IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-S) A k ^^-^ ^d < iiry to the present time: and the vo- luminous works which have been published by the different explorers cover detached periods and single expeditions, beside being drawn out to undue length by the personal experience or interests of the writers. It is believed that this compendious narrative gives all needful details, and omits no important discovery in the ice-belts — while no individual adventurer or commander is exalted at the expense of his forerunners or compeers. The disasters which overtook so many ex- plorers, especially the parties of De Long and Greeley, led to the abandonment of the Interna- tional Signal Stations established in concert by most civilized nations, and no scientific circum- polar expeditions have been recently sent out. Except the projected journey of Col. Gilder an- nounced in the last pages of this volume the only efforts which have been made within the last two years, or which appear to be in contem- plation, to add to our knowledge of the Arctic re- gions, are the following: ll'346a PROViNCiAu. Li^i.-^AHY VICTOrilA, B. 0. ir PUBLISHER^ PRBFACE. Russia has observers stationed on the shores of the Arctic Ocean in Siberia — in the Lena Delta, along the Yana River, and in the New Siberian Islands where De Long s party landed on their way to starvation, cold and death. Denmark is still at work surveying her Green- land coasts; while Civil Engineer Peary, of the United States Navy, is preparing to penetrate the frozen wastes of Greenland, hitherto un- trodden, far inland, by any explorer except Nordenskiold's Lapps, who, in 1883, forced their way about 200 miles inland in the latitude of Disco, where they found the ice 6,000 feet above the sea, and still rising toward the east. It is thought that this ice mantle covers the whole interior of Greenland to a thickness of from 1,000 to 3,000 feet. Mr. Peary proposes to enter Greenland at the great Omenak fiord, and to travel east a little north of the route followed by Nor- DENSKiOLD, Until he reaches the head of Franz Josef fiord, on the east coast, where Petermann's Peak rises 11,000 feet above the ice-beleaguered sea. If he reache? this point, he may be able to determine the ice conditions of the island from thv5 west to the east coasts. Lieutenant Holm, the Danish traveler, found on the east coast of Greenland a hitherto unknown tribe of Eskimos. Dr. Boas in i883-'84, made several excursions along the coast and in the interior of Baffin Land, and he divides the Eskimos of that region into seven stems, which show considerable differ- ences in dialect, religious customs and habits. His miap is the first that records the native names of hundreds of localities, beside correct- ing many errors in previous charts. There are extensive regions in the Arctic that civilized men have never seen. Though the blight of perpetual winter reigns there, undis- turbed except by slight glimpses of summer, yet it is a wonderful archipelago of islands, bays, U PUBLISHER S PREFACE. :3. ^S. gfulfs, sounds, inlets, straits and seas. There are extensive tracts and coast lines which are almost a blank on the map of North America. King William Land is but little known; Boothia, where tlie magnetic pole is supposed to be located, is only a name on an unfamiliar chart; and when the traveler has passed through the Gulf of Boothia past Bellot Strait into Regent In- let and Lancaster Sound, and beyond it into North Levon, North Lincoln and EUesmere Land, he will have entered an unknown region which, stretching northwest and westward to Arthur Land (discovered and named by Greeley) will rewrird his daring with the meod of renown, if he sV' all succeed in its exploitation. Though no important additions may be made to our geographical or ethnological knowledge — yet an accurate map of that extensive coast and nest of islands, waters and ice-fields; and a descrip- tion of the natives, animals, grasses, or whatever other signs of life, animate or inanimate, that exist there, would be of manifest advantage to the world. The individual explorers who volun- tarily leave the haunts of civilized men to penetrate the inhospitable wilds and outskirts of the earth, will earn and receive greater honor than those who go at the beck of authority or under the auspices of any government. The renown of all great travelers has been achieved without the aid of national appropriations to defray their expenses, guard their lives, and in- sure their safe return — while the greatest disas- ters have attended expeditions which have been fitted out with elaborate preparations by great naval power. Col. Gilder, it may be, will stand a better chance of life if accompanied only by the Eskimos of Hudson Bay, and living on the game resdiirces of the country — and may thus reach a farther North — ^than if he were attended by well-manned, provisioned and armored ships- vi PUBLISHERS PREFACE. That a numerous party not inured to the rigors of the climate, and requiring iuborious exertions to supply them with food, is not fitted for Arctic explorations, has been proved by the wJiole his- tory of adventures in that region. A few years since the natives made a successful overland journey of over 3,000 miles, with Lieut. Schwatka and Col. Gilder, from Hudson Bay to King William Land, and back again without the loss of a life. Another attempt may be crowned with still greatersuccess,. and enable this hardy explorer to pierce the very centre of the Pole, and to write his name higher up on the scroll of fame than any of tlie illustrious navigators who have boldly gone into the Arctic night to die, or to suffer there and return. Since the U. S. Signal Station at Point Barrow, Alaska, was abandoned, by act of Congress, the United States Government has done comparative- ly nothing to explore and develop our own Arctic territory of Alaska, so rich in fisheries, furs, timbers i nines. But The New York Times — following- ..e notable example of The Herald^ which sent Stanley to Africa in search of Living- ston, and gave to the United States the unfortu- nate /ea«we//tf, in which De Long vainly attempted to penetrate the Arctic Ocean by wayof Behring's Straits — has recently dispatched (from Washing- ton Territory), Lieut. Frederick Schwatka, and Prof. William Libbey, Jr., of Princeton College, N. J., to explore for that journal the vSt. Elias Alps of Alaska. When they arrive at Sitka they will organize an expedition of white men and Indian guides, interpreters and laborers, and spend the rest of the summer in endeavors to explore the interior and ascend Mount Elias. Attention will be directed to the native tribes of Alaska, from whom it'^ is antici- pated much information of interest to ethnolo- gists may be derived. The main object of the publisher's prefacb. vtt ege, Uias they and and in cend the tici- lolo- the expedition, however, is geographical exploration in the St. Elias Alps, and the collection of such scientific and commercial information about the products and resources of Alaska as may be of value to the public. W. U A. New York, /une 29, 1886. * ,<- I, PREFACE. The records of maritime adventure and discovery con- stitute one of the most attractive pages in literature. Nearly three thousand years before the birth of Christ, the bold Tyrians and Phoenicians deserted the confines of their native continent to explore new realms, and to ob- tain from the then unknown land of Spain, tb«* means of augmented splendor, luxury and wealth. From ihat re- mote period, down through succeeding ages until the present, the most enterprising and daun^Teis of human spirits have found their congenial field of labor and ac- tivity in adventuring into untrodden and unfamiliar re- gions in search of riches, celebrity and conquest. It was this spirit which has in the past given birth to niany great states and empires. It was this spirit which planted Carthage on the northern shores of Africa, and eventur. iy rendered her the dangerous and not unworthy rival of Kome. It was this spirit which built Marseilles, Aries, Nismes, and many of the most important cities of France, which contain to this day Impressive monuments of Boman origin and supremacy. It was this spirit which made England pass successively under the resistless sway of her Roman, Saxon, Danish and Norman conquerors. But more especially was it this restless and Insatiable genius of adventure which created the greatness of the chief maritime cities of modern Italy, of Genoa and Ven- ice, as well as that of the kingdom of Portugal and Spain. To this same desire for discovery the world is indebted for the glorious achievements of Columbus, Vespuclus, and De Soto ; and for the revelation of the magnificent k I ii!! liii Z PRSFACB. novelties and unparalleled beauties of these western con- tinents, laden wiiii the most valuable treasures and products of the earth, which they threw open to the knowledge and the possession of mankind. After the discovery of the American continents, and aft- er the thorough exploration of the Southern and Pacific creans, it was generally supposed that the materials for further adventures of this description had all been ex- hausted. The whole habitable globe seemed then to have been made accessible and familiar to men, both as apostles of science and as emissaries of commerce. It was thought that the era of maritime discovery, the days of Vasco de Gama, of Marco Polo, and of Sydney, had ended forever. But this supposition was erroneous. One additional field of this description yet remained. It was indeed a gloomy and repulsive one. It was totally de- void of the attractive and romantic splendors which in other days had allured men to sail through tranquil oceans to fragrant islands, which bloomed like gardens on the bosom of summer seas ; or to continents which were covered with the richness of tropical vegetation aud luxu- riance, and were stored with spices, gold, and gems. But it was a field which demanded greater heroism, greater endurance, and was fraught with greater perils, than any other department of discovery. This region lay far up toward the northern Pole. It was the vast frozen land of everlasting snowflelds, of stupendous icebergs, of hyperborean storms, of the long, cheerless nights of the Arctic Zone. To navigate and explore these dismal realms, men of extreme daring, of sublime fortitude, of unconquerable perseverance, were absolutely necessary. And such men possessed one great element of distinguish- ing greatness, of which the explorers of more genial and PREFACE. inviting climes were destitute. Their investigations were made entirely witbioiit ttio prospect of rich reward, and chiefly for the promotion of the magnificent ends of science. The discovery of a north-western passage was indeed not forgotten ; but it must be conceded that other less mercenary and more philanthropic motives have given rise to the larger portion of the expeditions which, during the progress of the nineteenth century, have in- vaded the cheerless solitudes of that dangerous and re- pulsive portion of the globe. The following pages contain a narrative of the chief adventures and discoveries of Arctic explorers during this century. No expedition of any importance has been omitted ; and the work has been brought down in its de- tails to the nreseut time, so as to include a satisfactory account of the labors, sufferings and triumphs of that prince of Arctic explorers and philanthropists,— Dr. Kane ; whose adventures, and whose able narrative of them, en- title him to fadeless celebrity, both as a hero in the field, and as a man of high genius and scholarship. Every reader who carefully peruses the following pages must be convinced that the Arctic hemisphere has now been thoroughly explored. Every accessible spot has been visited and examined by v. me one or other of the various expeditions which have been sent out ; and that vast extent of countries and of seas uich intervene from Smith's Sound and "Wolstenholme Sound in the ex- treme east, being the remotest northern limits of Green- land, to the Avestward as far as to Behring's Straits, which divide America from Asia, has been examined. These limits inclose an area of about four thousand miles, every attainable portion of which has been subjected to the scrutiny of recent Arctic explorers. It can scarcely be ex- Xll PR£FAC£. pected that any traces of the existence and fate of Sir John Franklin still remain on the globe, which further perse- verance and research could possibly reveal. Even if the great chapter of Arctic discovery and adventure should now be closed, it will constitute one of the most remark- able and entertaining departments of human heroism, enterprise and endurance, which biography or history presents. ii'n CONTENTS. Introductory Bemarks > > % . kSI Little known ot tbe Arctic Regions— Notice of Capt. PhippB' Voyage— Parry's and Franklin's oplnionn on a northwest nassagre— Abstract of Sir John Bar- row's works on Arctic Dibcovery— England's neglect of ber nautical heroes. Captain Sir John Ross' Voyage in the Isabella and Alexander to Hudson's Bay in 1818 87 Names of the ofHcers and men— Ships visited by the natives of Qreenland— Abundance of birds on this coast— Gale of wind— Red Rnow— Lancaster Sonnd- The fabulous Croker mountaius— Agnes monument--Large liear shot— Return home. Voyage of Buobau and Franlcliu in the Dorothea and Trent, to Bpitzbergen, etc., 1818 45 Names of ofllcers and complement, etc— Fanciful appearance of iceberea— Bhipsarrive at Spitzberaen— Anchor in Mivgdal<>n Bay— ilanging icebergs— Inu- oiense flocks of birds— Dangerous ascent of Uotge Ilil i— Attack of walruses- Surprised by unlooked-for visitors— Devout feeling of recluses— Expedition puts to sea again- Party lose themselves un the ice— Ships damaged by tbe pressure of the floes— Dangerous position of the ships— They take refuge In the main pack of Icebergs— Vessels put into Fair Haven to stop leaks and refit- Return uome. Franklin's First Land Expedition, 181&-21 61 Party leave England in the Prince of Wales— Reach Hudson's Bay factory by the end of August— Proceed by the rivers and lakes to Cumberland House- Arrive at Fort Chipewyan after a winter Journey of 867 miles— Engage voya- geursand guides— Make the :u;quaintauce ot Akaitcho, the Indian.chlef— Push on forFort Enterprise, which is mmle their winter resideijce after a vovdgeot 663 miles- Exploruiji excursions carried ondurliig the winter-" Green Stock- ings, "the Indian beauty— Stores and Esquiuiaux interpreters arrive— Severity of the winter— Sufferings of the Indinns— Party set out for the I'olar Sea-Ex- amine the coast westward of Point Turnagain— Dreadful hardships and suffer- ings endured on their return Journey, from famine and fatigue— Death of sev- eral ot the party— Mr Hood is murdered by Michel the Iroquois, who, for their mutual safety, is killed by J)r. Richardson— Hunger and famine endured by the party— Their uliimate relief. Parry's First Voyage in the Hecla and Griper, 1819-30 86 Names of ofllcers serving, etc. -Enter Lancaster Sound— The Croker moun- tain prove to be fallacious— Parry discuveiH and enters Regent Inlet— Also dis- covers and names various Islands, capes and channels— Reaches Melville Isl- and— Expedition cros ihe meridian of 110" W. and become entitled to tbe Pailiamentary reward of £50t)0— Drop anchor for the first time— Land on the Island— Abundance of animals found— An exploring party lose themselves (or threedays, but are recovered and brought back— Vesselsgetinto winter quar- ters -A MS. newspaper published— Amateur |>lay.<^ performed— Observatory de- Htroyed by fire- Scurvy makes itsappearance— Cm ws put on short allowance— An excursion of a fortnight made to examine the island— Ships get clear ot the ice— But are unable to make further progress to the westward, and their return to ifiugland is determined on,^^ — - • — \ XIV C0NTE;N,f8. 1!! Parry 's Seoond Vdy ag© in th© Fury and Hecla, 1821-23 101 His opinion an to a north weal |m98ag:tB— Make IlPsolutlon Tslaiul, at the en- trance of Hudson's Straii— DanRc^rs mi the ice— Fall in with Hudson's Bay Company 'SBbips, and emigrant vesselj with Dutch colonists proceedhiK toRed Blver— "Two immense bears killed— Description of the p]squinjaux— Surveys madeof all the indentations and coasts oi tfiis locality— Ships driven back by the current and drift-ice— Take up their winter quarters— And resort to the- atrical amusements again— Schools estabished— Great severity ol the winter— Surveying operations resumed— IntelliKeut E5)quimanx female aft'ordH valuable hydrograj)hlcal information— Perilous position of the Heda— Her miraculous release- Shij>« pass their second winter at Jeloolik- The Fury and Hecia Strait examined— Ice breaks up— Ships driven about by tlie current for thirty-five days— At last gain the Atlantic and make for Kngland. Clavering'8 Voyage to Spitzberjren and Greenland in the Grip- er, 18a3 136 Conveys ont Capt. Sabine to make observation- Reach SpitzberKen— Proceed thence to Pendulum islaiifis— 'Northeastern coast of Greenland surveyed— Cap- tain Claverlng and a party of nineteen men carry on an exploring expedition forafortnlKht— Meet with a tribe of Esquimaux— Ship puts to sea— Make for the coast ol Norway— Anchor in Drontheim Fiord— Observations being com- pleted, ship returns to England. Lyon's Voyage in tlie Griper 138 Is sent to survey and examine the straits and shores of Arctic America— Ar- rives in tlie channel known as Koo's Welcome— P]ncoiinters a terrific gale— Is Inlmminentdanger in the Bay of Ood's Mercy— Sufters from another fearful storm— The ship being quite crippled, and having lost all her anchors, etc., is obliged to return home. Parry's Third Voyage ia the Hecla and Fury, 1834^35 130 Names and number of the offlcera, etc.— Hecla laid on her broadside by the Ice— Ships reach Lancaster Sound— Enter Regent Inlet, and winter at Port Bowen— Dreary character of the arctic winter— Former amusements worn threadbare— Polar Ba Masque got up— Exploring parties sent of inland and along the coast— Ships are released, but beset by the ice, and carried by the pack down the inlet— Fury drl/en on shore and abandoned— Return voyage necessarily determined on— Scarcity of animal fotHl In this locality— Hecla ar- rives ^ Peterhead- Parr3''8 opinion? of the northwest passage. Fran]£lin'8 Seoond Land Expedition, 1835-36 137 Names olthe officers accompanying him— Arrive in New York and proceed through the Hudson's Bay Company's territories- Winter at Fort Franklin on Great Bear Lake— A pioneer party proceeds to examine the state of the Polar Sea— Return and pasp the long winter— Descend the Mackenzie in the spring- Party divide; Franklin and Back proceeding to the westward, while Dr. Richardson and Mr. Kendal, etc.. follow the Coppermine River— Franklin en- counters a fierce tribe of Esquimaux at the sea— Aftw a month's survey to the eastward, Fran>:lin and his party retrace :heir step.?