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 JOURNAL OF A VOYAGE 
 
 in 
 
 BAFFIN'S BAT AND BARROW STRAITS, 
 IN THE TEARS 1850-1851, 
 
 PERFORMED BT 
 
 H.M. SHIPS "LADT FRANKLIN" AND "SOPHIA," 
 
 UNDER THE COMMAND OF MR. WILLIAM PENNT, 
 
 IN SEARCH OF THE 
 
 MISSING CREWS OF 
 
 H.M. SHIPS EREBUS AND TERROR ... 
 
 By Peter C. Sutherland 
 
 In two volumes. Vol. I 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 LONGMAN, BROWN, GREEN, AND LONGMANS, 
 1852.
 
 . i 
 
 INTRODUCTION, 
 
 ' So Zemblas rocks (the beauteous work of Frost) 
 Rise white in air, and glitter o'er the coast ; 
 Pale suns, unfelt, at distance roll away, 
 And on the impassive ice the light'nings play ; 
 Eternal snows the growing mass supply, 
 Till the bright mountains prop the incumbent sky ; 
 As Atlas fix'd, each hoary pile appears, 
 The gather'd winter of a thousand years." 
 
 POPE. The Temple of Fame, lines 53-60, 
 
 FROM the earliest period in which we find history re- 
 cording the dawn of discovery in the far north, down 
 to the present time, that portion of the northern hemi- 
 sphere lying within the Arctic Circle has not failed 
 to attract a due share of attention from the maritime 
 nations of Europe. During the last two centuries and 
 a half, the imperial government of Russia sent out 
 upwards of fifty expeditions to explore the polar re- 
 gions adjacent to that vast empire. Denmark, or, more 
 properly speaking, Scandinavia, although perhaps on 
 a less extensive scale than Russia, was the first, how-
 
 IV INTRODUCTION. 
 
 ever, to enter the field of discovery, and to the enter- 
 prising voyages of the daring and probably piratical 
 Northmen, as related in the invaluable Icelandic 
 records, the other kingdoms of Europe owed the first 
 knowledge that had been obtained of Iceland and 
 East or Old Greenland. Great Britain could not 
 then lag behind, although as yet the dawn of her fu- 
 ture indomitable and enterprising career in exploring 
 the then unknown regions of the earth had not arisen ; 
 for we find that ships leaving her ports upon dis- 
 covery were arrested in their progress northward 
 by " great heaps of ice swimming in the sea," in 
 latitudes, where, during the month of July, there 
 was almost constant daylight. 
 
 Passing over all the early voyages, in which stand 
 proudly pre-eminent the names of the renowned 
 navigators, Cabot, Sir Hugh "Willoughby, Chan- 
 celor, Davis, Hudson, Baffin, Bylot, Phipps, Cook, 
 Vancouver, and many others, who boldly heralded 
 us into the icy seas, we arrive at a period of com- 
 parative repose to those regions of nearly half a 
 century, owing probably to the wars in which we 
 and all the kingdoms of Europe were so seriously 
 involved. From the discoveries made previous to 
 this time, and from the inducements held out by 
 the government in the shape of premiums, large
 
 INTRODUCTION. V 
 
 fleets of whalers annually left our ports for Davis 
 Straits and the Greenland seas, and these highly 
 enterprising voyages proved remunerative both to 
 the hardy seamen and to the merchants who in- 
 vested their capital in them. In Davis Straits the 
 field of their operations was chiefly the edge of the 
 pack ice from latitude 62 to 69, and South-east 
 Bay : the more daring of them, however, went up 
 as far as North-east Bay and the Blackhook. As 
 their knowledge of Davis Straits extended, and as 
 the whales became less numerous in the above men- 
 tioned localities, they pushed north-ward by degrees, 
 until, in the year 1817, one of them, the "Larkins," 
 rediscovered Baffin's Bay and a " boundless " space of 
 open water off the entrance of Sir James Lancaster's 
 Sound. On the report of this discovery being 
 received by the Government, it was ably sus- 
 tained by the late Sir John Barrow, the secretary 
 of the Admiralty, who had been long endeavouring 
 to impress upon the country a renewal of Arctic 
 research. His endeavours were successful; for, in 
 the following year, two ships were sent out to Davis 
 Straits, under the command of Commander, now 
 Rear Admiral, Sir John Ross, C. B., &c. &c., and 
 Lieutenant, now Sir, E. W. Parry, and two ships 
 
 A 3
 
 VI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 were despatched to the Greenland seas, under the 
 command of Captain Buchan, and Lieutenant, now 
 Captain, Sir John Franklin, K. C. H., who, in com- 
 mand of Her Majesty's ships "Erebus" and " Terror," 
 has been unheard of for nearly seven long years. 
 
 This renewal of Arctic discovery, undertaken so 
 boldly, proved signally unsuccessful, and for a mo- 
 ment its strenuous advocates appeared to be reaping an 
 undue share of scorn. Yet they held on their course ; 
 and, as if by an expiring struggle, one more attempt 
 to effect a " northwest passage " was to be permitted. 
 Parry's first voyage, successful beyond measure, and 
 still unequalled by subsequent Arctic voyagers, added 
 new vigour to the frail efforts of our geographers, 
 and illuminated with fresh hopes the drooping coun- 
 tenances of those who had long expected that the 
 western hemisphere would be circumnavigated be- 
 yond the 67th parallel of north latitude. Expe- 
 dition followed expedition into the polar regions ; 
 by little and little (but at great expense, and no 
 small danger) the maps of these countries had con- 
 siderable additions made to them ; and the physical 
 features of Arctic America became well known 
 through the medium of not a few well-read volumes. 
 To Parry, Beechey, Ross, Lyon, and Sabine, by navi- 
 gation, and to Franklin, Richardson, Back, Dease,
 
 INTRODUCTION. Vll 
 
 and Simpson, by perilous journeys overland, we are 
 chiefly indebted for what we know of the western 
 half of the frigid zone, and their names will ever 
 adorn the pages of Arctic history. But the return 
 of both navigators and travellers still left the great 
 and perplexing question unsolved. 
 
 As if Great Britain could not have sent out an 
 expedition to each of the two poles of the earth 
 at one and the same time, the north pole was again 
 forgotten, while Sir James Clark Ross was engaged 
 in a most interesting voyage in the Antarctic seas. 
 The success of that voyage, and the safe return of 
 the two ships the "Erebus" and " Terror " after 
 surmounting dangers said to be unparalleled in the 
 north, were hailed as the harbingers of equally 
 decisive achievements, where the skill and intrepidity 
 of the same navigator had to a certain extent been 
 vainly exerted. Scarcely had the heat, received in 
 the tropics, escaped from their huge timbers, thick 
 doublings, and powerfully fortified bows, when they 
 began to undergo all due preparation for service 
 under the command of Sir John Franklin. Well 
 fitted out in everything necessary for the voyage, 
 provisioned for somewhat more than three years, and 
 with crews, including men and officers, amounting 
 
 A 4
 
 Vlll INTRODUCTION. 
 
 to one hundred and thirty-eight gallant and enter - 
 prizing fellows, they left our shores in May, 1845, 
 and the last intelligence we had of them was dated 
 in Baffin's Bay, two months after they had left the 
 Thames. 
 
 As the third winter was passing by without any 
 further intelligence of Sir John Franklin, anxiety 
 began to be evinced at the Admiralty for his 
 safety, and very soon thereafter the "Erebus" and 
 " Terror " were first spoken of as " the missing ships," 
 and " the missing expedition." In the following 
 year (1848) three expeditions were set on foot, and 
 despatched in three different directions, Behring's 
 Straits, the shores of Arctic America and Barrow 
 Straits, the localities in which it appeared to be 
 most probable they would be able to communicate 
 with and assist, if necessary, the missing ships. 
 These expeditions were commanded by persons of 
 the most extensive experience, who had acquired 
 almost the highest distinction as Arctic travellers, 
 and, although in the course of their explorations 
 much had been added to our knowledge of the 
 regions they visited, the chief objects of their search 
 were still absent from their anxious and, in some 
 cases, mourning, relations, and no additional intelli- 
 gence had been obtained. The return of the expe-
 
 INTRODUCTION. IX 
 
 dition under the command of Sir James Clark Ross, 
 from Barrow Straits, in the autumn of 1849, was as 
 unexpected as it was unwelcome ; and this was more 
 especially the case from the fact that the " North 
 Star," with a crew of, I believe, sixty-five persons, 
 including seamen and officers, had been sent out 
 with orders for that expedition to continue the 
 search, and with means to enable it to do so with 
 safety : indeed with perfect safety in the estimation 
 of persons at home, who were totally ignorant of the 
 ill health that prevailed in it. This ship, however, 
 did not meet the expedition she was sent out to 
 communicate with, and as she did not return that 
 season, according to her own instructions, the Ad- 
 miralty felt extreme anxiety for her safety, in ad- 
 dition to their daily increasing fears for Sir John 
 Franklin's expedition, which was now passing its 
 fifth winter unheard of among the ice. 
 
 After giving the subject the most ample con- 
 sideration, such was the hope that the missing ships 
 had penetrated to the westward in their atteu.pts 
 to win the long-contested prize, that it was at once 
 resolved to send out to Behring's Straits, under the 
 command of Captains Collinson and M'Clure, the 
 ships " Enterprise " and " Investigator," which had 
 just returned from Barrow Straits. Accordingly,
 
 X INTRODUCTION. 
 
 these ships set out early in 1850, and probably they 
 arrived at the scene of their future researches in 
 sufficient time to enter the ice that season. Having 
 settled the question with reference to the possibility 
 that Franklin's ships might appear at Behring's 
 Straits, the next thing that pressed upon the at- 
 tention of their lordships was the necessity that 
 Barrow Straits should not be neglected, seeing 
 that Sir J. Franklin might be retracing his steps 
 eastward in boats, or even in the ships themselves, 
 having given up the hope of making a north- 
 west passage. With this sole object in view, four 
 ships were placed in commission, under the com- 
 mand of Captain H. T, Austin, C. B., an officer 
 of high distinction, who had served under Sir 
 E. W. Parry, in a voyage to Port Bowen, Prince 
 Regent's Inlet ; and their ample equipment for 
 Arctic service was making rapid progress in the 
 beginning of March. An element, new, with the 
 exception of one poor trial, in the navigation of ice- 
 encumbered seas, was to be introduced : two of the 
 above four vessels were to be screw steamers of suffi- 
 cient power to advance in calm weather and smooth 
 water at the rate of five or six miles an hour, with 
 the two sailing vessels in tow. It was contemplated 
 that this, the most extensive expedition that had
 
 INTRODUCTION. XI 
 
 ever been engaged in similar service, should be ready 
 to sail early in May. In the crew of each ship there 
 were to be a few persons in the new capacity of ice- 
 quarter-masters, who had gained some experience in 
 Davis Straits while prosecuting the whale fishery as 
 seamen. There were, however, to be no ice-masters, 
 according to the custom followed in the former 
 expeditions. 
 
 The Admiralty did not hesitate to consult such 
 persons as might be able to afford advice or assist- 
 ance, although they did not bear commissions under 
 the seal of that honourable board. The Rev. Dr. 
 Scoresby, at one time the commander of a whaler in 
 the Greenland seas, and the author of standard and 
 graphic descriptions of the regions visited by him 
 during his career as a whaler, became early asso- 
 ciated with the plans proposed for the discovery and 
 the rescue of the missing ships; and, although his 
 experience was chiefly applicable to the locality 
 where it had been acquired, their lordships were not 
 unfrequently indebted to him for suggestions of con- 
 siderable practical utility, with reference to Davis 
 Straits, and the most probable means by which they 
 should succeed in carrying out their views in reply 
 to the loud demands of humanity. Indeed, the time 
 had gone by in which seeking for the lost was to
 
 Xll INTRODUCTION. 
 
 be confined to the Royal Navy of Great Britain. 
 John Rae, Esq., surgeon in the Honourable Hudson 
 Bay Company's service, who accompanied Sir John 
 Richardson in his extensive explorations on the 
 northern shores of America, and whose subsequent 
 brilliant career as an Arctic traveller has been justly 
 rewarded by the medal of the Royal Geographical 
 Society, was in the service of the government on 
 the outlook for any of the missing adventurers, in 
 the event that even at this late period they should 
 appear on the borders of the vast tracks already so 
 familiar to Sir John Franklin in his perilous over- 
 land journeys. 
 
 The gallant Sir John Ross, C. B., &c., signally 
 persistent in his endeavours to prevail upon the Ad- 
 miralty to send him out in command of an expedition 
 in search of his lost friend, having met with a deaf 
 ear in that quarter, came before the public soliciting 
 subscriptions. The result was so far successful, 
 through the munificent liberality of the Hon- 
 ourable Hudson Bay Company, and, as the spring 
 advanced, his small expedition assumed a state of 
 active preparation for battling with the ice, and 
 for a renewal of at least one or two of the scenes 
 witnessed by its veteran commander during his
 
 INTRODUCTION. Xlll 
 
 never-to-be-forgotten voyage to Boothia Felix in 
 the little ship the " Victory." 
 
 Lady Franklin, and her most devoted companion, 
 Miss Sophia Cracroft, the niece of Sir John 
 Franklin, had laboured most incessantly in the 
 good cause which lay so deep in their hearts ; 
 and, although indirectly, to their untiring ex- 
 ertions much that had been done in search of 
 him whose long absence they still mourn was 
 mainly owing. It was rumoured that at their 
 own expense a vessel was to be fitted out for 
 Prince Regent's Inlet, and ere long that rumour 
 was substantiated by the purchase of the " Albert " 
 ketch and her equipment for a voyage of discovery. 
 
 America received but one touching appeal, signed 
 Jane Franklin, when Henry Grinnell, Esq., New 
 York, stepped forward with unheard-of liberality, 
 and two ships were fast preparing to follow up 
 the search for her husband and our lost British 
 seamen, and to engage in a service which (mirabile 
 dictu ! ) the United States had never before at- 
 tempted, the discovery of a Northwest passage. 
 
 Previous to this time, however, these more than 
 devoted ladies, faithfully representing, as they did, 
 the sorrowing relatives of all in the missing ships,
 
 XIV INTRODUCTION. 
 
 directed their attention to another, and, I should 
 say, not a less important, quarter. In the spring 
 of 1849 they addressed themselves to the whalers, 
 and explained to these adventurous and hardy 
 voyagers, the different means through which, in 
 the pursuit of their noble prey, they might assist 
 in rendering signal service to the cause of Sir John 
 Franklin. Their ardent expectations received a 
 check on the return of the whalers in the autumn of 
 that year, from the contradictory and, apparently, 
 fallacious reports brought by some of them from the 
 presumed scene of Franklin's labours. But they 
 were not altogether disappointed ; for attempts were 
 made to communicate with Sir James Clark Ross's 
 expedition ; and although these were but attempts, 
 still, such was the estimation in which they were 
 held by the Admiralty, that the ships most pro- 
 minently engaged in them received, as a reward, 
 upwards of 4007. of the public money. The 
 " Advice " of Dundee, under the command of Mr. 
 William Penny of Aberdeen, received, I believe, the 
 largest share of that reward ; nor did she perform the 
 smallest share of the duty giving a title to it. An 
 interesting account of her voyage was published soon 
 after her return, by her medical officer, R. A. Goodsir, 
 Esq., who accompanied Captain Penny, with the
 
 INTRODUCTION. XV 
 
 expectation that he might have an opportunity of 
 falling in with his missing brother Harry (as he 
 familiarly calls him in the narrative), the assistant- 
 surgeon of the " Erebus," and the naturalist of the 
 Expedition. 
 
 The friends of Sir J. Franklin, contemplating a 
 most vigorous search in every direction in which 
 he might possibly appear, could not help observing 
 that one, and not the least important, spot the 
 Wellington Channel was still unprovided for ; and, 
 that it might stand high in public estimation, 
 Jones's Sound, and probably also Smith's Sound, 
 were early associated with it. Its deservedly po- 
 pular name, however, soon rendered it popular upon 
 its own merits ; and the painfully intimate relation 
 which it had to keep up, for a time, with the 
 already-mentioned localities, across the bleak, and 
 perhaps also cheerless, tracks of North Devon, was 
 happily discontinued : it was still open for renewed 
 negociations, in the event of a long and favourable 
 stride being made by some stray but lucky whaler. 
 This unoccupied field of research was daily exhibiting 
 new attractions, and at length it was finally settled at 
 head-quarters that an expedition should be equipped 
 with a view to explore it. 
 
 From the fact that the " North Star " had not
 
 XVI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 appeared on the west side of Davis Straits, previous 
 to the return of the whalers and of Sir James Clark 
 Ross's Expedition, in the autumn of the preceding 
 season, it was properly inferred that she had been 
 caught among the ice on the opposite side, and 
 detained there through the winter. And as a simi- 
 lar event had not befallen any of the whalers that had 
 seen and been in company with that ship, the balance 
 began to preponderate justly in favour of the skill and 
 experience their commanders brought into daily use 
 in navigating the ice-encumbered sea of Davis Straits 
 and Baffin's Bay. Melville Bay, with its presiding 
 genii, the Devil's Thumb and Cape York, all of a 
 sudden assumed a most formidable character ; and the 
 opinion took deep root, that the whaler alone could 
 convey the spell-bound ships across its tranquil 
 waters. 
 
 There were competitors for the command of this 
 new expedition; but the contest was at once decided in 
 favour of Mr. Penny, the commander of the " Advice " 
 of Dundee, whom I have already introduced. At 
 the age of forty-one, having been engaged in the Arctic 
 seas since entering his twelfth year, and in command 
 of a whaling ship for sixteen years, vigorous and full 
 of energy and zeal in the Franklin cause, no person 
 seemed to be better adapted for the duty which he
 
 INTRODUCTION. XV11 
 
 had been wisely appointed to fulfil. Of his skill as 
 a navigator, I have no pretensions to be a correct or 
 a competent judge. Having accompanied him in 
 two whaling voyages round Baffin's Bay, I am in a 
 position to state, that his was almost invariably the 
 leading ship in the whaling squadron, that his 
 ship entered into the most minute detail of ice 
 navigation, and that his ship was the last to leave 
 Davis Straits, or whaling ground, when any hope 
 whatever remained that such a course would ad- 
 vance the objects of the voyage : and I can also 
 aver, that his brother commanders had every confi- 
 dence in his opinion, no words being more familiar to 
 me than "What does Penny think of it?" that, when 
 his ship was in the " nip," the other ships were not 
 advancing; and although, like other men, he some- 
 times took a wrong " lead," that no commander 
 thought it in the least degree derogatory to come 
 in after the " St. Andrew " of Aberdeen, which he 
 then commanded. He made several voyages to other 
 parts besides those visited by the intrepid whaler; 
 and it may be stated no ship while under his 
 command ever made any claim upon an insurance 
 company. The venerable Hydrographer of the Ad- 
 miralty, Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort, will bear 
 
 testimony to the fact, that he had done something 
 VOL. i. a
 
 XV111 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 in his whaling career to extend our geographical 
 knowledge of the regions which he might legitimately 
 visit in quest of his game, the whale. At no small 
 risk, and at considerable expense, he took the first 
 step to establish the interests of Great Britain on the 
 west coast of Davis Straits, when, by extreme kind- 
 ness, he induced an Esquimaux to visit this country, 
 that information might be obtained with respect to 
 the resources of that unexplored coast. This was the 
 first Esquimaux from the British possessions within 
 the Arctic circle that trod on British soil. He was 
 attacked with a serious illness soon after arriving in 
 this country, but careful nursing and assiduous 
 medical attention brought about his recovery ; and 
 his benefactor fulfilled the solemn promise he had 
 made to the uncivilised but affectionate mother 
 of this home-sick adventurer, for Enoolooapike was 
 restored to her, loaded with presents, after an absence 
 of somewhat less than a year. An interesting ac- 
 count of the voyage in which this was performed, 
 was written by Dr. M'Donald, the medical officer 
 of the ship. 
 
 Captain Penny, however, failed in this and all his 
 subsequent attempts to enlist the enterprising and 
 the wealthy into his sound but not well-arranged 
 ideas of establishing settlements on that coast, for
 
 INTRODUCTION. XIX 
 
 the very reason that a predominating feature in his 
 character came between him and the end he had in 
 view. His detailed descriptions are sui generis. A 
 complicated net-work of valuable facts, fearlessly ex- 
 pressed opinions, most sanguine expectations, faith- 
 ful inductions, and mere hypothesis, is what one may 
 look for at his hands. Without rhetoric, and un- 
 sophisticated, his arguments fell to the ground before 
 men whose lives had ever been closely associated 
 with figures. No one need wonder that the sailor 
 who had been buffeting the waves and the whales for 
 thirty years, and had never calculated anything more 
 intricate than a lunar distance, should fail to persuade 
 a number of money-making merchants into forming a 
 company. I beg to apologise to him and to the public 
 for these remarks, but they are due to both. 
 
 There is no doubt it was a trying circumstance to 
 the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, when 
 they were called upon to appoint a person not 
 holding a commission under the seal of their office 
 to the command of two ships, the property of the 
 government ; and it was rendered all the more dif- 
 ficult and trying from the fact that there were many 
 hearty and enterprising fellows yearning for Arctic 
 service, who had been long under the red pendant, 
 
 a 2
 
 XX INTRODUCTION. 
 
 and had acquitted themselves well when their ser- 
 vices were required. The fear that proper discipline 
 could not be kept up without the navy regulations 
 during a long voyage occupied the attention of their 
 Lordships for some time ; and, from the questions 
 which they put, it was very clear that, without those 
 regulations, there was, in their estimation, hardly any 
 guarantee for subordination. Viewing the matter in 
 this light, it appeared to be an experiment fraught 
 with danger, whichever way it terminated : if it should 
 prove successful beyond expectation, the results no 
 doubt would prove inimical to the strict rules of the 
 government services ; if, on the other hand, anything 
 in the shape of insubordination should occur, the 
 strict disciplinarians of the old school, those who 
 abide by the law to the letter, would gain a triumph. 
 This is probably going too far, although at the time 
 the question and its doubtful results were carried 
 much farther. It is very improbable indeed, that 
 a private expedition, fitted out by the government 
 for the express purpose of aiding in the cause of 
 humanity, would in any way affect the regulations 
 of the British navy. 
 
 After receiving directions from the Admiralty, 
 Captain Penny repaired to Aberdeen and Dundee, 
 where he purchased two new clipper-built vessels,
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXI 
 
 the one of two hundred and the other of one hundred 
 tons, which he named after the devoted ladies whose 
 names have already appeared. Both ships were 
 equipped at Aberdeen, the " Sophia" having been 
 towed round from Dundee as soon as she was 
 launched. Her builder was Thomas Adams, Esq., 
 and the builder of the " Lady Franklin" was Walter 
 Hood, Esq. Captain Penny had the sole responsi- 
 bility of the Expedition. He appointed to the command 
 of the " Sophia" Mr. Alexander Stewart, a young 
 man of promising talents, who was then serving in 
 the capacity of mate of a whaler, and had made five 
 voyages to Davis Straits. As third in command of 
 the Expedition he appointed Mr. Manson, who had 
 been upwards of forty years engaged in the Arctic 
 seas, during thirty-four of which he commanded one 
 vessel, well known as the " Superior" of Peterhead. 
 The crews of both ships were appointed chiefly 
 from among the whalers; there were, however, a 
 few individuals who had not previously visited the 
 Arctic seas. For their names, I beg to refer the 
 reader to the Appendix. 
 
 Provisions for three years were to be taken in ; 
 and that portion of them which did not include 
 " preserved meats" or " preserved vegetables" was 
 under the immediate directions of the commander, 
 
 a 3
 
 XXli INTRODUCTION. 
 
 in addition to a thousand other duties; and to the 
 experience which he had gained in conducting the 
 curing of meat in salt, during the time that he was 
 in command of whalers, the Expedition was indebted 
 for the use of superior "corned" beef, which con- 
 tinued most excellent throughout the whole voyage. 
 Before the Admiralty Instructions, which are 
 given here, arrived, the Expedition was ready for 
 sea, and the Government Inspector reported favour- 
 ably on the apparent efficiency of the ships for the 
 contemplated service. As will be seen by a perusal 
 of these Instructions, like all others issued for the 
 guidance of persons engaged in Arctic service, they 
 afforded an amount of latitude commensurate Avith 
 the varying character of the seasons, and the peculiar 
 changes that might be produced by unforeseen cir- 
 cumstances. 
 
 " INSTRUCTIONS to Mr. TV. PENNY. 
 " By the Commissioners for executing the 
 Office of Lord High Admiral of Great 
 Britain and Ireland, &c. &c. 
 
 " 1. Her Majesty's Government having deter- 
 mined that further endeavours shall be made to trace 
 the progress of Her Majesty's ships ' Erebus ' and 
 ' Terror,' under the command of Sir John Franklin,
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXU1 
 
 and to resume the search after that Expedition, and 
 having resolved to employ you in the command of 
 the two vessels, the ' Lady Franklin ' and ' Sophia,' 
 which have been equipped for that service, you are 
 hereby required and directed, so soon as the said 
 vessels shall be in all respects ready for sea, to proceed 
 with them with all due despatch to Davis's Strait. 
 
 "2. In intrusting you with the above command, 
 we do not deem it advisable to furnish you with 
 minute instructions as to the course you are to 
 pursue. In accepting your offer of service, regard 
 has been had to your long experience in Arctic 
 navigation, and to the attention you had evidently 
 paid to the subject of the missing ships. We deem 
 it expedient, rather, that you should be instructed 
 in all the circumstances of the case, and that you 
 should be left to the exercise of your own judgment 
 and discretion in combining the most active and 
 energetic search after Her Majesty's ships 'Erebus' 
 and ' Terror' with a strict and careful regard to 
 the safety of the ships and their crews under your 
 charge, and with a fixed attention to that part of 
 your orders which relate to your returning with 
 those ships to this country. 
 
 " 3. For this purpose you will be furnished with 
 copies of the original instructions given to Sir John 
 
 a 4
 
 XXIV INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Franklin, and which instructions will indicate the 
 course he was directed to pursue, together with our 
 orders and directions to Sir James Ross, when he 
 was despatched on a search after Sir John Franklin, 
 in the spring of 1848. 
 
 "4. You will be aware that the case virtually 
 stands now as it did then ; Sir James Ross, from 
 adverse circumstances, failed in discovering traces 
 of the missing Expedition. 
 
 "5. Our orders of the 9th May 1848 to Sir 
 James Ross will still serve as the indication of our 
 views of the general course you will have to pursue ; 
 but it being our desire that a certain strait known 
 as Alderman Jones's Sound, and which would not 
 appear to have been as yet examined, should be 
 searched, you are hereby required and directed to 
 proceed in the first instance to that sound, closely 
 examining the shores for any traces of Sir John 
 Franklin's course, and proceeding, should it,, offer 
 the means of your doing so, in the direction of 
 Wellington Strait and on to the Parry Islands and 
 Melville Island. 
 
 " 6. On your proceeding in the above direction, 
 too much vigilance cannot be observed in your search 
 along the various shores for traces of the missing 
 Expedition. At the same time you will bear in
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXV 
 
 mind that Sir John Franklin's orders were ' to push 
 on through Lancaster Sound, without stopping to 
 examine any openings north or south of that sound, 
 till he had reached Cape Walker ; ' and although 
 it may be possible that the obstructions incident to 
 navigation in those seas may have forced Sir John 
 Franklin north or south of his prescribed course, 
 yet that his principal object would be the gaining 
 the latitude and longitude of Cape Walker. 
 
 " 7. To that point, therefore, failing your dis- 
 covering traces of the Expedition in your course by 
 Jones's Sound and the Parry Islands, your efforts 
 will be directed, and beyond this your own judg- 
 ment must be your principal guide. 
 
 " 8. The circumstance of Sir James Ross having 
 partially searched the shores of Lancaster Sound 
 and Barrow's Strait as far west as Cape Rennell 
 without discovering traces of Sir John Franklin's 
 ships has led in some quarters to the supposition of 
 an extreme case ; viz., that failing to get into Lan- 
 caster Sound, Sir John Franklin had proceeded in 
 the direction of Smith's Sound, at the head of 
 Baffin's Bay. 
 
 " 9. We do not deem it expedient to direct your 
 attention specially to this sound (or supposed sound) ; 
 but should your passage by Jones's Sound, to which
 
 XXVI INTRODUCTION. 
 
 you are specially directed, be early and absolutely 
 impeded, and there should appear to you to be the 
 time (without hazarding the only remaining chance 
 of proceeding to Wellington Strait, the Parry 
 Islands, and Cape Walker by Lancaster Sound,) 
 for examining Smith's Sound, you are at liberty to 
 do so ; but this is a contingency scarcely to be con- 
 templated, as, in the event of your being frustrated 
 in the attempt to get to the westward and towards 
 Wellington Strait by Jones's Sound, the late period 
 of the year when Smith's Sound is said to be open 
 would render it difficult, if not impossible, to com- 
 bine a search in that quarter with the securing a 
 passage into Lancaster Sound before the season closed. 
 
 " 10. Much of the painful anxiety that now exists 
 respecting the missing ships might possibly have 
 been avoided if greater care had been taken to leave 
 traces of their progress. You will consider it rigidly 
 your duty, and a matter of the utmost importance, 
 that every means should be adopted for marking 
 your own track. 
 
 " For this purpose you will provide yourself with 
 an ample supply of red and white lead for making 
 paint ; and, in addition to the usual pole or staff, or 
 cairn of stones, usually looked for on a cape or head- 
 land, you will, wherever the colouring of the cliff or
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXV11 
 
 shore admits of a mark being made in strong relief, 
 paint a red or white cross, as the case may be, 
 depositing as near to its base as possible, and at right 
 angles with the perpendicular part of such cross, a 
 bottle or other vessel containing a short summary of 
 your proceedings up to the date of the deposit, an 
 account of the state of your supplies and resources, the 
 health of your party, and your further intended course. 
 
 " 11. There remains but to caution you as to 
 your return with your ships to this country. 
 
 " These ships have been provisioned and stored 
 for three years ; but you will bear in mind that this 
 liberal supply is to meet contingencies separate on 
 the one hand from the victualling of your own 
 people, and, on the other, from a needless, reckless, 
 and hazardous continuance in the Arctic regions. 
 
 " You have been victualled to supply the missing 
 Expedition, or any part of it you may providentially 
 discover; here is the one contingency; unforeseen 
 impediments, or a certain prospect of coming up 
 with any part of the missing Expedition, compelling 
 you to pass a second winter in the ice, is the other ; 
 but our directions to you are, 1st, to use your ut- 
 most endeavours (consistent with the safety of the 
 lives of those intrusted to your command) to succour 
 in this summer the party under Sir John Franklin,
 
 XXviil INTRODUCTION. 
 
 taking care to secure your winter quarters in good 
 time ; and, 2d, that the same active endeavours will 
 be used by you in the ensuing summer of 1851 to 
 secure the return of your own ships to this country. 
 
 " 12. We refer you to the instructions contained 
 in par. 21. of Sir John Franklin's orders, for your 
 guidance in the event of one of your ships being 
 disabled, or in case of any accident to yourself; and 
 in par. 22. of the same orders are full instructions 
 as to transmitting reports of your progress to our 
 Secretary for our information ; to both of which you 
 will strictly attend. 
 
 " 13. In conclusion, we have only to repeat the 
 expressions of our confidence in your skill and in 
 your known ardour in a generous cause; and we 
 commend you and those with you to a good Pro- 
 vidence, with our earnest wishes for your success. 
 
 " Given under our hands, this llth April 1850. 
 
 " (Signed) F. T. BARIXG. 
 
 " J. H. D. DUNDAS. 
 " By Command of their Lordships, 
 
 "W. A. B. HAMILTON. 
 
 " Mr. William Penny, 
 
 " Ship < Lady Franklin,' 
 
 in charge of an Expedition to the Arctic Seas, at 
 Aberdeen."
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXIX 
 
 After an absence of scarcely eighteen months, in 
 the autumn of last year, the expeditions engaged in 
 Lancaster Sound and the adjacent straits and inlets 
 returned to this country with at least a clue to the 
 route of the missing ships ; and although the Lords 
 Commissioners of the Admiralty could avail them- 
 selves of the log-books and journals kept during the 
 voyage, and also of the reports drawn up by the 
 commanders of the expeditions and the officers of the 
 travelling parties, such was the difficulty in arriving 
 at the detail that was necessary for their guidance 
 with respect to their future operations in the same 
 cause, that a committee to examine the officers of the 
 expeditions was appointed, and the evidence as it 
 was taken, assuming occasionally a controversial 
 character, was laid before the public in not the most 
 agreeable form, that of a blue book. However it was 
 attended with good results in one sense, the search 
 for the lost was not to be given up, and a faint ray 
 of hope was rekindled, that Franklin or some of his 
 gallant band might yet be seen. This hope seems 
 to rest solely upon the supposition that he went 
 through Wellington Channel. 
 
 An expedition of five ships, including two screw 
 steamers under the command of Sir E. Belcher, 
 C. B., was equipped and despatched for the regions
 
 XXX INTRODUCTION. 
 
 which the other expeditions had left occupied 
 only by the " Albert," the small vessel purchased 
 and fitted out at the expense of Lady Franklin. 
 That most powerful expedition is now there en- 
 gaged, and it is the earnest prayer of millions, that 
 the reward due to the zealous labours of those that 
 preceded it may not any longer be withheld. 
 
 Of the Expedition still engaged in Behring's 
 Straits, little can be said here. It has been unheard 
 of for some time, and there is room for anxiety 
 respecting its safety ; and if accounts of it are not 
 received before that time, one may safely predict 
 that an expedition will be sent out, early in De- 
 cember, with the view of rendering it some assistance, 
 about this time next year. 
 
 Of boat expeditions conducted along the northern 
 shores of North America much might be written 
 that would prove highly interesting. In them Dr. 
 Rae, Commander Pullen R. N., and Lieut. Hooper 
 R. N. figure, with the greatest credit, as travellers, 
 although, with respect to the chief object of their 
 explorations, they have been altogether unsuccessful. 
 It is difficult to account for the portions of dressed 
 wood supposed to be part of the stanchion of a ship, 
 and the fragments of rope containing the " middle 
 yarn," being found, in lat, 68 52' and long. 103 20',
 
 INTRODUCTION, XXXI 
 
 by Dr. Rae in his last journey. Considering the 
 rapidity with which ice drifts about and may be 
 conveyed to great distances where there is open 
 water, it may be safe to refer these relics to other 
 sources than the supposed wrecks of the missing ships. 
 The " Fury," wrecked in Prince Regent's Inlet in 
 1825, disappeared in a few years, and who can tell 
 but portions of her may not have been caught among 
 drifting ice and carried northward out of the Inlet 
 by a southerly gale into Barrow Straits, and thence 
 westward, until ultimately they might be landed 
 on the hitherto unexplored coasts northward of 
 Coronation Gulf? Dr. Rae's opinion, clearly ex- 
 pressed at a meeting of the Royal Geographical 
 Society, implied the extreme probability that there 
 is a navigable channel leading northward into 
 Barrow Straits from the strait discovered and ex- 
 amined by him in his last boat expedition. Pre- 
 suming this to be the case, the pieces of wood, &c., in 
 question, might have come from one of many sources, 
 for example, the winter quarters of Sir J. Clark 
 Ross's expedition at Leopold Island in 1848-9, of 
 Sir J. Franklin at Beechey Island, of Sir Edward 
 Parry at Melville Island in 1819-20, and of Sir 
 John Ross from the years 1829 to 1833 in Prince 
 Regent's Inlet.
 
 XXXU INTRODUCTION. 
 
 Since the discoveries of Captain Penny in Wel- 
 lington Channel and the regions beyond it were 
 made public, much has been said, and not a little 
 written, with respect to the resources of persons 
 engaged in those regions independent of the stores 
 they may have brought along with them. That deer 
 are more abundant on the north side of Cornwallis 
 Island adjacent to South or Maury Channel, than on 
 the south side adjacent to Barrow Straits, no person 
 need doubt ; for Captain Penny and Mr. Goodsir's 
 travelling reports contain frequent allusions to the 
 numbers of these animals that were seen there, while 
 not one, so far as I know, was ever seen during the 
 whole year in any of the frequent excursions made 
 from the ships in Assistance Bay. The inference to 
 be drawn from this is, that the circumstances essen- 
 tial to their existence there are more favourable than 
 where they are less numerous or nearly altogether 
 absent. Temperature, speaking generally, is the 
 beginning and end of these circumstances, especially 
 if the geological formation be the same. And tem- 
 perature in high latitudes as well as elsewhere depends 
 much upon the presence or absence of extensive 
 basins of water uninterrupted by land, where the ice 
 will be free to drift about during winter. On this 
 most important subject Sir John Richardson says,
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXX111 
 
 at page 232. of Volume II. of his recent extensive 
 work on Prince Rupert Land, " An examination of 
 the several columns* will show clearly the effect of 
 open water in Hudson and James's Bays, in tem- 
 pering the atmosphere in the months of October, 
 November, and December, and of the presence of 
 ice in those seas, keeping down the summer heat : " 
 and at page 257. of the same work is given + 4'54 as 
 the annual mean temperature at Wolstenholme Sound, 
 lat. 76 34', where H.M.S. North Star wintered. 
 It is clear from these and the following observations, 
 that not only does the sea render the summer less 
 hot and the winter less cold, but that it also renders 
 the annual mean temperature higher when occurring 
 of greater extent, although in a much higher latitude. 
 In the meteorological abstracts given in the Appendix 
 at the end of the second volume it will be seen that 
 the mean temperature at Fort Hope, although 600 
 miles farther south, is 1*2 colder than that at 
 Wolstenholme Sound. Fort Hope, 488 miles south 
 of Assistance Bay, is but 0'8 warmer ; Sheriff Har- 
 bour, 280 miles south of the latter, is 0-1 colder; and 
 winter quarters, Melville Island, in nearly the same 
 
 * Referring to Meteorological Tables, 
 b
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 latitude, is 1-1 colder. The ranges of temperature, 
 however, are more extensive at the more southerly 
 stations and at Melville Island than at Assistance 
 Bay. Seeing that open water was found in Queen's 
 Channel so early in the season as the 14th of May, it 
 may be safely inferred that it was there throughout 
 the whole winter ; which will at once explain the 
 reason why deer are abundant there, while they are 
 altogether absent from other and less favoured lo- 
 calities. It will be rather peculiar if we find that 
 these animals take towards the north side of Corn- 
 wallis Island as the winter approaches, that they may 
 share the modifying effect which the open water 
 in Queen's Channel must have upon the atmosphere 
 in its vicinity ; and it will appear at variance with 
 the generally received opinion that these animals 
 migrate southward on the approach of winter. 
 
 The observations made in the Wellington Channel 
 and farther northward, indicative of greater cold 
 there than at the ships in Assistance Bay, do not 
 afford a proper or a just criterion, for the reason that 
 they were made after the land had been exposed to 
 the influence of the sun for three months and a 
 half ; and as land conducts heat much more rapidly 
 than ice or water, the thermometer indicates the 
 change considerably earlier. When Captain Penny
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXXV 
 
 entered the water in the south channel with the boat 
 about the middle of June, the winds began to prevail 
 north-west; and this may be taken as a tolerably 
 sure indication of the continuation of water westward 
 and northward of the distant strait which bears his 
 name, and by the continuation of which he at present 
 appears to stand. In the highest latitudes visited 
 by our travelling parties, snow began to melt on 
 the land about the 7th or 8th of June ; and before 
 the middle of that month there was abundance 
 of running water, and the temperature was con- 
 siderably above the freezing point. The result was, 
 that the land became warmer on its surface than 
 the ice-encumbered sea of Victoria Channel, &c., 
 and the wind, following the well-known law, pre- 
 vailed in the direction of the heated surface. 
 
 In the event of Penny's Strait extending far to 
 the westward, which appears highly probable, it is 
 an important question, Which time is the most 
 suitable for navigating it ? Ships are not permitted 
 access into it till the end of the season, and then the 
 winds are generally violent and the weather stormy. 
 Were it possible to get into it, there can be no doubt 
 that, like all other parts where the ice does not close 
 
 up during winter, the best time for navigation is 
 
 b 2
 
 XXXVI INTRODUCTION 
 
 early in the season. In addition to what is said on 
 this subject in the narrative, it may be proper to 
 allude here to the experience of Captain, now the Rev. 
 Dr. Scoresby, on the coast of East Greenland. That 
 distinguished observer says ; " The currents upon 
 the eastern coast of Greenland require a few remarks. 
 The main current here, as in the Greenland and 
 Spitsbergen seas, sets to the South-westward ; but 
 there is a peculiarity along the coast of great import- 
 ance to the navigator. This is a periodical offset and 
 inset ; the latter apparently occasioned by the action 
 of the great inlets that intersect the coast in such 
 various positions. It would appear that there is an 
 offset from the coast in the months of June and July, 
 produced probably by the quantity of water poured 
 into the sea on the melting of the snow on the laud : 
 this offset, aided perhaps by north-west winds, which, 
 in opposition to the general indraught of the sounds 
 and inlets, clears the bays and coast, so as to afford 
 access to the navigator in the height of summer. 
 But as soon as the discharge of water from the 
 mountains ceases, this offset appears also to cease, and 
 an inset then takes place, which chokes up the bays 
 and sounds with ice, and packs the whole of the body 
 floating to the eastward in close contact upon the 
 shore. The indraught which takes place at the close
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXXVU 
 
 of the summer, as far as regards the present season, 
 has been sufficiently proved ; and the offset, or at least 
 a suspension of the inset, is rendered equally certain, 
 by the progressive separation observed to take place 
 in the ice, and more especially by the vein of clear 
 water found in many places between the coast and 
 the ice. The inset that occurs in the end of summer 
 renders the west land fishing not a little dangerous 
 at this season : of this tendency the fisher should be 
 always on his guard." * This reminds me of what Mr. 
 Petersen mentioned to me on one occasion, that at 
 Leively, and all along the coast of West Greenland, 
 they look for the approach of the " west ice " every 
 season in the month of October or November. 
 
 In viewing the route proposed by A. Petermann, 
 Esq. F.R. G. S., for sending relief to the missing 
 ships, one cannot help being struck with the prac- 
 tical basis on which, in part, at least, he founds his 
 plan, namely, to set out early in the season before 
 the ice is -reduced to a state of pack and southerly 
 winds begin to prevail, when ships can be navigated 
 in the " clear vein " of water alluded to above. 
 
 Besides the mere presence of extensive seas within 
 
 * Journal of a Voyage made in the Summer of 1822 by 
 W. Scoresby, jun. Edinburgh, 1823. 
 b 3
 
 XXXV111 INTRODUCTION 
 
 the Arctic circle tending to modify the climate, and 
 to render it less unsuitable to the existence of ter- 
 restrial animals, the northerly currents from warmer 
 latitudes, which are essential in maintaining the mean 
 salinity of the ocean every where, produce a very 
 remarkable change, so that it is by no means un- 
 frequent to find the temperature higher instead of 
 lower in high northern positions. The observations 
 of Sir Edward Parry at and beyond Spitzbergen, 
 and of Captain Beechey in Behring's Straits, of which 
 a short abstract will be found in the Appendix, and 
 our own observations in crossing the Atlantic, all 
 point this out very clearly. But a paper " On the 
 Causes of Change in the Earth's Superficial Tem- 
 perature," recently read before the Geological Society 
 by the President, William Hopkins, Esq., and sub- 
 sequently published in Part I., February, 1852, of 
 the Quarterly Journal of that Society, shows in the 
 clearest manner the powerful influence which the 
 Gulf stream has in raising the temperature of the 
 north of Europe. 
 
 The subject of climate (or I should rather say 
 meteorology) equally interesting to the physical 
 geographer, the geologist, and the naturalist, in 
 whose domain it works marvellous changes ; as it is 
 important to the merchant, whose goods are con-
 
 INTRODUCTION. XXXIX 
 
 veyed across the vast oceans of our planet ; and to 
 the physician, who can neither understand nor 
 counteract its subtle and frequently pernicious in- 
 fluence upon the human race has hitherto been 
 treated with too much indifference by travellers 
 generally to enable those deeply interested in it to 
 arrive at correct inductions. It is to be hoped, 
 however, that the example of Sir John Richardson, 
 Sir Edward Parry, Sir James Clark Ross, Rear- 
 Admiral Sir John Ross, Captain Beechey, and others, 
 and the zeal of Professor Dove of Berlin, Lieut. 
 M. F. Maan of the United States National Ob- 
 servatory, James Glaisher, Esq., F. R. S. &c., of the 
 Royal Observatory, Greenwich, Lieut.-Col. Sabine, 
 Mr. Petermann, F.R.G.S., and Mr. Hopkins, under 
 the patriarchal guidance of Humboldt, will enlist 
 into the study of this department of science the 
 observing abroad and the learned at home. In 
 entering into such meteorological detail in the Ap- 
 pendix, it is probable that I have exposed myself to 
 criticism, and perhaps also to censure : the importance 
 of the subject is the only apology I have to offer to 
 those who are taken up with other, and perhaps not 
 less important, pursuits. 
 
 In laying before the public an account of the 
 b 4
 
 xl INTRODUCTION. 
 
 voyage in which I was engaged, I have to express 
 deep regret that it should have swelled out to such 
 huge dimensions. After the return of the Expedi- 
 tion, the deep and growing interest taken by the 
 public in the search for the missing ships, the readi- 
 ness and avidity with which every thing " Arctic " 
 was printed and read, and the large share of attention 
 devoted by that learned body the Royal Geographical 
 Society to the thorough exploration of the Frigid 
 Zone, as well as to the cause of humanity, appeared 
 to be a sufficient guarantee that there was really 
 need for such a work as should convey a detail of 
 the proceedings of the ships during the whole voyage. 
 It was not without numerous requests, and con- 
 siderable reluctance, that I felt constrained to put 
 my rough notes into some sort of arrangement for 
 publication; nor was it without first endeavouring 
 to prevail upon my friend Mr. Goodsir to undertake 
 a duty which he owed to the public, and was entitled 
 to himself, from the fact that he had been already 
 favourably received as an author. It was fully his 
 intention at one time to have done so; but duties 
 connected with his profession pressed so much upon 
 his time, that he relinquished the idea that he should 
 be able to accomplish it. Thus it devolved upon me ; 
 and, however clear my anticipations may have been
 
 INTRODUCTION. xli 
 
 of severe criticisms, I dared not shrink from as correct 
 a rehearsal as possible of all that came under my own 
 observation, and the observations of others who might 
 have had better opportunities; and I hope the fact 
 that it was due to the promoters of the Expedition, 
 and to all engaged in it, that nothing appearing 
 likely to interest in the slightest degree ought to be 
 omitted, will to some extent disarm those who may 
 see just cause for censure. If the perusal of these 
 volumes legitimately rekindles new hopes of the re- 
 turn of even a few of those whom we sought in vain ; 
 if it throws any new light upon the great actions 
 which pervade the vast kingdoms of nature ; or if it 
 conveys the conviction to the impartial reader that, 
 to navigate ice-encumbered seas with safety, expe- 
 rience is absolutely necessary, I will not consider 
 that they have been written altogether in vain. 
 
 Before concluding these remarks, I beg to repeat 
 my expressions of gratitude to Captains Penny and 
 Stewart, and my brother officers, for their cordial 
 and steady friendship ; to Mr. Petersen, to whom 
 the Expedition and the British Government are 
 deeply indebted, I beg to return my most sincere 
 thanks ; and for the assistance I have received from 
 persons of eminence in various departments of science, 
 some of whom have kindly contributed to the Ap-
 
 xlii INTRODUCTION. 
 
 pendix, I owe a debt which I can never repay. In 
 conclusion, I beg to acknowledge the services of the 
 artists employed upon the illustrations ; and I doubt 
 not the public will appreciate the arrangement and 
 skill of the lady who has, from the dried specimens, 
 presented them with a plate, exhibiting the most 
 abundant species of the thinly-scattered flora of 
 Cornwallis Island. 
 
 London, July, 1852.
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 THE FIRST VOLUME. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PASSAGE ACROSS THE ATLANTIC. 
 
 Expedition leaves Aberdeen. In Sinclair's Bay. Passage 
 through the Pentland Frith. Lose sight of land. Course 
 proper for a speedy Passage. Rockall seen. Final 
 Departure from Rockall. Rapid Progress westward. 
 Fulmar Petrels, and their Food. Loons and Little Auks. 
 Gulf Stream and Arctic Currents. The Rorqual Whale, its 
 Habits, Baleen, and Oil Division of the Crew into 
 Watches. Sea Sickness. Sailing Capabilities of the Ships. 
 Perceptible Drift southward. Sea-Fowl off Cape Fare- 
 well. First Icebergs seen. Great Dangers to be encountered. 
 Church Services on Sundays, and their Benefit to the 
 Crew. Land Birds seen, and alighting on Board. Land 
 seen - - - Page 1 
 
 CHAP. H. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM REEFKOUL TO NORTH-EAST BAT. 
 
 Severe Gale on the Arctic Circle. Icebergs numerous. Depth 
 of Water on Reef koll Bank. Supposed to be a Deposition 
 from Icebergs. Cod-fishing. The Food of the Cod and
 
 xllV CONTENTS. 
 
 Halibut. Food of the White Whale. Approach the Pack 
 Ice. Extensive open Water, and its Causes. Reasons for 
 attempting a Passage to the northward early in the Season 
 Arrival at Leively. Landing with Letters. Disco Island. 
 Its volcanic Origin. Hare Island. Fauna and Flora of Disco. 
 Deer abundant. In North-east Bay. The Difficulties ex- 
 perienced in navigating it. Marine Animals. Seals. 
 Among the Whalers. First Saturday Night beset in the 
 Ice ------ Page 23 
 
 CHAP. HI. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM NORTH-EAST BAT TO tIPPERNAVIK. 
 
 Young Ice. Intense Frost. Parhelia. Closely beset. Seals 
 at their Holes ; Attempts to shoot them. Ill Success of the 
 Whalers. Esquimaux on board. Their happy Condition at 
 the Settlements. Fearful Disasters among the uncivilized 
 Esquimaux. State of the Ice. Slackening. Swell per- 
 ceived. Ships get clear. Forms of Icebergs, and their 
 Size. Access to the Northward. Southerly Wind. Taking 
 the Pack. Violent Pressure. Ships in danger. Stones 
 found on Icebergs. The Arctic Fox at Sea. Ice opening. 
 Long-tailed and Eider-Ducks ; their Food. Entomostraca 
 of large Size. Moored to an Iceberg. Loss of Rudder. 
 Favourable Wind. Open Water. Birds flying north. Sea 
 Storm. Met by the Ice. Passage close in Shore. Volcanic 
 Rocks. Ptarmigan. Arrival at Proven. Capture of a 
 White Whale. Putrefaction early in the amphibious Mam- 
 malia. Teeth of Beluga prehensile. Esquimaux adrift. 
 Cruelty to Esquimaux Dogs. Infusoria found under pecu- 
 liar Circumstances. Colour of the Sea. " Sophia" falling 
 behind. Proven. Brown Slime. Character of the Coast. 
 Home-Sick Esquimaux. Intense Heat. Sanderson's Hope. 
 Loons, and their Eggs. Abundance of open Water. 
 Uppernavik ... 47
 
 CONTENTS. xlv 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 FROM UPPERNAVIK TO K1NGATORSOAK. 
 
 Engage Mr. Petersen as an Interpreter. Uppernavik. The 
 Resources of the Settlements. Loss of two Danish Ships. 
 Visits to the Settlements. The Intelligence of the Natives. 
 Effects of Civilisation. Diseases incident to the Natives. Not 
 addicted to bad Habits. Insanity. Habits. Success of the 
 Settlers. Lutheran Missionaries. Disease incident to the 
 Settlers. Antiscorbutics. Character of Rocks. Plumbago. 
 Deep Fiords. Rapid Tides. Dangerous Sledging. Land-Ice 
 disappearing. Bad Prospects. Season too far advanced. 
 Leave Uppernavik. Kingatorsoak. Mr. Petersen and 
 Thomas. Ptarmigan shot. Conveying Power of Ice. 
 Extraneous Bodies on Glaciers and Icebergs. Snow- 
 Blindness. Small Islands the Breeding-Places of Eider Ducks. 
 Dangerous Navigation - Page 103 
 
 CHAP. V. 
 
 FROM BERRY ISLAND TO MELVILLE BAT. 
 
 Very little Progress. Berry Island. Severe Labour. Light 
 Ice. Open Water off Cape Shakleton. Conformation of 
 Berry Island. Safety of Ships at Icebergs. Ducks and their 
 Enemies. Dredging. Merlangus and other Fishes. Lepa- 
 dogaster. Voracity of the Gammarinae. The persistent 
 Odour of the " Smelling Seal." Entozoa. Food of the Seal. 
 Small Islands. Running Water. Eggs abundant. South- 
 east Gale. Moored to a rocky Point. Pure Water and 
 brackish Water on the Land. Land subsiding. Esquimaux 
 Graves. Tussoosak. Danish travelling Party. Captain 
 Austin's Sqaudron. General Features of the Coast. Vegeta- 
 tion. Action of the Sea upon Icebergs. Visit to Captain 
 Austin's Squadron. Opinions of the Whalers. Pleasant 
 Weather. A Man dying on Board a Whaler. Leaving the 
 Whalers. Great Heat. Signalizing Captain Austin's 
 Squadron. Cape Shakleton. Fine Weather. Narrow 
 Passage. The Steamers. Glacier. Abundance of Eggs.
 
 xlvi CONTENTS. 
 
 Vegetation. Opinions respecting the Ice. Baffin Islands. 
 Small Fishes on the Ice. Melville Bay - Page 132 
 
 CHAP. VI. 
 
 PROGRESS IN MELVILLE BAT. 
 
 Land-Ice. Prospects of a speedy Passage. Brought to a 
 Stand. Cutting a Dock. Improved Saws. Little Auks. 
 Intense Refraction. Brown Slime in the Water. Entomos- 
 traca of large Size. Ice opening out. Joined by the Whalers. 
 Intercourse with naval Officers. Ships drawn into Docks. 
 Young Ice. Saline Ingredients of Sea- Water Ice. Land- Ice 
 broken up. Bear Hunt. Dangerous Navigation. Tracking. 
 Collisions between Ships. South Wind. Docking the Ships. 
 Closely beset. Steamers in Melville Bay. Whalers retreat- 
 ing. Large open Water. Barometer very low. Safety of 
 Ships in Docks. Violent Gale. Great Pressure upon one 
 of the Steamers. Gale subsiding. Dredging in two hundred 
 Fathoms. Sea Urchins. Lost the Land-Ice. Among the 
 drifting Floes. Open Water. Dense Fog. Detained among 
 the Floes. Action of the Sun upon the Ice. Breaking 
 up of an Iceberg. Pointed Eminences on Icebergs. Re- 
 frigerating Influence of Icebergs. Rejoining Captain Austin's 
 Squadron. Thick Weather - 172 
 
 CHAP. VII. 
 
 PASSAGE THROUGH MELVILLE BAT TO CAPE TORK. 
 
 Great Detention. Position of the Ships. Agreeable Associates. 
 Plans for carrying on the Search. The Use of Kites. Gym- 
 nastics on the Ice. Halkett's Boat. Blasting the Ice with 
 Gunpowder. Ships drifting southward. Young Ice. Little 
 Auks. The Narwhal, its Food, Structure, Habits, Mea- 
 surements. Food for the Dogs. Leave Captain Austin's 
 Squadron. Fog and Difficulties of Navigation. Violent 
 Pressure. " Sophia" detained. Intense Heat of the Sun's 
 Rays. " Sophia" getting clear. The Land Ice. Myriads of 
 little Auks. Lost sight of the other Ships. Mean Salinity, 
 Density, and Temperature of Sea-water. Peculiar Agitation
 
 CONTENTS. xlvii 
 
 of the Water. Land Ice attained. Bay Ice. Boring 
 among young Ice. Bushnan Island. Decayed State of the 
 Ice. Icebergs numerous. Character of Bushnan Island. 
 Vegetation. The Glacier Range of West Greenland. Da.n- 
 gerous Position of the Ships. Threatening southerly Wind. 
 Close Approach to the North Water - - Page 211 
 
 CHAP. VIII. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM CAPE YORK TO THE WEST SIDE. 
 
 Opinions respecting Melville Bay. Arctic Highlanders. Fa- 
 vourable Wind. An Attempt to push Westward. Off Cape 
 York. Glaciers at Cape York. Genial Appearance of the 
 Land. Red Snow. An Esquimaux Report with respect to 
 the Missing Ships. An Investigation. H.M. S. North Star. 
 York Ommanney. Wretched State of the Natives at Cape 
 York. Parting of the Expeditions. The Beverly Cliffs. 
 Calm and Foggy Weather. Centipeding. Narwhals and 
 Sharks. Little Auks and their Food. Crossing the Top of 
 Baffin's Bay. Middle Ice. Currents in the Polar Seas 247 
 
 CHAP. IX. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM BAFFIN'S BAY TO WELLINGTON CHANFEL. 
 
 Arrival at the West Side. Jones Sound. Unfavourable Wea- 
 ther. State of the Ice. Thick Weather. American Ships 
 seen. Jones Sound full of Ice. Narrow Escape. Violent 
 Gale. Heavy Sea in Lancaster Sound. Ships hove tp. 
 Admiralty Inlet. The "North Star." Proceedings of the 
 " North Star." State of the Ice in Barrow Straits from Mr. 
 Saunders' Report. Admiralty Orders to Mr. Saunders. 
 Mr. Saunders' Intentions. Crew of the " North Star." 
 Parting with the " North Star." Plying Westward. A Hy- 
 pochondriac. Appearance of the Coast. Barrow Straits. 
 Leopold Island. Appearance of the Ice seen. Land free 
 from Snow. Three Ships seen - - 271
 
 xlviii CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAP. X. 
 
 DISCOVERY OP WINTER QUARTERS. 
 
 Beechey Island. Wellington Channel. Traces of Sir J. 
 Franklin. Abundance of Animals. Land supposed to be 
 seen across the Channel. Barrier of Ice. Young Ice. 
 Water upon the Ice. Freshness of Water upon the Ice. 
 Interest felt in the Search. Party on Shore exploring. 
 Traces found. Opinions. Line of Search and Route of the 
 Missing Ships indicated. Arrival in Union Bay. Winter 
 Quarters discovered. Finger Post found. Tin Canisters. 
 Absence of Documents. Boat sent to Cape Ricketts. Record 
 left by H. M. S. " Assistance " at Cape Riley. Report to 
 Captain Austin. Explore Gascoyne Inlet. Leave Union 
 Bay. Communication with H. M. S. " Assistance." A great 
 many Bears seen. Soil at the Cairn dug up. Suggestion 
 to open the Graves. Causes of Death - - Page 291 
 
 CHAP. XI. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM BEECHEY ISLAND TO ASSISTANCE BAY. 
 
 Prospects of getting clear. Fossils. Character of the Land. 
 Red Snow. Character of the Bottom in Union Bay. Dredg- 
 ing. Ships leave Union Bay. Party at Cape Spencer. Open 
 Water to the Northward. Birds and other Animals. 
 Whales. Rapid Tides at Cape Spencer. Direction of the 
 Tide. Young Ice. Fixed Ice in the Channel. Sailing 
 Vessels in Bay Ice. Capturing Seals. Seals fattest in 
 Winter. State of the Ice in the Channel. Plying North- 
 ward. Prospects. H. M. Ships beset. Plying Westward. 
 Arrested by the Ice. Griffith's Island. Arrangements for 
 future Proceedings. Attempts to reach Cape Walker. Meet 
 the " Felix." A School of Walruses. Habits of the Walrus. 
 Difficult Navigation. A dark Night. Danger of getting 
 beset. Getting out of a Lee Pack. Dropped Anchor 318
 
 CONTENTS. 
 CHAP. XII. 
 
 ENTERING UPON THE ARCTIC WINTER. 
 
 Violent Gale. Preparations for a Continuation of the Search. 
 Walruses and Seals upon the Ice. Two Ships seen sailing 
 Eastward. Young Ice. View from Prospect Hill. Kate 
 Austin Lake. Frozen Soil. Animals upon the Land. Vege- 
 tation. Assistance Bay. Dredging. Winter Quarters. 
 Difficulties of late Navigation. Anticipations respecting 
 Winter. Health of the Crew. Hard Water. Excursions. 
 Captain Austin's Squadron. Intense Thirst ; eating Snow. 
 Pressure among young Ice. Sea Salt in Ice. Excursion. 
 Open Water off the Harbour. Ducks still seen. Excursion 
 Inland. Deep Ravines and River Bed. Bridges of Snow. 
 Ships housed in. Store Houses. Esquimaux Dogs. Tide 
 Gauge ------ Page 354 
 
 CHAP. XIII. 
 
 COMMENCEMENT OF THE ARCTIC WINTER. 
 
 Foot-prints of a Bear. Short Excursion. Squadron at 
 Griffith's Island. Hummocky Ice. Boulders raised to the 
 Surface. Direction of the Tide. Clothing served out. 
 Temperature below Zero. Attempts to reach Griffith's Island. 
 Party from Captain Austin's Squadron. American Expedi- 
 tion gone Home. Wintering in the Pack. Object of the 
 Party. Parties to Cape Martyr and Cape Hctham. Frost- 
 Bites. Fatigue and intense Thirst. A Party absent. Severe 
 Frost-Bite. Violent Weather. Pigeons sent off with 
 Balloons. Return of the Party to Griffith's Island. The 
 Cause of the intense Thirst. Rockets. Storehouse finished. 
 Preserved Pickles, &c. Banking up the Ships. Scale of 
 Victualling. Hunting Parties. Fox with a Collar. Party 
 to Griffith's Island. Return of the Party. More settled 
 Weather. Fishing on Kate Austin Lake. Scurvy on board 
 the " Felix." Preserved Potatoes. Carrots. Measures 
 taken to remove Scurvy. Thickness of the Ice - - 386 
 
 VOL. I. C
 
 I CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAP. XIV. 
 
 DURING THE ABSENCE OF THE SUN. 
 
 Temperature of the Cabins. Vapour in the Berths. Bad 
 effects of damp Beds. Temperature of different Regions, and 
 the Presence of Moisture. The Esquimaux lost. Scurvy 
 extending. Theatricals. School. Libraries. Peculiar 
 Meteoric Phenomenon. Violent Gale. Soft and hard Snow. 
 Paraselenae. Lucubrations in the open Air. Mud from the 
 Bottom. Infusoria. The Weather in November. Lumi- 
 nosity of the Sea. A minute Acaleph. Temperature and 
 Density of the Sea- Water. Experiments. The shortest Day. 
 Christmas. Balls and Masquerades. Supposed Route of 
 the Missing Ships. O{ en Water in Barrow Straits. Refrac- 
 tion. Aurora Borealis. Temperature. Mercury frozen. 
 Preparations for Travelling. Temperature of the Ships. 
 Bedding. Washing. Condensed Vapour in the Funnels. 
 Barrow Straits still open. Chloride of Silver not blackened 
 by free Exposure. Water-Cresses. Porter and Ale frozen. 
 Raw Potatoes. Soot in our Cabins. Return of the Sun. 
 Effects of Winter - Page 421 
 
 CHAP. XV. 
 
 SHOET EXCURSIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. 
 
 Open Water reported in Barrow Straits. Person lost his way. 
 Snow-balling. Great Anxiety. Party from Griffith's Island. 
 An Arctic Winter only a Pastime. Kate Austin Lake 
 Salmon. Party to Griffith's Island. Minimum Temperature 
 for the Season. Theatricals. Freezing of Sea Water. 
 Saline Efflorescence on the Ice. Ice formed on Sea Water 
 at low Temperatures. Sea Salt in Snow. Density of Snow. 
 Experiments on the Congelation of fresh and salt Water. 
 Moulding Character of Ice and Snow. Burrows. Snow a 
 Non-Conductor of Sound. Respirators. " Vital Capacity." 
 Evaporation from Ice. Parhelic Circles. Travelling with 
 Dogs. Open Water. Cloudy Weather and low Temper- 
 atures. Return of our Party. Scurvy still on board the 
 " Felix." Seals seen. Dogs walking into the Water. Pre- 
 servation of the Eyes. Two Seals shot. Exposed Thermo- 
 meter about Zero - 466
 
 VOYAGE IN SEARCH 
 
 SIR JOHN FBANKLIN, 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PASSAGE ACROSS THE ATLANTIC. 
 
