 
 which the name and memory of Sir Edward Parry are 
 revered in Greenwich Hospital ! " 
 
 During his residence at Greenwich, Sir Edward 
 interested himself in the revival of a " Ladies' Bene- 
 volent Society ** in the Hospital, for the purpose of 
 visiting and relieving the families of the out-door 
 pensioners. Nothing discouraged by some minor 
 difficulties which awaited him at the outset, he 
 entered into the scheme with such goodwill, that his 
 zeal communicated itself to others, and he had the 
 
x^ 
 
 R\. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 1854.] 
 
 GREENWICH. 
 
 377 
 
 racter, which, 
 jelf so exton- 
 nplished by a 
 s are failing. 
 
 the good of 
 st unwelcome 
 that my name 
 relations con- 
 inj unction not 
 lever to have 
 ►rd Aberdeen, 
 reenwich. I 
 itisfaction to 
 
 Sir Edward 
 e was, at the 
 lich he made 
 -^ordship was 
 he manner in 
 ird Parry are 
 
 Sir Edward 
 adies' Bene- 
 purpose of 
 be out-door 
 lome minor 
 outset, he 
 ill, that his 
 he had the 
 
 satisfaction of seeing that his efforts for the welfare 
 of his humbler brethren were ably seconded. " All," 
 he wrote, " have entered upon the cause most cor- 
 dially ; and I trust it may be a comfort to many a 
 poor wife and child." 
 
 On more than one occasion, he was present at the 
 meetings held in Greenwich by one of the London 
 City Missionaries, for the benefit of the pensioners 
 exclusively. He afterwards succeeded in procuring 
 a larger room for the purpose, the men themselves 
 contributing to pay the rent. 
 
 " At our lecture the other evening," he writes, " about 
 ninety persons were present, all, with one or two 
 exceptions, our old friends the pensioners. The most 
 devout feeling seemed to prevail, and I believe it to 
 have been genuine. In the course of the evening, I 
 addressed them on the gratification I felt in seeing 
 them thus engaged, as a proof that they cared for their 
 souls, and, after expatiating a little on the only way of 
 salvation, exhorted them to continue in that way, and to 
 show their faith by their works, — works, not as meri- 
 torious in themselves, but as a test of the sincerity of 
 their profession as followers of the Redeemer. After 
 all was over, two or three of the old men came and shook 
 hands with me, and, curiously enough, one of them 
 proved to have been with me in * La Hogue's * boats 
 (under Coote), when he and I got our medals. The poor 
 old man was quite affectionate to me." 
 
 III, 
 ,1' 
 
 ii':: 
 
 i il:^ 
 
 .11 ,1: 
 
 II r It 
 
378 
 
 MEMOIllS OF SIR W. E. rAIiUV. 
 
 [1854. 
 
 )::i/ 
 
 I V' 
 
 To Sir Edward's family and friends, his appoint- 
 ment as Lieutenant-Governor of Greenwich was 
 very gratifying. They regarded it as the well-earned 
 reward of more than half a century spent in his 
 country's service; and, while they rejoiced to see 
 him, as he said, " at length moored for life in a snug 
 harbour,'* they could not help indulging the hope 
 that many years of ease and usefulness were yet be- 
 fore him. But it had been otherwise appointed, and 
 never was seen more strongly the truth of his own 
 favourite maxim, ** man proposes, and God disposes." 
 
 In the summer of 1854, London and its suburbs 
 were severely visited with Asiatic cholera. In the 
 Hospital itself it found its victims, though its ravages 
 there were not so great as in the surrounding localities. 
 Towards the end of August, Sir Edward was himself 
 attacked with the premonitory symptoms, which, 
 though soon brought under control, seemed to be 
 the exciting cause of his suffering and fatal disorder. 
 At first, no serious apprehension was felt ; though 
 it proved a complete bar to all his active habits, 
 occasioning almost constant pain, and seriously dis- 
 turbing his rest at night. Under the watchful and 
 affectionate care of Sir John Liddell, no means were 
 left untried to alleviate the malady ; but, notwith- 
 
1854.] 
 
 ILLNESS. 
 
 379 
 
 standing, it seemed to gain ground instead of de- 
 creasing. During this autumn, he was ahle to 
 transact the routine business of the Hospital, in the 
 absence of Sir James Gordon, the Governor, and 
 attended regularly, as chairman, the weekly meetings 
 of a society for the relief of tlie families of sailors 
 engaged in the war, in the formation of which he 
 had himself been mainly instrumental; but these 
 efforts were not made without severe suffering. On 
 the 6th of November he wrote, *' I am much the 
 same; certainly no sensible improvement. Do not 
 forget me in your prayers, that calm, childlike sub- 
 mission may be given me." 
 
 In the midst of this fiery trial, the brightness of 
 his Christian resignation shone forth as clearly as 
 ever. " God's will be done I " was the prayer ever 
 in his heart, and constantly on his lips. " If He 
 wills," he would say to those whom he saw grieving 
 on his account, " 1 shall recover ; but my times are 
 in His hands." A friend, who saw him at this time, 
 writes ; — " That visit of ours in the spring to 
 Greenwich was a special privilege. How cheerful, 
 and manly, and noble, his bearing under such severe 
 chastening! We were most thankful to have had 
 that sight of him, so near the time when he was 
 
380 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. rAUUV. 
 
 [1855. 
 
 ri'ii 
 
 to be taken from this paHsing world of uure. It left 
 impressions never to be forgotten." 
 