— Find Richardson and Kendal bad returned before t}iem,after reaching and exploring Dolphin andUnion Strait— Another winter spent at Fore Franklin— Inten.sity of the cold— Large collection of objects of natural history made by Mr. Drummond— Franklin's struggle between atfeciion and duty— Party return to England. Captain Beeohey's Voyage to Behring's Strait in tho Blos- som, 1835-36 140 Anchors off Petropanlowski- Receives Intelligence cf Parry's safe return- Interview with the natives— Correct bydrographical descriptions given by the Esquimaux— Ship's boat pushes on to the eastward as far asPoint Barrow, to communicate with Franklin-Crew in danger from the natives -Obliged tore- turn totheirships— The Blossom proceeds t.» the Pacific, to replenish her pro- visions-Returns to Kotzebue Sound In the jummer-Ship grounds on a sand- bank, but is got off- Boat sen* out to learn tidings of Franklin, is wrecked- Crew come Into collision with hostile natives, and are wounded ; p eked up by the ship— Dispatches left for Franklin, and the ship returns to England. Parry's Fourth or Polar Voyage in the Heola, 1837 144 Plans and irnggestlons of Scoresby, Beauroy and Franklin for traveling in dedgesovertheice- Namesof the ofTlcers emploved—ShIn embarks reindeer on tne Norway coast— Experiences a tremendous gale— Beset by ice for a mouth— AnchorB at Spltzbergen— Sledge-boats prepared for the ice Journey-- P«BOrlption of them— Night turned into day-Slow progress— Occupations of CONTENTS. XV .138 the party— Lose ground by the southward drift of the Ice -Bear shot-Noticen of aniraula seen— Keanh northnriiniost linown land— The Islet named after Rosp— Ri'turri to the ship— Parry's aiil)sciine"t BURKostioii i on this mode of trHveliiiB— Sir John Barrow's comments thereon— Opinions of this perilous ice Journey— Review of Parry's arctic services. Captain John Ross' Second Voyage in the Victory, 1829-83 155 luand— List of other onfcers— Ship encounters ugale, and is obliged to put Into Uol8telnl)erg to refit— I'roceod on their voyage— Knter Lancaster Hound and Hegent Inlet— Reach Fury Beacii— Find ahnndance of stores there, and pre- served meat in excellent condition— Replenish their stocK— Proceed down the talet— Periln of the Ice— Vessel f'ecu red in Felix Harbor for the wi nter- Esqui- maux visit the ship— l-'urnirth very conect sketches of the coast— Commander James Ross makes many excursions inland and along the hav8an4 Inlets— Kx- plores Ross'Strai', and pu.shesonto King William's Latirl— iJillicnlty of dis- tinguishing land from sea— Reaches Point Victory and turns back— Hhin gets clear of tho Ice, after eleven months' iniprlsonnient.but in a week Is again frozen iu, and the party are detained during another severe winter— Further discoveries made, and Commander Ross nlunts the British flag on the north magnetic n;)le— In August, 1831, thesliip is warped out, and makes sail, but after beating about for a month. Is again frozen In; and rather than spend a fourth winter, there being ;io prospect of releasing the shii\ she Is abandoned and the crew mdke for Fury Reach— I'rovislons and boats taken on with grea{ labor— Party erect a canvas lint, wliich they nanie Somerset Ilouse— In a month, the boats being prepared for tlie voynge, the party embark, and reach the mouth of the inlet— IJarroWs Strait is found one compact mass of ice— They are obliged to fall back on the stores at Fury Beaoli to 8j)end their fourth win- ter—Placed on short allowance— In the spring they again embark in their boats and succeed in reaching Lancaster Sound— Fall In with whalers— Are received onboard the Isabella, Captain Ross' old ship— Arrive home— Public reloiclngs for their safety— Rewards granted— Resume of Captain John Ross' services. Captain Baclc'a Laud Journey in Search of Ross, 183b-d4 168 Attention called lo ihe missing expedition by Dr. Ricliardson— Plans of relief Buggesieil— Public meeting hold to consider tlie beat measures— Ample funds raised— Capt. Back volunieers— Leaves Kngland with Dr. King— Voyage" 's and guides, etc. .engaged in Canada— Party push through the northwest co ii,ry— Dreailiulsufterings from insect pests— Reach Fort Resolution, on Great Slave Lake— Motley dctcrlptlon of the travelers and their encampment-Arrange- ments are completed, and the Journey in search of the Great Fish River com- menced— Frightful nature of the precipices, rapids, falls, ravines, etc.— Meet with old acquaintances— Obliged to return to their winter quarters— Dreadful suffeiingaof the Indians— Famine and Intense cold -Noble conduct of Akaltcho the Indian chief— News received of Captain Ross' safe return to England- Franklin's faithful Plsqulmaux interpreter, A ngustus, endeavoring to Join Back is frozen to death— A fresh Journey toward the dea is resolved on— Provisions for three monies taken— Indian encampment— Green Stockings, the beauty- Interview with the chief, Akaitcho— Arduous and perilous progress toward the sea— Pilfering propensities of the Indian— Meet witli a large friendly tribe of liJsqulmaux-Reach the Hea, and proceed along the coast to the eastward un- aole to arrive at the Point Tnrnagain of Franklin— Privations of the party on their leturn Journey— DifHculties encountered in re-ascending the river— Reach Fort Reliance after four niontlis' absence— Pass the winter there— Captain Back arri^on In England in September, after an absence of two years and a half— Dr K!r J -lows him In the Iludson's Bay spring ships. Bacls's Voyage in the Terror up Hudson's Strait, 1836 186 Ship arrives at Salisbury Island— Proceeds up Frozen Strait— Is blocked up by the Icb, and driven about powerless for more than six months— Cast on her beam ends for three days— From the crippled state of tlie ship and the Insur- mountable difficulties of the navigation, the return to England is determined on— Summary of Captain Back's arctic services. Messrs. Dease and Simpson's Discoveries on the Coast of Arctic America, 1836-39 187 Descend the Mackenzie to tlie sea— Survey the western part of the shores of North America from Return Reef to Cape Barrow- Discover two now rivers the Garry and Colvllle— After reaching Elson Bay, return to winter at Jori Confidence, on Great Bear Lake— Survey resumed In the ensuing spring— Dan- iierona rapids on the Coppermine river— Encamp at its month— Copper ore ound here— Victoria Laud discoveied and 140 miles of new coast traced— B9< xvr CONTENTS. 'ill. ll.Mj ascent of tbe Coppermine Rommenced— 'Boats abandoned, and tbe Barrett erounda traversed on foot— Bpend another winter at Fort Confidence— Tbe fol* rowlug season a third voyage commenced— Ricbard son's River examined—- Coronation Gulf found clear of Ice— Coast surve> to the eastward prosecuted— BImpsun's Htralt discovered— Back's Estuary readied— Deposit of provisions made by Back Hve years previous, found— Aberdeen Island, tbe extreme point reached— I'arts of coasts of Boothia and Victoria Land traced— One of tbeboata abandoned— Descent of the Coppermine, and safe arrival at Fort Confidence. Dr. John Bae's Laud Expedition, 1846-47 199 Hudson's Bay Company dispatch Koe and a party of thirteen men to com* §Iet« the survey between Dease and Simpson's furthest, and tbe Fury and lecia Strait— Expeilitlon leaves Fort C/'hurcbili— Reaches W^er River— Boats taken-across Rae's Isthumus— Winter residence constructed— Short common»— West shore of Melville I'eulnsula, etc., examined— Party return to their en- campment, and proceed to Fort Oliurch ill— Gratuity of £400 awarded to Dr. Bae. Captain Sir John Franlclin's Last Expedition in the Erebiia and TeiTor, 1845-51 196 Probability of the safety of tho expedition— Montgomery's lines on ice-im- prisoneu /cssrpIs- Lady Fran kiln's devotion and enthusiasm— Verses— Her «in- peai to the north— Sir E. Parry's opinion -Outfit and dispatch of Franklin's ex- S edition— Nemes of the officers employed— Outline of Franklin's services— fotices of 'the services of other of the offlcers— Searching expeditions sent out In 1848— Different volunteers offer- Absence of intelligence of Franklin— His latest dispatches and letters— Copper cylinders— Franklin's views and intentions —Letters of Captain Fitzlames— General opinions of the most experienced arctic ofBcers as to Franklin's safety— Offer of services and suggestions by Dr. l£liig_Oi)lnlonsof Captains Parry »nd James Ross thereon— Consultation of offlcers at the Admiralty— Report of tbe bydrograpber— Advice tendered by tboseconsiulted— Viewsof Mr. Snow and Mr. Mo Lean— Public and private re- wards offtired for discovery and assistance to be rendered- Second report of Ad- miral BeB.'ifort to the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty— Various private and oiliciul letters and dispatches, pointing out, or commenting on plans and modes of relief— Abundance of animal food found in the arctic reglons-.'A ballad of Sir John Franklin. The Government and Private Searching Expeditions 281 List of the vessels and commanders, etc. , now emplgyed on the search in tb« arctic regjious- Notices of those returned home. Vovago of the Enterprise and Investigator under Captains Sir Xcf Ross and E. J. Bird, 1848-49 281 Names of the offlcers employed in tills expedition— Ships arrive at Upperna- vick— Proceed on their voyage— Force a passage through the ice— Enter Bar- row's Strait— After being driven about in the pack, take shelter for the winter In the harbor of Port Leopold— Surveying trips carried on down the inlet, and round the northern and western shores of Boothia— Foxes trapped and liber, ated with copper collars on— Fury open water— Beset by the loose pack, and the temperature falling, the whole body of ice Is formed into one solid maas.and the shins are drifted wiih the field into Baffin's Bay— The return to England de- termined on— Outliiio of Sir James Ross' arduous services in the polar regions. Voyage of the Transport, North Star, 1849 390 Names of the offlcers o>* the sbip-Offlcial dispatch from the Commander- Shin beset in an Ice-fleld in the northern part of Baffin's Bay— Drifted with it forsixtv-twodavs- Wlntersin VVolstenholnieSound— Dearth of animals there- Shin gets clear of Ice and makes for Lancaster Sound— The Lady Franklin and Felix are spoken with— Belns prevented by the ice from reaching P*rt Bowen or Port Neill. the provisions taken out by the North Star are landed at Navy Board Inlet— Speaks the Prince Albert— Keaelves dispatches for England— Be- urns home- Commander Saunders appointed to Malta Dock-yard. Second Voyage of the Enterprise and Investigator under Cap- tain Collinson and Commander M'CIure, 1850 .....a»4 Namesof officers attached to the ships- Esquimaux Interpreter appointed to the Enterprise— Vessels arrive at the Sandwich Islands— Expressed intentions of the commanders of the vessels— Ships reach Behring's Strait— Communicata with the Herald at Plover— Latest dispatches oX Captain ColUnaon and Gom- IDAnder M'CIure— Position of their ships. fii CONTENTS. XVII Voyage of th© Plover, and Boat Expeditions under Commander Pullen, 1848-51 807 Purportof in.>tructlou8 Issued from the Admiralty— Ship arrives In Behrlng's Strait— Discovers pew land and Islands to tli« north of tiie strait— Winters In Kotzebue Sound— I teutenant Pullen and party proceeil In boats alouK the coast (o the Mackenzie River— No tidings gleamed of Franklin's ships— Letter from Lieut. Hooper— Latest ofltclal dispatch from Commander Pullen— Ills iateu- tlODs— Sir John Richardson's advice. Voyage of the Lady Franklin and Sophia, purcliased govern- ment sliips, under tlie command of Mr. Peuuy Sl'i ' Nature of the Instructions given— Printing Press supplied— Ships sail and reach Wolstenheime Soui.d— Prevented by the ice from examining Jones' Sound— Beacli Wellington Channel, and are left there by the Prince Albert. Voyage of the Resolute and Assiatanoe, under command of Captain Austin, with their steam teuder.-^iPioneer and lu- , treyid, 1850-61 318 ' Ships purchased and are renamed by the government— Ofllcers employed— lostruotlons given to search Wellington Channel, and push onto Melville Island— Offlciat dispatch irom Captain Ommaney— MS. newspaper i>tarted on board the Asslstenoe— liaitracts therefrom. Voyage of Captain Sir John Boss in the Felix private schooner 185^-51 319 Is fitted out bv the Hudson's Bav Company and private subscription— Arrives at Wbaleflsh Islands, and overt1 361 Oflicersof the Expe/lltlon— Progress of the voyage— First encounter with an Ice-berg— Acres ol broken ice— Landing at Whale Island- Procure winter cloth- ing and supplies at a Danish settlement— Perilous position of the Kescue— Polar bears— Open sea— Joined by the Prince Albert, Royal navy— CJrlmson Cliffs- Tremendous gale— Articles belonging to Franklin's sliips— Three graves of Franklin's men— Other traces of the missing navigator— Approach «t the Arctic winter— Battling with ice— Kxtreme perils— Five months In the Ice— Arctic amusements and employments— Arctic night— Re-appearance of the sun— Lib- eration of the Ice-bound vessels— Further Kxplorations— Decide to return- Arrival atthe Navy yard— Effects of the Expedition— WINTEB IN THE ABCTIC OCEAN by Lieutenant De Haven. A Summer Search for Sir John Franklin, with a Peep into the Polar Basin, by Commander E. A.Inglefleld, in the Screw- steamer Isabel, in 1853 411 First glimpse of Greenland- Singular accident— Examination of shores of WolBtenholme Sound— Northumberland Island— Point Frederick VII.— Ap- nmrance of the Ice— Visits the graves of Franklin's men at Beecttey Island— $4facnme«ot «dyanclD«—l40BB of Bpars-Tbd return of the Isabel. XVIII CONTENTS. hi'-. Eiehlpen Months in iho Polar ReAlong In search of Sir John Frauklio's Exi)oUitif'ii, in the years 1850-51, l)y Lieutenant ISherud Osboru, with the Steam vessels Pioneer and in- trepid 421 DftiiKPisof Riichorlug toan l(^p-bers;— KiitanKlrlltionH orKiini7.(>?ion--Tli«»irr»'liKion— 'l"h»>lr ditfiTPiit rai;es and trIbes-The Kutchina-Fort Coutldence— Basil Hull Buy— Bear J.iikc - 1 f>turn. The Second Voyage of tlie Prince Albert In search of Sir Jolin Frunlclin, under tlio command of William Kennedy, in 18X3 461 Origin (>f this expp.lltion— The outfit and instruHions— Melville Bay— Prince —Regent's I nli't—l'ort Leopold— Wlnt«T(|narlers at Whaler's Point— Fury tteacb — J iicideuts during the winter— Cape (jarry-JJaaery Bay— lleturu to Jiaiglaud. Aroti«Ex')lorations; the Second Grinned Expedition in search of Sir Joliii Franklin, in 1853, "54, 55, by Dr. E. K. Kane, in the l>rig Advance 473 Outfit and pjrpose of the expfdition— Visit to Danish settlements of Green- land— Pans iJrinipon t'lilfs— Smith's Sound— Discovery of the ijreat Uunuboldt Glacier— But.tei Isiund— KsUililislnnent of provision dejiots— Lite on board tlie brig— Incidents of the first winter In the ire— IVriloua expedition— Further ex- amination of Hu!nl)oldt «ilaoier— West I-and-Holiert Morris Hay— Bear-light— Peep into tho Polar Urm i -View of nature live imndred miles from tiie North Pole— Littliitou Island— Second winter in tho ioe— Operations in tiiespriUK- Bx- ploration of Kennedy Channel— Tliiid view of IlnmooUlt Olacier-Bear hunti— Preparations for return— Departure from the hriR— Conveyance of the sicli— Anoatok— Slodtre I'urtv— Perilous arlveiitnre— Death of Chrisiian Olilsen— North Batlin's Bay— The emliarkatlon— nilllcult iiiiviKation— Murchison ('hannel— NarroAf Kacape— Wearv Man's I{e«t— J/w-ifo-G'^icc-Cape York- Want of pro- visions— Seal hunt-Coast of Oreeiiland— The Bayak—Dlscoui aging news— Ar- rival at Upernavik— Captain Hartstene's expedition intlie Arctic and the Re- lease— Adventures of that expedili on— Beturn to ITpernavIk and discovery of Dr. Kane's luirty—Ueturn to New York— Results of llie expedition— Subsequent career of Dr. Kane— His death, Feb. 16th, 1857. Expedition of Captain Francis McClintoclc, July Ist, 1857 580 Discovery of the First Anthenic Account of Sir .Tohn Franklin's fate— Return of Uie " Fox " to Isle of WriRlit, September 20th, 1859. Explorations of Dr. Isaac I. Hayes (Surgeon of Second Grinnell Expedition) 186- 061 523 Dr. Hayes' First. KxpediUon— He describes the Arctic night— His Open Polar Bea— Polar Sea of the future- -Mild oliinatesin tiie Arctic— The Glacier system-^ The Home of the Ice-berg— Watching the Ice Mou ntains thrown off by heat and expansion— Roaring as of aitillery -Scenes in Northern seas. Dr. Charles F. Hall's Expeditions, 1860-71 540-565 First Kxpedition in the " George Henrv;"Sf cond Expedition in the " Montl- o-.ilo;" Third or Noitli Polar Expedition in the U. S. Steamer " Polaris"— Various lulventures and discoveries— Capt, Hall'sdeath- Lossof the " Polaris'- Hoatingon the ice— Escape of the cie'ws—Capt. Hall awarded the gold medal of the Geographical Society of Paris— Besuits-Llfe among the Eskimos- Tombs of his native friends. Expeditions from Europe— Nordensliiold 364 Weyprecht and Payer sail from Norway, June, 1871— Discover Franz Joseph Land— Their sledges go to ithin 7'^ or 8^ of the Pole— Capts. Toblesen, Mack P CONTENTS. XlX and rftr1«i>n— WiUlnm Rfiront/^ITolve aiul Sniylli— C'apts. Narrs aiuX Voung, 11. N.— Norilt'iiskiiilil In tli« Vegu— 550 uillealroui Ui« Tole. Lieut. Soliwiitka 8 Expedition, 1878 660 Hcliwutkiiiiii (Jil(li'r>» Kx|)<'1. 22nd, iHHU— llucviveH tho medal ot I'artH OeoKiai liical Society. Lieut. DeL jug's Futul ExpeUitiuu iu the " Jeanuette." 571 LcHVcsSjin I'Vivncisco, .Inly Kill. lH7!»—1uk<'sUie llolirinKHtniit route— Crosses till- piilh of tlie "Venn"- KnconnUTs Kolid loe and 1h frozen in near Herald IsUind iiiid WriinL'ell Land— Jeanetle Kinks In JU) fathoms, .Iun« 13th, 1881 ; her crew take to tho lloes ami boats, and atlomnt to reooh the Asiatlt! coast— Lieut. C'hiiip and tlip seconil colter lostr- DeLoii^ in tlie nrst entter and Daiienhower In tlMMVhttle-hoat lami at Lena Delta— Defjong and lilsiiurtv all n«»rish except two. will reiwh a settlemeiit— Their fro/.ei, hmlies recovered— I)e Long's last Journal— Kesnlts of his expedition— Posthumous honors— Discussion of Arctic currenls-Th« ^ate to the I'ole harred In Behrlnf? sea— Description of BehrInK Strait, Sea, Asiatic and Ainericiin coasts. Rolief Expeditions, 1880, 1881 , 18*2 .588 597 IJ. K. Steamers "t'orwln," " Uixltjers," "Alliance,"— Their ailventures In search of the * .lean net te," " Mount VVollaston,"a()d *' Vigilant "—the Corwin's crow explores Hf raid Island and Wrangell Land— Mirages in the Polar seas,- Ice-fields— Hahlta, langnauti and ntliglon of tho KsKlmaux— The Alt)atroas— North-feast and North-west jiassages. Antarctic Expeditions— Tlie "Terra Austmlis IneoRuita" 603 Expeditions of Tapt. Cook, Cjvpt. Wm. Hniiih, BellliiHhansen, Howell, PaUner, (apt. Weddell, Capt. John nis la.} Zones— f>i)en Polar Sea a delusion- North PoTeonly fit for tho ghosts of explorers, and foi phantom ships— Ann ras, stars tides— Latest Projects— Medals to Oukki.v, JiuAiNAiin, etc. ' Col. Wtn.H. Gilder's Proposed Foot Journey to the Pole, . .634 639 Hot he will pet (h(^re, vi:v Lady Franklin Bay— Native hunters, dog-drivers and their fii.iiMie^ to be his sole companions In a "dash to the Pole." The " (harden of lOden," the" Lost Itace," and the" Magnetic World."- True Love on earth exists there only. Lieut. Greelv's Oasis iu Grinuell Land described iu liis book, " Three Year.-* of Arctic Service." 640 What LocKWooD and Okkki.v discovered north of 8C N.— An ke-girt Island with "luxuriant vegetation "In April, and the hum of insects in .Inly, etc.— The " devil's darning needle " there— Signs of a raild climate and proliiicness at the Pole in a i)ast ejtoch— Why not in the future ? .664 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. The Jeannette in the Ice (Frontispiece) Paqts. TheEsquimaux Dogs . 126 The Wolves 166 Tlie Advance Among Hummocks 353 Advance and Rescue Beating to Windward of an Iceberg 360 " " Perilous situation in Melville Bay .!!363 " " and Prlnfo Albert near the Devil'sThumb .....ii67 Advance leading the Prince Albert near Leopold Island 374 Anvil Blo«rk, Guide Board ' " ' ' , 375 Three Graves at Beechey " 37Q The Advance Standard at Cape Biley 377 ■'V 'XX ' CONTENTS. The AdTAnce and R^ncne at Barlow's InlMt 889 duriiiK the Winter of IBAO^l 384 " " •* drIftliiK In WolllnKton Sound 385 The Advance In Davis' Rtralts, June 6tb, 1H61 380 HanllnK Una Bear , 440 The Natives 44J> Polar Bptir finrl the Esquimaux 640 HolHtloKii Hall 550 ilniitintc tlu' Walrus 551 HhooihiK a Bear 555 An Arolio Scene, Bears 560 The Polaris In Thank Ood Harbor 563 Fnrred AnliimlH 56H The Jeatjnette Wedged In 574 Dashed Upon the Ice 580 Unfurlln« the Fla? 588 The Ice- Bu rHt 501 Aurora Borealls 614 The Raft Sin king 620 Thousandsof Birds— An Oasis , 688 f'll THE PROGRESS OP ARCTIC DISCOVERY IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. If we examine a map of Northern, or Arctic, America, showing what was known of the countries around the North Pole in the commencement of the present century, we shall find that all within the Arctic circle was a com- plete blank. Mr. Hearne had, indeed, seen the Arctic Sea in the year 1771 ; and Mr. Mackenzie had traced the river which now bears his name to its junction with the sea ; but not a single line of the coast from Icy Gape to Baffin's Bay was known. The eastern and western shores of Greenland, to about 750 latitude, were tolerably well defined, from the visits of whaling vessels; Hudson's Bay and Strait were partially known ; but Baffin's Bay, according to the statement of Mr. Baffin, in 1616, was bounded by land on the west, running parallel with the 90th meridian of longitude, or across what is now known to us as Barrow's Strait, and prob- ably this relation led to the subsequently formed hasty' opinion of Captain Sir John Ross, as to his visionary Croker Mountains, of which I shall have occasion to speak hereafter. 2G INTRODUCTION. :.iir' As early as the year 1527, the idea of a passage to the East Indies l\v the North Pole was sugf^cstod by a Bristol iiurcliant to Henry VIII, but no voyaj^e seems to have })oen undertaken for the purp se of navigating^ the Polar seas, till the commencement of the following century, when an expedition was fitted out at the ex- pense of certain merchants of London. To this attempt S(!veral others succeeded at diti'erent periods, and all ol tliem were projected and carried into execution by pri- vate individuals. The adventurers did not indeed ac- complish the object they exclusively sought, that oi reaching? India by a nearer route than doubling? the Cape of Good Hope, but though they failed in that respect, the fortitude, perseverance, and skill which they mani' fested, exhibited the most irrefragable proofs of the early existence of that superiority in naval afl'airs, which has elevated this country to her present eminence among the nations of Europe. At length, after the lapse of above a century and a half, tliis interesting question became an object of lioyal patronage, and the expedition which was com- manded by Captain Phipps (afterward Lord Mulgrave,) in 1773, was fitted out at the charge of Government. The tirst proposer of this voyage was the Hon. Daines Barrington, F. R S. , who, with indefatigable assiduity, began to collect every fact tending to establish the practicabiHty of circumnavigating the Pole, and as he accumulated his materials, he read them to the Royal Society, who, in consequence of these representations, made that application to Lord Sandwich, then First Lord of the Admiralty, which led to the appointment of this first official voyage. Captain Phipps, however, found it impos:5ible to penetrate the wall of ice which extended for many degrees between the latitude of 80° and 81°, to the north of Spitzbergen. His vessels were the Racehorse and Carcass ; Captain Lutwidge being his second in onim^iid, in the latter vessel, and having with him, then a mere boy, Nelson, the future hero of Eng- land. From the year 1648, whf^ the famous Russian navi- gator, Seuor Denhnew, penetrated from the river Kolyma through the Polar into the Pacific Ocean, the iH INTKtmUCTlON. 