 Expedition leaves Aberdeen. In Sinclair's Bay. Passage through 
 the Pentland Frith. Lose sight of Land. Course proper for a 
 speedy Passage. Rochall seen. Final Departure from Rockall. 
 Rapid Progress westward. Fulmar Petrels, and their Food. 
 
 Loons and Little Auks Gulf Stream and Arctic Currents. The 
 
 Rorqual Whale, its Habits, Baleen, and Oil. Division of tlie 
 Crew into Watches Sea-Sickness. Sailing Capabilities of the 
 Ships. Perceptible Drift southward. Sea-Fowl off Cape Fare- 
 well. First Icebergs seen. Great Dangers to be encountered. 
 Church Services on Sundays, and their Benefit to the Crew. Land 
 Birds seen, and alighting on Board. Land seen. 
 
 THE " Lady Franklin " and " Sophia" were towed 
 out of Aberdeen Harbour, in the presence of immense 
 crowds of well-wishing spectators, on the afternoon 
 of the 13th of April, 1850; and after all the arrange- 
 ments relating to the Expedition had been made, 
 
 VOL. I. B
 
 2 EXPEDITION LEAVES ABERDEEN. CHAP. I. 
 
 which occupied the greatest part of the evening, we 
 shaped our course to the northward along the land, 
 and soon began to observe Buchanness Light, which 
 could be distinguished easily by its intermissions of 
 five seconds. The wind continued to favour us 
 during the night ; and on the following day, Sunday, 
 April 14th, there was a smart breeze, which long 
 before mid-day took us out of sight of Aberdeenshire, 
 and before night-fall we were close in with Noss 
 Head on the Caithness coast; but, although the 
 wind was still most favourable, we were under the 
 necessity of waiting, until the then easterly-going 
 tide should change to the westward, and afford us an 
 easy, speedy, and safe passage through the Pentland 
 Frith. We here parted company with Mr. Hogarth, 
 who had kindly accompanied us, being on one of his 
 numerous visits, in his yacht, to his extensive fisheries 
 on the north and western coasts of Scotland. * The 
 night was very dark, for the sky was completely 
 overcast with dense blue and drifting clouds, the wind 
 was hourly increasing in violence from S. E. ; and as 
 the sea began to be very " cross," which made the ships 
 toss about, to the constant annoyance of not a few ill- 
 
 * I beg to take this opportunity to acknowledge the extreme 
 kindness and invaluable assistance which we experienced at 
 this gentleman's hands, while the Expedition was fitting out 
 at Aberdeen.
 
 1850. LOSE SIGHT OF LAND. 3 
 
 secured articles in our cabins, we were very glad of 
 the shelter which Sinclair's Bay afforded, as we ran 
 into it by the assistance of a beautiful light, which 
 had been but recently erected on Noss Head. 
 
 April 15th. At a very early hour the tide began 
 to favour us, and long before our usual breakfast 
 hour (eight o'clock in the morning) the " Old Man 
 of Hoy," and Dunnet Head, were dropping fast 
 astern. In the evening, we were off Cape Wrath, 
 where it was thought proper to telegraph " the Ex- 
 pedition ; " and at eight o'clock at night, the depar- 
 ture was taken from the Butt of Lewis, which is in 
 lat. 58 32' N., and long. 6 22' W. ; and each of 
 us had to say farewell to his native shores for a time. 
 
 During the early part of the day, the wind blew 
 violently from about east,, accompanied by a good 
 deal of rain, but towards noon it moderated a little, 
 and veered a point or two to the southward ; the rain 
 also ceased, and the beautiful blue sky began to open 
 out; and as our first night on the bosom of the 
 Atlantic approached and closed in around us on the 
 deep blue sea, our prospects were rendered all the 
 more cheering, by the opening clouds settling to 
 the horizon, with stars peeping pleasantly from the 
 blue sky beyond, the keen bracing atmosphere, 
 and the most abundant signs of favourable weather. 
 
 The course, pursued by whalers and other ships, 
 
 B 2
 
 4 COURSE FOR A SPEEDY PASSAGE. CHAP. I. 
 
 on their passage to Davis Strait, is generally about 
 due west ; but it varies according to the season of 
 the year, it being generally necessary to keep well 
 to the northward in spring, to take advantage of 
 the strong northerly gales experienced when Cape 
 Farewell is approached ; again, about the end of 
 summer, it is very advisable to keep well to the 
 southward, for fear of being driven too far to the 
 northward by the south-westerly winds, which then 
 begin to prevail over the North Atlantic Ocean. 
 The varying rapidity of the gulf stream and Arctic 
 current, with the period of the year, also requires 
 a due share of attention from the Arctic navigator ; 
 and allowances must be made, so as to avoid making 
 the passage longer than it really is. Independent of 
 all these important circumstances, which ought never 
 to be lost sight of, he will discover the wisdom of not 
 keeping his ship in the teeth of a foul wind ; for it has 
 been proved again and again, that the readiest and 
 safest mode of getting out of a foul wind, is to keep 
 the sails " clean full," which it is obvious will carry 
 the ship across and out of its track ; it being un- 
 derstood that this can be had recourse to only in 
 abundance of "sea-room," and where there may be 
 no danger of getting too near the land. 
 
 April 17 tk. While taking the meridian altitude, 
 Rockall, in lat. 57 36' N., and long. 13 39' W.,
 
 1850. ROCKALL SEEN. 5 
 
 was observed bearing about south at a distance of 
 twelve miles ; and from its resemblance at that dis- 
 tance and bearing to a ship under sail, an idea 
 obtained that it was not what it subsequently proved 
 to be. It is not seen very frequently, considering 
 the number of ships whose track to Davis Strait 
 lies so near it : one of our officers, who had crossed 
 the Atlantic to Davis Strait at least sixty times, 
 said he never saw it but once ; acknowledging, at the 
 same time, that it was very probable it might have 
 been seen more frequently, but had not attracted at- 
 tention, in consequence of being taken for a ship. 
 
 At the distance we were from it, sea-fowl could 
 not be distinguished ; however, from its favourable 
 position, in the neighbourhood of a fertile fishing 
 bank*, we had no doubt of its being well peopled with 
 feathered inhabitants, which could pass their time in 
 safety and prosperity, and would afford a rich har- 
 vest to persons who might possess the intrepidity 
 to visit it every season to collect feathers and down. 
 A second departure was obtained, and, as the wind 
 continued to favour us very much, Rockall was soon 
 lost sight of far behind, and our snug little vessels 
 were hastening on to the land of ice and snow. 
 
 April 2lst, Sunday. I could not but remark the 
 extremely rapid progress we had made. Up to this 
 time the wind had prevailed from the eastward, and 
 
 B 3
 
 6 FULMAR PETRELS, CHAP. I. 
 
 proved most favourable to us : degrees of longitude 
 were ran down at the rate of three or four in a day ; 
 and although the sea was sometimes very rough and 
 stormy, and its foaming waves raged and roared 
 angrily around us, and appeared disposed to threaten 
 our safety, like true " bluejackets " we feared nothing, 
 and cared not, so long as the wind continued fair, 
 and we could hold canvass to it. During the four 
 preceding days the sky was generally overcast and 
 cloudy, if not also hazy, so that observations could 
 not be obtained. The latitude and longitude, how- 
 ever, by "dead" reckoning, were 58 16' N., and 
 25 38' W. 
 
 Fulmar petrels (Procellaria glacialis) were our un- 
 wearying attendants; three or four, and sometimes 
 even a dozen or more could be seen skimming over 
 the crests of the angry and foaming waves in our 
 wake and around us; they appeared to dip their 
 strong bills in the water, as if in the act of picking up 
 something, but they very rarely alighted, especially 
 in stormy weather. I frequently endeavoured to 
 ascertain, what they could possibly find to repay such 
 indefatigable assiduity, in what to me appeared to be 
 such ill-requited toil, and to enable them to remain 
 so long and at so great a distance from land ; but I 
 could never detect anything between their strong 
 mandibles, nor did frequent examinations of the sea-
 
 1850. AND THEIR FOOD. 7 
 
 water with the naked eye enable me to discover what 
 could possibly be their food. There can be no doubt 
 the sea-water must contain animal forms upon which 
 these and other birds, so often seen at a great distance 
 from land in the Atlantic, feed; indeed, I consider 
 this well proved by the luminous appearance it 
 assumes when agitated, as in a storm, or even in a 
 vessel in the dark ; and I think it highly probable 
 that the Fulmar scans the surface of the wide and 
 boundless ocean for its food, which is rendered an 
 easy prey in the miniature whirlpools and eddies in 
 a ship's wake, and in the hollows of the rolling waves 
 during a storm. The great strength and form of the 
 bill, as well as what is known of the habits of the 
 fulmar petrel, lead to the idea that its food consists 
 entirely of animal tissues of the highest development. 
 I have seen the Fulmar in thousands attacking the 
 " krang " or carcase of the Greenland whale, and its 
 predilection for the oily tissue and stinking flesh 
 of that huge animal is quite familiar to me; but 
 still I think the above opinion may be safely ad- 
 vanced, since it is based upon the oft-repeated obser- 
 vations of many individuals. 
 
 Loons (Uria Troile), and little auks (Alca Alle) 
 were frequently passed in considerable numbers, 
 although our distance from Iceland, the nearest land, 
 was not less than three hundred miles, while we 
 
 B 4
 
 LOONS AND LITTLE AUKS. CHAP. I. 
 
 were upwards of six hundred from our own shores, 
 and eleven hundred from Cape Farewell and Green- 
 land. They must have allowed themselves to be 
 drifted to the southward by the prevailing north- 
 erly winds during the winter and spring months into 
 a more genial climate, and, now that summer was 
 approaching, they were again migrating to their old 
 habitats. It occurred to me that their instinct 
 would lead them into the track of the great gulf 
 stream, which would enable them to get within the 
 Arctic Circle without the aid of flight ; for on 
 account of the shortness of their wings and their 
 great proportional weight, they are ill adapted 
 to accomplish great distances. This idea requires 
 to be confirmed by subsequent observations, al- 
 though my experience, little as it may be, fully 
 bears me out in it. Early in the season in Davis 
 Strait, the little auk and the loon may be seen in 
 myriads in the track of the current which sweeps 
 from Cape Farewell to the northward along the 
 eastern shore of the Strait ; but, as it advances, and 
 their young are fit for removal into the water, they 
 betake themselves to the middle of the Strait, when, 
 doubtless, the southerly-going current assists to carry 
 them in that direction. If this happens every season 
 in Davis Strait, there seems to me no reason why 
 exactly the same should not occur in the North
 
 1850. LOONS AND LITTLE AUKS. 9 
 
 Atlantic Ocean, for it too possesses its northerly 
 and southerly-going currents. The gulf stream, 
 having traversed it obliquely, sweeps to the N. E., 
 between Iceland and Norway, until it reaches the 
 south-eastern point of Spitzbergen ; at the western 
 point of which the great Arctic current begins, and 
 moves steadily to the southward between Iceland 
 and East Greenland, and along the uninhabited and 
 unvisited shores of the latter, until its chilly waters 
 mix with or pass underneath the edge of the gulf 
 stream off the island of Newfoundland, where the 
 deposition of the well-known banks is the result. 
 Now, it is obvious that birds, by shifting their posi- 
 tion east or west even one hundred miles, will get 
 into one of these currents, and be carried irresistibly 
 north or south as the case may be, without that 
 amount of exertion which, under other circumstances, 
 would be necessary before such a decided change of 
 position could be effected. It is very probable also 
 that their food depends entirely upon these changes, 
 which instinct will enable them easily to accomplish. 
 A large rorqual whale (Rorqualis borealis) was 
 seen following the ship, now shooting a-head, cross- 
 ing the bow, now dropping astern, and lost sight of 
 for a time, and again coming up, with the fin exposed, 
 at intervals of ten to twenty minutes, and passing us 
 with as much apparent ease as if the ship had been
 
 10 THE RORQUAL WHALE. CHAP. I. 
 
 actually standing still; whereas, she was making 
 good at least eight miles an hour. The whalers 
 hardly ever succeed in capturing this huge animal : 
 hence they rarely attack it. From its acuteness and 
 velocity in the water, it baffles all their stratagems 
 and dexterity. Its food consists chiefly of fish, of 
 not very large size, I should suppose, from the 
 closeness of the lamellae of whalebone, which, by 
 being hairy on the inner side, serve no other purpose 
 than simply to strain its food when received into its 
 capacious mouth. 
 
 The baleen of the rorqual varies in length from 
 four to twenty-two inches, and very rarely attains 
 two feet, the average length being about fourteen 
 inches in an ordinary sized individual. Each plate is 
 of a triangular form, and as the structure appears to 
 consist chiefly of parallel fibres resembling coarse 
 hair, cemented closely together, of which those of 
 the outer edge are the longest, it is obvious that 
 those of the inner edge vary in length from the 
 extremity or point to the base or attached part, and 
 expose their ruffled extremities, in the form of coarse 
 black hair, to whatever is brought into contact with 
 them. 
 
 From the extreme rapidity of this giant of the 
 deep, one would be apt to expect to meet it in all 
 parts of the North Atlantic, without at the same
 
 1850. THE HABITS OF THE RORQUAL. 11 
 
 time associating with this fact the idea of great 
 numbers ; and so it is, for it is to be seen on passages 
 to America, Davis Strait, Greenland, and on the 
 British coasts ; but it never occurs in " schools " like 
 most of the cetacea. I never saw above two at one 
 time, and generally only one. The empire of this 
 whale seems to be the wide sea from shore to shore ; 
 now engulphing thousands of herrings on our own 
 coasts, and proving highly destructive to the poor 
 fisherman's nets ; while, at other times, it is said to 
 carry devastation into whole shoals of salmon, in 
 the entrance of some of the rivers and harbours, and 
 along the coast of Iceland ; now deigning to touch 
 upon the Greenland coast, it enters Davis Strait, 
 and commits fearful havoc upon the fertile cod-fishing 
 banks there. Its caprice seems to know no bounds, 
 for it requires new ground, long before its resources 
 on the old can possibly be exhausted, surely, even 
 with all the voracity of its huge mouth and capacious 
 stomach, in a few days, and in the midst of such 
 great abundance, it cannot be starved out. The 
 habits of the rorqual are so much at variance with 
 the habits of the proper baleen whale, that they 
 have never been known to associate, except when 
 circumstances compel them to appear on the same 
 ground. Like the rest of the cetacea, the rorqual 
 whale has the cellular tissue, immediately beneath
 
 12 THE OIL OF THE RORQUAL. CHAP. I. 
 
 the well-known epidermis, well filled with oily 
 matter, which varies in thickness from four to eight 
 or ten inches, and yields an oil which becomes 
 solid at ordinary temperatures in the winter 
 months in Britain. This is owing to a large pre- 
 ponderance of the solid constituents of animal oils, 
 such as margarine and stearine, which ought to 
 attract the attention of the soap manufacturer, and 
 bring a fair price in the market. From the shortness 
 and lightness of its baleen, and from not yielding 
 above sixteen tons of oil, even in a large individual, 
 this whale will never vie with the real baleen 
 whale ; but if its capture can be rendered as easy and 
 safe as that of the other, I have no doubt a fair profit 
 will arise to all parties who may engage in this noble 
 sport. 
 
 April 22nd. The weather still continued stormy, 
 and there was much rain, but the wind was from 
 about S. E., which suited us very well. The crew of 
 each ship was divided into two " watches," the number 
 of men being too small to allow of three, as is gene- 
 rally done in the whalers. When the weather 
 happened to be stormy, no work could be conducted, 
 except such as might be absolutely necessary for the 
 sailing and safety of the ship ; and those who had to 
 be exposed to it, especially if there were rains, had 
 strict orders to protect themselves, by using their
 
 1850. SEA-SICKNESS. 13 
 
 oil-cloth jackets and trousers, of which they ap- 
 peared to possess a good supply. Sea-sickness had 
 been long over with all of us; but if any person 
 then happened to be affected, it was very slight, 
 and generally disappeared after a day or two, or 
 perhaps even by going into the open air and remain- 
 ing there for a short time. Sea-sickness is sometimes 
 remarkably obstinate ; or there is such a peculiarity 
 of constitution that neither time nor violence of storms 
 removes the aptness there is for this disease. I have 
 often observed that dried fish, especially smoke-dried, 
 allayed the violent retchings, when even brandy and 
 every thing that could be taken were not allowed to 
 remain five minutes in the stomach. It is very pro- 
 bable that this depends upon the creasotic principle 
 which the fish receives in the process of drying. 
 
 By this time we were able to judge of the sailing 
 capabilities of our ships. The " Lady Franklin " could 
 sail at least one mile in the hour faster than the 
 " Sophia," when going at the rate of nine or ten miles 
 an hour, if the sea happened to be rough, which it 
 generally is in the Atlantic, with strong winds. I 
 must acknowledge that the idea " that we had to be 
 waited for" was by no means comfortable to us in 
 the " Sophia," when we were really doing our best, 
 and her good spars were bending like reeds before the 
 violence of the gale. The " Lady Franklin " always
 
 14 SAILING QUALITIES OF THE SHIPS. CHAP. I. 
 
 appeared to roll and pitch very heavily, and to take 
 a good deal more sea on board than the " Sophia ; " 
 this was owing to her having to go under easier sail, 
 waiting for us coming up under a perfect press of sail, 
 indeed as much as could be carried with safety. In her 
 hull, in the symmetry of her rigging, and ropes, in the 
 exact proportion of her masts and their rake, and in the 
 beauty of her white widely-spread but neatly-cut and 
 well-set sails, the "Lady Franklin" was certainly an 
 object of great beauty and attraction, and, if possible, 
 worthy of the mission on which she was sent. Hurry- 
 ing on as if borne along on angels' wings, she deigns 
 to wait for the " Sophia," as if the latter were actually 
 requiring encouragement, to follow up in her work of 
 humanity and love. 
 
 The monotony of our passage across the Atlantic 
 was very much broken by keeping company ; and 
 when the weather permitted it, the ships ap- 
 proached so closely, that interrupted conversations 
 could be carried on from time to time without 
 the use of speaking-trumpets. Observations were 
 obtained at noon and in the evening, and the 
 latitude and longitude were found to be 57 48' N. 
 and 30 21' W. 
 
 April 26th. It must be acknowledged that our 
 passage hitherto was remarkably quick, this being 
 but our thirteenth day from Aberdeen, while we
 
 1850. SEA-FOWL OFF CAPE FAREWELL. 15 
 
 were crossing the fiftieth degree of west longitude in 
 latitude 59 45' N. During the three preceding 
 days it was found that the ship was making twelve 
 miles of southerly drift every twenty-four hours, 
 which could be accounted for only by the suppo- 
 sition that we were in the track of the Arctic 
 current. For example, with favourable easterly 
 winds a course was shaped at noon for a point 
 marked upon the chart, which we might reasonably 
 expect to reach on the following day. The utmost 
 care was observed in steering the ship, and the com- 
 passes were changed and corrected ; but day after 
 day the results were the same, and we were in- 
 variably ten or twelve miles to the southward of our 
 reckoning. Flocks of " cape hens " (Procellaria 
 Piiffinus), and occasionally the little puffin (Alca 
 arctica), known to seamen by the names " sea 
 parrot " and " tammy nory," were seen every day, in 
 addition to abundance of loons, fulmar petrels, and 
 kittiwakes (Larus Rissa). The presence of so many 
 birds afforded a good proof that we were approaching 
 Davis Strait, if not already in its entrance. 
 
 Those of the crew who had not before visited the 
 Arctic seas could not keep their straining eyes from 
 the distant horizon. They expected to see something 
 really wonderful in an iceberg from the descriptions 
 they had seen and heard ; but, instead of floating
 
 16 DANGERS WITH ICEBERGS. CHAP. I. 
 
 worlds, as their vivid fancies had so often pictured, 
 I could imagine their disappointment on having 
 pointed out to them as icebergs (which they really 
 were) two masses which did not appear to be more 
 than forty feet above the surface of the water. 
 These icebergs were first seen in the afternoon about 
 four o'clock ; and, as night approached, and the wind 
 carried us up the Strait, the orders " to keep a good 
 look-out ahead " for fear of running foul of any that 
 might lie in our track, were reiterated. The common 
 seamen on board the whalers are all deeply im- 
 pressed with the importance of the duty they have 
 to discharge in dark and stormy nights in the 
 entrance into Davis Strait, when they pass their 
 anxious "watches" peering through the driving 
 snow, groping about the slippery decks, or perched 
 upon the lower or topsail yard of the foremast. 
 
 The narrow escapes, the encounters, and serious 
 disasters of ships with icebergs are so well known, 
 and so fully described, that even an inexperienced 
 person can readily conceive the appalling dangers 
 which one may expect to meet in the early part 
 of the season in these seas. With all our careful 
 surveys, correct bearings, well-projected charts, and 
 beautiful lighthouses which illuminate the promon- 
 tories, and mark out the positions of dangerous 
 rocks and shoals on the British coasts, shipwreck
 
 1850. DANGERS ENCOUNTERED WITH ICEBERGS. 17 
 
 attended with considerable loss of life is of every- 
 day occurrence. From Cape Farewell to Disco 
 Island, extending to a distance of thirty to forty 
 miles to the westward of West Greenland, where 
 it meets the drifting " pack," there is, in the 
 month of April, a space of water, generally free from 
 "pack ice," equal in extent to 15,000 square miles. 
 This space the intrepid navigator must enter, and 
 abide by in pursuit of his noble prey, defying equally 
 thousands of floating ice-islands, whose positions are 
 ever changing, dark nights, and storms of terrific 
 violence, and with impunity too, without survey or 
 chart, light or bearing, in short without everything 
 but his own dear-bought experience, which in such a 
 place is indispensable. Captain Penny related to me 
 an adventure which occurred on board the "Neptune" 
 whaler of Aberdeen under his command, while on 
 the homeward passage, with a valuable cargo of oil 
 and whalebone, about this part of Davis Strait. It 
 was a dark, snowy, and stormy night in October, the 
 sea was running high, and there was so much wind 
 that only double-reefed sails could be shown, under 
 which the ship was going about two "points " free, 
 and at the rate of perhaps four miles an hour. A 
 few icebergs were seen in the fore part of the day 
 and passed, but as evening and night approached, and 
 none had been seen for a few hours, the idea obtained 
 VOL. i. c
 
 18 DANGERS ENCOUNTERED WITH ICEBERGS. CH. I. 
 
 that they had got through the " thick " of them. 
 After passing a great part of the night on deck look- 
 ing out, the captain went down into his cabin for a few 
 minutes, when faithful Peter Murray, chief officer of 
 the "watch " as well as mate of the ship, hailed him in 
 a stentorian but mournful bawl, " We are on the face 
 of an iceberg, sir;" meaning that they were so near, 
 as to render escape impossible. As may be supposed, 
 he sprung to the deck with the quickness of thought, 
 and was at the post of danger in an instant. The 
 yards were braced up, and the ship sailed close to 
 the wind, with some of the sails shaking and flapping 
 uselessly, while the sea spray, from the towering 
 cliffs of the iceberg, was falling in showers upon the 
 deck, and every sound of human voice was completely 
 drowned in the deafening roar of the waves dash- 
 ing mercilessly against its hard and rugged sides. 
 The " Neptune " was by no means a fast-sailing ship ; 
 consequently, hauling close to the wind stopped her 
 way very much, and, from the great dimensions of the 
 iceberg, it was very doubtful for some time whether 
 she was to go clear of it ; awful suspense ! At 
 length the furthest extremity of it was observed, and 
 the ship's bow was opposite to and soon past it: but 
 now was the critical moment, for the eddy-wind 
 and waves assisted no longer to keep them apart; 
 it was evident even in the extreme darkness of the
 
 1850. NARROW ESCAPE. 19 
 
 night, and enveloped in the seething foam, that they 
 were about to close. At length the main chains of 
 the ship were opposite the corner of the berg, but not 
 far from it; the main-braces were hauled in, and the 
 yards squared, and the helm was put "hard up" 
 and firmly secured; while the helmsman was pe- 
 remptorily ordered to quit it, and the quarter-deck 
 to be instantly forsaken : a few seconds more, and 
 the stern was clear, but so near that the rnizen- 
 boom, which projected eight or ten feet beyond it, 
 struck, and sustained some damage. The escape was 
 almost miraculous ; but it must be allowed, that al- 
 though all the rest had escaped, one life might have 
 been lost by the boom breaking, or being knocked 
 out of its place, had it not been for the presence of 
 mind of the commander, by whose order the helms- 
 man had to quit his post when the catastrophe was 
 about to happen. 
 
 Had any part of the ship's hull or yards struck 
 the weather side of the iceberg but once, the second 
 stroke would have been the finishing one. Wild and 
 callous as the hardy sailor inured to dangers from 
 his earliest boyhood, may appear in the eyes of the 
 mild and amiable on shore, there was not an indi- 
 vidual in that ship whose grateful feelings did not 
 ascend to Him by whom they had been saved in 
 that perilous hour. 
 
 c 2
 
 20 CHURCH SERVICES. CHAP. I. 
 
 April 28th, Sunday. During the two preceding 
 days, the weather was very stormy, but now it began 
 to moderate, and the wind shifted from S.W. to 
 S. E. ; the sea, before rough and boisterous, was now 
 assuming a more tranquil aspect, and the deep and 
 heavy "ground swell," peculiar to the Atlantic, was 
 arrested by small streams of ice to the southward, 
 which we occasionally had to pass close to, on our 
 passage up the Strait. In consequence of not having 
 come to some arrangement about the Church Services, 
 the two Sundays, since we had left Aberdeen, were 
 allowed to pass, without attending to that most im- 
 portant duty. As it was fully understood before 
 sailing, that the Book of Common Prayer should be 
 in use in our Expedition, fifty copies were obtained 
 and distributed among the crews of the two ships. 
 At eleven o'clock all hands assembled on the quarter- 
 deck ; each had on his best clothes, and the strictest 
 attention had been paid to cleanliness. The beautiful 
 morning service of the Church of England was 
 commenced and gone through, while there was not 
 one present, whose conduct deviated from the devo- 
 tional feeling that seemed to pervade the whole ; 
 each seemed to go away, when it was over, with a 
 feeling of satisfaction in himself which no other duty, 
 however faithfully discharged, could possibly produce. 
 Much good might be anticipated from the practice
 
 1850. BENEFIT FROM CHURCH SERVICE. 21 
 
 which was about to be commenced ; a practice which 
 cements men and officers to one another, and all to 
 their commander ; and cannot fail to assist effectively 
 in keeping up subordination on board ship, proving 
 a wholesome check upon tyranny and disobedience, 
 while it cultivates a brotherly feeling, such as one 
 would find among persons involved in deep distress, 
 who participate in each other's sufferings. I am 
 convinced that, if commanders of ships would but'' 
 devote themselves and their spare energies, in real 
 earnest, to the best interests of their crews, the odium 
 which is occasionally associated with the character of 
 seamen would be removed, and their relaxed habits 
 exchanged for better modes of living. 
 
 As the sky cleared up at noon, a meridian altitude 
 was obtained which gave the latitude 62 43', but in 
 the evening it again became overcast, which pre- 
 vented observation for longitude ; however, by dead 
 reckoning it was 53 57'. The barometer, which had 
 begun to ascend, when the wind first veered to the 
 eastward, continued to do so, while the latter increased 
 in violence, and appeared disposed to cling to that 
 quarter. 
 
 April 29th. Great numbers of towering icebergs 
 were seen and passed as AVC proceeded to the north- 
 ward, but very little drifting ice. The wind favoured 
 us exceedingly, although at times it was very squally, 
 
 c 3
 
 22 SNOW-BUNTINGS ALIGHTING ON BOAED. CHAP. I. 
 
 and accompanied by dense showers of flaky snow. 
 In one of the squalls several snow-buntings (Embe- 
 riza nivalis) were seen; some of them succeeded 
 in alighting on the ship, while the others were blown 
 to leeward, and lost sight of among the driving snow. 
 One of them was found dead upon the deck : the 
 poor thing had likely died from fatigue and hunger 
 most probably the latter, for its gizzard contained 
 nothing but a few particles of grit, which would 
 yield but little nourishment to its weary limbs in the 
 face of the pitiless storm. The sun appeared at times, 
 and enabled us to ascertain the latitude, which was 
 64 48', about the parallel of Fiske Fiorde, and the 
 longitude being about 54 ; in the evening we saw 
 the bold and rugged land of West Greenland.
 
 23 
 
 CHAP. n. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM REEFKOLL TO NORTH-EAST BAY. 
 
 Severe Gale on the Arctic Circle. Icebergs numerous. Depth of 
 . Water on Reefkoll Bank. Supposed to be a Deposition from 
 Icebergs. Cod-fishing. The Food of the Cod and Halibut. 
 Food of the White Whale. Approach the Pack Ice. Extensive 
 open Water, and its Causes. Reasons for attempting a Passage to 
 the northward early in the Season. Arrival at Leively. Landing 
 with Letters. Disco Island. Its volcanic Origin. Hare Island. 
 Fauna and Flora of Disco. Deer abundant. In North-east 
 Bay. The Difficulties experienced in navigating it. Marine 
 
 Animals. Seals. Among the Whalers First Saturday Night 
 
 beset in the Ice. 
 
 April 30th. As we were crossing the Arctic Circle, 
 we experienced a very severe gale, which forced us 
 to " heave to," owing to the immense numbers of 
 icebergs that lay in the direction we had to follow. 
 The weather happened to be very thick, and objects 
 even near at hand were very ill discerned through the 
 thick and drifting snow. The barometer continued 
 to rise after the gale began to moderate, the sky 
 cleared up, and, when our course up the Strait was 
 resumed, everything around us put on a cheerful 
 aspect. Hundreds of icebergs, with pinnacled tops 
 and overhanging cliffs, streams of ice much broken- 
 
 c 4 
 
 I Officially 
 DISCARDED 
 
 \
 
 24 EEEFKOLL BANK, AND DEPTH OF WATER. CH. II. 
 
 up, and the impenetrable pack in the middle of the 
 Strait, could be seen all moving imperceptibly into 
 a warmer climate; while large flocks of loons and 
 eider-ducks were led by instinct to set their faces 
 upon high northern latitudes, into which they were 
 attracted by the " swelling curve " of the returning 
 sun. 
 
 It would be impossible to estimate the numbers of 
 these birds that were seen and passed, as AVC crossed 
 a well-known bank off Reefkoll (or Riscoll, in the 
 Danish language), where, doubtless, they can find 
 abundance of food to fatten them, before "pairing off" 
 to the cliffs and islands, at the commencement of the 
 breeding season. The depth of water on the bank 
 varies from fifteen to fifty or sixty fathoms, appear- 
 ing to deepen gradually from the shallowest part, 
 which runs parallel to the adjacent coast; and, as 
 one can readily suppose, icebergs and drifting ice are 
 detained on and around it, although the former are 
 not equal in height to those seen in deep water, in 
 other parts of the Strait. Its situation is probably 
 the point of junction of the eastern-northerly, and 
 western-southerly currents. The effect of such 
 a meeting would be the deposition of substances 
 borne along by the water. Icebergs and coast-ice, 
 seeking southward, would be arrested or delayed 
 in the eddy, and their precious loads of mud
 
 1850. SUPPOSED CAUSE OF THE BANK. 25 
 
 and angular fragments of rock as well as rounded 
 pebbles, would be precipitated to the bottom, the 
 result of which would be, a bank increasing in 
 extent and height, until its surface would rise 
 to a level a little below the surface of the water, 
 and following the direction of the eddy, in which 
 the process of deposition commenced. Supposing 
 this bank not to be the result of this sure process 
 of deposition, which may have been going on for 
 thousands of years, but an elevation resembling 
 in its general features the land on either of the 
 adjacent shores of Davis Strait, the sounding line 
 would now stop at fifteen fathoms ; and half a mile 
 on either side it might run out two hundred, before 
 reaching the bottom ; and the intrepid whaler would 
 have his whale-lines cut or broken, by being entangled 
 in the irregularities of its surface, just as happens on 
 the western shore of the Strait, where the bottom 
 presents little else than a solid rock, with all the 
 irregularities of the immediately adjoining coast. The 
 direction of this bank is from north to south; 
 but its exact extent is very ill-defined. In the end 
 of May, and in June and July, cod-fishing can be 
 carried on in this part of the Strait with great 
 advantage. I have known four lines, double-hooked, 
 haul up upwards of six hundred fish in the course of 
 four hours. The lines were many times not per-
 
 26 COD-FISHING. CHAP. II. 
 
 mitted to reach the bottom until they had hooked 
 the fish, and required to be hauled in. Halibut 
 {Hippoglossus vulgaris) is also very abundant. The 
 cod-fishing vessels, which visit Davis Strait every 
 season, use the halibut to bait their hooks ; but the 
 half of what is caught cannot be required for that 
 purpose ; so that this fish often comes in for the 
 fishermen's food, while fresh, or it is thrown over- 
 board. We have great reason to regret, that it is 
 not in our power to establish curing and drying 
 stations along the coast ; for, were this practicable, 
 the excellent fish, with which those seas abound, 
 could be brought into our markets at a higher re- 
 muneration, than fish similarly cured on the coast of 
 Newfoundland. Some of the numerous islands along 
 the coast are particularly well adapted for this pur- 
 pose; the sanction of the Danish government would 
 be easily obtained, as it would not at all interfere 
 with the settlements along the west coast of Green- 
 land. It often occurred to me that the ships, after 
 killing and salting forty thousand, or as many cod- 
 fish as could well be taken, might "seek across" 
 the Strait to its western shore; this might be 
 reached in a day, or two, according to the state of 
 the ice, and in this case they could engage in dry- 
 ing the fish and preparing it for the market, before
 
 1850. FOOD OF THE COD AND HALIBUT. 27 
 
 thorough saturation with salt could possibly have 
 happened. I do not think this plan has ever been 
 tried ; but until some such system be fully carried 
 out, it is very improbable we shall be able fully to 
 appreciate the importance due to Davis Strait, and 
 the superiority of the fish frequenting its banks. 
 
 There is little doubt that a dredge, used carefully 
 on Reefkoll bank, would amply repay the toil of the 
 naturalist ; for where great shoals of fish, especially 
 the voracious cod, are met with, there also must 
 their food be in great abundance. From my recol- 
 lections of a voyage in 1846, 1 think this food consists 
 chiefly of Crustaceans and Annelides, and perhaps, 
 also, of Mollusca belonging to several genera, of 
 which the Doris, Syllis, and Crangon constitute the 
 greatest part. They may, and doubtless do, devour 
 other fish, but I could never see any in the contents 
 of their stomachs which were discharged, when they 
 weltered in scores upon the deck, in their dying 
 struggles. 
 
 It is generally believed that this fish migrates 
 every season, into this part of the Strait from a more 
 southerly latitude ; but some are of opinion that 
 even in the depth of winter they can be obtained by 
 cutting a hole in the ice, and putting down a baited 
 line. This opinion, however, was not borne out by
 
 28 FOOD OP THE WHITE WHALE. CHAP. II. 
 
 our experience this season ; for our lines, although 
 very carefully attended to, proved quite unsuccessful : 
 and this we accounted for by the supposition, that 
 the season for their return had not then arrived. 
 As the beluga, or white whale (Delphinus albicans), 
 was very numerous at this time, so also, it may be 
 said, was their food, which is essentially fish, and, 
 as some say, the cod. 
 
 The teeth of the white whale are ill adapted for 
 mastication, as they are entirely prehensile ; hence, 
 a large fish like the common cod, even although 
 below the ordinary size, would be an unmanageable 
 morsel in its narrow gullet. Moreover, when the 
 cod-fishing banks are teeming with myriads of the 
 finest fish, the white whale is not to be seen near 
 them ; for, long before that time, it has proceeded 
 far to the northward, where the genus Morrhua is 
 never seen, but where its place is occupied by 
 another and a closely allied genus, the Merlangus, 
 which, I believe, constitutes the principal food of 
 several species of seal as well as of the white whale. 
 
 It was very pleasant to see " schools " of white 
 whales passing close to the ships, and appearing not 
 to feel the least alarm from a very close approach. 
 Their pastime seemed to engage all their attention. 
 I often thought they would strike the ship's
 
 1850. APPROACH TO THE PACK ICE. 29 
 
 side or stern ; but the slightest deflection of the 
 head and body carried them underneath the bottom, 
 and, in a few minutes, they again appeared at the 
 surface several hundred yards before us, where the 
 old and young, the latter distinguished by their 
 darker colour, moved on as if their rapid progress 
 in the water and their sudden evolutions increased 
 their enjoyment. There can be no doubt they 
 were then in quest of food, as they always are ; but 
 if the habits of any creature yield a life of con- 
 stant enjoyment, surely it is so with the frolicsome 
 groups of these animals, with which the eye and 
 ear of the Arctic voyager become as familiar almost, 
 as with the sea around him. 
 
 May 1st At noon the latitude was found to be 
 67 30', and our distance from the land was not 
 above twenty miles. It could be seen very plainly 
 from time to time, although occasionally it was en- 
 veloped in dense clouds, Avhich were drifting rapidly 
 before the easterly wind. Our course to the north- 
 ward was midway between the " pack," which could 
 also be seen, and the land. According to Captain 
 Penny's instructions, it was necessary to endeavour 
 to keep within sight of the pack ice to seaward, and the 
 fast ice along the land. The extent of open water was 
 sometimes so great, that, to avoid losing our view of
 
 30 EXTENSIVE OPEN WATER. ITS CAUSES. CH. II. 
 
 the middle or pack ice, our distance from the land 
 had to be considerably increased. Many were our 
 conjectures as to the cause of so much open water, the 
 general opinion being that the season was unusually 
 early, although of this no person could be certain, 
 for the ice in this part of Davis Strait shifts so 
 rapidly with a gale, that an inexperienced person 
 would be apt to think it had sunk, and not drifted 
 out of sight. It often happens that one or two 
 south-westerly gales, followed by northerly and 
 easterly winds, leave a great extent of open water in 
 the Strait from the Arctic Circle, up as far as the 
 70th degree of latitude, beyond which there will 
 scarcely be anything but an impenetrable barrier of 
 ice both in the form of " pack " and fast ice ; the 
 latter varying in extent according to the conforma- 
 tion of the adjoining coast and the period of the 
 spring, whether late or early. A south-west wind 
 eases the pressure of the ice at Cape Walsingham, 
 where it is generally very close in spring, and causes 
 a complete blockade at the north end of Disco 
 Island, while the sea, from this point down to Hol- 
 steinberg, becomes more or less encumbered with 
 loose drifting ice, which the first easterly or north- 
 easterly breeze will drive out of the narrow part of 
 the Strait, and considerably to the southward, with-
 
 1850. REASONS FOR AN EARLY NORTH PASSAGE. 31 
 
 out effecting the slightest possible change upon the 
 ice off the north end of Disco and Hare Island. 
 With this in view, it is easy to account for a large 
 extent of open water here. As a general rule, 
 the whalers do not like a great extent of open water 
 off South-east Bay and Disco in the first week in 
 May, for the reason, that their attempts to capture 
 whales will generally be unsuccessful, and their 
 chances of an early " north passage " will be greatly 
 diminished. They may, however, succeed in round- 
 ing the " middle ice " after the ice among the islands 
 has dissolved where it formed ; but their arrival on 
 the west side of the Strait will be too late, to take 
 advantage of the early visits of the whales to Pond's 
 Bay. It will be seen afterwards, that these difficul- 
 ties will be greatly obviated by beginning to " seek " 
 north at a much earlier period, and before the " land 
 ice" breaks up close in with the rocks. The sea- 
 sons differ in Greenland as well as in Britain, and 
 the ice on the seas there will be influenced by these 
 differences, in the same way as our rivers, and many 
 other natural objects depending upon meteorological 
 phenomena, do not always present the same features 
 at the same time every year. As certain as our 
 rivers swell every season and again subside, so certain 
 is it, that the ice in Davis Strait assumes such
 
 32 REASONS FOR AN EARLY NORTH PASSAGE. CH. II. 
 
 positions and undergoes such changes as will enable 
 ships to make a passage to the northward, between 
 the loose ice in the middle of the Strait and that 
 which is fast to the land along its eastern shore, if 
 they but lay themselves out exclusively for that 
 special object, and be on the spot in time to embrace 
 the earliest opportunity. For an early passage I do 
 not think there are many opportunities, but still 
 they are as certain in the month of June as in 
 the month of August, if not much more so, while 
 in July it is a hap-hazard sort of business which 
 cannot be depended upon. It will be seen, by 
 consulting Dr. Scoresby's table of the times of 
 passing the middle ice by the whalers, that in 
 sixteen out of twenty-nine years the ships crossed in 
 July, in eight years in June, while in only four years 
 did they cross in August ; and it will be a proper in- 
 ference to draw from such a table, that in July 
 there are the best chances of getting through Mel- 
 ville Bay and round the " middle ice." But in 
 coming to such conclusions, it will be proper to bear 
 in mind, that the whalers remain on the outlook for 
 whales between the 65th and 71st degrees of latitude 
 until the 20th of May, and even later, thereby 
 missing in all probability the most favourable oppor- 
 tunity which is afforded throughout the whole season
 
 1850. REASONS FOR AN EARLY NORTH PASSAGE. 33 
 
 for making a quick and safe passage in the so much 
 desired direction. From latitude 67, where I pre- 
 sume the land ice begins to jut out into the Strait, up 
 to Sir Thomas Smith's Sound, of which we know 
 very little, the west coast of Greenland presents a 
 very irregular edge to the advancing and receding 
 tides, and in some parts there are deep bays and fiords, 
 which run fifty miles at least to the eastward of some 
 of the outlying islands and prominent headlands. 
 During the long Arctic winter these bays and 
 numerous indentations, with one or two exceptions, 
 become frozen over, and present one continuous sheet 
 of ice, the free edge of which, being on a line with 
 the outside of all the islands and headlands, becomes 
 the eastern boundary of open water between it and 
 the drifting ice in the middle of the Strait. On the 
 return of spring and summer, the ice in the bays 
 begins to melt away, break up, and drift loosely 
 about ; and before the middle of June, as far north 
 as 73 30', it becomes so weak, that men, walking 
 over it, are in constant danger of falling through. 
 Now, it will be very clear that navigation cannot be 
 conducted with the same facility, when the land ice 
 is reduced to a rotten " pack," as when it was a 
 firmly fixed floe, which could not fail to maintain its 
 position in spite of the strongest north-easterly gales, 
 
 VOL. I. D
 
 34 REASONS FOR AN EARLY NORTH PASSAGE. CH. II. 
 
 which, in their turn, would remove the " middle ice " 
 ten or fifteen miles from it. 
 
 In the month of August the top of Baffin's Bay 
 may probably be reached without touching or even 
 seeing a bit of floe ice, but there are also equal 
 chances of being then beset in an extensive field 
 of ice, in which a ship may drift helplessly about, 
 and be frozen in for the winter. Far be it from me 
 to advise the intrepid whaler what course to pursue, 
 for Davis Strait and the Greenland seas are his do- 
 main, and no one knows them better than he does ; 
 but still I cannot help thinking, and for good reasons 
 too, that the great chances of making a quick " north 
 passage," and getting early into Pond's Bay, are well 
 worthy of the risk of losing a few chances of a whale 
 or two in the " east water." 
 
 May 2nd. During the early part of the day we 
 stood pretty far off, and had gained a tolerable 
 northing, for the wind was easterly; when the ice 
 was reached, a few tacks were made along its edge, 
 and then we stood in towards the land, which I 
 suppose was not less than twenty miles distant. 
 Loons and eider-ducks (Somateria mottissima) were 
 very abundant on the water, and all seemed to have 
 set their faces to the north. There were not many 
 icebergs in this part of the Strait, perhaps one could 
 count twenty or thirty from the deck, but a great
 
 ARRIVAL AT LEIVELT. 35 
 
 many more were seen, from the Crow's Nest, at an 
 ele vation of about ninety feet. 
 
 Towards midnight we were within two miles of 
 Leively, a Danish settlement on the south end of 
 Disco, and a number of Esquimaux came off to us. 
 Although their dresses were very filthy, and there 
 seemed to be little regard paid to cleanliness, they 
 appeared to be a lot of hearty-looking fellows, who 
 could conduct themselves very respectably indeed. 
 They cared very little for anything that we could 
 give them, and with the exception of a few tobacco 
 purses, for which they took cotton handkerchiefs, 
 they had nothing to barter. 
 
 Captain Penny and several others went on shore, 
 to leave letters and make inquiries respecting the 
 weather and the probable condition of the ice in the 
 Strait, but more especially respecting H. M. S. 
 "North Star" and the missing Expedition under Sir 
 John Franklin. The Governor was absent from the 
 settlement; but we were kindly received by the 
 Sub-Governor and his lady, who, although it happened 
 to be the untimely hour of one in the morning, did 
 not fail to exhibit that high sense of hospitality which 
 prevails among the Danish settlers from near Cape 
 Farewell to Uppernavik. We were entertained with 
 an ample repast, consisting of coffee, bread (baked 
 at the settlement), excellent Danish butter, fish, 
 
 B 2
 
 36 DEPARTURE FROM LEIVELY. CHAP. II. 
 
 quite fresh (halibut), and venison equalling the best 
 that ever came from Braemar, Aberdeenshire. 
 
 The Danes were very glad to learn that there had 
 been a cessation of hostilities, even for a time, between 
 their much beloved country and the Prussians and 
 Germans, in the war about the disputed territory of 
 Schleswig. We were informed by the Sub-Governor 
 that the winter had been rather severe, and that the 
 wind prevailed lately from about east, which he said 
 had been the cause of the Strait being so clear of ice 
 at its lower part. Captain Penny made inquiries 
 whether he could get one or two Esquimaux, at 
 Leively, to accompany the Expedition ; but the 
 inducements he held out were insufficient to pre- 
 vail upon the Innuit to leave their fond homes. He 
 could have got some dogs; but, at present, he de- 
 clined taking any, in consequence of not having food 
 for them, trusting that as many as might be neces- 
 sary could be obtained at some of the most northern 
 settlements. 
 
 After remaining about an hour and a half on shore, 
 we came off to the ships, and in a few minutes our 
 widely spread sails hurried us along before a smart 
 southerly wind, which began to " come away " about 
 midnight. 
 
 Disco Island is situated on the 70th parallel 
 of north latitude ; its greatest length, from N. W.
 
 1850. DISCO ISLAND. 37 
 
 to S. E., is about eighty-five or ninety miles, and 
 its breadth not much more than fifty miles. It 
 is separated from the Greenland coast by a strait 
 called the "Waigat, which runs between it and the 
 Bunke Land, and varies in breadth from eight 
 to twelve or fifteen miles. There is a second strait, 
 about eight miles in breadth, called the Malegat, 
 which runs east and west between its northern ex- 
 tremity and an island, called Hazen or Hare Island. 
 A small fiord, which in many parts is only navigable 
 by boats, runs tortuously to the eastward through the 
 south end of the island, and nearly isolates a small 
 portion of it ; on this the settlement of Leively has 
 been established, on account of the conveniences 
 which its insulated position affords. 
 
 This portion of the island is very low, appearing to 
 resemble the Whale-fish Islands, which are but a few 
 miles to the southward, and the rocks, of which it is 
 composed, are of the hypogene formation: one can 
 pick up granite and gneiss, wherever the rock pro- 
 trudes through the snow, all round the settlement. 
 In the fiord, too, the same rocks appear above the 
 water, and often detain the drifting ice after the tide 
 lias gone back. Immediately on the opposite or 
 north side of the fiord, the island rises, almost sud- 
 denly, to an elevation of about one thousand feet ; 
 and, to the north-east of the settlement, it is in many 
 
 D 3
 
 38 VOLCANIC ORIGIN OF DISCO ISLAND. CHAP. II. 
 
 parts altogether inaccessible. The rocks never over- 
 hang, but they frequently ascend perpendicularly, 
 and present a succession of steps, which at once 
 conveys an idea of their volcanic origin. Viewing 
 the island from a distance of ten miles to the west- 
 ward, it appears to be made up of a number of trun- 
 cated cones planted so closely together, that the bases 
 of all meet, some at the level of the sea, bounding 
 long and winding valleys, and others at every inter- 
 mediate point, until the top itself is reached. The 
 waters around it vary in depth very much, as can be 
 easily supposed from the nature of the rocks on which 
 the island rests. In Disco or South-east Bay, icebergs 
 two to three hundred feet in height may be seen drift- 
 ing into Davis Strait, on either side of the Whale-fish 
 Islands. In the Malegat and Waigat, I have seen 
 whole clusters of these floating islands, drawing from 
 one hundred to t\vo hundred and fifty fathoms, 
 moving to and fro with every return and recession 
 of the tides. I looked very earnestly for grooves 
 and scratches left by icebergs and glaciers in the 
 rocks, but always failed to discover any. If there 
 have been any, the disintegrating action, which goes 
 on so rapidly in the Arctic Regions, must have defaced 
 them long since. 
 
 In the afternoon we were within a few miles of 
 Hazen or Hare Island. This island is rather flat on
 
 1850. ANIMALS AND PLANTS UPON DISCO. 39 
 
 the top, although on three of its sides to the Waigat, 
 Malegat, and Davis Strait it descends abruptly to 
 the water's edge ; but on the north side it slopes down 
 gradually, and makes the ascent very easy. The 
 north end of Disco slopes in a similar manner at its 
 north-western point, but exactly the opposite obtains 
 at the north-eastern. 
 
 I believe coarse coal, or anthracite, has been found 
 in seams in those two islands, both by the Danish 
 settlers and the whalers, but probably not to any 
 great extent; for were it so, the Danish director- 
 ship would not have whole ship-loads of coals ex- 
 ported every season to the Greenland settlements. 
 
 The high northern latitude of Disco and Hare 
 Islands renders their Flora and Fauna very 
 limited. Ptarmigan and hares are very abundant" 
 throughout the whole year; and during the winter 
 months reindeer cross the Waigat on the ice, and 
 appear frequently upon the remote heights, and in 
 the valleys of Disco, in great numbers. The numbers 
 of the latter, which the Esquimaux kill, on the Bunke 
 Land during the summer months, are altogether in- 
 credible. I have heard on the best authority, that 
 a number of natives, having gone up some of the 
 deep fiords to some highly favourable locality, shot 
 several hundreds for the sake of their tongues alone, 
 
 D 4
 
 40 NORTH-EAST BAT. CHAP. II. 
 
 after they had filled their luggage boats with the 
 skins and flesh of those animals ; and this is by no 
 means an unfrequent occurrence. They kill fewer 
 during winter, and would then be glad of the carcases 
 they had left to bleach in the weather, on the rugged 
 slopes of the hills sixty to seventy miles inland. The 
 creeping willow and black crowberry (Empetrum ni- 
 grum) are the largest plants met with, and, although 
 growing most luxuriantly on the southerly exposed 
 slopes, they appear in very humble contrast with the 
 noble and lofty white fir trees (Pinus Abies) of Nor- 
 way and Siberia, although the latitudes of the latter 
 are much higher than that of Disco. 
 
 As night approached, the wind ceased to blow so 
 keenly, but still there was enough to give the ships 
 steering way. North-east Bay, an extensive inlet, 
 had to be crossed before we could advance to the north- 
 ward. The ice in it was found to be in the form of a 
 loose pack, with the exception of from ten to fifteen 
 miles at the very top, where it was still continuous with 
 the land. We had great reasons to regret that we 
 were not here earlier, when the ice was permanently 
 fixed from side to side : even two or three days might 
 have made a great difference to us. It was very plain 
 to Captain Penny, that the land ice must be followed 
 right round it, making a circuitous passage of a hundred 
 miles instead of not more than fifty miles, the distance
 
 1850. NORTH-EAST BAY. 41 
 
 from Hare Island to Svartehuk (Black Hook), and 
 which could have been very easily accomplished, when 
 the ice was still unbroken. 
 
 North-east Bay is at least one hundred and twenty 
 miles in depth, if the top of Omenak Fiord and 
 Svartehuk be considered its boundaries to S. E. and 
 N. "W. The tide in it is very rapid, and the water is 
 very deep; hundreds of icebergs, upwards of two 
 hundred feet high, and requiring at least three 
 hundred fathoms water to float them, may be seen 
 changing their positions, and ploughing up whole 
 fields of ice, under the influence of the tide alone. It 
 was at one time a famous resort for whales, and many 
 a good and large whale has been captured in it, but 
 of late years it has been almost entirely deserted. 
 It is very difficult to account for this fact. It 
 cannot be supposed that the food of the whales has 
 undergone such a change as would render it neces- 
 sary for them to shift their ground. All the whaling 
 captains to whom I have spoken on the subject, think 
 they have been hunted off the ground from year to 
 year, until now they are in a manner alienated from 
 one of their most favourite haunts in the whole Strait. 
 
 In endeavouring to circumnavigate such a bay as 
 this, when it is full of drifting ice, great difficulties 
 are encountered, for the wind, which might suit on 
 one of its sides, is exactly the opposite on the other
 
 42 SEA ABUNDANT IN ANIMAL LIFE. CHAP. II. 
 
 two sides. For example, a south wind will open the 
 ice along its southern shore, but it only does so by 
 pressing it harder at the other two sides. However, 
 when ships succeed in reaching the north side it is 
 considered that the battle is fairly won, for then the 
 first northerly wind sets them clear if they can avoid 
 being carried away in the loose drifting ice. 
 
 Three or four whalers were seen late in the evening, 
 and they seemed to be all seeking their way north 
 among the ice, as the narrow lanes and " leads " 
 would permit them. They did not appear to be in 
 chase of whales, although certainly among such 
 favourable "streams "of ice they would have been 
 very glad to see them, and get fast to them. 
 
 The sea was very smooth, and there was not the 
 least perceptible swell. It teemed with Acalephas ; 
 the genera Medusa, Cydippe, and Cyanea were 
 seen in the greatest abundance ; and nothing could 
 exceed the beauty of the prismatic colours and rapid 
 ciliary motions of Cydippe pileus and Cydippe cucu- 
 mis, or the graceful motions of Dioncea glacialis. 
 The common seal (Phoca vitulina), and occasionally 
 the bearded or great seal (Phoca barbata), and saddle- 
 backed seal, which is exactly the same species 
 as the Phoca Greenlandica (there being no differ- 
 ence between them, except that the fur of the one is
 
 1850. SEALS ON THE FLOES. 43 
 
 of a lighter colour than that of the other), were 
 frequently passed, reposing with the utmost safety 
 nnd comfort on their frozen bed. If at any time 
 the ship happened to be very near a small floe con- 
 taining one of these seals, the wary creature might be 
 seen raising its head, and directing its large watchful 
 eyes upon us as the distance from it became shorter 
 and shorter ; and generally, before we were within rifle- 
 shot, it went plump into the water, after a few very 
 awkward hobbles on the ice. I did not see any 
 walruses in North-east Bay at this time, although 
 one or two had been seen since we came into 
 the Strait. They are not one hundredth part so 
 numerous as the seals, I may almost say as any 
 single species of seal. They are much more nume- 
 rous in the seas around Spitzbergen than in Davis 
 Strait, but even there the proportion to the seals is 
 an infinitesimal fraction. 
 
 Towards midnight the sky became overcast, the 
 wind veered a few points westerly, and there were 
 all the appearances of an approaching fall of snow, if 
 not of a regular storm. We stood in for the bottom 
 of the bay, with the expectation of reaching the fast 
 ice if no lanes or "leads" would afford a passage in 
 the direction of Cape Cranstown or Svartehuk. 
 
 May 4th. About six o'clock in the morning we
 
 44 AMONG THE WHALERS. CHAP. II. 
 
 came up with several whaling ships which, like our- 
 selves, were anxiously waiting to get into a large 
 open water off the Black Hook, where they expected 
 to capture a few whales ; but the westerly wind 
 had brought the loose drifting ice into the bay, and 
 into the closest contact with the "land" or fast ice 
 on its north-eastern side ; so that to advance a mile 
 further was utterly impossible. As our sole object 
 was to get north as speedily as possible, Captain 
 Penny thought the best thing that could be done, 
 under the circumstances, was to get to the east- 
 ward, as far as the drifting ice would allow, and 
 there remain beset at the land ice or in open water, 
 as the case might be, until a shift of wind or the 
 tide in calm weather would open the ice, and 
 allow us to advance in a northern direction. The 
 whalers, however, did not accompany us in this 
 step, expecting, and properly enough too, to fall 
 in with whales in the entrance of the bay, or to the 
 westward of Hare or Disco Island, where they could 
 sail about between the ice in the offing and the land. 
 Before noon our two little ships were for the first 
 time closely beset at the land ice about fifteen miles 
 off Niakomak, a small Danish settlement which is 
 subject to the governorship of Omenak or Four Island 
 Point. The rudder was unshipped, lest the pressure 
 among the ice might injure it, and it was slung across
 
 1850. FIRST SATURDAY NIGHT IN THE ICE. 45 
 
 the ship's stern, or removed to the level floe along- 
 side. This is an operation which generally occupies 
 about five to seven minutes; but frequently much 
 less time, according to the rapidity with which the 
 pressure is coming on. 
 
 The wind blew keenly from west or north-west, 
 and there was a constant falling of dense, soft, and 
 flaky snow during the greater part of the day; 
 towards night, however, the wind moderated con- 
 siderably, but the sky always continued overcast, 
 and the snow was falling thick around us. Nothing 
 could be seen but ice and snow in all directions, 
 except a small triangular space of water which two 
 large floes, meeting at an angle, prevented being 
 filled up, and where we had some sport with several 
 flocks of loons which frequently visited it. 
 
 This was our first Saturday evening among the 
 ice, and, as is customary among seamen wherever 
 they are, our friends at home were then fondly 
 remembered. The passage across the Atlantic and 
 thus far up the Strait had occupied but three 
 weeks. To have advanced so far in so short a time 
 was very satisfactory, and produced pleasant re- 
 flections; but owing to the apparently advanced state 
 of the season, from the condition of the ice in this 
 and other deep bays, we had every reason to sup- 
 pose that our arrival had been at least one week
 
 46 FIRST SATURDAY NIGHT IN THE ICE. CHAP. II. 
 
 too late; and even the most sanguine among us could 
 not indulge for a moment in fond expectations that 
 our passage north and round the " middle ice," after 
 crossing Melville Bay, the king of bays, would be 
 early or easy.
 
 47 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM NORTH-EAST BAY TO UPPERXAVIK. 
 
 Young Ice Intense Frost. Parhelia. Closely beset. Seals at 
 
 their Holes ; Attempts to shoot them. III Success of the Wlialers. 
 Esquimaux on Board. Their happy Condition at the Settlements. 
 Fearful Disasters among the uncivilized Esquimaux. State of 
 the Ice. Slackening. Swell perceived. Ships get clear. Forms 
 of Icebergs, and their Size. Access to the Northward. Southerly 
 Wind. Taking the Pack. Violent Pressure. Ships in Danger. 
 
 Stones found on Icebergs. The Arctic Fox at Sea. Ice opening. 
 
 Long-tailed and Eider-Ducks; their Food. Entomostraca of 
 large Size. Moored to an Iceberg. Loss of Rudder. Favour- 
 able Wind. Open Water. Birds Jlying north. Sea Storm 
 
 Met by the Ice. Passage close in Shore. Volcanic Rocks. 
 Ptarmigan. Arrival at Proven. Capture of a White Whale. 
 Putrefaction early in the amphibious Mammalia. Teeth of Beluga 
 
 prehensile Esquimaux adrift. Cruelty to Esquimaux Dogs. 
 
 Infusoria found under peculiar Circumstances. Colour of the Sea. 
 
 " Sophia" falling behind. Proven. Brown Slime Character 
 
 of the Coast. Home- Sick Esquimaux Intense Heat. Saunder- 
 
 son's Hope. Loons, and their Eggs. Abundance of open Water 
 
 Uppernavik. 
 
 May 5th, Sunday. The stormy weather and snow 
 of yesterday gave way to better weather, and before 
 mid-day we could see the sun, as the dense clouds 
 settled down, and the clear blue sky beyond came 
 into view. The land all around could also be seen,
 
 48 FORMATION OF YOUNG ICE. CHAP. III. 
 
 except where it happened to be enveloped in a 
 whitish mist, which sometimes covered like a blanket 
 the tops and sides of the snow or ice-clad hills. The 
 temperature of the air fell considerably below the 
 freezing point of water, and there was a young for- 
 mation of ice on the surface of every drop of water 
 that could be seen around us, which cemented the 
 loose ice closely together, and made walking among 
 or over it very safe. The thickness of the floe 
 which had not yet shifted its position, was about 
 four feet; but it varied, being much thicker in 
 some parts, owing to overlapping when in a young 
 state, and subsequent congelation. The thickness of 
 the pack or drifting ice varied still more ; for in some 
 parts one would meet with it ten to fifteen feet thick, 
 and in other parts, perhaps, not more than two or 
 three inches. This was undoubtedly owing to very 
 recent pressure. Pressure among ice facilitates the 
 thawing process, when it happens during the summer 
 or autumn months : the breaking up and reducing 
 to fragments expose a much larger extent of surface 
 to the action of the sea, and to the rays of the sun, 
 than could have been exposed in the originally solid 
 and continuous floe. 
 
 In the evening a hard frost set in, which we feared 
 would continue for some time, for the weather had a 
 very settled appearance. Towards midnight, when
 
 1850. INTENSE FROST. 49 
 
 the sun was getting very low, two beautiful parhelia, 
 possessing all the prismatic tints, were seen, as a 
 thin film of frozen vapour pervaded the horizon, and 
 obscured our view of the land at the base of the hills, 
 while their summit, which was rarely free from 
 clouds or mist during the day, could now be traced 
 in every direction with the utmost precision. It oc- 
 curred to us that there might be some interest in as- 
 certaining the difference of temperature of the air at 
 the surface of the ice, and at the top-gallant mast- 
 head ; the thermometer at the " Crow's Nest," in the 
 shade, indicated + 8, and on deck + 2. This dif- 
 ference, which was much greater than, and exactly the 
 reverse of, what we expected, we endeavoured to ac- 
 count for, by the entire absence of the sun's rays 
 from the deck, while they beamed with great bright- 
 ness from the rugged land to the northward, exactly 
 over the mast-heads. It might also be accounted for, 
 by supposing that the frozen surface of the earth had 
 still the power of imparting cold to the air, by which 
 its weight would be increased, and it would remain 
 in a stratum along the horizon. I had often seen 
 sea- fowl flying high and low, without any apparent 
 cause; but now I would be disposed without hesi- 
 tation to assign the reason to difference of tempera- 
 ture in the strata at different elevations. 
 
 VOL. I. E
 
 50 SEALS AT THEIR HOLES. CHAP. III. 
 
 May 6th. The weather was remarkably clear and 
 pleasant. "With the exception of a few white clouds on 
 the horizon, the sun performed his daily round upon 
 a cloudless sky. There appeared no signs whatever 
 that our release would be early ; for ordinary weather 
 could hardly open the ice, which had been set to- 
 gether so closely. The wind would require to blow 
 with considerable force from east or north-east, before 
 we could look forward to getting clear of the in- 
 cumbrance which surrounded us on every side. A 
 good opportunity was afforded by this delay for pre- 
 paring the ships for the navigation of ice, which 
 might be too close for sailing. Ice-anchors, warps, 
 and tow-lines were got ready ; and as we might ex- 
 pect calms, in the absence of steam, our boats were 
 put into an efficient state for towing. 
 
 A few seals were seen on the ice between us 
 and the land, each taking his repose on the brink of 
 the hole, which he had kept open with great pains 
 during winter and spring. The small seal (Phoca 
 vitulina) is the only one that comes up through 
 holes in the ice, which it makes and keeps open for 
 itself; all the other species of seal come up over 
 the edge of the ice, through openings caused by the 
 winds and tides, and they never appear except where 
 such openings occur. The attempts of our sportsmen 
 to shoot them at their holes were always unsuc-
 
 1850. ILL SUCCESS OF THE WHALERS. 51 
 
 cessful ; the sound of footsteps on the ice never failed 
 to reach their acute ears, long before we could ap- 
 proach within rifle-shot of them. Crawling on " all- 
 fours," or, I should rather say, on knees and elbows, 
 behind a white calico screen, which occupied the left 
 hand, while the right held the rifle on full cock, 
 we were enabled to approach much nearer; but, 
 with all our care, our stratagems were completely 
 unsuccessful. It was suggested that some of our party 
 should go as far as the land for the sake of shooting 
 deer, as well as to communicate with the Danish 
 settlers; but this was overruled by the expectations we 
 entertained of the ice opening, before the party could 
 return from such a great distance. "We could see 
 four or five whalers in open water, off the north end 
 of Hare Island, and one whaler was beset either 
 among the loose ice, or at the land ice, about seven 
 miles to the north-east. This was a very unfavour- 
 able time for them, and more especially for the one 
 that was beset; for his chances of doing anything in 
 the way of whaling were absolutely reduced to no- 
 thing. Perhaps he might expect to get first north, 
 and it was with this view that he ventured so boldly 
 into the ice ; but as matters had turned out with him, 
 he had lost the chances of the others in the offino-. 
 