 His attention had latterly been directed towards 
 a celebrated German doctor, who had been successful 
 ill his treatment of a similar case with which Sir 
 
 Edward was acquainted ; and Dr. S being called 
 
 to England in the spring of 1855, he U ^ tve oppor- 
 tunity of consulting him. 
 
 On the 1 9th of May, Lady Parry w i ites : — 
 
 " It is now quite fixed that we go to Ems this day 
 fortnight. Dr. S., who lodged here last night, holds out 
 good hope of great benefit, and says that he regards it as 
 a curable case. Many hearts will, I know, be helpers 
 together by prayer on our behalf." 
 
 In all the preparations for the journey Sir Edward 
 took an active share, superintending the various 
 arrangements, and with his own hand writing ihe 
 directions for the different packages. On Wednes- 
 day, the 23rd of May, the party, consisting of Sir 
 Edward and Lady Parry, accompanied by those of 
 their children who were able to leave England at 
 the time, em^ ; rkcd at Greenwich on board the 
 Rotterdam st v. ., r-Tneatl^ aoping that the de- 
 sired boon ot his recovery might be in store for 
 them. The exertion of the voyage proved, however, 
 too much for his enfeebled powers. " The very day 
 
i8sa.] 
 
 EMU. 
 
 38 L 
 
 of our arrival at Rotterdam," writes Lady Parry, 
 " hi^ strength seemed to fail so suddenly, that It was 
 => if a thli shell had been worn tlirough, and it were 
 found hollow undern* Uh." They remained a day 
 at Rotterdam ; and, the next morning, et Marked 
 once more in the Rhine steamer. 
 
 " Sir Edward and I," continues Lady Parry, *• had tM 
 pavilion to ourselves. We made up a bed for hi;n witla 
 a soft mattress on the sofa, where ho lay with 8( auch 
 case, that wo determined on Saturday not to qu. fhe 
 boat, and all slept on board that night. At six a.m. ' n 
 Sunday (Whit Sunday), w*^ reached Diisseldorf. 'i 
 town was filled with feast keepers and holiday mak *, 
 so that only at an extravags/nt cost could wo get om - 
 selves supplied with rooms, but there was no alter 
 native." 
 
 On Monday evening, they arrived at Coblenz. 
 and it was an inexpressible relief to be able to send 
 
 at once for Dr. S , who resided at Ehrenbreitstein. 
 
 The effects of this "weary and anxious journey" 
 were so plainly visible in Sir Edward's weakened con- 
 dition, that for some days they wt re obliged to remain 
 at Coblenz, and it was not until June 5th that they 
 were able to reach Ems, where tae rest of the party- 
 were already established. This was accomplished in 
 
 an easy carriage, Dr. S himself accompanying 
 
 them. His opinion of the case w is, at first, by no 
 
'-', 
 
 382 
 
 MEMOIKS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1855. 
 
 ^f 
 
 I 
 
 ll 
 
 means unfavourable ; and he hoped that, when the 
 
 fatigue had passed off, there might be sufficient 
 
 strength of constitution left to rally from the present 
 
 state of complete prostration. These hopes, however, 
 
 soon proved delusive. For the first three weeks, 
 
 he was able to walk daily to the baths: but each 
 
 day his strength continued to diminish, until even 
 
 this small exertion had to be given up. In a letter 
 
 to her brother, the Rev. E. F. E. Hankinson, who 
 
 had kindly offered to join her at Ems, Lady Parry 
 
 says : — \ 
 
 "Ems, June 20. 1855. 
 
 " I now write to claim your kind offer to come to our 
 
 help. I cannot conceal from myself that the weakness 
 
 has been steadily, and, I must say, greatly increased 
 
 and I detect tokens of its extent, which at times startle 
 
 me. The voice is so altered, and the speech sometimes 
 
 so indistinct, that I can with difficulty understand him. 
 
 There is also a certain degree of vail and dreaminess 
 
 over the dear mind. Alas, alas ! my hope is faint as to 
 
 the rallying power that remains, but we know that it ma?/ 
 
 be, and, if right, will be. ' He who spared not his own 
 
 son, shall He not freely give us all things ? ' He cannot 
 
 bear much reading or talking, but we have daily a little 
 
 service together, consisting of a few verses and prayer^ 
 
 He is in very frequent prayer himself, but, I think, low 
 
 in natural spirits. Two or three hymns from the 
 
 * Spiritual Songs ' he likes much, — * I lay my sins on 
 
 Jesus,' * My times are in Thy hands,' 85c." 
 
RY. 
 
 [1855. 
 
 1855.] 
 
 EMS. 
 
 383 
 
 lat, when the 
 
 be sufficient 
 
 m the present 
 
 pes, however, 
 
 three weeks, 
 
 hs: but each 
 
 h, until even 
 
 In a letter 
 
 nkinson, who 
 
 Lady Parry 
 
 t 
 
 June 20. 1855. 
 
 to come to our 
 
 t the weakness 
 
 atly increased^ 
 
 t times startle 
 
 3ch sometimes 
 
 derstand him. 
 
 nd dreaminess 
 
 is faint as to 
 
 ow that it may 
 
 not his own 
 
 He cannot 
 
 daily a little 
 
 s and prayer^ 
 
 I think, low 
 
 ns from the 
 
 my sins on 
 
 I » 
 
 And again : — 
 
 "Eras, June 21. 1855. 
 