27 31'G lis ith S' Russians have been as arduous in theii attemj)t8 tc d'm cover a northeast passage to the north of Cape Shel- atskoi, as the English have been to sail to the north west of the American continent, through Baffin's IJay and Lancaster Sound. On the side of the Pacilic, many efforts, have, within tlie last century, been made to further this object. In 1741, tiie celebrated Captain Behring discovered the straits which bear his name, as we are informed by MuUer, the chronicler of Itussian discoveries, and several subsequent commandeis uf that nation seconded liis endeavors to penetrate from the American continent to the northeast. From the period when Deshnew sailed on his expedition, to the vear 1761, when Admiral Tchitschagof, an indefatiga- ble and active officer, endeavored to force a passage round Spitzbergen, (wliich, although he attempted with a resolution and skill which would fall to the lot of few, he was unable to effect,) and thence to the present times, including the arduous efforts of Captain Billings and Vancouver, and the more recent one of M. Von Wrangoll, the Russians have been untiring in their at- tempts to discover a passage eastward, to the north of Capo Taimur and Cape Shelatskoi. And certainly, if skill, perseverance, and courage, could have opened this passage, it would have been accomplished. Soon after the general peace of Europe, when war's alarms had given way to the high pursuits of science, the government recommenced the long-suspended work of prosecuting discoveries within the Ai'ctic circle. An expedition was dispatched under the command of Sir John Ross, in order to explore the scene of the former labors of Frobisher and Baffin. Still hauhted with the golden dreams of a northwest passage, which Barrington and Beaufoy had in the last age so entliu siastically advocated, our nautical adventurers by no means relinquished the long-cherished chimera. It must bo admitted, however, that the testimony of Parry and Franklin pass for much on the other side of the question. Both these officers, whose researches in the cause of scientific discovery entitle then 'o verj i 28 PE0QRES8 OF ARCTIC DISCOVERY. m m rati! im\ HB Jl m m m 4 ii* 1 a liigli respect, have declared it as their opinion that such a passage does not exist to the north of the 75th degree of latitude. Captain Parry, in the concluding remarks of his first voyage, (vol. ii. p. 241,) says — " Of the existence of a northwest passage to the Pacific, it is now scarcely possible to doubt, and from the success which attended our efibrts in 1819, after passing through Sir James Lancaster's Sound, we were not unreasonable in anti cipating its complete accomplishment," &c. And Franklin, in the eleventh chapter of his work, is of the same opinion, as to the practicability of such a passage But in no subsequent attempt, either by themselves or others, has this long sought desideratum been ac- complished ; impediments and barriers seem as thickly thrown in its way as ever.* An expedition was at length undertaken for the sole jnirpose of reaching the Isorth Pole, with a view to the ascertainment of philosophical questions. It was planned and placed under the command of Sir Edward rarry, and here first the elucidation of phenomena connected with this imaginary axis of our planet formed the primary object of investigation. My space and purpose in this work will not permit me to go into detail by examining what Barrow justly terms " those brilliant periods of early English enter- prise, so conspicuously displayed in every quarter of the globe, but in none, probably, to greater advantage than in tnose bold and persevering efforts to pierce through frozen seas, in their little slender barks, of the most miserable description, ill provided with the means either of comfort or safety, without charts or instru- ments, or any previous knowledge of the cold and in- hospitable region through which they had to force and to feel their way : their vessels oft beset amidst end- less fields of ice, and threatened to be overwhelmed with instant destruction fi'om the rapid whirling and oursting of those huge floating masses, known by the i^*^^ ^«^. mTRODUOTIOH. 9» r. opinion that I of the 75th ks of his first xistence of a low scarcely lich attended h Sir Jamea I able in anti ' &c. And ork, is of the ch a passage Y themselves ;um been ac- iva as thickly tt for the sole ith a view to ions. It was f Sir Edward phenomena our planet 1 not permit arrow justly giish enter- quarter of r advantage ts to pierce arks, of the h the means ts or instru- oold and in- to force and imidst end- rerwhelmed Ihirling and own by the name of icebergs. Yet so powerfuUy^ infused into the minds of Britons was the spirit of enterprise, that some of the ablest, the most learned, and most respect- able men of the times, not only lent their countenance and support to expeditions fitted out for the discovery of new lands, but strove eagerly, in their own persons, to share in the glory and the danger of every daring adventure." To the late Sir John Barrow, F. R. S., for so long a period secretary of the Admiralty, and who, in early life, himself visited the S2)itzbergen seas, as high as the 80th parallel, we are mainly indebted for the ad- vocacy and promotion of the several expeditions, and the investigations and inquiries set on foot in the pres- ent century, and to the voyages which have been hith- erto so successfully carried out as regards the interests of siiience and our knowledge of the Polar regions. Although it is absurd to impute the direct responsi- bility for these expeditions to any other quarter than the several administrations during which they were undertaken, there can be no question but that these enterprises originated in Sir John Barrow's able and zealous exhibition, to our naval authorities, of the several facts aad arguments upon which they might best be justified and prosecuted as national objects. The general anxiety now prevailing respecting the fate of Sir John Franklin and his gallant companions,^ throws at this moment somewhat of a gloom on the subject, but it ought to be remembered that, up to the present period, our successive Polar voyages have, without exception, given occupation to the energies and gallantry of energetic seamen, and have extended the realms of magnetic and general science, at an ex- pense of lives and money quite insignificant, compared with the ordinary dangers and casualties of such expe- ditions, and that it must be a very narrow spirit and view of the subject which can raise the cry of "Cw« hono^^ and counsel us to relinquish the honor and peril of such enterpriseift. 30 PEOGRFSS OP ARCTIC DISCOVEET. Wili- s'-; 'III ■i: I It can scarcely be deemed out of place to give here a short uotice oi the literary labors of this excellent and talented man, as I am n^t aware that such an out- line has appeared before. f" 'v John Barrow was one of the chief writers for the Quarterly Review, and his articles in that journal amount to nearly 200 in number, forming, v/hen bound up, twelve separate volumes. All those relating to the Arctic Expeditions, &c., which created the great- est interest at the period they were published, were from his pen, and consist chiefly of the following pa- pers, commencing from the 18th volume ; — On Polar Ice ; On Behring's Straits and the Polar Basin ; On Ross's Voyage to Baffin's Bay ; On Parry's First Yoy- age ; Kotzebue's Voyage ; Franklin's First Expedition ; Parry's Second and Third Voyages, and Attempt to Reach the Pole ; Franklin's Second Expedition ; Lyon's Voyage to Repulse Bay ; Back's Arctic Land Expe- dition, and his Voyage of the Terror. Besides these he published " A Chronological History of Voyages to the Arctic Seas," and afterward a second volume, "On the Voyages of Discovery and Research within the Arctic Regions." He also wrote lives of I^ord Macartney, 2 vols. 4to ; of Lord Anson and Howe, each 1 vol. 8vo ; of Peter the Great; and an Account of the Mutiny of the ^^'Bounty, (in the "Family Library;") "Travels in Southern Africa," 2 vols, 4to; and "Travels in China and Cochin China," each 1 vol. 4:to. In the "Encyclopedia Britannica" are ten or twelve of his articles, and he wrote one in the Edin- burgh Review ^y special request. In addition to these Sir John Barrow prepared for the press innumerable MSS. of travelers in all parts of the globe, the study of geography being his great delight, as is evidenced by his having founded the Royal Geographical Society of London, which now holds so high and influential a position in the learned and scientific world, and has advanced so materially he progress of discovery and research in all parts of INTRODUCTION. 31 or of the globe Lastl}", Sir John Barrow, not long bofo.a his death, published his own autobiography, in whith he records the labors, the toil, and adventure, of a long and honorable public life. Sir John Barrow has described, with voluminous cai « and minute research, the arduous services of all the chief Arctic voyagers by sea and land, and to his roi ume I must refer those who wish to obtain more exten sive details and particulars of the voyages of preceding centuries. He has also graphically set forth, to use hia own words, " their several characters and conduct, so uniformly displayed in their unflinching perseverance in difficulties of no ordinary description, their patient endurance of extreme suffering, borne without mur- muring, and with an equanimity and fortitude of mind under the most appalling distress, rarely, if ever, equaled, and such as could only be supported by a superior degree of moral courage and resignation to the Divine will — displaying virtues like those of no ordinary caste, and such as will not fail to excite the sympathy, and challenge the admiration of every right- feeling reader." Hakluyt, in his " Chronicle of Voyages," justly ob- serves, that we should use much care in preserving the memories of the worthy acts of our nation. The different sea voyages and land journeys of the present century toward the North Pole have redounded to the honor of our country, as well as reflected credit on the characters and reputation of the officers engaged in them ; and it is to these I confine my observations. The progress of discovery in the Arctic regions has been slow but progressive, and much still within the limits of practical navigfition remains yet unex})lored. The English nation very naturally wish that discov- eries which were first attempted by the advcnturoua spirit and maritime skill of tlieir countrymen, should be finally achieved by the same means. "Wi! it not," says the worthy 'preacher,' Hakluyt, "in all posteritie be as great a renown vnto our En- glish natione, to have bcene tho first discouerers of n ' il • ! I-'. 52 I'KOGHESS OF Bea Loyoiid the North Cape, (neuo. certainely knoweA before,^ and of a conuenient passage into the huge em- pire ol Russia by the Baie of St. Nicholas and of the Kiuer of Duina, as for the Portugales", to have found a sea beyond the Cape of Buona Esperanza, and so consequently a passage by sea into the East Indies ? " I cordially agree with the Quarterly Review, that * neither the country nor the naval service will ever believe they have any cause to regret voyages which, in the eyes of foreigners and posterity, must confer lasting honor upon both." The cost of these voyages has not been great, while the consequences will be permanent ; for it lias been well remarked, by a late writer, that " the record of enterprising hardihood, physical endurance, and steady ])erseverance, displayed in overcoming elements the most adverse, will long remain among the worthiest memorials of human enterprise." " How shall I admire, " says Purchas, " your heroic courage, ye marine worthies, beyond all names of worthiness ! that neyther dread so long eyther the presence or absence of the sunne ; nor those foggy Hijsts, tempestuous winds, cold blasts, snowe and hayle in the ayre ; nor the unequall seas, which miglit amaze the hearer, and amate tne beholder, when the Tritons and Neptune's selfe would quake with chilling feare to behold such monstrous icie ilands, renting themselves with terror of their own massines, and dis- dayning otherwise both the sea's sovereigntie and the Bunne's hottest violence, mustering themselves in those watery plaines where they hold a continual civill warre, and rushing one upon another, make windee and waves give backe ; seeming to rent the eares of others, while they rent themselves with crashing and splitting their congealed armors." So thickly are the Polar seas of the northern hemi- sphere clustered with lands, that the long winter months Ber7e to accumulate filed ice to a prodigious extent, 89 as to form an almost 'mpenetrable barrier of hypet iaorean frost — . . INTRODUCTION. 88 • A cryntal pavement by the breath of Heaven Oemented firm." Although there are now no new continente left to discover, our intrepid British adventurers are but too ono-er to achieve the bubble reputation, to hand down their names to future ages for patient endurance, zeal, and enterprise, hy explorations of the hidden mys- teries of — * the frigid zone. Where, for relentleas months, continual night Holds o'er the glittering waste her starry light ; " by undergoing perils, and enduring privations dauj^ers which the mind, in its reflective mom and moments, shudders to contemplate. It is fair to conjecture that, so intense is the cold, and so limited the summer, and consequently so' short the time allowed for a transit within the Arctic circle, from Baffin's Bay to Behring's Straits, that a passage, even if discovered, will never be of any use as a chan- nel. It is net likely that tnese expeditions would ever have been persevered in with so much obstinacy, had the prospects now opening on the world of more ])rac- ticable connections with the East been known forty years ago. Hereafter, when the sacred demands of humanity have been answered, very little more wiU \)e heard about the northwest passage to Asia; which, if ever found, must be always hazardous and pro- tracted, when a short and qui#k one can be accom- plished by railroads through America, or canalb across the Isthmus. A thorough knowledge of the relative boundaries of land and ocean on this our globe has, in all ages and by all countries, been considered one of the most im- portant desiderata, and one of the chief features of popular information. But to no country is this knowledge of such prac- tical utility and of such essential imi)ortance, as to a maritime nation like Great Britain, whose mercantile marine visits every port, whose insular position ren- ders her completely dependen upon distant quarters 8 84 PROGRESS OF ARCmO DTSCOYER"T. 'li ' ik' fr 1 for half the necessary supplies, whether of food or lux nry, which her native population consume, or which the arts and manufactures, of which she is the empori urn, require. With a vast and yearly increasins^ dominion, cover ing almost every region of the habitable globe, — the chart of her colonies being a chart of the world in out- line, sweeping the globe and touching every shore, — it becomes necessary tliat she slioiild keep pace with the progress of colonization, by enlarging, wherever pos- sible, her maritime discoveries, completing and veri- fying;; our nautical surveys, improving her meteorologi- cal researches, 0])ening up new and speedier periodical pathways over the oceans which were formerly trav- ersed with so much danger, doubt, and difficulty, and maintaining her superiority as tlie greatest of maritime nations, by sustaining that higli and distinguished rank for naval eminence which has ever attached to the Bfitish name. The arduous achievements, however, of her nautical discoveries have seldom been appreciated or rewarded as they deserved. She loads her naval and military heroes — the men who guard her wooden walls and successfully fight lier battles — with titles and pen- sions ; she heaps upon these, and deservedly so, prince- ly remuneration and all manner of distinctions; but for the heroes whose patient toil and protracted endu ranee far surpass the turmoil of war, who peril thei» lives in the cause of science, many of whom fall vie tims to pestilential climes, famine, and the host of dan gers which environ the voyager and traveler iu uuea plored lauds and unknown seas, she has only a place ii* the niche of fame. What honors did England, as a maritime nation, con- fer on Cook, the foremost of her naval heroes, — a man whoso life was sacrificed for his country? His widow had an annuity of 200^,j and his surviving childrou 25^. each per annum. And this is the reward paid to the most eminent of her naval discoverers, before whom Cabot, Drake, Frobisher, Magellan, Anaori, and INTRODUCTIOIC. u • the arctic adventurers, Iludson and Baffin, — although all eminent for their discoveries and the important services they rendered to the cause of nautical sci- ence, — sink into insignificance I If we glance at the results of Cook's voyages we find that to him we are indebted for the innumerable discoveries of islands and colonies planted in the Pacific ; that he determined the conformation, and surveyed the numerous bays and inlets, of New Holland ; established the geogra- phical position of the northwestern shores of America ; ascertained the trending of the ice and frozen shores to the north of Behring's Straits ; approached nearer the South Pole, and made more discoveries in the Austra- lian regions, than f\\l the navigators who had preceded him. On the very shores of their vast empire, at the extremity of Kamtschatka, his active genius first taught the Russians to examine the devious treudings of the lands which border the Frozen Ocean, in the neighborhood of the Arctic circle. He explored both the eastern and western coasts above Behring's Straits to so high a latitude as to decide, beyond doubt, the question as to the existence of a passage round the two continents. He showed the Russians how to navigate the dangerous seas between the old and the new world ; lor, ae Coxe has remarked, " before his time, every thing was uncertain and confused, and though they had undoubtedly reached the continent of Amer- ica, yet they had not ascertained the line of coast, nor the separation or vicinity of the two continents of Asia and America." Coxe, certainly, does no more than justice to his illustrious countryman when he adds, " the solution of this important problem was reserved for our great navigator, and every Englishman must exult that the discoveries of Cook were extended fur ther in a single expedition, and at the distance of half the globe, than the Russians accomplished in a long series of years, and in a region contiguous to their own enipire." Look at "Wed dell, again, a private trader in seal* skins, who, in a tVail bark of 160 tons, made important 89 PROGRESS OF AKCTIO DISCOVERr. 1^ discoyeries in tho Antarctic circle, and a yo7as;e of greater length and peril, through a thousand mifea of ice. than had previously been performed by any navi- gator, paving the way for the more expensively fitted expedition under Sir James Ross. Was Weddell re- munerated on a scale commensurate with his importan services ? Haifa century ago the celebrated Bruce of Kinnaird, by a series of soundings and observations taken in the Red Sea, now the great highway of overland eastern traffic, rendered its navigation more secure and punc- tual. How was he rewarded by the then existing min istry ? Take a more recent instance in the indefatigable energy of Lieutenant Waghorn, R. N., the enterprising pioneer of the overland route to India. What does not the commerce, the character, the reputation, of his conntry owe to his indefatigable exertions, in bringing the metropolis into closer connection with her vast and important Indian empire ? And what was the reward he received for the sacrifices he made of time, money, health and life ? A paltry annuity to himself of lOOZ., and a pension to his widow of 251. per annum 1 Is it creditable to her as the first naval power of the world that she should thus dole out miserable pittances, or entirely overlook the successful patriotic exertions and scientific enterprises and discoveries of private adventurers, or public commanders ? The attractions of a summer voyage along the bays and seas where the sun shines for four months at a time, exploring the bare rocks and everlasting ice, with no companion but the white bear or the Arctic fox, may be all very romantic at a distance ; but the mere thought of a winter residence there, frozen fast in some solid ocean, with snow a dozen feet deep, the thermometer ranging from 40° to 60° below zero, and not a glimpse of the blessed sun from November to February, is enough to give a chill to all adventurous notions. But the officers and men engaged in the searching expedi- tions after Sir John Franklin hav« calmly weighed all I M- : riBST VOYAGE OF CAPTaIN ftOSS. 