 O' 
 
 without realising even a promise of any benefit from 
 the step that he had taken. 
 
 E2
 
 52 ESQUIMAUX OX BOARD. CHAP. III. 
 
 May 1th. The weather still continued clear and 
 fine ; indeed, in all respects pleasant : but it had small 
 gratification for us, who were not permitted to ad- 
 vance a single foot. The ice, about eight miles to 
 seaward, opened out and drifted loosely before a 
 gentle north-easterly wind for a short time ; but it 
 soon returned, and again went off with the tides. 
 Icebergs, too, but not of very large size, were 
 carried to and fro by the tides, and it signified little 
 whether they or the drifting ice were in motion ; for 
 the latter always suffered by being in close con- 
 nection with the other. Observations were obtained, 
 and the latitude and longitude were found to be 
 71 5' N. and 54 16' W. 
 
 In the afternoon a sledge was observed coming 
 towards the ships from the land ; and, after a 
 journey of at least twenty miles, in which the poor 
 dog's feet had suffered a great deal, as was evident from 
 the blood-stained track, two natives, real " Innuit," 
 the father and son, came on board. Like the 
 Esquimaux at Leively, they were very respectful 
 in their manners, and answered questions put to 
 them without being in the least excited. They 
 had never heard of the Expeditions we were in 
 search of, and they expressed great sympathy for the 
 poor men, who had been so long unheard of by their 
 families and friends. The youngest was a boy of
 
 1850. ESQUIMAUX ON BOAED. 53 
 
 about fourteen years of age, in whose features could 
 be traced every mark of the Mongolian character. 
 His black, long, and straight hair, black eyes, broad 
 nose, flat and broad cheeks, and sallow skin, at once 
 indicated this variety of the human race. There was 
 a graveness and softness in the expression of his 
 countenance, and a modesty in his look, which 
 could not fail to attract every one who saw him; 
 and, moreover, he was not ignorant ; for his care- 
 ful teacher had bestowed great pains upon him, of 
 which he appeared to be worthy. When he came 
 into the cabin, his respect, for those whom he con- 
 sidered better than himself, was exhibited by un- 
 covering his head ; and when he heard the solemn 
 strains of the Old Hundredth Psalm issuing from our 
 barrel organ, he hung his head, and appeared wrapt 
 in humility, before what he had been taught to 
 believe was the language of another world. In 
 many respects he was to be envied, for he was 
 really happy. He knew none of the evils of the 
 world, and, at the same time, possessed all the 
 blessings of the Christian religion. He enjoyed 
 all the freedom of his unenlightened ancestors, 
 without exposure to any of the dangers peculiar 
 to their wandering life, or without suffering any of 
 their miseries. The Esquimaux of West Greenland 
 owe a debt of gratitude to the Danish government 
 
 E 3
 
 54 DISASTERS AMONG WILD ESQUIMAUX. CHAP. III. 
 
 and the settlers which cannot be paid. Through 
 the unwearied exertions of the missionaries during 
 the last hundred and thirty years, the condition of the 
 natives has improved very much ; and one never hears 
 now of the appalling disasters which were once so 
 common among them, and are still very usual on the 
 opposite side of the Strait among the wild Esqui- 
 maux. A whaler, I believe the " Joseph Green," 
 of Peterhead, fishing on the west coast, observed 
 something on a piece of ice which was drifting 
 rapidly and directly away from the land before a 
 smart breeze that was blowing at the time, and, 
 on approaching sufficiently near, it was discovered to 
 be a group of human beings, whom some mishap or 
 carelessness had detached from their home, and de- 
 livered over to the mercy of the wind and sea, with- 
 out a ray of hope that a single soul should ever be 
 permitted to rejoin those they had left behind. 
 The captain of the whaler rejoiced that he fell 
 in with those poor creatures, who were thus provi- 
 dentially saved from inevitable destruction. There 
 are not always ships at hand, however, to pick up 
 every Esquimaux, or whole families of Esquimaux, 
 who, without any doubt, are often similarly situated. 
 If to this be added the horrible ravages of famine 
 among the Esquimaux of Arctic America, which in 
 part, at least, is British territory, surely there will be
 
 1850. KINDNESS OF THE ESQUIMAUX. 55 
 
 inducement enough for the philanthropic in Great 
 Britain, to follow the example of Denmark in its 
 zealous endeavours, to ameliorate the condition of 
 these poor and inoffensive creatures. 
 
 Through the kindness of the Esquimaux, we had 
 opportunities of sending letters and despatches to the 
 settlements, to be forwarded to Denmark by the 
 Danish ships, and thence to England. There were, 
 however, more than two Esquimaux, who vied with 
 one another in the respect which they paid to us. 
 I believe there was one person who would have 
 liked to have got a second glass of spirits. This 
 was our fault; for we ought not to have led him 
 into temptation, when we knew that the Danish 
 settlers very rarely indeed give the Esquimaux 
 ardent spirits. At the settlements they generally get 
 only three glasses of spirits during the whole year, 
 on Easter and Christmas Days, and on the birthday 
 of the King, to commemorate these joyous anniver- 
 saries. This contrasts favourably with what is usual 
 in our colonies, where we find the poor natives the 
 victims of intemperate habits, even after a few years' 
 experience of civilisation. 
 
 May llth. A party of two or three men were 
 observed coming towards our ships from the ship that 
 was beset seven or eight miles further on. It proved 
 to be the " Abram," of Hull, and the object of the 
 
 4
 
 56 WHALERS' REPORT UPON STATE OF ICE. CH. in. 
 
 party was to get some medicine for the commander, 
 who was suffering from a severe attack of pleuritic 
 inflammation. The medicine that was demanded was 
 supplied from the stores of the " Lady Franklin." It 
 was reported by the party, that had they been but 
 two or three hours earlier on Friday evening, the 3rd 
 of May, they would have succeeded in getting into 
 a very extensive space of open water off the Black 
 Hook, which they saw very distinctly on their first 
 arrival, but could not see next day, from the ice 
 having drifted into it during the south-westerly wind. 
 Every one of the whaling masters had the same story 
 to relate. They all seemed to agree that the season 
 was very early, and that, to have been in time for an 
 early north passage, they ought to have been off 
 North-east Bay in the beginning of the last week in 
 April at the farthest. After about an hour's re- 
 freshment, the party left us, and, in less than three 
 hours afterwards, they were observed arriving safely 
 on board their own ship. The loose ice in the offing 
 was departing by little and little from the main 
 body, which still remained firmly fixed to the land 
 ice, at which our ships were lying. After six 
 o'clock in the evening, a small party took a " stroll " 
 over the ^recently cemented pack in the direction of 
 the edge of it, where open water was making very 
 fast, although not quite so fast as we could have
 
 1850. SWELL PERCEIVED AMONG THE ICE. 57 
 
 wished. The young ice, which had formed on the 
 water in the small openings between the angular 
 floes during the hard frost, was not above five or six 
 inches in thickness ; and in some parts, where the 
 pools had been large, not more than three ; but 
 even on the weakest of it one could walk with the 
 greatest safety, although it yielded at every step. 
 When we reached the edge, a very slight swell was 
 perceived in the water, and it appeared to be im- 
 parted to the ice on which we were standing. This 
 was rather a good sign; for we could naturally 
 expect it to break up the connection between the 
 two ices, and permit us to go free. But this bappy 
 result could not well be anticipated without, at the 
 same time, associating with it the chances of the ice 
 breaking up which lay between us and the land; 
 in which case, we ran the risk of being carried 
 about, for a short time at least, in the loose drifting 
 ice. As usual, icebergs of small size could be seen 
 changing their positions with the tides, and reducing 
 the ice around them into fragments, which would 
 soon appear in the form of water under the in- 
 creasing influence of the sun's powerful rays. 
 
 A boat was observed coming from the " Advice " 
 whaler, under the command of Mr. Reid, brother of 
 the ice-master of the " Erebus." Having left our 
 native shores fourteen days later than the " Advice,"
 
 58 METEOROLOGICAL REMARKS. CHAP. III. 
 
 we had letters for her crew and commander, who had 
 the kindness to give us one or two old blubber- 
 knives, and other instruments, which in our bare 
 state would be very useful, if good fortune should 
 send a small whale or a unicorn in our way. 
 
 The weather was very mild and pleasant during 
 the greatest part of the week. The temperature had 
 been rising gradually, and it was up to -f 34 and 
 + 36, with good prospects of a continuation of the 
 favourable weather, and of an early release from the 
 ice, as our second Saturday night approached and 
 passed away. A meteorological register, with entries 
 made every three hours, was begun on board the 
 " Sophia ; " and our hopes that the regularity 
 which such an important duty demanded would, I 
 trusted, not prove to have been ill-founded. The 
 temperature of the sea-water varied a few degrees 
 occasionally ; but it was generally found to be 
 about +29 or +30. It was frequently observed, 
 that if there had been a diminution of the atmo- 
 spheric pressure, as ascertained by a fall of the 
 mercurial column, or by the indications of the 
 aneroid barometer, during a northerly, easterly, or 
 south-easterly wind, we might look for a regularly 
 set in storm from some point to the westward of 
 south or north.
 
 1850. SHIPS GETTING CLEAR OF THE ICE. 59 
 
 May 13th, Monday. Yesterday morning the 
 " Joseph Green," of Peterhead, hoisted colours to the 
 Expedition, and before mid-day Captain Penny, 
 and Mr. Stewart, commander of the " Sophia," went 
 on board. They returned in a few hours. Soon 
 after midnight, the swell was perceived in the pack ice 
 around the ships, and in less than half an hour a lane 
 of water was observed, opening out in the direction 
 of the " Abram," which still continued closely beset. 
 Every preparation was made for getting under weigh; 
 and now that the ships were free to move about a 
 little, the rudders were shipped. We had the most 
 sanguine expectations that our progress around North- 
 east Bay would now be uninterrupted, after being 
 detained so long already ; but, to our utter dismay, 
 the ice between us and the land gave way, and crack 
 followed crack, until a continuous sheet of ice, five miles 
 in extent, was reduced to a number of floes, which 
 proved very troublesome to us before we got clear of 
 them. It will be enough to state, that both capstan 
 and winch were necessary before we got into the clear 
 water, which by that time was much nearer, pro- 
 bably within one mile and a half. After four or five 
 hours' severe toil, in which every person engaged, we 
 got into open water where there were eight or nine 
 whaling ships. Fifty or sixty bags of coals were
 
 60 DIFFERENT FORMS OF ICEBEBGS, CHAP. III. 
 
 transferred from the " Joseph Green " to the 
 " Sophia " in a few hours in the forenoon. Some of 
 the whalers thought their best chances for whales 
 would be in the offing; others, again, thought it 
 would be preferable to await the chances of get- 
 ting into the Black Hook water, where they felt 
 sure whales would be found in great abundance. 
 At present, they could go neither in the one way nor 
 the other; for there was no wind, and no effectual 
 separation had taken place between the loose ice 
 in the bay and the land ice. A great many ice- 
 bergs were seen, as the ships lay motionless in the 
 water; and as they appeared to run together on the 
 far distant horizon, an idea arose that they were 
 so close that no ships could pass between them. 
 Some of them were in the form of large square cubes, 
 with flat and horizontal tops ; others, again, presented 
 every variety of form, now resembling cities and vil- 
 lages, now ruins; and, again, you might imagine one 
 to be a solitary country church, in the modest Gothic 
 style, rising beautifully above the level plain, on 
 the distant horizon, and adding a sacred charm to 
 everything around it: some appeared to be loaded 
 with huge boulders and mud, shortly to be pre- 
 cipitated into the sea which bore them along; while 
 others were yielding themselves submissively to the
 
 1850. AND THEIR ENORMOUS SIZE. 61 
 
 wasting influence of the sea, and the powerful rays 
 of the sun. 
 
 There was one iceberg which was particularly 
 noticed, because it never shifted its position, when 
 others, of rather larger size, were drifting to and 
 fro with the tides. It was about two hundred feet 
 in height above the surface of the sea, and its per- 
 pendicular sides, which were nearly equal, were not 
 less than two miles in length. The upper surface 
 was horizontal, but very irregular, appearing as if it 
 had been planted over with rough and irregularly 
 conical eminences, packed closely together, and vary- 
 ing in height from twelve to twenty or thirty feet. 
 The water lines at the level of the ice around it were 
 also horizontal. There seemed to be no reason for any 
 other opinion than this, that it had never changed its 
 centre of gravity since it descended into the sea, and 
 had become detached from the glacier which gave it 
 birth. The cubic contents and weight of such a float- 
 ing world are truly astonishing. This berg displaced 
 upwards of eighteen thousand millions of cubic feet 
 of water, while its contents must have been nearly 
 twenty-three thousand millions of cubic feet, and its 
 weight nearly five hundred and forty millions of tons. 
 It is impossible that such enormous masses of matter, 
 in a dense resisting medium like water, can be readily
 
 62 MOTION OF ICEBERGS IN THE WATER. CH. III. 
 
 put into motion by the winds: hence we find 
 icebergs of very large size motionless, or nearly so, 
 when smaller ones and the surface ice are carried past 
 them with great velocity. The great depth to which 
 they pass, places them in a great measure beyond the 
 influence of ordinary tides. I believe it has always 
 been observed, that when a number of icebergs are 
 in motion under the influence of the tide, the largest 
 moved least, while the smallest and the surface ice 
 moved most of all. I have often seen a number of 
 small icebergs carried backwards and forwards by the 
 tides along and around a large one, which happened 
 also to be in motion, as if a share of homage was due 
 to it from them, although it might be far inferior 
 to them in point of age. 
 
 Towards evening the " Abram," of Hull, which had 
 been beset in the ice, got clear and joined the fleet of 
 whalers, after being detained ten days, in which she 
 could not move one way or another. 
 
 May \6th. During the three preceding days, 
 several attempts were made to advance to the north- 
 ward in the direction of the Black Hook among the 
 loose ice, but all of them proved unsuccessful. The 
 whaling ships would now go to the offing, and remain 
 at the edge of the loose ice there; and again they 
 would take a look into North-east Bay, where they
 
 1850. OPENING IN THE ICE LEADING NORTH. 63 
 
 rarely saw anything to encourage them to return. 
 Their work appeared to be very discouraging ; indeed, 
 perhaps even more so than our own. Loons and" 
 dovekies (Uria grylle] were very numerous, and 
 numerous were the shots that were fired at them by 
 our sportsmen without material benefit. Unicorns 
 (Monodon monoceros) were also very abundant, but no 
 attempts were made to capture any. In the evening, 
 as we approached the land ice, off Niakoranak, an 
 opening was observed to be making between us and 
 the opposite side of the bay ; and thinking it might, 
 after running so far to the eastward, lead in the 
 direction we wished to take, we pursued that course, 
 and were very soon again beset among the ice, at 
 the land ice about ten miles E. N. E. of our former 
 position. A dense fog came on about midnight, 
 which obscured our view so much that, although the 
 ice was not quite tight around the ships, we were 
 forced to let them lie still, for fear of going away 
 from what was so easily missed in clear weather. The 
 whole crews had been up towing and tracking for ten 
 hours ; and now that the ships had to come to a halt, 
 they were ordered to bed, except a watch of two or 
 three men, who were ordered to report the slightest 
 change in the ice, or clear weather. 
 
 May \7th. At an early hour the dense mist 

 
 64 STRONG SOUTHERLY WIND. CHAP. III. 
 
 cleared away, and a smart breeze came off from the 
 land which really promised to effect a change in the 
 ice which would be very favourable to us. 
 
 The ships were again cast loose and plied to the 
 eastward until noon, when we were again brought to 
 a stand by the ice which had not opened out. By 
 this time we were approaching the north side of the 
 bay, and, as the wind seemed to cling to the south- 
 ward, it became very unfavourable for us, by keeping 
 the loose ice pent up ahead of the ships. In the 
 early part of the evening the sky became densely 
 overcast, and the wind, which had nearly died away, 
 veered from east to south, and thence a point or 
 two westerly, and increased before night to a perfect 
 gale. 
 
 Captain Penny came to the conclusion, that it would 
 be necessary to get into the open water again, lest we 
 should get beset, and be in danger of drifting out of 
 the bay, when the wind shifted ; and " the two brigs," 
 as the whalers designated our ships, were under a 
 press of sail, and plying out into the open water. 
 We frequently passed to leeward of huge icebergs, 
 around which the wind swept in terrific gusts which 
 often threatened to lay our little vessels on their 
 beam ends. The lead, in which we had to ply to 
 windward, was every moment becoming narrower; and 
 at length, when we were within only half a mile of
 
 1850. VIOLENT PRESSURE AMONG THE ICE. 65 
 
 the water, a large floe came drifting in, two points 
 met and shut us in, and, after beating a retreat, the 
 only alternative that remained for us was, to take the 
 " pack." In taking the pack, the " Sophia " excited 
 the highest admiration ; I could have hardly con- 
 ceived it possible to manage a ship to such advantage 
 with the sails and rudder. On one occasion, when I, 
 and others much more experienced, expected some 
 damage to the rudder by a violent spring astern in 
 the direction of a heavy floe, the slightest pull of the 
 main braces, and hauling the jib sheet close in, changed 
 her position so much, that she not only went clear of 
 the ice astern, but also got into a pool of water ahead, 
 in which she lay for three hours in comparative 
 safety. 
 
 May I8th.- About three o'clock in the morning 
 the ice began to set very closely together, and in a 
 short time every open space of water was almost 
 completely filled up. The ice all round us seemed 
 as if endowed with life and the power of moving ; it 
 emitted deep hollow groans; and, if two or three 
 persons happened to be sitting below in the cabin, a 
 deep grazing sound could be heard against the ship's 
 sides, which invariably interrupted the conversation, 
 however interesting, as effectually as if a thunder 
 peal had burst right over-head. Each looked his 
 
 VOL. i. F
 
 66 VIOLENT PRESSURE AMONG THE ICE. CHAP. III. 
 
 neighbour in the face, and those looks never failed to 
 bespeak the dangers of the situation. 
 
 Floe presses against floe; corners are broken off 
 and overlapped ; hummocks and ridges are raised 
 in all directions ; blocks of ice of all shapes, sizes, 
 dimensions, and weights, from one to twenty, and 
 even sixty, tons are raised up as it were by an 
 " unseen power." Huge icebergs, of perhaps five 
 hundred millions tons weight, plough up floes for 
 miles and miles without being checked in their 
 destructive course. Nothing is to be seen but ice, 
 " living ice," in slow but sure and steady motion, 
 and the surface, which an hour previously presented 
 a level plain of pure white, with pools and meander- 
 ing lanes of the blue sea, is now one complete 
 wreck ; the colour is changed to a mixture of a dirty 
 white and blue, the evenness of the surface is de- 
 stroyed by masses twenty feet above its former 
 level, and a square foot of open water cannot be 
 seen for many miles around. A scene is beheld by 
 the Arctic navigator, which he finds it utterly im- 
 possible to admire, a picture to him of wretched- 
 ness, misery, and desolation. When such changes 
 take place among the ice, what can the ill-fated ship 
 expect but her share of damage ! to escape without it 
 may appear impossible, but it often happens. 
 
 As soon as the " Sophia " was fairly in the pack
 
 1850. THE SHIPS IN GREAT DANGER. 67 
 
 the rudder was unshipped ; and, when the pressure 
 began, she was taken on the stern-post with a heavy 
 floe, and carried along, before it, at the rate of at 
 least half a mile an hour (but with occasional short 
 interruptions) ; her bow was raised three feet above 
 its usual water line, and, by means of its obliquity, 
 the thick floes were literally walked over with what 
 appeared to be the utmost ease, while they were 
 every moment breaking up and sinking underneath 
 or passing alongside. I observed some of the pieces 
 rising so high, that danger to the boats slung above 
 the bulwarks was apprehended. 
 
 The pressure continued till six o'clock, during 
 which time the ships were carried through floes 
 several hundred yards broad, and the wake they 
 left astern was ill calculated to lead to the idea that 
 no damage had befallen them. It seemed to have 
 been much more severe where the ships then were, 
 than in any other part around us. This was owing 
 to the presence of a large iceberg about four or five 
 hundred yards astern, which continued to approach 
 us until it seemed to take the ground. It was 
 about two hundred feet high, and three quarters 
 of a mile in circumference. In half an hour every- 
 thing was as still as possible, the ships were in 
 " dry docks," and, as far as we were able to judge, 
 had not sustained the slightest damage. The crew 
 
 F 2
 
 68 STONES FOUND ON AN ICEBERG. CHAP. III. 
 
 turned out one by one, and there were some pre- 
 parations making, which proved to me, at least, that 
 they thought the ship was in great danger. I think 
 it proper to state also that even the commanders 
 of the Expedition, who had seen the floes walking 
 over ships, did not feel quite satisfied that we occu- 
 pied a position of safety, when the pressure was 
 every moment becoming more violent. They had 
 every confidence in the model of the ships, and it 
 was very gratifying to find that their build and struc- 
 ture seemed to fulfil their most ardent expectations. 
 
 May 21 st. The disagreeable south-westerly winds 
 and, snow of the 19th and 20th passed away, and as 
 there seemed few chances of our getting clear soon, 
 some of us ascended the iceberg, and ascertained its 
 height by means of the aneroid barometer. About 
 half way to the top several pieces of gneiss and 
 granite were found, some of which were deeply im- 
 bedded in solid ice, without any communication with 
 the external air, and these, as well as the exposed 
 pieces, were surrounded by what may be termed an 
 atmosphere of water. The latter afford a convincing 
 proof, of the power which ice possesses of transmit- 
 ting the solar rays, without absorbing them. The 
 violet rays are rendered visible, hence the colour of 
 ice ; and the red rays, which contain most heat, are 
 transmitted.
 
 1850. TOX UPON AN ICEBERG. 69 
 
 There are many ways of accounting for the pre- 
 sence of these pieces of rock at this elevation on the 
 iceberg. It had all the appearance of a berg that 
 had changed its centre of gravity many times, both 
 by pieces breaking off, as well as by dissolution. 
 The fragments of rock might have been dropped 
 upon a part of it, while under water, from drifting 
 coast ice, which often contains large accumulations 
 of shingle and mud ; and, by subsequent change 
 of position, these fragments would be raised to the 
 elevation at which they were found, or even much 
 higher. There is an objection to this, however, in 
 the fact that they were imbedded deeply in the solid 
 blue ice, which could hardly have happened, unless 
 they had been dropped upon it while in the glacier. 
 
 The foot prints of a fox ( Vulpes lagopus) were 
 observed on the sloping declivities of the berg, and, 
 from their apparent freshness, he must have taken 
 his nocturnal tour in search of feathered prey since 
 last night's snow. The Arctic fox is often seen 
 on the ice at a considerable distance from the land. 
 I recollect seeing a poor creature adrift on a de- 
 tached stream of ice in latitude 68. He was running 
 from side to side of the stream, appearing to be 
 quite alive to the dangers of his situation, but he 
 never attempted to take the water. The ship, in 
 
 r 3
 
 70 THE ICE BEGINNING TO OPEN. CHAP. III. 
 
 which I was at the time, was moored to a grounded 
 iceberg, and as the stream came down against it, 
 and was divided by it, I had an opportunity of 
 throwing pieces of whale's krang on the ice, as it 
 passed close by the ship's stern, and I saw the fox 
 devouring a hearty meal, as soon as he had dis- 
 covered them. It was very gratifying to me to 
 think, that my curiosity had led to some mitigation 
 of the sufferings even of a poor fox. 
 
 May 23d. The ice began to slacken, and every 
 now and then huge blocks were seen slipping into 
 the water, while others, equally huge, came bumping 
 from beneath the long projecting tongues, which ex- 
 tended in some cases to a depth of from twenty to 
 thirty feet. Several lanes of water were seen extend- 
 ing in various directions, and long-tailed ducks (Anas 
 glacialis), and eider-ducks, as well as glaucous and 
 other gulls, began to afford us some sport. The long- 
 tailed duck has a peculiar and unmistakable cry. Its 
 trachea is ossified towards the base, where it appears 
 to be inflated into a sort of bony labyrinth. These 
 ducks are more easily approached than the eider-duck, 
 and their flesh is considered a greater delicacy than 
 that of any other sea -fowl found in the Arctic Re- 
 gions. I examined the gizzard of one, with the view 
 of ascertaining what its food consisted of; but, to 
 my disappointment, it contained nothing but a few
 
 1850. FOOD OF THE DUCKS. 71 
 
 particles of quartz and schorl. It is difficult for me 
 to believe that the long -tailed and eider-ducks 
 descend to the bottom, at a depth of two hundred 
 fathoms, where they can resist the increasing density 
 of the water, and gobble up their food in the short 
 space of time which they can be absent from the sur- 
 face. It is also equally difficult to associate the well- 
 known habits of the Anatidce with those of the auks 
 which catch their prey swimming free in the water, 
 without descending to the bottom. I always found 
 in the stomachs of the ducks the remains of animals 
 which never leave the bottom, while the stomachs of 
 the auks contained little else than the Gammarus 
 Arcticus, which swims in great abundance in the 
 surface. 
 
 The sea abounded in animal life, although the 
 Cydippe cucumis was the largest creature that could 
 be seen. Entomostraca of very large size (Cetochilus') 
 darted in the water with the swiftness of arrows ; 
 nothing could exceed the gracefulness of their motions, 
 when, with every jerk, the two long oar-like antenna? 
 were thrown elliptically in the form of curves along 
 the body, but not touching any part of it, until they 
 met at the last segment. It was only during the 
 rapid movements of the Cetochilus, that the antenna? 
 assumed this position, for it could be seen making 
 slow progress in the water, with the antenna? at right 
 
 r 4
 
 72 HABITS OF THE CETOCHILUS. CHAP. III. 
 
 angles to the body. The antennas are surmounted 
 by a tuft of bristle-like spines pointing backwards. 
 The last segment of the body terminates also in a 
 number of spines or setae, which, in many indivi- 
 duals, are of a beautiful reddish* and pearly colour, 
 and by means of which a person is enabled to detect 
 them in the water. They are always on the alert 
 to escape from their pursuer; when the water is 
 but slightly agitated they dive from the surface, and 
 in a few minutes, when it becomes still, they may be 
 seen ascending slowly, but rarely using the antennae. 
 I could only obtain specimens by including them in 
 a large quantity of water taken up suddenly, from 
 which they could be separated subsequently by 
 straining through a calico bag. A bucketful (two 
 gallons) of water often produced twenty to thirty 
 individuals, and sometimes twice that number. They 
 never survived a single night, even though kept 
 in their native element in a vessel. From their con- 
 stant darting from side to side of the vessel, perhaps 
 it is a safe inference, that the fear of danger in their 
 new situation may be one of the chief causes of the 
 early extinction of life. 
 
 May 24th. The ice, which had been turned up 
 during the recent pressure, was observed to have a 
 number of small cavities, from two to six inches deep, 
 on its under surface. Each cavity contained a greenish
 
 1850. MINUTE ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE FORMS. 73 
 
 slimy-looking substance, which, after two or three 
 days' exposure to the air, gave out a fetid smell. It 
 did not present any definite form of structure to the 
 naked eye, or even to a pocket lens; but there is 
 little doubt that a good microscope would have dis- 
 covered its composition to be a mass of infusory ani- 
 malcules, and miscroscopic vegetable forms; in all 
 probability, Polygastrica and Diatomacece, and per- 
 haps, also, Conferva. The vital action going on in 
 such masses, in close contact with the under surface 
 of the ice, would maintain a temperature a little above 
 the surrounding medium, which would easily produce 
 the small cavities that attracted our notice. I do 
 not confound these depressions with the innumerable 
 perforations in honeycombed or rotten ice. The 
 surface of each of these was quite smooth, whereas 
 in rotten ice, or ice pitted on the surface from the 
 action of the water alone, it is peculiarly rough. 
 
 Towards evening, the ice began to slacken more 
 decidedly than it had done yesterday. Large hum- 
 mocks could be seen descending to their usual level 
 in the water, and our attention was frequently ar- 
 rested by large masses coming up from beneath the 
 ship's bottom. The whole " pack " was setting down 
 the Strait and out of the Bay ; and for a short time 
 there were fears we should drift along with it. As 
 the ships were carried in the direction of the iceberg
 
 74 MOORED TO AN ICEBERG. CHAP. III. 
 
 which followed so hard after them, and had almost 
 destroyed them but a few days before, a whale line 
 was run out to it, by means of which they were 
 drawn in towards it, amongst the slackest of the 
 drifting ice. Extensive floes out of the land ice 
 began to come down, drifting before a strong north- 
 easterly wind, which came on about nine o'clock, and, 
 as some of them had to pass close by the iceberg, 
 our difficulties in securing the ships to it were very 
 much increased. . four or five warps were often 
 necessary ; and it was a very common thing to see 
 two or three of the ice-anchors losing their hold at 
 the same time. 
 
 May 25th. The large floes, that drifted past the 
 ice, were beginning to have narrow lanes of water 
 between them ; and as we had succeeded in clinging 
 to it, hopes were entertained that it would soon bring 
 us into open water. At one o'clock in the morn- 
 ing, there appeared to be sufficient room, amongst 
 the ice, to enable us to ply the ships to the north- 
 ward ; and, accordingly, they were cast loose from 
 the berg, and as much sail set as they could well 
 bear with a strong breeze. Some of the lanes, between 
 the floes, were rather narrow; consequently, a little 
 difficulty was experienced in putting the ships about. 
 On one occasion, while the " Lady Franklin" was 
 thus engaged ahead of the " Sophia" in a very narrow
 
 1850. LOSS OP RUDDER. 75 
 
 lane, she made what seamen call a "stern-board' 
 into the ice, and carried away a great part of the 
 rudder. The portion that remained, acting with the 
 " head sails," was sufficient to steer with until the 
 land ice was reached, where we were forced to remain 
 until a new rudder should be got ready. The wind 
 blew keenly from N. E. during the whole day ; and 
 although, in consequence of the disaster of our fair 
 consort, we could not take advantage of, it, it was 
 doing much good by opening out the ice in the di- 
 rection which we would soon follow. 
 
 In the evening the wind moderated, and ultimately 
 veered round to about S. W. This was rather dis- 
 couraging; but we expected it would return very 
 soon to N. or N. E., from the indications of the 
 barometer. 
 
 The four carpenters and the blacksmith were busily 
 engaged during the whole day ; and, although their 
 work was rather tedious from so many bolts and 
 fittings, they were making great progress. At nine 
 o'clock in the evening the carpenters had advanced 
 so far, that they were able to remove their work from 
 the floe alongside to the deck, where it could be 
 finished Avith every facility. While this was going 
 on, both ships were cast loose, and the " Sophia," 
 contrary to the usual custom, took the " lead ; " and, 
 as the wind happened to be pretty well aft, with a
 
 76 FAVOURABLE WIND FROM NORTH-EAST. CH. III. 
 
 check-rope to the " Lady Franklin" to prevent her 
 from rounding to, we got on very well. 
 
 Towards midnight the sky became overcast, and 
 there was a slight fall of soft snow. The wind died 
 away for a short time, but before three o'clock the 
 following morning it freshened up from N.E., and 
 gave promises of a fresh breeze, which would hurry 
 us along very rapidly. 
 
 May 26th, Sunday. The new rudder was ready 
 at one o'clock in the morning ; and, after some trouble, 
 it was found to answer rather better than the one that 
 had been destroyed. The "Lady Franklin" then 
 resumed her advanced position as leader, for which, 
 on account of her many good qualities, she was so 
 well adapted. 
 
 As we kept close along the land ice, which was not 
 above a few miles in breadth, off Cape Cranstoun, we 
 observed that icebergs, of not very large size, were 
 very numerous. They appeared to be planted toge- 
 ther as closely as possible all along the face of the 
 land leading south from Cape Cranstoun. This was 
 not owing to anything peculiar to one season more 
 than another, for the whalers have designated the 
 locality Berg Bay, from the numbers of icebergs 
 which are always present in it. 
 
 At noon the latitude and longitude were obtained
 
 1850. STRONG GALE IN OPEN WATER. 77 
 
 by observation and found to be 71 35' and 55 45'. 
 The sky opened out to our view, for it was densely 
 overcast in the early part of the day, and large 
 white clouds were drifting rapidly before the wind. 
 The ships staggered under a press of sail, as we plied 
 to the northward, in open water between the land ice 
 and the close " pack," which by this time had drifted 
 so far off at the Black Hook, that it could hardly be 
 seen from the crow's nest, when the ship was put 
 about, close in with the land. The " Lady Frank- 
 lin" had to shorten sail to wait for the " Sophia," 
 which, " poor wee thing," was doing her best in a 
 " short cross " sea, that had got up since the open 
 water had become so extensive. The wind sweep- 
 ing across the rugged land, and from the bleak 
 glacier beyond it, made us feel very cold : while 
 showers of sea spray were continually falling 
 upon and around us. The jackets and clothes of 
 the poor sailors were completely soaked with sea- 
 water and frozen, so that they retained the shape 
 of the human body after they had been put off. 
 The deck was so encrusted with ice (from sea-water) 
 that to walk or stand upon it with safety was quite 
 impossible; and when the ship leaned over before the 
 gale, her masts bending like reeds, it was very com- 
 mon to see half a dozen poor fellows sprawling in
 
 78 BIRDS FLYING NORTH. CHAP. III. 
 
 the lee scuppers, and collecting their scattered arms 
 and legs the best way they could. 
 
 Endless flocks of loons were seen in rapid flight 
 to the northward, keeping close along the ice and the 
 water, and appearing to prefer the piercing wind which 
 was right against them. It is generally believed that 
 the loon prefers flying against the wind to flying with 
 it, and it is a well-known fact that if they are chased 
 in the water by a boat before the wind, they never 
 endeavour to escape by flight, but always dive, for 
 the reason that they cannot rise from the water when 
 there is much wind, unless they go against it. In 
 the meantime we looked upon it as a favourable sign, 
 to observe such vast numbers pioneering us into the 
 far north ; for it is an indisputable fact, that these and 
 other sea-fowl never fly but where open water is to 
 be found. 
 
 Towards six o'clock in the evening the sea became 
 so rough, that the " Sophia " would not stay ; con- 
 sequently, she had to be worn round : which was to 
 be regretted very much, for in so doing a consider- 
 able space was lost each time, and the boats had to 
 be hoisted up as high as possible, and secured with 
 great care. It was a very common thing to see her 
 lee waist boat touching the water, and her bulwark 
 nearly wholly immersed in the waves, as she dashed 
 gallantly along heedless of herself, and many times
 
 1850. SEA-STORM. 79 
 
 sending the spray over the foreyard, while her bow 
 was completely encased in ice, and every rope 
 and chain about it was ornamented with elaborate 
 fringes of Nature's own workmanship. 
 
 May 27th. The wind still continued to favour 
 us, and, although it moderated a little towards 
 morning, about noon it was as violent as ever. The 
 sea, however, was not so rough, for we had by this 
 time found the close pack in the offing, leading in 
 towards the land, which narrowed the water very 
 much, and ultimately closed it up altogether, so that 
 at times our ships had to wait patiently until this 
 floe and that patch drifted out of their way. 
 
 In the evening the wind began to moderate 
 decidedly, and the sky assumed appearances which 
 indicated that the northerly wind had nearly ex- 
 hausted itself for a time. The barometer rose gra- 
 dually during the gale, reaching the maximum 
 height, at the time of its greatest violence; but 
 now it began to fall, while the wind became 
 more easterly, and large white clouds were spread 
 over all the sky. Dark Head, in latitude 72 15', 
 was seen very plainly to the eastward ; and as far 
 as could be judged from the crow's nest, we had 
 no reason to expect that we should be stopped 
 by the ice, although now and then it was perhaps 
 closer than we could have desired. After one long
 
 80 EXPEDITION BROUGHT TO A STAND. CHAP. III. 
 
 detention in North-east Bay, and the gale of yester- 
 day and to-day, when circumstances were putting on 
 a more agreeable aspect, AVC had reasons to be cheer- 
 ful, and we were grateful. 
 
 May 28th. At two or three o'clock in the even- 
 ing we came to a decided and impenetrable barrier 
 of ice, to the westward of a long and flat island 
 about twelve miles north of Dark Head. The 
 barrier was impenetrable, and gave no hopes of 
 being removed by the ordinary influence of the tides, 
 for it was composed of loose drifting ice, which would 
 all move in a body before wind or tide, and a ship 
 beset in it would require to move passively and 
 helplessly along with it. It was very plain that a , 
 passage could not be made very easily on the outside 
 of the island, and it was equally plain that it might 
 be no easier between it and the adjacent land or 
 island: however, as the wind threatened to come from 
 about S. W., or some such disagreeable and unfavour- 
 able quarter, it was thought advisable by Captain 
 Penny to take the inside, as it was probable that a 
 weather side would be afforded, whichever way the 
 wind came. The only objection to this course is the 
 probability that the ships may encounter the rapid 
 tides among the islands, and the consequent danger 
 there is of being carried upon shoals or against ice- 
 bergs in calm weather. There is another objection,
 
 1850. PASSAGE CLOSE IN SHORE. 81 
 
 though it can hardly be put down as such, viz. that 
 the passage is made so much longer by taking this 
 " detour," instead of going in nearly a straight line. 
 
 "NVe had to retrace our steps so far, until the 
 southern extremity of the island had a northerly 
 bearing, after which we went east, and, when it 
 had a tolerable westerly bearing, we made fast the 
 ships to a small iceberg which was aground. In 
 a few minutes it floated, and forced us to cast 
 loose and look for more secure shelter. A second 
 small iceberg, but larger than the last, was chosen, in 
 what appeared to be a more favourable situation, 
 but it, too, proved unfaithful, and in less than half 
 an hour it was chasing its neighbour, under the in- 
 fluence of the rapid tide. 
 
 After considering all the circumstances under 
 which we were placed, the commanders of the Ex- 
 pedition concurred that the idea of going outside 
 the island with safety, under almost any circum- 
 stances, should be given up, from the apparently 
 advanced period of the season with respect to the 
 condition of the ice. There seemed to be little 
 danger of meeting with a solid floe, extending from 
 island to island. In the course of a few hours both 
 ships were made fast to land ice, within a quarter of 
 a mile of a continuation of the coast north of Dark 
 Head. The ice here was so much wasted that it was 
 
 VOL. I. G
 
 82 WAITING AN OPENING IN THE ICE. CHAP. III. 
 
 highly dangerous to walk over it, and our ice-anchors 
 required to be supported, by means of pieces of 
 board laid crossways, lest they should pass through 
 into the water. 
 
 May 29th. Early in the morning the wind 
 began to blow from S. or S.W. ; the sky was 
 overcast with a dense misty haze, which at times 
 opened out so much as to resemble clouds. The 
 position we had chosen was found to suit our pur- 
 pose very well, but that we might be nearer the 
 " nip," which kept us from advancing, we cast loose, 
 and followed the margin of ice, we had just left, two 
 or three miles farther along, until we were within 
 half a mile of the "nip." Here the ships were 
 made fast to the land ice again, and a large boat 
 party was made up to go to the land, and also to as- 
 certain what prospects we had of getting through. 
 
 Between the long flat island and the adjacent land, 
 there was a great quantity of loose drifting ice, 
 which, had there been no wind, the tide would have 
 carried about in all directions. At the free edge of 
 this ice, there were two smaller icebergs aground; 
 and, stretching across from them to the land, in a 
 lane of water about 300 yards broad, there were two 
 or three small floes, jammed so tightly together, that 
 even a boat could not get through between them. 
 This was the nip, and, although not very mighty
 
 1850. VOLCANIC ROCKS. 83 
 
 looking, it was more than sufficient to retard our 
 progress. A few of the party accompanied Captain 
 Penny and Mr. Stewart to the floes, to see if any- 
 thing could be done to set them adrift; and in a 
 short time, they were seen quarrying among the 
 smaller pieces, with handspikes and boat-hooks, and 
 setting them free. 
 
 Several of the party ascended to an elevated posi- 
 tion on the land, and had a very good view of the ice 
 and the water to the northward. The nature of the 
 rock is decidedly volcanic, for some of the specimens 
 we found contained small empty cells ; and it appears 
 to be composed of upright but very irregular masses, 
 which divide and decompose into pieces from three or 
 four inches to a foot in diameter. In some parts, 
 the characteristic appearance of a flight of steps 
 is very well brought out ; and, although cones and 
 craters are altogether absent, the idea must not be 
 discarded, that they were in active operation in that 
 neighbourhood, at some time, when Greenland was 
 submerged in the ocean. Large granite boulders 
 were seen at various elevations; but I do not 
 think that any person saw that rock protruding 
 through the igneous rock, of which this part of the 
 coast seemed to be entirely composed; hence, it 
 might be safely averred, that they had been trans- 
 
 G 2
 
 84 PTARMIGAN AND THEIR FOOD. CHAP. III. 
 
 ported by ice, at the time when the land had been 
 under water. 
 
 Vegetation, as yet, had hardly made any advance, 
 although snow-buntings and ptarmigan ( Tetrao sali- 
 ceti, and Tetrao rupestris) could be seen occasionally. 
 The ptarmigan feeds upon the willow tops, and the 
 snow-bunting upon the berries of the Empetrum 
 nigrum, which are very abundant. I landed six 
 years ago on the rugged coast, south of the Black 
 River, in the bottom of South-east Bay, and found 
 these berries so numerous in the month of May, that 
 whole baskets-ful could have been collected; and, 
 although they had been covered with snow during 
 the whole winter and spring, and were so far liable 
 to change of temperature, they did not seem to 
 have suffered much from it, for they retained their 
 sweet taste, and other properties peculiar to them in 
 a fresh condition. It is very probable that the tem- 
 perature had rarely been above the freezing point ; 
 otherwise, decomposition of their juices would soon 
 have rendered them quite tasteless. 
 
 I examined the crop of a ptarmigan which Captain 
 Stewart shot, and found it crammed full of willow 
 tops alone, for the leaves had not yet appeared. It 
 is remarkable how the crop of the ptarmigan, which 
 is not by any means highly vascular, can prepare 
 such dry and apparently indigestible materials as in-
 
 1850. HEAVING THROUGH THE "NIP." 85 
 
 sipid willow tops, for the higher processes of digestion 
 in the gizzard. The gizzard contained a few frag- 
 ments of grit, and the horny membrane, Avhich lines 
 it, was actually tanned by the astringent principle 
 of the food which it received. One or two sander- 
 lings and sandpipers ( Calidris arenaria, and Tringa 
 maritima) were also seen on the land, and at the 
 beach close to the water. Eider-ducks, king-ducks 
 (Anas spectabilis}, long-tailed ducks, loons, dovekies, 
 brent geese (Anser Bernicla), red-throated divers 
 (Colymbus septentrionalis), and burgomasters (Icarus 
 glaucus) were seen flying up and down along the 
 land, in very great abundance. 
 
 The quarrying which Captain Penny and his 
 party commenced among the ice, was attended by 
 happy results, for they succeeded in setting free 
 several large floes, which so much relieved the others, 
 that there was no doubt, with good " purchases " and 
 willing minds, we might be able to heave the ships 
 through. Immediately after dinner, the ships were 
 cast loose, and allowed to drop down before the wind 
 to the " nip." An intricate turn or winding, which 
 had to be passed, required the use of a line from the 
 land to check the ship's bow, lest she should run 
 into one of the icebergs. On the one hand, then, 
 we had the rocks to avoid, and on the other the ice- 
 bergs, either of which might do serious damage, 
 a 3
 
 86 ARRIVED AT PROVEN. CHAP. III. 
 
 if we were brought into close contact with them, 
 by a u coup de vent," which was very common. At 
 length, we " heaved " the ships through, and sailed 
 along the land, high and bold on the starboard, and 
 with the ice on the larboard side, until we came 
 abreast of a large opening running to the eastward, 
 where we found the ice leading a little* more to sea- 
 ward, along the northern end of the flat island. After 
 following the direction of the water, occasionally 
 passing through streams and patches of very slack ice, 
 which in many parts was in the last stage of decay, 
 we came to a complete barrier of large floes, which the 
 south wind had brought down against the land ice, 
 to the westward of the Danish settlement at Proven ; 
 and as nothing better could be done, the ships were 
 at once thrust in among them, with the expectation, 
 that by dint of perseverance, with the capstans and 
 windlasses, warping and heaving, we should ulti- 
 mately reach the land ice, which could be seen very 
 plainly about three miles due north. 
 
 May 30th. Our most strenuous efforts to reach 
 the fixed ice failed, for, when we were within three 
 quarters of a mile of it, the loose ice became so close, 
 that it was found impossible to advance a single foot ; 
 the weary crews were ordered to go to rest, with the 
 exception of one or two persons, to report any mo- 
 tion among the ice.
 
 1850. CAPTURE OF A WHITE WHALE. 87 
 
 A number of Esquimaux came off from the settle- 
 ment, bringing with them a few sealskins, which 
 they were willing to give in barter for cotton hand- 
 kerchiefs and articles of clothing. Some of them 
 were busily engaged capturing and cutting up a 
 Beluga, which had become an easy prey to them, by 
 a well directed shot from one of their rifles. It was 
 all mutilated before I saw it. It appeared to be of 
 the ordinary size ; and its capacious stomach contained 
 the skeletons of fishes in a very perfect state, which 
 appeared to belong to the genus Merlangus, a 
 genus very widely distributed over the Polar Seas. 
 The aorta was thirty-three lines in diameter, and the 
 sigmoid valves measured four inches at the free edge. 
 The quantity of blood, which such a capacious and 
 elastic tube is capable, of transmitting, must be very 
 great, in proportion to the size and weight of the 
 animal. It is very probable, that the proportion of 
 fluids to solids in the aquatic mammalia, is much 
 greater than in any other red and warm-blooded 
 animals ; and I think we may infer with safety that 
 this is the cause of putrefaction commencing so early, 
 and going on so rapidly in them, as compared with all 
 other animals. The ordinary black whale of Green- 
 land, if it sink in the dying " flurry," will be buoyed 
 to the surface in a few hours, by the rapid generation of 
 gases in the intestines, and in every tissue through- 
 
 G 4
 
 88 PUTREFACTION RAPID IN WHALES. CHAP. III. 
 
 out its whole bulk, except the purely tendinous tissues; 
 and before the expiration of two days, fully more than 
 one-half of its enormous carcase will be above water. 
 The ordinary small seal (Phoca vitulina) requires to 
 be cut up immediately after it is killed, if it is to 
 be used as food, otherwise it speedily becomes dis- 
 agreeably tainted and unwholesome. I have no 
 doubt the obstacle, which a thick layer of fat presents 
 to rapid cooling, assists in stimulating the process of 
 decomposition. But this will not assist materially ; 
 for were it so, land animals also, well protected by a 
 thick layer of fat, ought to follow a similarly rapid 
 process of decomposition after death. The teeth of 
 the Beluga, eighteen in each jaw, are from half an inch 
 to three quarters of an inch apart, half an inch in 
 length (above the soft gum), smooth on the crown 
 or point, and rounded off at the sides. There are no 
 distinctive marks for molar, canine, and incisor teeth, 
 except that the latter, two in number, are only three 
 lines in length, in the lower jaw, while they are 
 entirely absent in the upper, or placed so far apart, 
 as to correspond with the opposite canine: the 
 posterior molars are also a little shorter than the 
 others. The axis of the teeth in the upper jaw is 
 directed backwards, into the mouth, and that of the 
 lower forwards ; so that when both are approximated 
 closely, an interlocking is observed, which, coupled
 
 1850. ESQUIMAUX ADRIFT UPON THE ICE. 89 
 
 with the entire skeletons of fishes, found in the 
 stomach, conveys the idea very forcibly, that the 
 teeth are used only as instruments of prehension. 
 
 About three or four o'clock in the morning the 
 wind came away from N. or N. 20 E., and the 
 loose ice, in which our ships were beset, began to 
 move slowly southward. The alarm was given by the 
 Esquimaux on the fixed ice, at a distance of at least 
 a mile, to their friends who were with us, that the 
 ice was opening out : away they set, with dogs and 
 sledges, in the utmost haste, but it was too late, 
 for there was a lane of water, at least two hundred or 
 three hundred feet wide, between them and their 
 companions on the other side. A large piece of sub- 
 stantial ice was singled out, on the very edge of the 
 loose ice on which they were standing, and to it they 
 transferred their dogs and sledges, with the flesh and 
 skin of the white whale ; after which they embarked 
 and pushed off. What with men, boys, dogs, and 
 sledges, it was a motley group ; but they seemed to 
 have no fear, although I believe not a soul could have 
 been saved, had the ice given way underneath their 
 feet. By the assistance of two small kyaks, which 
 towed them heartily against the wind, they reached 
 the opposite side in safety, disembarked with care, 
 and joined their companions, who had waited for 
 them with great patience. This occupied two
 
 90 CRUELTY OF ESQUIMAUX TO DOGS. CHAP. III. 
 
 hours ! While this was going on in one part, a 
 different scene could be witnessed at no great 
 distance in another. One of the Esquimaux, who 
 had been to the ships with his sledge, and had se- 
 cured a large share of the skin and flesh of the 
 whale, returned with it to the fixed ice, where he left 
 it under the care of his dogs and one of his com- 
 panions, and came again to the ships. As soon as the 
 first alarm was given of the ice shifting, he set off, 
 and, being more active, and having less to burden 
 him, than his neighbours, he succeeded in gaining 
 the fixed ice, just in time to prevent one of his dogs 
 breaking into the sledge. This he did by inflicting a 
 blow which completely disabled the poor brute, and, 
 knowing that it would not be able to assist the sledge 
 to the land, he took off its harness, thinking it would 
 run away home. From the violence of the injury 
 which the poor thing had received, it was only able 
 to go a short distance from the sledge, when it lay 
 down upon the snow, yelping and howling most piti- 
 fully. The Esquimaux was joined by one of his 
 companions, and both commenced exercising their 
 skill and steadiness of aim, with their sharp-pointed 
 spears. They paced their distances again and 
 again, each time sending their spears into the 
 least vital parts of the body of this dumb brute, 
 which could not escape from them. I was glad
 
 1850. MINUTE ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE FORMS. 91 
 
 to see it tumble over with a spear sticking in its 
 breast, so that it would feel no more pain in the 
 service of such inhuman masters. I alluded to the 
 treatment which the poor dog had received from its 
 owner, in the presence of a great number of Esqui- 
 maux, and the explanation which they gave was, 
 " that the two Esquimaux, whose recent conduct we 
 had observed and deprecated so much, were not 
 Christians, but were still uncivilised, living apart from 
 the settlement at Proven, and not permitted to hold 
 intercourse with them or the other Esquimaux, ex- 
 cept in the most distant manner." Having discovered 
 that the whole affair had come to Captain Penny's 
 ears, the two delinquents withdrew from the ships, 
 lest they should feel his threatened vengeance and 
 indignation. 
 
 Wherever the ice had been very much decayed, a 
 dirty brownish, slimy substance was observed, float- 
 ing in loose Jlocculi amongst it, in the surface of the 
 water. The naked eye could detect in it no structure 
 whatever; but on viewing a drop of it through a mi- 
 croscope which magnified about two hundred and 
 fifty diameters, it was found teeming with animal life, 
 and minute vegetable forms of very great beauty. 
 Now would have been the time to perpetuate them 
 with the pencil and the chalk; but unfortunately I 
 could only consign them to the bottle, with the ex-
 
 92 ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE FORMS. CHAP. III. 
 
 pectation that their delicate siliceous shells would re- 
 tain their forms until our arrival in England. No 
 one can conceive the vast numbers of these infusorial 
 animalcules in the Polar Seas. Varying in size from 
 J^o to TITOO f an i ncn J a single cubic inch will 
 contain perhaps four or five hundred millions of in- 
 dividuals, each furnished with perfect instruments of 
 progression. In some of them I could see the cilia 
 in rapid motion, while, to use the words of Professor 
 Jones, "they were swimming about with great acti- 
 vity, avoiding each other as they passed in their rapid 
 dance, and evidently directing their motions with 
 wonderful precision and accuracy."* In others, no 
 cilia could be detected: but as they, too, were seen 
 in motion, although not so often as the others, there 
 is no doubt that they also possess similar delicately- 
 constituted organs. A beautiful sieve-like Diatoma 
 was very abundant ; but the shells which are sili- 
 ceous were broken very readily. They resemble the 
 Coscinodiscus minor of Kutzing. f 
 
 I do not think that these infusoria can be included 
 in the forms of animal life, described by Captain 
 Scoresby, under the comprehensive genus Medusa, 
 
 * A General Outline of the Animal Kingdom, by T. R. 
 Jones, F.Z.S., 1841. 
 
 t Kutzing on the Diatoniaceae, p. 131., Table \.,figs. x. xi. 
 and xii.
 
 1850. COLOUR OF THE SEA. 93 
 
 which is very abundant in .the Greenland Seas visited 
 by that most distinguished Arctic voyager; nor does 
 there appear to be the slightest resemblance between 
 them, except that both are of very minute size. He 
 says that the sea is sometimes of an olive-green or 
 grass-green colour. This is not at all peculiar to the 
 still bays in Davis Strait, where the infusoria are so 
 abundant. This phenomenon applies to the sea 
 generally, for many leagues, or even degrees, and 
 is not confined to the surface only ; neither is it es- 
 sential to that condition that there be ice. In Davis 
 Strait, the infusoria are generally found most abun- 
 dant where there is ice, never extending above a few 
 inches, at most a foot, beneath the water ; and when 
 the ice disappears for the season, the brown slimy 
 substance is rolled into rounded pellicles, by the rip- 
 pling of the water, retires from the surface, and ul- 
 timately sinks completely out of view, having never 
 tinged the water in the slightest degree, except when 
 it gave the decaying ice a dirty appearance. It is a 
 well known fact, however, that Entomostraca, Acale- 
 phcB, and Pteropodous mollusca, in great abundance 
 and of various sizes, from 7 \j or -$$ of an inch in 
 diameter up to half a foot or more, cannot fail to 
 change the colour of the sea in a remarkable manner. 
 At eight o'clock in the morning all the crew was 
 called, to make an attempt to extricate the ship from
 
 94 THE " SOPHIA " LEFT BEHIND. CHAP. III. 
 
 the drifting ice. A similar attempt on board the 
 " Lady Franklin " proved quite successful, for she 
 got clear of the pack about noon, but the Sophia, 
 " poor thing," being a little astern, was carried away 
 to leeward, until the pack was brought to a stand on 
 the north end of the long flat island. I can bear 
 testimony to the exertions made by her crew, under 
 the able guidance of her commander, Mr. Stewart, 
 and that of her mate, Mr. Manson, to free her from 
 the ice. About midnight, after sixteen hours of almost 
 uninterrupted heaving, warping, and towing, we got 
 clear, and having plied up to the weather ice, for the 
 wind was still northerly, we made fast within a few 
 yards of the other ship, which could not advance to 
 the northward, owing to the closeness of the pack to 
 the land between the settlement of Proven and 
 Saunderson's Hope. 
 
 We learned that Captain Penny and some of the 
 officers of the "Lady Franklin" had been at the 
 settlement, which I believe was' eight or ten miles 
 distance to the eastward. Captain Penny had seen 
 the sub-governor (Proven being but a branch settle- 
 ment), and had made enquiries about the missing 
 ships, including the "North Star," which last we 
 were looking for in the pack in the middle of the 
 Strait. All his enquiries were answered in the 
 negative ; some of the Esquimaux indeed had never
 
 1850. FAVOURABLE POSITION OF THE SHIPS. 95 
 
 heard of the missing expedition : but, like their neigh- 
 bours at Niakoranak, they expressed great sympathy 
 for the lost men of whom we were in search. The 
 Esquimaux came off to us a second time, it being 
 much easier to do so now than it was the first time, 
 owing to a continuation of land ice from the settle- 
 ment to the ships. The poor creatures deserved 
 nothing but kindness at our hands, and I hope they 
 obtained it; although at times we endeavoured to 
 strike a hard bargain for boots or mits, which they 
 made for us by the sanction of the governor. 
 
 May 3lst. Early in the morning the sky was 
 beautifully clear, and the wind was from about north, 
 and although it was not very pithy in its effects upon 
 the ice, we had no doubt it would not fail in the end 
 to make a passage for us along the land. We occu- 
 pied a position in which we were sure of being safe, 
 and of getting away with the first shift of wind, if 
 it did not come from "W. S. "W. or N. "W. Towards 
 mid-day and evening the sky became overcast, and 
 there was a light shower of flaky snow ; but it only 
 continued for a short time, when it cleared almost 
 entirely from the sky. During the greatest part of 
 the day, there were long streaky clouds settled above 
 and on the northern horizon. The temperature of 
 the air ranged from + 23 to + 33, and that of the 
 water, +29 to +30. The appearance of the sky
 
 96 BROWN SLIME IN THE WATER. CHAP. III. 
 
 and the high state of the barometer afforded pleasing 
 indications of favourable weather. 
 
 While we waited here, I had an opportunity of ex- 
 amining with the microscope a brown slimy substance, 
 which was seen coming from underneath the fixed 
 ice with the receding tide. As the free edge of 
 the ice was very irregular from pressure and decay, 
 any substance floating in the surface of the water 
 would necessarily be entangled and detained, if its 
 cohesion were sufficient to resist the force of the 
 water. This could be seen very plainly with every 
 tide, and the shreds and wavy ribands of the brown 
 slime were frequently mistaken for seaweed (Lami- 
 naria saccharina), many feet in length, which under 
 those circumstances it so much resembled. In ad- 
 dition to minute siliceous animal forms, and also 
 vegetable organisms which could only be discovered 
 by a high magnifying power, this contained a beau- 
 tiful moniliform siliceous alga, about jfa of an inch 
 in diameter, of whicli the articulations are one and 
 a quarter times as long as broad, containing green 
 granular matter, which imparts to the whole plant 
 its colour, when examined microscopically. 
 
 From Swartehuk to Proven the coast presents the 
 same appearance as the Island of Disco ; here and 
 there abruptly terminating conical eminences with 
 what, at the distance we were, appeared very much
 
 1850. DIFFICULTY IN PROCURING ESQUIMAUX. 97 
 
 to resemble a flight of steps. From Proven to 
 Saunderson's Hope, and thence much farther north, 
 the coast is almost altogether composed of plutonic 
 and metamorphic rocks; volcanic rocks, however, 
 may be seen occasionally protruding through, and 
 overlying, the granite and gneiss. 
 
 Captain Penny endeavoured to secure the services 
 of two Esquimaux for our Expedition ; but all the 
 inducements, he could hold out, completely failed to 
 prevail upon any of those home-sick people, to leave 
 their " firesides." An active young lad volunteered 
 his services, upon condition that his mother's consent 
 should be obtained. As this was a condition very 
 unlikely to be granted, I think the lad merely came 
 forward to wipe off the odium, which he began to 
 think would attach to his people for appearing to 
 be so cowardly. There were many at Proven who 
 could have been spared much better than this young 
 man, who was the only support of his mother. 
 They avoided all kinds of conversation, that might 
 beguile them in an unguarded moment into the idea, 
 that, by accompanying our Expedition, their con- 
 dition would be ameliorated ; and if it were intruded 
 upon them, the conversation was always sure to be- 
 come unintelligible and unpleasant. Fear on the one 
 hand, and love of home on the other, seemed to be 
 the chief agents which stood between us and them. 
 
 VOL. I. H
 
 98 APPROACH SAUNDERSON'S HOPE. CHAP.III. 
 
 June 1st. The weather became very mild, and 
 the northerly wind died away ; the ice began to 
 slacken by the influence of the tide, and to open out, 
 leaving space for us to proceed to the northward in 
 the direction of Saunderson's Hope, along the edge 
 of the land-ice. The ships were cast loose, and 
 tracked along ; and, as about two dozen Esquimaux 
 could be seen at the rope, along with our respective 
 crews, we went on rapidly. They did not continue 
 long with us, and in the course of the afternoon we 
 were again alone, closely beset at the land-ice. To- 
 wards midnight the weather became quite thick, and 
 there was a slight fall of soft snow ; and, what was 
 very remarkable, each flake, as it fell on any part of 
 the ship, was dissolved by the heat, which that on 
 which it fell imparted to it. The ice began to 
 slacken, and, after heaving and working for two or 
 three hours, the ships were again in open water 
 leading north ; but, as the weather happened to be 
 thick, and fearing that we might enter the loose 
 pack, they were made fast to a small extension of 
 land-ice in the vicinity of a small rocky island. 
 Loons were very abundant, and they were observed 
 to be much more easily approached now than they 
 were three weeks ago. This is always the case with 
 these birds; and, I believe, it is owing to their 
 peculiar habits immediately before they betake them-
 
 1850. HABITS OF THE LOOX. TEMPERATURE. 99 
 
 selves to the perpendicular cliffs, where they bring 
 out their young. 
 
 June 2d. As morning passed away, the thick 
 weather and the snow disappeared, and about mid- 
 day the heat was most intense. We found that our 
 position was in the immediate neighbourhood of an 
 almost perpendicular cliff, rising to a height of at 
 least four hundred feet, and fully exposed to the 
 sun during nine hours of his greatest altitude. This 
 fact accounts for the high maximum temperature, 
 which was registered at three o'clock in the evening. 
 The ice at the foot of such cliffs must dissolve very 
 easily, both by the heat which it receives directly 
 from the brilliant sun, and indirectly by reflection 
 and radiation from the cliffs. In the evening we 
 found that a small barrier of ice intervened between 
 us and a large " water," w r hich could be seen from 
 the " crow's nest," and, after towing and tracking for 
 four hours with both crews, the ships were again 
 brought to a stand. Towards night for night we 
 always termed it when the sun was low, although 
 not out of sight the sky again became overcast, and 
 there was a little snow ; but it was dry, and not flaky ; 
 a gentle breeze sprung up from a little to the east- 
 ward of north, which opened out the ice, and in a 
 very short time our sails, widely spread, could be 
 seen gladly inviting the kindly wind which carried 
 
 H 2
 
 100 ENDURANCE OF FATIGUE. CHAP. III. 
 
 us in a few hours clear of the ice, and in the di- 
 rection of Saunderson's Hope. It made no difference 
 to the commanders, whether all hands were out or 
 not, for if the ships were under sail, and there hap- 
 pened to be the slightest chance of coming in 
 among ice, night or day, fatigued or refreshed, it 
 behoved them to be at their post, and they were at 
 it. The amount of fatigue, which habit will enable 
 a person to endure, is remarkable. A very ordi- 
 nary " spell " for the whaler is two or three successive 
 days and nights without any rest, and sometimes 
 even a longer period. 
 
 June 3d. At ten o'clock, when we were within a 
 few miles of Saunderson's Hope, an Esquimaux came 
 alongside in his kyak, and, after a little trouble, he 
 succeeded in getting on board. He came from the 
 settlement at Uppernavik, having heard that two 
 ships were coming up from the southward, which 
 were "not whaling ships." He informed us that 
 no ships had passed the settlement to the northward 
 this season, and that none had been seen since the 
 whalers and the Danish ships had left it last season ; 
 and, in reply to our questions respecting water, he 
 said there had been a large space of open water off 
 the settlement, and to the northward of it, for a con- 
 siderable time, at least for two or three weeks. It 
 was really to be regretted, as we came along, that the
 
 1850. STORY OP AN ESQUIMAUX. LOONS. 101 
 
 land ice \vas in a manner disappearing before us, 
 thereby increasing our labours and retarding our 
 progress more than any person caij conceive who 
 has not experienced it. 
 