 " liiL^ tidings must be of steady, and surely increasing 
 
 weakness, and a look, that cannot be mistaken, of failing 
 
 nature. I said to him this morning, after reading a fcAv 
 
 verses of John xiv., * I do not feel as though this illness 
 
 were for recovery.' * Oh, no,' he said, * I think not.' 
 
 ' Are you willing to depart, and go to Jesus ? ' * Oh, I 
 
 long for it, I long for it, I am sorry to say ! ' ' No,' I 
 
 answered, * not sorry, — and we would fain be willing to 
 
 let you go, — only pray for us, that we may follow after, 
 
 and, with not one lost, be a family in Heaven.* With 
 
 great emphasis he said, * Not one will be lost, for they 
 
 are all beloved of the Lord ! ' * What a mercy it is,' I 
 
 added, ' that you have not now to seek a Saviour ! ' 
 
 Again, with much emphasis, he replied, ' Oh, it is indeed! 
 
 but I have known Him, I trust, long ago, and now my 
 
 whole trust is in Him.' " 
 
 By the end of June, those of his children, who had 
 hitherto been unable to leave England, arrived at 
 Ems, so that all his family, with the exception of 
 his sailor son and his married step-daughter, were 
 now gathered round him, and the increasing weak- 
 ness of their beloved parent warned them too 
 surely that the closing scene must be near at hand. 
 On Saturday, the 7th of July, Mr. Hankinson writes 
 to his father : — 
 
 " I almost expected, when I last wrote to you, that 
 my next letter would tell you that it was all over, and 
 
384 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1855. 
 
 •)>. , 
 
 F> ^ 
 
 
 that our beloved brother had been released from the 
 sufferings of the flesh, and I think you would almost 
 expect it also. However, it is not so, — he is still with us ; 
 but we cannot expect that it will go on much longer : 
 indeed, we ought not to desire it, for, from time to time, 
 he has renewed and severe trial and suffering, and his 
 prayer for himself is, * Father, in Thine own good time 
 receive me to Thy mercy ! ' 
 
 " This morning, we all assembled round his bed, and 
 I administered the Sacrament to him. I trust it was a 
 comforting and strengthening privilege. He is ready! 
 What an inexpressible comfort is this ! There is no 
 intermixture of doubt in him, or for him. I trust that 
 the Lord is with us ; and He will not leave nor for- 
 sake us." 
 
 In a short conversation with Lady Parry, in the 
 course of this same Saturday morning, he said, 
 earnestly, " I can only say that in Christ, and Him 
 crucified, is all my salvation and all my desire." 
 " Yes," she said, " that is as He would have it, that 
 all but Himself should be as nothing." " Oh," he 
 replied, " nothing, nothing, — I sweep It all away ! 
 He Is all my salvation, and all my desire ! " Again, 
 when the conversation turned on the prospect of his 
 speedy departure, " Oh yes ! I long for It I my desire 
 is to slip away, — to slip into the arms of my 
 precious Saviour, and I think I shall soon slip out of 
 
1855.] 
 
 DEATH. 
 
 385 
 
 your hands." Shortly afterwards, he added, with 
 characteristic earnestness, " Mind, let there be no 
 death-bed scene I " She asked if he would not like 
 to have his children round him. "Yes," he an- 
 swered, " but take care, take care ! " 
 
 Late on Saturday night he seemed sinking. A 
 few words of prayer were offered up at his bedside, 
 of which he was conscious, but too exhausted to 
 speak, except once, when he was overheard to 
 murmur " the chariots and horses ! " evidently under 
 the impression of liis own immediate release. After 
 a while, however, he rallied, and sank into a quiet 
 sleep, which lasted with only occasional interruptions 
 through the night. That night was the last he ever 
 spent on earth. The next morning, at half-past 
 nine, on Sunday, the 8th of July, he entered on 
 '* the rest which remaineth for the people of God." 
 His last hours were mercifully free from pain, and 
 he remained conscious to the last, until, with a 
 gentle sigh, the lingering spirit *' slipped," according 
 to his own earnest desire, " into his Saviour's arms." 
 His course was finished, the victory won, and the 
 faithful servant entered into the joy of his Lord ! 
 
 In the course of the same week, the sorrowing 
 family left Ems, a place henceforth hallowed to them 
 by its many touching associations, and, early on the 
 
 c c 
 
 v»i- 
 
386 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 [1855. 
 
 h' 
 
 i 
 
 next Sunday, reached Greenwich, bringing with 
 them the dear remains. The funeral took place on 
 the following Thursday, July 19th. The following 
 is from the pen of a near relative who attended : — 
 
 "London, July 20. 1855. 
 
 " Yesterday passed off very much as you would suppose. 
 It was a large funeral^ and well arranged. The proces- 
 sion left the Lieutenant-Governor's house soon after 
 twelve. In front of the coffin (on which lay his hat and 
 sword) marched a regiment of pensioners, with furled 
 flags, and craped drums. As soon as we left the house, a 
 large number of officers, connected with the Hospital, fell 
 in from the council room, and arctic officers not a few, 
 — M*Clure, Collinson, Kellett, Austin, &c. We first 
 proceeded to the chapel, where the chaplain read the 
 service, and then to the Mausoleum in the burial ground 
 belonging to the Hospital. His coffin rests by the side 
 of the late Governor, Sir Charles Adam, and upon that 
 of Sir Robert Stopford. 
 