37 ttiese difficulties, and boldly g >ne forth to encounter the perils and dangers of these icy seas for the sake of their noble fellow-sailor, whose fate has been so long a painful mystery to the world. It has been truly observed, that " this is a service for which all officers, however brave and intelligent they may be, are not equally qualified ; it requires a peculiar tact, an inquisitive and persevering pursuit after details of fact, not always interesting, a contempt of danger, and an enthusiasm not to be damped by ordinary difficultiefl." The records which I shall have to give in these pages of voyages and travels, unparalleled in their perils, their duration, and the protracted sufferings which many of them entailed on the adventurers, will bring out in bold relief the prominent characters who have figured in Arctic Discovery, and whose names will descend, to posterity, emblazoned on the scroll of fame, for their bravery, their patient endurance, their skill, aud, above all, their firm trust and reliance on that Almighty Being who, although He may have tried them sorely, has never utterly forsaken them. Oapt. John Ross's Voyage, 1818. Ijt 1818, His Royal Highness the Prince Regent having signified his pleasure that an attempt should be made to find a passage by sea between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty were pleased to fit out four vessels to pro- ceed toward the North Pole, under the command of Captain John Ross. No former expedition had been fitted out on so extensive a scale, or so completely equipped in every respect as this one. The circum. stance which mainly led to the sending out of these vessels, was the open character of the bays and seas in those regions, it having been observed for the pre- \i<^us threa years that very unusual quantities of the polar ice had floated down into the Atlantic. In the 58 PROORK88 OF AKCTIO DTSOOVHRT. ill • t year 1817, Sir John Barrow relates that the eastern coast of Greenland, which had been shut up with ice for four centuries, was found to be accessible from th© 70th to the 80th degree of latitude, and the interme- diate sea between it and Spitzhergen was so entirolj' open in the latter parallel, tnat a Hamburgh ship had actually sailed along this track. On the 15th of January, 1818, the four ships were put in commission — the Isabella, 385 tons, and the Alexai der, 252 tons — under Captain Ross, to proceed up the middle of Davis' Strait, to a high northern lati- tude, and then to stretch across to the westward, in the hope of being able to pass the northern ext remity of America, and reach Behring's Strait by that route. Those destined for the Polar sea were, the Dorothea, 382 tons, and the Trent, 2id tons, which were ordered to proceed between Greenland and Spitzbergen, and seek a passage through an open Polar sea, if such ehould be found in that direction. I shall take these voyages in the order of their pub- lication, Ross having given to the world the account of his voyage shortly after his return in 1819 : while the narrative of the voyage of the Dorothea and Trent was only published in 1843, by Captain Beechey, who served as Lieutenant of the Trent, during the voyage. The following were the officers, &c., of the ships ander Captain Ross : — Isabella. Captain — John Ross. Lieutenant — W. Robertson. Purser — "W. Thom. Surgeon — John Edwards. Assistant Surgeon — C. J. Beverley. Admiralty Midshipmen — A. M. Skene and James Clark Ross. Midshipman and Clerk — J. Bushnan. Greenland Pilots — B. Lewis, master; T. "Wilcox. mate. Captain (now Colonel) Sabine, R. A. FIEST VOYAGE. OF CAPTAIN K088. 89 ,mes COIL 45 I'tiiy officers, seamen, and marines. Whole complement, 67. Alexander. Lieutenant and Commander — William EdwarO Pftr/j, (now Captain Sir Edward.) LicutGoant — H. II. Itoopner, (a first rate artist.) Purser — W. II. Hooper. Greenland Pilots — J. Allison, master; J. Philips mate. Admiralty Midshipmen — P. Bisson and J. Nius. Assistant Surgeon — A. Fisher. Clerk — J. liaise. 28 petty officers, seamen, &c. Whole complement, 37. On the 2d of May, the four vessels being reported fii for sea, rendezvoused in Brassa Sound, Shetland, and the two expeditions parted company on the follow- ing day for their respective destinations. On the 26tH, the Isabella fell in with the first ice- berg, which appeared to bo about forty feet high and thousand feet long. It is hardly possible to imagine a..y thing more exquisite than the variety of tints which these icebergs display ; by night as well as by day they glitter with a vividness of color beyond the power of art to represent. While the white portions have the brilliancy of silver, their colors are as various antl splendid as those of the rainbow; their ever-changing disposition producing effects as singular as they are new and interesting to those who have not seen them before. On the 17th of June, they reached Waygatt Sound, beyond Disco Island, where they found forty-five whalers detained by the ice. Waygatt Island, from observations taken on shore, was found to be 6° longi- tude and 30 miles of latitude from the situation as laid down in the Admiralty Charts. They were not able to get away from here till the 20th, when the ice began to break. By cutting passages iO ^B&Ui(B)Slii OF AAvniO OiSOOVBUT. -v- through the ice, and by dint of towing and warping, a slow progress was made with the ships until the 17th of July, when two ice-floes closing in upon them, threatened inevitable destruction, and it was only by the greatest exertions that they hove through into open water. The labors of warping, towing, and tracking were subsequently very severe. This tracking, al though hard work, afforded great amusement to the men, giving frequent occasion for the exercise of their wit, wnen some of the men occasionally fell in through holes covered with snow or weak parts of the ice. Very high mountains of land and ice were seeu to the north side of the bay, which he named Melville's Bay, forming an impassable barrier, the precipices next the sea oeing from 1000 to 2000 feet high. On the 29th of June, the Esquimaux, John Sacheuse, who had accompanied the expedition from England as interpreter, was sent on shore to communicate with the natives. About a dozen came off to visit the ship, and, after being treated with coffee and biscuit in the cabin, and having their portraits taken, they set to dancing Scotch reels on the deck of the Isabella with the sailors. Captain Koss gives a pleasant description of this scene — " Sacheuso's mirth and joy exceeded all bounds* ; and with a good-humored omciousness, justi- fied by the important distinction which his superior knowledge now gave him, he performed the office of master of the ceremonies. An Esquimaux M. 0. to a ball on the deck of one of H. M. shqjs in the icy seas of Greenland, was an office somewhat new, but Nash himself could not have performed his functions in a m. ner more appropriate. It did not belong even to Nash to combine in his own person, like Jack, the dis- cordant qualifications of seaman, interpreter, draughts- man, and master of ceremonies to a ball, with those of an active fisher of seals and a hunter of white bears. A daughter of the Danish resident (by in Es«[uimaux woman,) about eighteen years of age, and by far the best looking of the half-caste group, was the object of FIB8T VOYAOB OP OAITAIN ROSS. 41 Jack'«» particular attentions ; which heing observed by lue of our officers, he gave him a hidy's shawl, orna- mented witli spangles, as an offering for her acceptance. He presented it in a most respectful, and not ungraco ful manner to the damsel, who bashfully took a pew ter ring from her finger and gave it to him in return, rewarding him, at the same time, with an eloquent smile, which could leave no doubt on our Esquimaux^s mind that he had made an impression on her heart."* On the 6th of August the little auks (Mergulfus alle,) were exceedingly abundant, and many were shot for food, as was also a large gull, two feet five inches in le^kth, which, when killed, disgorged one of these little birds entire. A fortnight later, on two boats being sent from the Isabella to procure as many of these birds as possible, for the purpose of preserving them in ice, they re- turned at midnight with a boat-load of about 1500, having on an average, killed fifteen at each shot. The boats of the Alexander were nearly as successful. These birds were afterward served daily to each man, and, among other ways of dressing them, they were found to make excellent soup — not inferior to hare soup. Not less than two hundred auks were shot on the 6th of August, and served out to the ships' compa- nies, among whose victuals they proved an agreeable variety, not having the fishy flavor that might be ex- pected from their food, which consists of Crustacea, Binall fishes, mollusca, or marine vegetables. On the 7th of August the ships were placed in a most critical situation by a gale of wind. The Isabella was lifted by the pressure of ice floes on each side of her, and it was doubted whether the vessel could long withstand the grips and concussions she sustained', " every support threatened to give way, the beams in the hold began to bend, and the iron water-tanlw settled together. The two vessels were thrown with violent concussion against eaob other, the Tje-anchors • Vol I, p 67. 6& 42 PBOGKESS OF A^RCTIC DISCOVERT. It ; and cables broke one after the other, a boat at the stern was smashed in the collision, and the masts were hourly expected to go by the board ; but at this juncture, when certain destruction was momentarily looked for, by the merciful interposition of Providence the fields of ice suddenly opened and formed a clear passage for the ships." A singular physical feature was noticed on the part of the coast near Cape Dudley Digges: — "We have discovered, (says Ross,) that the snow on the face of the cliffs prcisents an appearance both novel and inter esting, being apparently stained or covered by some substance which gave it a deep crimson color. This snow was penetrated in many places to a depth of ten or twelve feet by the coloring matter." There is noth- ing new, however, according to Barrow, in the discov- ery of red snow. Pliny, and other writers of his time mention it. Saussure found it in various parts of the Alps ; Martin found it in Spitzbergen, and no doubt it is to be met with in most alpine regions. In the course of this tedious, and often laborious progress through the ice, it became necessary to k«ep the whole of the crew at the most fatiguing work, some- times for several days and nights without intermission. When this was the case, an extra meal was served to them at midnight, generally of preserved meat ; and it was found that this nourishment, when the mind and body were both occupied, and the sun continually present, rendered them capable of remaining without >3leep, so that they often passed three days in this man- ner without any visible inconvenience, returning after a meal to their labor on the ice or in the boats quite refreshed, and continuing at ^l without a murmur. - After making hasty and very cursory examinations of Smith's and Jones' Sounds, Ross arrived, on the 30th of AugHist, off the extensive inlet, named by Baf- fin, Lancaster Sound. The entrance was perfectly clear, and the soundings ranged from 650 to 1000 fath oms. I shall now quote Ross's own observations on this subject, because from his unfortunate report of » FIBBT VOYAGE OF CAPTAIW itOS8. 43 range called the Croker mountainB, stretching across this Strait, has resulted much of the ridicule and dis- credit which has attached to his accounts, and clouded his early reputation — "On the 31st (he says) we dis- covered, for the first time, that the land extended fi'om the south two-thirds across this apparent Strait ; but the fog which continually occ; pied that quarter, ob- scured its real figure. During the day much interest was excited on board by the appearance of this Strait. The general opinion, however, was, that it was only an inlet. The land was partially seen extending across ; the yellow sky was perceptible. At a little before four o'clock A. M., the land was seen at the bottom of the inlet by the ofiicers of the watch, but before I got on deck a space of about seven degrees of the compass was obscured by the fog. The land which I then saw was a high ridge of mountains extending directly across the bottom of the inlet. This chain appeared extremely high in the center. Although a passage in this direc- tion appeared hopeless, I was determined to explore it completely. I therefore continued all sail. Mr. Bev- erly, the surgeon, who was the most sanguine, went up to the crow's nest, and at twelve reported to me that before it became thick he had seen the land across the bay, except for a very short space. "At three, I went on deck ; it completely cleared for ten minutes, when I distinctly saw the land round the bottom of the bay, fonning a chain of mountains con- nected with those which extended along the north and south side. This land appeared to be at the distance of eight leagues, and Mr. Lewis, the master, and James llaig, leading man, being sent for, they took its bear- ings, which were inserted in the log. At this moment I also SAW a continuity of Ice at the distance of seven miles, extending from one side of the bay to the other, betw<*en the nearest cape to the north, which I named after Sir George "Warrender, and that to the south, which was named after Viscount Castlereagh. The mountains, which occup'sd the center, in a north and 8 B* i- r I m i 8! i 1 1 8 U!'.| i 1! i^ PROGRESS OF AROTIO DISOOVERT. south direction, were named Croker's Mountains, after the Secretary to the Admiralty."* They next proceeded to Possession Bay, at the en- trance of the Strait, where a great many animals were observed. Deer, fox, ermine, bears, and hares, were either seen, or proved to be in abundance by their tracks, and the SKeletou of a whale was found stranded about 600 yards beyond high-water-mark. Finding, as lloss supposed, no outlet through Lancaster Strait, the vessels continued their progress to the southward, ex- nloring the western coast of Baffin's Bay to Pond's nay, and Booth's Inlet, discovering the trending of the hind, which he named North Galloway, and North Ayr to Cape Adair, and Scott's Bay. On September the 10th, they landed on an island near Cape Eglington, which was named Agnes' Monu- ment. A flaff-staff and a bottle, with an account of their proceedings was set up. The remains of a tem- porary habitation of some of the Esquimaux were here observed, with a fire-place, part of a human skull, a broken stone vessel, some bones of a seal, burnt wood, part of a sledge, and tracks of dogs, &c. While the boat was absent, two large bears swam off to the ships, which were at the distance of six miles from the land. They reached the Alexander, and were immediately attacked by the boats of that ship, and killed. One, which was shot through the head, unfor- tunately sank ; the other, on being wounded, attacked the boats, and showed considerable play, but was at length secured and towed to the Isabella by the boats of bot' ships. The animal weighed 11311 lbs., besides the blood it had lost, which was estimated at 80 lbs more. On the following day, Lieut. Parry was sent on shore to examine an iceberg, which was found to be 4169 yards long, 3869 yards broad, and 61 feet high, being aground in 61 fathoms. "When thev had ascended to the top, which was perfectly flat, they found a huA;e •Tol I,p.241.46.8TaeA sh(i VOYAGE OF BUC'HAN AND FRANKLIN. 45 white bear iu quiet possession of the mass, who, much to their mortification and astonishment, plunged with- out hesitation into the sea from the edge of tue preci- pice, which was fifty feet high. From careful observation it was found that there was no such land in the center of Davis' Strait as James' Island, which was laid down in most of the charts. Nothing deserving of notice occurred in the subsequent course of the vessels past Cape Walsingham to Cum- berland Strait. The 1st of October having arrived, the limit to which his instructions permitted him to remain out, lloss shaped his course homeward, and after encountering a Revere gale oif Cape Farewell, arrived in Grimsby Roads on the 14tJi of November. As respects the pur- pose of Arctic discovery, this voyage may be considered almost a blank, none of the important inlets and sounds of Baffin's Bay having been explored, and all that was done was to define more clearly the land-bounds of Davis' Strait and Bafiin's Bay, if we except the valu- able magnetic and other observations made by Captain Sabine. The commander of the expedition was pro- moted to the rank of captain on paying off tl e ships in December, 1818. The account of his voyage, published by Capt. Ross, is 0-' tii). most meager and uninteresting description, auv. "* , J than half filled with dry details of the outfit, co^', ;f his instructions, of his routine letters and orders .« 1*^6 oflicers, &c. BUCHAN AND FbANKIJN. Dorothea and Trent to Pole, 1818. In conjunction with the expedition of Captain Jolift Ross, was that sent out to the coast of Spitzbergen, ana 0. which Captain Beechy has published a most inter- Crftj {!: account, embellisned with some very elegan»: ilUisL/aiious from his pencil. The charge of it was given to Captain D. Buchan, who had, a lew years pre- viously, conducted a very interesting expedition mtfl J« I 1 1 Ri I i'i' III ;#■- t ■:|i i i 1 , i f 1 1 1 1' i '1 : 1 ^ 1 't t ti :t I 4 80 petty ofiicers .and seamen. Total complement 38. ▼t)YA.OB OF BUCHAN AND FBANKLIN. 41 Having been properly fitted for the service, and ta^ ken on board two years' provisio'js, the ships sailed on the 25th of April. The Trent had hardly got clear of the river before she sprang a leak, and was detained in tie port of Lerwick nearly a fortnight undergoing , pairs. On the 18th of May, the ships encountered a severe i^ale, and under even storm stay-sails were buried gun- Kvale deep in the waves. On the 24th they sighted Cherie Island, situated in lat. 74'' 33' N., and long. 17° 10' E., formerly so noted for its fishery, being much frequented by walrusses, and for many years the Mus- covy Company carried on a lucrative trade by sending ih'im to the island for oil, as many as a thousand ani- oaals being often captured by the crew of a single ship in the course of six or seven hours. The progress of the discovery ships through the small floes and nuge masses of ice which floated in succes- sion past, was slow, and these, from their novelty, were regarded with peculiar attention from the grotesque shapes they assume. The progress of a vessel through such a labyrinth of frozen masses is one of the most in- teresting sights that ofier in the Arctic seas, and kept the officers and crew out of their beds till a late hour watching the scene. Capt. Beechey, the graphic nar- rator of the voyage, thus describes the general impres- sion created : — " There was besMes, on this occasion, an additional motive for remaining up; verv few of us had ever seen the sun at midnight, and this night happening to be particularly clear, his broad red disc, curiously distorted by refraction, and sweeping majes- tically along the nortnern horizon, was an object of im- posing grandeur, which riveted to the deck some of oui crew, wuo would perhaps have beheld with indifierence bhe less imposing effect of the icebergs; or it might have been a combination of both these phenomena ; for it cannot be denied that the novelty, occasioned by the floating masses, was materially heightened by the sin- gular effect produced by the very low altitude at which tiio sun cast lis fiery beams over the icy surface of tiui / N 48 PROGRESS OF ARCTIC DISCOVERT. iii gea. The rays were too oblique to illuminate more tLan the inequalities of the floee, and falling thus partially on the grotesque shapes, either really assumea by tifa ice or distorted by the unequal refraction of the atmos- phere, so betrayed the imagination that it required no great exertion of fancy to trace in various directions ar- chitectural edifices, grottos and caves here and there glittering as if with precious metals. So generally, in- deed, was the deception admitted, that, in directing the route of the vessel from aloft, we for awhile deviated from our nautical phraseology, and shaped our course for a church, a tower, a bridge, or some similar stnicture^ instead of for lumps of ice, which were usually desig- nated by less elegant appellations.'' The increasing difficulties of this ice navigation soon, however, directed their attention from romance to tke reality of their position, the perils of which soon be- came alarmingly apparent. " The streamfi of ice, between which we at first pur- sued onr serpentine course with comparative ease, grad- ually became more narrow, and at length so impeded the navigation, that it became necessary to run the ships against some of these imaginary edifices, in order to turn them aside. Even this did not alwavs succeed, as some were so substantial and immoveable, that the vessels glanced off to the opposite bank of the channel, and then became for a time embedded in the ice. Thus cir- cumstanced, a vessel has no other resource than that of patientlv awaiting the change of position in the ice, of which she must take every advantage, or she will settle bodily to leeward, and become completely entangled.