 About noon we passed between two islands, and 
 as the evening advanced it fell calm, and it was 
 necessary to go a head with the boats to tow : this 
 proved very irksome work, for it occupied eight or 
 nine hours to tow from Saunderson's Hope to the 
 settlement, although the distance is not above ten 
 or twelve miles. Thousands of loons could be seen 
 flying in the face of the cliffs, as we passed close to 
 them, and a boat, which had been sent from the 
 " Lady Franklin," shot four or five dozen in a 
 couple of hours. It was very easy to shoot them 
 dead in the shelves of the cliffs ; but it was for the 
 most part impossible to get them by climbing, so that 
 they were lost, unless they fell into the water in 
 their dying struggles. The season for the eggs had 
 not yet arrived, otherwise Saunderson's Hope could 
 have afforded an abundant supply. The Esquimaux 
 and the Danish settlers, and also the whalers, rob 
 the loons in their secure retreats, by descending on 
 a rope from the top, where it is either fastened to a 
 large fragment of rock, or is held securely by two or 
 three men. Several boats' cargoes of eggs are re- 
 moved in this manner every season, without appear- 
 
 H 3
 
 102 ARRIVE AT SAUNDERSON'S HOPE. CHAP. in. 
 
 ing in the slightest degree to diminish the number 
 of birds which lay them. 
 
 In the evening we arrived at the settlement about 
 eight o'clock, and moored the ships to a small ice- 
 berg, which happened to be aground within half a 
 mile of the land.
 
 103 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 FROM UPPERKAVIE: TO KINGATORSOAK. 
 
 Engage Mr. Peter sen as an Interpreter. Uppernavik. The Re- 
 sources of the Settlements. Loss of two Danish Ships. Visits to 
 the Settlements. The Intelligence of the Natives. Effects of 
 Civilisation. Diseases incident to the Natives. Not addicted 
 to bad Habits. Insanity. Habits. Success of the Settlers. 
 Lutheran Missionaries. Disease incident to the Settlers. Anti- 
 scorbutics. Character of Hocks. Plumbago. Deep Fiords 
 
 Rapid Tides. Dangerous Sledging. Land-Ice disappearing. 
 Bad Prospects. Season too far advanced. Leave Uppernavit. 
 Kingatorsoak. Mr. Peter sen and Thomas. Ptarmigan shot. 
 Conveying Power of Ice. Extraneous Bodies on Glaciers and 
 Icebergs. Snow-Blindness. Small Islands the breeding-Places of 
 Eider Ducks. Dangerous Navigation. 
 
 June 5th. Immediately on our arrival at the set- 
 tlement, Captain Penny went on shore, to enter into 
 arrangements with Mr. Flasheur, the governor, with 
 respect to interpreters, whom he was very anxious 
 to employ. Two Esquimaux and a Dane would prove 
 very useful to our Expedition, from the experience 
 which they have in travelling over ice with dogs 
 and sledges. They would also be useful in assisting 
 
 H 4
 
 104 FAIL IN PROCURING ESQUIMAUX. CHAP. IV. 
 
 and teaching our men to capture seals on the ice ; 
 a process which, in consequence of the extreme 
 wariness of these animals, requires very great care ; so 
 much so, indeed, that it is a very rare thing for the 
 whalers to shoot them dead at their holes on the ice. 
 All the Esquimaux at the settlement soon learned 
 that the services of two of their number were re- 
 quired, and that high inducements were held out to 
 them, to come forward and volunteer in the search 
 for lost " white men." High wages *, a comfortable 
 home on board ship, new acquaintances, the chances 
 of finding wild Esquimaux, and of seeing new lands, 
 and covered with ice too, so genial to his feelings, 
 to say nothing of the high claims of humanity, all 
 these the home-sick Esquimaux of Greenland would 
 not receive, in exchange for his enjoyments on his 
 native soil. With his wife and children all huddled 
 around him in his oily and dirty hut, his church 
 and priest, governor and faithful foreman, he is happy 
 and he is free. All, that we could say, completely 
 failed to persuade any of them, to accept our invita- 
 tions to cast their lot in with ours for even twelve 
 
 * Thirty shillings per month would be high wages for an 
 Esquimaux, whose living costs so little, and who is content to 
 live from day to day without making any provision for casualties, 
 which may throw him entirely upon the charity of his friends.
 
 1850. PROPOSAL TO MR. PETERSEN. 105 
 
 months, which would soon pass away. One of them 
 said, what he knew to be true, "that the strength 
 of our ships, which we trusted to, would no more 
 stand violent pressure among the ice than his kyak, 
 and on that account he declined accompanying 
 us." Another exposed his fear equally well, by 
 saying " that after going far away from the settle- 
 ments, surrounded on all sides by ice, where there 
 would be no seals, our provisions would be exhausted, 
 and what then should we do?" We had abundant 
 proofs that fear of danger, as much as the endearing 
 charms of their native soil, was a decided obstacle 
 in our way. 
 
 One of the Danes (Mr. Petersen), who acted in the 
 capacity of assistant governor under Mr. Flasheur, 
 had a proposal made to him by Captain Penny to 
 accompany us. This he accepted, after due con- 
 sideration and consultation with his wife, who, 
 although almost a pure Esquimaux, is a very sensible 
 person, and very useful in the settlement. He said 
 he would be ready to sail with us in twenty-four 
 hours. It was rather trying for him to leave his 
 wife and two children ; but as he had every confi- 
 dence in his kind friends the Governor and the Rev. 
 Mr. Mossen, the priest, his anxiety for them was 
 considerably diminished. He left thirty shillings,
 
 106 UPPERNAVIK. CHAP. IV. 
 
 or twelve dollars, per month for their use, with power 
 to obtain a larger sura, if they should require it. His 
 wages in the Expedition were settled at six pounds 
 per lunar month, or seventy-eight pounds for the year; 
 and a promise was made to him, that the interest 
 of the Admiralty and of the Government of Great 
 Britain, with the Directors of the Company whose 
 service he was about to leave, should be solicited, in 
 his behalf, before and after our return to England. 
 It was understood that he was to bring a few dogs 
 and his sledges with him, and this he seemed very 
 willing to do. Indeed, it may be said of him, that 
 the search for Sir J. Franklin appeared to interest 
 him very deeply; and when circumstances opposed 
 what, we thought, tended to throw any light upon 
 his fate, Mr. Petersen felt the disappointment fully as 
 poignantly as any person in the Expedition. 
 
 The settlement at Uppernavik is among the best 
 in Greenland, although it is the farthest north. The 
 income of the Governor, which is almost entirely 
 dependent upon the annual produce of oil and furs, 
 amounts to from three to four or five hundred pounds 
 sterling. The natives and the settlers bring to him 
 the seals and white whales they capture at a fixed 
 price, which is generally paid in goods, such as coffee, 
 sugar, biscuit, rye-bread, and other necessaries, which 
 can only be obtained through him. The produce of
 
 1850. COMMERCE OF UPPERNAVIK. 107 
 
 
 
 the settlements is removed every year to Denmark, 
 in the Danish ships which bring out regular supplies 
 of everything the settlers may require ; but if acci- 
 dent should befal any of the ships, there is generally 
 the loss of one year's produce, as there is not a 
 sufficiency of casks provided to receive two years' 
 produce. Two of the outward bound ships, laden 
 with provisions, coals, and other necessaries, were 
 lost in one season by running into icebergs. The 
 crews were saved by getting into their boats, and 
 making for the settlements ; but nothing of the cargo 
 was saved, and, as might be expected, the settle- 
 ments, which depended upon them, were deprived 
 of their supplies. The Danes, in such cases, would 
 be reduced to a state little better than the Esqui- 
 maux themselves, were it not for a quantity of pro- 
 visions over and above one year's allowance, which 
 can be made available, but which is quite inade- 
 quate to supply their wants without making very 
 great demands upon the resources of the country 
 around them. I have heard a clergyman who had 
 been six years in Greenland, say that he had to 
 content himself with less than half allowance of 
 bread, during the greater part of winter and spring. 
 It does not necessarily follow that there is famine 
 with its concomitant diseases, in consequence of these 
 disasters ; but it invariably happens that privations,
 
 108 INTELLIGENCE OF THE ESQUIMAUX. CHAP. IV. 
 
 otherwise unknown, have to be endured; and the 
 unfortunate settlement or settlements are reduced by 
 such events so much, that their ill effects are felt for 
 two or three years afterwards. 
 
 I frequently visited the settlement, and saw a little 
 of the Esquimaux on several occasions. Some of the 
 chubby little boys would follow two or three of us, 
 to the top of a hill over the settlement. It was 
 gratifying to hear their readiness in naming, when 
 asked, any rock, stone, plant, or animal, that could 
 be seen. There is hardly a natural object which 
 comes under their notice but they know its history. 
 Sun, moon, stars and sky, earth, land, water, and 
 the animals which inhabit them, afford the civilised 
 Esquimaux of Greenland useful and pleasing studies. 
 Doubtless, much of what they say must be purely 
 legendary ; but they are not the less interesting on 
 that account. Their practical knowledge of the 
 weather, and their associations of good and bad 
 weather with corresponding meteorological appear- 
 ances, of the currents of the sea in various seasons of 
 the year, of the formation of ice and the descent of 
 glaciers, of the habits and resorts of animals on which 
 they depend for their subsistence, and, above all, the 
 ingenuity which they display in accomplishing, by 
 exceedingly simple means, many things which to us 
 appear very complicated, are more than enough to
 
 1850. KELIGION OF THE ESQUIMAUX. 109 
 
 convince us that they possess a large share of in- 
 tellectual endowments. The inhabitants of Upper- 
 navik and of Greenland, generally at all the settle- 
 ments, present the unexceptionable and characteristic 
 features of their aboriginals. Intermarriages with 
 the Danish settlers have changed the appearances 
 of some, but not nearly so much as one might 
 expect. It is very common to see the Mongolian 
 character predominating largely in a person, who 
 has no connexion with that race except through his 
 grandmother. 
 
 There is a very striking contrast to be observed 
 among them; although physically the Esquimaux 
 will not receive the stamp of race peculiar to the Dane, 
 and put on his white skin and silken hair, yet 
 he at once embraces his faith, and becomes a sup- 
 porter of his creed, and a worshipper of his God. 
 From the 60th parallel of latitude up to the 73d, 
 which is nearly the latitude of Uppernavik, extending 
 over nearly eight hundred miles of coast, you will 
 meet with settlements, which have been established 
 for more than a century, and where the neat little 
 church, with a cross over its western door, has been 
 weathering the Boreal blast during a much longer 
 period. You will see inscriptions and dates in the 
 bury ing-places, of individuals who had been born 
 and baptised, who had lived to a good old age on
 
 110 DISEASES AND HABITS. CHAP. IV. 
 
 their native soil, and who had died fifty years ago, full 
 of hope in Him, whom the Lutheran missionaries from 
 Denmark had taught them to believe, and led them to 
 worship. There is not one, out of twenty, who does 
 not conform in every particular to the teaching of 
 the priests. It is not easy to make them change 
 their dirty and indolent habits, for they like to 
 wallow in filth and oil, and not to be over anxious 
 about the future. It appears, as if this were a 
 significant habit, which perpetuates the memory of 
 the noble stock of " Innuit," to which they are proud 
 to belong. 
 
 The natives are not subject to many diseases; 
 inflammatory affections of the eyes are the most 
 common, especially among old people, and, next to 
 these, affections of the mucous passages, especially 
 of the lungs, which generally occur twice every year, 
 spring and autumn, and not unfrequently prove fatal 
 to children and old people. 
 
 They seem to be addicted to very few bad habits. 
 Smoking and chewing tobacco are commonly practised 
 by the Danes, but the Esquimaux do not appear to 
 have become slaves to either. Some of them, how- 
 ever, are great snuff takers. One female was so 
 passionately fond of snuff, that she would sit a whole 
 day with a small mortar and pestle, triturating the 
 dried leaves, for the sake of her favourite luxury.
 
 1850. INSANITY. Ill 
 
 Some of them would be fond of ardent spirits if they 
 could obtain it. I fear they owe this taste to their 
 intercourse with shipping, both English and Danish, 
 but chiefly to the former, who give them spirits 
 out of a feeling of extreme, but certainly very mis- 
 taken, kindness, as it proves so hurtful to those who 
 partake of them. Insanity is not uncommon, but it is 
 difficult to ascertain in what proportion. 
 
 A young man, who had flattered himself, that he 
 would prevail upon his cousin to marry him, was so 
 much disappointed by her refusal, that he committed 
 suicide. 
 
 A whole family, who had been led away for a 
 short time from the Lutheran Church, by a person, 
 who professed belief in the sorcery of the wild Innuit, 
 very soon became so startled and horrified at the 
 enormity of their crime, that they resolved upon 
 escaping instantly to some of the settlements, where 
 they would be safe with the priests. Their dogs 
 and sledges were immediately prepared, and they 
 drove away so hurriedly, that when a fine lad of ten 
 or twelve years of age fell off the sledge, they either 
 cared not, or were afraid to wait, to pick him up ; in 
 consequence of which he perished. They soon re- 
 covered from their partial insanity under the kindly 
 treatment of the Danes. The boy, whom they 
 had lost, was eagerly sought for by the Danes ; but
 
 112 TREATMENT OP THE INSANE. CHAP. IV. 
 
 it was in vain. His body, however, was found the 
 following spring, but much mutilated by ravens, 
 which could be seen hovering over it before it was 
 found. 
 
 They treat the insane very badly : one or two 
 they have buried alive; others they neglect alto- 
 gether, if they are not outrageous; and frequently 
 coercion is used. One poor woman lost a hand 
 from the tightness of the cords. It is not many 
 years since a young man, in a state of insanity, 
 was removed to a distance from one of the settle- 
 ments and buried alive. The Danes made inquiries 
 for this person, whom they had often seen ; but their 
 most earnest entreaties to know where he had been put, 
 accompanied by promises of reward, met with a deaf ear 
 from the obstinate Esquimaux, until they were sure 
 that the victim of their superstitious notions could 
 not be alive. They believe in the power of keeping up 
 intercourse with invisible agents, by which they 
 possess the means of attacking persons whom they 
 wish to injure. A violent attack of inflammation of 
 the eyes, ending in total blindness, was attributed 
 by the afflicted son, to the intercourse which he 
 believed his father, a poor old man, had with evil 
 spirits ; and he wished his sight restored for one par- 
 ticular reason, that he might kill his aged parent 
 for doing such a bad thing. His only reason for
 
 1850. 
 
 PROPENSITY TO KILL. 113 
 
 supposing that his father had been the cause of his 
 loss of sight was a report conveyed to him, as a 
 profound secret, that he had been observed doing 
 something to the eyes of a dead dog that was lying 
 in a pool of stagnant water. This species of necro~ 
 mancy is called " Illeceetooke," and those who are so 
 unfortunate as to possess it, and to be discovered 
 doing harm by its means, are murdered by the 
 injured persons or their relations. As soon as the 
 popular clamour is raised against one of their tribe, 
 his doom is sealed, and he has to bow to his fate, 
 without the chances of mercy which he might expect 
 from the severest despotism. 
 
 The propensity, which they have to kill every 
 creature which comes within their reach, is very 
 remarkable. The fond mother sits with her little 
 son or daughter on her knees, controlling the little 
 hands, and snapping every intruding fly that comes 
 near them. There is always a day of feasting 
 when, for the first time, the passive hands of the un- 
 conscious infant have deprived some unfortunate 
 creature of life; and there is much talking and 
 merry-making among a whole tribe, while, doubt- 
 less, the destinies of the helpless child are fully dis- 
 cussed and prophetically explained. When the boy 
 leaves his mother's side, and appears among the 
 dogs, he treats them all without favour, and their 
 
 VOL. I. I
 
 114 DESCRIPTION OF SETTLEMENTS. CHAP. IV. 
 
 poor ribs soon discover his increasing strength. He 
 hurls stones, with insatiable cruelty, at the little 
 " snow-bunting," the " lark " (Alauda alpestris ?), and 
 the " redpole" (Fringilla minor ?); and if he happen to 
 return to the hut, from one of his frequent excur- 
 sions, with a ptarmigan, a hare, or, better still, 
 with a seal, there is again a day of universal re- 
 joicing. The whole neighbourhood is assembled, to 
 partake of the feast which the good fortune of the 
 young and promising sportsman has afforded; and 
 ten to one but a " match " is bespoken for him, 
 before the party breaks up. 
 
 Each of the settlements has generally four wooden 
 houses, in which the priest, the governor, and sub- 
 governor, and their servants reside. They are well 
 furnished; and when one is ushered into the neat 
 little parlour, after being in the huts of the natives, 
 when he looks out at the neat little window, with its 
 clean curtain and painted sash, upon the ice and the 
 icebergs, upon the sea and the rugged land, and upon 
 the Esquimaux pursuing his daily avocation with his 
 spear, gun, and kyak, a contrast is discovered, which 
 makes him feel, that the European is from home. 
 Let him look a little longer, and in other directions, 
 and he will discover the church, with its neat paling 
 and open door, telling him, that they are not from 
 home, who live in its neighbourhood.
 
 1850. MISSIONARIES. EFFECT OP CLIMATE. 115 
 
 The priests are sent out to them by the govern- 
 ment of Denmark, and the governors by the directors 
 of the Company, through whom only promotions and 
 appointments can take place. The form of religion, 
 established in Denmark, is also established in Green- 
 land, although of late years two or more Herrn- 
 hutians (better known as Moravian missionaries) 
 settled in South Greenland, and commenced their 
 labours, where the followers of Egede had been 
 busily, earnestly, and most successfully engaged for 
 upwards of one hundred and thirty years. At 
 present they are not encouraged, having to pay passage 
 fare, to or from the settlements, in the ships ; nor are 
 they permitted to settle to the northward of the 
 Arctic Circle. It is very probable, however, that 
 in a few years they will be permitted to visit or 
 settle in any part of West Greenland, from Cape 
 Farewell to Cape York, without opposition from 
 directors or government. 
 
 It would be very interesting to ascertain the effects 
 produced on the minds of the Danes, by repeated 
 winters, spent in the Arctic Regions among the 
 Esquimaux, when they have so few with whom to 
 hold such intercourse as may destroy the ennui, which 
 is sure to creep in among them during the absence of 
 the sun. 
 
 They are not subject to many diseases, at least to 
 
 i 2
 
 116 DISEASES. DOGS. VEGETATION. CHAP. IV. 
 
 epidemics ; but, like the natives, in spring and 
 autumn, the seasons for changeable weather, they 
 become affected with rather severe colds and bron- 
 chitis, which, however, hardly ever prove fatal to 
 grown-up persons. Scurvy is sometimes, but rarely, 
 met with ; in which case it is generally removed by a 
 return to fresh food, as winter passes away. The 
 skin of the white whale or of the narwhal is highly 
 prized as an antiscorbutic; but unfortunately it 
 cannot be obtained, when its use is most necessary ; 
 hence, recourse must be had to preserving it in a 
 boiled state in vinegar. A plant (PyTola media ?), 
 known by the name "bukoblather" among the Danes, 
 which is very abundant, is also very highly prized as 
 an antiscorbutic; and when they have any fears of 
 the approach of scurvy, it is collected in basketsful, 
 and a decoction or infusion made from it comes into 
 general use. 
 
 There were a great many dogs to be seen prowling 
 about the huts ; but none of them ever threatened 
 to attack us, when we attempted to enter the habita- 
 tions of their owners. It was not unusual to be 
 followed by three or four dogs, as well as boys, as if 
 they, too, were anxious to know what we were 
 doing on the soil, which was sacred to them alone. 
 
 Vegetation was -beginning to spring beautifully. 
 The Saxifrages, with the S. oppositifolia at their
 
 1850. DEEP FIORDS. 117 
 
 head, were in the most advanced state ; next to 
 them the Cerastium and the Willow, and, perhaps, 
 among the latest of all, the Poppy (Papaver nudi- 
 caule) and the Scurvy-grass (Cochlearia officinalis) 
 might be included. The settlement is upon an island 
 which is composed of plutonic and metamorphic rocks. 
 In its immediate vicinity, plumbago of tolerable 
 purity is rather abundant. I believe the whalers 
 were the first to discover it, and to bring some of it 
 to Britain. It was found of considerable value in 
 the market, and might have been a source of profit 
 to persons who sent out ships for cargoes of it, had 
 not the directors and the Danish government sent 
 out orders to their representatives in Greenland, to 
 prohibit all British ships taking any of it away. 
 
 Immediately to the eastward of Uppernavik, there 
 is a deep fiord, which runs tortuously to the east- 
 ward until it reaches the glacier, whence it receives 
 hundreds of huge icebergs every season, and affords a 
 passage to them into Davis Strait. Mr. Petersen 
 says the rapidity of the tides in it is so great at one 
 part, that there is open water during the Avhole 
 winter, even after the lowest temperature for the 
 season has been registered. He says that the same 
 feature obtains, in other parts of the Strait, where 
 the tide runs very rapidly. In the neighbourhood 
 of Saundersou's Hope, where the water is deep 
 
 i 3
 
 118 DANGEROUS SLEDGING. CHAP. IV. 
 
 and the tide runs fast, the ice is weak in February, 
 and sometimes it hardly closes up altogether; so 
 that sledging becomes dangerous. On one occasion 
 he had to cross ice which was so weak, that, had 
 the dogs come to a stand, they must have all 
 sunk through it. At another time, one of the 
 runners of the sledge sunk through it, and the 
 dogs came to a dead stand, on a piece of ice a 
 little stronger than where the sledge was. He had 
 to crawl along, not on "all fours," but as widely 
 spread upon the ice as he could well be ; while every 
 moment he was in imminent danger of passing 
 through into the rapid tide, which would instantly 
 have swept him below the ice never to be seen. 
 Fortunately, however, he succeeded in getting his 
 sledge out and righted, and ere long his dogs were 
 carrying him over the rotten ice at a galloping rate. 
 During the whole of yesterday the weather was 
 clear, so that we could command a fine view of 
 the strait, both to the offing and the northward, 
 on the outside of a great number of islands. The 
 ice appeared to be much dissolved, and it was 
 reduced to a state of " pack " close in with the 
 islands ; but it still covered the water, in such a 
 manner as to retard navigation, as much as if it had 
 been one continuous sheet. This will appear rather 
 strange ; I must therefore endeavour to make it clear
 
 1850. LEAVE UPPERNAVIK. 119 
 
 from what has come under my own observation, which, 
 of course, is but limited compared with the obser- 
 vations made by those persons who have been " half 
 their days among the ice." In 1845, the whaler in 
 which I happened to be engaged, arrived at Upper- 
 navik on the 1st of June, having passed between 
 floes several miles in superficial extent, which were 
 planted along the edge of a great breadth of land ice, 
 extending from the Black Hook to Saunderson's 
 Hope ; and, after endeavouring to get as near the 
 settlement as possible, we found that nearly two 
 miles of fixed ice still remained, where it had formed 
 on the water. On viewing the strait to the north- 
 ward, from the top of the hill over the settlement, 
 the " pack " could be seen in the offing as usual , 
 but the bays and fiords either contained the ice 
 fixed from side to side or large floes, which were not 
 subject to be moved several miles with every tide. 
 A smart breeze came off the land, and, having re- 
 mained at Uppernavik but twenty-four hours, we set 
 sail to the northward on the 3rd, and, after cross- 
 ing Melville Bay, we arrived on the west side of the 
 strait on the twenty-fifth. The ice along the land, 
 for the most part, presented one continuous sheet, 
 which extended in nearly all cases to the outside of 
 the islands most distant from the coast, and when a 
 favourable wind came, no matter how light it might 
 
 i 4
 
 1 20 EEACH MELVILLE BAY. CHAP. IV. 
 
 be, it always proved favourable for the drifting ice, 
 removed by its influence from that which was fixed 
 to the land. In the following year the same ship 
 arrived at Uppernavik about the same time, having 
 had considerable difficulty among very much broken- 
 up ice along the land, and found not two miles of 
 land ice close to the settlement, but the open water 
 rippling on the beach ; from the top of the hill 
 nothing could be seen but loose ice among the 
 islands, between w r hich and the pack, in the offing, 
 there was no separation. After hard toil Melville 
 Bay was reached, and it was, if possible, in a worse 
 state for navigation than any other part of the 
 strait from the decayed condition of the ice in it. 
 Every effort was made to make a " north passage," 
 but without avail. Had we been but ten days 
 later in 1845, perhaps we should have been too 
 late for an early north passage. This seems to be 
 well proved by the slow progress which Sir J. 
 Franklin's ships made, through Melville Bay, in 
 company with the " Enterprise " of Peterhead, 
 during the same year, but later in the season. Again, 
 had we been earlier in 1846 there is no doubt a 
 passage would have been made before the end of 
 June ; and I firmly believe there is as little doubt it 
 would have been made had the ships persisted until 
 August, at which time it would have been useless to
 
 1850. BREAKING UP OP THE ICE. 121 
 
 them as whalers. If an early north passage is 
 desirable it must be attempted early, before the ice 
 is too much broken up, otherwise it will be a 
 failure. 
 
 The only thing that could effect a favourable 
 change in the ice would be a strong easterly wind, 
 which would clear out the " scum," that en- 
 cumbered the sea among the islands : but however 
 desirable this might be, there seemed no chances 
 of its being obtained, and we had to content our- 
 selves with the idea of advancing slowly by dint of 
 perseverance. 
 
 There was a light breeze from north or northeast ; 
 the clear weather of yesterday still continued, and, 
 from the indications of the barometer, we had every 
 reason to expect it would favour us for a few days. 
 Mr. Petersen came on board, accompanied by his 
 kind friends the Rev. Mr. Mossen and Mr. Flasheur, 
 who soon had to bid him an affectionate farewell, 
 and then make their way back to the settlement in 
 their boat, while we, having set all sail, shaped our 
 course to the northward. 
 
 Mr. Petersen brought four fine looking dogs on 
 board, from the settlement at Uppernavik, which 
 were all he had there ; but there were three others 
 which he expected we should be able to pick 
 up, at a sub-settlement, in the neighbourhood of a
 
 122 KIXGATOESOAK. CHAP. IV. 
 
 group of islands known to the Esquimaux by the 
 name Kingatorsoak. In the evening a dense mist 
 came on and the wind died away, notwithstanding 
 which, we arrived at the edge of a decayed floe 
 on the south side of the islands. The Esquimaux 
 observed the ships and came off to us, although the 
 ice was so bad in many parts, that they were in 
 danger of falling through. There was a Dane 
 among them whom Mr. Petersen knew, and to 
 whom he had lent some of his dogs. Thomas for 
 that is his name lives among the pure natives, kills 
 seals and other animals as they do, and is married to 
 one of them. He makes the best of his time for 
 himself and his family, receiving oil and skins from 
 the Esquimaux, and giving them in return such things 
 as they may require, of which coffee and sugar are 
 the principal. At the end of June he removes his 
 year's produce to the chief settlement, and hands it 
 over to Mr. Flasheur, who pays him for it in money 
 or in goods. He sometimes deals with the natives 
 for the Governor, especially if they have bear-skins 
 to dispose of. He generally visits Uppernavik once 
 or twice a quarter, but his home, in every sense of 
 the word, is somewhere in the neighbourhood of 
 where we saw him. There he lives, appearing to be 
 as happy as a king among the Esquimaux, shut out
 
 1850. PARTING OF MR. PETERSEN AND THOMAS. 123 
 
 in a manner from the world and the society of his 
 brother settlers, carrying on his wild sport, dressed 
 half Danish, half Esquimaux, among ice and icebergs, 
 on and in the sea, islands, rugged land, and glaciers, 
 without perhaps anything in the world to care for, 
 but his wife and children, whom, there is no doubt, he 
 endeavours to make happy, as happy as he appears 
 to be himself. He soon found out the dogs that 
 were wanted, and, as Mr. Petersen was anxious to 
 have eight, four for each ship, he sold him one for 
 half-a-crown. He was not deficient in sympathy for 
 Mr. Petersen, who was a little depressed, on leaving 
 his wife and little boy and girl. They parted with ex- 
 pressions of mutual affection and ardent wishes, that 
 their first meeting would be under no less favourable 
 circumstances than their parting. Thomas soon 
 found his way to the land with the Esquimaux, and 
 we cast off from the ice, and endeavoured to proceed 
 north, wading in the fog and snow, groping our way 
 with a boat ahead, towing among " sunk rocks," small 
 islands and icebergs. 
 
 June 6th. A light breeze came away for a few 
 hours in the morning from southwest, which brought 
 us to a stand, by setting the ice close in with the 
 islands. Towards noon it was clear and calm, for 
 the mist and snow disappeared, and the wind died
 
 124 PTARMIGAN SHOT. CHAP. IV. 
 
 entirely away. The highest temperature in the 
 shade which we registered, was 50 at three P.M., 
 but that of the sea water was never above 31. 
 The ships were made fast to a small iceberg which 
 was aground on the north side of a small island. A 
 party went to the top of an island which was close at 
 hand, and had a splendid view of the Strait. Captain 
 Penny discerned seven or eight ships coming up the 
 Strait, off the settlement of Proven : yet the distance 
 between him and them must have been upwards of 
 seventy miles. He could also discern abundance of 
 open water to the northward of Berry or Buchan 
 island ; but there were no hopes entertained of getting 
 into it soon, on account of the loose condition of the 
 ice between us and that island. Large flocks of eider- 
 ducks were seen, but they were so shy and wary, 
 that we could never get within shot of them. The 
 recent dung of ptarmigan was seen in great abund- 
 ance, and two of these birds were shot : the plumage 
 of the male was unchanged, but that of the female 
 had almost entirely changed from white to grey, and 
 in this respect it harmonized with the rocks around. 
 They were discovered first by their peculiarly low 
 wild call, sitting on a prominent rock, and, as they 
 were approached, they first dropped from the emi- 
 nence, and then could be seen wheeling in noise- 
 less flight to the opposite side of a rugged ravine,
 
 1850. CONVEYING POWER OF ICE. 125 
 
 which divided the island into two nearly equal parts. 
 They were followed, and again discovered by their 
 " call," and, after a little stratagem had been used to 
 get within shot, they were both killed, and could be 
 seen trundling down the hill. 
 
 This island and others close to it are composed 
 of granite, gneiss, and other rocks of a primitive 
 character. In the ravine, which runs from east to 
 west, huge masses are set free in the overhanging 
 cliffs, and precipitated to the bottom. One might 
 fancy a gang of quarrymen to have been busily at 
 work, with gunpowder and other destructive agents, 
 among the rocks but a few weeks previously. At 
 an elevation of from thirty to forty feet, on a com- 
 paratively level part of the west side of the island, 
 we observed a block of granite without a single 
 flaw, measuring sixteen feet in length, fourteen in 
 breadth, and twelve feet in height, and resting on 
 the hard rock beneath, which presented quite a dif- 
 ferent structure. How it came there, and at what 
 time, were questions, which could be solved by refer- 
 ence to the period in which the island was still 
 beneath the waters of the ocean, which was then 
 occupied, as it is now, by thousands of icebergs, 
 carrying each, perhaps, thousands of tons of rock, and 
 scattering it over the bottom of the sea, for many 
 hundred miles distance from the spot whence it had
 
 126 EXTRANEOUS MATTER ON ICEBERGS; CHAP. IV. 
 
 been received. The specific gravity of granite being 
 2 '5, this block would weigh at least one hundred and 
 eighty-six tons ; it would require a cube of ice, with 
 a side of forty feet, to give it buoyancy in the 
 water, and seven fathoms water to float it along. 
 From this it may be easily conceived what an enor- 
 mous mass of extraneous material icebergs several 
 miles in length and breadth, and drawing two to 
 three hundred fathoms water, are capable of trans- 
 porting from one place to another, without appearing 
 to be in the least encumbered by it. Mr. Petersen 
 told me that he once laid his nets for white whales in 
 the month of October along the land, where there 
 were only a few fathoms water, and, having left them 
 quite clear, he returned in a few hours to examine them, 
 and, as may be supposed, was pleased to find that some 
 of the buoyant parts had disappeared under water ; a 
 sure sign, he thought, that the animals for which they 
 were intended had been entangled in their meshes, and 
 had died, and sunk to the bottom. He proceeded at 
 once to haul them in, but, to his astonishment, they 
 did not contain a white whale, but an enormous 
 boulder, which he found it impossible to move on the 
 bottom, or to disentangle ; and the only way by which 
 he recovered part of his net, was to cut away the 
 portion of it in which the boulder lay. A small 
 berg had been observed in the neighbourhood, which,
 
 1850. ACCOUNTED FOB IN THREE WAYS. 127 
 
 in passing, took the opportunity of dropping one of 
 its jewels into the nets. 
 
 There are three different modes by which extra- 
 neous matter can find its way to icebergs, to be 
 conveyed by them to distant parts. When the 
 glacier is moving downwards through a valley, the 
 overhanging cliffs, if there be such, precipitate large 
 quantities of rock in all stages of disintegration to 
 its surface, which may or may not be imbedded in 
 subsequent accumulation of ice, and violent debacles, 
 from the smaller valleys on both sides, bring down 
 boulders rolled smooth and rough sand and mud. 
 This is the most important mode ; and there seems 
 to be no essential difference with respect to it be- 
 tween Greenland and the Alps, according to the 
 account given by Professor J. Forbes. After an 
 iceberg has been drifting down the Strait for a 
 considerable time, it often presents a great many 
 ledges under water, which cannot fail to receive 
 the accumulations of rounded pebbles, mud, sand, 
 and sometimes large boulders, which coast-ice may 
 have conveyed from the adjacent shores; and, 
 after its centre of gravity changes by subsequent 
 melting, whatever its submerged parts may have 
 received while in that state, may occupy a position 
 two hundred feet above the surface of the water. 
 Icebergs, with perpendicular or overhanging sides,
 
 128 EFFECTS OF THE SUN UPON THE EYES. CH. IV. 
 
 are frequently carried into the face of cliffs also 
 perpendicular, where the depth of water is generally 
 very great, and not unfrequently they come into the 
 closest contact with the disintegrating rocks, which 
 can, under such favourable circumstances, be easily 
 removed in considerable quantities. 
 
 While we remained on the island the effect upon 
 our eyes of the powerful rays of the sun, reflected 
 with increased intensity from the white snow, was 
 often relieved, by having to walk over some parts 
 where the black land or rock had been left bare by 
 the melting snows ; but when we had to cross a small 
 ledge of ice which extended right round the island, 
 it was so painful, that each could be seen contracting 
 and screwing up his features to admit as little light 
 as possible into his eyes, already deeply congested. 
 
 The Esquimaux use goggles made of wood, with 
 only a narrow chink for the admission of light. The 
 Danish settlers use glass preservers of various tints, 
 but generally green is preferred. From what I have 
 seen I think the plan of the Esquimaux is the best ; 
 and it accords with the relation there is between the 
 eye and light. If the rays of the sun for which the 
 eye is adapted be transmitted to it through a medium 
 which alters its colour, it must also alter its character, 
 and, instead of proving salutary, the remedial agent 
 must become hurtful. Every function is performed
 
 1850. EFFECT OF THE SUN UPON THE EYES. 129 
 
 under the influence of some stimulus ; and when that 
 stimulus is withdrawn, the action of the organ to 
 which it is peculiar becomes languid, if it does not 
 cease altogether. Also, when it is applied in excess, 
 the action is increased in due proportion, and con- 
 gestion is the invariable result. The wholesome 
 light of the sun is the proper stimulus of the eye, 
 and exposure to it, as Nature intended, will be borne 
 with impunity ; but if the eye be exposed to light, 
 when rendered intense by reflection from a white sur- 
 face, and probably also altered in its character by the 
 violet rays being absorbed, congestion will be the 
 result, and, if the cause be not withdrawn, inflamma- 
 tion must follow. It is not then the character of the 
 light that has to be altered, but its quantity. This 
 can be done by goggles, according to the custom of 
 the Esquimaux ; but I believe far better by spectacles 
 with side-shades, using fine wire gauze of a black 
 colour instead of glass. The wire ought to be first 
 coated with fine silk or cotton thread, both to prevent 
 corrosion, and also to maintain a black colour,* On 
 
 * Since writing the above I have seen R. M'Cormick, Esq., 
 Surgeon H. N., who has suggested, for the use of Arctic 
 voyagers, spectacles in which horse-hair gauze of a black colour 
 is substituted for glass of every description. The effect of the 
 black horse-hair gauze is exactly the same as that of black 
 wire gauze ; but it is much better, because corrosion is avoided, 
 that being a great objection to the other. 
 
 VOL. I. K
 
 130 VEGETATIOX. SMALL ISLANDS. CHAP. IV. 
 
 the south side of the island vegetation was beginning 
 to assume a vigorous appearance, while on the 
 opposite, or north side, everything was still frozen up 
 as if it had been winter. The larvae of Lepidoptera 
 could be seen crawling actively over the lichens and 
 mosses, and gnawing the newly-budded leaves of 
 some of the plants. Coming off to the ships in our 
 boat, a small bird was observed on a rock, over 
 which the little waves of the returning tide were 
 rippling gently, and frequently wetting the feet of 
 the bird while it was picking at something in the 
 cracks in the rock. It was found to be a sandpiper 
 ( Tringa maritima), which is very common on the 
 shores of Davis Strait. 
 
 The island is planted on and among whole clusters 
 of small rocks and small islands surrounded by very 
 deep water. Now one can see the drifting floe ice 
 aground upon some of the rocks, and, perhaps a 
 quarter of a mile on either side, icebergs one hundred 
 and fifty to two hundred feet high, drawing upwards 
 of two hundred fathoms water, are carried backwards 
 and forwards by the wind or tides without touching 
 the bottom. The low islands are clothed with short 
 grass between protruding masses of granite, where 
 the disintegrated rock has been accumulating. In 
 this grass the eider-duck hollows out a depression in 
 which she lays her eggs and covers them carefully
 
 1850. BREEDING-PLACES FOR DUCKS. 131 
 
 over with grass and down. There are, however, 
 other islands much higher than those, and without 
 grass, which the eider-duck makes her resort during 
 the summer months. The breeding localities for the 
 ducks require to be insulated for the sake of safety 
 from foxes, and sloping so as to enable them to 
 remove their young to the sea as soon as they are 
 hatched. 
 
 The danger of navigating a sea so full of rocks as 
 that between us and Berry or Buchan Island may 
 easily be conceived. The lead and line are of no 
 use; for the ship's bow may be against the rock 
 when the line will run out twenty or thirty fathoms 
 at the stern. It is rendered safe to a certain extent 
 by ice grounding on some of the rocks which are at 
 the surface of the water : but nothing is equivalent 
 to a good "look out," which must always be kept 
 when the ship is steering through such intricate 
 passages. 
 
 K 2
 
 132 
 
 CHAP. V. 
 
 FROM BERRY ISLAND TO MELVILLE BAT. 
 
 Very little Progress Berry Island. Severe Labour. Light Ice. 
 
 Open Water off Cape Shakleton. Conformation of Berry Island. 
 
 Safety of Ships at Icebergs. Ducks and their Enemies. 
 Dredging. Merlangus and other Fishes. Lepadogaster. Vo- 
 racity of the Gammarince. The persistent Odour of the " Smelling 
 Seal." Entozoa. Food of the Seal. Small Islands. Running 
 Water. Eggs abundant. South-east Gale. Moored to a rocky 
 Point. Pure Water and brackish Water on the Land. Land 
 subsiding. Esquimaux Graves. Tussoosak. Danish Travelling 
 Party. Captain Austin's Squadron. General Features of the 
 Coast. Vegetation. Action of the Sea upon Icebergs. Visit to 
 Captain Austin's Squadron. Opinions of the Whalers. Pleasant 
 Weather. A Man dying on Board a Whaler. Leaving the 
 Whalers. Great Heat. Signalizing Captain Austin's Squadron. 
 
 Cape Shakleton. Fine Weather. Narrow Passage. The 
 Steamers. Glacier. Abundance of Eggs. Vegetation. Opinions 
 respecting the Ice. Baffin Islands. Small Fishes on the Ice. 
 Melville Bay. 
 
 June 12th. The evening of the 6th was as calm 
 as possible, and the sky was clear, although at 
 first there was a thin mist. We could see objects 
 very distinctly at a great distance, without the as- 
 sistance of refraction, which at times is great in 
 the Arctic Regions. The tide shifted the position of
 
 1850. BEERY ISLAND. 133 
 
 the ice on the north side of the island, and opened 
 out a passage for us, which was readily occupied, 
 although we had no means of advancing except by 
 the boats towing, which is but sorry work at best. 
 At midnight a north-easterly breeze came on, which 
 was of great assistance to us at first, but it soon 
 brought a great quantity of loose and decayed ice 
 against the cluster of islands to the westward of 
 us. This so much retarded our progress, that we 
 were again brought to a dead halt at a small iceberg, 
 which was fast aground. 
 
 After hard work for six days among the loose 
 ice, we at length got into a space of water which 
 Berry Island makes, by bringing the ice up on the 
 one side, while it can drift away by the tide on the 
 other. The ships were moored to a small iceberg 
 aground on the edge of an island, about four miles 
 east of Berry Island, in latitude 73 20', and longi- 
 tude 57 20'. The distance from Kingatorsoak to 
 this island is not more than thirty miles, if it be 
 quite so much ; yet it occupied six days of our time, 
 and cost the poor sailors a great deal of sweat. I 
 have often observed " all hands " called four times in 
 twenty-four hours, and not at all unfrequently they 
 have been working twenty hours out of the twenty- 
 four for many days in succession. When so much 
 fatiguing exercise had to be endured, the allowance 
 
 K 3
 
 134 SEVERE LABOUR. CHAP. V. 
 
 of provisions and spirits was increased, sometimes 
 one-third, but more frequently one-fourth. It was 
 exceedingly disheartening work ; for many times all 
 that had been gained in a whole day would be lost, in 
 half an hour, by a change of tide or an air of wind. 
 The ice was so light and so much decayed, that it 
 flew like froth upon the water before the wind or 
 with the tide; and there was no getting away 
 from it by taking shelter behind an iceberg or small 
 island, for it poured in upon the water in the eddy 
 all round us, appearing to be seeking shelter as well 
 as ourselves. From Berry Island to the eastward, 
 until you reach the glacier, the distance varies very 
 much according to the disposition of the land. It is 
 generally about twenty miles ; but not unfrequently 
 a space between two islands can be observed, where 
 it is upwards of thirty. In whatever direction we 
 looked, east, west, north, or south, nothing could be 
 seen but ice reduced to a state of " pack," in which 
 the ships could do nothing. Had we been in the 
 middle of the Strait, I do not think the ice could 
 have been in a more unfavourable condition for 
 navigation. There were, however, two or three 
 large floes between us and some islands to the east- 
 ward, through which we expected to be able to make 
 a passage in that direction, and thence towards Cape 
 Shakleton, where every day, from the top of the
 
 1850. CONFORMATION OF BEERY ISLAND. 135 
 
 island, we could see most clearly a large open water, 
 which was lost to our vision beneath a " water sky " 
 over the Baffin or Duck Islands. Nothing could be 
 more tantalising than this; and certainly Captain 
 Penny and Captain Stewart had little to console 
 them, on their numerous visits to the island, to 
 observe if there were any favourable changes, or any 
 chance of our being able to advance in the direction 
 we so much desired. 
 
 Eider-ducks and long-tailed ducks were very 
 numerous, especially the former ; there were also a 
 few dovekies, loons, terns, molleymokes (fulmar 
 petrels), and gulls, the latter including kittiwakes 
 (Lants rissa}, herring-gulls (Larus argentatus\ 
 and burgomasters (Larus g1aucus\ of most of which 
 several had been shot. 
 
 The greatest length of Berry Island is from east 
 to west. It is almost inaccessible on all sides except 
 the eastern, where there is a reef about a mile long 
 running due east, and so raised in two or three 
 parts as to resemble several islands, between which 
 there are accumulations of sand in consequence of a 
 favourable eddy. Along its north and west sides the 
 water seems to be deep ; for huge icebergs and 
 large hummocks approach near before they take 
 the ground. On the south and east sides, the ice- 
 bergs take the ground at a much greater distance, 
 
 K 4
 
 136 SAFETY OF SHIPS AT ICEBERGS. CHAP. V. 
 
 perhaps a quarter or half a mile, and afford shelter to 
 ships to leeward of them when there is a southerly 
 wind, and the ice is drifting with great violence from 
 the southward. No pressure of drifting ice can 
 drive an iceberg, of even very small dimensions, into 
 shallower water than it would occupy altogether 
 independently of the pressure of the ice. Hence, 
 ships between it and the land, which has a sloping 
 descent, are in no danger whatever of being driven 
 ashore. The dangers of the whalers would be mate- 
 rially increased, were it not for the safety such a 
 place affords to them during southerly winds. 
 
 June 18th. During our visits to Berry Island, 
 the ducks, which frequent it, were found to have 
 commenced laying, and we were thus afforded 
 fresh eggs every day. Some of the nests had 
 occasionally as many as three eggs in them, of 
 course they had not been visited for as many days ; 
 while other nests had an egg removed from each 
 every successive day for eight or nine days. I do 
 not think removing the eggs, before hatching is 
 commenced, is attended with any bad results to the 
 clucks, except, perhaps, making them a little later in 
 the season. If hatching be commenced, however, 
 it is very unlikely the bird will again begin to lay. 
 The Esquimaux always remove the eggs before the 
 birds begin to sit upon them, until they have collected
 
 1850. DUCKS AND THEIR ENEMIES. 137 
 
 enough, after which they allow them to lay and 
 hatch during the remainder of the season, without 
 offering to molest them in any way. They have 
 greater enemies than the considerate Esquimaux, in 
 the bear, the fox, and the burgomaster. The bear 
 swims from island to island, and plunders their nests 
 without mercy ; but he does not remain long on 
 one island ; and they soon resume their old habits. 
 The fox is often carried along upon drifting ice, and 
 landed on one of the duck-visited islands. He may 
 live^well for a short time, but it will necessarily be 
 short ; for the birds all leave him sole lord and pos- 
 sessor, and do not return that season. The burgo- 
 master gull is always at hand ready to seize upon 
 the eggs, wherever an unwary and perhaps careless 
 duck has left them uncovered. It is a common 
 idea among the whalers that eider-ducks coat or 
 smear their eggs with some foetid secretion, which 
 disgusts the burgomaster at them so much, that, 
 although pressed for food, he will not attack them ; 
 and that those only are open to his attacks, in which 
 this process has been neglected. I think this any- 
 thing but plausible ; for there are no secretions 
 except the evacuations, and that which accompanies 
 the egg itself in its passage through the oviduct, 
 and if it be said to be by either of these, then the 
 one can never be absent, while the other has never
 
 1 38 WHALES COMING UP THE STRAITS. CHAP. V. 
 
 been observed in the nests. The only protection 
 they have for their eggs from the keen-sighted burgo- 
 master is a covering either of down, which they 
 pluck from their breasts and the lower part of their 
 bodies, or of grass, both of which are sometimes 
 found in the same nest. The down is generally 
 intimately mixed with small fragments of rock or 
 sand, which prevents it being blown away without 
 interfering with its usefulness in preserving warmth 
 and seclusion. 
 
 June 2lst. Several whalers were observed 
 coming up from Kiugatorsoak, which we had but 
 left on the 6th; but their progress, like our own, 
 was very slow, owing to the loose drifting ice, which 
 by this time had become so decayed, that a smart 
 breeze might drift it all away, without any fear of it's 
 being brought to a stand by coming against grounded 
 icebergs or the islands. They were observed follow- 
 ing a route leading close in shore, where there was 
 open water among a number of -small islands. The 
 water off Cape Shakleton still tantalised us: sometimes 
 it would be within ten or fifteen miles of us, and 
 again it could hardly be distinguished from the top of 
 the island with our best telescopes. The com- 
 manders kept a constant out-look upon the ice, both 
 to the northward and to the eastward ; and in the 
 latter direction it was gratifying to observe that only
 
 1850. DREDGING. 139 
 
 one " nip " intervened between us and the water in 
 sliore. On one occasion, when Captain Penny 
 believed that an opening had been made to the north- 
 eastward, the ships were cast loose, all sail was set, 
 and every one looked forward to a speedy release, 
 when, all of a sudden, a thick fog closed in around us, 
 and we were glad to get back to our old moorings 
 at the iceberg. 
 
 While we lay in the neighbourhood of Berry 
 Island dredging was frequently attended to, by Mr. 
 Goodsir, to whose extreme kindness on many occa- 
 sions I am deeply indebted for valuable lessons, 
 which enabled me to attend to a duty which I 
 would have otherwise neglected from want of ex- 
 perience. The display of animal and vegetable life 
 before us, when the dredge was emptied, was really 
 wonderful. Whole heaps of Mollusca, Crustaceans, 
 Annelklans, and Echinodermata could be seen tum- 
 bling out from among masses of sea-weed, which 
 again included great varieties, from the Laminaria 
 downwards to the simple brittle worts. In ten to 
 fifteen fathoms Laminaria with a perforated frond 
 and percurrent midrib are very abundant ; and they 
 are studded over with minute corals, which impart a 
 white spotted appearance. It occurred to me, at one 
 time, that these animals might have produced the 
 regular and sieve-like perforations all over the leaf;
 
 140 GREAT VARIETIES OF ANIMAL FORMS. CHAP. V. 
 
 but, having observed the perforations when the plant 
 was in a very early stage, I had every reason to be- 
 lieve that they are peculiar to it in its natural state. 
 At the same depth, the sea-urchin, and great varieties 
 of worms (Annelides), are very abundant. Shallowing 
 the water a few fathoms, Crustacea became very abun- 
 dant, but none were of very large size. The shrimps 
 (Crangon and other allied genera) are the largest, 
 but not the most abundant. Nudibranchiate Mollusca 
 are very abundant at this depth, and several speci- 
 mens of the Doris and Tritoniae were obtained. It is, 
 however, in from one to six fathoms that the greatest 
 variety of form of both animal and vegetable life is 
 to be found. The frond of the Laniinaria, taken 
 from that depth, presents a living surface of minute 
 Entomostraca (Cyclops), which can be seen running 
 about and struggling, after the plant is removed from 
 the water, and not unfrequently rupturing the slender 
 peduncle of their external pouches of fecundated ova, 
 which are often left in detached masses behind and 
 around them. The bottom is covered with a thick 
 coating of brown slime, which is composed of conferva 
 and other minute algse of great beauty, when exa- 
 mined microscopically, and is the habitat of myriads 
 of creatures belonging to the genera Capretta, Cyclops, 
 Gammarusy &c. Several small fish were obtained. 
 The "River BuU Head" and the "Father-lasher"
 
 1850. SUCKING-FISH. 141 
 
 were represented by Coitus quadricornis and polaris, 
 and the whiting of the British coasts, by Merlangus 
 carbonarius and M. polaris, of which specimens were 
 obtained. These two species of the genus Merlangus 
 are distributed very extensively over Davis Strait, and 
 the adjoining Polar Seas. They generally swim close 
 to the surface of the ice, and when disturbances take 
 place among it, they are not unfrequently left dry on 
 the floes, ready to become an easy prey to such birds as" 
 the ivory gull (Laruseburneus), which always frequents 
 localities where the ice is suffering from pressure. I 
 have often seen those birds picking among the newly 
 turned-up ice, as well as at the edge of the ice that 
 may not have shifted its position ; and I have 
 often examined the contents of their stomachs, and 
 visited the localities frequented by them, and hardly 
 ever failed to find the above remark fully corro- 
 borated. 
 
 One or t wo specimens of Sucking-fish (Lepadog aster) 
 were obtained. It is not above ten lines or an inch 
 in length, and the head is out of all proportion to the 
 body for size. The creature seemed to carry its un- 
 wieldy head with great difficulty, and to be in constant 
 danger of being attacked, for it always endeavoured 
 to hide itself, or to seek seclusion among the conferva? 
 which came up along with it in the dredge. The 
 eyes are very large and prominent. This seems
 
 142 VORACITY OF GAMMARUS ARCTICUS. CHAP. V. 
 
 to be a provision of Nature to conceal the crea- 
 ture from detection; for, if once it is detected, I 
 do not think it can escape from its enemies. 
 The first individual I caught was at once removed 
 from the dredge into a glass vessel, containing sea- 
 water and a great variety of Crustaceans, and among 
 others the Gammarus Arcticus. In a few (perhaps 
 not two) minutes, the new-comer was discovered and 
 seized by one of the GammarincB : in an instant three 
 or four more rushed into the " melee ; " and before I 
 could render any assistance, or interfere with the 
 depredations committed on my little prize, no part of 
 poor Lepadogaster remained but his head. The Gam- 
 marus Arcticus is so abundant in the Strait, and it 
 attacks animal matter with such rapacity, that dead 
 seals cannot be left in the water one night, with- 
 out sustaining serious damage ; and in less than 
 two days, in some localities, an entire seal of large 
 size, with the skin unbroken, except where the 
 wounds by which it died had been inflicted, will be 
 found reduced to a perfect skeleton. I observed a 
 dead seal in the water, which an Esquimaux had 
 been towing for three hours. A great number of 
 these active little creatures were in the water around 
 it, and they could be seen going in the direction of 
 one of the wounds in the skin, by which they entered 
 a large chamber which they had hollowed out beneath
 
 1850. THE " SMELLING SEAL." 143 
 
 in the flesh and blubber, of which they are very fond. 
 Mr. Petersen shot several seals ; but, in consequence 
 of the sinking tendency they have at this season, we 
 only succeeded in getting one, which happened to 
 be in shallow water. It was the rock seal, which 
 is a variety of the common seal (Phoca vitulina), and 
 which Mr. Petersen says is the "smelling seal" (Phoca 
 Jiispida of some authors). It is believed by the 
 Danish settlers that the disagreeable odour which 
 the male seal possesses, at certain seasons, resides 
 in his snout. It is very persistent. The skin of the 
 animal will not only retain the smell itself after a 
 great many dressings, but it will also impart it to 
 other skins that may be brought into contact with it 
 in the storehouse. A few minutes contact with the 
 female will so infect her flesh, that it becomes equally 
 disagreeable when used as food as that of the other. 
 It is remarkable, however, that she has the power of 
 repelling it while alive, for it can only be imparted to 
 her flesh after death. The natives do not use the 
 flesh of the male as food when it is in this state, 
 unless they are short of provisions. 
 
 I looked into the stomach of the seal while the 
 men were flensing it, and found the remains of Crus- 
 tacea and fishes ; the latter included the two well- 
 known species of Coitus, and perhaps, also, two species 
 of Merlangus. These genera could be easily dis-
 
 144 ARRIVAL AT THE ISLANDS. CHAP. V. 
 
 tinguished, because the skeletons seemed to have 
 suffered but little from mastication, for which the 
 teeth of the seal are but ill adapted. There appeared 
 to be bones of other fishes, but digestion had advanced 
 too far with them to enable any one to make out 
 to what fish they belonged. The lining membrane 
 of the stomach was exceedingly vascular, and in 
 several parts it was perforated by depressions or 
 sinuses, out of which bundles of Entozoa (very pro- 
 bably EchinorhyncJii) could be seen rising like the 
 expanded tentacula of the sea-anemone (Actinia). 
 Although I did not examine carefully for the retrac- 
 tile proboscis with its recurved hooks, which would 
 have enabled me to distinguish the characters of these 
 creatures, I think the position they occupied, with 
 one of their extremities inserted deeply in the tissues 
 of the stomach, may lead to the idea that they belong 
 to this genus of the Acanthocephala. 
 
 June 22d. The ships were cast loose and directed 
 in shore among the loose drifting ice, which was 
 beginning to favour us by partial separation. In 
 the course of the forenoon we succeeded in getting 
 through the ice, and arrived at the islands sur- 
 rounded by open water, where we met no fewer 
 than a dozen whalers, which were all waiting a 
 passage to the northward. The state of the ice was 
 very unfavourable both for us and them, its decayed
 
 1850. RUNNING WATER. 145 
 
 state permitted us to approach much nearer the 
 land than was necessary for making a north passage. 
 The most preferable route would have been thirty 
 miles to the westward, at the edge of ice extending 
 from those islands in one continuous sheet. Instead 
 of this, there was ice which scarcely possessed suffi- 
 cient firmness to support a fox. The ships were 
 moored, as usual, to a small grounded iceberg, on the 
 south side of one of the islands. On the opposite 
 side of the same island one iceberg, at least two 
 hundred feet high, was within thirty or forty feet of 
 the almost perpendicular cliffs. During clear sun- 
 shine in calm weather, so close in with the land, we 
 felt uncommonly warm. The snow upon the land 
 was disappearing very rapidly, and small streams 
 were beginning to establish their seaward channels : 
 icebergs, too, yielded copious rills, and noisy cascades 
 fell from their sloping and overhanging sides. There 
 appeared to be a great change going on around us, 
 and very frequently a slight swell would reach us, 
 announcing the convulsive struggles of some huge 
 iceberg. Those who were fond of sport had no 
 reason to complain, for they could gratify their pro-- 
 pensity upon the eider-ducks, from behind a promi- 
 nent point, where they could lie concealed from the 
 birds as they flew close past them. Many of the 
 whalers had sent away their boats in quest of eggs 
 VOL. I. L
 
 146 SOUTH-EAST GALE. CHAP. V. 
 
 among some of the smaller islands. And some of 
 them were returning with thousands of dozens of 
 ducks' and loons' eggs, almost all quite fresh. What 
 a luxury to the seamen ! as many eggs, and often far 
 more than, they could use, over and above their 
 usual allowances of provisions. When the whalers 
 are successful in the " egg way," as they call it, it is 
 almost a sure sign that they are to be unsuccessful 
 in the whaling, in consequence of being too late for 
 the Ponds Bay fishing, which is generally very good 
 during the last week in June, and the first three 
 weeks in July. 
 
 June 23d. The wind blew keenly from the south- 
 ward during the greatest part of the morning, con- 
 sequently there must have been a good deal of sea 
 off the island of Kingatorsoak. Our ships lay very 
 comfortably moored to an iceberg, that was aground 
 on the southern part of an island, at such a distance 
 from it as to leave ten times enough room for 
 them to swing about. There was no fear of being- 
 driven ashore, for the iceberg had been brought 
 from the southward, and any additional impulse 
 would fail to drive it into shallower water. In such 
 a position the Arctic navigator can weather out a 
 gale without the slightest fear of danger, except 
 there be such a sea as make ships seek shelter in 
 secure harbours. Immediately after Morning Ser-
 
 1850. LOW STATE OF THE BAROMETER. 147 
 
 vice, Captain Penny went to the top of the neighbour- 
 ing island, and, having seen a " lead " to the north- 
 ward, he returned very hastily, and in a few minutes 
 we were under sail, at first making a tack or two to 
 get round the southernmost point of the island, and 
 then running between it and a small island which 
 is about east of its northern extremity. We only 
 advanced six miles when we found the " lead " shut, 
 and all our efforts to force through it were unavailable. 
 After plying up for three hours, we arrived at the 
 north end of one of the islands, and moored the ships 
 to a small iceberg which appeared to be fast aground 
 close to the land. The iceberg floated in a few 
 minutes, and, as might be expected under all the cir- 
 cumstances, it began to drift to leeward. The ships 
 were again under sail, and, after working a little 
 farther to windward, they were safely moored along- 
 side the " Princess Charlotte " whaler, in the shelter 
 of a rocky point, where there was very deep water. 
 Our warps were fastened to anchors placed securely 
 in the ice, that had been squeezed up on the point in 
 winter or spring during a violent northerly gale. 
 
 June 25th. We weathered a very violent gale, 
 with snow and sleet, from about S.W. Three days 
 previously, the barometer was considerably below its 
 iverage, and always seemed inclined to fall, which it 
 continued to do, until the gale was at its highest, after 
 
 L 2
 
 148 PUKE AND BRACKISH WATER ON LAND. CH. V. 
 
 which it began to rise gradually as the weather mo- 
 derated and the wind became easterly. The tempera- 
 ture of the air ranged from 37 to 32, and that of 
 the water 32 to 31, always varying according to 
 the rapidity of the tide and the quantity of ice or ice- 
 bergs on it. If the tide is- very rapid and the ice in 
 a manner fixed and not permitted to move along with 
 it, the temperature of the water will be considerably 
 lower than it would have been, had the ice been at 
 liberty to drift about. When the weather was at all 
 favourable, a boat was kept bringing off water from 
 a small stream on the island. It was found to be 
 quite pure and wholesome; and the opportunity 
 was made available to fill up our casks. It is not 
 necessary in Davis Strait to take in water in this 
 way, for ice can be obtained almost always from the 
 icebergs, which yield water of the purest quality. 
 The whalers, however, prefer taking in water itself, 
 because it saves the fuel which would be expended in 
 melting the ice. They frequently obtain it from the 
 surface of the sea-water ice, which is generally pretty 
 free from salt, although it sometimes gives such indi- 
 cations of saline matter as to be quite unfit for culinary 
 purposes. Sometimes the water on the land is brack- 
 ish and unwholesome. This is owing to the quantity 
 of saline matter which is set free by the process of
 
 1850. LAND SUBSIDING HUTS IX THE WATER. 149 
 
 disintegration. I have often found the water in small 
 pools, in depressions in the granite rocks, so salt that 
 it could not be drunk with safety; and on the west 
 side of the Strait I have seen in the possession of the 
 Esquimaux small quantities of Glauber's salts (sul- 
 phate of soda}, which they said was to be found in 
 considerable quantities in the bottom of pools in the 
 rocks, after the water had escaped by evaporation. 
 
 Some of the crew were making short excursions ' 
 over the island in search of ducks' eggs ; while others 
 were scrambling on knees and hands in the cliffs 
 and precipices, attacking the affectionate dovekies 
 on their nests, which they often robbed. In 
 some of our rambles very old burying-places and 
 ruins, in all respects resembling those seen among 
 the Esquimaux on the west side of Davis Strait, 
 were discovered. The remains of one or two of the 
 huts were so near the tide-mark, that Mr. Petersen 
 said he was sure the land must have subsided since 
 they had been built, for the natives would not have 
 had their huts so near the sea as to be in constant 
 danger of being overwhelmed. Here, then, the 
 humble hut of the Esquimaux becomes a valuable 
 record of the changes which the crust of the earth 
 may be undergoing ; and it deserves to have its place 
 beside the Temple of Serapis and other noble relics
 
 150 ESQUIMAUX GRAVES. CHAP. V. 
 
 of antiquity.* Captain Graah and Dr. Pingel have 
 adduced proofs that the coast of West Greenland has 
 been subsiding for a space of more than six hundred 
 miles from south to north. Their observations ex- 
 tended from the vicinity of Cape Farewell to Disco 
 Bay, latitude 69: but this is at least two hundred 
 and seventy miles further north than the extreme 
 limits of their observations, f 
 
 The Esquimaux graves are oblong piles of stones, 
 which had been raised to preserve the bodies from 
 the attacks of foxes, wolves, dogs, and other animals, 
 but not to prevent the action of the weather, which, 
 by alternations of heat and cold during the summer 
 months on a southern exposure, facilitates decomposi- 
 tion and renders the bones more friable than they 
 would have been had they been completely buried in 
 the soil, or left entirely exposed to wind and weather 
 on the surface. At a short distance from one of the 
 graves I observed a human thigh bone lying among 
 the rocks. It had been fractured during life. Per- 
 fect union had taken place ; and, although there was a 
 little deviation from what would please the eye of a 
 critical surgeon, I have no doubt the poor Esquimaux 
 was very glad to have its use restored to him again 
 
 * Sir Charles Lyell's Principles of Geology, 1847, p. 489. 
 t Ibid, p. 506.
 
 1850. TUSSOOSAK OLD UPPEKNAVIK. 151 
 
 as it was. The huts in the neighbourhood appeared to 
 have been in complete ruins for many years ; for they 
 were all overgrown with rank grass, which covered 
 pieces of the bones of whales, walruses, and bears. 
 By the most careful examination that I could make, 
 nothing could be detected that differed in the slightest 
 possible manner from the remains of the Esquimaux 
 on the opposite side of Davis Strait, where the dawn 
 of civilization has never appeared, and where there 
 are no signs to indicate that it has been visited by 
 settlers belonging to any other variety of the human 
 race but the aboriginal Esquimaux. A few miles from 
 where we were lying, there is a place known to the 
 Esquimaux and the Danish settlers by the name Tus- 
 soosak, and to the whalers by " Old TJppernavik," 
 which is very probably the limits of the discoveries of 
 the Northmen.* It is almost entirely deserted by the 
 natives ; although, from the number of ruins, one can 
 see that it was at one time a favourite resort. The 
 Danes know nothing of Greenland to the northward of 
 
 * In spite of the perspicuity which seems to have been 
 thrown upon the settlements of the Northmen in Greenland 
 and the extent of their discoveries, by Humboldt, in his 
 " Cosmos," the opinions and observations of Rafn, Brynjulfsen, 
 and Graah are still waiting to be corroborated and confirmed 
 by subsequent observers. 
 