 " This terminates the sad story. A * mighty man of 
 valour,' a ' father in Israel,' a faithful servant of the 
 Lord Jesus, whose light hath shone brightly before 
 men, and whose record is on high, was, on this day, 
 consigned to his last resting-place among the honoured 
 of the earth, and there awaits the morning of a bright 
 and glorious resurrection ! " 
 
 A tablet has been erected to his memory in the 
 Mausoleum of the cemetery at Greenwich, and 
 
 Ih^ 
 
RY. 
 
 [1855. 
 
 1855.] 
 
 CONCLUSION. 
 
 387 
 
 ringing with 
 took place on 
 Che following 
 it tended : — 
 
 , July 20. 1855. 
 would suppose. 
 . The proces- 
 ise soon after 
 lay his hat and 
 rs, with furled 
 eft the house, a 
 le Hospital, fell 
 ers not a few, 
 
 &c. We first 
 plain read the 
 5 burial ground 
 its by the side 
 
 and upon that 
 
 nighty man of 
 
 servant of the 
 
 •rightly before 
 
 on this day, 
 
 the honoured 
 
 ng of a bright 
 
 emory in the 
 3enwich, and 
 
 another at Tunbridge Wells, close to that of his 
 first wife. 
 
 "we bless thy holy name, olord, for all thy 
 servants departed this life in thy faith and fear ; 
 beseeching thee to give us grace so to follow 
 their good examples, that, with them, we may be 
 partakers of thy heavenly kingdom." 
 
 C C 2 
 
'I' 
 
V 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 Page 323. 
 
 lecture delivered at iiaslar, 
 June 13. 1852. 
 
 Acts xxvii. 
 
 The Apostle Paul, having taken advantage of his rights, 
 as a Roman citizen, to appeal to Caesar, the Roman 
 Emperor, against the malicious injustice and violent per- 
 secution of his own countrymen, the Jews, — it was now 
 determined to send him as a prisoner to Rome for this 
 purpose, although King Agrippa, before whom he had 
 made his defence, did, in fact, pronounce him guiltless. 
 More honourable and satisfactory evidence of his inno- 
 cence Paul could not liave desired ! 
 
 The chapter on which we are tliis evening entering, — 
 one of the most interesting portions of the history of the 
 Acts of the Apostles, — contains the account of Paul's 
 perilous voyage on his way to Rome ; but, before we 
 commence it, I cannot help reminding you in how won- 
 derful and altogether unexpected a manner the Lord's 
 purpose. His promised and declared purpose, that Paul 
 
 c c 3 
 
390 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIB W. E. PARRY. 
 
 sliould go to Rome, was now al)Out to be accomplished. At 
 the very time when, as we are told, he was actually in 
 danger of being " pulled in pieces " by the people, on 
 account of his faithfulness to Christ, and the chief 
 captain ordered him to be taken by force, and brought 
 into the castle for the security of his life, — under these 
 fearful circumstances of peril it was that " he was to 
 bear witness also at Rome." But who would have con- 
 jectured how this was to be brought about? Who could 
 have predicted that Paul, who was to be a witness for 
 Christ at Rome, should go there as a prisoner ? Truly, 
 " God's ways are not our ways ; " they are, indeed, " past 
 finding out ! " ' 
 
 I propose to consider, this evening, the whole account 
 of this remarkable transaction, because it is so full of 
 interest, especially to sea-faring people, and because it is 
 not easy to divide so connected a story into separate 
 portions. Let us now endeavour, by God*s blessing, to de- 
 rive son'« benefit from it to our own souls. And I think 
 that such benefit may be ours, by our considering, with 
 serious attention, the conduct of Paul, the servant of the 
 Lord Jesus Christ, under the various circumstances of 
 difficulty, danger, and trial, in which he was placed. 
 And this will naturally lead us to contemplate the faith- 
 fulness of the Lord to all His promises in behalf of His 
 servants. 
 
 L Let us look at Paul's coolness, presence of mind, 
 and holy courage, in the midst of the most appalling 
 danger. Everybody knows — and some here may per- 
 haps know by experience, — that a shipwreck in a gale of 
 
IRY. 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 391 
 
 omplished. At 
 ivas actually in 
 the people, on 
 and the chief 
 se, and brought 
 , — under these 
 at "he was to 
 ould have con- 
 t? Who could 
 e a witness for 
 soner ? Truly, 
 I, indeed, " past 
 
 1 whole account 
 
 it is so full of 
 
 id because it is 
 
 r into separate 
 
 blessing, to de- 
 
 And I think 
 
 nsidering, with 
 
 servant of the 
 
 rcumstances of 
 
 le was placed. 
 
 slate the faith- 
 
 i behalf of His 
 
 ence of mind, 
 most appalling 
 here may per- 
 3ck in a gale of 
 
 wind, with a heavy sea, and on unknown and dangerous 
 coastj is no light matter. But even those among us 
 who do, perhaps, know something of this peril can 
 form but a very faint idea of what the danger was in 
 Paul's time, with ill constructed, and badly found vessels, 
 without the art and the discipline which give us such 
 great advantage. There can be no doubt that, under 
 such circumstances, their danger was even greater than 
 ours ; and their hope of escaping with their lives much 
 less. In fact, such was their state of peril, that Paul, 
 in describing it, says that " all hope that we should 
 be saved was taken away," i. c, humanly speaking, there 
 seemed no possibility of escape, — human means seemed 
 unavailing, and the people of the ship had given up all 
 hope, seeing no prospect before them but that of certain 
 and inevitable destruction ! 
 