* On the 26th the ships sighted the southern promon- tory of Spitzbergen, and on the 28th, while plying to windward on the western side, were overtaken by a violent cale at southwest, in which they parted com pany. The weather was very severe. "The snow fell in heavy showers, and several tons weight of ice accu- mulatea about the sides of the brig, (the Trent,) and form ed a complete casing to the planks, which received ao additional layer at each plunge of tiie vessel. So groat VOYA&lfi Uf BDOHJlN and FRAlfKLIU. 49 indeed, was the accumulation about the bow8, that we were obliged to cut it away repeatedly with axes to re- lieve the bow-sprit from the enormous weight that was attached to it ; and the ropes were so thickly covered with ice, that it was necessary to beat them with large sticks to keep them in a state of readiness for any evo- lution that might be rendered necessary, either by the appearance of ice to leeward, or by a change of wind." On the gale abating, Lieutenant Franklin found him- self surrounded by the main body of ice in lat. 80° N., and had much difficulty in extricating the vessel. — Had this formidable body been encountered in thick weather, while scudding before a gale of wind, there v(»uld have been very little chance of saving either the vessels or the crews. The Trent fortunately fell in with her consort, the Dorothea, previous to entering the ap- Jointed rendezvous at Magdalena Bay, on the 3d of une. This commodious inlet being the first port they had anchored at in the polar regions, possessed many objects to engage attention. What particularly struck them was the brilliancy of the atmosphere, the peace- ful novelty of the scene, and the grandeur of the vari ous objects with which nature has stored these unfre- quented regions. The anchorage is formed by rugged mountains, which rise precipitously to the n<°iight of about 3000 feet. Deep valleys and glens occur between the ranges, the greater part of which are either filled with immense beds of snow, or with glaciers, sloping from the summits of the mountainous margin to the very edge of the sea. The bay is rendered conspicuous by four huge gla- ciers, of which the most remarkable, tnough the small- est in size, is situated 200 feet above the sea, on thj slope of a mountain. From its peculiar appearance this glacier has been termed the Hanging Iceberg. Its position is such that it seems as ii a very small matter would detach it from the mountain, and precip- itate it into the sea. And, indeed, large portions of its front do occasionally break: away and fall with head- long impetuosity upon the beach, to the great hazard SSSBB 50 PROGRESS OF AKCri'IO DlSCOVEBf . of auy boat that may chance to be near. The largest of these glaciers occupies the head of the bav, and, according to Captain Beechey's account, extends I'roin two to three miles inland. Numerous large rents in its upper surface have caused it to bear a resemblance to the ruts left by a wagon ; hence it was named by the voyagers the "Wagon Way." The frontage of this gla- cier presents a perpendicular surface of 300 feet in height, by 7000 teet in length. Mountain masses — " Whose blocks of sapphire seem to mortal eye HewQ from cerulean quames in the sky, With glacier battlements that crowd the spheral^ The slorw creation of six thousand years^ Amidst immensity they tower sublime, Winter's etemd palace, built by Time." 'At the head of the bay there is a high pyramidal mountain of granite, termed Rotge Hill, trom the myr- iads of small birds of that name which frequent its base, and appear to prefer its environs to every other part of the narbor. " They are so numerous that we nave frequently seen an uninterrupted line of them ex- tending mil half way over the bay, or to a distance of more than three miles, and so close together that thirty have fallen at one shot. This living column, on an aver- age, might have been about six yards broad, and as many deep ; so that, allowing sixteen birds to a cubic yard, there must have been nearly four millions of birds on the wing at one time. The number I have given cer- tainly seems large ; yet when it is told that the little rotges rise in such numbers as completely 'to darken the air, and that their chorus is distinctly audible at a distance of four miles, the estimate will not be thought to bear any reduction." One of their earliest excursions in this bay was an attempt to ascend the peak of Rotge Hill, "upon which," says Captain Beechey, " may now, perhaps, be seen at the heignt of about 2000 feet, a staff that once carried a red nag, which was planted there to mark the great- est height we were able to attain, partly in consequence of the steepness of the ascent, but mainly on account of the detached masses of rock wh^'ch a very elight VOYAQB OF BUOUAN AND FRANKLIN. 51 rht matter would displace and hurl dowu the precipitous declivity, to the utter destruction of him who depended upon their support, or who might happen to be in their path below. The latter part of our ascent was, indeeo, much against our inclination ; but we found it impossible to descend by the way we had come up, and were compelled to gain a ledge, which promised the only secure resting-place we could find at that height. This we were able to effect by sticking the tomahawks with which we were provided, into crevices in the rock, as a support for our feet ; and some of these instru- ments we were obliged to leave whare they were driven, in consequence or the danger that attended theii recovery." During the vessers detention in this har- bor, the bay and anchorage were completely surveyed. When the first party rowed into this bay, it was in quiet possession of herds of walruses, who were so un- accustomed to the sight of a boat that they assembled about her, apparently highly incensed at the intrusion, and swam toward her as though they would have torn the planks asunder with their tusks. Their hides were so tough that nothing but a bayonet would pierce them. The wounds that were inflicted only served to increase their rag^, and it was with much difficulty they were kept off with fire-arms. Subsequently the boats went better prepared and more strongly supported, and many of these monsters were killed ; some were four- teen feet in length, and nine feet girth, and of such prodigious weight, that the boat's crew could scarcely turn them. The ships had not been many days at their anchor- age when they were tnily astonished at the sight of a strange boat puUingtoward the ships, which was found to belong to some Kussian adventurers, who were en- gaged in the collection of peltry and morse' teeth. This 18 9ie last remaining establishment at Spitzbergen still npheld by the merchants of Archangel. Although equally sui-priscd at the sight of the ves- sels, the boat's crew took courage, and after a careful scrutiny, went on board the Dorothea; Captain Buchan 69 PROaUK88 OF ARCTlO DISCOVERY, S '11 h.'^w fei; :li gave them a kind reception, and supplied them with wliatever tliey wanted ; in return for wliich thej sent on board, the following day, a side of venison in excel- lent condition. Wishing to gain some further informa- tion of these people, an officer accompanied them to their dwelling at the head of a small cove, about four miles distant from the bay, where he found a comfort- able wooden hut, well lined with moss, and stored with venison, wild ducks, &c. It is related bv Captain Beechej that it was with ex- treme pleasure they noticed in this retired spot, proba- bly the most northern and most desolate habitation of our globe, a spirit of gratitude and devotion to the Al- mighty rarely exerciaed in civilized countries. " On landing from the boat and approaching their residence, these people knelt upon its tnreshold, and offered up a prayer with fervor and evident sincerity. The exact nature of the praver we did not learn, but it was no doubt one of thanksgiving, and we concluded it was a custom which these recluses were in the habit of observ- iiiff on their t. \fe return to their habitation. It may, 9 1 all events, be regarded as an instance of the beneficial effects which sedusion from the busy world, and a con- templation of the works of nature, almost invariably produce upon the hearts of even the most uneducated part of mankind." On the 7th of June the expedition left the anchorage to renew the examination of the ice, and after steering a few leagues to the northward, found it precisely in the same state as it had been left on the 2a. In spite of all their endeavors, by towing and otherwise, the vessels were driven in a calm by the heavy swell into the packed ice, and the increasing peril oi their situa tion may be imagined from, the following graphic de- Bcription : — "The pieces at the edge of the pack were at one time wholly immersed in the sea, and at the next raised far above their natural line of flotation, while those further '%iL, being more extensive., were alternately depressed or VOTAGE OF BUCIIAJ!^ AHV FKANKLIN. rage iring |y ill jpite the J into [itua do- elevated at either extremity as the advancing wave forced its way along. "Tlie see-saw motion which was thus produced was alarming, not merely in appeai'ance, but in fact, and must have proved fatal to any vessel that had encoun- tered it ; as floes of ice, several yards in thickness, were continually crashing and breaKing in pieces, and the sea for miles was covered with fragments ground so small that they actually formed a thick, pasty sub- stance — in nautical language termed, ''lrJD FKAJ^KUN. 5 4 each other to a great height, liiitil t jey upset, when they rolled over with a tremendous crash. 1 'le ice near the ehipswas piled up above their bulwarks. Fortunat<^.'y, the vessels rose to the pressure, or they must have had tlieir sides forced in. The Trent received her greatest damage upon the quarters, and was so twisted that the doors of all the cabins flew open, and the panels ol some started in the frames, while her false stern-post was moved three inches, and her timbers cracked to a most serious extent. The Dorothea suffered still more : some of her beams were sprung, and two planks on the lower deck were split fore and afl, and doubled up, and she otherwise sustained serious injury in her hull. It was in vain that we attempted any relief; our puny efforts were not even felt, though contmued for eight hours with unabated zeal ; and it was not until the tide changed that the smallest effect was produced. When, however, that occurred the vessels nghted and settled in the water to their proper draught." From the 12th to the 19th, they were closely beset with ice. For nine successive days following this the crews were occupied, night and day, in endeavoring to extricate the ships, and regain the open sea. Thinking he had given the ice a fair trial here, the commander detennined upon examining its coi dition toward the eastern coast of Greenland, and in the event of finding it equally impenetrable there, to proceed round the south cape ol Spitzbergen, and make an attempt be- tween that island and Nova Zembla. On the 30th of July, a sudden gale cme on, and brought down the main body of the ice upon them, so that the ships were in such imminent danger that their only means of safety was to take reftige among it — a practice which has been resorted to by whalei-s in ex- treme cases — as their only chance of escaping destruc- tion. The following is a description of the preparation made to withstand the terrible encounter, and the hair- breadth escape from the dangerp^ : — " In order to avert the effofta of this as ipnch as pos- 3 jL:: ' -j>!'.CJiaaia ^H 58 PROGKESS OF AKOTIO DISCOVEET. ■\.\ sible, a cable was cut up into thirty-feet leufftha, ana these, with plates of iron four feet square, which had been supplied to us as fenders, together with some walrus' hides, were hung round the vessels, especially about the bows. The masts, at the same time, were se* cured with additional ropes, and the hatches were bat- tened and nailed down. By the time these precautions had been taken, our approach to the breakers only left us the alternative of either permitting the ships to be drifted broadside against the ice, and so to take their chance, or of endeavoring to force fairly into it by put- ting before the wind. At length, the hopeless state of a vessel placed broadside against so formidable a body becaiTie apparent to all, and we resolved to attempt the latter expedient." Eagerly, but in vain, was the general line of the pack scanned, to find one place more open than the other. All parts appeared to be equally impenetrable, and to present one unbroken line of furious breakers, in which immense pieces of ice were heaving and subsiding with the waves, and dashing together with a violence which nothing apparently but a solid body could withstand, occasioning such a noise that it was with the greatesi difficulty the officers could make their orders heard bj' the crew. The fearful aspect of this appalling scene is thus sketched by Captain Beechey : — " No language, I am convinced, can convey an ade- quate idea of the terrific grandeur of the effect now pro- duced by the collision of the ice and the tempestuous ocean. The sea, violently agitated and rolling its moun- tainous waves against an opposing body, is at all times a sublime and awful sight ; but when, in addition, it encounters immense masses, which it has set in motion with a violence equal to its own, its effect is prodigi- ously increased. At one moment it bursts upon these icy fragments and buries them many feet beneath its wave, and the next, as the buoyancy of the depressed body struggles for reascendancy, the water rushes ir foaming cataracts over its edges ; while every ind^ 'I. i M I.. Il'li' VOTAGB OF BUCHAN AND FRANKLIN. 59 J^idual mass, rockinff and labonng in its bed, grinds against and contends with its opponent, until one is either split with the shock or nplieaved upon the 3ur- tkce of the other. Nor is this collision confined to any particular spot ; it is going on as far as the sight can reach ; and when from this convulsive scene below, the eye is turned to the extraordinary appearance of thtf blink in the sky abo^re, where the unnatural clear- ness of a calm and silvery atmosphere presents itself, bounded by a dark, hard line of stormy clouds, such as at this moment lowered over our masts, as if to mark the confines within which the efibrts of man would be of no avail. The reader may imagine the sensation of awe which must accompany that of grandeur in the mind of the beholder." " If ever," continues the narrator, " the fortitude of seamen was fuirly tried, it was assuredly not less bo on this occasion ; and I will not conceal the pride I felt in witnessing the bold and decisive tone m which the orders were issued by the commander (tho present Captain Sir John Franklin) of our little vessel, and the promptitude and steadiness with which ♦hey were exe- cuted by the crew." As the laboring vessel flew before the gale, she soon oeared the scene of danger. "Each person instinctively secured his own he 1, and with nis eyes fixed upon the masts, awaited in breathless anxiety the moment of concussion. " It soon arrived,-^— the brig, (Trent) cutting her way through the light ice, came m violent contact with the main Dody. & an instant we all lost our footing ; the jnasts bent with the impetus, and the cracking timbers Q'om below bespoke a pressure which was calculated to awaken our serious apprehensions. The vessel stag- gered under the shock, and for a moment seemed to recoil ; but the next wave, curling up under her coun- ter, drove he^ about her own length within the margin of the ioe, where she gave one roll, and was imnicdi- ately thrown broadside to the wind by the succeeding wave, which beat furiously agaiust her stem, and ■m 60 FBOOKESS OF AKOIIO DISCOVSBT. brought her lee-side in contact with the main body, leaving her weather-side exposed at the fiame time to a piece of ice about twice ner own dimenbions. This mitbrtunate occurrence prevented the vessel penetrat- ing sufficiently far into the ice to escape the effect of the gale, and placed her in a situation where she was assaued on all sides by battering-rams, ^\' I may use the expression, every one of which contested the small space which she occupied, and dealt such unrelenting blows, that there appeared to be scarcely any possibil- ity of saving her from foundering. Literally tossed from piece to piece, we had nothing left but patiently to abide the issue ; for we could scarcely keep our feet, much less render any assistance to the vessel. The mo- tion, indeed, was so great, that the ship's bell, which, in the heaviest gale ot wind, had never stinick of itself, now tolled so continually, that it was ordered to be muffled, for the purpose of escaping the unpleasant as sociation it was calculated to produce. " In anticipation of the worst, we detennined to at tempt placing the launch upon the ice under the lee, and hurried into her such provisions and stores as could at the moment be ffot at. Serious doubts were reason- ably entertained of the boat being able to live among the confiised mass by which we were encompassed; ye* as this appeared to be our only refuge, we clung to it with all the eagerness of a last resource." From the injury the vessel repeatedly received, it became very evident that if subjected t(» this concus- sion for any time, she could not hold together long ; the only chance of escape, therefore, appeared to 'Impend upon getting before the wind, and penetrating further into the ice. To effect this with any probability of success, it be- came necessary to set more head-sail, though at the risk of the masts, already tottering with the pressure of that which was spread. By the expertness ot the seamen, more sail was spread, and under this additional pressure of canvass, the ship came into the desired position, and with the aid of an enormone mass under VOYAGE OF BUOnAJN AND FRANKLIH. 61 the stern, she split a small field of ice, fourteen feet in thickness, whidi had hitherto impeded her pi ogress, and effected a passage for herself between the pieces. In this improved position, by carefully placing the protecting fenders between the ice and the ship's sides, the strokes were much diminished, and she managed to weather out the gale, but lost sight of her consort in the clouds of spray which were tossed about, and the huge intervening masses of ice among which they were embayed. On the gale moderating, the ships were for- tunately got once more into an open sea, although both disabled, and one at least, the Dorothea, which had sustained the heavy shocks, in a foundering condition. For che main object of the expedition they were now useless, and, both being in a leaky state, they bore up for Fair Haven, in Spitzbergen. In approaching the anchorage in South Gat, the Trent bounded over A sunken rock, and struck hard, but this, after their r» cent danger, was thought comparatively li^^ht of. On examining the hulls of the vessels, it was found they had sustained fi*ightful injuries. The intermediate lining of felt between the timbers and planks seems to have aided greatly in enabling the vessels to sustain tlie repeated powerfal shocks they had encountered. Upon consulting with his officers. Captain Buchan came to the opinion that the most prudent course, was to patch up the vessels for their return voyage. Lieuten- ant Franklin preferred an urgent request tliat he might be allowed to proceed in his own vessel upon the inter- esting service still unexecuted ; but this could not be complied with, in consequence of the hazard to the crew of j)roceeding home singly in a vessel so shat- tered and unsafe as the Dorothea. After refitting, they put 'i;o sea at the end of August, and reached England Dy the middle of October. Franklin's First Land ExPEDmoN, 1819-21. It- In 1819, on the recommendation of the Lords of tho Admiralty, Capt. Franklin was appointed to command ■MP^*M I '¥V ^ 68 VB06BE8S OF ABOTIO DISOOYEST. an overland expedition from Hudson's Bay to the north- ern shores of America, for the purpose of determining the latitudes and longitudes, and exploring the coast of the continent eastward from the Coppermine River. Dr John Richardson, R. N., and two Admiralty Midship men, Mr. George Back, (who had been out on the polai expedition, in the previous year, in H. M. S. Trent,) and Mr. Robert Hood, were placed under his orders. Pre- vious to his departure from London, Capt. Franklin ob- tained all the information and advice possible from Sir Alex. Mackenzie, one of tlie only two persons who had yet explored those shores. On the 23d of May, the party embaAed at Gravesend, in the Prince of Wales, bdong- ing to tlie Hudson's Bay Company, wliich immediately fot under wei^h in company with her consorts, the Ed- ystone and Wear. Mr. Back, who was left on shore by accident in Yarmouth, succeeded in catching the ship at Stromness. On the ith of August, in lat. 59° 58' N., and long. 59° 53' W., they first fell in with large icebergs. On the following day, the height of one was ascertained to be 149 feet. After a stormy and perilous voyage they reached the anchorage at York Flats on the 30th of August. On the 9th of September, Capt. Franklin and his party left York Factory m a boat b^- the way of the rivers and lakes for Cumberland House, another of the Company's posts, which they reached on he 22d of October. On the 19tli of January, Franklin set out in company with Mr. Back and a seaman named Hepburn, with pro- visions for fifteen days, stowed in two sledges, on tneii journey to Fort Chipewyan. Dr. Richardson, Mr. Hood and Mr. Con oily accompanied them a short distance. After touching at different posts of the Company, they reached their destination safely on the 26th of March, after a winter's journey of 857 miles. The greatest diffi- culty experienced by the travelers was the labor of walk- ing in snow shoes, a weight of between two and three pounds being constantly attached* to galled feet and swelled ankles. On the 13th of July, they were joined by Dr. Richaixi- FRATTKIJN^ FIBST LAND EXPEDITION. 