 L 4
 
 152 DANISH TRAVELLING PARTY. CHAP. V. 
 
 73| or 74. A reward was offered a few years ago by 
 the Danish Government to the settlers, if they would 
 make a journey to the northward for the discovery of 
 the iron mountains, which the Esquimaux are said to 
 have reported to Sir J. Ross at Cape York, in latitude 
 76, in the year 1818. A party, of which Mr. Peter- 
 sen was one, started with dogs and sledges, I think in 
 March : but, in consequence of under-estimating the 
 distance to Cape York, they failed in their undertaking, 
 and had to turn after they had got north as far as 
 Sugar Loaf Hill, in latitude 74. Beyond this they 
 possess very little information ; for their ships rarely 
 if ever pass to the northward of latitude 72 50', 
 where Uppernavik, their northernmost settlement, is 
 situated. 
 
 Captain Penny and Captain Stewart, accompanied 
 by a small party, ascended to the top of an island 
 about three miles to the eastward of where the ships 
 were lying, and had an extensive view of the Strait. 
 The ice had become quite close to the northward 
 and northwestward : to the westward it had slackened 
 a little, and to the southward, in the direction of 
 Kingatorsoak, there was nothing but open water. 
 
 The water off Cape Shakleton could not be 
 discerned any longer, for the southerly gale had 
 drifted the whole body of ice to the northward ; 
 but still it was very probable there would be open
 
 1850. CAPTAIN AUSTIN'S SQUADEON. 153 
 
 water on the north side of the Baffin or Duck 
 Islands. There was very little ice among the islands 
 where the whaling ships lay scattered before us, 
 moored to icebergs and sheltering points of the land. 
 Several ships were observed off Kingatorsoak, and, 
 among them, one or two whalers that had come from 
 Greenland, and the squadron of two ships and two 
 steamers under the command of Captain H. T. Austin, 
 C.B., in search of Sir J. Franklin, were observed. 
 They appeared to be coming up the Strait ; but it 
 was very unlikely they could get far, for the im- 
 penetrable pack extended to the westward on a line 
 about ten miles south of Berry Island. The island 
 we ascended is about nine hundred to one thousand 
 feet in height. An outline of its surface would 
 present a thousand irregularities, besides the slope 
 which it has to the S.W., S., and S.E., and the bold 
 and perpendicular front which it exposes to the 
 drifting ice and towering icebergs in a north-western 
 aspect. It is chiefly composed of metamorphic rocks 
 very much contorted. Strata of gneiss can be seen, 
 twisted and contorted violently by protrusions of 
 granite and quartz in almost all parts of the island, 
 except at its southern extremity, where the granite 
 seems to pass in one entire mass beneath the stratified 
 rocks. It is very probable, however, that this is only 
 an accidental, although, at the same time, an exten-
 
 154 ACTIOX OF SEA UPON ICEBERGS. CIIAP. V. 
 
 sive protrusion of the granite, because, only a few 
 miles to the southward, another island rises out of 
 the water, which presents exactly the same features, 
 bold and almost perpendicular in a north-western 
 aspect, where the contortions are very well seen; 
 rough and rugged throughout its whole extent, and 
 disposed to slope gradually to the water's edge at its 
 south and south-eastern extremity, where the granite 
 can again be seen passing underneath the other rocks. 
 Some of the plants on the island were in full 
 bloom, especially those with a southern exposure. 
 One or two very early plants the purple saxifrage, 
 and the Dry as integrifolia were beginning to fade ; 
 while not a few poppies and other late plants 
 had their flowers still unexpanded. A small fern 
 
 (Woodsia ) was picked up in a warm sunny spot, 
 
 which was both dry and well sheltered from the 
 northerly winds; conditions which, I suppose, are 
 essential in such a high latitude 73 20', and at an 
 elevation of at least three hundred feet to the 
 development of such a plant. On our passage back 
 to the ships, in the boat, we had to pass close to an 
 enormous iceberg, which appeared to have been a- 
 ground for a very long time. It appeared not to 
 have moved for at least six months, by the remark- 
 ably deep groove which had been worn in it right 
 round at the surface of the sea. There were no
 
 1S50. SECOND VISIT TO BERRY ISLAND. 155 
 
 means of ascertaining the exact depth of this part 
 that had been hollowed out ; but I think twenty feet 
 would be a safe estimate. There were no fissures in 
 it, otherwise this undermining by the water would 
 be continually attended by the precipitation of large 
 masses of it into the sea. It is very probable, that in 
 such a position between two islands the tide runs 
 rapidly, and subjects icebergs coming into it to a 
 constant change of water, which, becoming heated 
 at the surface by the action of the sun in clear 
 weather, will have a tendency to remove a larger 
 proportion, by solution at the line of junction with 
 the surface, than at greater depths. 
 
 June 26th. After a view from the top of the 
 large island, visited yesterday, the commanders of our 
 Expedition came to the conclusion that we should go 
 out to Berry Island, and attempt to effect a passage 
 where the ice appeared disposed to slacken, in the 
 direction of Cape Shakleton. We soon arrived at 
 the island, and moored the ships to a floe that had 
 been brought to a stand on the reef at its eastern 
 extremity and on a large iceberg, half a mile to the 
 eastward of the reef; this was the only large floe that 
 could be seen within many miles all round. We had a 
 fine view of the strait, north and south, from the top 
 of the island, but no open water could be detected 
 as usual off the Duck Islands, nor were there any
 
 156 VISIT TO CAPTAIN AUSTIN'S SQUADRON. CH. V. 
 
 lanes among the " pack " which would enable us to 
 force a passage to the northward. As no good could 
 be accomplished by remaining so far from the land, 
 the ships were again cast loose, and in a few hours 
 we found ourselves among the high islands, which we 
 had left but twelve or fourteen hours previously, 
 where the ships were moored to an iceberg, to wait 
 the first chances of any possible opening that would 
 be advantageous to the object of our Expedition. 
 
 June 28th. Mr. Stewart received orders from 
 Captain Penny, to proceed in the " Sophia " to the 
 squadron under the command of Captain Austin. 
 At ten o'clock in the morning, we parted company 
 with the " Lady Franklin ; " and, by the assistance 
 of a light northerly breeze, which sprung up in the 
 evening, our little ship came in among the other 
 ships at five or six o'clock. They were moored to 
 icebergs that were aground on sunk rocks, to which 
 I have already alluded, about ten miles to the south- 
 ward of Berry Island. The " Sophia " looked very 
 small indeed, when compared with those ships of 
 war, whose aggregate tonnage, roughly estimated 
 from their appearance, was not less than eighteen 
 hundred or two thousand tons. The tonnage of the 
 " Sophia " and of the " Lady Franklin " amounted 
 to something below three hundred and twenty. 
 
 Mr. Stewart went on board H. M. S. "Re-
 
 1850. OPINIONS OF THE WHALERS. 157 
 
 solute," and, after meeting Captain Austin and 
 receiving letters, despatches, &c., which had been 
 sent out by him for our Expedition, he returned to 
 the " Sophia " at ten o'clock, bringing from H. M. S. 
 " Pioneer " several boxes of " balloon " material, and 
 other similar articles which had been neglected to be 
 sent to Aberdeen, from H. M. dockyard, before we 
 sailed. 
 
 June 29th. At six o'clock in the morning we 
 came up to where we had left the " Lady Franklin " 
 and about half a dozen whaling ships. They were 
 still waiting an opening in the ice ; and the top of 
 one of the highest islands in the neighbourhood was 
 never without two or three commanders on the out- 
 look, for a favourable change. The loose ice had 
 drifted so far north, that, from an elevation of nearly 
 one thousand feet, the water at the Duck Islands 
 could not be seen clearly. An idea prevailed among 
 some of the most experienced of the whalers, that the 
 strong and long continued southerly gales we had for 
 a week previously would cause an influx of water into 
 the Strait, and that this again would cause such high 
 tides, that whole ranges of icebergs, which before pent 
 up the ice, by being fast aground, would be floated off, 
 and would permit the drifting ice to resume its natural 
 tendency to move to the southward, in calm weather, 
 and better still in northerly winds. One of the
 
 158 A MAN DYING ON BOARD A WHALER. CHAP. V. 
 
 whaling masters had come to the conclusion, that it 
 was worse than useless to persevere north at so late 
 a period as the first of July. He had an idea that 
 nothing but loose " pack " would be met with on 
 the " east side," which would hamper the ships, and 
 prevent their getting through " the bay," until the 
 last bit of land ice in Pond's Bay should disappear. 
 The majority of the whalers, however, thought that 
 some good might be done by getting across, even 
 although July were more than half through. It 
 would depend entirely upon the condition of the ice 
 in Pond's Bay ; there being generally abundance of 
 whales when there is fixed ice. 
 
 On board one of the whalers I saw a man in a dying 
 state. His disease was some affection of the lungs, 
 very probably of long duration. He was a native of 
 Shetland, and had shipped into the whaler along with 
 a number of his countrymen, who, although rough 
 and harsh in many respects, endeavoured to mitigate 
 his pain by every kind of attention. He died in the 
 evening, and was to be buried on the following day. 
 There is hardly an island on which one lands, from the 
 Arctic Circle to the top of Baffin's Bay, but it will 
 be found in a manner consecrated by the remains of 
 some British seaman, over which the Burial Service 
 has been read, and a green mound has been raised, 
 and marked by a monument, of which St. George's
 
 1850. EPITAPHS TO BRITISH SAILORS. 159 
 
 Cross is the most common form. The following are 
 the inscriptions on two graves, which I often saw 
 when landing on Berry Island : 
 
 " Sacred to the memory of Andrew Turnbull, who 
 died on board the ' Dordon ' of Hull, April 29th, 
 
 1837, aged 11 years. 
 
 "K. Nesbett." 
 
 " Erected in memory of James Craig, surgeon of 
 the ' Rambler ' of Kircaldy, who died June 1 9th, 
 1825, aged 19 years." 
 
 With the exception of an occasional visit from the 
 whalers, or the Danish settlers, and the Esquimaux, 
 our friends buried within the Arctic Circle lie for- 
 gotten by all, except perhaps their relations, and_ 
 unvisited, save by the eider-duck, which makes 
 her nest among and on their graves. Their remains 
 mingle with those of the uncivilised and untutored 
 Esquimaux. The savage of bygone ages and the 
 Christian of the present generation hold peaceful in- 
 tercourse in the language of the dead. How true 
 are the words, " the small and great are there ; and 
 the servant is free from his master ! " 
 
 June 30th. Immediately after Morning Service, 
 as a favourable report had reached us from the hill- 
 top, the ships were cast loose from the icebergs to 
 which they had been moored, and our course was 
 shaped to the northward. The whalers cheered us
 
 1 60 PLEASANT WEATHER. CHAP. V. 
 
 as we left them, but none of them were disposed to 
 accompany us at present. 
 
 The surface of the water between the islands was 
 as smooth as oil in many parts; but occasionally a 
 light breeze, which passed gently over it, ruffled it a 
 little. There was very little ice in the passage we 
 had to take, and what happened to be near us at any 
 time was opening out, under the influence of the tide, 
 much more rapidly than we could advance in the 
 calm, although " all hands " were towing to the ut- 
 most of their strength. The ice was much decayed, 
 and it contained amongst it in great abundance the 
 brown slime to which allusion has been made so fre- 
 quently since we entered the Strait. 
 
 About midnight the wind, which at times assisted 
 us along, died away; the passages leading to the 
 northward closed ; and our ships became motion- 
 less in the water, which appeared as smooth as a 
 mirror, and reflected a very perfect representation of 
 them and the few fleecy clouds that were scattered 
 thinly over the sky. 
 
 July 1st. At eight o'clock in the morning, a 
 passage was discovered leading through among the ice 
 in the direction we were desirous of taking. The 
 crew of the " Sophia " manned three boats, and the 
 crew of the " Lady Franklin " four, which went a- 
 head of their respective ships to tow, as there was not
 
 1850. INTENSELY HOT SUNSHINE. 161 
 
 as much wind as would keep steering way upon them. 
 The day was remarkably hot, especially during the 
 three hours on either side of noon. The maximum 
 temperature in the shade was + 54, but, freely exposed 
 and receiving the rays vertically or at right angles 
 with the bulb, the thermometer indicated + 108. 
 The temperature of the water was not above + 33, 
 and frequently it was + 32. I often thought it was 
 impossible to protect the shade thermometer from the 
 influence of local or solar radiation. 
 
 The poor sailors, who had to pull away at their 
 oars in the scorching sun, were bathed in profuse 
 perspiration, and the quantity of water they drank 
 was very great; however, it did none of them any 
 harm. In the evening a light breeze sprung up, 
 which assisted us on a little ; but a narrow passage be- 
 tween a much decayed floe and an island threatened 
 to baffle us for a time. By dint of perseverance, 
 we got clear, and commenced plying to the north- 
 ward, at first with two, then with one boat a-head, 
 and, as the breeze sharpened up, without any at all. 
 Captain Austin's squadron came steaming up in a 
 straight line from Berry Island; Mr. Penny exchanged 
 signals with H. M. S. " Resolute ;"and presently the 
 flags or numbers expressing " rocks close a-head " were 
 shewn. But it was too late, for one of the ships (I 
 think the " Pioneer " steam-ship) struck upon it. 
 
 VOL. i. M
 
 162 SIGNALISING THE OTHER EXPEDITION. CHAP. V. 
 
 However no damage was sustained, and the shock that 
 had been felt proved the necessity there was for other 
 precautions than the lead and line, which afforded no 
 assistance whatever in keeping clear of rocks. On 
 the contrary, the sounding line is positively hurtful 
 on such ground, if it gives rise to the idea of safety, 
 when two or three hundred fathoms may run out, and 
 in five minutes the ship may come bump upon a rock ; 
 and when there may be forty fathoms within a ship's 
 length of a rock, on which the ebb tide does not 
 leave four feet of water. The squadron soon went 
 out of sight a-head, and this afforded the best proofs 
 we could wish, that Great Britain was determined 
 that nothing should be left untried which might as- 
 sist in the discovery of her lost sons. The power of 
 the Royal Navy and the experience of the whaler are 
 both brought into the field. Surely then, with such 
 a combination of knowledge and power, the results we 
 look forward to are not such as savour of extrava- 
 gance or impossibility. 
 
 July 2nd. Before one o'clock in the morning we 
 came up with and passed the Arctic Searching 
 Squadron, under the command of Captain Austin, 
 moored to the south side of an island in the nei^h- 
 
 O 
 
 bourhood of Cape Shakleton. I think there was a 
 ledge of ice, along the edge of the island, to which the 
 moorings were fastened.
 
 1850. AT CAPE SHAKLETON. 163 
 
 The wind died away, as usual, at four or five o'clock 
 in the morning, when we were in a narrow channel 
 between two islands, where the tide was carrying the 
 ships to and fro, without the slightest respect for the 
 helpless strokes of the oars in the boats a-head. It 
 was really as fine a morning as ever dawned upon 
 Cape Shakleton. The sky was without a cloud, 
 except a few thin fleecy and feathery shreds that were 
 scattered loosely over it, and distant objects were 
 remarkably visible, without distortion by refraction. 
 Icebergs could be seen and heard discharging their 
 noisy cascades, and purling rills into the sea, and the 
 ice on the surface of the sea, in many parts, was 
 yielding itself up to its fate, where it had formed, 
 without having been carried about by wind or tide, 
 after the example of the floes immediately on the out- 
 side of the Cape. Loons were the only birds that" 
 were abundant, and they seemed to vie with one 
 another in cheerfulness as they swam and dived in 
 all directions around us. Flocks of eider ducks 
 were seen in rapid flight to the northeastward, 
 but they very rarely alighted in the water or on the 
 islands, which we approached so closely with the 
 ships. 
 
 At five o'clock, the Squadron we had passed five 
 hours previously came steaming up, and in less than 
 half an hour from the time of coming round the 
 M 2
 
 164 NARROW PASSAGE. THE STEAMERS. CHAP. V. 
 
 point it was within hail of us. A voice was heard 
 inquiring for Captain Penny, and saying, with 
 Captain Austin's compliments, that, had he seen his 
 way clearly a-head, he should have offered us a tow. 
 This was an act of kindness, which deserved to be 
 appreciated at the time ; for the tide was carrying us 
 out between the islands at a rapid rate, where there 
 were grounded icebergs and sunken rocks in abund- 
 ance. We had, however, to regret the circumstances 
 which stood between us and a tow, which was offered 
 with so much kindness, and would have been very 
 timely indeed. In two hours we lost sight of them, 
 as immense volumes of black smoke issued from the 
 funnels of the steamers, and marked upon the sky the 
 direction they had taken. It was rather a novelty in 
 those icy regions to see clouds of black smoke set- 
 tling to the horizon. Sugar Loaf Hill (an extinct 
 volcano) would be reminded of the days in which it, 
 too, darkened the air with the products of subter- 
 ranean fire. 
 
 As the morning advanced, a sharp breeze sprung 
 up, which enabled our ships to move along, and before 
 noon Cape Shakleton, generally known to the whalers 
 by the name of Horse Head, was seen dropping astern 
 to the south-west, and a splendid bay (Kingston's Bay), 
 once a great place for whales, was opening out. We 
 could see abundance of open water in the direction
 
 1850. INFUSORIA AMONG BROWN SLIME. 165 
 
 of Sugar Loaf Hill, but unfortunately the wind died 
 away, and "all hands" were again at the mercy of 
 the scorching sun on their oars. Some patches of 
 much decayed ice, which had never drifted out of the 
 bay, were passed through. The ice was dirty, and 
 abounded in the brown slime, which has been 
 alluded to so frequently already. A single drop of 
 the slime examined with the microscope presented 
 myriads of infusoria, whose cilia could be detected in 
 rapid motion. There were others almost perfectly 
 motionless, some of which were elliptical (Naviculi) ; 
 and there were also vegetable forms of exquisite 
 beauty : I could see the round sieve-like diatoma, and 
 the siliceous beautifully beaded Meloseira, arranged 
 like shreds of lace work, were scattered loosely over 
 the field of the microscope. 
 
 In the evening a smart breeze came away from 
 about north, for which we were very thankful, and 
 none were more so than those who had been towing. 
 We plied up at a very rapid rate, passing flocks 
 of loons in thousands and tens of thousands, and 
 occasionally other sea fowl, but they were much less 
 abundant. The land around Kingston's Bay is very 
 bold, and in some parts it is overhanging. The 
 water in it is very deep, if one can judge from a few 
 icebergs that were in it. There are several extensive 
 " rookeries " for the loons all round it. The whalers 
 
 II 3
 
 166 LOONS. KINGSTON'S BAY. CHAP. V. 
 
 call them loon heads, because they are prominent 
 headlands frequented by these birds. To estimate 
 the number of loons at one of those favourite breed- 
 ing localities is utterly impossible. If one is close 
 in at the foot of the cliffs, the air is darkened by 
 them flying to and from their eggs which can be seen 
 in rows on the shelves of the rock. The rock is al- 
 most entirely primary and metamorphic, with one or 
 two exceptions, of which Sugar Loaf Hill is one. 
 This is a truncated cone, which ascends to a height 
 of upwards of 1000 feet, and always presents the 
 same conical appearance from whatever direction it 
 may happen to be viewed. 
 
 The bottom of the bay is at least thirty to forty 
 miles to the eastward of a line drawn along the out- 
 side of the islands, which, properly speaking, form 
 the coast line. A very extensive glacier was seen 
 entering it, and it could be traced far beyond the 
 little black protrusions of the land on which it rested, 
 and over which it had to seek its way into the sea. 
 This region of ice appears to extend north and south 
 as far as the eye can reach, and its elevation above 
 the sea is always increasing until it is lost on the 
 far distant and northern horizon, where the foot 
 of man, or beast, wild, civilized or domestic, never 
 trod. Its surface is generally smooth, but occasion- 
 ally one can detect extensive portions which have
 
 1850. GLACIER RANGE. EIDER DUCKS. 167 
 
 a rough appearance at a distance, and greatly re- 
 semble some of the icebergs already alluded to, on 
 our passage up the Strait. There is a small conical 
 island in the south-eastern side of the bay. It was 
 surrounded by open water on all sides, and, as there 
 were great chances of its being frequented by eider 
 ducks, Captain Penny sent a boat to it with the ex- 
 pectation of finding some eggs. Mr. Goodsir and Mr. 
 Petersen described it as being literally covered with 
 the eggs of those birds. To have walked among the 
 nests, each of which contained four or five, and some- 
 times seven or eight eggs, without trampling upon 
 some was impossible. In the course of two hours the 
 boat was loaded with the fresh ones, which they 
 believed were to be found in the nests which con- 
 tained less than the usual number. When they re- 
 turned to the ship an account was taken of the result 
 of their labours, and 5000 eggs were found to have 
 been removed, which number they believed was about 
 the twentieth or thirtieth part of the remainder. 
 That all of them should be sound was not to be 
 expected. 
 
 The droppings of so many large birds accumulating 
 for thousands of years would soon raise an island to 
 a considerable height above its original level. This 
 happened on several islands on the coasts of Africa 
 and South America ; but I do not believe it has ever 
 M 4
 
 168 DROPPINGS OF EIDER DUCKS. CHAP. V. 
 
 been found extending to any great distance into the 
 temperate zones, especially the zones of constant pre- 
 cipitation of rain, although sea fowl are sufficiently 
 abundant in those parts to produce it in very large 
 quantities. There, is little doubt this is owing to its 
 being washed away by rains or melting snow, or it 
 may be owing to vegetation, by which it becomes dis- 
 sipated into the atmosphere, or converted into a thin 
 coating of brown mould on the rock, in which grasses 
 and other plants take root and flourish luxuriantly, 
 affording shelter to myriads of flies and their enemies, 
 the spiders, even on and beyond the 74th degree of 
 north latitude. At the distance we were from the 
 island with the ships the luxuriant vegetation could 
 be clearly discerned, and in that respect it was in 
 the most striking contrast with the rugged and 
 bleak looking land on both sides of the bay. 
 
 About midnight we came up to an island extending 
 from east to west, about four or five miles in length, 
 and a little more than the half of that in breadth, 
 which forms part of the northern boundary of King- 
 ston's Bay. Between this island and the land to the 
 eastward, there was an opening in the ice leading in 
 the direction of Sugar Loaf Hill, which is at a dis- 
 tance of ten to fifteen miles farther north. Into this 
 opening we observed that the Expedition under the 
 command of Captain Austin had gone, and having
 
 1850. OPINIONS RESPECTING THE ICE. 169 
 
 found the ice close, after advancing two or three miles 
 it appeared to have been the resolution of the com- 
 mander to remain until it should open, for the ships 
 were all moored either to the ice or to icebergs. 
 
 Mr. Penny thought it most probable that an open- 
 ing would first happen on the outside of the island, 
 as the ice on its north side appeared to be in very 
 large floes, which would be likely to retain their 
 position between it and Wilcox Point during the 
 northerly wind, until water forming on the south side 
 of the Duck or Baffin Islands should extend so far 
 to the southward, that we might get into it from the 
 water in which we then were. Accordingly, the ships 
 were made fast to a small ledge of ice on the south 
 side of the island. 
 
 July Zrd. There was a smart northerly wind 
 during last night and this morning, which we ex- 
 pected would effect a favourable change in the ice to 
 the westward of the island. In making up his mind 
 to try this route, Mr. Penny had great difficulty in de- 
 ciding whether he ought not to telegraph to the other 
 Expedition, also to try it ; and this difficulty arose from 
 the objection there might be to the route if the wind 
 should happen to shift to the eastward, and drift the 
 ice down upon him, from between the island and Wil- 
 cox Point. He appeared to think, that if his Expedi- 
 tion should be caught, the other would be clear; but
 
 170 ARRIVAL AT THE BAFFIN ISLANDS. CHAP. V. 
 
 if he should succeed, then the other, by watching his 
 motions even at a considerable distance, would take the 
 hint to follow. At eight o'clock in the morning the 
 ships were cast loose, and all sail was set, and in an 
 hour and a half a lane of water was entered, which ap- 
 peared evidently to lead us in the direction of an ex- 
 tensive space of open water, which could be seen very 
 plainly on the south side of the Duck or Baffin Is- 
 lands and on the south side of a barrier of ice. As 
 we plied up this lane of water it was hourly becoming 
 narrower, but at the same time it was advancing 
 rapidly towards the other water, and before one 
 o'clock in the evening there was but a single " nip " 
 between them. We would have been able to heave 
 the ships through, had it not been for the strong 
 wind ; but luckily it began to open ; the " Lady 
 Franklin," always leading, thrust into it and got 
 clear, after a little heaving with warps and ice-au- 
 chors; the "Sophia "immediately followed, and also 
 got clear, and then both ships commenced plying to 
 the northward. 
 
 A number of small fishes (Merlangus polaris) were 
 raised out of the water on the surface of a piece 
 of ice, which had come against the bow of the ship 
 when she was passing through the nip. They 
 struggled on the cold ice as the water was leaving 
 them; and there was no doubt they should prove a
 
 1850. SMALL FISHES. DULL WEATHER. 171 
 
 hearty meal for some keen-sighted snow bird (ivory 
 guil), that would soon discover them on the ice. 
 
 Almost immediately after getting into the open 
 water, the weather became very thick, so that it was 
 not by any means an easy matter to keep company 
 as we plied in the direction of the islands. The wind 
 was very favourable, and raised a " short sea " in the 
 water, which assisted us very much in keeping clear 
 of the ice in the thick fog. At seven o'clock we saw 
 one of the islands, a circumstance which was very 
 gratifying indeed, and at eleven o'clock we saw 
 another, the northernmost we believed, which was 
 still more gratifying, for we expected that a few 
 hours would bring us into Melville Bay.
 
 172 
 
 CHAP. VI. 
 
 PROGRESS IN MELVILLE BAY. 
 
 Land-Ice. Prospects of a speedy Passage. Brought to a Stand. 
 Cutting a Dock. Improved Saws. Little Auks. Intense lie- 
 fraction. Brown Slime in the Water. Entomostraca of large 
 Size. Ice opening out. Joined by the Whalers. Intercourse 
 with naval Officers. Ships drawn into Docks. Young Ice. 
 Saline Ingredients of Sea-Water Ice. Land-Ice broken up. 
 Bear Hunt Dangerous Navigation. Tracking. Collisions be- 
 tween Ships. South Wind. Docking the Ships. Closely beset. 
 Steamers in Melville Bay. Whalers retreating. Large open 
 Water. Barometer very low. Safety of Ships in Docks. 
 Violent Gale. Great Pressure upon one of the Steamers. Gale 
 subsiding. Dredging in two hundred Fathoms. Sea Urchins. 
 Lost the Land-Ice. Among the drifting Floes. Open Water. 
 Dense Fog. Detained among the Floes. Action of the Sun 
 upon the Ice. Breaking up of an Iceberg. Pointed Eminences 
 on Icebergs. Refrigerating Influence of Icebergs. Rejoining 
 Captain Austin's Squadron. Thick Weather. 
 
 July 4tk. After passing the Duck or Baffin Islands, 
 we came to what we supposed to be the land-ice, to 
 the north-westward of Wilcox Point, and continued 
 to work up along it, until our southerly wind failed, 
 and this was at an early hour in the morning. The 
 fog cleared away, and enabled us to see several miles 
 all round. There was abundance of open water, and
 
 1850. SKETCH OF WEST GREENLAND COAST.
 
 174 PROSPECTS OF A SPEEDY PASSAGE. CHAP. VI. 
 
 the land-ice was but a short distance from us to the 
 eastward. Towards noon, a light breeze sprung up 
 from S. E., which wafted us along with studding sails 
 on both sides. The land from Cape Shakleton, north- 
 ward, round by Kingston's Bay, Sugar-loaf Hill, and 
 Wilcox Point, diversified and rugged enough, dis- 
 turbed by refraction, or intercepted from our view 
 by huge icebergs, was dropping astern very fast ; 
 and as the grand land-mark of Melville Bay, " The 
 Devil's Thumb," bearing S. E. per compass, began 
 to open out, we indulged in the fond hopes that the 
 prospect of a speedy passage across that formidable 
 place would be realised ; since it had been fairly 
 denied us to get through it early in the season. 
 Melville Bay is not more than one hundred miles in 
 extent, from the position we now occupied, to Cape 
 York, a distance which an ordinary whaler would 
 run in twenty-four hours, with even a tolerable 
 wind. This has been done sometimes; but such 
 good fortune is not the lot of one ship out of two 
 hundred. As a general rule, the earlier in the season 
 it is attempted, the greater the chances are of pass- 
 ing expeditiously through it. The land- ice is then 
 fixed, and the pack moves off in one entire body from 
 it, under the influence of the tide, if the wind is not 
 from the southward ; a circumstance which is not by 
 any means common, during the spring months, com-
 
 1850. BROUGHT TO A STAND. 175 
 
 pared with July, August, and September. And if 
 the wind is northerly, an extensive open space occurs 
 between the two ices, through which a ship may run, 
 during a south-easterly breeze, without being delayed 
 a moment by the usual obstacle, the drifting ice. 
 The " St. Andrew," of Aberdeen, under the command 
 of Captain Dring, got clear of Melville Bay in the 
 beginning of June, having ran through it without 
 seeing a bit of ice for many miles; and on the 
 13th of that month, she arrived on the west side. 
 But whalers that attempted it at a later period had 
 very great difficulties ; and some of them never got 
 through it at all, for they were crushed to atoms 
 among the ice. 
 
 Before six o'clock in the evening, we came to a 
 dead stand at the junction of the pack with the 
 land-ice, in latitude 74 30'. The southerly wind, 
 with which we had been running down so favourably, 
 also favoured the closing of our passage. The ships 
 were moored to the land-ice, which was about five 
 feet thick ; and the saws were got out for the purpose 
 of cutting docks, in case it should be necessary to 
 haul the ships into them, from pressure among the 
 ice, which might be the result of a southerly wind, 
 of which the appearance of the sky seemed to afford 
 very threatening indications. The saws had been 
 supplied to our Expedition from H. M. dockyard at
 
 176 LITTLE AUKS. REFRACTION. CHIP. VI. 
 
 "Woolwich, and they were said to be on an improved 
 plan. Perhaps they were ; but however plausible 
 the idea of the " pitman " (a heavy ball at the lower 
 end) might be to the inventor, and also the other 
 part of the improvement, we found that they would 
 not work at all, until the form of the teeth was 
 altered, and the " pitman " was removed altogether ; 
 after which they were found to answer very well, 
 having been reduced, to answer the description of 
 saws used by the whalers in Davis Strait for at 
 least thirty years. It will be obvious to any one 
 that an unsteady " pitman " at a saw is worse than 
 none at all, and more especially in sawing ice, when 
 it is stated that, without such an appendage, the 
 saw-draft is not above half an inch in breadth, while 
 with it it is about four inches. In the one case, 
 only half an inch of the ice requires to be removed, 
 in the other eight times as much. The cause of this 
 objection to its use is the lateral motion which it 
 imparts to the saw, in spite of the best efforts that 
 can be used to keep it in a perpendicular position. 
 While we lay here, large flocks of the little auk 
 (Alca Alle) flew past to the northward, without even 
 attempting to alight in the cracks and openings, along 
 the edge of the fixed ice. Those birds, like the 
 loons, fly from one open water to another, over cracks 
 and openings, in which they can alight from time to
 
 1850. BROWN SLIME IN THE WATER. 177 
 
 time, to feed and rest. From the circumstance that 
 they never alighted in the neighbourhood of the 
 ships, we inferred, that there was open water at 
 a short distance to the northward, in the direction 
 they were flying, although we could not see it, or 
 any indications of it, with our best telescopes, from 
 the crow's nest. There was little in those inferences 
 to console us, since it was not in our power to put 
 them to the test, by advancing in the same direction. 
 July 5th. Our anticipations of a southerly wind 
 were ill founded, for the weather cleared up, and we 
 had one of the most pleasant days that could be wished 
 for. The refractive power of the atmosphere along 
 the horizon was very great ; every object around us 
 was distorted in a remarkable manner; icebergs as- 
 
 ' O 
 
 sumed a hundred fantastic forms in the course of an 
 hour, and the ice appeared to be raised in some parts 
 to the height of an insurmountable wall. This was 
 seen to the northward, and it was considered to be 
 an indication of open water, which corroborated the* 
 inferences that were made, from seeing the rotges"" 
 (alca alle) flying in its direction. 
 
 Twelve ships were discerned coming up the Strait, 
 and only one or two barriers of ice intervened be- 
 tween them and the space of water we occupied. 
 These would open by change of tide and allow the 
 ships to advance towards us. But we expected the 
 
 VOL. I. N
 
 178 ANIMALCULES ENTOMOSTRACA, ETC. CHAP. VI. 
 
 barriers would clear away a-head, as well as open 
 astern of us, and enable us to advance as fast 
 as the others could follow. This was by no means 
 unreasonable on our part, for the ice to the north- 
 ward seemed to have opened out, and shut at least 
 twenty or thirty times since the middle of May, during 
 any of which openings, whole fleets of ships might have 
 passed through. The sea around us abounded in a 
 brownish slime, which, when taken out of the water, 
 possessed a consistence resembling thin mucilage, and 
 did not mix very rapidly with it, even by slight agi- 
 tation. By the assistance of the microscope, it was 
 found to be composed chiefly of filamentous algae 
 (Meloseira) and animalcules, which differed from any 
 that I had hitherto observed. Their motions were 
 very slow compared with the active motions of the 
 ciliated infusoria, and their structure seemed to be a 
 gelatinous mass without cilia, which became inflected 
 as they crawled slowly among the fronds of the algas. 
 I could not distinguish organs of locomotion. At one 
 time it appeared as if the creatures adhered by one 
 extremity, while the other was drawn up by a con- 
 tractile process. Had I been able to discover the 
 same thing in several subsequent observations, it 
 would have proved the creatures to be some sort of 
 polyp. The slime also contained polygastric infuso- 
 ria, which were seen moving in the water, with
 
 1850. JOINED BY CAPT. AUSTIN'S SQUADRON. 179 
 
 their cilia in rapid and regular motion. In no part 
 of the Strait did we observe such large entomostraca 
 as in Melville Bay. Some of the individuals which 
 came into my hands measured fully half an inch 
 from the tip of the beak to the extremity of the 
 terminal setae or spines, and not less than an inch 
 from tip to tip of the antennae. Their darting 
 motions, and the graceful forms and attitudes which 
 they assumed after each sudden exertion, afforded 
 agreeable pastime to those who could see such beau- 
 tiful creatures and bestow a few minutes' attention 
 upon them. 
 
 July 6th. Towards morning the sky became 
 spread over with white clouds resembling streaks, 
 wisps and fibres, and it assumed a blue colour over 
 the southern horizon. The barometer was falling 
 gradually, but not to the extent that would indicate a 
 south-westerly gale. Every distant object was re- 
 markably visible, and at noon it was painful to be ex- 
 posed to the dazzling brightness of the sun. Small 
 flocks of loons and very large flocks of the little auk 
 were continually flying north, and occasionally alight- 
 ing in the water around the ships. The ice slackened 
 away a-head for half a mile or a mile, and as Captain 
 Penny and every person on board thought it was 
 commencing to open in good earnest after being so long 
 close, the ships were cast loose, and all hands were 
 
 N 2
 
 180 INTERCOURSE WITH NAVAL OFFICERS. CH. VI. 
 
 called to track them along the edge of the fixed ice. 
 After advancing about a mile, the ice ceased to opeii 
 away, and in a short time it began to return, which 
 forced us to retrace our steps as speedily as possible to 
 our old quarters, where attempts at cutting a dock 
 had been made. The wind came away from south- 
 west, and in a few hours we were joined by a whole 
 fleet of whalers, and ultimately by Captain Austin's 
 squadron. 
 
 The presence of so many ships in regular order at 
 the edge of the ice was really a splendid sight, em- 
 bellished as it was by the glory of England, the 
 British flag waving in the breeze. 
 
 We made the acquaintance of not a few of the 
 officers in the other ships, and, in all our intercourse 
 with them, the principal theme of conversation was 
 the most probable route pursued by the missing 
 ships, and what our chances were of finding them or 
 traces of them. Each had his opinion, for which 
 he could advance reasons that were plausible to 
 himself, and which he endeavoured to make plau- 
 sible to others. Some appeared to have been reading 
 much about the Arctic Regions, especially that part 
 of it which related to the Franklin Expeditions : 
 others there were who appeared to interest themselves 
 in nothing but the movements of the ice around us, 
 and the chances we had of soon getting clear ; and
 
 1850. SHIPS DRAWN INTO DOCKS. 181 
 
 there were others whose whole attention was occupied 
 in carrying out the orders of their respective com- 
 manders. 
 
 Mr. Penny went on board H. M. S. " Resolute," 
 and, having seen Captain Austin, he returned on 
 board the " Lady Franklin." In the course of the 
 afternoon, Captain Austin and Captain Ommaney 
 paid us a visit ; and, having taken a passing look of 
 our ships and their equipment, they expressed the 
 satisfaction they had in the efficiency of everything 
 connected with our Expedition. I believe they had 
 an objection to the limited room we had in our cabins 
 and sleeping apartments. Perhaps it might have 
 arisen from the contrast in that respect which existed 
 between the two Expeditions. We did not look for 
 commodious state rooms and cabins in such small 
 ships, nor were they at all necessary in such high 
 northern latitudes, where it is an object to be close 
 together, for the sake of saving fuel. 
 
 July 7tk, The wind was rather variable during 
 the early part of the day ; but towards noon it set 
 in with some energy from about south or south-west, 
 although the sky was very clear, and the barometer 
 was high; there were therefore no serious anticipa- 
 tions of a gale from that quarter. The ice, impelled 
 by the southerly wind, came in around the ships, 
 and aroused the Arctic navigators into activity 
 
 N 3
 
 1 82 SALINE INGREDIENTS OF ICE. CHAP. VI. 
 
 Hundreds of men could be seen planted along the edge 
 of the fixed ice, with their saws and triangles busily 
 employed cutting docks for the safety of their ships, 
 in case the pressure should become violent. Their 
 work was very laborious indeed; but it was en- 
 livened by hearty songs, in which one often recognized 
 
 " Britannia, Britannia, Britannia rules the waves," 
 
 issuing from one hundred voices, in good time and 
 with better effect. The whalers got into their docks 
 in about four hours ; but some of the ships in the fleet 
 were caught in the ice, and did not succeed in getting 
 in at all. Our dock was ready in less than four 
 hours, although it required seven hundred and forty 
 one feet of ice, four and a half feet thick, to be sawed 
 before it was accomplished. Considerable inconve- 
 nience arose from the constant liability there was of 
 the saw-draft becoming obliterated by freezing, and it 
 could only be prevented by removing the pieces as 
 soon as the sawing was completed. The temperature 
 of the water was 32, and at this it could be seen 
 freezing over in the calm pools and lanes, when the 
 sun was low and the weather was clear. Clear 
 weather seemed essential to the formation of young 
 ice on the water, when the temperature of the air in 
 the shade was about +35, and that of the water 
 itself 32. It appears strange that salt-water should
 
 1850. LAND ICE BROKEN UP. 183 
 
 freeze under these circumstances ; but it is neverthe- 
 less true, for it has been observed on many occasions. 
 The only way of accounting for it is, by attributing 
 a refrigerating effect to evaporation from the surface 
 of the water sufficiently powerful to form a film of 
 ice. If this film be examined, it will be found to 
 contain very little saline matter in proportion to the 
 water on which it is produced. The quiescent state 
 of the water affording the saline particles time to 
 subside after their density has been increased by re- 
 frigeration, and the property of expansion which 
 water possesses after being cooled down to 40, 
 until it becomes solid by congelation, are, in my 
 estimation, the real causes of salt-water ice contain- 
 ing less of the saline ingredients than the water. 
 According to this law, cold, although the opposite 
 condition of heat, the chief agent in Nature in 
 effecting wonderful changes, becomes a powerful in- 
 strument in destroying the equilibrium of the saline- 
 ness of the sea, and currents and counter-currents 
 will be necessary to restore it, after the comparatively 
 fresh ice has drifted from where it formed and then 
 becomes dissolved. 
 
 "We observed in the land ice to the north-eastward 
 several large cracks of various widths, from half a 
 dozen feet to as many yards or fathoms. This was 
 
 N 4
 
 184 BEAR HUNT. CHAP. VI. 
 
 anything but a favourable discovery, for the first 
 northerly wind, which was essential before we could 
 possibly get clear, might send us adrift among all 
 the large floes, and it might cost us weeks of hard 
 toil in the pack to extricate ourselves from its mer- 
 ciless influence. And it afforded another proof that 
 the season was too far advanced for an early, or an 
 easy, or a safe passage through the bay. Here I will 
 repeat, that in the first week in June 1845, when a 
 whaler to which I was attached entered Melville Bay, 
 ice attached to the land presented one continuous 
 sheet, without a single crack in it from end to end. 
 What a facility for an early and a quick passage ! 
 
 A bear was seen on the floe, and his motions were 
 watched, as he drew towards the ships. About a 
 dozen officers from the Expedition set out in full 
 chase, and succeeded in wounding him, but only 
 slightly ; on which he took to the water, and would 
 have speedily escaped, had not one of the boats of the 
 whalers, which had been observing the motions of 
 the party, intercepted him, and despatched him in the 
 water. The prize belonged to the whaling master 
 whose boat had taken it. 
 
 Bears can be attacked with most advantage in the 
 water. They endeavour to escape by swimming to 
 the ice, and if it is in the form of loose and detached 
 small floes, they dive underneath some of them, and
 
 1850. TRACKING THE SHIPS. 185 
 
 appear at the opposite side; or, to elude their 
 pursuers in the boats, they change their apparent 
 direction after diving, and appear in a different 
 place ; and before the boat can be got round, they 
 have their breath, dive again, and are off. 
 
 July 9th. The wind veered round to the north- 
 ward, and cleared away the mist and fog that per- 
 vaded the atmosphere during the whole of yesterday. 
 The sky cleared up, and distinct clouds began to 
 appear ; and were it not that the indications of the 
 barometer looked a little suspicious, being considerably 
 below its average, we thought that the weather, and 
 other circumstances connected with it, were to favour 
 us. The ice began to open out along the fixed ice 
 between us and the land; consequently, the whole 
 fleet was in motion at a very early hour. The route 
 we had to follow among icebergs was, to say the 
 least of it, very dangerous. In many parts, for many 
 miles in extent, the half of the surface of the water, 
 or the fixed ice, as the case might be, was occupied 
 by enormous icebergs, which extended to a depth of 
 three hundred fathoms. How chilly the water must 
 be, when it is occupied throughout its whole depth 
 by such refrigerators. In groups of eighty or one 
 hundred, planted closely together, and joined in com- 
 munication by one or two out of the groups, the 
 whole surface seemed to the eye of fancy as if it were
 
 186 COLLISIONS BETWEEN THE SHIPS. CHAP. VI. 
 
 covered over and occupied by towns, linked together 
 by delightful villas, beautiful suburban cottages, and 
 noble and ancient looking castles, and venerable 
 churches in ruins. "We made the best of the land- 
 floe that we could, by means of the track-rope ; but 
 it was very annoying to be interrupted by icebergs, 
 which often stood out in bold relief in its edge ; in 
 which case, the men had to get into the boats, and 
 having towed past it, they had to land upon the ice 
 again, and resume the tracking as before. Eight men 
 on a good floe tracked the " Sophia " along as fast 
 as they could walk : I believe faster than one person 
 could walk, because so many being together seems 
 to aiFord a kind of support, which is wanting when 
 one may be walking alone. They never went faster 
 than three miles an hour ; and if there happened to be 
 wind right in our face, suppose it were but a three 
 knot breeze, twice the number of men could not move 
 along at above half that rapidity. Three boats, with 
 six well manned oars in each, towing the " Sophia " 
 in a calm, could not make above a mile and a half an 
 hour ; and even with this, the boat's crews were per- 
 spiring very profusely. Among so many icebergs, 
 the tracking was frequently interrupted, before we 
 came to the extreme limits of the water, where we 
 came to a halt, until the ice should open. The other 
 ships soon came up with us, and made fast, some
 
 1850. SOUTH WIND. DOCKING THE SHIPS. 187 
 
 here, some there, as they could find room and safety, 
 among the towering icebergs and drifting floes. 
 
 Towards evening, the northerly breeze died away, 
 and the sky became overcast throughout its whole 
 extent. On the southern horizon, there was a blue 
 appearance, which made the experienced whaler 
 shrug his shoulders, in the anticipation of a south 
 wind. The barometer, too, had been falling, by this 
 adding its testimony to the indications of the southern 
 sky. The ice opened out under the influence of the 
 tide, and permitted us to move along. On one occa- 
 sion the " Lady Franklin " stuck in the lead, as she 
 was pressing through it, about one hundred yards 
 a-head of the " Sophia ; " and as no intimation had 
 been given of the fact to the " Sophia," a collision 
 took place, in which the "Lady Franklin" lost a 
 foot or two of her taffrail. 
 
 A more serious collision happened between H. M. 
 ships " Intrepid " and " Assistance," in which there 
 was the loss of a part of the steamer's bridges and 
 bulwarks, and of the ship's jib-boom. 
 
 After advancing half a dozen miles the whole fleet 
 was brought to a stand, and as the ice was pouring in 
 around the ships before a strong south wind, their 
 crews were as busy as possible, preparing docks for 
 their safety. In a few hours our two ships were out 
 of reach of the drifting ice, which by that time had
 
 188 STEAMEKS IN MELVILLE BAY. CHAP. VI. 
 
 surrounded all the ships and closed up all the water, 
 except small pools between the angular floes. There 
 was a very large iceberg about two hundred yards to 
 windward of our ships, which we feared would move 
 down upon us, and threaten our safety even in our 
 docks. I dare say our fears were uncalled for, 
 because the iceberg seemed to have a firm hold of the 
 fast ice. 
 
 July 10th. The weather continued very disagree- 
 able during the greater part of the day, the sky was 
 always overcast with a dense misty haze, which often 
 resembled a constant falling of fine snow, and, from 
 the force of the wind, and the length of time it had 
 prevailed from the same unfortunate quarter, we had 
 little hopes any open water could remain to the north- 
 wards along the fixed ice. Our companions the 
 rotges (little Auks) deserted us entirely, and, with 
 the exception of a few ivory gulls, which were seen 
 perching on the newly squeezed up hammocks, there 
 was nothing within sight to engage the attention of 
 those whose great delight was in sport. 
 
 Towards noon and evening, the azure sky opened 
 out, and the clouds could be discerned on it, but the 
 horizon was completely enveloped in a thick fog, 
 which hardly extended to an elevation of two hundred 
 feet. A hard frost set in, which soon sealed up all 
 the water in the pools, and made the snow on the ice
 
 1850. WHALERS ESTREATING. 189 
 
 quite hard and crisp. If two or three persons were 
 walking on it their steps might be heard at a con- 
 siderable distance, long before they could be seen 
 coming out of the fog. 
 
 July \\th. Soon after our usual breakfast hour 
 (8 A.M.), all the ships were moving, and extricating 
 themselves from the ice, which was beginning to 
 slacken off as the wind came away from the land. 
 The steamers, sending up dense volumes of smoke, 
 which rolled away to the southward before the wind, 
 added a feature to Arctic navigation which neither 
 we, Melville Bay, nor the Devil's Thumb, had ever 
 before witnessed. 
 
 Captain Austin very kindly offered Mr. Penny to 
 take his two little vessels in tow, but unfortunately, 
 just as we were all clear for starting, the fog, which 
 had partially disappeared early in the morning, spread 
 over the whole horizon, and obscured vision so com- 
 pletely around us, that objects such as icebergs could 
 not be distinguished at a distance of two hundred 
 yards. However, we endeavoured to move on by 
 means of boats going in advance, and hailing, every 
 five or ten minutes, " all clear," until we came to a 
 complete barrier, having advanced about four miles. 
 
 This was but a short trial that we had of the value 
 of steam among the ice ; notwithstanding, it proved, to 
 the entire satisfaction of all in our little Expedition,
 
 190 LARGE OPEN WATER. CHAP. VL 
 
 that it saved the sweat of those who could take ad- 
 vantage of it in calm weather ; and, moreover, they 
 could steam away through bay ice in calm weather, 
 when our utmost efforts to advance a foot were quite 
 useless. 
 
 Some of the whalers had by this time turned their 
 backs upon Melville Bay and gone southward ; others 
 still persisted in accompanying us, expecting to get 
 clear of the ice very soon, when they would proceed 
 to the westward. Six or seven were moored to the 
 same floe, waiting an opening in the ice which was 
 hourly expected from the favourable wind that was 
 blowing keenly down the Strait, and a little off 
 the land. 
 
 About one o'clock in the evening the fog cleared 
 away, the azure sky appeared, and distant objects 
 became plainly discernible at the most remote part of 
 the horizon. An extensive open water was dis- 
 covered to the northward ; but there was a barrier of 
 ice close a-head of the ships, which no influence, except 
 that of the wind or tide, could remove: I must say, 
 with such a good wind, it was rather tantalizing to 
 have to gaze upon an extensive sheet of water, the 
 small waves of which were seen breaking white for 
 miles to the north-westward, along the edge of the 
 fixed ice. At eight o'clock in the evening, the water 
 was advancing rapidly towards us, and in another
 
 1850. BAROMETER VERY LOW. 191 
 
 hour the steamers got up their smoke, and in a 
 quarter of an hour more we were in the open water, 
 under a press of sail plying northward. It was more 
 than Captain Penny could have expected, to be towed 
 by the already too much encumbered steamers against 
 such a strong wind; therefore, after having been 
 towed from the edge of the ice, he requested the 
 tow-lines to be cast off. Perhaps Captain Austin 
 would be a little puzzled to understand, what Mr. 
 Penny's reasons were for preferring to work to wind- 
 ward, to being towed along in a straight line, and 
 with twice the rapidity. For a few hours, as long as 
 the wind lasted, the steamers with the large ships in 
 tow, seemed to gain very little upon our ships ; but 
 about midnight the wind fell, and they were lost 
 sight of far a-head, steaming at full speed, and leaving 
 their smoky wake upon the clear and azure sky. 
 
 July 1 2th. At three o'clock in the morning the 
 wind, which had been blowing with great keenness 
 from north 22 east during the preceding fifteen hours, 
 and had done so much good by clearing away the 
 loose ice, died entirely away. The barometer in that 
 time had fallen upwards of half an inch, and now it 
 was down at 28 '95. The sky, before clear, began 
 to be overcast ; and the appearances on the southern 
 horizon were horribly threatening and ominous. We 
 were in the worst part of the bay ; but there was no
 
 192 VIOLENT GALE. CHAP. VI. 
 
 help for it. If we should be caught among the ice, 
 and our ships crushed to atoms in its powerful grasp, 
 it was a consolation to us that the other Expedition 
 had got on so far before ; for their chances of escape 
 we expected would thereby be considerably increased. 
 It will be very clear from this, that Mr. Penny's 
 reasons for not wishing to be towed by the steamers, 
 to their hinderance, under circumstances of which no 
 doubt his experience forewarned him, were not with- 
 out a solid foundation. Nothing can be worse than 
 keeping tl^e ships close together in Melville Bay, 
 especially when an object is to be attained, in which all 
 are conjointly concerned. If violent pressure should 
 happen among the ice, by the ships being spread over 
 a considerable space, their chances of escape from 
 danger are much greater than if they are within two 
 or three hundred feet of one another. The fearful 
 losses of 1830 are, in great measure, attributable to 
 this cause. If a dock be any safety from pressure 
 among the ice, that safety is reduced by having more 
 than one ship in the same dock. The fixed ice in 
 which the docks are cut is weakened very much by 
 large portions being removed to admit the ships in 
 groups of two or three within spaces of three or four 
 hundred feet. It is also weakened by making single 
 docks close to each other. The ships ought invariably 
 to keep close together when they are moving along,
 
 1850. VIOLENT GALE. 193 
 
 for fear of parting company ; but when they are to 
 be drawn into places of safety, there ought to be at 
 least a quarter of a mile between each, if some 
 particular spot should not offer such advantages as 
 would attract them to rush pell mell into it. 
 
 The wind began to blow from south-west, and 
 gradually increased in violence till evening, when 
 it raged vehemently, and brought the ice in the 
 middle of the Strait into the closest contact with that 
 which was fixed along the land. As soon as the 
 breeze began, our studding sails were spread out 
 before it, and our little ships hurried on until the 
 point of meeting of the loose and fixed ice brought 
 them to a stand. They were moored to the latter, and 
 in two or three hours before the ice had completely 
 closed in around them, they were drawn into docks, 
 which, from their depth and the direction in which 
 the pressure was likely to assail them, appeared 
 capable of enduring an ordinary amount of pressure 
 with impunity. 
 
 In the evening, about three o'clock, the gale had 
 attained its point of intensity. The large, blue, and 
 angry clouds drifted from south to north with great 
 rapidity, and often mercilessly discharged part of 
 their contents, sleet and rain, upon the merry groups 
 of sailors who were busily employed sawing out their 
 docks. The ice set very closely together, and some 
 
 VOL. i. o
 
 194 SHIPS PROTECTED BY ICEBERGS. CHAP. VI. 
 
 of the ships, which had not got into docks, were be- 
 ginning to feel it pressing hard against their sides. 
 They were protected by a group of icebergs which 
 lay between them and the drifting ice, and permitted 
 only the smaller floes to pass between them. There 
 was considerable danger, however, of the bergs them- 
 selves being driven down upon us ; and, in the event 
 of such an occurrence, our anticipations were not 
 very agreeable. 
 
 The squadron under the command of Captain 
 Austin could be seen about twelve miles to the north- 
 ward, among the ice ; for there was hardly a foot of 
 open water in any direction. Some of the ships 
 Captain Penny says, one of the steamers appeared 
 to have great pressure upon her from the angle of 
 the masts, which were the only parts that could be 
 clearly discerned above the horizon at such a distance. 
 From the direction in which they lay, and the direc- 
 tion of the line of the fixed ice, we entertained great 
 fears that they had lost the valuable guidance of 
 the fixed ice which every whaler follows, by even the 
 longest detours, knowing that, if he loses hold of it, 
 his chances of advancing are very much diminished, 
 especially if he is in Melville Bay. The ice, too, in 
 which we had taken shelter, in company with seven 
 whalers, was discovered to be detached from the land ; 
 but, as it was in floes of very large size, some of them
 
 1850. GALE SUBSIDING. 195 
 
 at least ten or twelve miles in circumference, we had 
 reasons for expecting an opening to appear between 
 the floe and the much broken-up ice outside with the 
 first favourable northerly wind. 
 
 The barometer commenced to rise with the com- 
 mencement of the gale, and continued to do so 
 steadily after it had reached its acme, and had 
 begun to subside. The temperature of the air at 
 noon was +40; and three hours later, with and 
 during the violence of the gale, it fell to + 34. The 
 high temperature during the early part of the 
 southerly wind, and when there was but a gentle 
 breeze, was, without any doubt, owing to a large 
 space of open water, which the previous northerly 
 wind must have freed from drifting ice ; and the 
 diminution of temperature, during the violence of 
 the gale, and when the sky was loaded with clouds, 
 was caused by the immense extent of icy surface, 
 in the form of pack, over which the wind had to pass 
 with great velocity. The temperature of the water 
 was 32 at first ; but, as the ice came close together 
 around the ships, it fell to 31, at which it remained 
 until the ice opened out, and the sun began to shine 
 brightly upon it. 
 
 July 16th. After remaining quite close for 
 several days, the ice began to open out a little, 
 
 o 2
 
 196 DREDGING IN TWO HUNDRED FATHOMS. Cn.VI. 
 
 under the influence of the tides and light northerly 
 and easterly winds. The icebergs began moving 
 about, and by this means they kept up a constant 
 source of alarm among the wary whalers, who from 
 time to time deepened their docks, to secure the safety 
 of their ships, in the event of a collision between them 
 and the icebergs. 
 
 A dredge was lowered to the bottom, at a depth of 
 upwards of two hundred fathoms, and it was dragged 
 along for a short distance, as the opening in the ice 
 permitted. When it was taken up, it contained 
 nothing but a little mud, and fragments of a sea- 
 urchin, which had been smashed at the bottom. 
 From an examination of the different parts of this 
 creature, there appeared to be no deviation from the 
 ordinary form and structure of the sea hedge-hog of 
 the British coasts. 
 
 Although we could not observe any difference 
 between creatures from such great depths, and other 
 creatures of the same genus from shallow water, it 
 does not necessarily follow that there is none. It is 
 impossible that the creature, adapted to live where the 
 superincumbent water is only five fathoms, can also 
 live in localities where it is upwards of two or three 
 hundred fathoms, without some provision, which, 
 unper circumstances so different, ought to be clearly 
 discernible to ordinary observation. This was at a
 
 1850. LOST THE FIXED ICE. 197 
 
 distance of nearly thirty miles to the westward of 
 Cape Seddon, in latitude 75 14'. 
 
 A smart breeze sprung up from N. E., which 
 opened out the ice around us, and made large lanes 
 of water among the large floes between us and the 
 land. This was very discouraging indeed ; for, had 
 we been able to stick by the fixed ice, we should 
 have advanced very favourably with such a wind, 
 As we were now situated, it was probable the ice 
 might not open out sufficiently, until we had been 
 carried among it far to the southward. We could 
 always see the ships of Captain Austin's squadron 
 closely beset among the ice where they had been 
 first caught. 
 
 July 17 th. At an early hour in the morning, 
 Captain Penny and Mr. Stewart were on the look- 
 out for a lead, as the ice had been moving a little 
 during the night. Immediately before breakfast, the 
 ships were cast loose, all hands were called, and a 
 bold attempt to push through every difficulty was at 
 once commenced. The whalers became disheartened 
 one by one, and had made up their minds to retrace 
 their way to the southward, as speedily as the state 
 of the ice would allow. The most sanguine among 
 them could expect to accomplish nothing in the way 
 of killing whales, by getting into Pond's Bay at such 
 a late period of the season. As we were about to 
 
 o 3
 
 198 AMONG THE DRIFTING PACK. CHAF. VI. 
 
 part with them, we felt that the extreme kindness 
 we had experienced at their hands entitled them to 
 our warmest gratitude ; and we could not but express 
 feelings of sympathy with them in their want of 
 success, both in whaling early in the season, and in 
 their attempts to make a north passage. 
 
 The dexterity displayed by the whalers in working 
 their dull ships among the ice, and the sudden evolu- 
 tions which they perform with them in the most 
 intricate passages, together with the alertness of their 
 crews on every occasion, afforded subject for ad- 
 miration to the officers of the Royal Navy who had 
 been in company with them, and more especially to 
 Captain Austin, who paid them a very high compli- 
 ment, by saying, that, had he a son intended for the 
 Royal Navy, he would send him to serve a short 
 apprenticeship in a whaler, where he might learn to 
 manage and work his ship with life and activity. 
 
 The wind continued from about N. E. during the 
 greatest part of the day; the sky was clear, and 
 there were pleasing indications of favourable weather 
 for one or two days at least, although the barometer 
 was not up to its average height. 
 
 The ice slackened along the chain of floes which 
 stretched to the northward between us and the land, 
 and afforded the only passage that could be taken. 
 From seven o'clock in the morning till nine at night
 
 1850. GETTING INTO OPEN WATER. 199 
 
 all hands had a busy time of it, " tracking," " tow- 
 ing," " warping," " heaving," and sailing, up one lane 
 of water, down another, and across a third, round 
 this point, and through that " nip," until we got into 
 open water, of which the northern limits could not 
 be'seen. The wind veered round to the southward, 
 and invited our studding sails to be spread out, and, 
 in a few minutes, we were scudding along at the 
 rate of two or three miles an hour. The ships of the 
 expedition under the command of Captain Austin 
 were seen, at this time, quite plainly from the decks 
 of our ships. They did not appear to be clear of the 
 ice, but the black smoke was rolling in immense 
 volumes before the wind, and this we took for a 
 pleasing sign that they would soon be as free as 
 ourselves. We had no doubt they had lost hold of 
 the fixed ice, a circumstance which, by this time, 
 they would have reason to lament rather seriously. 
 At half-past nine o'clock, a dense fog came on, after 
 the last puffs of the southerly wind had died away. 
 Our good fortune was not intended to last long ; 
 however, as there was abundance of open water 
 we groped our passage among the large floes, with 
 eight or ten men, tracking each ship at the rate 
 of about two and a-half miles an hour. The re- 
 mainder of the crews were ordered to their beds, 
 with the expectation we could carry on for an 
 
 o 4
 
 200 DENSE FOG. CHAP. VI. 
 
 indefinite time, by making one-half the crews relieve 
 the other. 
 
 At eleven o'clock we came in between two very 
 large floes, which appeared to be coming together 
 with great rapidity. The "Lady Franklin," was 
 headmost, and had just passed through : it was a cri- 
 tical moment for the " Sophia;" for, most pro- 
 bably, the rapidly advancing floes would have met 
 in her hold, had the men not exerted themselves with 
 an unusual amount of energy on the track-rope. As 
 she cleared the extreme point of one floe, and before 
 she was quite her own short length beyond the point 
 of danger, the collision took place, and a rising ridge 
 of hummocks marked the spot we had occupied but 
 two minutes previously. 
 
 At midnight, we came to a decided halt, owing 
 partly to the dense fog, which prevented us choosing 
 the proper " leads," but principally to the closeness 
 of the floes among which we had to seek a passage. 
 Captain Penny remarked, on several occasions, that 
 there must have been open water for a considerable 
 time where we then were. He appeared to lay great 
 stress upon the appearance of the ice at the edge of 
 the floes and " sconces." It was quite level with 
 the water, as if it had bent down from a plane with 
 the surface after the upper part of the portion under 
 water had been dissolved. It is very probable, there
 
 1850. ACTION OF THE SUN UPON THE ICE. 201 
 
 had been open water around those floes for some time, 
 since they had become detached from the main body 
 of the land ice : and it is certain that there had been 
 no pressure among them ; for, in that case, the edges 
 would have been turned up. But, at the same time, 
 it is equally probable that three or four days of a hot 
 sun, in which the exposed thermometer rose to 104 
 at noon, would effect a great change upon the ice by 
 the direct rays, and also by heating the water in which 
 it floated. A few hours' action of the sun's unin- 
 terrupted rays upon the water, if ice is not close at 
 hand, produces a change which the thermometer never 
 fails to indicate. The register of the temperature of 
 the water for yesterday and this day shows an increase 
 of two or three degrees during the hottest time of the 
 day. The water is always colder when the ice is not 
 at liberty to move along with it, than when it is free 
 to move under the influence of both wind and tide. 
 If the water be carried past the ice, as happens in the 
 case' of fixed surface ice and icebergs, or if the ice be 
 carried past the water, as happens in the case of ice 
 drifting rapidly before the wind, the invariable result 
 is solution of the ice and cooling of the water, pro- 
 vided that the temperature of the water be above that 
 at which the ice had formed. 
 