 But now mark the conduct of the servant of God ! 
 Imagine a little vessel beating about among shoals, at 
 the mercy of the winds and waves, in a gale so violent 
 that they could carry no sail.* And again, when the 
 sailors tried to desert their comrades in the hour of peril, 
 and Paul remonstrated against this cowardly conduct, 
 then we read, even at the very height of the danger, 
 Paul besought them all to take meat, and to be of good 
 cheer. Now this, I say, is an instance of uncommon 
 coolness and courageous presence of mind. And what 
 did it all proceed from ? My dear friends, the narrative 
 does not leave us for a moment in doubt upon that point. 
 
 * V. 17. 
 c c 4 
 
 V 
 
392 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 I't: 
 
 It was not mere animal courage, — by which I mean that 
 quality which, liowever valuable, the lower animals 
 possess in common with man, and often in a much 
 higher degree than man. It was not simply tliis; it was 
 a holy trust in God ; a firm confidence in His power, 
 His mercy, and in tlie faithfulness of His promises. The 
 ground of Paul's confidence may all be summed up in 
 one brief sentence of his, " I believe God, that it shall 
 be even as it was told me."* Yes, my friends, faith 
 in God is the source of the highest order of courage, of 
 that moral courage which dit-tinguishes man from the 
 brute creation. The f^omises of God to His people, the 
 promises of His me:ey and love to all who belong to 
 Christ Jesus, His Son, are so numerous, so strong, so 
 distinct, that I do not suppose any reasonable man, who 
 believes the Bible to be God's Word, would, in so many 
 words, venture to doubt or dispute them. But faith, 
 living scripnual faith, goes farther than this. It is not 
 merei^ an admis?ion of the truth, but it is acting upon it, 
 actinjj up to it : and this acting up to the truth is holy 
 courage and confidence in time of need. It is not merely 
 saying we believe in God's promises, but showing that 
 we believe them, as Paul did, when the time of trial 
 comes. It is easy enough to talk of faith in God, when 
 all is smooth, and quiet, and safe around us ; but it is 
 only the Christian warrior who can say, when the blasts 
 of affliction, and the waves of sickness or sorrow arc 
 beating upon him, "I believe God, that it shall be even 
 
 
 * V. 25. 
 
 
 I 
 
RY. 
 
 APl'i!.NDIX. 
 
 ch I mean that 
 
 lower animals 
 
 n in a much 
 
 Iv tliis; it was 
 
 in His power, 
 
 remises. The 
 
 summed up in 
 
 d, that it shall 
 
 friends, faith 
 
 of courage, of 
 
 man from the 
 
 [lis people, the 
 
 vho belong to 
 
 so strong, so 
 
 ible man, who 
 
 Id, in so many 
 
 1. But faith, 
 
 lis. It is not 
 
 icting upon it, 
 
 truth is holy 
 
 is not merely 
 
 showing that 
 
 time of trial 
 
 in God, when 
 
 us ; but it is 
 
 len the blasts 
 
 r sorrow arc 
 
 shall be even 
 
 ns it was told mc," — told mo in His Holy ' ord, wt no 
 every assurance is faithfulness and truth . IMy ear 
 friends, if you wish to possess this confidence, this holy 
 courage, cultivate that faith in God's promises, which is 
 alone able to produce it. It is a high and a blessed 
 attainment to be able to say from the heart, •' I believe 
 God, that it shall be even as it was told me !" 
 
 And, observe, as a proof that this was the source of 
 Paul's courageous bearing in the hour of danger, that 
 he ascribes it all to God. Paul may have been, and 
 probably was, naturally a bold man. His whole history 
 seems to imply that he was. But we do not see here any 
 boasting of his natural courage, nor any reference to it. 
 God had said to him " Fear not Paul," and Paul did not 
 fear. God had said "I have given thee all that sail 
 with thee," and Paul did not doubt it. Self was wholly 
 out of the question, — all had reference to God. Let us 
 learn from this, my friends, to ascribe all that we have, 
 and all that we are, to Him who has given us all we 
 have, and who has made us what we are. If success 
 attend our worldly occupations, if a blessing rest upon 
 our lawful endeavours, if we are enabled to avoid danger, 
 or are safely delivered from it when it comes ; in each 
 and every case, let us be sure to recognise the eye that 
 watches, and the hand that guards us, and let the language 
 of our inmost souls be ever this, "Not unto us, O Lord, 
 not unto us, but unto Thy name give the glory, for Thy 
 mercy, and for Thy truth's sake ! " 
 
 II. Next, then, let us notice, as I proposed, how 
 faithful God is to His promises. Paul knew that he was 
 
394 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 I 
 
 dealing with a faitliful God, when he said, "I believe 
 God, that it shall be even as it was told me," and his 
 hope was not disappointed. Nor shall the hope of any 
 bo disappointed, who lean upon the promises of God. 
 The promises of man are full of uncertainty and doubt, 
 a constant source of disappointment, in some shape or 
 other, and from a variety of causes. How often do we 
 see a promise made, and wantonly broken 1 How often 
 does it turn out that a person is unable to perform his 
 promise! A thousand contingencies may cause the 
 failure of one man's promises to another. But this can 
 never bo the case with the promises of God. In God 
 there can never be eitiier the want of power, or the want 
 of will. He is both willing and able to fulfil, to the 
 uttermost, whatever His word is pledged to accomplish. 
 *'He is not a man that He should lie, nor vthe son of 
 man that He should repent." " Hath He said, and shall 
 He not do it, or hath He not spoken, and shall He not 
 make it good ? " However adverse the circumstances 
 may be, to all human appearance, however unlikely the 
 accomplishment of the divine promises may, at any time, 
 seem to our limited apprehension, yet " the word of the 
 Lord standeth sure," and " not one jot or one tittle " of 
 what He hath spoken shall ever fail. It was in the 
 midst of the most appalling danger that the angel of God 
 stood by Paul, and assured him not only of his own 
 preservation, but of the safety of every soul embarked in 
 that ill-fated ship. Nothing could be more improbable. 
 No peril could well be greater. Probably Paul was the 
 only individual out of the ** two hundred threescore and 
 
r. 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 395 
 
 , "I believe 
 me," and his 
 hope of any 
 ises of God. 
 y and doubt, 
 me shape or 
 often do we 
 