9t ffi. Ik- I'd- Bon and Mr. Hood, who had made a very expeditious journey from Cumljerland House ; they had only one day's provisions left, the pemmican they had received at tlio pot.cJ being so mouldy that they were obliged to leave it behind. Arrangements were now made for tbe^r jour- ney northward. Sixteen Canadian voyageurs wev^ en- gaged, and a Chipewyan woman and two interpreters were to be taken on from Great Slave Lake. The whole stock of provisions they could obtain before starting was only sufhcient for one day's supply, exclusive of two bar- rels of flour, three cases of preserved meats, some choco- late, arrow-root and portable soup, which had been brought from England, and were kept as a reserve for the journey to the coast in the following season; seventy pounds of deer's flesh and a little barley were all that the Company's officers could give them. The provisions were distributed among three canoes, and the party set oft' in good spirits on the 18th of July. They had to make an inroad very soon on their preserved meats, for they were very unfortunate in their fishing. On the 24th of July, however, they were succebsful m shooting a buffalo in the Salt River, aft;er giving him fourteen balls. At Moose Deer Island they got supj^lies from the Hudson's Bay and North West Companies' oflicers, and on the 27th set out again on their journey, reaching Fort Providence by the 29th. Shortly after they had an interview with a celebrated and influential Indian chief, named Akaitcho, who was to furnish them with guides. Another Canadian voya- «>:eur was there engaged, and the party now consisted of the officers already named, Mr. Fred. Wentzel, clerk of the N. W. Fur Company, who joined them here, John Hepburn, the English seaman, seventeen Canadian voy- ageurs, (one of whom, named Michel, was an Iroquois,) and three Indian intei-preters, besides the wives oi three of the voyageurs who had been brought on for the pur- pose of making clothes and shoes for the men at the winter establisnment. The whole number were twenty- nine, exclusive of three children. I give the list of those whose names occur most frequently in the narrative: 64 PE0GRE8S OF AKOTIO DISCOVEMT. J .i4 J. B. Belanger, Peltier, Solomon Belanger, Samandre, Benoit, Perrault, Antonio Fontano, Beauparlant, Vail- laut, Credit, Adam St. Germain, interpreter; Augustus and Junius, Esquimaux interpreters. They bad provis- ions for ten days' consumption, besides a little chocolate and tea, viz : two casks of flour, 200 dried reindeer tongues, some dried moose meat, portable soup, and a little arrow-root. A small extra canoe was provided for the women, and the journey for the Coppermine River was commenced on the 2d of August. The party met with manv hardships — were placed on short diet — and some of the Canadians broke out into open rebellion, refusing to proceed farther. However, they were at last calmed, and arrived on the 20th of August at Fort En- terprise, on Winter Lake, which, by the advice of their Indian guides, they determined on making their winter quarters. The total length of the voyage from Chipe- wyan was 552 miles; and after leaving Fort Providence, they had 21 miles of portage to pass over. As the men had to traverse each portage with a load of 180 lbs., and return three times light, they walked, in the whole, upward of 150 miles^ In consequence of the refusal of Akaitcho and his pai'ty of Indians to guide and accompany them to the sea, because, as they alledged, of the approach of win- ter, and the imminent danger. Captain Franklin was obliged to CtLandon proceeding that season down the river, and contented himself with dispatching, on the 29th, Mr. Back and Mr. Hood, in a light canoe, with St. Germain as interpreter, eight Canadians, and one Indian, furnished with eight days' provisions — all that could be spared. They returned on the 10th of September, after hav ing reached and coasted Point Lake. In the mean time^ Franklin and Richardson, accompanied by J. Hepburn and two Indians, also made a peoestrian excursion tow- ard the same quarter, leaving on the 9th of September, and retui'ning on the fourteenth. The whole party spent a long winter of ten months at Fort Enterprise, depending upon the fish they could catch, and the sno cess of their Indiai. hunters, for food. franklin's FIliST LAND EXPEDITION. $9 Ms the in- "was the the Iwith one that On the 6th of October, the officers quitted their tents for a good log house which had been Duilt. TUe clay with which the walls and roof were plastered, had to be tempered before the fire with water, and froze as it was daubed on ; but afterward cracked in such a man- ner, as to admit the wind from every quarter. Still the new abode, with a good fire of fagots in the capa- cious clay-built chimney, was considered quite comfort- able when compared with the chilly tents. The reindeer are found on the banks of the Copper- mine River early in May, as they then go to the sea- coast to bring forth their young. They usually retire from the coast in July and August, rut m Octouer, and shelter themselves in the woods during winter. Before the middle of October, the carcasses of one hundred deer had been secured in their store-house, together with one thousand pounds of suet, and some dried meat ; and eighty deer were stowed away at various distances from their house, en cache. This placing provisions "en cache," is merely burying and protecting it from wolves and other depredators, by heavy loads of wood or stone. On the 18th of October, Mr. Back and Mr. Wentzel, accompanied by two Canadian voyageurs, two Indians and their wives, set out for Fort rrovidence to make *he necessary arrangements for transporting the stores they expected from Cumberland House, and to see if some further supplies might not be obtained from the establishments on Slave Lake. Dispatches for Eng- land were also forwarded by them, detailing the pro- gress of the expedition up to this date. By the ena of the month the men had also completed a house for themselves, 34 feet by 18. On the 26th of October, Akaitcho, and his Inaian party of hunters, amounting with women and children to forty souls, came in, owing to the deer having migrated southward. This added to the daily number to be provided for, and by this time their ammunition was nearly expended. The fishing failed as the weather became more severe, und was given up on the 5th of November. About w&MiHlMlHUHMaMMaM 66 PU00UKS8 OF ARuTIO DISCOVKBT. > i np ii .1 .■I ..|4 ,,,.,,;! ini!:i|iJ 1200 white fish, of from two to three pounds, had been procured during the season. The tish froze as they were taken from the nets, becoming in a short time a solid mass of ice, so that a blow or two of the hatchet would easily split them open, when tlie intestines migl»t be removed in one lump. If thawed before the hre, even after beinff frozen for nearly two days, the fish would recover their animation. On the 23d of November, tliey were gratified by the appearance of one of the Canadian voyageurs who had set out witli Mr. Back. His locks were matted wuth snow, and he was so encrusted with ice from head to foot, that they could scarcely recognize hira. He re- ported that they had had a tedious and fatiguing jour- ney to Fort Providence, and for some days were desti- tute of provisions. Letters were brought from England to the preceding April, and quickly was the packet thawed to get at the contents. The newspapers con- veyed the intelligence of the death of George 111. Tlie advices as to the expected stores were disneartening ; of ten bales of ninety pounds each, five had been l^i't by some mismanagement at the Grand Rap'd on tlw Sattkatchawan. On the 28th of November, St. Ger- main the interpreter, with eight Canadian voyageurs, and four Indian hunters, were sent otf to bring up the stores fi'om Fort Providence. On the 10th of December, Franklin managed to get rid of Akaitcho and his Indian party, by representing to them the impossibility of maintaining them. The leader, however, left them his mother and two female attendants; and old Kaskarrah, the guide, with his wife and daughter, remained behind. This daughter, who was designated " Green Stockings," fiom her dress, was considered a great beauty by her tribe, and although but sixteen, had belonged successively to two husbands, and would probably have been the wife of many more, if her mother had not required her services as a nurse. Mr. Hood took a good likeness of the young laoy, but hor mother was somewhat averse to her sitting for it, fearing that " her daughter''s likeness would indnc» FRANKLIN S FIIDST LAND KXl'KDITION. 6T get ing The male wife who was ough ■iiids, nore, urse. laay, g for due© tho Great Chief who resided in England to sead for tho original 1 " The diet of the party in their winter abode consisted almost entirely of reindeer meat, varied twice a weeks by lish, and occasionally by a little flour, but they had no vegetables of any kind. On Sunday morning they had a cup of chocolate ; but their greatest luxury was tea, which they regularly had twice a day, although without sugar. Candles were formed of reindeer rat and strips of cotton shirts; and Hepburn acquired con- siderable skill in the manufacture ot soup from the wooil ashes, fat and salt. The stores were anxiously looked for, and it was hoped they would have arrived by New Year's Day, (1821,) so as to have kept the festival. As it was, they could only receive a little flour and fat, both of which were considered great luxuries. On the 15th, seven of the men arrived with two kegs of rum, one barrel of powder, sixty pounds of ball, two rolls of tobacco, and some clothing. " They had been twenty-one days on their march from Slave Lake, and the labor they underwent was eufli* eiently evinced by their sledge collars having worn out the shoulders of their coats. Their loads weighed from sixty to ninety pounds each, exclusive of their bedding and provisions, which at starting must have been at least as much more. We were much rejoiced at their arrival, and proceeded forthwith to pierce the spirit cask, and issue to each of the household the portion of mm which liad been promised on the first day of the year. The spirits, which were proof, were frozen; but after stand- ing at the fire for some time they flowed out, of the consistence of honey. The temperature of the liquid, even in this state, was so low as instantly to convert into ice the moisture a\ hich condensed on the surface of the dram^lass. The fingers also adhered to the glass, and woulddoubtless have been speedily frozen had they been kept in contact with it ; yet each of the voyagenra swallowed his dram without experiencing the sli^test inconvenience, or complaining of toothacne." It appeared that the CaTiadians had tapped the ruia C* . wf^mmlimmm 68 PROaUEBS OF ARCrnO DISGOVURT. ;.j..l I'^iii!!! hm i i Urn \rM 111 i'li'l ■ cask on their journey, and helped themselves rathef freely. On the 27t£i, Mr. Wentzel and St. Germain arrived, with two Esquimaux interpreters who had been engaged, possessed ot euphonious names, representing the belly and the ear, but which had been Anglicised into Au- gustus and Junius, being the months they had respec- tively arrived at Fort Churchill. The former spoke English. They brought four dogs with them, which proved of great use during the season in drawing in wood for fuel. Mr. Back, at this time, the 24th of December, had gone on to Chipewyan to procure stores. On the 12th of February, another party of six men was sent to Fort Providence to bring up the remaining supplies, and these returned on the 5th of March. Many of the each <>a of meat which had been buried early in tne winter were found destroyed by the wolves ; and some of these aiii mals prowled nightly about the dwellings, even ventur ing upon the roof of their kitchen. The rations were reduced from eight to the short allowance of five ounces of animal food per day. On the 17th of March, Mr. E«»ck returned from Fort Chipewyan, after an absence of nearly five moutlis, dunng which he had performed a journey on foot of more than eleven hundred miles on snow shoes, with only the slight shelter at night of a blanket and a deer skin, with the thermometer frequently at 40° and once at 57°, and very often passing several days without food. Some very interesting traits of generosity on the part of the Indians are recorded by ]y&. Back. Often they gave up and would not taste of fish or birds which they caught, with the touching remark, " We are accustomed to starvation, and you are not." Such passages as the tbllowing often occur in his narrative : — ^" One of our men caught a fish, which, with file J distance of some weed scraped from the rocks, (t^ip'*> de roche) which forms a glutinous substance, made us a f olerable supper ; it wai not of the most choice kind, VBANELIN 8 FIBST IJkND EIPEDITION. 69 vet ffood enough for hungry men. While wo were eat- ing it, I perceived one ot the \'^omer. busily employed I craping an old skin, tlie contents of which her husband p.'esented us with. Thev consisted of pounded meat, lat, and a greator proportion of In^l fan's and deer's hair than either ; and, though such a mixture may not appear very alluring to an iSiglish stomach, it was thought a great luxury atler three days' privation in these cheer- less regions of America." To return to the proceedings of Fort Enterprise. On tlie 23d of March, tne last of the winter's stock of deer's meat was expended, and the party were compelled to consume a little pounded meat, which had been saved for making pemmican. The nets scarcely produced any fish, and their meals, which had hitherto been scanty enough, were now restricted to one in the day. The poor Indian families about the house, consisting principally of sick and infirm women and children, su? r red even more privation. They cleared away the flr w on the site of the Autumn encampment to look tor bones, deer's feet, bits of hide, and other oflal " When (savs Franklin) we beheld them gnawing the pieces of iiicfe, and pounding the bones for the purpose ot extract- ing some nourishment from them by boiling, we regret- ted our inability to relieve them, but little tnought that we should ourselves be afterward driven to the neces- sity of eagerly collecting these same bones, a second time from tlie dung-hill.'' On the 4th of June, 1821, a first party set off from the winter quarters for Point Lake, and the Coppermine River, under the charge of Dr. Richardson, consisting, in all, voyageurs and Indians, of twenty-three, exclusive of children. Each of the men carried about 80 lbs., be- sides his own personal baggage, weighing nearly as much more. Some of the paitv dragged their loads on sledges, others preferred carrying their burden on their backs. On the 13th, Dr. Richardson sent back most of the men ; and on the 14th Franklin dispatched Mr. Wontzel and a party with the ci.noes, which had been repaired. Following the water-course as far as j mcti irn'-iriiiiiriiiiii 70 PKOORUS8 OF Aitcrrn discovert. cable to Winter Lake, Franklin .'»llov.'eJ hunhQit «ritii Hepburn, tl»ree Canadians, two Indian hunters, and the two Esquimaux, and joined Dr. Kiehardsun on tl.e a2d. On tUGf 25th they all roBunied their journey, and, as they proceeded down the river, were fortunate in killing, occasionally, several musk oxen. On the 16th they got a distinct view of tlie sea from the summit of a liill ; it appeared clioked with ice and full of islands. About this tiine they fell in with small parties of Esquimaux. On the 19th Mr. Weutzel departed on his retuin foi Slave Lake, taking with him tour Canadians, who had been discharged for the purpose of reducing the ex})cn- diture of provisions as much as possible, ana dispatches to be forwarded to England, lie wat^ also instructed to cause the Indians to deposit a relay of provisions at Fort Enterprise, ready for the party slioulu they return that way. The remainder of the party, inclucfing otli- cers, amounted to twenty persons. The distance that had been traversed from 1 ort Enterprise to the mouth of the river/was about 334 miles, and the canoes had to be dragged 120 miles of this. Two conspicuous capes were named by Franklin after llearne rnd Mackenzie ; and a river which falls into the gea, to thf vestward of the Coppermine, he called after his Companion, Richardson. On the 21st of July, Franklin and his party embarked in their two cane 38 to navigate the Polar Sea, to the eastward, having with them provisions for fifteen days. On the 25th they doubled a bluff cape, which was named after Mr. Barrow, of the Admiralty. An open- ing on its eastern side received the appellation of Inman Harbor, and a group of islands were called after Pro- fessor Jameson. Within the nest fortnight, additions were made to their stock of food bv a few deer and one or two bears, which were shot. iBeing less fortunate afterward, and with no prospect of increasing their sup- ply of provision, the daily allowance to each man wap limited to a handful of pemmican and a small portion of portable soup. FUANKLI>:'ti FlitST f.^ND JCXJ'JjaJlTION. 