 July 18th. At two o'clock in the morning alight 
 breeze sprung up from about south, which partially
 
 202 THE NORTH WATER. CHAP. VI. 
 
 cleared away the fog, although still a whitish mist 
 pervaded the atmosphere in every direction. We saw 
 our passage very clearly into open water, leading 
 along a compact body of ice between us and the land. 
 Studding-sails were set on both sides, and as the ships 
 glided onwards, passing the motionless floes on the 
 unruffled water, we indulged in hopes that the breeze 
 would soon carry us into the North Water. This is a 
 name given by the whalers to a space of water, which 
 occupies the top of Baffin's Bay, and often extends 
 considerably to the southward of Cape York. From 
 the late period of the season we had good grounds 
 for expecting this water to have made favourable ad- 
 vances to the southward; but the recollection, that 
 winds had prevailed to a great extent which would 
 go far to prevent such an occurrence awakened fears 
 which were realised before mid-day, when the ice was 
 again observed trending from the offing in the direction 
 of the land. At nine o'clock the wind completely failed 
 us; consequently, our weary crews had to turn out to 
 their oars or the track-rope, as the case might be. 
 From four o'clock in the morning till ten for six 
 hours our attention was continually attracted by the 
 thundering noise and convulsive motions of an iceberg, 
 which happened to be crumbling to pieces in the act 
 of changing its position in the water. It was of im- 
 mense size, not less than two hundred and fifty feet
 
 1850. POINTED EMINENCES ON ICEBERGS. 203 
 
 above the surface of the water, and half a mile in length 
 and breadth. It could be compared to a cube, each of 
 the sides of which would measure half a mile. The 
 upper surface was perfectly horizontal, but presenting 
 a rough pinnacled appearance, as if a number of rough 
 irregularly pointed conical eminences, varying from 
 twenty to thirty feet in height, had been closely 
 planted side by side on it. The sides were perfectly 
 perpendicular, and almost quite straight, but they 
 appeared to be a little fissured, as if the depressions 
 between the pinnacles had been continued a little 
 downwards, in the form of cracks or narrow crevices. 
 There appeared to be no foreign substance on it 
 throughout its whole extent, not even a single frag- 
 ment of rock, to distract the eye from the universal 
 whiteness or the azure tint which pervaded it. It is 
 difficult to account for the pinnacles or " aiguilles," 
 in the entire absence of all such substances as might, 
 in proportion to their quantity, retard or facilitate 
 the action of the sun. Agassiz attributes their pre- 
 sence to the inequalities of the rocky bottom over 
 which the glacier has to move : " La presence des 
 aiguilles dans un glacier indique toujours un fond 
 tres-inegal sur une pente escarpee." * Professor 
 Forbes also says, heavings and contortions of the 
 surface of the glacier are owing probably to the 
 
 * See Agassiz, Etudes, chap. viL
 
 204 POINTED EMINENCES ON ICEBERGS. CHAP. VI. 
 
 inequalities of its bed.* However, it does not seem 
 probable that the comparatively small and numerous 
 conical eminences on the top of this iceberg could 
 have been owing to corresponding inequalities of the 
 bed over which it had to pass while in the glacier ; 
 because the necessary relation between the top and 
 the bottom, apart as they were, not less than two 
 thousand feet, implies a degree of plasticity which 
 would permit the ice at the surface to assume a per- 
 fectly level appearance. 
 
 On looking at the immense glacier range extend- 
 ing to the remotest part of the eastern horizon, and 
 stretching from south to north over a space of nine 
 or ten hundred miles, one can discern in little plots, 
 twenty to thirty miles from the sea, in the valleys, 
 and where the icebergs escape into the sea, exactly 
 the same rough appearance as the top of this ice- 
 berg. There seems to be one invariable condition 
 peculiar, if not also essential, to each plot ; namely, 
 a sloping descent, which exposes its surface less 
 obliquely to the rays of the sun than the surround- 
 ing surface, where it is comparatively smooth. This 
 was remarkably well seen on the glacier in the 
 bottom of Kingston's Bay, where the ice from side 
 to side of the top of the bay had a decided slope, 
 until it entered the sea. From this, one can easily 
 
 * Travels through the Alps, 2nd edit. p. 75.
 
 1850. POINTED EMINENCES OX ICEBERGS. 205 
 
 infer, that the action of the sun thawing the ice, and 
 thereby establishing small streams on its surface, is 
 the chief, if not the only, cause of these irregularities 
 of surface. The indentations which may be ob- 
 served on the southern side of icebergs which have 
 been stationary throughout the greatest part of 
 summer, will bear out such an inference tolerably 
 well. But, in spite of these facts, which bear with 
 more or less importance on the subject, the close 
 analogy there is between the advancing glacier and 
 a running stream, affords a substantial basis to the 
 theoiy of Agassiz and Professor Forbes. 
 
 When the top of an iceberg presents such a 
 striking appearance, one can have no doubt that the 
 original surface of the glacier is still uppermost, and 
 more especially when with this can be coupled the 
 presence of water-lines showing the rise and fall of the 
 tides in regular and horizontal lines, marking the exact 
 limits of both the streams and neaps. Sometimes 
 those lines may be seen dipping beneath the surface 
 of the water, owing to a slight change of position of 
 the iceberg; and they may frequently be observed 
 with a considerable accumulation of pressed-up floe 
 ice, occupying a height of perhaps one hundred and 
 fifty feet above their original level. 
 
 When an immense iceberg begins to tumble to 
 pieces and change its position in the water, the sight
 
 206 ICEBERG TUMBLING TO PIECES. CHAP. VI. 
 
 is really grand, perhaps one that can vie with an 
 earthquake. Masses inconceivably great, four times 
 the size of St. Paul's Cathedral or Westminster 
 Abbey, are submerged in the still blue water to 
 appear again at the surface, rolling and heaving 
 gigantically in the swelling waves. Volumes of 
 spray rise like clouds of white vapour into the air 
 all round, and shut out the beholder from a scene 
 too sacred for eyes not immortal. The sound that 
 is emitted is not second to terrific peals of thunder, 
 or the discharge of whole parks of artillery. The 
 sea, smooth and tranquil, is aroused, and oscillations 
 travel ten or twelve miles in every direction; and 
 if ice should cover its surface in one entire sheet, 
 it becomes broken up into detached pieces, in the 
 same manner as if the swell of an extensive sea 
 or ocean had reached it. And, before a quiescent 
 state is assumed, probably two or three large ice- 
 bergs occupy its place, the tops of some of which 
 may be at an elevation of upwards of two hundred 
 feet, having, in the course of the revolution, turned 
 up the blue mud from the bottom at a depth of two 
 to three hundred fathoms. 
 
 When we lost sight of this iceberg, or, I should 
 rather say, of its ruins, a state of perfect rest had not 
 been acquired. One-half of it had but turned 
 over upon its side ; so that the pinnacled top had
 
 1850. REFRIGERATING POWER OF ICEBERGS. 207 
 
 become the one side, while the bottom had become 
 the other : and the other half appeared to have been 
 reduced to three or four smaller masses, on the 
 smooth parts of which muddy spots were distinctly 
 visible. 
 
 When such immense quantities of ice are floating 
 about in and on the sea in Baffin's Bay, one need not 
 wonder at the low temperature of the water. We 
 very rarely had it above 32 ; and at that degree 
 it would hardly effect a perceptible change upon the 
 icebergs, although certainly it might dissolve the 
 floating ice of the sea-water. The towering ice- 
 bergs, over which the water exercises so little control 
 in this latitude, are the store-houses of cold, carrying 
 it into the depths of the ocean, and there concealing 
 it from the searching rays of the sun. 
 
 The weather continued very misty and thick all 
 day, and there was hardly any wind except very 
 partial puffs occasionally from S. W. We could 
 see (he fixed ice between us and the land, and the 
 loose ice on the opposite side, at the same time from 
 the decks of the ships. Both the crews (not screws) 
 were towing, tracking, warping, and heaving from 
 morning till night (although it was difficult to say 
 which was the one or the other), and if a nip came 
 in the way, which was not an unfrequent occurrence, 
 the saws were set to work ; and, by assiduity in their
 
 208 SLOW PROGRESS NORTHWARD. CHAP. VI. 
 
 use, our progress to the northward was accelerated 
 not a little. Captain Penny seemed to know by a 
 sort of instinct when the saws were to be of any use 
 in assisting to relieve a nip. On one occasion, after 
 the ships had been moored securely to the ice, and 
 the crews had turned in, expecting to have at least 
 six or seven hours' rest, he went first to the crow's 
 nest, and had a look around him, and thence to the 
 nip. In a few minutes all hands were called, the 
 saws were taken out, and in an hour and a quarter, 
 after sawing one hundred and fifty feet of ice, the 
 ships were hauled through and tracked northward, 
 just as severe pressure was commencing where they 
 had been moored but ten minutes previously. I 
 asked him how he could have known, and by what 
 rules he seemed to ascertain the exact changes the 
 ice was to assume. His reply was, that he could not 
 convey to another, in a few words, that which had 
 cost him many years to acquire by experience alone. 
 July 19th. After getting into a space of water 
 which was tolerably free from ice, the watch was 
 set, because the crews were completely exhausted. 
 Indeed, I believe the best plan would have been, 
 to h^e sent every man on board to rest for a 
 few hours. And it is very probable that this would 
 have been done as usual, but there seemed to be 
 chances that we should be able to advance by means
 
 1850. REJOINING CAPT. AUSTIN'S SQUADRON. 209 
 
 of tracking, which, in calm weather and on good 
 ice, half the crew did as well as the whole. Early in 
 the forenoon we joined Captain Austin's squadron, 
 and found it necessary to moor the ships, as the ice 
 was so close that we could not advance any further. 
 The weather continued very thick and foggy until 
 evening, when it cleared up for a few minutes, giving 
 us a glance of our true position, which was by no 
 means encouraging. We discovered that the large 
 floes were quite detached from the land ice, and 
 subject to be drifted about by the winds and the 
 advancing and receding tides. 
 
 Several attempts were made to get through, both by 
 the ships and the steamers ; but ice four to five feet 
 thick, and of all superficial dimensions, from a square 
 mile downwards, presented formidable resistance to 
 the well fortified bows and powerful engines of the 
 latter, and the thick and impenetrable fog completely 
 foiled all the fearless attempts and stratagems of the 
 former. It was found that the steamers could expe- 
 dite ice navigation considerably by coming against 
 the small floes in a nip with great force, and, having 
 hooked some of the pieces with the ice-anchors, 
 backing astern, dropping their load, and again re- 
 peating the shock, to back astern with some of the 
 loosening fragments as before. By this I was re- 
 minded of what I had often witnessed in a whaler 
 
 VOL. i. r
 
 210 EE JOINING CAPT. AUSTIN'S SQUADKON. CH. VI. 
 
 under the command of Mr. Penny, which he often 
 used as a huge battering-ram against the barriers of 
 ice, when they appeared disposed to open. It was 
 gratifying to know, that the engines of the steamers 
 received no injury from what appeared to be such 
 rough usage ; more especially as the suggestion had 
 proceeded entirely from Mr. Penny, who was at the 
 bow of the " Intrepid " when the ice-anchors were 
 fastened, and the ice was towed out for the first 
 time, by reversing the power of the engines.
 
 211 
 
 CHAP. VII. 
 
 PASSAGE THROUGH MELVILLE BAT TO CAPE YORK. 
 
 Great Detention. Position of the Ships. Agreeable Associates. 
 Plans for carrying on the Search. The Use of Kites. Gymnastics 
 on the Ice. Halketfs Boat. Blasting the Ice with Gunpowder. 
 Ships drifting southward. Young Ice. Little Auks. The 
 Narwhal, its Food, Structure, Habits, Measurements. Food for 
 the Dogs. Leave Captain Austin's Squadron. Fog and Diffi- 
 culties of Navigation. Violent Pressure. " Sophia " detained. 
 Intense Heat of the Sun's Bays. " Sophia " getting clear. The 
 Land Ice. Myriads of little Auks. Lost sight of the other Ships. 
 Mean Salinity, Density, and Temperature of Sea-Water. Pecu- 
 liar Agitation of the Water. Land Ice attained. Bay Ice. 
 Boring among young Ice. Bushnan Island. Decayed State of 
 the Ice. Icebergs numerous. Character of Bushnan Island. 
 Vegetation. The Glacier Range of West Greenland. Dan- 
 gerous Position of the Ships. Threatening Southerly Wind. Close 
 Approach to the North Water. 
 
 July 20th. Our attempts to get clear proved unsuc- 
 cessful : we had therefore to content ourselves among 
 the ice, at the mercy of the winds and the tide. 
 During the greatest part of the day a light breeze 
 prevailed from the southward, accompanied by thick 
 fog, and sometimes a sort of drizzling rain. The sky 
 
 t 2
 
 212 POSITIONS OF THE SHIPS. CHAP. VII. 
 
 was entirely overcast ; and the clouds in the " wind's 
 eye " had a very threatening appearance ; but the ba- 
 rometer had been above its average during the preced- 
 ing day, and it was rising ; hence the appearance of 
 clouds did not alarm us so much as it would have done 
 without the valuable assistance of the barometer. 
 The " Pioneer" steamer had to sustain rather severe 
 pressure ; and it was supposed at the time that some 
 damage had been received : but of this there were no 
 proofs. The other ships of the fleet were lying com- 
 paratively safe in angular openings among the floes. 
 It was necessary at times, however, to shift their 
 position out of places where the ice might be setting 
 together into places of greater safety. The " Lady 
 Franklin " was hauled into a dock that was cut out 
 of a large floe ; but it was not found necessary to 
 dock the " Sophia," as she lay very comfortably on 
 the sheltered side of a prominent point of a large 
 floe, immediately to the northward of the " Lady 
 Franklin." 
 
 July 25th. The close state of the ice rendered 
 it impossible to advance. At times it would slacken 
 a little, and set us all in motion ; but all our attempts 
 were unsuccessful. Our prospects were very bad, 
 almost as bad as they could be. The prevalence of 
 southerly winds would, to a certain^ extent, prevent 
 drifting down the Strait ; but this was of little im-
 
 1850. AGREEABLE ASSOCIATES. 213 
 
 portance, when we could not get clear of the ice on 
 the other hand. 
 
 We associated occasionally with the officers of 
 Captain Austin's squadron ; and the reciprocal kind- 
 ness which seemed to run through the whole fleet, 
 from the commanders downwards, was such as one 
 might expect to produce lasting impressions. It 
 was only what one could look forward to : for hu- 
 manity lays no yoke upon any person ; and in her 
 devoted train there are none whose services do not 
 proceed from the entire and unsolicited assent of the 
 heart. In all our intercourse we appeared to be 
 spell-bound by a universal fellow-feeling, which 
 seemed to increase with our increasing intimacy. 
 
 The commanders of the two expeditions often met 
 and arranged their plans of search, making them all 
 conditional on the state of the ice as the season 
 advanced. In no part of the world are the precon- 
 certed schemes of men more likely to be thwarted 
 than in the Arctic Regions, especially if they extend 
 far beyond the Arctic Circle. Two hours of a 
 south wind may undo the laborious exertions of as 
 many months ; and that is not a casualty, but a 
 common occurrence. Any one that has been in 
 Davis Strait has learned not to lay plans for to- 
 morrow while there. Such a general rule could not 
 but apply to the plans of Captain Austin and 
 
 f 3
 
 214 PLANS FOE THE SEARCH. CHAP. VII. 
 
 Mr. Penny ; they were therefore reduced to mere 
 or faintly probable outlines, which the first northerly 
 or southerly wind might confirm or scatter. 
 
 Captain Austin said "(D. V.) If we get through 
 Melville Bay in season for it, I intend to go down as 
 far as Pond's Bay with the e Resolute ' and her 
 tender, the ' Pioneer,' and there to commence my 
 search to the northward and westward on the south 
 shore of Lancaster Sound, until I reach Prince 
 Regent's Inlet and Leopold Island, where I expect 
 to fall in with the * Assistance ' and her tender, the 
 * Intrepid,* after they have explored the north side 
 of the Sound as far as the entrance of the "Wellington 
 Channel; and, having met, we will compare notes. 
 If we shall not have discovered any traces of the 
 missing ships, we will, if the season and the state of 
 the ice prove favourable, endeavour to penetrate to 
 Melville Island, there to winter. But of course, in 
 this plan, as in all others, we must be guided entirely 
 by circumstances which at present no man can 
 foreknow. And if it should happen to be im- 
 possible to accomplish this route in its several depart- 
 ments, our actions must be according to the best 
 of our judgments, taking care to be in winter 
 quarters by the llth of September at the farthest." 
 Mr. Penny said it was his intention to explore 
 Jones Sound, and, if practicable, to penetrate
 
 1850. THE USE OF KITES. 215 
 
 through it into the Wellington Channel, where he 
 would expect to meet H. M. S. " Assistance." Fail- 
 ing in this plan, from accumulations of ice and other 
 possibilities, he would require to use his judg- 
 ment, and endeavour to be guided by such circum- 
 stances as would tend to throw most light upon the 
 route of the missing ships. He recommended to 
 Captain Austin to take one or two Esquimaux on 
 board at Pond's Bay, to assist an exploring party in 
 some of the intricate channels or inlets on the south 
 shore of Lancaster Sound. He also recommended to 
 Captain Austin to put despatches into the hands of 
 the Esquimaux at Pond's Bay, who might be in- 
 trusted with them until they should find an oppor- 
 tunity of sending them on board the whalers, which 
 might take a run up in that direction along the west 
 coast of Davis Strait, after making the land about Cape 
 Searle. He mentioned the name of an Esquimaux 
 (Toonic) whom he had always found highly trust- 
 worthy, having known him for a number of years. 
 
 July 31s. During the time that we lay here, an 
 opportunity was afforded for a trial of kites in drag- 
 ging boats and sledges. In smooth water, with a 
 four-knot breeze, a larger-sized kite, with plenty of 
 line, would drag a whale-boat before the wind, at the 
 rate of about two miles an hour. And on smooth 
 ice, although covered with snow, a single kite dragged 
 
 P 4
 
 216 GYMNASTICS ON THE ICE. CHAP. VII. 
 
 Mr. Peterson's dog-sledge, with one man on it, during 
 a smart breeze, at the rate of two miles an hour; but, 
 like the boat, it was dead before the wind. In using 
 kites for dragging sledges along, there will be no dif- 
 ficulty in getting them up, for one can run upon the 
 ice with them until they are fairly on the wings of 
 the wind. There is, however, for using them in boats, 
 a serious objection in the difficulty of getting them 
 afloat; hence I do not believe that they can ever 
 be used for that purpose. For sledging I think they 
 may suit, although, perhaps, not to the extent that 
 one at first sight would be led to suppose. 
 
 Many times after the duties of each day were 
 over, the officers of both expeditions engaged in 
 gymnastics on the ice, and frequent were the 
 tumbles they got among the snow It was a sure 
 sign of good health and high spirits, although, I must 
 say, the spirits of some were beginning to feel the 
 effects of disappointed hopes. Our expedition was 
 much indebted to the kindness of Lieutenant She- 
 rard Osborne, commander of H. M. S. " Pioneer," for 
 supplying us with one of Halkett's india-rubber boats, 
 which belonged to himself. We did not stand in need 
 of it at that time; but, in the event of having to travel 
 over ice after the season was pretty far through, 
 I had no doubt it would be of invaluable service. 
 
 Blasting the ice around the ships of Captain
 
 1850. BLASTING THE ICE. 217 
 
 Austin's squadron was sometimes had recourse to, 
 but not with great advantage if the ice was pressing 
 together. If, on the contrary, it was opening out, a 
 charge of two or three pounds frequently imparted a 
 shock to it which facilitated the slackening process, 
 and enabled the ships coming against it to force it 
 out of the way. It was believed to be very useful in 
 relieving the pressure which a ship might be sustain- 
 ing between two entire sheets of ice, by reducing 
 them alongside the ship to a state of pack. This, 
 however, requires to be confirmed, for there happened 
 to have been but little pressure in Melville Bay this 
 season, to affect a single-bottomed ship; and, of course, 
 far less so, those of Captain Austin's squadron, which 
 were said to be as strong as wood and iron could 
 make them. 
 
 August 1st. The prevalence of southerly winds 
 kept the ice very close, so that we always found it 
 impossible to advance. The ice opened occasionally, 
 but never sufficiently to encourage our anxious ef- 
 forts to extricate ourselves. It was really tantalizing 
 to have to behold extensive lanes of open water be- 
 tween us and the land, where the ice appeared to be 
 fixed. The latitude was 75 25', but it varied about 
 two miles every day, which we lost by drifting to the 
 southward. The longitude was 61 40', but with 
 respect to it there was no variation for nearly a fort-
 
 218 YOUNG ICE. CHAP. VII. 
 
 night ; we could almost always see the land to the 
 eastward and northward. Sabine Islands were but a 
 few miles to the eastward ; but no one ever attempted 
 to pay them a visit, although the journey might have 
 been accomplished in two days. There was an objec- 
 tion to it in the lanes of water which intervened. It 
 was surmountable, however ; for active persons can 
 make their way remarkably well over ice in which 
 there is a good deal of open water. By a system of 
 leaping from hummock to hummock across the narrow 
 lanes and by ferrying across the wide ones, one gets on 
 very fast, but a boat-hook or boarding-pike is neces- 
 sary. It is very hard work, but excellent exercise. 
 We had too much time for exercise of this kind, in 
 the absence of such work as towing and tracking. 
 
 Young ice formed every night in the lanes of water 
 around us, although the temperature was rarely below 
 + 32. The temperature of the water was sometimes 
 so low as 30, and very rarely above 31, except when 
 a quantity was taken up from the surface of one of the 
 lanes during bright sunshine. Of course, the tempe- 
 rature noted would not be the mean temperature of 
 the water at the time. We had every reason to be- 
 lieve that the temperature of the water was as low as 
 it could be in proportion to its saline constituents. 
 As Captain Penny and Mr. Stewart were walking over 
 an extensive floe, about five feet thick, they came
 
 1850. YOUNG ICE. 219 
 
 to a hole in it about two or three feet in diameter. 
 It appeared to have been a hole which a seal had kept 
 open during winter. On looking into it a portion of 
 ice was observed extending from side to side, and 
 closing it up about three feet below the surface of the 
 water, and one foot above the under-surface of the 
 floe. It was removed with their boat-hook or pole; 
 and on their return, three hours afterwards, a second 
 accumulation of newly formed ice occupied exactly 
 the same place, and cut off all communication be- 
 tween the water in the hole above it and the sea 
 beneath. They had various conjectures as to the 
 cause of this unusual feature in the process of conge- 
 lation. I believe it arose from the comparatively fresh 
 water passing by a process of percolation from the 
 surface of the ice, where the high temperature during 
 the day had set it free, into the sea- water beneath ; 
 which, owing to its low temperature and degree of 
 salinity, was not capable of maintaining even a small 
 quantity of fresh-water in a fluid state without a part 
 of it becoming congealed. For example, the tempe- 
 rature of sea- water may be 29, and its degree of 
 salinity such as to maintain it in a fluid state ; if a 
 portion of the saline matter be removed, congelation 
 is sure to follow. Precisely the same thing occurs by 
 a small quantity of fresh-water at 32 being added 
 to a large quantity of sea-water at 29; a part of
 
 220 LITTLE AUKS OR ROTGES. CHAP. VII. 
 
 the water at 32 becomes congealed, because that 
 degree of salinity is not attained by the admixture 
 which will enable the whole to maintain its fluidity. 
 It appears rather strange, that the ice dissolving 
 upon the upper-surface by the action of the sun 
 should be congealing on the under-surface. 
 
 Immense flocks of rotges were continually seen, 
 flying north or south according to the direction of 
 the wind. They generally fly against the wind, 
 where they are sure to find open water. Their 
 flight is invariably high over a tract of ice presenting 
 no lanes or pools of water to receive them. In con- 
 sequence of the closeness of the ice around the ships, 
 our sport among them was not very extensive. 
 Captain Stewart on one occasion travelled a few 
 miles to a large angular opening, where they were 
 very abundant, and succeeded in shooting a great 
 number. He brought down twenty to thirty at every 
 shot. The rotge is excellent eating, and is highly 
 prized by every taste. I have heard the eider-duck, 
 and the long-tailed duck, and even the loon, de- 
 nounced by persons whose tastes were really fas- 
 tidious, but I never heard a word against the little 
 auk. Its flesh, and that of sea-fowl generally in the 
 Arctic Regions, improves very much by keeping for 
 a few weeks after being shot ; indeed, it is not un- 
 common to use them after they have been three
 
 1850. NAEWHALS. 221 
 
 months hanging to the booms around the ships' 
 quarter. 
 
 Narwhals (Monodon monoceros) were very abun- 
 dant in the angular openings close to the ships, and 
 their short-breathing blasts could be heard at every 
 hour of the day and night. We often endeavoured 
 to capture them, but in this respect we were very 
 unsuccessful, although one was obtained. Mr. Ward, 
 surgeon of H. M. S. " Intrepid," shot one dead upon 
 the spot, with an ordinary rifle. It did not sink ; 
 he therefore succeeded in securing his prize, won by 
 such mere chance. 
 
 One of our men fired a gun-harpoon into a large 
 female. She took out about thirty fathoms of the 
 whale-line, and then died. Immediately after this 
 beautifully spotted mammal of the deep was dragged 
 out of the water upon the ice, a thermometer was 
 plunged into its thorax through an opening made for 
 the purpose. It rose to -j- 97, although the medium 
 in which the creature had been living was nearly 
 seventy degrees colder by the thermometer of Fah- 
 renheit. The blood, as it issued from the wound 
 made in the chest for the thermometer, was very 
 dark, but the moment it became exposed to the air 
 it assumed a bright florid colour. This appearance 
 was instantaneous when a quantity was poured into 
 the sea before coagulation had taken place. There is
 
 222 THE NARWHAL'S FOOD. CHAP. vn. 
 
 on its back, at a point opposite the spine, a hardening 
 of the skin and subjacent tissues, which resembles the 
 rudiments of a dorsal fin. The stomach was found to 
 contain about half a bucketful of half-digested matter. 
 I could easily recognise fishes of two kinds (very pro- 
 bably the Merlangus polaris, and either the young of 
 Hippoglossus vulyaris, or a small variety of the same 
 species), abundance of crustaceans, and hundreds of 
 the horny beaks of the cuttle fish. The lining mem- 
 brane of the stomach was exceedingly vascular ; and if 
 one were to measure its prodigious extent, it would 
 be found spread over a very wide space. It is re- 
 markable how perfect the digestive apparatus was, 
 even to ordinary observation ; commencing with the 
 stomach and following the whole digestive tube to its 
 termination, where the diameter is less than half an 
 inch, one has a decided proof, that almost all the food 
 of the animal is intended to be received into the 
 system as elements of nutrition. It does not neces- 
 sarily follow that, because an animal is of very great 
 size, its food must be in the same proportion to its 
 bulk as that of much smaller animals. On the 
 contrary, the proportion of food diminishes according 
 to the increase in size of the animal. A perfect state 
 of the assimilative organs, accompanied by great in- 
 action of all the processes of excretion, accounts most 
 satisfactorily for the immense bulk of the cetacea.
 
 1S50. STRUCTURE OF THE NARWHAL. 223 
 
 The skin of the narwhal is about half an inch 
 thick ; and, like that of all the cetacea or whale tribe, 
 it is highly prized by the Esquimaux as food, and by 
 the Danes as an invaluable antiscorbutic. The ex- 
 tensive and beautiful net-work of capacious veins, 
 arranged in front of the spinal column, within the 
 thorax, shows very clearly the reservoir which re- 
 lieves the lungs and the brain when the animal has 
 to remain under water. The quantity of circulating 
 fluid is so great, that perhaps two-thirds of it can be 
 stored up in this way, charged as it is with the waste 
 of the tissues. There can be no doubt whatever, that 
 this slow condition of the function of the lungs is 
 essential to the development of the accumulation of 
 fat which is found immediately beneath the skin. 
 Again, the rapid motions of the animal in the water 
 would yield an enormous amount of heat to the sur- 
 rounding medium, were it not for the non-conducting 
 property of the fat, which is wisely laid up in store 
 where it is most required. The skin, as well as the 
 fat, conducts heat very slowly, and becomes equally 
 important in preserving the warmth of the animal. 
 The functions of the tooth or " horn," as it is gene- 
 rally called, of the male narwhal are very doubtful. 
 It is very probably one of the numerous marks 
 which distinguish the sexes. The Esquimaux, how- 
 ever, believe it is of essential importance in stirring
 
 224 FOOD FOR THE DOGS. CHAP. VII. 
 
 up the food of the animal at the bottom. Were 
 this true, we asked, how are the females, which are 
 destitute of such weapons, to obtain their food ? By 
 feeding upon what the others have sedulously stirred 
 up for them, was the reply. It would be well for 
 the wivea of the Esquimaux, and perhaps also for 
 wives in more civilized communities, that the ex- 
 ample of the fond narwhal were followed.* 
 
 One can easily conceive what a hearty meal 
 the narwhal proved to our hungry dogs. The 
 
 * Measurements of a female Monodon killed in Melville Bay, 
 July 31st, 1850: 
 
 Length along the back, from the tip of the upper jaw to the 
 
 fork of the tail - - 13ft. 
 
 Girth immediately behind the fins - - - 7 ft. 
 
 From the eye to the angle of the mouth - 8 in. 
 
 From the angle of the mouth to the tip of the under lip 7i in. 
 
 From the eye to the ear - - - 5 in. 
 
 From the eye to the base of the fin - - 18 in. 
 
 Fin from the body to the tip - - - 17 in. 
 
 Tail from tip to tip - - - - - 37 in. 
 
 Fork of the tail to the anus - - - 5 ft. 
 
 Mammae posterior to anus - - - 2 in. 
 
 From the umbilicus to the fore part of the vulva - 25 in. 
 
 From the lower lip to the umbilicus - - 6 ft. 
 
 From the eye to the spiracle - - - 15 in. 
 
 From the tip of the upper lip to the fore part of the spi- 
 racle - - - - - - 20 in. 
 
 Spiracle in length - - 3 in. 
 
 Thickness of blubber - - - - 3 in. 
 
 Thickness of skin - - - - in.
 
 1850. FOOD OF THE IVORY-GULL. 225 
 
 poor brutes were faring very ill on board ship, 
 for their principal food since we got them con- 
 sisted of vegetable matter. However, they appeared 
 to be in good condition, and gave promise of useful- 
 ness in the sledge when their service might be 
 required. They ravenously devoured whole masses of 
 the flesh and the skin, and lapped up the blood from 
 the floe. Some of them afforded most evident proofs 
 that it suited their tastes, for they ate the same twice 
 or three times in succession. After it was flensed, 
 and a great part of the flesh had been removed, they 
 were permitted to exercise their teeth upon the bones. 
 It was not unusual to see one or two of them, 
 all besmeared with blood and oily filth, sticking 
 joyfully among its ribs, determined to keep pos- 
 session as long as there was anything worth having. 
 
 A snow-bird was observed occasionally among the" 
 hummocks, but it never ventured to approach the 
 carcass of the narwhal, although it had frequent op- 
 portunities to do so with perfect safety. It is not 
 at all probable that the ivory-gull feeds upon such 
 highly developed animal tissues as that of the cetacea; 
 fish, and perhaps also Crustacea, picked up among the 
 ice, seem solely to constitute its food. 
 
 The close state of the ice prevented the ships 
 moving with anything like freedom, even when 
 partial openings took place among it. "We soon dis- 
 
 VOL. I. Q
 
 226 DENSE FOG. CHAP. VII. 
 
 covered that the large ships of Captain Austin's 
 squadron were anything but a match for us among 
 the ice, even with the invaluable assistance of steam. 
 It was not without the greatest reluctance that we 
 increased the distance between the two Expeditions, 
 as both ships and steamers stuck fast among the ice. 
 It was a source of pleasure to us, to see their smoke 
 getting up, as we expected them to join us in a 
 few hours. But our hopes were invariably disap- 
 pointed; for the ice always closed in around them, 
 and brought them to a stand, in spite of all that 
 steam and gunpowder could do to set them free. 
 The wind occasionally came from the land, and 
 opened out the ice so much, that we could make use 
 of our sails, which was exceedingly agreeable. At 
 such times, our progress was very much retarded by 
 fogs, which lay close along the horizon, and obscured 
 vision so much, that objects could not be discerned 
 at a distance of two hundred yards. By ascending 
 to the crow's nest one could get out of it, and com- 
 mand an extensive view of a sea of fog, in which 
 icebergs appeared to rise as if out of the water, and 
 the ships could be distinguished only by that portion 
 of their masts which rose above it. This condition 
 of the atmosphere was a serious obstacle at all times. 
 Had we been at the fixed ice, it would hardly have 
 been any obstacle; for the. free border of the ice
 
 1850. DIFFICULTY OF ICE-NAVIGATION. 227 
 
 would have led us, to a certainty, as safely as if the 
 weather had been clear. 
 
 Davis Strait rarely presents this difficulty to navi- 
 gation early in the season. It only comes on after 
 midsummer, when there is open water and drifting 
 ice over all the Strait, and the consequently abundant 
 evaporation becomes condensed towards midnight by 
 the cold, which is the result of the increasing obliquity 
 of the sun's rays. It was always observed, and 
 noted in the meteorological registers, that fogs pre- 
 vailed much more frequently during the night than 
 the day. 
 
 August 3rd. The wind for two or three days pre- 
 vailed in gentle breezes, from the northward and 
 eastward ; and, under its influence, the ice opened out 
 decidedly, and enabled us to advance, although the 
 constant presence of thick fogs was a serious obstacle 
 to sure and rapid progress. I venture to say that 
 some large floes had been circumnavigated. Captains 
 Penny and Stewart, with Messrs. Manson and Mar- 
 shall, and every person in our Expedition, had but 
 one opinion, that the sooner the land ice to the east- 
 ward was reached, the sooner would we begin to 
 make our progress through Melville Bay at such a 
 rate as to complete it this season. Consequently, 
 our course was eastward, every time the ice favoured 
 
 Q 2
 
 228 VIOLENT PRESSURE. CHAP. VIL 
 
 our movements. The usual routine of warping, heav- 
 ing, sawing off points, tracking, towing, and making 
 sail three or four times every day, was followed out 
 very closely. A minute detail of every thing done 
 on board for a week, would shew how exceedingly 
 little variety there was in the duties of every day. 
 It was not unfrequent to have every person on board 
 busily employed for four-fifths of the time. These 
 are long hours, especially when the work engaged in 
 is such as to induce profuse perspiration. 
 
 At an early hour this morning, the "Lady 
 Franklin," always leading, got into a lead which 
 closed upon her, and caught the " Sophia " a few 
 yards astern. The pressure continued, but it changed 
 its character a little, for it was opening ahead of the 
 one ship, while it was pressing closely together astern 
 of the other. With some little difficulty, our rudders 
 were unshipped, and preparations were made to re- 
 ceive the pressure, however severe it became. In a 
 few hours, the " Lady Franklin " got clear, but the 
 " Sophia," instead of getting clear also, was raised 
 nearly three feet above her usual water-lines out of 
 the water ; and, to show that there must have 
 been a little twisting of her quarter, the door of my 
 little cabin would neither open nor shut to the fullest 
 extent, without a violent effort. Towards night, the 
 pressure eased off a little, and excited hopes that very
 
 1850. THE " SOPHIA " DETAINED. 229 
 
 soon we would be permitted to follow the " Lady 
 Franklin," which appeared to be waiting patiently, 
 but anxiously, for our release. Our hopes were not 
 realised ; for, during the remainder of the night, the 
 ice hardly moved one way or another. 
 
 August &th. The barrier was carefully watched, 
 so that we might be in readiness to embrace the 
 earliest opportunity of getting through it. Although 
 it did not fall to my lot to have to observe its 
 motions, I could not help participating in the interest 
 which all seemed to take in it. How tantalising 
 is it to find a barrier opening a few feet, then 
 remaining quiet for two or three hours, after which 
 a slight motion is discovered, but too slight to re- 
 veal whether it is favourable or unfavourable; a 
 mark is applied, and, after one is absent for six 
 hours, it may shew that only as many inches have 
 been gained. 
 
 A small ice-saw was obtained from the " Lady 
 Franklin," and with it some points were sawed off to 
 facilitate our progress through the barrier, after it 
 should open sufficiently to encourage a daring at- 
 tempt. The crew were not called out to the saw, as it 
 happened to be what the whalers call a " whip saw," 
 and could be used with great advantage by three or 
 four men. It was gratifying to know that the men, 
 who greatly required it, were getting a good spell 
 
 Q 3
 
 230 GREAT HEAT OF THE SUN*S RAYS. CHAP. VII. 
 
 below, which would prepare and arm them for a re- 
 newed and desperate struggle with the ice. 
 
 The thermometer, freely exposed to the rays of the 
 sun, and placed at right angles with them, rose to 
 + 90 at noon, and + 96 at three P.M., on the 2nd ; 
 to + 78 at six P.M., and +60 at nine P. M., on the 
 3rd ; and to + 94 at noon, + 94 at three P. M., and + 
 74 at six P. M., on this day. The temperature in the 
 shade, at the same hours, gave a mean of 50 colder ; 
 the minimum difference being 32, and the maximum 
 60. Supposing the weather to have been perfectly 
 clear during a whole day, the indications of a ther- 
 mometer, exposed freely to and at right angles with 
 the rays, registered every hour, would afford materials 
 by which a curve could be projected, whose two cul- 
 minating points would correspond with noon, and 
 zero with midnight. But it is impossible to have the 
 weather so clear as to afford such results ; consequently, 
 one will often find the exposed instrument much 
 higher at other hours than at noon : in this respect, 
 its indications are brought into a degree of relation 
 with those of the one altogether in the shade. I 
 mention these facts to shew, that, although the men 
 had to engage in their work among ice, still it was 
 not such cold work as the chief feature in its cha- 
 racter might lead one to suppose, and that the 
 quantity of perspiration which flowed from their
 
 1850. THE "SOPHIA" GETTING CLEAR. 231 
 
 skin might be made a measure of the clearness of 
 the weather, or of the sun's altitude, as well as the 
 exposed thermometer or the actinometer. 
 
 August 5th. At nine A. M. the barrier of ice began 
 to give hopes we should soon be released from its 
 powerful influence. All hands were called imme- 
 diately, and our work was commenced forthwith, 
 although as yet there was not enough room for the 
 ship to press through. The portions of ice that had 
 been sawn off, and other loose pieces, were drifted into 
 the widest parts of the nip, to make as much room 
 as possible. At ten A.M. the " Sophia" was started 
 and moved onwards : in many parts there was hardly 
 room for her breadth ; however, by angling and en- 
 tering fair, she advanced about a quarter of a mile. 
 The nip began to close astern, and in ten minutes 
 the ice was squeezing together where we had been 
 lying half an hour previously. It came together 
 a little ahead too, as well as astern, and, from the 
 presence of a small piece with a long projecting 
 tongue, we apprehended the " Sophia " would be 
 again caught. The saw was applied, but it stuck 
 fast in the fissure it had made, and was nearly lost. 
 At length, by the untiring efforts of the crew under 
 the command of Captain Stewart and Mr. Manson, 
 she got clear, and was towed with three boats in the 
 direction the " Lady Franklin " had taken ; and at 
 
 Q 4
 
 232 TWO SHIPS SEEN TO SOUTHWARD. CHAP. VII. 
 
 seven P.M., after nearly six hours of incessant towing, 
 we came up with her, and made fast to a large floe, 
 which, with others of equally large dimensions, lay 
 chained along the west side of a large space of open 
 water, which extended right round Melville Bay at 
 the edge of the fixed ice. But one nip, or barrier, 
 the point of junction of any two floes, lay between 
 us and this water ; however, it was very extensive, 
 as each floe was from two to ten miles in circum- 
 ference, and perhaps even much more. 
 
 Captain Austin's ships were about eight miles to 
 the S. W. of us. There appeared to have been no 
 change in their relative positions since we left them, 
 except that the " Intrepid " had separated to a greater 
 distance from the others. Mr. Penny had been 
 signalising, to Captain Austin, the good prospects 
 there were, if the land ice could be attained. Two 
 small schooner-like vessels were seen about fifteen or 
 twenty miles to the southward, and it was supposed 
 they were the " Felix," under the command of Sir 
 J. Ross, and another small vessel, which we heard 
 was fitting out for Prince Regent's Inlet, whsn 
 Captain Austin's Expedition left England. 
 
 August 6th. It was deemed advisable to change 
 our position for a better one about ten miles further 
 north, where a barrier, only a quarter of a mile in 
 breadth, lay between us and "the water." The
 
 1850. THE OTHEE SHIPS ASTERN. 233 
 
 weather was remarkably favourable ; the sky clear 
 and serene, with scarcely a cloud upon it, the water 
 as smooth as possible, and covered with myriads of 
 the little auk, but occasionally ruffled by a gentle 
 breeze from E. or S. E. 
 
 The latitude at noon was 75 48', and the longitude 
 62 14'. Our last shift of position increased the 
 distance between us and the other ships so much, 
 that they could hardly be discovered from the crow's 
 nests. While we awaited the opening of the ice, 
 one or two boats were sent to shoot rotges. It was 
 evening ; and, as young ice formed on the water as 
 soon as the sun's rays began to fall too obliquely, 
 they could be seen flying north or south, wherever 
 the tide might happen to be passing away from the 
 fixed ice, carrying along with it the young ice, and 
 leaving water free from any impediments to them. 
 I have often seen a poor little rotge, struggling in 
 a small hole in young ice, which was too weak to 
 support the creature altogether, but sufficiently 
 strong to hem it in on all sides, and prevent the 
 impetus in the water whicji such a comparatively 
 heavy little bird requires before it can rise from the 
 water. Although they were deserting the ground 
 in this manner, several hundreds were obtained in a 
 few hours. 
 
 August 7th. Every return of this day ought to
 
 234 ABUNDANCE OF SEALS. CHAP. VII. 
 
 awaken grateful feelings in our minds, in connection 
 with Melville Bay. A gentle breeze sprung up from 
 E. N. E. at an early hour, which shifted the position 
 of the large floes so much, that before eleven o'clock 
 the barriers opened out, and our ships were once more 
 in open water along the land ice. There was a good 
 deal of bay ice close to the drifting floes, but it 
 became weak, and consequently less troublesome, as 
 we approached the fixed ice. It was a source of deep 
 regret to us, that the other ships were not here also ; 
 had they been so, how well the steamers would have 
 done, in such calm and easy weather, in this exten- 
 sive and apparently boundless sheet of water ! Great 
 numbers of the harp-seal (Phoca Grcenlandica) could 
 be seen on the floes. They were remarkably wary, 
 never permitting a boat to approach within rifle-shot. 
 But there was no difficulty in distinguishing them, 
 from every other species of large seal, by the varie- 
 gated colour of their backs. 
 
 By towing with the boats, and by sailing when 
 there was wind, we reached the land ice, and com- 
 menced tracking to the northward with only half the 
 crew of each ship. The edge of the ice was gene- 
 rally very smooth, about four and a half or five feet 
 thick, and it led away in the direction of Cape York. 
 It was observed that the ships steered very badly, 
 when their progress was slow. The water around
 
 1850. PECULIAR AGITATION IN THE WATER. 235 
 
 them seemed to be in a state of agitation, appearing 
 as if an atmosphere of it would move along with 
 them, in the form of miniature whirlpools and eddies. 
 This seems to depend upon the density of the water, 
 which must vary according to its temperature, and 
 its degree of salinity. The process of congelation 
 during winter furnishes the surface of the water 
 with a layer of ice, comparatively free from saline 
 matter ; which, on being thawed, will yield a layer of 
 fresh-water, varying in depth according to the thick- 
 ness of the ice, and will probably remain on the 
 surface until agitation mixes it with the water 
 underneath. And when the surface of the water is 
 in some parts freely exposed, and in others protected 
 by ice, it must be heated unequally by the action 
 of the sun, which also causes such a difference in 
 the density, as requires commotion to restore it to 
 its equilibrium. The tides in the sea must prevent 
 and obviate these differences of density, by keeping 
 it constantly in motion ; and I have no doubt they do 
 so to a certain extent, but not sufficiently to conceal 
 them entirely from observation. Let a person stand 
 upon the edge of the fixed ice, after it has begun to 
 show that the action of the sun has already raised 
 the temperature of the water, and he will observe a 
 constant stream issuing from beneath the ice, which 
 at first he will confound with the receding tide ; but
 
 236 BAY ICE VERY TROUBLESOME. CHAP. VII. 
 
 if there be a fragment of loose ice, drawing even a 
 few feet of water, within half-a-dozen yards of him, 
 he will be astonished that the distance between it 
 and the fixed ice is never increasing under the 
 influence of what appears to be a very rapid tide; 
 and he will have a convincing and unequivocal 
 proof, that the commotion in the water is for no other 
 purpose than to restore the mean density, which had 
 been disturbed. 
 
 August Wth. We experienced great annoyance 
 and hindrance from the bay ice, which formed every 
 night, and acquired great strength by overlapping, 
 as it always did during the advancing tide, when the 
 water on which it had formed became diminished in 
 extent. The water was, to say the least of it, covered 
 with little auks, which were so tame, that a boat 
 could go dashing in among them, and kill scores with 
 boat-hooks and oars. In shooting them, there is a 
 good deal of tact displayed by the sportsman, in 
 keeping at the greatest distance at which they can be 
 killed, for then the charge of shot is well scattered 
 among them ; it is also proper to stoop as low as 
 possible, so as to send the charge raking among them. 
 I have no doubt, in this way, one shot might kill fifty 
 or sixty. 
 
 At times, we had favourable winds from the east- 
 ward, which enabled us to advance in spite of the
 
 1850. " BORING." 237 
 
 young ice. We found that our ships suited for " bor- 
 ing " among it particularly well ; the great obliquity 
 and sharpness of their bows seemed to be perfect in 
 that respect. Although the inertia of the " L ady 
 Franklin " was nearly twice as great as that of the 
 " Sophia/' the latter appeared to " bore " with greater 
 ease, and to advance more rapidly, than the former. 
 This must have been owing to some peculiar differ- 
 ence in the form of the bows ; that of the " Sophia " 
 being a little oval as well as sharp, while the " Lady 
 Franklin's " was almost wedge-shaped. 
 
 Yesterday, in latitude 76 5', we passed whole cities 
 of icebergs, clustered together in the form of for- 
 midable fortifications, which the ships dared not 
 approach, with the view of passing between them. 
 Many of them appeared to be afloat, which was the 
 source of the dangers we apprehended. One was ob- 
 served of great dimensions, with one of its sides rising 
 (not quite vertically) out of the water, to a height 
 of about one hundred and fifty feet, from which 
 the flat top sloped gradually, until it dipped beneath 
 the water ; the other two sides presented the form of 
 a triangle. But the most singular phenomenon that 
 I witnessed in Davis Strait, was the distance to which 
 a floe, about four or five feet thick, had been pressed 
 up its sloping top. It would have been a grand 
 sight, to have beheld the ice descending perpen-
 
 238 ASHORE ON BUSHNAN ISLAND. CHAP. VII. 
 
 dicularly in the form of a cascade into the water, 
 from a height of thirty to forty feet on one of the 
 sides. 
 
 At six o'clock in the morning, we came to a 
 barrier between the loose floes and the land ice, 
 about seven miles south of Bushnan Island, in 
 latitude 76 10' and longitude 65, where we had to 
 remain some time. A party, of which I happened 
 to be one, went ashore to the island. The ice 
 over which we had to pass was full of holes, which 
 communicated with the water underneath. It 
 seemed to have been much more decayed than the 
 ice in the middle of the Strait, or the ice we had 
 been tracking upon for nearly a week before. The 
 ice in the middle of the Strait generally moves with 
 the tide, which saves it very much from the dis- 
 solving action of the water. The ice in the bottom 
 of Melville Bay, where we had been tracking during 
 the last five or six days, from the disposition of the 
 surrounding land, receives the tide underneath it in 
 an entire wave, which fills up the bay without esta- 
 blishing rapid currents in any part ; and thereby it is 
 saved, in a great measure, from the action of the 
 water, which is so remarkable in dissolving it where 
 the tide is rapid. The tide appears to sweep to the 
 eastward into Melville Bay, along the land of which 
 Cape York is the western point, and around Bush-
 
 1850. ROTTEN ICE. 239 
 
 nan Island. The decayed ice in this part may be 
 accounted for by the probable rapidity of the tides. 
 However, it is also very probable, that the action of 
 the sun's rays, rendered intense by powerful reflec- 
 tion from crowds of icebergs, and coupled with 
 radiation of heat from the land, is the chief cause of 
 the wasted state of the ice. The ice had shifted its 
 original position, and a wide crack was the result. 
 It came exactly between us and the island, and 
 threatened to disappoint our hopes of ascending its 
 rugged sides. A piece of loose ice was discovered 
 in it, on which we ferried across with our boat- 
 hook, and, in another half-hour, we were clambering 
 over the rocks. We ascended to the highest part of 
 the island, where there is a large cairn, which I 
 believe was first built by Sir J. Ross, in 1818, since 
 which time it has been frequently visited by the 
 whalers. Its height above the sea is about eight 
 hundred feet, on the south-western part of the 
 island. From nearly W. to S. S. E. the island pre- 
 sents a bold and almost perpendicular front, which 
 appears to be surrounded by deep water. And, 
 from nearly the same point, it slopes gradually, but 
 very irregularly, to the eastward. The rocks aro 
 almost entirely metamorphic, although granite can 
 be detected, at the south-eastern extremity, a little 
 above the level of the sea. Here disintegration goes
 
 240 VEGETATION. CHAP. VII. 
 
 on very rapidly from the melting snow, running 
 water, intense frost alternating with heat, and the 
 action of the ice at the water's edge. Vegetation 
 was very far advanced. In some parts, especially the 
 southern slopes, it was rather luxuriant. The An- 
 dromeda tetragona was beginning to fade; a specimen 
 or two in bloom was obtained in a shaded spot. 
 There was a whole array of Arctic plants. The well- 
 known yellow Arctic poppy (Papaver nudicauty, one 
 or two varieties of creeping willows, several grasses 
 ten or twelve inches in length, the Alopecurus 
 AlpinuSy and hosts of Cryptogamic forms could be 
 recognised. 
 
 We commanded a splendid view in all directions. 
 On the one hand, there was abundance of open water, 
 stretching away to the west and north-westward, Cape 
 York, and Baffin's Bay, with its impenetrable covering 
 of ice drifting imperceptibly to the southward. On 
 the other, were Prince Regent's Bay, Cape Melville, 
 Melville Bay, and an extensive glacier range, lost on 
 the most remote part of the horizon, over one-half 
 the compass, stretching to the southward for upwards 
 of nine hundred miles, pouring forth magnificent ice- 
 bergs, through the deep valleys between the islands, 
 which in many parts could be seen, at elevations of 
 perhaps a thousand feet, cropping out in this adaman- 
 tine but withal moving sea. At Cape Farewell,
 
 1850. THE GLACIERS. 241 
 
 Mr. Petersen says, the glacier is very far inland, and 
 the icebergs to which it gives birth rarely or never 
 reach the clear and open sea, for they become dis- 
 solved or broken up in the deep fiords, which so 
 deeply indent that part of West Greenland. At and 
 beyond Cape York, the glacier ventures to the out- 
 side of an imaginary coast-line, drawn from one 
 prominent point to another. From Cape Farewell 
 to Cape York, we find the land free from ice 
 gradually diminishing in breadth, until, at the latter, 
 it almost entirely disappears beneath the overwhelm- 
 ing glacier. Although the glaciers in Greenland do 
 not, like those in the Alps, intrude themselves into 
 fertile valleys, and overthrow trees and houses, lay 
 waste the meadow and garden*, nor afford an origin f 
 to magnificent rivers, which have to traverse con- 
 tinents and flourishing empires, before they reach 
 the ocean, the words of Agassiz are not the less 
 applicable to them than to the others, when he says, 
 "De tous les phenomenes de la nature, je n'en 
 connais aucun qui soit plus digne de fixer 1'attention 
 et la curiosite du naturaliste que les glaciers ; " nor 
 less so are those of the poet quoted by Professor 
 Forbes } : 
 
 * Travels in tbe Alps, by Professor Forbes, pp. 33, 34. 
 
 | Agassiz, Etudes sur les Glaciers, Preface. 
 
 J Travels, &c., p. 17. 
 
 VOL. I. R
 
 242 THE GLACIERS. CHAP. VII. 
 
 " Where so wide, 
 
 In old or later time, its marble floor, 
 Did ever temple boast as this, which here 
 Spreads its bright level many a league around." 
 
 Dyers Fleece. 
 
 and although there are circumstances connected with 
 their descent which cannot be present in the Alps, 
 there is no doubt but that equally extensive travels 
 and researches in them would prove the analogy of 
 the laws by which both systems are governed. 
 After the season has advanced far beyond midsum- 
 mer, the march of the glaciers increases in its 
 progress, and thousands of huge icebergs are set free 
 in the months of August, September, October, and 
 November, owing, perhaps, to there being open water 
 generally at that time along the coast which they 
 have to traverse. The Esquimaux around Disco Bay 
 visit, during winter, the foot of an advancing glacier 
 of very great height, in the neighbourhood of Clous- 
 havn, where they find abundance of very fine halibut, 
 which they draw from a depth of three hundred 
 fathoms. They often observe, during these visits, 
 that the advance of the glacier during the last months 
 of spring is considerably slower than during the last 
 month of autumn and the first months of winter. It 
 seems very probable, that when the icebergs are set 
 free their detachment does not happen by a process 
 of gravitation, which precipitates them into the
 
 1850. THE GLACIERS. 243 
 
 water, but by a process of flotation, which is the 
 result of stream tides. From the continued prevalence 
 of south winds, after a large body of water has 
 opened out along the coast, and in the top of Baffin's 
 Bay, there will be an influx of water into all the 
 fiordes to the foot of the glaciers, which will facilitate 
 the removal of the icebergs in the autumn. The 
 immense glacier range in Greenland has not received 
 that share of attention from geographers and travellers 
 which such an important subject deserves. Neither 
 the Esquimaux nor the Danish settlers ever do much 
 more than visit the foot of them. Attempts have been 
 made by both to explore those situated at the tops 
 of some of the most accessible fiordes, but the gaping 
 crevasses, which came so frequently in their way, 
 proved an obstacle which their spare means, at so 
 great a distance from the settlement, could never 
 overcome. 
 
 On looking to the southward into Melville Bay, 
 and examining it most minutely with a telescope, 
 Mr. Goodsir could see nothing of the ships we had 
 lost sight of on the 6th in the drifting pack. We 
 expected, however, that the winds and easy weather 
 which had favoured us so much, would also favour 
 them, and enable them to follow at "full speed." 
 "NY hen the ice first began to open out on the first 
 few days of August, enabling us to advance faster 
 
 B 2
 
 244 PROSPECTS OF ADVANCING. CH. VII. 
 
 than they did, it was frequently discussed whether 
 we ought not to continue in company with them 
 until they too should get clear. Their course was 
 plain; they had but to Avork in towards the land ice, 
 and as Mr. Penny knew that Captain Austin had 
 experience enough during the previous month in 
 Melville Bay to impress him with the extreme im- 
 portance of regaining the fixed ice, and remaining by it 
 until he should get into the north water, he felt that 
 he could not be of any assistance to them, and that 
 the search for the missing ships might be suffering 
 from his neglecting to embrace every opportunity 
 to advance. 
 
 The prospects of getting to the west side of Baffin's 
 Bay very soon were as good as they could be if the 
 wind would but favour us. Only one or two, or, at 
 the most, three, barriers lay between us and the 
 water in the top of the Strait, and the first change of 
 tide might lay them all open. 
 
 We descended from the top of the island and made 
 the best of our way to the ships. The crack in the 
 ice presented the same obstacle as before, but our 
 boat of ice had not run away ; by its assistance we 
 ferried over as before, and soon reached the ships. 
 "VYe found that Mr. Penny, Mr. Stewart, and Mr. 
 Petersen had also landed upon the island. 
 
 The first nip or barrier occurred where two huge 
 icebergs lay between the fixed and the loose ice.
 
 1850. THREATENING STATE OF THE WEATHER. 245 
 
 They were close together, a few feet under water, 
 from which point they ascended on both sides like an 
 enormously deep arch, inverted, with its sides parallel 
 and sometimes overhanging. The slightest motion 
 of either might leave the ship high and dry. There 
 were chances, too, that we might get aground on a 
 part of it if the tide was receding. The depth of water 
 could not be ascertained correctly, for it presented a 
 kind of nodular or angular surface under water. There 
 was some loose ice in it which was soon cleared away. 
 In this instance the " Sophia," drawing less water 
 than the " Lady Franklin," went foremost, and got 
 through safely in a quarter of an hour ; but it was 
 a long period in such a frightful place. In less 
 than half an hour both ships were moving along by 
 the track-rope, as the weather was quite calm. 
 
 August 11 th. Last night, and early this morning, 
 the sky became deeply overcast with a dense and 
 misty haze, which, in some parts, resembled the ordi- 
 nary nimbus cloud. On the southern horizon and 
 sky, which the whaler always watches with the 
 deepest interest, and often great suspicion, there was 
 a blue appearance which threatened to be the pre- 
 cursor of a gale from that quarter. The barometer 
 was scarcely one-twentieth of an inch below 30; 
 hence our fears of an approaching gale were but 
 slight, in spite of the threatening appearances of 
 
 3
 
 246 CONFIDENCE OP LITTLE AUKS. CHAP. VII. 
 
 the atmosphere. The temperature of the air was 
 rarely above +34, and that of the water never 
 above 32, it being generally about 31. 
 
 A gentle breeze from about south, which sprung 
 up about six in the morning, soon brought us to the 
 second barrier, which was very soon cleared; and, 
 after advancing a few miles further, the third and 
 last barrier brought us to a complete stand, for it was 
 nearly a mile in length, and guarded at its further 
 extremity by an enormous iceberg which jutted out 
 of the fixed ice. Towards noon the weather was 
 very thick, and there was some flaky snow falling 
 densely around us ; the pack, impelled by the south 
 wind, began to squeeze a little, but we endeavoured 
 to keep the ships clear. At night it was nearly calm, 
 but still very thick. The fog seemed to extend to a 
 much greater height than usual, for it was much 
 darker than any we had experienced for a long time. 
 The little auk was very abundant in an opening that 
 formed by the tide between the fixed and the loose ice. 
 The chirping little things would not be frightened, 
 although a boat was continually pulling among them 
 on its way to and from the opening barrier which was 
 by this time beginning to be confined to the iceberg 
 alone. Being Sunday, no shooting was allowed, 
 otherwise the rotges would not have enjoyed such 
 uninterrupted pastime in all directions around us.
 
 247 
 
 CHAP. VIII. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM CAPE YORK TO THE WEST SIDE. 
 
 Opinions respecting Melville Bay Arctic Highlanders Favourable 
 
 Wind. An Attempt to push Westward, Off Cape York. 
 Glaciers at Cape York. Genial Appearance of the Land. Red 
 Snow. An Esquimaux Report with respect to the Missing Ships. 
 An Investigation. H.M. S. North Star. York Ommanney. 
 Wretched State of the Natives at Cape York. Parting of the 
 Expeditions. The Beverly Cliffs. Calm and Foggy Weather. 
 Centipeding. Narwhals and Sharks. Little Auks and their 
 Food. Crossing the Top of Baffin's Bay. Middle Ice. Currents 
 in the Polar Seas. 
 
 August \2th. At two o'clock in the morning, the 
 barrier removed, all hands were called, and as there 
 was no wind, the ships had to be taken in tow. 
 The ice, leading in the direction of Cape York, was 
 much decayed ; and moreover, it tended too much to 
 the eastward to serve the purpose of tracking. As we 
 got round the west side of the iceberg, the ships, just 
 merging into the " north-water," bowed and nodded 
 gracefully to the swell, which, in the absence of every 
 other sign, even in the thickest fog, would have been 
 a sufficient proof that a large extent of open water 
 
 R 4
 
 248 OPINIONS RESPECTING MELVILLE BAY. CH. VIII. 
 
 was close at hand. Let a person but look at the chart 
 or map, and he will see that the circuit we have 
 made of Melville Bay is at least half as long again 
 as a straight line, drawn from the usual position of 
 the edge of the fixed ice, opposite the southern limit 
 of it and Cape York. But in addition to being so 
 much longer, which is to be attributed to no other 
 cause than the broken-up condition of the ice, it is 
 in an infinitely greater proportion more difficult, and 
 so protracted, that, instead of coming through it in 
 a few days, as we might have done early in the 
 season, we were five weeks in it. Surely it must 
 be plain, that to make a quick passage through Mel- 
 ville Bay and before the end of August, it must be 
 attempted before the ice has begun to yield along the 
 land to the increasing power of the sun's rays and the 
 action of the water. It was nearly calm all day, and 
 the sky was clear. The temperature of the air was 
 generally about +34, and that of the water 33, 
 having increased a degree or two since we entered 
 this water, which was comparatively free from ice. 
 One boat was towing ahead, until a light breeze 
 enabled us to advance without its assistance. 
 
 The "Lady Franklin" was about a mile in the 
 advance of the " Sophia," when a boat was observed 
 lowering into the water, and pulling off in the direc- 
 tion of Cape York, or of a sheet of ice in a small
 
 1850. ARCTIC HIGHLANDERS. 249 
 
 bay, to the eastward of it. It soon returned, bringing 
 off three Esquimaux, poor wretched creatures, whose 
 parents, I suppose, Sir John Ross had designated 
 the Arctic Highlanders, probably, because with a true 
 Highland spirit, he thought them as much superior 
 to their relations in a more southern latitude, as the 
 Highlanders are to the Lowlanders everywhere ex- 
 cept in Scotland. They made a fearful attack upon 
 some narwhal's skin, which we had boiled with the 
 intention of having it pickled. It appears to be 
 a great luxury as well as a rarity to them. Mr. 
 Petersen conversed with them in their native tongue 
 with the greatest ease; but the excitement and 
 ecstasy they were in prevented a satisfactory con- 
 versation. All his interrogations about the missing 
 ships appeared to them to be quite meaningless, as 
 they had often seen English ships and white men. 
 Mr. Stewart recognised one, whom he had seen and 
 spoken to on board the " Joseph Green " whaler, off 
 Cape York, during the previous season. Presents 
 of useful articles, such as needles, knives, empty meat 
 canisters, pieces of useless wood, such as old broom 
 handles, and iron hoops, were made to them, and 
 then they were sent ashore in the boat. They cer- 
 tainly were the most wretched creatures that I had 
 ever seen, worse, infinitely so, than the Hottentot, 
 who inhabits the sterile coast of Africa, from the
 
 250 FAVOURABLE WIND. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 Orange River northward, where hardly anything but 
 arid sand is to be seen; and who subsists almost 
 entirely upon the shell fish which he finds among 
 the rocks. Mr. Petersen expressed great sympathy 
 for them ; and when he told a female, whom he saw 
 on the first visit the boat made to the ice, that his 
 wife was partly of her kindred, her delight seemed 
 to know no bounds. She often pointed to her child, 
 which was on her back, in the hood of her greasy and 
 dirty coat, and told him that it was a girl. 
 
 The evening was nearly calm, and the sky was 
 remarkably clear ; objects could be distinguished very 
 distinctly at great distances. The ships generally 
 had steering way, and with the assistance of some- 
 times one, and sometimes all the boats towing a-head, 
 we creeped away to the N. W., with grateful emo- 
 tions that we had got clear of Melville Bay. 
 
 August I3th. One boat was towing all night and 
 morning ; the wind was northerly, and it was hourly 
 increasing, although, at first, there was but a very 
 gentle breeze. The boat was hoisted up, and " tack " 
 after " tack " from the pack to the land, soon brought 
 us to the west and north of Cape York. 
 
 At six o'clock in the morning Captain Austin's 
 squadron was observed coming up the Strait, and 
 the two small schooner-like ships appeared to be in 
 tow astern of the large ships. The pack was close
 
 1850. ATTEMPT TO PUSH WESTWARD. 251 
 
 in with the land at Conical Island, off Cape Dudley 
 Diggs, and the wind, although highly favourable for 
 working among the ice, was too much down the 
 Strait to clear it off from the land. A large space of 
 water extended to the westward, on a parallel of 
 latitude a few miles north of Cape York. Mr. 
 Penny, thinking it might suit his purpose in pushing 
 to the westward, stood off in that direction ; but the 
 attempt was unsuccessful. The ice became closer 
 and closer, until it was found to be one solid pack. 
 The fragments of which it consisted had small inter- 
 spaces of water, which were covered over with a for- 
 mation of young ice, of sufficient strength to cement 
 the whole together, and prevent separation under the 
 ordinary influence of the tide. 
 
 After we had proceeded as far to the westward as 
 the ice would permit, we at once came to the con- 
 clusion, that no good could be done at so great a dis- 
 tance from the land. But when we turned round to 
 proceed to the eastward, it was discovered that the 
 drifting streams had come down before the wind, and 
 hemmed us in, so that capstan and winch were both 
 necessary before we got clear of it. 
 