 How often 
 perform his 
 y cause the 
 But this can 
 )d. In God 
 or the want 
 ulfil, to the 
 
 accomplish. 
 
 vthe son of 
 d, and shall 
 hall He not 
 rcumstances 
 unlikely the 
 Eit any time, 
 Yord of the 
 e tittle " of 
 was in the 
 ngel of God 
 of his own 
 mbarked in 
 improbable, 
 ml was the 
 3escore and 
 
 sixteen souls" on board, who believed in the possibility 
 of their being saved. But the Lord had said it. His 
 word was passed, and that was enough, The storm was 
 violent, the sea was fearful, and the land was under their 
 lee ; but lie, at whose command the tempest blew and 
 the waves arose, was stronger than they, " and so," we 
 read, "it came to pass that they escaped all safe to 
 land." 
 
 But now I want you to observe, from the narrative 
 before us, to whom it is that the promises of God's 
 gracious protection are most especially, if not exclusively, 
 made. On this occasion we are not told that any such 
 assurance was given to any but one, out of the 276 
 persons who were placed in this dreadful jeopardy, and 
 that one was the servant of God ! Mark that well, my 
 dear friends. One man received a gracious intimation 
 that in spite of the disastrous predicament in which 
 their ship was placed, all should end well. The other 275 
 received no such intimation ; and the ground of this 
 selection of one man, out of so large a number, is clearly 
 set forth in one expression used by Paul, in encouraging 
 his affrighted shipmates. He says, "there stood by me 
 this night the angel of God, whose I am, and whom I 
 serve." There was the secret of this marvellous trans- 
 action. Yes, my friends, the gracious promises of 
 Almighty God are specially made to those who are 
 His, to those who serve Him! The "eyes of the 
 Lord are," in a special sense, "over the righteous, 
 and His ears open unto their prayers." It is true 
 indeed, that " He makes His sun to shine on the evil and 
 
If 
 
 n 
 
 ^i 
 
 II 
 
 39G 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 on the good, and sends His rain on the just and unjust," 
 but, while these ordinary gifts of His providence are thus 
 scattered with a liberal and bounteous hand upon all, it 
 is to His own servants, to the people of Christ, to the 
 sheep of His dear Son's flock, that He dispenses, in 
 richest abundance, all the blessings both of His pro- 
 vidence and His grace. To all such He addresses the 
 language which he addressed to His chosen people of old, 
 "He that toucheth you, toucheth the apple of mine 
 eye."* "Whoso hearkeneth unto me," says the Lord, 
 *' shall dwell safely," — that, my friends, is just what we 
 all want, — " shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from 
 fear of evil." f 
 
 Let mo draw your attention to another circumstance 
 well worthy of our notice in this account of Paul's 
 shipwreck. God not only promised him that his own 
 life should ^e spared, in this great peril, but, said the 
 angel, "God hath given thee all them that sail with 
 thee." INIark that expression " hath given thee," clearly 
 implying that it was for Paul's sake that God was pleased 
 to spare their lives, — very likely in answer to Paul's 
 prayers, for we know " that the effectual, fervent prayer 
 of a rigiiteous man availeth much" with God ; and thus, 
 there can be no doubt, it often happens that the wicked 
 derive important benefits from being associated or con- 
 nected with Christians. God often confers important 
 benefits on the world at large, in the course of His 
 general purpose to benefit His own people. The wicked 
 
 * Zech. ii. 8. 
 
 t Prov. i. 33. 
 
 ■^ 
 
r. 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 397 
 
 and unjust," 
 snce are thus 
 upon all, it 
 lirist, to the 
 lispenses, in 
 )f His pro- 
 ddresses the 
 eople of old, 
 )le of mine 
 s the Lord, 
 ust what we 
 J quiet from 
 
 ircumstance 
 fc of Paul's 
 lat his own 
 ut, said the 
 it sail Avith 
 lee," clearly 
 was pleased 
 i* to Pciul's 
 vent prayer 
 ; and thus, 
 the wicked 
 ted or con- 
 important 
 se of His 
 ?he wicked 
 
 city of Sodom would have been spared, could ten righ- 
 teous men have been found within it. The Lord said, "I 
 will not destroy it for ten's sake." And thus, my dear 
 friends, it is a high and holy privilege to be related to 
 the servants of God, — to be the children of pious parents, 
 or to be connected with pious partners in life. Many a 
 husband, no doubt, has been spared, and saved, and 
 blessed, in pity to his pious wife, or his godly children. 
 It is a privilege to be connected with the friends of God 
 in business, to dwell near them, to be associated with 
 them in the various circumstances of life, whether pros- 
 perous or adverse. God, who crowns them with loving- 
 kindness and tender mercies, often fills the abodes of 
 their neighbours and friends with the blessings of peace 
 and salvation. 
 