7Ji tlie On the morning of the 5th of August they came to thti moutli of a river blocked up with ehoals, which Franklin named after his friend and companion Back. The time Hpeut in exploring Arctic and Melville Soiin«lfi and liathuret Inlet, ana the failure of meeting with Esquimaux from whom provisions could bo ob- tained, precluded any possibility of reaching liepulso Bay, a.'id therefore having but a day or two's provisions left, Franklin considered it prudent to turn back atU»r reacliing Point Turnagain, naving sailed nearly 600 gc'0gra})hical miles in tracing the deeply indented coast of Coronation Gulf from the Coppermine River. On tlie 22d August, the return voyage was commenced, the boats making for Hood's Kiver by the way of the Arctic Sound, and being taken as far up the stream as possible. On the 31st it was found impossible to pro- ceed with them farther, and smaller canoes were made, suitable for crossing any of the rivera that might ol> Rtruct their progress. The weig' t carried by each man was about 90 lbs., and with this they progressed at the rate of a mile an hour, including rests. On the 6th of September, having nothing to eat, the last piece of pemmican and a little arrow-root having formed a scanty supper, and bein,^ without the means of making a fire, they remained in bed all day. A se- vere snow-storm lasted two days, and the snow even drifted into their tents, covering their blankets several inches. " Our suffering (says Franklin) from cold, in a comfortless canvass tent in such weather, with the tem- perature at 20°, and rt^ithont fire, will easily be im- agined ; it was, however, less than that which we felt froiri hunger. ' Weak from fasting, and their garments stiffened with the frost, after packing their frozen tents and bedclothes the poor travelers again set out on the 7th. After feeding almost exclusively on several species of Gy rophora, a lichen known as trtjfe de roche^ which ticiircely allayed the panj^s of hunger, on the 10th " they gc»t a good meal by killing a musk ox. To skin and cut u}) the arn'maJ vas the work of a few minutes. The 73 'I'KOORl'V? OF AKOTIO D1800VKKT. in contents of its Htomjicli were devourod upon tlie apot^ juhI tho raw iiitoHtinos, which were next iitttickcd, wt'ie pronounced by tlio uiOBt delicato amongnt us to l)c ox- ccllont." Wearied and worn ont with toil and suffering, ni.my of the party got carelees and inditKeront. Ono of rlu! canoes was broken and abandoned. With an inipiovi- dence scarcely to be credited, tiiree of the lisiiing-uots were also thrown away, and the floats buint. •On the 17th they nuinaged to allay the mngs of hun ger by eating jiieces of singed hide, and a little tripe de roche. Tliis and some mosses, with an occasiooal sol- itary partridge, formed their invariable food ; on wry many days even this scanty supply could not be uotjiinrd. and their appetites became ravenous. Occasionally they picked up pieces of skin, and a few bones of deer which had been devoured by the wolves in the previous spring. The bones were i-en- dcrcd friable by burning, and now and then their old shoes were added to the repast. On the 26th they readied a bend of the Coppermine which terminated in Point Lake. The second cjujot' had been demolished and abandoned by the bearers on the 23d, and they were thus left without any means of water transport across the lakes and river. On this (fay the carcass of a deer was discovered in the cleft of a rock, into which it had fallen in the s])riii^r It was putrid, but little less acceptable to the poor stni-v- ing travelers on that account; and a fire being kin- dled a large portion was devoured on tho spot, aiVord- ing an unexpected lireakfast. On th(5 first of Oetol>er one of the party, w^ho had been out IiuntiTig, brought in tlie antlers and backbone of another deer, which liad been killed in the summer. The wolves and birds of prey had picked them clean, bnt there still remained a quantity of the spinal mar- row, which they had not been able to extract. This, although putrid, was esteemed a valuable prize, and the spme oeing divided into portions was distributee! equally. "Anei eating the" marrow, (says Franklin,) FRAKKLIM S FIRST LAND lCXrKI)IT[ON. 78 which was so acrid a8 to ©xcoriato the lips, we ren- dered the bones friable by burning, and ate them also." The Btrenffth of the wliolo party now began to fail. from the privation and fatigue wlncli they endured. — Franklin was in a dreadfully debilitated state. Mr. Hood was also reduced to a peifeet shadow, from the severe bowel-eonij^aints which the tripe de roche never failed to give Iiim. Back was so feeble as to require the support of a stick in walking, and Dr. Kichardson luid lameness superadded to weakness. A rude canoe was ctmstructed of willows, covered with canvass, in which the party, one by one, managed to reach in safety the soutliern bank of the river on the 4th of October, and went supperless to bed. On the following morning, previous to setting out, the whole party ate the remains of their old shoes, and whatever scraps of leather they had, to strengthen their stomachs for the fatigue of the day's journey. Mr. Hood now broke down, as did two or three more of the party, and Dr. Kichardson kindly volunteered to remain with them, while the rest pushed on to Fort Enterprise for succor. Not being able to find any tripe fh roclu'^ they drank an infusion of the Labrador tea- plant {Lcdrum paluat/re^ var. decumhens^imd. ate a lew morsels of burnt leather for supper. This contin- ued to be a frequent occurrence. Others of the party continued to drop down with fa- tigue and weakness, until thejr were reduced to five persons, besides Franklin. "Wiien they had no food or nourishment of any kind, they ^rept under their blank- ets, to drown, if possible, the gtiawing pangs of hunger and fatigue by sleep. At length they reached Fort En- terprise, and to their disappoLitment and grief found it a perfectly desolate habitation. There was no de- posit of provision, no trace df the Indians, no letter from Mr. Wentzel to point out where the Indians might bo found. "It woula be impot-«ible (says Franklin,) to describe our sensations after .entering this miserable abode, and discovering how we had been neglected r tlu; whole narty shed tears, n jt so much for our owu ••'••• 'f¥ifri""iii ill M 74 PROGRESS OF ARCTriO DISCOVERT. »l Irr, fate as for that of our friends in the rear, whose lives depended entirely on our sending immediate relief from this place." A note, however, was found here from Mr. Back, stating that he had reached the house by another route two days before, and was going in search of the Indians. If he Was unsuccessful in find- ing them, he proposed walking to Fort Providence, and sending succor from thence, but he doubted whether he or his party could perform the journey to that place in their present debilitated state. Franklin and his small party now looked round for some means of pres- ent subsistence, and fortunately discovered several deer skins, which had been thrown away during their former residence here. The bones were gathered from the heap of ashes ; these, with the skins and the addition of tripe de roche^ tliey considered would support life tolerably well for a short time. The bones were quite acrid, and the soup extracted from them, quite putrid, excoriated the mouth if taken alone, but it was some- what milder when boiled with the lichen, and the mix- ture was even deemed palatable with a little salt, of which a cask had been left here in the spring. They procured fuel by pulling up the flooring of the rooms, and water for cooking by melting the snow. Augustus arrived safe after them, just as they were sitting round the fire eating their supper of singed skin. Late on the 13th, Eelanger also reached the house, with a note fi'om Mr. Back, stating that he had yet found no trace of the Indians. The poor messenger was almost speechless, being covered with ice and nearly fi'ozen to death, having fallen into a rapid, and for the third time since the party left the coast, narrowly escaped drowning. After being well rubbed, having had his dress changed, and some wann soup given him, he recovered sufficiently to answer the questions put to him. Under the impression that the Indians must be on kheir way to Fort Providence, and that it would be possible tf overtake them, as they usually traveled franklin's first land expedition. M slowly with their families, and there beinff likewise a prospect of killing deer about Reindeer Lake, where they had been usually found abundant, Franklin de^ terrained to take the route for that post, and sent word to Mr. Back by Belanger to that effect on the 18th. On the 20th of October, Franklin set out in com- pany with Benoit and Augustus to seek relief, having patched three pairs of snow shoes, and taken some singed skin for their support. Poltier and Samandre had volunteered to remain at the house with Adam, who was too ill to proceed. They were so feeble as scarcely to be able to move. Augustus, the Esqui- maux, tried for fish without success, so that their only fare was skin and tea. At night, composing them- selves to rest, they lay close to each other for warmth, but found the night bitterly cold, and the wind pierced throu^^h their furnished frames. On resuming the journey next morning, Franklin had the misfortune to break his snow-shoes, by falling between two rocks. This accident prevented him from keeping pace with the others, and in the attempt he became quite exhausted ; unwilling to delay their pro- gress, as the safety of all behind depended on their obtaining early assistance and immediate supplies, Franklin resolved to turn back, while the others pushed on to meet Mr. Back, or, missing him, they were directed to proceed to Fort Providence. Frank- lin found the two Canadians he had left at the house dreadfully weak and reduced, and so low spirited that he had great difficulty in rallying them to any exer- tion. As the insides of their mouths had become sore from eating the bone-soup, they now relinquished the use of it, and boiled the skin, which mode of dressing wasfcnnd more palatable than frying it. They haa pulled down nearly all their dwelling for fuel, to warm meraselves and cook their scanty meals. The tripe de roche, on which they had depended, now became entirely frozen; and what was more tantalizing to their perishing frames, was the sight of food within their reach, which they could not procure. " We saw ■MMiiiiB~ 76 PBOOBES8 OF ABOTIO DISOOTEKT. Ml 'illi t; *■ (says Franklin) a herd of reindeer sporting on the river, about half a mile frona the house ; they re* mained there a long time, but none of the party felt themselves strong enough to go after them, nor was there one of us who could have fired a gun without resting it." While they were seated round the fire this evening, iiscoursing about the anticipated relief, the sound of voices was heard, which was thought with joy to be ihat of the Indians, but, to their bitter disappoint- ment, the debilitated frames and emaciated counte- nances of Dr. Kichardson and Hepburn presented themselves at the door. They were of course gladly received, although each marked the ravages which fam- ine, care and fatigue had made on the other. The Doctor particularly remarked the sepulchral tone of the voices of his friends, which he requested them to make more cheerful if possible, unconscious that his own partook of the same key. ' Hepburn having shot a partridge, which was brought to the house. Dr. Richardson tore out the feathei's, and having held it to the fire a few minutes, divided it into six portions. Franklin and his three compan- ions ravenously devoured their shares, as it was the first morsel of fiesh any of them had tasted for thirty- one days, unless, indeed, the small gristly particles which they found adhering to the pounded bones may be termed flesh. Their spirits were revived by this small supply, and the Doctor endeavored to raise them still higher by the prospect of Hepburn's beiuw able to kill a deer next day, as they had seen, and even fired at, several near the house. He endeavored, too, to rouse them into some attention to the comfort of their apartment. Having brought his Prayer-book and Testament, some prayers, psalms, and portions of scripture, appropriate to their situation, were read out by Dr. Richardson, and they retired to their blankets. Early next morning, the Doctor and Hepburn went out in search of game ; but though they saw several FRANKLIN 3 FIRST LAND EXPEDITION. 77 herds of deer, and fired some shots, they were not bo fortunate as to kill any, being too weak *^o hold their guns steadily. The cold compelled the former to re- turn soon, but Hepburn perseveringly persisted until late in the evening. " My occupation, (continues Franklin) was to search for skins under the snow, it being now our object im- mediately to get all that we could ; but 1 had not strength to drag in more than two of those which were within twenty yards of the house, until the Doctor came and assisted me. We made up our stock to twenty-six; but several of them were putrid, and scarcely eatable, even by men suffering the extremity of famine. Peltier and Samandre continued very weak and dispirited, and they were unable to cut fire- wood. Hepburn had, in consequence, that laborious task to perform after he came back late from hunting." To the exertions, honesty, kindness, and consideration of this worthy man, the safety of most of the party is to be attributed. And I may here mention that Sir John Franklin, when he became governor of Van Diemen's Land, obtained for him a good civil appoint- ment. This deserving man, I am informed by Mr. Barrow, is now in England, having lost his office, which, I believe, has been abolished. It is to be hoped something will be done for him by the govern- ment. After their usual supper of singed skin and bone Boup, Dr. Richardson acquainted Franklin with the events that had transpired since their parting, particu- larly with the afflicting circumstances attending the death of Mr. Hood, and Michel, the Iroquois ; the par- ticulars of which I shall now proceed to condense from his narrative. After Captain Franklin had bidden them farewell, having no trim de roc he they drank an inftision of the country tea-plant, which was gr«ateful from its warmtli, although it afforded no sustenance. They then retired , to bed, and kept to their blankets all next day, as tht» enow drift was so heavy as to prevent their lighting u tfiitHMiHii 78 PROGRESS OF ARCHO DISOOVERT. fire with the green and frozen willows, which wert their only fuel. Through the extreme kindness and forethought of a lady, the party, previous to leaving London, had been furnished with a small collection of religious books, of which, (says Richardson,) we still retained two or three of the most portable, and they proved of incalculable benefit to us. " We read portions of them to each other as we lay iu bed, in addition to the morning and evening service, and found that they inspired us on each perusal with so strong a sense ot the omnipresence of a beneficent God, that our situation, even in these wilds, appeared no longer destitute ; and we conversed not only with Cfilmuess, but with cheerfulness, detailing with unre- strained confidence the past events of our lives, and dwelling with hope on our future prospects," How beautiful a picture have we here represented, of true piety and resignation to the divine will inducing pa- tience and submission under an unexampled load of misery and privation. Michel, the Iroquois, joined them on the 9th of Oc- tober, having, there is strong reason to believe, mur- dered two of the Canadians who were with him, Jean Haptiste Belanger and Perrault, as they were never seen afterward, and he gave so many ramblinn^ and contradictory statements of his proceedings, that no credit could be attached to his story. The travelers proceeded on their tedious journey by slow stages. Mr. Hood was much afi^ected with dim ness of sight, giddiness, and other symptoms of ex treme debility', which caused them to move slowly and to. make frequent halts. Michel absented himself all day of the 10th, and only arrived at their encampment near the pines late on the 11th. He reported that he had been in chase of some deer which passed near his sleeping place in the morning, and although he did not come up with them, yet he found a wolf which had been killed by the stroke of a deer's horn, and had brought a part of it. franklin's first land expedition. 79 Kicbardson adds — "We implicitly believed this 8 proceeded 120 miles from the entrance. On the 8th of Au^ ist, in lat. 72° 13' N., and long. 90° 29' W.J (his extreme point of view Parry namec) .'^«i T 1 v«! ■'>-^'aiiaMt««MliMU|«|li|Hi 1* 88 PROGRESS OF ARCTIC DISCOVERY. 'I!=l'- Cape Kuter,) the Jiecla came to a compact barrier of ice extending across the inlet, which rendered oiu'. of two alternatives necessary, either to remain here until an opening took place, or to return again to the north- ward. The latter course was determined on. Making, therefore, for the northern shore of Barrow's Strait, on the 20th a narrow channel was discovered between the ice and the land. On the 22d, proceeding due west, after passing several bays and headlands, they noticed two large openings or passages, the lirst of which, more than ci^ht leagues in width, he named Wellington Channel. To various capes, inlets, and groups ot isl- ands passed, Parry assigned the names of llotham, Barlow, Cornwallis, Bowen, Byam Martin, Griffith, Lowther, Bathurst, &c. On the 28th a boat was sent on sliore at Byam Martin Island with Capt. Sabine, Mr. J. C. Ross, and the surgeons, to make observations, and collect bpecimens of natural history. The vegeta- tion was ratner luxuriant for these regions; moss in particular grew in abundance in the moist valleys and along the oanks of the streams that flowed from the liills. The ruins of six Esquimaux huts were observed. Tracks of reindeer, bears, and musk oxen were noticed, and the skeletons, skulls, and horns of some of these animals were found. On the 1st of September, they discovered the largo and line island, to which Parry has given the name of Melville Island after the First Lord of the Admiralty of that day. On the following day, two boats with a party of officers were dispatched to examine its shores. Some reindeer and musk oxen were seen on landing, but being startled by the eight of a dog, it was found impossible to get near them. There seemed here to l)e a great quantity of the animal tribe, for the tracks of bears, oxen, ana deer were numerous, and the horns, skin, and skulls were also found. The burrows of foxes and field-mice were observed; several ptarmigan were shot, and flocks of snow-bunting, geese, and ducks, were noticed, probably commencing their migration to a milder climate. Alonsf the beach there was an im- pajiey's first voyage. 89 of ', of 11 til rtli- ,, on tho vest, ;iced iiore igton fisl- ham, imtb, i sent ibine, ttions, egeta- jss in rs and the ved. >ticed, these in were to a Ln ina- mense number of small shrimps, and various kinds of filiells. On the 4th of September, Parry had the satisfaction of crossing the meridian of 110° W., in the latitude of 74° 44' 20", by which the expedition became entitled to the reward of £5000, granted by an order in Coun- cil upon the Act 58 Geo. III., cap. '^0, entitled, "An Act for more effectually discovering the longitude at sea, and encouraging attempts to find a northern pas- sage between the Auantic and Pacific Oceans, and to approach tlie North Pole." This fact was not announced to the crews until the following day ; to celebrate tbo event tliey gave to a bold cape of the island then lying in sight the name of Bounty Cape ; and so anxious were they now to press forward, that they began to calculate the time when they should reach tho longi- tude of 130° W., the second place specified by the order in Council for reward. On the afternoon of the 5th, the compactness of the ice stopped them, and therefore, for the first time since leaving England, the anchor was let go, and that in 110° "W. longitude. A boat was sent on shore on the 6th to procure turf or peat for fuel, and, strangely enough, some small pieces of tolerably good coal were found in various places scattered over the surface. A party of officers that went on shore on the 8th killed sevei*al grouse on the island, and a white hare ; a fox, some field-mice, several snow-bunting, a snowy owl, and four musk oxen were seen. Ducks, m sraall nocks, were seen along the shore, aa "^oM as several glaucous gulls and tern, and a solitary eeu- was observea. Vs the shipB were coasting along on the 7th, two lj.erd •■ n, k oxen were seen grazing, at tho distance of at three quarters of a mile from the beach : one Devi consisted of nine, and the other of five of these cattle. T ey had also a distant view of two reindeer The average weight of the hares hero is about eight pounds. Mr. Fisher, the surgeon, from whose interest- ing journal I quote, states that it is very evident that this island must be frequented, if not constantly inhal> 90 PROGRESS OF ARCTIC DISCOVERT. li- lted, by musk oxen in great numbers, for their bones and horns are found scattered about in all directions, and the greatest |>art of the carcass of one was discovered on one occasion. The skulls of two carnivorous ani- mals, a wolf and a lynx, were also picked up here. A party sent to gather coals brought on board about half a bushel — all they could obtain. On the morning of the 10th, Mr. George Fyfe, tlie master pilot, with a party of six men belonging to the Griper, landed with a view of making an exploringtrip of some fifteen or twenty miles into the interior. They only took provisions for a day with them. Great un- easiness was felt that they did not return ; and when two days elapsed, fears began to be entertained for their safety, and it was thought they must have lost their way. Messrs. Reid, (midshipman) Beverly, (assistant sur- geon) and Wakeman (clerk) volunteerea to go in search of their missing messmates, but themselves lost their way ; guided by the rockets, fires, and lights exhibited, they returned by ten at night, almost exhausted with cold and fatigue, but without intelligence of their friends. Four relief parties were therefore organized, and sent out on the morning of the 13th to prosecute the search, and one of them fell in with and brought back four of the wanderers, and another the remaining three before nightfall. The feet of most of them were much frost-bitten, and they were all wearied and worn out with their wander- ings. It appears they had all lost their way the eve- ning of the day they went out. With regard to food, they were by no means badly off, for they managed to kill as man) grouse as they could eat. They found fertile valleys and level plains in the in- terior, abounding with grass and moss ; also a lake of fresh water, a^^out two miles long by one broad, in which were several species of trout. They saw several herds of reindeer on the plains, and two elk ; also many Iiares, but no musk oxen. Some of those, however, who had been in search of the stray party, noticed herds of these cattle. parry's first voyage. 