 August 14th. Early in the morning we were 
 close in with the land between Cape York and Cape 
 Dudley Diggs. There was ice in straggling patches 
 over the surface of the water at a distance of five or six
 
 252 GLACIERS OF CAPE YOEK. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 miles from the land ; but close to the land there was 
 very little ice, except further north, where it seemed 
 to approach, if not close in with it altogether. There 
 were a great many icebergs, but none of them were 
 very large, and they had flat tops, as if the glaciers 
 which produced them had been but small. Many 
 of them, of very limited dimensions, presented all the 
 features of icebergs that had altered very little since 
 they had come from the glaciers. There was no ice 
 attached to the land ; the little rippling waves seemed 
 to play cheerfully upon the beach, and little auks 
 could be seen swimming in graceful little bands in 
 all directions. Several glaciers enter the sea between 
 Cape York and Cape Dudley Diggs, but they are 
 very small. The valleys which they fill vary in 
 breadth from about a quarter to half a mile. The 
 free edge of the glacier did not appear to be above 
 thirty to forty feet above the surface of the water 
 a height which corresponds with that of many of the 
 icebergs already noticed in the neighbourhood of this 
 coast. They did not appear to ascend very far inland ; 
 indeed, my impression was that each valley had its 
 own distinct glacier. I received these impressions 
 from the altered character of the land. Instead of a 
 wretchedly bleak and desolate-like coast, with only 
 an occasional escarpment of the black land, which
 
 1850. THE RED SNOW. 253 
 
 appears as a sort of exception to the universal white- 
 ness of the whole surface, as it really is in Melville 
 Bay, here these small glaciers seemed to be almost 
 the only exception to the highly genial although 
 black appearance, which the whole coast presented to 
 a considerable distance inland. 
 
 The surface of the glaciers was of a dirty colour, 
 but there were no moraines. It appeared to be 
 owing to fine dust and sand blown from the adjacent 
 land, or carried by small rills of water from the sides 
 of the valley. Where there were patches of snow on 
 the land, a close examination would discover more than 
 the dirty colour, which was also present, a tinge of 
 dirty red, which, in suitable localities, applied also to 
 the glaciers. This is owing to a minute plant which 
 has excited great interest, and has been most care- 
 fully described by many distinguished botanists, under 
 the popular name of red snow (Protococcus nivalis]. 
 From what !Mr. Petersen told me, after he had visited 
 the famous localities where it is said to extend to a 
 depth of twelve feet, and also from the replies of the 
 natives to questions upon the same subject, there ap- 
 pears to be no reason for any other opinion than this, 
 that it is a foreign body among snow or ice, which it 
 can only find access to by being carried, either by 
 the water of the pools in which it grows after they
 
 254 THE RED SNOW. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 begin to overflow by influx of water from snow 
 melting at higher elevations, or by the wind after the 
 water has left it dry upon the rock. There does not 
 appear to be any objection to the idea that this plant 
 may grow upon stones and sand on the surface of a 
 glacier, provided that there be water covering them ; 
 nor to the supposition that a part of an increasing 
 glacier may become impregnated with it, by being 
 carried from some neighbouring locality by the wind. 
 Although the red snow appears as red as blood when 
 viewed with a high magnifying power, among the 
 snow, along with probably abundance of other ad- 
 ventitious substances, it fails to exhibit its real colour, 
 and rarely does more than impart a dirty appearance. 
 It would prove highly interesting to examine whether 
 the circumstances under which it is developed in the 
 Alps and in the Arctic Regions are the same.* 
 
 The weather was very mild during the whole day, 
 as the ships lay motionless on the mirror-like surface 
 of the water, and boats pulled about in all directions. 
 The sky was very clear, and there was hardly a 
 breath of wind. The temperature of the water 
 was generally 34, and that of the air from +37 
 to +30. We could distinguish objects at the 
 remotest distances all round. Everything was 
 
 * Agassiz, Etudes, chap. v. Travels in the Alps, by Pro- 
 fessor Forbes, chap. ii.
 
 1850. AN ESQUIMAUX REPORT. 255 
 
 present which nature could get up, in such a high 
 latitude, to make the day pleasant to us. 
 
 An investigation was going on with respect to a 
 report, that took its origin in some conversation 
 which happened between an Esquimaux on board the 
 "Felix," whom Sir J. Ross had taken from Holstein- 
 berg, and some of the natives we had on board 
 but two days previously. The report conveyed this 
 meaning ; (s that two ships had been destroyed by 
 fire in Wolstenholme Sound, and their crews mas- 
 sacred by the Esquimaux." It seemed to have taken a 
 deep hold of not a few of the officers in three of the 
 four expeditions which had come together, it must 
 be acknowledged, by mere chance. It was a favour- 
 able omen, that chance had collected the whole force 
 of the searching squadron, to deliberate over an 
 Esquimaux report which threatened to seal the fate 
 of Sir J. Franklin and his companions, and send us 
 all back to England without advancing any further. 
 The Esquimaux (if I mistake not, five altogether) 
 were examined on the land and on board ship, alone, 
 and together, at the huts and elsewhere, but nothing 
 could be elicited that might lead to a corroboration 
 of the above report; and the inventor of it was 
 stigmatised with the odious appellation of "liar" 
 by the natives of Cape York. Sir J. Ross, Captains 
 Austin and Ommanney, Commanders Forsyth and
 
 256 AN INVESTIGATION. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 Phillips, Lieut. Cator, Mr. Penny, and Mr. Peter- 
 sen, were all engaged in the investigation. It was 
 discovered, that a ship had wintered in Wolsten- 
 holme Sound, and that some of the crew had died ; 
 and it was also discovered, that there had been a 
 great mortality among the natives from famine. It 
 was conjectured at once that the ship alluded to was 
 the " North Star," for no whalers had been detained 
 among the ice in the previous autumn. Under- 
 standing the language of the Esquimaux, and being 
 conversant with their manners and customs from 
 fifteen years' constant experience, Mr. Petersen was 
 qualified, above all others, for the valuable service 
 which he so ably rendered to the whole searching 
 squadron. Having accompanied Captain Omman- 
 ney and Mr. Penny in the " Intrepid " steamer, 
 he described the landing of a boat party at Cape 
 York. There were but five poor wretches, with 
 no other weapons than stones, whom they had 
 to meet, yet they were under cover of a file of 
 marines ! How the destruction of two ships by 
 fire, and the massacre of their crews, one hundred 
 and thirty-eight well-armed men, could have been 
 attributed to a handful of wretched creatures, who 
 possess literally nothing but their half-naked bodies, 
 is so preposterous and so repulsive to common sense, 
 that one cannot help smiling, in spite of the painful
 
 1850. ESQUIMAUX AT GAPE YORK. 257 
 
 feeling which is aroused by allusion to such an 
 atrocious deed. 
 
 Captain Ommanney took an Esquimaux on board 
 the "Assistance," whom he found willing to ac- 
 company the Expedition. Considering the general 
 reluctance of the Esquimaux to abandon their homes, 
 it was difficult to conceive what his inducements 
 were to leave his youthful associations, and every- 
 thing that could be dear to an Esquimaux, except 
 he had been influenced by the fear of partaking of 
 the horrible fate of many of his tribe, death by 
 starvation. His name under the red pendant was 
 Erasmus York, by which, I believe, Captain Austin 
 designated him when he first saw him. 
 
 The natives at Cape York, and along the coast to 
 the northward, are very wretched. Mr. Petersen 
 says, that they have no better means of transporta- 
 tion over the water, when the ice fails them, than 
 some peculiar arrangement of inflated seal-skins, 
 upon which one or two of them can sit and paddle 
 along. They are often reduced to great straits, and 
 frequently have to attack deer with stones thrown 
 out of their hands. In this way they sometimes 
 succeed in wounding one; after which they rush 
 upon it and overpower it by their numbers. But 
 they are most successful in destroying life in 
 this rude way among the rotges, which are very 
 
 VOL. i. a
 
 258 ESQUIMAUX AT CAPE YORK. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 abundant in their neighbourhood during two or three 
 months of summer. They sometimes have recourse 
 to the " sling," which they find useful in attacking 
 animals on the land. In the use of this instrument, 
 the Esquimaux of the present day may be associated 
 with the inhabitants of a warmer climate three 
 thousand years ago. Mr. Petersen advised them to 
 migrate to the southward, where they would be much 
 more comfortable; but they expressed great doubts 
 that they would not be able to accomplish so great 
 a distance as two hundred miles along the coast of 
 Melville Bay, which he described to them as being 
 wretchedly barren, and affording hardly any resources 
 whatever to persons making a journey over it. I 
 fear the Esquimaux will have to relinquish the pos- 
 session he holds of the Arctic Highlands, and betake 
 himself to a more genial climate in the south. Per- 
 haps he may be reluctant to do so, from the attach- 
 ment which he naturally has for the north, whence 
 he is taught to believe his ancestors, the true Innuit, 
 have all sprung.* 
 
 After being engaged in the investigation since 
 
 * The word Innuit appears to be used among the Esquimaux 
 to express the purest variety of the human race ; those who do 
 not belong to it being considered mere deteriorations ; and in 
 this respect it seems to convey the same idea as Beni Ismail 
 does among the Arabs.
 
 1850. PARTING OF THE EXPEDITIONS. 259 
 
 an early hour in the morning, Mr. Penny and Mr. 
 Petersen returned on board the " Lady Franklin " 
 in the evening, doubtless well pleased with them- 
 selves for being the chief agents in proving the 
 falsity of the report of Sir John Ross's Esqui- 
 maux. Captain Austin's arrangement was a little 
 altered; that alteration being, that the " Assistance" 
 was first to proceed to Wolstenholme Sound, and 
 from thence she was to resume the course that had 
 been fully settled before we left Melville Bay. 
 
 The evening was quite calm, and the sea was as 
 smooth as oil. On the one hand was the loose pack, 
 on the other the land, as we lay motionless when the 
 steamers began to get ready. The clouds of black 
 smoke which issued from their funnels hovered over- 
 head for a short time, and then began to settle on 
 the already dirty enough (not crimson) snow of the 
 Beverly cliffs, as if there seemed to be a desire to 
 blot out the last traces of their beautiful colour, that 
 had been fading ever since the memorable voyage 
 of '18. 
 
 The two large ships fell in astern of the steamers 
 and picked up their tow-lines, and after them again 
 the "Felix" and the "Albert;" and in the deafen- 
 ing cheers which passed between us and them, for 
 we were not taken in tow, could be distinguished, as 
 they were re-echoed from the neighbouring rocks and 
 
 6 2
 
 260 PARTING OF THE EXPEDITIONS. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 icebergs, our hearty wishes of " God speed " in your 
 noble work of philanthropy. In a few hours we lost 
 sight of them in spite of the smoky train with which 
 they variegated the clear and almost perfectly cloud- 
 less sky, in the direction they had taken. All hands 
 were called and the boats were sent ahead to tow, 
 until the ships should gain a safe offing, for we were 
 too near the land, or until a wind should arise with 
 which we could make some progress. 
 
 August 17 th. Three days of calm and foggy 
 weather, in which we made hardly any progress, 
 passed by very lazily indeed. All hands were 
 frequently towing, but to endure this for days 
 together was too much for human flesh and sinew; 
 hence the watches had to be set, and, instead of 
 sending a boat ahead to tow, two boats, one on 
 each side, were lowered in the tackles from the 
 davits, until their keels were within a few inches 
 of the water, where they were secured, so as not to 
 swing about, and in each of them four oars were 
 plied to such advantage that we could advance 
 about a mile in the hour. This is called " centipeding " 
 by the whalers, from the resemblance the appearance 
 of the ship, with ten oars on each side, has to a 
 centipede. But as we could not count quite so many 
 oars as the whalers used, our ships more resembled 
 spiders than centipedes; and I hope they were
 
 1850. CENTIPEDING " THE SHIPS. 261 
 
 found following their example for diligence and 
 perseverance. 
 
 We were frequently annoyed and hindered by 
 young ice, which always met us when the pack of 
 loose ice was approached. The temperature of the 
 water was +30 or +31 at the ice; but nearer the 
 land, where it seemed to be much more shallow, it 
 was considerably higher. We had another proof of 
 the fact, that where the ice is permitted to move 
 along with the water, there it maintains its thickness, 
 and prevents the access of the sun's rays to the water ; 
 and hence the presence of the young ice around and 
 among the fragments of the loose and drifting pack. 
 Narwhals were very numerous, and their blasts fre- 
 quently arrested our attention during the monotony 
 of the calm. A piece of the flesh of one of those 
 animals was picked up out of the water. There were 
 portions of the skin, oily tissue, and flesh or muscular 
 fibre. At first it was very doubtful what could have 
 been the cause of this, for it seemed to have been 
 hacked a little, as if a coarse instrument had been 
 used in cutting it. But Mr. Petersen concluded that 
 the animal must have died, either from natural 
 causes, or from being wounded by ball from our 
 rifles, and had subsequently become the prey of 
 sharks, which are very numerous in those seas. 
 Rotges were also very abundant, and something 
 
 * 3
 
 262 NARWHALS AND ROTGES. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 was observed, peculiar- to them, at this time, which, 
 so far as I know, has been hitherto unknown. 
 The head and upper part of the gullet, or floor 
 of the mouth, appeared to be very much enlarged; 
 indeed, quite out of proportion for so small a bird. 
 As the breeding season advances, the skin and thin 
 muscular layer beneath and on both sides of the 
 tongue are distended into something in the form of 
 a pouch, which will be found crammed full of their 
 ordinary food (Gammarus Arcticus, and other allied 
 Crustacea, in which the sea abounds), which they 
 bear off to their young. I have chased them with a 
 boat, frightened and shot them, without succeeding 
 in making them disgorge the precious contents of 
 these wonderfully capacious pouches. Has this any 
 resemblance to the enlargement in a similar part of 
 the mouth of the pelican ? 
 
 Pteropod molluscs, the Clio Borealis, and Clio lieli- 
 clna could be seen swimming gracefully in the water. 
 The motions of their little appendages were plainly 
 distinguishable out of the boat alongside. They 
 were very easily caught, compared with the beautiful 
 and active little " Cetochilus," which darted with 
 the swiftness of an arrow out of reach of its pursuers. 
 
 When there was fog, it sometimes cleared up at 
 noon or in the evening; and then the distortion of 
 distant objects by refraction was very great. The
 
 1850. CROSSING THE TOP OF BAFFIN'S BAY. 263 
 
 division of Captain Austin's squadron which entered 
 Wolstenholme Sound, was seen coming out of it, 
 and proceeding to the westward by the assistance 
 of steam alone. The small ship appeared to be 
 always in tow. 
 
 In the evening a light breeze sprung up, which 
 gave the ships steering way. It was from a little to 
 the eastward of north, and was accompanied by a 
 thick fog towards midnight. Our course lay through 
 ice, which would have been very easily managed, had 
 it not been for the young ice, which had increased to 
 nearly a thickness of one inch. The capstans and 
 warps wrought by " all hands " were necessary ; 
 but we got through, and stood to the westward, 
 across the top of Baffin's Bay, with the wind from 
 about E.S.E. 
 
 August 18th. At four o'clock in the morning the 
 fog cleared away, and the beautiful clear sky opened 
 out; the wind also veered a little to the southward, and 
 increased considerably : our studding-sails were set, 
 and, as our neat little ships scudded before the increas- 
 ing breeze, there was nothing to cast the slightest 
 gloom upon our bright prospects of being soon in the 
 spot where our services would be called into re- 
 quisition. 
 
 Wolstenholme Island, and the black land from 
 Cape York northwards, was sinking rapidly astern, 
 
 s 4
 
 264 CROSSING BAFFIN'S BAY. CHAP. vin. 
 
 while the Gary Islands were opening out on the star- 
 board beam, and the loom of the land on the west 
 side of the Strait was beginning to be distinguished 
 ahead. 
 
 The " Sophia " was found to overhaul the " Lady 
 Franklin," and even pass by her. This was believed 
 to be owing to the latter being out of trim ; but if it 
 was, all the trimming that could be made about the 
 deck, by changing the position of guns and other 
 weights, completely failed to make any improve- 
 ment ; consequently, the " Sophia " had, for once 
 during the voyage, to shorten sail, to wait for the 
 "Lady Franklin." 
 
 Our course lay along the northern extremity of the 
 " middle ice," which appeared to extend to latitude 
 76 24'. It was composed of very large masses, some 
 of which were drawing twenty to thirty feet of water, 
 and had long projecting tongues, extending fifteen to 
 twenty feet all round that part which appeared above 
 water. Immediately at the water-line, the ice was 
 decayed to a depth of six or seven feet into the side 
 of each floating mass, which gave it the appearance 
 of a rough resemblance to an hour-glass, with the 
 exception of the disproportion of height and breadth, 
 and also of the parts above and beneath the water, at 
 the surface of which the line of contraction always 
 occurred. The deficiency of the ice here was un-
 
 1850. THE "MIDDLE ICE." 265 
 
 doubtedly owing to the dissolving action of the water 
 being greater at the surface than at any other part 
 below it, and also greater than that of the air or of 
 the direct rays of the sun upon that part which was 
 above water. 
 
 The enormous thickness of the ice, in the middle 
 of the Strait, like that of the ice in the Greenland 
 seas, although in a less degree, compared with the 
 thickness of the ice attached to the land, which rarely 
 exceeds six or eight feet below latitude 76, appears 
 to be owing to the facility with which it moves along 
 with the water, without the water being carried past 
 it, as always happens in the case of the land ice. It 
 is clear that there is a southerly-going current, and 
 that it is on the surface, where it includes the ice 
 and extends to various depths, according to the 
 locality, and the season of the year. On the 
 eastern side of the Greenland Sea, and also on the 
 same side of Davis Straits, it cannot be perceptible 
 at the surface, where the northerly-going current has 
 been observed; except, perhaps, when the latter 
 current is diminished in extent by the intense cold 
 during winter. 
 
 Were the southerly-going currents in the Polar 
 seas to be extended from shore to shore, and from 
 the surface to the bottom of the ocean, in the course 
 of, speaking comparatively, a few, perhaps even one
 
 266 CURRENTS IN THE POLAR SEAS. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 thousand, years, the water would be reduced to a 
 mere trace of salinity, owing to the influx being 
 supplied entirely from the atmosphere in the form 
 of snow and rain, and also in the form of icebergs, 
 which have a purely atmospheric origin. The only 
 process by which the mean salinity can be kept up, 
 under such circumstances, is a counter current, which 
 in some cases, will be at a considerable depth beneath 
 the surface of the water, and in other cases, at one of 
 the sides of the straits or seas ; both of which, there 
 is no doubt, are at work in the Arctic Circle. 
 
 The first particle of "middle ice" is the minute 
 film of young ice which forms on the surface of the 
 water, at some of the fixed points in the top of 
 Baffin's Bay, whence it begins to move imperceptibly 
 southward along with the surface water, on which it 
 feeds : exposed during the greatest part of the year 
 to a mean temperature below that at which sea-water 
 begins to congeal, it hourly increases in dimensions, 
 until some of it is twenty feet thick, and perhaps 
 much more ; it stores up the drifting snow during the 
 endless nights of winter, and the flaky snow during 
 summer, spring, and autumn, also affording reservoirs 
 for accidental showers ; and it protects its parent, the 
 sea, on which it is irresistibly borne along, equally 
 from the powerful influence of the sun and the all-sub- 
 duing frost, until it merges into a warmer climate, and
 
 1850. CURRENTS IN THE POLAR SEAS. 267 
 
 ultimately yields itself into the bosom of the Atlantic. 
 Icebergs frequently take up their position in the 
 " middle ice," and drift along with it, often causing 
 great commotions among the largest floes which may 
 be carried against their rugged sides. But by far 
 the greatest number of icebergs are to be seen along 
 the eastern border of it, although generally speaking 
 they tumble and roll about in all parts of the Strait, 
 without any regard whatever to the surface ice. 
 
 The space of open water which always occurs in the 
 top of Baffin's Bay, as the result of this constant drift 
 to the southward, must vary in extent with the period 
 of the year. During winter it becomes diminished 
 very considerably, owing to the extension of the ice 
 attached to the land, so far as it is known, all round. 
 During summer, again, this ice extending from the 
 land, breaks up to a greater or less extent, and the 
 formation of young ice is interrupted for a time : the 
 entire mass of the " middle ice " continues to move 
 southward, leaving an extensive basin of open water 
 behind it, which, in its turn, affects very materially 
 the temperature ; and thus, by facilitating the thaw 
 of snow upon the land, the latter assumes a black ap- 
 pearance all round it: it also provokes southerly winds, 
 which begin to prevail towards the middle of June, 
 and before the end of July they drift large quantities 
 of loose ice into it, from the "middle ice " and also from
 
 268 CURRENTS IN THE POLAR SEAS. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 Melville Bay, by way of retaliation. During winter, 
 northerly winds prevail, and the ice when loose is 
 carried southward : during summer, southerly winds 
 prevail more or less, and the ice is carried hither and 
 thither with great velocity, to the great annoyance of 
 the adventurous voyager ; and the influx of water into 
 those ice-bound regions, from more southern latitudes, 
 is also greatly increased. It is truly wonderful how 
 the balance is kept up within the Polar Circle, how 
 the sea does not become fresh- water, and the land does 
 not become overgrown with the glacier accumulation. 
 By alternating heat and cold, every natural process 
 seems to be guided ; remove this, and everything in 
 nature stands still ; when vitality is concerned, light, 
 the light of the sun, is superadded : let both be removed, 
 and Chaos will resume its gloomy reign. The density 
 of sea-water diminishes on the application of cold, after 
 it has been cooled to + 39 ; consequently, it rises to 
 the surface by exposure to still lower degrees of cold ; 
 and its supernatant properties, which commenced a 
 little below +39, are rendered powerful in a tenfold 
 degree by perfect congelation at + 30, or + 32, and 
 a great proportion of its saline ingredients are pre- 
 cipitated. The air, on the contrary, soaring aloft, 
 and bearing vapour from another climate, becomes in- 
 creased in density by the application of cold, and 
 lowers gradually to the surface of the earth, where it
 
 1850. CURRENTS IN THE POLAR SEAS. 269 
 
 contributes to the increasing glacier, what it may 
 have borne from the sunny regions of the South, and 
 then joins in a happy union with the surface water 
 and the ice, in seeking southward charged with cold, 
 which makes it and them welcome visitors in the 
 temperate and torrid zones. 
 
 The increase in the temperature of the water, which 
 caused the decay of a part of the thick ice, was 
 facilitated in its action upon it, by the constant 
 agitation which was kept up at the edge of the 
 " middle ice " in such a large sheet of water. The 
 sound of the dashing waves, when they were opposed 
 by the excavated margin of that part which was above 
 water, w r as heard at great distances. It resembled 
 the distant roaring of the sea during a storm ; and 
 a still closer approach reminded us forcibly, although 
 in miniature, of -the deafening sounds of the waves 
 of the German Ocean, when they could be seen 
 from a neighbouring cliff, following one another in 
 rapid succession into the deep and almost bottom- 
 less caves and excavations in a rocky coast. 
 
 In dark nights, in the month of October, off the 
 west coast of Davis Strait, in latitude 65, after his 
 voyage in the Arctic seas is almost completed, and he 
 must proceed to his native shores, whether successful 
 or unsuccessful, the intrepid whaler is often very 
 thankful for this sound ; because, by its assistance,
 
 270 CURRENTS IN THE POLAR SEAS. CHAP. VIII. 
 
 he is able to avoid one of the greatest dangers to 
 which his arduous and adventurous duty exposes him. 
 By the time, however, that the ice has reached beyond 
 62 to 65, it does not generally present such long 
 tongues as one often sees in the northern part of the 
 Strait.
 
 271 
 
 CHAP. IX. 
 
 PASSAGE PROM BAFFIN'S BAY TO WELLINGTON CHANNEL. 
 
 Arrival at the West Side. Jones Sound. Unfavourable Weather. 
 State of the Ice. Thick Weather. American Ships seen. Jones 
 Sound full of Ice. Narrow Escape. Violent Gale. Heavy Sea 
 in Lancaster Sound. Ships hove to. Admiralty Inlet. The 
 "North Star" Proceedings of the" North Star." Stateofthe Ice in 
 Barrow Straits from Mr. Saunders' Report. Admiralty Orders to 
 Mr. Saunders. Mr. Saunders' Intentions. Crew of the "North 
 Star." Parting with the "North Star." Plying westward. A 
 Hypochondriac. Appearance of the Coast. Barrow Straits. 
 Leopold Island. Appearance of the Ice seen. Land free from 
 Snow Three Ships seen. 
 
 August 18th. At four o'clock in the evening, as 
 the Gary Islands were sinking rapidly in the eastern 
 horizon, the west side of Baffin's Bay on the north 
 side of Jones Sound was seen, and for this part our 
 course was shaped, with the view of exploring it, if 
 practicable, and of passing through it into the Wel- 
 lington Channel. There were loons and little auks 
 in the water, although they were not quite so abun- 
 dant as we had often observed them previously ; the 
 rotges, especially, were getting much thinner as we 
 advanced to the westward, and, in the course of the 
 evening, they were lost sight of altogether. They
 
 272 JONES SOUND. CHAP. IX. 
 
 had their young in the water, and could be seen 
 feeding them out of their capacious pouches, uttering 
 a peculiar cry, which I had never heard before, and 
 which seemed to express an affectionate feeling. 
 
 The distance between the Gary Islands and the 
 north boundary of Jones Sound, Clarence Head, is 
 not more, if it is quite so much as seventy miles. 
 Since noon, when we were in the longitude of these 
 islands, and about eight or ten miles south of them, 
 we advanced in the direction of Cape Clarence, at 
 the rate of at least six knots. At nine o'clock, we 
 must have been within about sixteen miles of the 
 land opposite the entrance into Jones Sound. An ex- 
 tensive body of ice filled it from the side, and extended 
 both north and south along the coast, especially 
 the former, where it seemed to terminate in a clear 
 ice-blink, which gave no hope of effecting an entrance 
 into the Sound by that route. The studding-sails 
 were taken in, and the ships were hauled nearly 
 close to the wind, so as to lay clear of the pack as 
 they proceeded along its edge, expecting an opening 
 to lead westward into the Sound. It was close 
 throughout its entire extent, as far as could be 
 judged from the crow's nest, and it also appeared to 
 be very heavy, and to contain icebergs in abundance. 
 The wind was hourly freshening up, or at least seemed 
 to be doing so, from the threatening appearance of the
 
 1850. THICK WEATHER. 273 
 
 atmosphere in a S. and S. E. direction. The baro- 
 meter had been rising steadily for two or three days, 
 and now it was 30*16, far above its mean height. 
 The temperature of the air was + 33, a little below 
 its usual indication, owing to the wind blowing 
 obliquely across a large tract of ice. The tempera- 
 ture of the water was 35, which led to an idea 
 that there had been a great space of open water for 
 some time. 
 
 The indications of the atmosphere were by no 
 means encouraging; indeed, they were as surly 
 and ominous as we had witnessed since we came 
 within the Arctic Circle. We might feel almost 
 certain it would not be a westerly storm, from the 
 high state of the barometer, but still it might come 
 from some point to the eastward of S. ; it was pro- 
 mising fair to land in that quarter, as it had been 
 veering round since the morning, and the angry and 
 threatening clouds were piling up from the horizon 
 to an altitude of forty or fifty degrees. A little 
 before midnight, we came to a point of the pack 
 which was the commencement of a slight western 
 trend, and this enabled us to keep the ships a little 
 more before the wind, for they had to be hauled rather 
 close before rounding the lee pack. The weather be- 
 came so thick, that objects could not be discerned 
 at even a short distance; however, we managed to 
 
 VOL. I. T
 
 274 SEE THE AMEEICAN SHIPS. CHAP. IX. 
 
 keep within sight of the lee ice, but the ships made 
 very little progress, as there was a slight swell, or 
 short sea, which checked them when they had not 
 the wind free. 
 
 August 19th. The weather still continued foggy; 
 but, as the morning advanced, it began to be a little 
 cloudy, and this we preferred, because we could dis- 
 tinguish distant objects. At three o'clock in the 
 morning two small ships were observed, and in a 
 few hours the American flag was recognised. They 
 proved to be the schooners "Advance " and "Rescue," 
 under the command of Commander De Haven, which 
 had been sent out from New York in search of Sir 
 John Franklin. 
 
 Towards noon we saw the land on the south side 
 of Jones Sound. The pack we came to last night 
 was again observed entering into the Sound, and an 
 extensive range of icebergs was seen along the pack ice 
 closing in with the land, and following it southward 
 from Cape Caledonia. We approached still closer, and 
 saw the pack studded with small icebergs, filling up 
 the entire entrance of the Sound from Cape Clarence 
 to Cape Leopold. The wind began to increase very 
 rapidly at noon, and it was still blowing right into 
 Jones Sound. The sky was overcast with dense blue 
 and portentous clouds. The temperature of the air 
 was +37 at noon, and of the water 35. The
 
 1850. JONES SOUND FULL OF ICE. 275 
 
 barometer had risen to 30-23, which, with the other 
 indications, left little doubt in our minds that we 
 were to have an easterly storm. 
 
 The close state of the ice in Jones Sound, coupled 
 with the advanced period of the season, was more 
 than a sufficient reason for abandoning the idea of 
 proceeding through it into the Wellington Channel. 
 Accordingly, a course was shaped for Lancaster 
 Sound. Perhaps we might have got into the en- 
 trance of Jones Sound by boring and heaving to- 
 gether ; but this was very problematical, and it 
 could only have been at the risk of continuing 
 beset for some time. If a ship is beset early in 
 the season, and a thick coating of young ice cements 
 the whole pack into one entire sheet, release may 
 be looked for as the season advances; but, if she 
 is beset late in the season, her chances of getting 
 clear will depend upon distant casualties, and ten to 
 one if she does not drift about, at the mercy of wind, 
 tide, and current, until she is within the influence of 
 the southerly drift, which mercilessly holds her in its 
 powerful grasp until she is set free in the Atlantic. 
 The whalers have too often experienced the ill effects 
 of getting beset late in the season, not to avoid it 
 with the utmost care. The " Dee " of Aberdeen, in 
 1836, and the " Swan" of Hull, 1837, afford painful 
 
 instances of this : and so also do the difficulties which 
 
 i 2
 
 276 NARROW ESCAPE. CHAP. IX. 
 
 a large portion of the whaling fleet experienced among 
 the drifting ice, in some subsequent year, when some 
 of their ships were partially abandoned, from the fear 
 that they should not get clear of the pack that season ; 
 a favourable change, however, invited them to return, 
 and ultimately they got clear, without being detained 
 , for the winter. If I mistake not, one of those ships 
 was the " Monarch," of Dundee or Kirkaldy. Be- 
 sides the inevitable risks of getting closely beset 
 among such a large body of ice, we also had great 
 doubts about the distance to which the Sound might 
 proceed to the westward. From the fact that it was 
 completely blocked up with ice in its entrance, after 
 the wind had been blowing twenty-four hours from 
 the eastward, we could safely infer that it had a 
 bottom, and that the ice had accumulated in it in con- 
 sequence of not having a free drift before the wind. 
 
 As we proceeded southward, we were within about 
 ten miles of the land, our distance varying occa- 
 sionally from the irregularity of the coast. Cape 
 Leopold, Princess Charlotte Monument, Coburg Bay, 
 and Cape Horsburgh were successively passed. There 
 was rather a heavy sea, and it was increasing as the 
 entrance of Lancaster Sound was approached. 
 
 In the evening the "Lady Franklin" carried 
 away one of her royal masts. She was but a short 
 distance ahead of the " Sophia " at the time of the 
 accident ; and, as she had to haul her wind a little to
 
 1850. VIOLENT GALE. 277 
 
 clear the entangled ropes and royal rigging, the latter 
 approached rather near her, and found it necessary 
 to pass close by a small iceberg, on which the sea 
 was breaking furiously, and sending small showers of 
 spray into the air with a surging noise. The ice 
 appeared to be at a great distance from the land, 
 there being at least forty miles of water eastward of 
 Cape Horsburgh. The land here had a less genial 
 appearance than the land northward of Cape York, 
 on the opposite side of the Bay ; but it was seen 
 under less favourable circumstances: for, when we 
 were at Cape York, the weather was generally clear ; 
 but since we sighted this side it was overcast and 
 gloomy, and this not only threw a shade upon the 
 land, but also upon the buoyant temperaments in 
 our Expedition. 
 
 At nine o'clock in the evening we lost sight of the 
 two American ships astern. They were carrying a 
 press of sail, but the increasing gale forced both them 
 and us to shorten sail, and before midnight we were 
 under close reefed topsails, running at the rate of 
 seven or eight knots. 
 
 The sea was beginning to run high and cross : every- 
 thing on board soon found its level from the tossing 
 of the ships ; upon the whole, however, they behaved 
 very well, although frequently a good deal of water 
 came on board whenever the course had to be altered 
 
 T 3
 
 278 HEAVY SEA IN LANCASTER SOUND. CHAP. IX. 
 
 for an iceberg which perchance lay in our way. 
 The rudder of the " Sophia," which formerly made 
 a great deal of noise and agitation at the stern-post 
 in a sea-way, was found to have undergone a great 
 improvement in the hands of the carpenter, who, 
 early in the season, had got orders to increase its size 
 by clamping and bolting pieces of wood on it, after 
 a manner described by the commander. 
 
 August 20th. I was called out at five o'clock in 
 the morning, to see a man who had fallen on some- 
 thing, and was reported to have contused his thigh. 
 He thought it was broken, and so did his messmates : 
 but there was scarcely any injury; so little indeed, that 
 he was at his duty almost as soon as if nothing had 
 happened. I mention this because it is the first time 
 that anything in the shape of an accident occurred. 
 
 The sea was running high at this time, and the 
 sky was densely overcast with a thick misty haze ; 
 there was heavy rain occasionally, and the wind was 
 blowing with terrific violence right up Lancaster 
 Sound. The ice was seen on the south shore to the 
 westward of Cape Hay, where the water was of 
 a white tinge, which made it appear in very striking 
 contrast with that of the middle of the Sound, or of 
 Baffin's Bay. It is probably owing to two causes, 
 shallowing, and some difference in the character of. 
 the bottom : I should suppose chiefly the latter. The
 
 1850. ADMIRALTY INLET. 279 
 
 watch was busily employed taking in the boats, by no 
 means an easy duty in such a storm ; however, it was 
 accomplished without the loss of so much as an oar. 
 
 In the afternoon it was necessary to heave to off 
 Admiralty Inlet. The sea was running very high 
 and cross, and the sky was overcast with dense clouds 
 of a threatening appearance. A temporary lull at 
 noon gave way to a gale of almost terrific violence 
 towards night, accompanied by a good deal of 
 rain. The land on both sides of Admiralty Inlet 
 is high and bold, and the water seems to deepen 
 rapidly at the foot of it. The wind drew a little 
 into it ; so that we found it impossible to get clear of 
 its western headland, from the leeway the ships 
 made, when as much sail was set as was necessary to 
 give them forward motion, when they were hauled 
 close to the wind. It is a feature peculiar to all inlets 
 in Davis Straits and the adjoining seas, that the 
 wind blows parallel with their sides, and hardly 
 ever across. This is many times exemplified in the 
 Waygat Strait between Disco Island and the 
 Bunke Land, and in Lancaster Sound. 
 
 August 2lst. The wind moderated towards morn- 
 ing, and the gale appeared to have spent itself. It 
 had lasted during the greater part of three days, in 
 which time the barometer had descended from 30-23 
 to 29*70, upwards of half an inch. The barometer 
 
 T 4
 
 280 THE " NORTH STAR." CHAP. IX. 
 
 began to ascend soon after six o'clock, the wind 
 having moderated at least three hours previously, 
 and at noon it was up one-twentieth of an inch. It 
 did exactly the same thing yesterday, but fell with 
 the increase of the wind soon after mid-day. "We 
 could hardly trust to its indications in the present 
 instance. The sky, however, appeared to promise 
 better weather, although it was still overcast. 
 
 Having made sail we stood across the Sound, and 
 at noon we observed a ship right ahead, which in a few 
 hours was discovered to be H. M. S. " North Star," 
 commanded by Mr. Saunders. She had wintered 
 in Wolstenholme Sound, having entered it on the 
 26th September, after drifting in the pack in Melville 
 Bay, and also in Baffin's Bay, for nearly two months. 
 The report of the Esquimaux at Cape York, that had 
 been brought to light in the investigation about the 
 massacred crews of two ships, was fully verified 
 by the information which Mr. Saunders gave us, 
 particularly with respect to the loss of several of his 
 crew ; but to him and to his officers, the destruction of 
 two ships by fire, and the massacre of their crews, ap- 
 peared altogether fabulous, as they had heard nothing 
 of it, nor seen anything, in their long intercourse 
 with the natives, that would lead to such opinions. 
 
 We learned from Mr. Saunders, and the officers of 
 the "North Star," that, having got beset on the
 
 1850. PROCEEDINGS OF THE "NORTH STAR." 281 
 
 30th of July, in latitude 74^ or 75, in Melville 
 Bay, they drifted about for two months in every 
 direction, but chiefly northward, after which they 
 got into their winter quarters in latitude 76 33' and 
 longitude 68 56', on the 30th of September, where 
 they remained until the 3rd of August, when they 
 got clear, and proceeded westward. Having met 
 with ice in the top of Baffin's Bay, southward of the 
 Gary Islands, they did not reach the western shore 
 till the 8th, when a boat was sent into Possession 
 Bay, where nothing but "orders" relative to Sir 
 James Ross's Expedition had been found. Thence 
 they proceeded up Sir James Lancaster's Sound, and 
 reached Whaler Point on the 12th. Port Leopold 
 was examined, and the stores left by Sir James Ross 
 were found to be as he had left them the previous 
 season. They attempted to land provisions at Port 
 Leopold, Port Bowen, and Port Neill, but the 
 unfavourable state of the ice presented an obstacle 
 everywhere which they could not overcome. 
 
 Mr. Saunders informed us that the ice in Barrow's 
 Strait presented one continuous sheet from Cape 
 Clarence to Cape Fellfoot, or Maxwell Bay, which 
 he feared would prevent the ships advancing, this 
 season, as far as the entrance of the Wellington 
 Channel. He expressed great astonishment when he 
 discovered that ten ships were engaged in the search
 
 282 THE ORDERS OF MR. SAUXDERS. CHAP. IX. 
 
 for Sir J. Franklin in Baffin's Bay and Lancaster 
 Sound, besides the " North Star," and also besides 
 extensive expeditions in Behring's Straits. On 
 receiving his Admiralty papers, he was no less as- 
 tonished to find that their Lordships' orders to him 
 were to land his provisions on Disco Island. Mr. 
 Penny suggested to him to land them at Navy 
 Board Inlet, or Admiralty Inlet, where he said 
 they would be quite safe, and in an advanced po- 
 sition for the use of any of the ten ships that 
 were to winter. They might not require them the 
 first or second winter ; but, in the event of having 
 to remain a third winter, they would be called into 
 requisition : and, moreover, the knowledge that such 
 a quantity of provisions was stored up in such a con- 
 venient locality would carry the advancing expeditions 
 on in a fearless manner, knowing that their return 
 would be safe, even suppose the ships themselves 
 were crushed among the ice, if they could but save 
 their boats. Mr. Saunders seemed to dread disobey- 
 ing his orders, which were so distinct ; and on this 
 head he examined Mr. Petersen, our interpreter, 
 who had spent several years at the settlement on 
 Disco, with respect to store-houses and places of 
 safety from the Esquimaux. Mr. Petersen informed 
 him that he might rest assured he would not find 
 any accommodation on the coast of Greenland in
 
 1850. MR. SAUNDERS'S INTENTIONS. 283 
 
 the way of store-room ; and, if he landed his pro- 
 visions on the land itself without the convenience of 
 a store- house, they would not be safe from the natives, 
 and the Governor would be under the necessity of 
 immediately destroying spirituous liquors, to prevent 
 intoxication among them, if his remonstrances against 
 the landing should not be heard. Mr. Penny also, 
 to dissuade him from that course, said, that the orders 
 which he had just received were intended only on 
 the supposition that the " North Star " would be 
 found on the Greenland side of the Strait ; and, to 
 convince him, that it was his opinion that no bad 
 results, or their Lordships' displeasure, could follow 
 the plan which he proposed, he offered to take the 
 whole responsibility upon himself. Mr. Saunders 
 would not acknowledge Mr. Penny's responsibility ; 
 had the latter, however, belonged to the Royal Navy, 
 Mr. Saunders must have attended to his directions 
 and advice, at least I suppose so, whether he was 
 his equal or junior. In the absence of Captain 
 Austin, he knew not how to act. He said, that 
 it would be better to take the provisions to Eng- 
 land than to land them on Disco Island : but, for 
 all that, if he acted according to the tenor of his 
 orders, it was impossible he could do wrong; and, 
 with these impressions, he parted company with Mr. 
 Penny. Although it would have been of signal service
 
 284 PARTING WITH THE " NORTH STAR." CHAP. IX. 
 
 to our expedition to have known the steps Mr. Saun- 
 ders would take, that was denied to us even in the re- 
 motest shades; we expected, however, if he should 
 deem proper to call at either of the two places already 
 mentioned, Admiralty or Navy Board Inlet, and to act 
 after Mr. Penny's suggestion, that, as Captain Austin 
 had undertaken to examine the south shore of the 
 Sound, he would fall in with the " North Star," and 
 order the provisions to be landed in the place which 
 might appear best in his judgment, as the senior 
 officer engaged in those seas. 
 
 August22nd. At one or two o'clock in the morning, 
 a breeze sprung up, which gave the ships steering way. 
 The " North Star" appeared to be shaping a course for 
 Cape Hay or Possession Bay, on the south side of 
 Lancaster Sound. We were within a few miles of the 
 land on the north shore, in the evening; and, as 
 there was a light breeze from the N. W., we plied 
 up close along it; and on every alternate tack the 
 ships were put about so near the land, that any ar- 
 rangement of even a few stones on the beach, 
 which might deviate from what nature had es- 
 tablished universally, could be detected. 
 
 The crew of the " North Star " looked rather pale, 
 and some of them appeared to be emaciated. The 
 Arctic winter had taken effect upon them, and had 
 told its tale upon their constitutions. They were
 
 1850. CREW OF THE "NORTH STAR." 285 
 
 one hundred and sixteen days without the sun. 
 The minimum temperature was 63^ ; it occurred 
 on the 24th of February, and is one of the lowest 
 degrees of natural cold ever observed. They seemed 
 to have no objections to their orders to return to 
 England. One of the crew of the " Lady Franklin," 
 and among the best men on board, gave way to the 
 frailties of his nature, and came forward to his surgeon, 
 saying that, as he was not in a proper state of health to 
 accompany the Expedition, he begged a passage home 
 should be obtained for him in the " North Star." A 
 survey was held, and he was pronounced as sound as 
 any man in our Expedition, upon which he appeared 
 satisfied ; probably he would have been more pleased 
 had he been pronounced unfit, for he appeared to 
 have a cast of the hypochondriac about him, which 
 at first sight was not detected. With proper care, 
 there was no reason why he should not continue 
 one of the best men in the crew of the ship to 
 which he belonged. 
 
 The latitude was 74 27', and the longitude 86 
 27'. The temperature of the water at the surface 
 was 34, and that of the air + 36. Few or no living 
 creatures of any kind were seen ; at one time a whale 
 was reported to be close astern, but only one or two 
 persons saw it, and, when they were asked if it was 
 the " proper " whale, they said it was only the eddy 
 they had seen.
 
 286 APPEARANCE OF THE COAST. CHAP. IX. 
 
 August 23rd. During the early part of the day 
 there was a dense fog, which began to disappear at 
 three A. M., and at noon cleared entirely away before a 
 smart westerly breeze, with which we plied up the 
 Strait. We kept close along the north shore, and every 
 time the ships were put about at the land they were 
 again so near that a stone could almost be thrown out of 
 the hand to it. This is an exaggeration, but it is used 
 merely to show that we were within a short distance. 
 
 The coast here presents a feature which, if once 
 seen, will not readily be forgotten. It is generally 
 bold, although some very long spites, or low jutting- 
 out points, occur, of which Cape Fellfoot is a good 
 example. Here a whole line of even coast rises out of 
 the water, with a talus or heap of disintegrated rock, 
 to a height of two hundred feet, and is surmounted by 
 perhaps as many as half-a-dozen endless and perfectly 
 horizontal rows of buttresses, which, for regularity of 
 form and distance apart, will vie with the most uniform 
 arrangement of large dormar-windows in the finest 
 streets of our metropolitan cities ; there a splendid 
 deep bay occurs, on one of the sides of which rise, in 
 a compact mass, impregnable fortifications, which are 
 marked by parallel horizontal lines, and are arranged 
 with the same precision as if the level, the square, and 
 the plumb-line had been used when they were reared. 
 Strong and bold as this coast may appear to be, and
 
 1850. ACTION OP THE WEATHER. 287 
 
 bidding defiance to assault in all directions, time, with 
 its invisible agent, heat alternating with cold, assisted 
 only by water, saps its foundations, and runs mines 
 into its lofty citadels ; and the result of this action is 
 an increasing heap of rubbish, upon which the same 
 agents are still exerting their irresistible power, re- 
 ducing to splinters and small fragments^ and ulti- 
 mately to a fine powder liable to be washed or blown 
 into the sea, what had been set free in masses of more 
 than a ton weight. The face of one of these bluffs, 
 if examined closely, will be found composed of the 
 solid rock in horizontally stratified layers, except at 
 the base, where there is generally a heap of rubbish, 
 which has been accumulating as the result of the 
 disintegrating process at a higher elevation. Here 
 each buttress is planted closely by its neighbour: 
 its base is broad, while the apex or top is brought to 
 a point; the retiring sides meet those of the adjoining 
 buttresses, and the point of junction is the bed of 
 a miniature mountain torrent, the produce of the dis- 
 solving snow in the cliffs above, which makes its way 
 to the bottom, cutting for itself a path in which it 
 trickles unmolested, until it escapes beneath the heap 
 of rubbish which begins at the base of the buttresses. 
 The same form is repeated in endless rows, until the 
 top of a flat table land is reached, where the be- 
 holder will find his elevation to be from six hundred
 
 288 BARROW STRAIT. CHAP. IX. 
 
 to eight hundred feet, on the border of a slightly 
 undulating and unbounded plain, which is nearly 
 as barren as the sandy deserts of Africa. 
 
 The latitude was 74 31', and the longitude at 
 four P.M. was 88 20'. Our progress to the west- 
 ward was but slow, from the fact that the wind was 
 right down Barrow Strait. We stood off to the 
 S. W. for four hours, to examine the state of the ice 
 in the vicinity of Leopold Island. After getting 
 within fifteen miles of the island, a small stream of 
 ice came in our way, for which the ships were put 
 upon the other tack. At such a distance from the 
 north shore, we could see Cornwallis Island and 
 Cape Hotham very distinctly. The sky was very 
 clear, and highly favourable for viewing distant 
 objects. The sun set, and the moon rose about a 
 quarter past nine o'clock. This was a very agree- 
 able interchange, and one that we had become 
 unaccustomed to since we entered the Polar seas. 
 It reminded one of what is inseparable from his 
 home, and, were it not for a few " inolleys " (Fulmar 
 petrels), a whale, and two sword-fishes that were seen, 
 he might easily fancy he was sailing on the seas 
 around the British coast. 
 
 August 24th. As we plied to the westward along 
 the north shore of Barrow Strait, the water was very 
 smooth, and there were occasional streams of ice,
 
 1850. APPEARANCE OF THE ICE. 289 
 
 which was very much decayed. It rarely exceeded 
 one or two feet in thickness, and often had large 
 quantities of shingle on it, which gave rise to the 
 idea that it was coast ice, and that open water must 
 have been here for some considerable time. The 
 coast ice, bearing away mud and stones from the shore, 
 can only come out when the ice in the adjacent sea 
 has drifted away, or become dissolved. The fragments 
 of ice containing foreign matter seemed to be per- 
 forated all over, as if some of the pieces of rock 
 had passed through its entire thickness, and made 
 their escape to the bottom. There was no resem- 
 blance whatever between this ice and the " honey- 
 combed," or " rotten " ice, which had been so often 
 seen on the eastern shore of Davis Straits. The one 
 had a degree of hardness and cohesiveness, although 
 it was perfectly riddled with holes, which enabled it 
 to resist the separating influence of the rippling 
 waves ; the other was so soft, and had such a natural 
 tendency to separate, that the least motion in the 
 water destroyed it very much. In the one the 
 influence of the sun's rays was conveyed through 
 a medium possessing powerful conducting properties; 
 in the other through no such medium, through none, 
 in fact, except the water which would diffuse it 
 throughout the entire mass. 
 
 There was a smart breeze during the day, which 
 VOL. I. u
 
 290 LAND FREE FROM SNOW. CHAP. IX. 
 
 enabled us to make some progress to the westward ; 
 Cape Hurd and Radstock Bay were passed, and 
 CaswalPs Tower, Cape Ricketts, and Gascoyne Inlet 
 could be seen very plainly. The land was not 
 covered with snow to any extent, except in valleys, 
 which protected large quantities from the action of 
 the sun. 
 
 The weather was a little thick and foggy ; but this 
 continued only for a short time, after which it became 
 gloomy and squally, and ultimately there was a driz- 
 zling rain. Towards midnight the wind increased 
 considerably, and often swept round the bold bluffs 
 with a degree of violence that threatened to carry 
 away our spars, or to upset the ships, as they leaned 
 over in the water. 
 
 Three ships were observed off Cape Hurd and 
 Cape Ricketts on the afternoon of yesterday, and 
 the same ships were seen several times this day. 
 One of them appeared to be one of H. M. steamers, 
 and it was very probable that one of the remaining 
 two was the Assistance ; but it was impossible to 
 make out the third, which appeared to be a vessel 
 of nearly the same tonnage as the " Sophia."
 
 291 
 
 CHAP. X. 
 
 DISCOVERY OF WINTER QUARTERS. 
 
 Beechey Island. Wellington Channel. Traces of Sir. J. Franklin. 
 
 Abundance of Animals. Land supposed to be seen across the 
 Channel. Barrier of Ice. Young Ice. Water upon the Ice. 
 Freshness of Water upon the Ice. Interest felt in the Search. 
 Party on Shore exploring. Traces found. Opinions. Line of 
 Search and Route of the Missing Ships indicated. Arrival in 
 Union Bay. Winter Quarters discovered. Finger Post found. 
 Tin Canisters. Absence 6f Documents. Boat sent to Cape 
 Ricketts. Record left by H.M. S. "Assistance" at Cape Riley. 
 
 Report to Captain Austin. Explore Gascoyne Inlet. Leave 
 Union Bay. Communication with H.M.S. "Assistance." A 
 great many Bears seen. Soil at the Cairn dug up. Suggestion 
 to open the Graves. Causes of Death. 
 
 August 25th. DURING the early part of the day 
 there was a smart breeze, which forced us to shorten 
 sail; the sky was overcast with dense cumulus 
 clouds, which drifted rapidly before the wind. In 
 consequence of our close approach to the ice, the 
 temperature of the water came down to +32, and 
 the temperature of the air was also below its average, 
 owing to the wind blowing over a large tract of ice 
 and land. About five o'clock the wind began to 
 moderate a little, but it was still squally, and a little 
 
 u 2
 
 292 TRACES OF SIR J. FRANKLIN. CHAP. X. 
 
 caution was requisite in passing some of the bold bluffs, 
 such as Cape Riley and Beechey Island presented. 
 The Wellington Channel was opening out to our 
 view, and we could see the three ships already alluded 
 to endeavouring to get to the westward ; but the pack 
 in Barrow Straits left too little room between itself 
 and the fixed ice in the channel, for the ice there had 
 not yet started. 
 
 The small ship we had seen on the morning of 
 the 19th, belonged to the American expedition. She 
 had parted company with her consort during the 
 gale of the 20th, and had picked up a boat belonging 
 to H. M. S. " Intrepid," which that ship had lost in 
 Lancaster Sound. The " Lady Franklin " was 
 visited by a boat from her, to make inquiry whether 
 we had seen her consort coming up the sound, and 
 to report that traces of the missing ships had been 
 found at Cape Riley by the "Assistance " and the 
 " Intrepid; " but they were of a very doubtful nature ; 
 and it was impossible to arrive at any conclusions 
 with regard to them, except that they proved, that 
 the ships of the missing expedition, or parties from 
 them, had been at Cape Riley, and also at Beechey 
 Island. 
 
 The "Lady Franklin" showed signals to the 
 " Assistance," conveying some information respecting 
 the " North Star ; " but they were not taken notice of,
 
 1850. ABUNDANCE OF ANIMALS. 293 
 
 owing, I suppose, to the attention which all on that ship 
 were paying to the motions of the " Intrepid," which 
 had been despatched in the direction of Cape Hotham. 
 A little to the eastward of mid-channel, the " Assist- 
 ance " was caught among the ice about noon ; and in 
 less than an hour, the "Lady Franklin" was at the 
 same ice, within a mile and a half of her. It was nearly 
 calm, and there was a slight fall of soft snow, which 
 overcast the sky, but did not obscure the sun. The 
 sea was as smooth as oil ; and thousands of seals, in 
 which one could distinguish three species the ocean 
 or Greenland seal, the bearded seal, and the common 
 seal, were seen taking their pastime in the water. 
 It is amusing to behold numerous groups of seals 
 chasing one another on the surface of the water. 
 They do not appear to be at all ferocious to one 
 another, which makes the scene all the more agree- 
 able. White whales were also seen in great abun- 
 dance, and their peculiar mewing sound beneath 
 water was often heard by persons sitting in the 
 cabins. If it had been any other day but Sunday, 
 I am not sure that we should have been honoured 
 with so many playful companions. The temptation 
 was not sufficiently powerful, and our wants did 
 not demand interference with them; so they were 
 permitted to pass the day unmolested, with a 
 
 u 3
 
 294 RETURN TO EXPLORE THE CHANNEL. CHAP. X. 
 
 promise that to-morrow, time and circumstances 
 permitting, we should have some sport among them. 
 
 At two o'clock in the evening, Mr. Penny went 
 on board H. M. S. " Assistance," which by that time 
 was closely beset; her tender being beset six or 
 eight miles farther on towards Barlow Inlet. On 
 his return to the "Lady Franklin," we all learned 
 that the " Assistance " had found traces of the 
 missing ships at Cape Kiley and Beechey Island, but 
 of such a nature as not to leave the slightest im- 
 pression on the mind at what time or under what 
 circumstances the expedition had been there. Cap- 
 tain Ommanney was disposed to push to the westward 
 as soon as the ice opened out to set him free. 
 Mr. Penny thought it would be proper to examine 
 the eastern shore of the Wellington Channel, which 
 still presented a continuous sheet of ice, from a point 
 about seven miles north of Cape Spencer to Barlow 
 Inlet ; and, with this object in view, he left Captain 
 Ommanney. The ice in the channel was in some 
 parts very much wasted; in other parts, again, it 
 appeared to be fifteen to twenty feet thick ; but of 
 course such a thickness could only be owing to 
 pressure. 
 
 The officers of the "Assistance" and of the 
 "Intrepid" were divided in their opinions, with 
 respect to a continuation of land across the top of the
 
 1850. BAEEIEE OF ICE. 295 
 
 channel. Some of them asserted that they had 
 seen it, while others maintained with equal positive- 
 ness that what had been seen was not land, but open 
 water. Each had his abettors in our Expedition, 
 Mr. Manson with the former, and Mr. Stewart with 
 the latter. However, no one, so far as I knew at the 
 time, could say, with any degree of certainty, that 
 there was either the one or the other, and bring 
 forward convincing proofs of the truth of his as- 
 sertion. 
 
 At nine o'clock in the evening, our ships were cast 
 loose, and steered towards the eastern side of the 
 channel, along the edge of the fixed ice, which was 
 very hummocky from recent pressure. The sky was 
 overcast throughout, and there was a gloomy appear- 
 ance pervading the whole atmosphere. There were 
 occasionally very slight showers of dry snow ; but at 
 no time were they so close as to obscure vision with- 
 in six or seven miles close along the horizon. 
 Young ice formed on the water, at the edge of 
 
 O * O 
 
 the fixed ice, where it was still, and probably also 
 colder than elsewhere, from its proximity with the 
 fixed ice. The temperature of the water was 30. 
 Since we came in between the ice in Barrow Strait, 
 and the ice in the channel, the temperature of the 
 air was +34 to +30. Before night closed in 
 around us, we observed the "Assistance" moving 
 
 u 4
 
 296 WATER UPON THE ICE. CHAP. X. 
 
 to the westward in the direction of Cape Hotham 
 and of the south shore of Cornwallis Island. These 
 places, Captain Ommanney intended to have carefully 
 examined, and there it was determined he should 
 rendezvous for Captain Austin's detachment of the 
 searching squadron. 
 
 August 2,6th. At one o'clock A.M., the ships 
 were made fast to the floe, to take some water from 
 it, and to wait until the weather should clear up. 
 
 The water which accumulates on the surface of 
 ice formed on the surface of sea- water is generally 
 fresh enough for culinary purposes. If it is in the 
 least brackish it does not suit for tea or coffee, 
 and is exceedingly disagreeable with spirits. The 
 whalers frequently test its purity by taking half 
 a tumbler of it with a little spirits. In this way 
 the palate will detect the least brackishness. It is 
 only after the sun has been beating upon a floe for a 
 considerable time, and after it has relieved itself from 
 the first water formed upon its surface, that the 
 water found on it will be fresh. I recollect seeing 
 the whole of the fixed ice in Ponds Bay on the 26th 
 of June present one continuous sheet of water, which 
 could not be used in preparing our food. It was the 
 first water that had appeared that season on the 
 surface of the ice, and in some parts it was a foot 
 deep. In the course of a week it drained through
 
 1850. FRESHNESS OF WATER UPON ICE. 297 
 
 the substance of the ice, increasing its porosity, and 
 removing from it more than three fourths of the salt 
 which it contained. There was, however, at the side 
 of the same land ice a small pool, which had no com- 
 munication with the principal surface water, and in it 
 the water was found sufficiently fresh for our use. The 
 water which is found on the "middle ice" is as fresh 
 and wholesome as any spring water : it is owing to 
 the same process of percolation, which the first water 
 that forms on a new floe has to pass through before 
 it can escape. While we were detained with the 
 steamers in Melville Bay, a marine had been sent 
 for water to the floe. He found that the pool dried 
 up before he had enough, and, thinking that it was 
 owing to the water being taken away faster than 
 it could seek its way through the ice in the bottom 
 of the pool, he sent his ice chisel through it, and 
 enlarged what he considered to be the communication. 
 He had an abundant supply of water, but it was salt. 
 After he had watered the ship, as far as was necessary 
 at that time, he learned, by dear-bought experience, 
 that it would suit ill to dig a well in Melville Bay 
 over a depth of two hundred fathoms of sea water. 
 
 Since we had heard of the traces of Sir J. Franklin 
 everything that deviated from nature attracted 
 attention, if it were only a few particles of earthy 
 matter on the ice, or even the dung of any animal, 
 such as the fox or the bear.
 
 298 INTEREST FELT IN THE SEARCH. CHAP. X. 
 
 After casting loose from the ice, and proceeding 
 to the eastward with the ships, Mr. Penny and Mr. 
 Stewart, together with a boat's crew, accompanied 
 by Mr. Goodsir and Mr. Petersen, went ashore, to 
 explore the coast northward from Cape Spencer. 
 We watched the progress of the party along the 
 coast until they reached Cape Spencer, where, in 
 the evening, they were observed embarking and 
 pulling to the ships. 
 
 During the day, the weather was almost perfectly 
 calm, the sky was overcast with a dense misty haze, 
 and towards evening there was a great deal of soft 
 snow. The temperature of the air was as low as 
 + 27, and that of the water 29, but the latter 
 was nearly stationary at 30. The ships were, for 
 the most part, within a few hundred yards of the 
 ice in the channel, which, as has been already ob- 
 served, had pools upon it. There was a cover- 
 ing of ice on the surface of the water which they 
 contained, varying from one to two inches in thick- 
 ness. This was a distinct indication that winter 
 was fast approaching, and that the time was not far 
 distant when we would be forced to betake ourselves 
 to winter quarters, whether the search for the missing 
 expedition had, or had not, assumed such features as 
 should enable us to do so with satisfaction. It 
 was most painful and annoying to reflect that the
 
 1850. 
 
 TRACES FOUND ALONG THE COAST. 
 
 299 
 
 best part of the season for exploration had passed 
 away long before this time, in spite of our utmost 
 efforts to penetrate through the ice to the scene 
 of action the Wellington Channel. From the 
 appearance of the ice in the channel, we could hardly 
 look forward to a speedy disruption amongst it even 
 now, although Captain Parry, in 1819 on the 23rd of 
 this month, saw no impediment in it. At that 
 time, however, there might have been ice in it beyond 
 the limits of vision from the crow's nests of his ships, 
 for they crossed its entrance in a line from Beechey 
 
 Island to Cape Hotham. 
 
 
 At six in the evening our party returned, bringing 
 
 off unexceptionable traces of extensive parties be- 
 longing to the missing expedition. About six miles 
 N. of Cape Spencer, the site of an encampment was 
 discovered, where there was a hut made of stones, 
 
 of which the ac- 
 company ing figure is 
 a representation of 
 the base ; for this 
 I am indebted to 
 the kindness of Mr. 
 Goodsir. The floor 
 was neatly paved 
 with thin and smooth 
 stones. The wall
 
 300 TRACES OF THE MISSING EXPEDITION. CHAP. X. 
 
 was generally about four feet in height, and it en- 
 closed a space twelve feet in diameter. Immediately 
 in connection with the wall outside, there were two 
 projecting walls, about four feet apart, which enclosed 
 a space that appeared to have been a fire-place, from 
 the ashes and other relics of cookery which it con- 
 tained. A great many articles were brought off by 
 the party. These included soup canisters, some of 
 which had been used as cooking vessels, while others 
 had the labels entire. " Goldener's Patent" was a very 
 common form ; and there was one bearing the name 
 " Mr. M'Donald " written in a business style. Some 
 of them were a good deal corroded, especially where 
 the paint had been removed in the opening, which 
 in most cases appeared to have been very roughly 
 performed. The painting outside and the tinning 
 inside, when entire, prevented corrosion. There were 
 pieces of oak, such as staves of small casks ; the end 
 portions of a small cask with the words " mixed pickles " 
 scratched on them ; also larger pieces of oak, such as 
 might have been procured by splitting up the knees or 
 the doubling of a ship, and they were charred at the 
 ends as if they had been in the fire ; the bones of birds 
 also a little burned; but there were no beef bones; part 
 of the leaves of a book (MS.) with some markings on 
 them, and part of a newspaper bearing date Sep- 
 tember 1844 ; portions of rope, very much chafed, but
 
 1850. TRACES NORTHWARD OF CAPE SPENCER. 301 
 
 easily distinguished as belonging to the Royal Navy by 
 the middle yarn ; also torn mittens, cotton rags, and 
 blank paper, all of which the wind had driven beneath 
 the stones. The wall of the tent or hut had been 
 rendered impervious to the wind, by the interstices 
 being packed up with moss and bits of paper. 
 Mr. Petersen said it was about four years since the 
 hut had been built, from the appearance which every- 
 thing connected with it had assumed by the action 
 of the weather. In this respect, Mr. Petersen's 
 opinion would be of great value, as it could be relied 
 upon, from his extensive experience within the 
 Arctic Circle. There were a few handfuls of coals 
 in the fireplace, together with birds' wings, tails, heads, 
 feathers, and bones, some of which appeared evidently 
 to have been in the fire. The track of a sledge was 
 discovered, and the marks of the runners, which 
 were very distinct, were found to be two feet apart. 
 The bones of whales were observed on the land, at 
 the same place as the tent ; but they appeared to 
 have been there for ages. 
 
 From such an accumulation of materials, relics of 
 parties belonging to the missing ships, and in the 
 entire absence of documents left by them, various 
 inferences were drawn, and questions resulting from 
 such inferences were put, which ended in a number 
 of opinions of a purely speculative character. It wa:
 
 302 OPINIONS RESPECTING MISSING SHIPS. CH. X. 
 
 not doubted by any one, that parties belonging to the 
 " Erebus " and " Terror " had been here for a con- 
 siderable time ; and there were few or none to dissent 
 from the general opinion, that it had been at a period 
 four years previously. A line of encampments was 
 discovered parallel with the eastern shore of the 
 channel, which gave rise to the opinion, that the party 
 which had left them had been retreating from a 
 position to the northward, at no great distance, 
 where, probably, the ships had been lost. The fact 
 that beef bones were found at Cape Riley, while 
 none were found at this encampment, was almost 
 sufficient to refute that opinion. Although the route 
 pursued by the missing ships was still too doubtful, 
 to have taken the least possible advantage of the 
 three stations, where parties from them appeared to 
 have touched, it cannot be denied that a line drawn 
 from the one to the other continued onwards would 
 lead directly up the Wellington Channel, and afford 
 an amount of encouragement to search for them in 
 that quarter, which neither Melville Island nor Cape 
 Walker could hold out to persons searching in the 
 direction of those places. Mr. Penny resolved to 
 have the coast thoroughly examined, north and south 
 of Cape Spencer; and, with this object in view, he 
 gave orders to keep in its neighbourhood during the 
 night.
 