 And then, again, we may here remark, that it is 
 possible for a pious man, like Paul, so to conduct himself 
 in the various trying scenes of life, the agitations, diffi- 
 culties, and temptations of this world, as to conciliate the 
 favour of worldly men, without compromising one prin- 
 ciple of Christian duty. " The soldiers' counsel was to 
 kill the prisoners ; but the centurion, willing to save 
 Paul, kept them from their purpose." Paul's conduct on 
 board the ship, the wisdom of his advice, the courage and 
 prudence he displayed in the midst of the most appalling 
 danger, and, probably, the belief that he was under the 
 divine protection and blessing, — all these considerations 
 disposed the centurion to save his life ; and thus, for 
 the sake of this righteous man, the lives of all the 
 prisoners were spared. And all experience shows that 
 
 a- 
 
398 
 
 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 il 
 
 consistent Christian conduct, however despised and 
 ridiculed by worldly and wicked men, will, especially in 
 times of diflficulty and trial, secure, in the end, the 
 respect and esteem even of those who know little or 
 nothing of the power of Christianity in their own 
 hearts. 
 
 And, lastly, let me direct your attention to the fact, 
 that no assurance of divine help and protection made 
 Paul careless in the use of proper means for his preserva- 
 tion. We have seen this on several occasions in the 
 course of this history, but in none more strikingly than 
 in this shipwreck. To say nothing of Paul's prudent 
 remonstrance, and advice to them not to sail at all, you 
 may observe the same wise precaution in the use of 
 means, even after he had received the assurance of the 
 Lord's protection. When the crew of the vessel were 
 about to desert the ship in their boat, Paul did not look 
 quietly on, as if it were of no importance whether they 
 went away or not ; but he said to the centurion, " Except 
 these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved." And in 
 the same way, when they had been fasting so long as to 
 reduce their strength, Paul said, " I pray you to take 
 some meat, for this is for your health ; " and this, though, 
 in dependence on God's promise, he could, immediately, 
 and with the utmost confidence, add, " there shall not an 
 hair fall from the head of any of you ! " 
 
 From this we learn that we have no right to neglect 
 the means for accomplishing any lawful purpose. How- 
 ever certain an event may be in the divine counsels, and 
 however distinctly revealed and promised, yet man's 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 399 
 
 ;;spised and 
 jspecially in 
 he end, the 
 3W little or 
 their own 
 
 to the fact, 
 action made 
 lis preserva- 
 uons in the 
 ikingly than 
 ul's prudent 
 1 at all, you 
 the use of 
 •ance of the 
 vessel were 
 lid not look 
 hether they 
 n, "Except 
 I." And in 
 long as to 
 rou to take 
 his, though, 
 mmediately, 
 shall not an 
 
 to neglect 
 3se. How- 
 >unsels, and 
 
 yet man's 
 
 agency is always necessary and proper. The means are 
 determined as well as the end, and the one will not be 
 secured without the other. And, remember, the same 
 is true ns to God's counsels in regard to our salvation. 
 The end is not determined without the means. As God 
 has ordained that His people shall be saved, so He has 
 also ordained the means. He has ordained that they 
 shall use His Word, His ordinances, prayer; He has 
 ordained that they shall repent, shall believe, shall be 
 holy, shall bring forth the fruits of repentance, faith, and 
 holiness, and thus shall be saved. To the diligent use of 
 means God has promised His blessing, and, without 
 these means, no blessing is to be expected. Therefore, 
 says the Apostle, "work out your own salvation with 
 fear and trembling," — here is the exhortation to man's 
 diligence, — and then Ve adds (not as an encouragement to 
 idleness, but as a stimulus to exertion) "ybr it is God that 
 worketh in you both to will and to do of His good 
 pleasure." 
 
 And now, my friends, we have seen with what holy 
 confidence, with what cool, undaunted courage, the 
 servant of God can meet the most appalling danger. 
 We have seen, too, how faithfully the Lord performs His 
 promises to His people. And this applies to all God's 
 faithful servants as much as to Paul. And is not this 
 confidence — is not this assurance of safety worth pos- 
 sessing? — to be able to say, "I know that God is my 
 friend, * a friend that sticketh closer than a brother,' " — 
 His I am, and Him I serve, and, therefore, I know that 
 His eye continually watches over me, that His hand is 
 
400 
 
 MEMOIRS OP SIR W. E. PARRY. 
 
 ever stretched out for my good, — I know that, come 
 what will, let the storms of affliction blow upon me ever 
 so rudely, He who said to Paul, in the midst of the 
 tempest, " Fear not ! " will magnify His power in ray 
 deliverance, will, certainly, make "all things work 
 together" for my best, my eternal welfare? Yes, my 
 dear friends, and we shall soon, very soon, need all that 
 holy confidence, all that assurance of the divine love and 
 protection, which none but the servants of God can 
 experience. It is an easy thing, while life, and health, 
 and prosperity are granted to us, to treat these matters 
 lightly, and view them with indifference ; but oh ! let 
 us look ahead, my friends, let us look beyond the present 
 moment and the present scene ! The present moment is 
 gone while we are talking about it. The present scene 
 will change before we are aware of it. All may be 
 smooth, and calm, and quiet with you now, but what do 
 you do at sea, when all is smooth, and calm, and quiet? 
 Why, you put your rigging to rights, you repair your 
 sails, you set all in order, while you have the opportunity : 
 and why ? Because you know very well that the calm 
 will not last for ever, that it cannot last long, and, 
 therefore, you prepare for the next gale, and the next 
 lee shore ! My dear friends, I beseech you, '* by the 
 mercies of God," to do the same by your souls ! How- 
 ever smooth and unruffled may be the ocean of your life 
 now, it cannot always be so. Even in this world, the 
 storms of affliction will come, the billows of trial will 
 beat upon you, the rude blasts of suffering will assail 
 you. It is the common lot of humanity, and you cannot 
 