91 The winter now began to set in, and the packed ice was so tliick, that fears were entertained of being locked lip in an exposed position on the coast ; it was, there- fore, thought most prudent to put back, and endeavor to reach me harbor which had been passed some days before. The vessels now ^ot seriously buffeted anioni/ the floes and hummocks ol ice. The Griper was forced aground on the beach, and for some time was in a very critical position. Lieutenant Liddon having been con- fined to his cabin by a rheumatic complaint, was pi cased at this junctuKe by Commander Parry to allow himself to be removed to the Hecia, but he nobly refused, stating that he should be the last to leave the ship, and contin- ued giving orders. The beach being sand, the Gripei was got on without injury. On the 23d of September they anchored off the mouth of the harbor, and the thermometer now fell to 1°. The crew were set to work to cut a channel through the ice to the shore, and in the course of three days, a canal, two and a half miles in length, was completed, through which the vessel was traeked. The ice was eight or nine inches thick. An extra allowance of ]) re- served meat was served out to the men, in considera- tion of their hard labor. The vessels were unrigged, and every thing made snug and secure for passing the winter. Captain Parry gave the name of the North Georgian Islands to this group, after his Majesty, King (reorge III., but this has since been changed to the Parrv Islands, Two reindeer were killed on the Ist of October, and s.'veral white bears were seen. On the 6th a deer was k'lled, which weighed 170 pounds. Seven were seen ou the 10th, one of which watt killed, and another se- Torely wounded. Following after this animal, night ij\ ertook several of the sportsmen, and the usual sig- nals of rockets, lights, &c. were exhibited, to gui..1^ o^ '^ 23 WiST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14S80 (716)873-4503 'iJ. ^ (6^^ ^ i;:'' k 'V' m ii' d6 PKOGKESS OF ARCTIC DI8C0VKRY. found to be warmer for sleep, and they had only a cov ering of a single blanket each, beside the clothes tbey liad on. On the 2d, they came to a small lake, about half a mile long, and met with eider-ducks and ptarmigan ; seven ofthe latter were shot. From the top of a range of hills at which they now arrived, they could see the masts of the ships in Winter Harbor with the naked eye, at about ten or eleven miles distant. A vast plain was also seen extending to the northward and west- ward. The party breakf'^sted on biscuit and a pint of gruel each, made of salep powder, which was round to be a very palatable diet Keindeer with their fawns were met "vvith. They derived great assistance in dragging their cart by rigging upon it one of the tent-blankets as a sail, a truly nautical contrivance, and the wind favoring them, they made great progress in this way. Captain Sabine being taken ill with a bowel complaint, had to be con- veyed on this novel sail carriage. They, however, had some ugly ravines to pass, the crossings of which were very tedious and troublesome. On the 7th the party came to a large bay, which was named after their ships, Ilecla and Griper bay. The blue ice was cut through by hard work with boardirg pikes, the only instruments they had, and after digging fourteen and a half feet, the water rushed up ; it wes not very salt, but sufficient to satisfy them that it was the ocean. An island seen in the distance was named after Captain Sabine ; seme of the various points and capes were also named after others of the party. Although this «hore was found blocked up with such heavy ice, there appear to be times when there is open water here, for a piece of fir wood seven and a half feet long, and about the thickness of a man's arm, was found about eighty yards inland from the hummocks of the beach, and about thirty feet above the level of the sea. Before leaving the shore, a monu ment of stones, twelve feet high, was erected, in which were deposited, in a tin cylinder, an account of theii PA.RBY8 FIRST VOYAGE. 97 ^ i« ceedings, a few coins, and several naval bnttons. be expedition now turned back, shaping its course in a more westerly direction, toward some high blue hilla which had long been in sight. On many days several ptarmigans were shot The horns and tracks of deer were very numerous. On the 11th they came in sight of a deep gulf, to which Lieutenant Liddon's name was given ; tne two capes at its entrance being called after Beechey and Hoppner. In the center was an island about three-quar- ters of a mile in length, and rising abruptly to the height of 700 feet. The shores of the gulr were very rugged and precipitant, and in descending a steep hill, the axle-tree of their cart broke, and they had to leave it behind, taking the bodv with them, however, for fuel. The wheels, which were left on the spot, may astonish some futui;p adventurer who discovers them. The stores, &c., were divided among the oflScers and men. Making their wav on the ice in the gulf, the island in the center was explored, and named after Mr. Hooper, the purser of the Hecla. It was found to be of sand- stone, and very barren, rising pei-pendicularly fi'om the west side. Four fat geese were killed here, and a great many animals were seen around the guH; some atten- tion being paid to examining its shores, &c., a fine open valley was discovered, ana the tracks of oxen and deer were v sry numerous ; the pasturage appeared to be excellent. On the 13th, a few ptarmigan and golden plover were killed. No less than thirteen deer in one herd were seen, and a musk ox for the first time in this season. The remains of six Esquimaux huts were discovered about 300 yards f-*om the beach. Vegetation now be- gan to flourish, the sorrel was foniud far advanced, and a species of saxifrage was met with in blossom. They reached the ships on the evening of the 15th, after a journey of about 180 miles. The ships' crews, during thoir absence, had been occu- pied in getting ballauc in and re-st wing the hold. Shooting parties were now sent ut in various direcv 98 PROGRESS OF AROTIO fclSOOYERY. if ■!■ I tions to procure game. Dr. Fisher gives an interostiu^, account of his ten days' excursion with a couple of men. The deer were not so numerous as they expected to find them. About thirty were seen, of which his party killed but two, whicti were Very lean, weighing only, when skinned and cleaned, 50 to 60 lbs. A couple of wolves were seen, and some foxes, with a sreat many hares, four of which were killed, weighing from 7 to 8 lbs. The aquatic birds seen were — • orent rjeese, king ducks, long-tailed ducks, and arctic and glaucous gulls. The land birds were ptarmigans, plovers, sandenings and snow buntings. The geese were pretty numerous for the first few days, but got wild and wary on being disturbed, keeping in the middle of lakes out of gun- shot. About a dozen were, however, killed, and fifteen ptarmigans. These birds are represented to be so stu- pid, that all seen may be shot. Dr. Fishoj* was sur- prised on his return on the 29th of June, after his ten days' absence, to find how much vegetation had ad- vanced ; the land being now completely clear of snow, was covered with the purple-colored saxifrage in blos- som, with mosses, and with sorrel, and the grass was two to three inches long. The men were sent out twice a week to collect the sorrel, and in a few minutes enough could be procured to make a salad for dinner. After being mixed with vinegar it was regularly served out to the men. The English garden seeds that had been sown got on but slowly, and did not yield any produce in time to be used. On the 30th of June Wm. Scott, a boatswain's mate, who had been afflicted with scurvy, diarrhoea, &c., died, and was buried on the 2d of July — a slab ot sandstone bearing an inscription carved by Dr. Fisher, being erected over his grave. From observations made on the tide during two months, it appears that the greatest rise and fall here is four feet rour inches. A large pile of stones was erected on the 14th of July, upon the most conspicuous bill, containing the usual notices, coins, &c., and on a large stone an inscription was left, uotitying the winter Ing (.)i' the ships here. / mm pakry's flrst voyage. 9u men. [)find party onlvj pie of many 7 to 8 ,, king ^lls. jrlings aeroufl being f gun- fifteen 80 stu- m Bur- his ten lad ad- I snoWj blop- s was twice jnough After ed ont i been roduce mate, ,, &c., dab ot I'isher, ftwo here »8 was licuoua on a winter On the Ist of Augnst, tiie ships, which had been pre*, vion^ly warped out, got clear ot the harbor, and found a cliannel, Doth eastward and westward, clear of ice, about three or four miles in breadth alon^ the land. On the 6th they landed on the islanu, and in the course of the night killed fourteen hares and a number of glaucous gulls, which were found with their young on the top ot a precipitous, insulated rock. On the 9th the voyagers had an opportunity of ob- serving an instance of the violent pressure that takes place occasionally b v the collision of heavy ice. " Two pieces," suys Dr. Fisher, " that happened to come in contact close to us, pressed so forcibly against one an- other that one of them, although forty-two feet thick, and at least three times that in length and breadth, was forced up on its edge on the top of another piece of ice. But even this is nothing when compared with the pres- sure that must have existed to proouce the effects that we see along the shore, for not only heaps of earth and stones several tons weight are forced up, but hummocks of ice, from fifty to sixty feet thick, are piled up on the beach. It is unnecessary to remark that a ship, although fortified as well as wood and iron could make her, would have but little chance of withstanding such over- whelming force." This day a musk-ox was shot, which weighed more \han 700 lbs.; the carcass, when skinned and cleaned, yielding 421 lbs. of meat. Tlie flesh did not taste ao very strong of musk as had been represented. 'The ships made but slow progress, being still thickly !)cset with floes of ice, 40 or 60 feet thick, and had to make fast for security to hummocks of ice on the beach. On the 15th and 16th they were off the southwest point of the island, but a survey of the locality fi'om the precip'tous cliff of Cape Dundas, presented the same interminable ban-ier of ice, as far as the eye could reach. A bold high coast was sighted to the sonthwest, to which the name of Bank's Land was given. Captain PaiTy states that on the 23a the ships re- ceived by far the heaviest shocks they had experienced t lOO PBOOBESS OF ABCriO DISCOVHIBT. i r p '■ during the voyage, and performed six miles of the most ^ifficmt navigation he had ever known among ice. Two musk Dulls were shot on the 24th by parties who landed, out of a herd of seven which were seen. They were lighter than the first one shot — weighing only about 360 lbs. From the number of skulls and skele- tons of these animals met with, and their capabilities of enduring the rigor of the climate, it seems probable that they £> not migrate southward, but w\nter on this island. Attempts were BtUl made to work to the east\vard, but on the 25th, from want of wind, and the closeness of the ice, the ships were obliged to make fast again, without having gamed above a milo after several hours* labor. A fresn breeze springing up on the 26th opened a passage along shore, and the ships made sail to the eastward, and in the evening were off their old quarters in Winter Harbor. On the following evening, after a fine run, they were off the east end of Melville IsKnd. Lieut. Parry, this day, announced to the officers and crew that after due consideration and consultation, it had been found useless to prosecute their researches farther westward, and therefore endeavors would be made in a more southerly direction, failing in which, the expedition would return to England. Kegent Inlet and the southern shores generally, were found so Mocked up with ice, that the return to England was on the 30th or August publicly announced. This day. Navy Board and Admiralty Inlets were passed, and on the Ist of September the vessels got clear of Barrow's Strait, and reached Baffin's Bay on the 6th. They fell in with a whaler belonging to Hull, from whom they learned the news of the deatn of George the Third and the Duke of Kent, and that eleven vessels having been lost in the ice last year, fears were entertained for their safety. The Friendship, another Hull whaler, informed them that in company with the Truelove, she had looked into Smith's Sound that summer. The Alexander, of Aber- deen, one of the ships employed on the former voyage of discovery to these seas, had also entered Lancaster :.-T r:i PARRY S 8VCOND VOYAGE. 101 Sound. After touching at Clyde's River, where they met a good-natured tribe of Esquimaux, the ships maae tlie best of their way across the Atlantic, and after a somewhat boisterous passage, Commodore Parry landed at Peterhead on the 30th of October, and, accompanied by Capt. Sabine and Mr. Hooper, posted to Lonaon. Parry's Sboond Voyage, 1821—1828. The experience which Capt. Parry had formed in hii previous voyage, led him to entertain the opinion that a communication might be found between Regent Inlet and Roe's Welcome, or through Repulse Bay, and thence to the northwestern shores. The following are his re- marks : — " On an inspection of the charts I think it will also appear probable that a communication will one day be found to exist between this inlet (Prince Regent's) and Hudson's Bav, either through the broad and unexplored channel called Sir Thomas Roe's Wel- come, or thr jugh Repulse Bay, which has not yet been satisfactorily examined. It is also probable that a chan- nel will be found to exist between the western land and the northern coast of America." Again, in another place, he says: — "Of the existence of a northwest Sassage to the Pacific it is now scarcely possible to oubt, and from the succesr which attended our efforts in 1819, after passing th' .ugh. Sir James Lancaster's Sound, we were not imrea&onable in anticipating its complete accomplishment. But the season in which it is practicable to navigate the Polar Seas does not exceed seven weeks. From all that we observed it seems desir* able that ships endeavoring to reach the Pacific Ocean by this route should keep if possible on the coast of America, and the lower m latitude that coast may be found, the more favorable will it prove for the purpose ; hence Cumberland Strait, Sir Thomas Roe's Welcome, and Repulse Bay appear to be the points most worthy of attention. I cannot, therefore, but consider that any expedition equipped by Great Britain with this view VlCTOniA, B. Q - ! A. \ ;i' ;»,;■ l- \\ ' >' 11' 1 1 it l(hi PBOUU))M f:i I, If '' >,^f, t^ lod I'ROGRICSS OF ARCTIC DISCOVERT. ony, officiating as clergyman,) and many more were in agitation ; each happy couple always deferring the ceremony until a line day allowed of an evening ball, which was only terminated by a fresh breeze, or a fall of snow.* On the 17th, the ships were separated by the ice, and they saw no more of their visitors. On the 21st, they were only oft' the I ower Savage Islands. In the evening they saw a very large bear lying on a piece of ice, an^^ two boats were instantly sent off in chase. They approached very close before he took to the water, when ho swam rapidly, and made long springs, turning boldly to face his pursuers. It was with difficulty lie was captured. As these animals, although very fat and bulky, sink the instant they die, he was lashod to a boat, and brought alongside the ship. On h oting him in, they were astonished to find that his weight exceeded sixteen hundred pounds, being one of the largest ever killed. Two instances, only, of larger bears being shot are recorded, and these wore by Barentz's crew, in his third voyage, at Cherie Island, to which they gave the name of Bear Island. The two bears killed then, measured twelve and thirteen feet, while this one only measured eight feet eight inches, from the snout to the insertion of the tail. The seamen ate the flesh without experiencing any of those baneful effects which old navigatoi*fl at- tribute to it, and which are stated to have made three of Barentz d people " so sick that we expected they would have died, and their skins peeled off fi'om head to foot." Bruin was very fat, and having pro- cured a tub of blubber from the carcass, it was thrown over board, and the smell soon attracted a couple of walruses, the first that had been yet seen. They here fell in with a numerous body of the Efl quimaux, who visited them from the' shore. In less than an hour the ships were beset with thirty " ka- vaks," or men's canoes, and five of the women's large Doats, or "oomiaks." Some of the latter held up- ward of twenty women. A most noisy but merry barter instantly took place, the crew being as anxious i 1 I'4JLJi\'8 BECOKD VOYAGE. 107 CO purcbase Esquimaux curiosities^ as the natives were to procure iron and European toys. •* It is quite out of my power, (observes Captain Lyon,) to describe the shouts, yells, and laughter of tho savages, or the confusion which existed for two or tliree hours. The females were at first very shy, and unwillinff to come on the ice, but bartered every thing from their boats. This timidity, however, soon wore off, and they, in the end, became as noisy and bois- terous as the men." " It is scarcely possible, (he adds) to conceive any thing more ugly or disgusting tlian tho countenances of the old woipen, who had inflamed eyes, wrinkled skin, black teeth, and, in fact, such a forbidding set of features as bcarcely could be called human ; to which might bo added their dress, which was such as gave them the appearance of aged ourang- outangs. Frobisher's crow may be pardoned for hav- ing, in such superstitious times as a. d. 1576, taken one of these ladies for a witch, of whom it is said, ' The old wretch whom cur sailors supposed to be a witch, had her buskins pulled off, to see if she was cloven-footed ; and being ve^-y ugly and deformed, we let her go.' " In bartering they have a singular custom of ratify- ing the bargain, by licking the article all over before it is put away in security. Captain Lyon says he fre- quently shuddered at seeing the children draw a razor over their tongue, as unconcernedly as if it had been an ivory paper-knife. I cannot forbear quoting here Rome humorous passages from his journal, which stand out in relief to the scientific and nautical parts of the narrative. " The sk'angers were so well pleased in our society, that they showed no wish to leave us, and when the market had quite ceased, they began dancing and playing with our. people, on the ice alongside. This exercise set many of their noses bleeding, and discov- ered to us a most nasty custom, which accounted for their gory faces, and which was, that as fast as the blood ran down, they scraped it with the fingerg 7 8 108 PB00BBS6 OF ABOTIO DnOOYEfiT. into their mouths, appearing to consider it as a re- freshment, or dainty, if we might judge by the zest with which they smacked their lips at each supply.'* • ««« #»«* " In order to amuse our new acquaintances as much as possible, the fiddler was sent on the ice, where ho instantly found a most delightful set of dancers, of whom some of the women kept pretty good time. Their only figure consisted in stamping and jumping with all their might. Our musician, who was a lively fellow, soon caught the infection, and began cutting capers also. In a short time every one on the floe, ofticers, men, and savages, were dancing together, and exhibited one of the most extraordinary sights I ever witnessed. One of our seamen, of a fresh, ruddy complexion, excited the admiration of all the young females, who patted his face, and danced around him wherever he went. " The exertion of dancing so exhilarated the Esqui- maux, that they had the appearance of being boister- ously drunk, and played many extraordinary pranks. Among others, it was a favorite joke to run slily be- hind tne seamen, and shouting loudly in one ear, to give them at the same time a very smart slap on the other. While looking on, I was sharply saluted in this manner, and, of course, was quite startled, to the great amusement of the bystanders : our cook, who was a most active and unwearied jumper, became so ' great a favorite, that every one boxed his ears so soundly, as to oblige the poor man to retire from such boisterous marks of approbation. Among other sports, some of the Esquimaux rather roughly, but with great good humor, challenged our people to wrestle. One man, in particular, who had thrown sev- eral of his countrymen, attacked an officer of a very strong make, but the poor savage was instantly thrown, and with no very easy fall ; yet, although every one was laughing at him, he bore it with exemplary good humor. The same officer affi^rded us much diversion by teaching a large party of women to bow.courtesf ■''ii'i'»T^b'ii PARUY*8 8E