 U 
 
LY. 
 
 iw that, come 
 upon me ever 
 
 midst of the 
 power in ray 
 things work 
 J? Yes, my 
 need all that 
 vine love and 
 
 of God can 
 B, and health, 
 these matters 
 , but oh! let 
 d the present 
 nt moment is 
 present scene 
 
 All may be 
 
 but what do 
 1, and quiet? 
 
 repair your 
 opportunity : 
 lat the calm 
 long, and, 
 nd the next 
 ou, '' by the 
 ouls ! How- 
 1 of your life 
 s world, the 
 of trial will 
 g will assail 
 1 you cannot 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 401 
 
 
 be exempt from it. And, even then, you will find that 
 to lean upon any but your God for comfort, strength, 
 support, and help, is but to lean on a bi'oken reed. But, 
 my dear friends, a much worse, a much more terrible 
 storm is at hand. ''Upon the wicked God shall rain 
 snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest." 
 The impenitent and unbelieving sinner is described here. 
 Yes, my friends, that will be a storm indeed! a storm 
 against which no human art, or learning, or device of 
 any kind can prevail to shelter you ! Against that 
 storm, with all its terrific and eternal consequences, there 
 is but one thing can shield you, — "looking unto jesus," 
 — laying hold of the Lord Jesus Christ by faith, — 
 committing your souls to Him, as your Saviour-God. 
 This is what you must do to secure yourselves against 
 the storm of God's righteous indignation. Every other 
 refuge will prove *' a refuge of lies," whenever that 
 storm comes. As, in the days of Noah, the ark was the 
 only place of security when the floods of God's anger 
 poured down on this «=Mful earth, so, believe me, Christ 
 will be the only Ark which will bear you harmless in 
 that more tremendous flood, when "indignation and 
 wrath, tribulation and anguish," shall be poured upon 
 every soul of man that has not fled to the hope set 
 before it in the Gospel I Would to God, my friends, I 
 could, by any words of mine, persuade you to come into 
 this ark, and at once ! You know not when the storm 
 may come. Be, then, always ready. That is the way, 
 and the only way, to be always safe. Oh, do not trifle, 
 do not linger, do not live on, day by day, half-and-half 
 
 D D 
 
^> 
 
 402 MEMOIRS OF SIR W. E. PARRY, 
 
 Christians, meaning well, perhaps, but not acting boldly 
 and decisively, having no real dealing with Christ, no 
 personal transaction with the Saviour of sinners, and, 
 therefore, securing to yourselves no interest in His 
 great salvation! Oh, be wise in time I The Lord 
 Jesus is now inviting you to come to Him. His 
 message of mercy is before you. I beseech you, my 
 friends> if you have never come to Christ before, come to 
 Him now! Hear His gracious voice, "'Ho, every one 
 that thirsteth, come ye to the waters!" Believe that 
 "faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that 
 Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners ! " 
 Show that you do believe it, by acting up to it. The 
 Lord Jesus stands ready to save all who will be saved, 
 r U who will come unto God by Him. " Oh, it is a 
 blessed thing to belong to Christ, to be his people! 
 The hairs of their head are all numbered, and the Lord 
 cares for every one of them. They are all kept on earth 
 till they are ripe and ready for glory, and not one moment 
 longer.. No disease can touch them till the Lord gives 
 the word ! " * When they come to their deathbed, " the 
 everlasting arms " are round about them, and " make all 
 their bed in their sickness." And, when they die, they 
 breathe their last in their Redeemer's arms, they fall 
 asleep in Jesus, and are at once carried, like Lazarus, 
 into Abraham's bosom. In life and in death the true 
 believer realises, in his own happy experience, the ful- 
 filment of that sweet promise relating to Christ, " a man 
 
 • \ 
 -- ' ' * Rev. J. Kyle. 
 
 /> 
 
 
'^J 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 403 
 
 ing boldly 
 
 Christ, no 
 
 aerS) and, 
 
 3t in His 
 
 The Lord 
 
 [im. His 
 
 you, my 
 
 e, come to 
 
 every one 
 
 tlieve that 
 
 ition, that 
 
 sinners ! " 
 
 ) it. The 
 
 I be saved, 
 
 h, it is a 
 
 is people ! 
 
 the Lord 
 
 on earth 
 
 le moment 
 
 ord gives 
 
 bed, "the 
 
 make all 
 
 die, they 
 
 they fall 
 
 Lazarus, 
 
 the true 
 
 the ful- 
 
 shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert 
 from the tempest ; as rivers of water in a dry place, as 
 the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." * Oh, my 
 friends, make that man, the God-man, Christ Jesus, your 
 " hiding place from the wind," yourj" covert from the 
 tempest," and then you may say : — 
 
 " Then, let the wildest storms arise, 
 Let tempests mingle earth with skies, — ' 
 
 No fatal shipwreck shall I fear, 
 But all my treasures with me bear. 
 
 "If thou, my Saviour, still be nigh. 
 Cheerful I live, and cheerful die ; 
 Secure, when mortal comforts flee, 
 To find ten thousand worlds in thee I " 
 
 Isaiah, xxxii. 2. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 « 
 
 a man 
 
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