 1850. AKEIVAL IN UNION BAY. 303 
 
 After a heavy fall of soft snow, last 
 night and this morningj we had rather a strong 
 breeze from S. W., which resolved into squalls as the 
 snow cleared away, and the sky began to appear 
 between the drifting clouds. The sky only ap- 
 peared for a few hours between eight and eleven 
 o'clock, after which it became overcast with dense 
 blue clouds, casting their gloomy shades upon the 
 already too gloomy appearance of everything around 
 us. 
 
 After plying for three hours, in the direction of and 
 to the southward of Cape Spencer, we got hold of a 
 floe fixed in a bay between it and Beechey Island, and 
 secured the ships to it at eight o'clock in the morning. 
 The " Felix," under the command of Sir John Ross, 
 and the Expedition from the United States, were 
 moored to the same ice. Mr. Penny detailed an ac- 
 count of yesterday's proceedings to the commanders 
 of those vessels, and sent a party, immediately that 
 the ships were moored, to Beechey Island, to examine 
 it as carefully as possible. 
 
 The party wr.s composed of all the officers of our ex- 
 pedition, except the chief mates, and it was under the 
 orders of Mr. Stewart, commander of the " Sophia." 
 Traces were found, to a great extent, of the missing 
 ships; tin canisters in hundreds; pieces of cloth, rope; 
 wood in large fragments and in chips ; iron in numer-
 
 304 WINTER QUARTERS DISCOVERED. CHAP. X. 
 
 ous fragments where the anvil had stood, and the 
 block which supported it; paper, both " written" and 
 "printed," with the dates "1844" and "1845:" sledge 
 marks in abundance; depressions in the gravel re- 
 sembling wells, which they had been digging ; and 
 the graves of three men who had died on board the 
 missing ships in January and April 1846. On the 
 opposite page will be seen a rude representation of 
 the monuments, with their respective epitaphs. 
 
 One of the party was despatched with the intelli- 
 gence of all this to Mr. Penny, who immediately came 
 ashore, accompanied by Sir John Ross, Commander 
 Phillips, Commander De Haven, Lieut. Griffiths, 
 and the remaining officers of the several expeditions. 
 
 These were unequivocal proofs that the missing ships 
 had spent their first winter in the immediate vicinity 
 of Beechey Island. A finger-post was picked up, 
 which we at once supposed had been made use of to 
 direct parties to the ships during winter, if they 
 should happen to have lost their way in a snow storm. 
 Captain Parry adopted the same precautions around 
 his winter quarters at Melville Island, and it is not 
 improbable some of the posts may be found after a 
 lapse of thirty years. Our ideas were that the ships 
 had wintered in a deep bay between Beechey Island 
 and Cape Eiley, which we called " Erebus and Terror" 
 Bay. Immediately adjacent to the supposed position
 
 1850. 
 
 EPITAPHS. 
 
 305 
 
 VOL. I.
 
 306 TIN CANISTERS. CHAP. X. 
 
 of the ships, we found the site of a large store-house 
 and work-shop, and smaller sites which were sup- 
 posed to have been observatories and other temporary 
 erections. A great number of coal-bags containing 
 patent fuel in small quantities were found scattered in 
 the vicinity of the sites of these erections, and several 
 pieces of canvas, such as is often used about the deck 
 of a man-of-war ; one of the pieces had the letters 
 T-e-r-r-o-r written on it. The meat-tins were piled 
 up in heaps in the same regular manner as shot is 
 piled up ; each had been filled with loose shingle, and 
 when the tiers of a single layer were completed the 
 interstices were also filled up with shingle. In this 
 way several mounds were raised to a height of nearly 
 two feet, and they varied in breadth from three to four 
 yards. Six or seven hundred tins were counted, and 
 many more besides these were dug up and emptied 
 out in search of documents. 
 
 A cairn was found on the south-west side of the 
 island, which contained a paper left by Captain 
 Ommanney; but there were no papers found any- 
 where that had been left by the missing ships. 
 Every precaution was taken to secure a faithful 
 search of the whole island, but the result was the 
 same in all. 
 
 The same mystery still shrouded the fate of Sir 
 J. Franklin and his companions. The beach, which
 
 1850. ABSENCE OF DOCUMENTS. 307 
 
 abounds in organic remains, such as coral, in highly 
 disintegrated fragments, received impressions of the 
 feet of, I presume, all in his expedition, which it still 
 retains as memorials of many a visit from the lost and 
 the loved. How interesting it would be, to have 
 thence a stereotype of the conversation between boon 
 companions on many a cheerful and quiet walk, and 
 no less interesting would it be to have the plans which 
 the Commanders of the Expedition were wont to con 
 under the clear blue sky, the twinkling stars, the 
 flashing and evanescent Aurora Borealis, and the 
 bright shining moon, of the Polar Regions, during 
 their long, but I hope not dreary, winter. Could 
 secondary limestone but speak, with its abundant 
 remains of animals, which had their existence in epochs 
 of our earth when man was not known, could the 
 beautiful yellow poppy (Papaver nudicaule), which, 
 on the return of summer caught and pleased many 
 an eye in the missing Expedition, as its represen- 
 tatives in other climates please the mind, could it be 
 but gifted with the power of utterance, we should 
 have had hosts of witnesses to convey that intel- 
 ligence to us, which, in the absence of documents, 
 was denied. To us it appeared truly remarkable, 
 that winter quarters had been left without leaving 
 records to shew that British ships had been there, if 
 not also to give an idea of the route they intended to 
 
 x 2
 
 308 A BOAT PARTY DESPATCHED. CHAP. X. 
 
 pursue. Perhaps it was considered that the graves 
 would be evidence enough that they had wintered 
 there ; and of their route, after getting clear of winter 
 quarters, they would know so little themselves, 
 depending entirely upon the state of the ice in 
 Barrow Strait and the Wellington Channel, that it 
 would be altogether impossible to leave documents 
 which they could be certain would not mislead parties 
 coming after them. Mr. Penny no longer thought 
 that they had been retreating ; and he gave it as 
 his opinion that they used the encampment north of 
 Cape Spencer as a " look out " station for the channel. 
 
 A boat party, of which I happened to be one, 
 under the command of Mr. Stewart, was sent down 
 to examine Cape Ricketts, Gascoyne Inlet, and the 
 intermediate line of coast, with discretionary power 
 to continue the search beyond Cape Ricketts, if any 
 traces should be found there to encourage us farther 
 to the eastward. 
 
 At three o'clock in the evening we left the ships, 
 and proceeded eastward until we reached Cape Riley, 
 where we landed, and found traces of the missing 
 Expedition, as well as papers that had been left there 
 by H. M. ships " Assistance " and " Intrepid," the 
 " Albert," and the two American ships, the 
 " Advance " and " Rescue." The following is a copy 
 of the paper left by Captain Ommanney of H. M. S. 
 f Assistance."
 
 1850. RECORD LEFT BY CAPT. OMMANNEY. 309 
 
 " H. M. Arctic Searching Expedition. 
 " This is to certify, that Captain Omnianney, with 
 the officers of H. M. ships * Assistance' and * In- 
 trepid/ landed at Cape Riley on the 23rd of August, 
 1850, where were found traces of an encampment; 
 and collected the remains of materials, which evidently 
 prove that some party belonging to H. M. ships have 
 been detained on this spot. Beechey Island was also 
 examined, where traces were found of the same 
 party. This is also to give notice that a supply of 
 provisions and fuel is deposited at "Whaler Point, 
 Port Leopold. H. M. ships ' Assistance ' and ' In- 
 trepid ' were detached from Captain Austin's 
 Squadron off Wolstenholme Island on the 15th inst., 
 since when they have examined the north shores of 
 Lancaster Sound and Barrow Straits without meet- 
 ing with any other traces. Captain Ommanney 
 proceeds to Cape Hotham and Cape Walker, in 
 search for further traces of Sir John Franklin's 
 Expedition. 
 
 " ERASMUS OMMANNEY, 
 
 " Captain. 
 
 "Dated on board H.M. S. 'Assistance,' 
 off Cape Riley,Hhis 23d August, 1850." 
 
 After examining the papers left by the ships, we 
 continued our route eastward along the coast, landing 
 very frequently. Immediately eastward of Cape 
 
 x 3
 
 310 WHITE HARES. CHAP. X. 
 
 Riley three white hares (Lepus glacialis] were seen, 
 and one of them was shot. The antlers of the rein- 
 deer were found, but none of those animals, or their 
 recent dung, could be seen. On arriving at the ships 
 next day, the hare was put into the scales, and found 
 to weigh eleven pounds, which was rather remarkable, 
 when compared with the scanty vegetation upon 
 which these animals have to subsist. I suppose 
 they have to seek it over a wide extent ; which, since 
 they are not very numerous, is a compensation for its 
 scantiness. The small proportion of the juices of 
 Arctic plants renders them much more nutritious, 
 when taken into the stomachs of animals, than they 
 would prove to be in a warmer and a more humid 
 climate. 
 
 When we were off Gascoyne Inlet, we observed 
 H. M. ships " Resolute " and " Pioneer " coming 
 steaming up Barrow Straits, within a few miles of 
 the land ; and as it would take us but little out of 
 our way to go on board, the boat was directed so as 
 to cut them off. As we approached the ships every 
 eye was intent upon us ; the boat might readily have 
 been recognised as one of the boats of the " Lady 
 Franklin ; " but then, how could this be, since we 
 had been lost sight of off Cape York in a calm, far 
 behind the advancing ships. If there were con- 
 jectures with respect to the boat, there were still
 
 1850. REPORT TO CAPTAIN AUSTIN. 311 
 
 more with respect to her crew ; and I am certain it 
 occurred to some of the officers, that there were 
 among us persons belonging to the missing ships. 
 In a short time we got on board, and reported to 
 Captain Austin our proceedings since we had parted 
 company off Cape York, not excepting the discovery 
 of the "winter quarters" of the "Erebus" and 
 " Terror " at Beechey Island, and their encampments 
 northward of Cape Spencer. The discovery of the 
 first traces of the missing ships at Cape Riley, on the 
 23rd of August, by Captain Ornmanney, was also 
 reported, and a copy of the paper deposited by him at 
 that place was read. The position of the " Assistance " 
 and the " Intrepid," to the eastward of Cape Hotham, 
 was given as correctly as we knew; and to the 
 enquiries which Captain Austin made respecting the 
 depth of water close along the land, lest he should 
 have to approach it in keeping clear of the ice in the 
 Straits, we replied that he must not venture near the 
 shore where the land is very bold, any more than 
 where it is low and jutting out into the water, for the 
 water shallows at nearly the same distance from both. 
 In proof of this, we mentioned (or could have 
 mentioned) that one of the American ships had been 
 on the ground two or three days previously. After 
 conveying this intelligence, which must have been 
 full of interest to them, we left the " Resolute," and 
 
 x 4
 
 312 EXPLORE GASCOYNE INLET. CHAP. X. 
 
 landed at Cape Ricketts, which was closely examined 
 down into Gascoyne Inlet, without finding a single 
 trace of the missing ships ; whereupon, Mr. Stewart 
 resolved upon returning to the ships. 
 
 August 28th. At one o'clock in the morning we 
 embarked at Cape Ricketts, and after struggling 
 with the ice and the wind for four hours, we arrived 
 at the ships in Union Bay, where we found H. M. S. 
 " Pioneer " aground, about a quarter of a mile from 
 the north bluff of Beechey Island. This name was 
 given to the bay, between Beechey Island and Cape 
 Spencer, to perpetuate the day on which so many 
 of the ships met in the vicinity of the " winter 
 quarters " of Sir John Franklin's Expedition. There 
 was a smart breeze from the northward, which cleared 
 a good deal of the loose ice out of the Wellington 
 Channel ; but as it had veered round from west to 
 north, it brought a large quantity of ice into Union 
 Bay, which beset the ships, until the next change of 
 tide took it clear of the fixed ice in the bay, and then 
 the wind drifted it south of the north bluff of Beechey 
 Island. 
 
 From the edge of the ice in the middle of the 
 Wellington Channel to Union Bay there was open 
 water, and as the wind swept round Cape Spencer 
 it brought a short sea into the bay, which was break- 
 ing up the edge of the fixed ice in it, where the
 
 1850. LEAVE UNION BAY. 313 
 
 ships were moored. Mr. Penny thought a favour- 
 able change would be wrought upon the ice in the 
 Channel by what appeared to be such a suitable 
 wind; and with the view of being present if it should 
 open, he ordered the ships to be cast loose and sail 
 to be made. It was remarkable with what ease and 
 readiness the " Lady Franklin " left the edge of the 
 ice, although the wind was almost at right angles with 
 it. The " Sophia " had much less freedom in this 
 respect than the " Lady Franklin ; " however, she 
 too succeeded in getting under weigh with very little 
 trouble, and, I have no doubt, much to the astonish- 
 ment of the whole searching squadron, for probably 
 there was not a ship among the whole fleet that could 
 vie with the two little vessels in our expedition in 
 quickness of sailing and dexterity of evolutions among 
 the ice. These remarks are ostentatious; but in 
 spite of any such impeachment, the builders are 
 entitled to all that has been said with respect to the 
 qualifications of the vessels on which their skill had 
 been so successfully bestowed. 
 
 After proceeding to the westward as far as the 
 middle of the Wellington Channel, we found the ice 
 in Barrow Straits still in contact with the ice in it, 
 nor were there any chances it would open out soon. 
 The ice in the channel itself continued fixed from side 
 to side, and with the exception of a few fragments
 
 314 COMMUNICATE WITH THE ASSISTANCE. CH. X. 
 
 that drifted out of it, the previous week seemed to 
 have altered it very little. 
 
 August 29th. At eight o'clock in the morning, a 
 boat was sent to H. M. S. " Assistance," which was 
 seen beset to the westward. The object of this was to 
 communicate to Captain Ommarmey the results of our 
 explorations northward and southward of, and on Bee- 
 chey Island. Mr. J. Stuart of the " Lady Franklin " 
 was one of the party. After going with the boat 
 as far as the open water permitted, the party were seen 
 hauling it out of the water, and then having left it 
 on the ice, they proceeded, on foot, towards the ship. 
 
 Before noon, the wind veered to the westward, 
 and threatened to bring the ice in Barrow Straits 
 around the ships, a circumstance which was not, by 
 any means, to be desired. To avoid as long as pos- 
 sible getting beset, we stood to the eastward, and at 
 four o'clock in the evening we again entered Union 
 Bay, where we found the other ships almost as we 
 had left them. 
 
 There was a good deal of snow falling, and the 
 wind blew rather keenly from about W. ; the sky 
 was overcast with the snow, and with very gloomy 
 and surly-looking clouds. There was a little anxiety 
 respecting the boat party, but no dangers were ap- 
 prehended so long as the wind kept following them 
 on their return. They could launch the boat from
 
 1850. A GREAT MANY BEARS SEEX. 315 
 
 one lane to another over the ice, and in such cold 
 weather, the exercise would keep them warm. 
 
 August 30th. The boat party returned from 
 H. M. S. " Assistance," and reported that her tender, 
 the " Intrepid steamer," had sustained some serious 
 damage about the stern post. There had been very 
 severe pressure among the ice off Barlow Inlet, where 
 the ships were lying. Mr. Stuart says they saw a 
 great many bears in the channel, some of which they 
 could have shot very easily, but the circumstances 
 under which they were placed, were such as rendered 
 sport impossible, it being quite enough for them to 
 acccomplish their journey in such exceedingly bad 
 weather. Before coming so far as Union Bay, they 
 went on board one of the U. S. ships, which was 
 lying northward of Cape Spencer, where they re- 
 ceived refreshments, and were very kindly treated. 
 
 Mr. Stewart, Commander of the " Sophia," and 
 Mr. Goodsir accompanied by a party from H. M. ships 
 " Resolute " and " Pioneer " went on a journey in the 
 direction of Caswall's Tower, but the extreme violence 
 of the weather, constant snow and sleet, was more 
 than reason enough for returning after they had gone 
 half way. Traces were found by them of sledges, 
 and of excursion parties from the missing Expedition. 
 
 Beechey Island was examined again and again with- 
 out making any new discoveries. A party went to
 
 316 SOIL AROUND THE CAIRN DUG UP. CHAP. X. 
 
 the cairn on the S. W. bluff with picks and shovels, 
 and with them they dug up the soil as far as it was 
 practicable, thinking that cylinders containing papers 
 might be found buried therein ; but still the results 
 were exactly the same. It was suggested to have the 
 graves opened, but as there seemed to be a feeling 
 against this really very proper and most important 
 step, the suggestion was not reiterated. It would 
 have been very interesting to have examined into the 
 cause of death ; it is very probable there would be 
 no difficulty in doing this, for the bodies would be 
 found frozen as hard as possible, and in a high state 
 of preservation in their icy casings. The graves, as 
 will be seen from the inscriptions, were opened and 
 shut when the frost must have been intense ; hence 
 the bodies would then become quite hard, and if 
 the snow about the graves should sink into them after 
 thawing had commenced, the greater coldness of the 
 soil underneath the surface would congeal the per- 
 colating water, and form a perfect icy casing, which, 
 at a depth of even a single foot, would defy the action 
 of the sun throughout the whole summer. It is very 
 improbable they died of scurvy ; indeed, it is almost 
 impossible that this disease could have appeared in 
 the Expedition at a period so early as to prove fatal 
 to those first attacked, on the first days of January. 
 Suppose the disease was scurvy, I think the least
 
 1850. EXAMINATION OF BODIES SUGGESTED. 317 
 
 space of time in which it could have destroyed life, 
 where such measures would be adopted to retard 
 its progress, could not be less than three months, 
 and in that case it must have appeared in the Ex- 
 pedition so early as the end of September, two 
 months after the whalers had brought despatches 
 from Sir John Franklin, and only five months after 
 they had left England. The cause of Braine's death, 
 which happened in April, might have been scurvy 
 supervening upon some other disease. The first 
 two deaths had probably been caused by accidents, 
 such as frost bite or exposure to intense cold in a state 
 of stupor, or to diseases of the chest, where there 
 might have been some latent mischief before leaving 
 England, which the changeable weather in Sep- 
 tember and October rekindled, and the intense cold 
 of November and December stimulated to a fatal 
 termination.
 
 318 
 
 CHAP. XI. 
 
 PASSAGE FROM BEECHEY ISLAND TO ASSISTANCE BAY. 
 
 Prospects of getting clear. Fossils. Character of the Land. Red 
 Snow. Character of the Bottom in UnionBay. Dredgitig. Ships 
 leave Union Bay. Party at Cape Spencer. Open \\ater to the 
 Northward. Birds and other Animals. Whales. Rapid Tides 
 at Cape Spencer. Direction of the Tide. Young Ice. Fixed 
 Ice in the Channel. Sailing Vessels in Bay Ice. Capturing 
 Seals. Seals fattest in Winter. State of the Ice in the Channel. 
 
 Plying Northward. Prospects. H. M. Ships beset. Plying 
 Westward. Arrested by the Ice. Griffiths Island. Arrange- 
 ments for future Proceedings. Attempts to reach Cape Walker. 
 Meet the "Felix." A School of Walruses. Habits of the Walrus. 
 Difficult Navigation. A dark Night. Danger of getting beset. 
 
 Getting out of a Lee Pack. Dropped Anchor. 
 
 September ^th. The weather was very stormy during 
 the four previous days ; the wind prevailed up Barrow 
 Straits, and set the pack in it closely together, west- 
 ward of a line direct from Cape Ricketts to Whaler 
 Point. Union Bay was full of ice, and, for fear of 
 pressure, we cut a dock, and hauled the ships into it. 
 It was quite impossible to get out of the harbour, 
 and to proceed to the westward was still more so. 
 It appeared to be very doubtful when the ice would 
 clear away from the land, and upon these doubts our 
 hopes and fears rested continually. The temperature
 
 1850. FOSSILS FOUND ON BEECHEY ISLAND. 319 
 
 of the water never rose above 30, and that of the 
 air was rarely above + 32, but it was often down 
 to +27. On several occasions the snow, soft and 
 sleety when it fell, became frozen over, and con- 
 nected the pack ice firmly together on the surface, 
 so that one could walk over it with tolerable safety. 
 
 Beechey Island was often visited, although the 
 state of the weather rarely permitted of longer 
 excursions. Geological specimens were obtained in 
 great abundance. Favosites, Encrinites, Catenipora, 
 CyathopJiyllum, Porites, and Fucoid impressions were 
 very common forms of organic remains. At Cape 
 Riley, and also on Beechey Island, Favosites goth- 
 landica was found almost everywhere in great abun- 
 dance, but especially at the latter place, where it 
 occurs in situ. It has a beautiful sort of honey- 
 combed structure, and some of it is so light that it 
 floats in water for a minute or two after being newly 
 introduced. 
 
 Among the loose shingle, where there were accu- 
 mulations of finely divided calcareous rock in the form 
 of tertiary deposits, bivalve shells in a free and per- 
 fectly detached state, could be picked up in baskets-ful. 
 They were on the surface, and also in the substance 
 of the deposits, and the elevation at which they 
 occurred varied from the level of the sea to a height 
 of five or six hundred feet. They appeared on the
 
 320 CHARACTER OF THE LAND. CHAP. XI. 
 
 surface of the mounds, for the reason, that part of 
 the finely divided earthy matter had been removed, 
 either by rain or melting snow, or by the wind, when 
 in a dry state. The surface of the land, except on the 
 sites of those deposits, was everywhere exceedingly 
 rough, and it proved most destructive to boots 
 or shoes when one had to walk much. This rough- 
 ness arises from the action of snow or rain-water 
 containing carbonic acid, which attacks the softest 
 parts of the rock, and removes it. The water thus 
 charged with lime in solution escapes to the under sur- 
 face of the fragments of the shingle, whence a portion 
 of it evaporates and leaves a rough coating of earthy 
 matter resembling miniature stalactites. The hollows 
 along the beach, where there had been accumulations 
 of fresh water at an earlier period of the season, 
 although now quite dry, had a thick coating of green 
 filamentous algae. In some of the hollows, especially 
 those that were shallowest and did not contain mud 
 at the bottom, the red snow-plant was found by 
 Mr. Goodsir, encrusting the small stones. When 
 there was water in the pools, the bottom had a 
 crimson tinge, which was never imparted to the 
 water ; on the dry stones the deep red had faded, but 
 it was again restored on the re-application of water. 
 
 The bottom in Union Bay is composed of unpolished 
 shingle, and in this respect it resembles the land. The
 
 1850. CHARACTER OF BOTTOM IN UNION BAY. 32 1 
 
 depth varies from the beach outwards ; about half a 
 mile from the laud, where our ships lay, it was fifteen 
 fathoms. The dredge brought up sea-urchins and 
 brittle stars ( OpMuridci) in myriads ; sea anemonies, 
 of not very large size, adhering to the fronds of 
 Laminaria ; crustaceans of various orders, among 
 which could be recognised the Idotea baffini, Gam- 
 marus loricatus, and Entomostraca belonging to the 
 genus Cyclops adhered in thousands to the palmated 
 portion of sea-weed. Fragments of rock, that came 
 from a depth of twelve to fifteen fathoms, were varie- 
 gated by calcareous incrustations (a Nullipora), of a 
 red and greenish colour, containing perforations which 
 extended into the substance of the rock, and contained 
 fleshy-looking creatures, that could only be detected 
 by breaking up their habitations, and seemed to possess 
 little more of the signs of life than mere irritability. 
 In some of the perforations bivalve molluscs seemed to 
 have taken up their abode, and in one I observed a sea- 
 urchin of not more than two lines in diameter. How 
 these creatures were to leave their temporary abodes, 
 after they had become too large for the apertures by 
 which they had entered, was a question which they 
 would find difficult to solve, when it might be too 
 late, and they should be already in their unyielding 
 mausoleum. The mollusc, which resembled the genus 
 Mytilus, might possess a lithodoinous character ; but it 
 VOL. I. Y
 
 322 DREDGING IN UNION BAY. CHAP. XI. 
 
 is certain that the sea-urchin, with its brittle spines, 
 would be quite incapable of working its way through 
 the hard rock. These variegated incrustations were 
 in their turn incrusted by beautiful zoophytes, which 
 have a great resemblance to the genus Escliara, 
 and are spread out in little patches of network of 
 the utmost regularity. There were also Serpuke in 
 great abundance. Minute algae, as well as some of 
 the large laminated species, were frequently brought 
 up in the dredge. The former included a beautiful 
 reticulated, three equal-sided, siliceous Diatoma, the 
 frustules of which are about ^~ of an inch in breadth, 
 and cohere by two of the angles, the other angle being 
 free. 
 
 There was also another diatoma which resembles 
 in outline the genus Biddulphia, figured by Ralfs in 
 the second volume of the Transactions of the Bota- 
 nical Society of Edinburgh. It is very minute, but 
 sufficiently large to distinguish the reticulations with 
 a magnifying power of two hundred and eighty 
 diameters. Perhaps the triangular Diatoma is a new 
 and undescribed species.* The weather appeared a 
 little more settled in the course of the day than it had 
 
 * Since writing the above, I have been informed by Dr. Dickie, 
 Queen's Coll., Belfast, that this is the Tricerutium striolatum, 
 figured by Kutzing in his "Bacillarien oder Diat." taf. 18. fig. x. 
 The other is very probably the Odontella obtusa, also figured 
 by the same author.
 
 1850. THE SHIPS LEAVE UNION BAT. 323 
 
 been for some time. The sky, which had been densely 
 overcast, cleared up, and beautiful fleecy clouds were 
 spread over it. The wind was variable, but chiefly 
 westerly, and it varied in force from a mere calm up 
 to a three or four knot breeze. As night approached, 
 and the clear and starry sky was open to our view, 
 young ice formed very rapidly on the water around the 
 ships, but fortunately it went off with the tide as fast 
 as it appeared on the surface. The loose pack was also 
 slackening off and leaving room for the ships to get 
 clear. This was owing probably to an influx of water 
 into Barrow Straits during the south-easterly winds, 
 which was now beginning to recede, and although no 
 opening occurred among the ice in the offing, it could 
 not fail close in with the land. 
 
 September 5th. The morning was beautifully 
 clear, and distant objects were remarkably visible; 
 there were hardly any clouds upon the sky, and it 
 was nearly a perfect calm. At an early hour our 
 two ships, and H. M. ships Resolute and Pioneer, 
 were beginning to move, and prepare to leave 
 Union Bay. The American Expedition had left it 
 some time previously. Sir John Ross did not 
 appear disposed to move in the mean time, because 
 he did not think the opening in the ice to the 
 westward sufficiently large to permit the " Felix" 
 to pass through. In the course of a few hours, 
 
 T 2
 
 324 A PARTY ASHORE AT CAPE SPENCER. CH. XL 
 
 however, she was seen coming out of the harbour 
 with all her sails set. At noon the ice closed in 
 with Cape Spencer before the ships got through 
 to the westward. The " Pioneer," with the " Reso- 
 lute" at her stern, was at the edge of the ice, 
 waiting patiently until a change of tide should open 
 it out. We were immediately to the southward 
 of Cape Spencer, in a space of open water which 
 was generally free from ice, except when the wind 
 brought in large quantities from the westward. 
 
 Captains Penny and Stewart, and a party from 
 the " Lady Franklin," went ashore to Cape Spencer, 
 to have a view of the ice in the channel, and in 
 Barrow Straits. They ascended to the top of it, 
 which is about seven hundred feet above the sea 
 level. Open water could be seen northward of 
 Cornwallis Island, and of an impenetrable barrier 
 of ice in the channel. Drifting ice was clearly dis- 
 cerned in the water, and also an island completely 
 surrounded by water. The refraction was very 
 powerful at the time, otherwise objects at such a 
 distance would be invisible beneath the horizon. 
 The barrier of ice in the Wellington Channel would 
 make the atmosphere over it highly refractive of 
 rays coming from open water beyond it, where the 
 atmosphere would be of less density than over the 
 ice. The island appeared to be to the westward of 
 the northern limit of the western boundary of the
 
 1850. WHITE WHALES. 325 
 
 the channel. The water extended beyond it on both 
 sides, and, as far as persons could ascertain at such a 
 great distance, there appeared to be no ice attached 
 to it in any part. This discovery of the existence of 
 open water beyond the ice in the Wellington Channel, 
 enabled us to account for the flocks of ducks that had ' 
 been seen flying down the channel during the pre- 
 ceding week. They might truly be said to have been 
 on a passage, for I do not believe that any of them 
 ever attempted to alight on the water near Beechey 
 Island, and it is very probable that they came from 
 the water we had now seen. We had already observed 
 white whales and narwhals making the best of their 
 way south, close along the land. On the evening 
 of the 27th of August especially, while we were on 
 an excursion to Cape Bicketts, white whales were 
 observed keeping close along the land, and moving 
 rapidly to the eastward. Previous to that time we 
 had seen them, moving now one way, and now an- 
 other ; but since then, every one, without exception, 
 that has been seen, was observed moving down 
 the Strait in the direction of Lancaster Sound. In 
 connection with white whales, Mr. Petersen has 
 informed me, that they pass to the southward, in the 
 month of October, so close along the coast of West 
 Greenland, that they are taken in nets attached to 
 the land, which the settlers and the natives lay out 
 
 y 3
 
 326 WHITE WHALES. CHAP. XL 
 
 for them, and in such numbers, that two or three 
 hundred are generally caught every season at each 
 of the settlements. He says, that one continued 
 stream of these beautiful creatures are seen pour- 
 ing southward for whole weeks towards the close 
 of the season. The reason he assigns for their ap- 
 proaching so much nearer the land in the decline 
 of the season than early, is, that they may elude the 
 vigilance of their enemies the swordfish, which one 
 sees very frequently in Baffin's Bay and Davis Strait 
 after the ice clears away, but scarcely ever when 
 there is ice. I believe the reason is a correct 
 one, although it may appear strange that so many 
 creatures should, year after year, be forced to make 
 such "detours" to avoid the capricious gambols of 
 an allied genus. When we observed them close to 
 the land on the evening of the 27th of August, the 
 ice in Barrow Straits was but a few miles from us, 
 and no grampuses were seen since we entered Lan- 
 caster Sound, except two on the 22nd of August. 
 Perhaps there may be some better reason for the 
 habits of this creature, and the routes which it follows. 
 They may depend upon greater facilities being thus 
 afforded to them in finding their food ; for it is well 
 known that the young of several kinds of fish seek 
 shallow water at certain periods of their growth. At 
 the same time, it is remarkable what dread even
 
 1850. WHALES AND BIRDS. 327 
 
 the common Greenland whale has of the swordfish 
 or grampus. I recollect, one beautiful morning in 
 October, when hundreds of huge whales, both young 
 and old, were enjoying themselves in their native 
 element, and were often seen leaping out of it like 
 salmon, and falling with a thundering noise as if 
 they had nothing to fear, a " school" of swordfish 
 were observed in the offing, and in less than half 
 an hour the whales were on their flight, and far out 
 of our sight. The course northward, which the 
 white whale follows, is along the ice early in the 
 season, while in October it takes southward, close 
 along the land. It is very doubtful whether those 
 we saw in the channel had been in the water on 
 the other side of the barrier, whence we believed 
 the birds had been migrating into warmer regions 
 for the winter. At all events, both birds and 
 whales are apprised of the return of winter about 
 the same time, and receive their summons from the 
 same unerring hand, to depart from the ground 
 which they occupy only for two or three months. 
 
 The party returned from Cape Spencer about four 
 o'clock, and reported that they had seen H. M. ships 
 Assistance and Intrepid, beset in the ice off Cape 
 Hotham ; the two U. S. ships were seen from the 
 decks of our ships, seeking their way among the ice 
 in the same direction as the "Assistance" and her 
 
 y 4
 
 328 RAPID TIDE AT CAPE SPEXCER. CHAP. XI. 
 
 tender. The " Resolute " and the " Pioneer " got 
 clear of the ice as it opened out at five o'clock, and 
 then they steamed away to the westward after the 
 " Assistance." 
 
 The evening was calm, consequently we could not 
 advance in any direction without using our boats, and 
 with them we were able to do very little. At 7 P. M. 
 we were abreast of and close to Cape Spencer. The 
 tide was sweeping round it, and carrying a quantity 
 of heavy ice, in the form of floes and hummocks, along 
 with it. Among this ice the ships were caught, and 
 hurried along, at the risk of being brought with 
 crashing vengeance into the face of a perpendicular 
 wall of ice, thirty to forty feet high, which recent 
 pressure had raised upon the level beach. They were 
 often observed whirling round, shooting ahead and 
 astern, now just about to run bow foremost into the 
 enormous pile on the beach, now going after the 
 broadside, in the direction of grounding hummocks, 
 which were sufficiently high above water to destroy 
 bulwarks, stern frame, and boats' davits, or even to 
 carry away the bowsprit. To say the least of this, I do 
 not think that ships could have been extricated from 
 the position which ours passively occupied for two 
 hours. The counter of the " Lady Franklin " was 
 carried within a hair's breadth of a mass of ice that 
 was taking the ground, although there were seven 
 fathoms water, and in less than five minutes she
 
 1850. DIRECTION OF THE TIDE. 329 
 
 whirled round with the rapidly moving ice, until her 
 bow was almost in contact with the ice on the beach. 
 Her bowsprit, and all that appertained to it, would 
 have gone to pieces in a moment in the face of 
 these white icy cliffs. I am sure some of us, even 
 those who had often witnessed the icebergs rifting 
 asunder, were contemplating how to escape, when 
 the crashing began that was every moment ex- 
 pected. At length we got hold of a large floe, 
 which dragged us along until the space of open 
 water north of us widened, and we got clear. 
 This happy event occurred at 9 P. M., after which sail 
 was immediately made, and in a few minutes we were 
 once more clear of the ice. 
 
 As a question may probably be raised, from 
 the direction in which the ships were carried, with 
 the view of ascertaining the direction of the cur- 
 rent, we need have no hesitation in making a few 
 remarks in connexion with it. It will be observed, 
 that Barrow Strait was full of ice, and that at noon 
 it had come to the eastward, until the space be- 
 tween it and Cape Spencer became filled up. It 
 did not fill up Union Bay at the same time, for the 
 reason that there must have been a rush of water out 
 of it, as it has no outlet to the eastward. At 
 five o'clock in the evening, the ice eased off from 
 Cape Spencer, and moved to the westward, and at the 
 same time the current swept rather rapidly along this
 
 330 DIRECTION OF THE TIDE. CHAP. XI. 
 
 most prominent part into the Wellington Channel, 
 where it became comparatively slow. Presuming the 
 flood tide to come up Lancaster Sound, and up the 
 Wellington Channel, from Barrow Straits, the ice 
 pressing upon Cape Spencer would be shifted west- 
 ward by the advancing tide, and after a part of the 
 water sweeping round Cape Riley had filled Erebus 
 and Terror Bay, and then Union Bay, it would 
 advance northward along Cape Spencer into the 
 channel, carrying a quantity of ice from the edge of 
 the pack, and inclining to draw the whole pack 
 opposite the entrance of the channel into it. The 
 ice pressing upon Cape Spencer and Cape Riley 
 will shift westward, and the ice in the entrance of 
 the channel northward, by the flood tide, and of 
 course the opposite will obtain with the ebb. In 
 seeking a passage to the westward from Beechey 
 Island, if there is no wind, the tide to set a ship at 
 liberty at Cape Spencer, will fix her in the middle of 
 the channel. 
 
 After getting into the channel, our first object was 
 to reach the fixed ice, and as there was a gentle 
 northerly breeze, there was little difficulty in ac- 
 complishing this so far; but to get hold of it was 
 impossible, for a large quantity of young ice had been 
 carried against it, through which all our efforts to take 
 the ships completely failed, and at midnight we were
 
 1850. YOUNG ICE. 331 
 
 closely beset among an accumulation of young ice, 
 which the advancing pack had squeezed up. Our 
 distance from the fixed ice was every moment becom- 
 ing less, and ultimately we ran out a warp to it, 
 and secured the ships. It was not necessary to 
 have warps out then, but it was believed they would 
 be required when the tide changed. As danger to 
 the ships was apprehended from pressure between 
 the pack and the fixed ice, the rudders were un- 
 shipped and slung across the stern. 
 
 When young ice is forming on an extensive sheet 
 of water, bounded on the one side by the land or 
 by fixed ice, and on the other by loose ice, it is 
 never permitted to cover the whole extent of the 
 water, when the distance between the two ices is 
 increasing; because new openings are continually 
 appearing among it, throughout its whole surface, 
 and principally on the side that is next the fixed ice 
 or the land. Again, when the distance between the 
 two ices is diminishing, the young ice on the surface 
 of the water begins to overlap, and to emit a sound 
 which resembles that of distant cascades, and to the 
 Arctic voyager it becomes exceedingly disagreeable, 
 being a species of monotony of the most tiresome 
 description. The ship is generally brought to a 
 stand by it, and should it continue for six long hours, 
 the whole period of an ordinary tide, the sound is
 
 332 FIXED IN THE CHANNEL. CHAP. XI. 
 
 as audibly impressed upon one's ears at the end of 
 such a long spell, as it was at the commencement. 
 
 September 6th. Towards morning the wind shifted 
 to the S. E., and began to increase gradually, for it 
 had nearly died away at midnight. The sky was still 
 very clear, and objects at a distance could be seen 
 very distinctly. The ships which went to the west- 
 ward in the direction of Cape Hotham yesterday, 
 were beset a few miles beyond the middle of the 
 channel, so that the ice must have closed in about 
 them a little sooner than with us. This is what one 
 might look for in the middle of the channel, where 
 only a slight motion of the whole pack in Barrow 
 Straits would be required ; and it would happen soon 
 after the tide began to flow westward, in which case, 
 the ships there would have been beset between seven 
 and eight o'clock. 
 
 At half-past three or at four o'clock in the morning 
 the ice eased off, and before another four hours had 
 expired, we had at least three miles of open water 
 along the edge of the fixed ice. This moving to and 
 fro of the pack proved very useful in destroying the 
 young ice. We were often glad to see the pack 
 advancing upon it, and throwing it into heaps, after 
 it had proved such a serious encumbrance to us. 
 Among young ice the efforts of the crews to extricate 
 their ships very rarely succeed, especially in calm
 
 1850. SAILING VESSELS IN BAY ICE. 333 
 
 weather, for boats cannot tow among it, and nothing 
 can be done by means of lines, there bein<j nothing 
 
 w DO 
 
 to lay hold of. It is under such circumstances that 
 steamers, whose propelling power in calm weather is 
 independent of everything extrinsic, except the 
 water at the screw, and a supply of water to the 
 engines, have such a decided advantage over sailing 
 vessels. They can advance, independent of wind 
 and tide, so long as the power of the engines can 
 overcome the resistance offered by the young ice, 
 whereas sailing vessels must move passively with it; 
 and if the season is pretty far advanced, it may 
 increase in thickness so much in one night that, sup- 
 posing a most favourable breeze to spring up on the 
 following morning, they are carried dead to leeward ; 
 and after their poor crews have been toiling hard for 
 twenty-four hours, exposed to a temperature far 
 below the freezing point of water, they may be 
 getting clear when the wind is dying away, and then, 
 after a few feeble strokes of the oars, they are caught 
 as before, and carried helplessly among ice, which 
 will not so much as afford the pleasure of a comfort- 
 able walk over it. When a whaler becomes frozen 
 in among young ice late in the season, the efforts of 
 her crew to free her are equivalent to those of the 
 crew of a sinking ship, although many times they are 
 not so effectual ; and if the young ice formation be
 
 334 STATE OF THE TEMPERATURE. CHAP. XI. 
 
 compared with the leak, it is not consoling to know 
 that it is hourly becoming worse. Every day shews 
 a marked diminution of temperature, and thereby 
 the tendency to form young ice is increasing. With 
 the fear of being caught among the young ice and 
 held in its teazing grasp, it need not be wondered 
 that we kept hold of the fixed ice, by the asistance of 
 which we defied its utmost efforts to receive us within 
 its influence. 
 
 At noon the wind increased to a strong breeze, 
 and the sky became overcast with a misty haze, 
 which obscured the land on both sides of the channel. 
 It was that disagreeable lurid haze through which the 
 sun can be discerned with difficulty in a large bright 
 spot, which dazzles the eyes of the beholder. The 
 temperature of the water was 29-^, and that of the 
 air +36 to +32 during the southerly wind; but it 
 had been so low as + 27 some days previously. 
 
 The ice closed up the open water by the return of 
 the tide, but large angular openings were still found 
 among the floes, at the junction of the loose with 
 the fixed ice. In these openings there were some 
 large seals, one or two narwhals, and the same 
 number of white whales, which had not yet taken 
 their departure to the southward. Lai'ge flocks of 
 ducks and brent geese were seen flying southward in 
 the morning, when it was clear. A boat from the
 
 1850. SEALS FATTER IN WINTER. 335 
 
 "Lady Franklin" seemed to be very eager in 
 attempting to capture some of the seals, several of 
 which Mr. Petersen and others had shot, but un- 
 fortunately, they sank before the boat could get up 
 to them. One or two, however, were obtained by 
 means of great expertness in rushing in after the 
 shot had been fired. Mr. Petersen says this tendency 
 which seals, shot during summer and autumn, have 
 to sink, is owing to the diminution of their fat as 
 summer advances. Seals shot in spring do not sink, 
 because they are much fatter then than at any other 
 season of the year. It seems, then, that winter is the 
 summer season of the seals. This is nothing more 
 than one might expect, for during winter they never 
 come up on the ice, and to avoid the cold at the sur- 
 face of the water, they remain underneath as long as 
 possible ; the result of this is a languid condition of 
 the respiratory functions, which, to a certain extent, 
 entails the same condition in the other excretory func- 
 tions. Their food is not less abundant, and the process 
 of assimilation is equally active, and the only thing 
 that seems to be wanting to complete the harmony of 
 such a perfect combination of circumstances, is a 
 reservoir for the surplus of highly carbonized mate- 
 rial ; and this, too, we find in the fat deposited imme- 
 diately beneath the skin. The same circumstances 
 are peculiar to all the amphibious mammalia in the
 
 336 STATE OF ICE IX THE CHAXXEL. CHAP. XL 
 
 Arctic Seas. The wind continued during the whole 
 afternoon, and as midnight approached, its fury hud 
 not abated. There was snow and rain, and dense 
 blue and angry clouds drifting rapidly before the 
 wind. Everything to constitute a complete storm 
 was present, except the roaring waves, and they were 
 kept more tranquil than we could have wished, for 
 the sea was almost everywhere covered with ice. 
 
 September 7th. As morning advanced the S.E. wind 
 died away, and before noon it was a perfect calm. The 
 weather was very thick, and occasionally there was 
 rain, which changed the appearance of the ice around 
 us. Our prospects of getting northward were very 
 doubtful, for the ice in the channel was still holding 
 on ; and although in some parts it was considerably 
 decayed, still we had fears it would weather out this 
 season in its present position. 
 
 The loose ice moved off from the fixed ice, and 
 returned to it again under the influence of the tide. 
 It was wonderful to see a heavy floe moving north- 
 ward against a smart breeze that came down the 
 channel in the evening; however, this only con- 
 tinued for a short time, when the tide changed, and 
 the whole pack was drifted to the southward by 
 the combined agency of both wind and tide. It 
 was fortunate that we managed to keep the ships 
 at the fast ice, for had they once become fairly en-
 
 1850. STATE OF THE ICE IN THE CHANNEL. 337 
 
 tangled among the loose pack which was cemented 
 firmly together by bay ice, I do not believe all our 
 force could extricate them; and, as a matter of 
 necessity, we would drift with it, not only out of 
 the channel, but Barrow Straits and Lancaster 
 Sound. There were spaces in the fixed ice where the 
 action of the sun, through accumulations of water, 
 had made distinct openings into the sea beneath, 
 and some of them were sufficiently large to form 
 docks for the ships. When a number of these spaces 
 occurred in a line they frequently communicated, 
 and in this way large sheets of ice became detached, 
 and went away drifting before the wind. At one 
 time, an extensive fissure was observed running 
 about a quarter of a mile into the floe stretching 
 across the channel, and, as we were on the lee side 
 of this detached fragment, it was clear we must 
 drift with it to leeward. Lines were instantly run 
 out, and, by means of a small plank, the fissure was 
 crossed, and our anchors were secured in the free edge 
 of the ice which still remained fixed. It was hardly 
 possible, however, to hold on with a floe a quarter 
 of a mile in breadth across the ships' bows, and on 
 this account the lines had to be slackened out, other- 
 wise the increasing strain would soon have snapped 
 them in two. This was a critical moment, and, as 
 we were just expecting to have to slip, the drifting 
 VOL. i. z
 
 338 STATE OF THE ICE IN THE CHANNEL. CHAP. XI. 
 
 floe split across at right angles with the fissure 
 which at first detached it, and an opening occurred 
 within a few yards of the ships, which permitted 
 them to pass through, and haul up to their ice- 
 anchors. 
 
 Towards evening, the wind down the channel 
 increased, and began to drift large floes from the 
 edge of the fixed ice into Barrow Straits. This 
 was very encouraging, although it was hardly gene- 
 ral from side to side of the channel. It commenced 
 on the east side, and wrought a most effectual change 
 in the course of a few hours. About six miles east- 
 ward, the free edge of the ice came to a point, 
 whence it led away N. several miles, and then 
 inclined westwardly, where a widening fissure was 
 all that could be seen from the crow's nest. This 
 was a sufficient indication that an extensive sheet 
 was just about to be detached, and it was looked 
 upon as one of the most favourable circumstances 
 that could happen. The rudders, which had been in 
 the slings across the ships' sterns for nearly two days, 
 were shipped, and the ships were cast loose and all 
 sail set. It was as much as they could do to carry 
 the top-gallant sails. Our course was eastward 
 until we reached the point of ice, after which we 
 commenced plying northward, between a fringe of 
 ice which still held on to the land on the east side of
 
 1850. PLYING UP THE CHANNEL. 339 
 
 the channel, and the ice which appeared to have left 
 its original position in the middle of the channel 
 but an hour or two previously. Cape Bowden could 
 be seen quite plainly ; and it was evident, to all in 
 our Expedition, that a few hours of such a favourable 
 wind as we then had would enable us to ply up 
 abreast of it. The detached floe was soon weathered, 
 and then the edge of the fixed ice was attained. 
 The knowledge that there was open water beyond 
 this barrier, and at no great distance, assisted the 
 eyes of the commanders, who said that they saw it 
 from the crow's nests. Captain Stewart told me 
 that he saw it as plainly as ever he had seen water 
 in his life. From this we had reason to believe 
 that the barrier had been reduced ta a breadth of 
 twelve or fifteen miles, taking into account the 
 assistance of refraction. 
 
 After reaching the fixed ice, we stood across along 
 its edge to the westward, thinking an opening might be 
 found in it leading northward. The breeze still con- 
 tinued to encourage our expectations that a disruption 
 would happen, which might favour us iri seeking up 
 the channel. The sky was very clear, although there 
 were a few clouds upon it, and the horizon all round 
 appeared to dip beneath it without impediment from 
 mist, or any condition of vapour to render vision 
 obscure, or prognosticate anything but good weather. 
 
 z 2
 
 340 PLYING NORTHWARD. CHAP. XL 
 
 The barometer was 30-38, having risen almost 
 steadily for four or five days previously, and the 
 temperature of the air was down to + 23, and that 
 of the water 29|. 
 
 September 8th. After arriving at the west side of 
 the channel, having examined the edge of the ice from 
 side to side without finding any opening, and expect- 
 ing that a second large floe would come out as the 
 first did, we stood back again to the opposite side, 
 which we reached in the morning, but found no 
 opening, nor sign of one that might encourage hopes 
 of getting through. The wind was beginning to 
 fall, and clouds were spread over all the sky; the 
 temperature of the air was -f 24, and of the water 
 29. In spite of the strength of the wind and the 
 agitation of the water, which from the force of the 
 wind was considerable, young ice formed on the sur- 
 face of the water to a great extent, and assumed the 
 well-known form of " pancake " ice, which the wind 
 was continually drifting to leeward. The ship's 
 bows were encrusted with ice, and the rigging of the 
 bowsprit was fantastically fringed with pendant 
 icicles, which appeared like so many rows of frightful 
 teeth moving furiously over the surface of the water, 
 and ready to seize any unfortunate thing that might 
 come within reach of their horrid grasp. 
 
 As far as the shores of the Wellington Channel
 
 1850. PLYING NORTHWARD. 341 
 
 had been examined by our Expedition, no creeks or 
 inlets were discovered in them, into which ships could 
 be drawn for shelter from the influence of the drift- 
 ing ice. We knew of Barlow Inlet, but we had never 
 seen it ; however, an eye was kept to it, in case we 
 should be forced to take shelter from the violent 
 action of the drifting ice. 
 
 About noon we were again at the edge of the 
 ice where it came in contact with the west side of the 
 channel ; and, in the course of the evening, Captain 
 Penny went ashore, and examined a portion of the 
 coast. He erected a cairn, placing a pole in its centre, 
 and deposited a cylinder containing papers relative to 
 the position of the ships, and their mission. The 
 cairn is about twelve to fifteen miles north of Barlow 
 Inlet. 
 
 The ice was close at Cape Hotham, where we 
 could see, among the drifting pack, H. M. ships 
 "Besolute" and "Pioneer." The American ships 
 " Advance " and " Rescue " were lying in the entrance 
 of Barlow Inlet, waiting an opening in the ice at 
 Cape Hotham. There was no appearance of an early 
 opening there, as Barrow Straits appeared to be full 
 of ice ; and a shift of the whole mass to S. E. would 
 be necessary before a space would be left free at 
 Cape Hotham. In the evening, after Mr. Penny 
 returned from the land, the ships were allowed to fall 
 
 z 3
 
 342 PROSPECTS OF GETTING NORTH. CHAP. XI. 
 
 to leeward with the main-yards aback ; but at times a 
 short tack was made to recover the leeway. Their 
 rudders became so encrusted with ice, that it was 
 almost constant employment for one man with a 
 boat-hook to break it away, to allow of that freedom 
 of motion which is necessary in such an important 
 part. The temperature of the air then was +22, 
 and of the water 28. The barrier of ice in the 
 channel did not appear the least disposed to shift its 
 position, from the view Mr. Penny had of it from 
 the hill-top where he erected the cairn. It was 
 really difficult to know what course to pursue. The 
 Wellington Channel seemed to persist in refusing 
 entrance into the sea beyond it. The advanced 
 period of the season rendered the position of sailing 
 ships rather precarious, that of the steamers, however, 
 much less so, for reasons which need not be repeated. 
 It was becoming too clear that we would be forced 
 to relinquish all our ideas of getting north ; therefore, 
 an attempt might be made to push westward. To 
 have remained in the channel would be standing still, 
 and it would also be exposing us to the inevitable 
 risk of getting beset, which, for too obvious reasons, 
 we could not be too sedulous in avoiding, if we did 
 not wish to drift helplessly down the country. 
 
 September 9th. The open water, on the north side 
 of the barrier, in the channel was seen quite clearly,
 
 1850. H.M. SHIPS BESET. 343 
 
 although there was a misty haze, or a mixture of this 
 with clouds, over all the sky during the whole of this 
 day. We could entertain no hopes of getting into it, 
 in consequence of the rapid formation of young ice, 
 which took place when the wind failed towards mid- 
 night. The ice at Cape Hotham eased off to the 
 eastward, and left a passage between it and that 
 headland. The " Resolute " and " Pioneer " were 
 still beset, and they were evidently drifting down 
 Barrow Straits. Their position was unenviable in the 
 highest degree ; indeed, it is very doubtful whether we 
 could have got clear with our sailing vessels, had we 
 been similarly situated. The young ice among the 
 pack must have acquired great firmness, and it seemed 
 to offer great resistance to the steamer as she came 
 against it. At length they began to move westward, 
 and this was a pleasing and a sure sign that they were 
 getting clear. From the movements of the " Pioneer " 
 she appeared to be doing all the work, while the 
 " Resolute " submitted to be towed passively behind 
 her. 
 
 The ice was hourly becoming slacker at Cape 
 Hotham, and in a few hours after breakfast we had 
 the gratification of seeing that rugged promontory to 
 the eastward of us, as we plied westward along the 
 south shore of Cornwallis Island. There was open 
 water to the extent of five miles along the coast, but 
 
 z 4
 
 344 PLYING WESTWARD. CHAP. XI. 
 
 it was covered with young ice, which varied in 
 thickness from the merest film up to an inch. The 
 " Advance " and the " Rescue " were at first ahead of 
 us, but they soon fell astern from their slowness of 
 sailing. The " Resolute " and the "Pioneer" were 
 steaming away ahead ; but with the favourable breeze 
 we had, and by choosing those parts of the water 
 where the ice was weakest, we got on so well, that 
 they never increased their distance in the advance 
 of us, and sometimes I thought we were gaining 
 upon them. To the westward of Cape Hotham, we 
 observed a flag pole, and a " depot," left by H. M. S. 
 " Assistance " a day or two previously. In the after- 
 noon the Americans were out of sight astern. The 
 wind continued to blow from the westward, but 
 about nine o'clock it moderated a little, so that we 
 did not make such rapid progress among the young 
 ice. Had it fallen calm, we should have stuck fast, 
 and then we should have been in the same pre- 
 dicament as the two ships ahead of us were in in 
 the morning worse, indeed, because we did not 
 possess the same means of helping ourselves. 
 
 September 10th. About nine o'clock in the morning 
 our progress westward was stopped by ice stretch- 
 ing across Barrow Straits from Griffith's Island. 
 A few miles southward of this island, we found 
 H. M. ships " Assistance " and " Intrepid " made
 
 1850. ARRESTED BY THE ICE. 345 
 
 fast to the ice, and the " Resolute " and " Pioneer " 
 were just running out their warps or moorings. In 
 the evening the "Advance" and "Rescue" overtook 
 us, and also moored to the same floe. 
 
 There was a heavy fall of snow during the day, 
 and the sky was overcast with dense gloomy-looking 
 clouds ; there was, however, a smart breeze from the 
 westward, and the temperature of the air ranged 
 from +28 to +30, that of the water being 28 
 or 29. 
 
 In the evening the horizon cleared up, and, as our 
 ships were moored two miles south of the other ships 
 to the same floe, we could see Lowther Island, and 
 occasionally the land on the south shore of Barrow 
 Straits. There were lanes of water among the ice 
 in all directions, except when the floes were of such 
 great dimensions that we could not see their extreme 
 limits. Some of them (especially the one to which 
 the ships were moored) were very thick and heavy, 
 and they contained pools of fresh water, over which 
 there was a coating of ice two or three inches thick. 
 These floes must have drifted into the position in 
 which we found them. Their relations with one 
 another, and with the ice generally, in other parts of 
 Barrow Straits, seemed to convey no other idea than 
 that they had never grown where they then were. 
 The question then was, whence did they come, and
 
 346 ATTEMPT TO BEACH CAPE WALKEK. CH. XI. 
 
 how long since ? It is very probable that they had 
 shifted from the far west, where, according to the 
 description given by Captain Parry, the ice is 
 generally very heavy. Immediately westward of 
 these heavy floes, we could discern a very distinct 
 water sky in the direction of Lowther Island, but it 
 seemed very unlikely we should reach it this season. 
 
 Captain Austin and Mr. Penny endeavoured to 
 arrange how the different Expeditions were to engage 
 in the search, now that we had all " landed at the 
 same spot." This was by no means an easy matter, 
 for the state of the ice had to be taken into account, 
 and they had often found how obnoxious it generally 
 proved to all their best-laid schemes. 
 
 September llth. The wind came away very keenly 
 from about S. E. at an early hour in the morning. 
 The sky was still densely overcast, but the horizon 
 was discernible to a considerable distance in a S.W. 
 direction for a few hours after four o'clock in the 
 morning. This gave way, however, for a heavy fall 
 of soft snow, which continued during the whole day 
 and night. At that hour the ships were cast loose ; 
 and, with all sail set, and a seven knot breeze, we 
 stood off" about S. E. for three hours, with the hope 
 we should reach the south shore of the Strait in the 
 vicinity of Cape Walker. Our hopes, however, were 
 not realised, for the ice became quite close, and forced
 
 1850. A " SCHOOL " OF WALRUSES. 347 
 
 us to retrace our course with all possible haste, lest 
 the loose pack to S. E. should shut us in. At half- 
 past ten or eleven o'clock we saw the Expeditions, 
 through the thick snow, lying exactly where we had 
 left them ; and, still holding on for Cornwallis Island, 
 we met the "Felix" between the latter and Griffiths' 
 Island. The " Felix " willingly joined company, as 
 we kept our course for the land, where we expected 
 to find shelter from the violence of the storm, and 
 from the ice, which would be drifted rapidly to the 
 westward before such a strong breeze. 
 
 A " school " of walruses was seen 'twixt the two 
 islands about the time we met the " Felix." They 
 seemed to be a little curious to know what the ships 
 were, and what such unusual objects could be seeking, 
 for they followed us a little way ; however, as we were 
 going rather fast for their curiosity, we soon lost sight 
 of them. There must have been at least a dozen of 
 them together. It was amusing to see them raise 
 their huge heads and fierce-looking tusks partially 
 out of the water ; and when they went out of sight, 
 with a splash of their hind flippers, it seemed to be 
 more from their sportive manner than from fear. 
 When walruses are met in a drove like this, they do 
 not take fright; and certainly they are formidable 
 assailants, if their curiosity should lead them after 
 some unfortunate Esquimaux in his kyak. Mr.
 
 348 HABITS OP THE WALRUS. CHAP. XI. 
 
 Petersen told me that a number of Esquimaux, 
 making a passage in a large luggage boat between 
 two islands, with a number of smaller islands inter- 
 vening, were detained for several days by an immense 
 herd of these animals. The Esquimaux landed on 
 one of the islands, in the immediate neighbourhood 
 of which there was another small island, on which 
 a large number of walruses were always seen bask- 
 ing in the sun. As soon as the Esquimaux at- 
 tempted to embark, the walruses took to the water 
 and made towards them. It would be difficult to 
 ascertain their motives ; but it is most probable that 
 mere curiosity was the chief cause, for there could be 
 nothing in the boat that would benefit them in any 
 way whatever. They might upset it in their gambols, 
 and have the company of its terrified crew in their 
 pastime ; but that would be all ; and it would hardly 
 compensate such assiduous attention to the embark- 
 ation every time that it was attempted. 
 
 Mr. Petersen says that seals are sometimes at- 
 tacked by the walrus, and that they not unfrequently 
 fall victims to the caprice which it displays. A 
 single hug between the fore flippers and the tusks 
 will kill an ordinary seal ; and a kyak has been known 
 to be attacked and destroyed in a similar manner. 
 The Esquimaux have observed this animal receive 
 a piece of wood floating on the surface of the
 
 1850. DIFFICULT NAVIGATION. 349 
 
 water upon its fore flippers, where it was retained 
 until it was broken by successive blows from the 
 head and tusks. 
 
 Although seals, Esquimaux, canoes, and pieces of 
 wood are indiscriminately attacked by the walrus, 
 it is not probable that its food consists of any such 
 materials. I never examined the stomach of one ; 
 but the whalers to whom I have spoken, and who 
 have often seen them examined, say that fishes and 
 shrimps composed the entire mass of the ingesta ; and 
 they deny ever having seen any traces of vegetable 
 matter, such as sea-weed, among them. 
 
 After reaching the south shore of Cornwallis 
 Island, we made several short tacks along it, with 
 the hope of falling in with some place of shelter until 
 the weather should clear up. There was constant 
 snow ; and, as it fell on the surface of the water, it did 
 not melt, but remained on the surface, and drifted 
 before the wind. We often had to pass through 
 accumulations of this kind, in many parts a foot 
 thick, which proved a great hindrance to the ships, 
 and resembled a layer of soft lard. Towards even- 
 ing the wind fell considerably, but still there was a 
 gentle breeze, which gave the ships steering way, 
 except where the snow on the water was so thick that 
 one might almost stand upon it. At one time the 
 " Sophia ; ' stuck fast, while putting about close to
 
 350 A DARK NIGHT. CHAP. XI. 
 
 the land. A boat was lowered with the intention of 
 running a line to the ledge of the hummocky ice that 
 fringed the coast, but the utmost efforts of the boat's 
 crew could not propel her through the water. The 
 oars were used with assiduity, and they took a firm hold 
 of the snow on the water, but they hardly ever started 
 the boat ; and, had it not been that we had the line at 
 the ship, I believe it would have remained beset among 
 the snow, after the ship had drifted to leeward before 
 the wind. After drifting a quarter of a mile along 
 the edge of the coast ice, we came to a point of it 
 which projected a little beyond theedge proper, and, as 
 the ship was carried close along it, one of the men 
 dropped down and fixed the ice anchors; another 
 followed with a warp or two, and, in a few minutes, 
 the " Sophia's " bow was dividing this thick and 
 viscid layer, as it passed westward with the advancing 
 tide and the wind. In a short time a lane opened out 
 in it, which enabled us to get to the offing, where we 
 fell in with the " Lady Franklin " and the " Felix." 
 During the night there was very little wind, and 
 no one knew its direction, for the compasses had 
 long since ceased. to be of any service ; the sky was 
 completely overcast, and the stars were shut out from 
 our view. We were pretty sure of our distance 
 from the land, and, if the loose pack should carry us 
 close to it, there could be no danger, for the fringe
 
 1850. DANGER OF GETTING BESET. 351 
 
 of ice along the coast extended at least two or three 
 hundred yards from the beach ; and, from soundings 
 \ve had taken in the evening, we knew that there 
 was water at it to a depth of fifteen fathoms. The 
 only thing we had to fear in that quarter was pres- 
 sure; and with respect to it our little vessels had 
 been pretty well proved; and their obliquity, fore 
 and aft, together with their buoyancy, had shown 
 that, in the most violent pressure among ordinary 
 surface ice, they would be quite safe. On the 
 other hand, we had to fear getting beset, and in this 
 respect we were already beginning to realise our 
 worst anticipations, for a few hours of a low tem- 
 perature would cement the snow on the water around 
 us into an impenetrable floe, from which it would 
 defy all our skill and energy to extricate the ships. 
 
 September 12th.- The first few hours of this day 
 were passed with the ships' yards aback, as they were 
 cruising about among the soft snow and fragments of 
 pack ice. The snow fell very thick, and the decks 
 were covered with it to a depth of several inches. As 
 morning advanced the wind came away from about 
 N.AY., and dense white clouds began to rise on the ho- 
 rizon in that quarter, while the mist and gloom which 
 pervaded the atmosphere elsewhere began to disappear. 
 We had little idea of anything but that the ships 
 would be carried before the wind among the drifting
 
 352 GETTING OUT OF A LEE PACK. CHAP. XL 
 
 ice and snow. An attempt was made, however, to 
 get clear of it, and the " Sophia," as usual, showed 
 her superior prowess in battling with the ice; but 
 she was only second to the " Lady Franklin." Few, 
 except those who have been eye-witnesses, can 
 imagine the difficulty there is in getting out of a lee 
 pack. It is necessary to carry hard, to convey 
 sufficient impetus to overcome the resistance offered 
 by the ice. When that resistance has to be over- 
 come by a ship dead before the wind, the entire force 
 of the latter is brought to bear upon it ; but, when it 
 has to be overcome at less than a right angle with 
 the moving power, it will be plain enough that the 
 power must be increased in proportion to the resist- 
 ance and the direction. The consequence is, that a 
 ship which has to "bore" through ice upon a wind 
 must carry very hard, and be often in great danger 
 of being upset. The " Sophia " leaned over so much, 
 that the boats' keels, which were on a line with the 
 middle of the bulwarks, were often dragging over 
 the surface of the ice. Under such circumstances, it 
 was almost impossible to stand upon the slippery 
 decks ; and many a hearty tumble did the sailors get 
 upon the snow which covered them. After getting 
 clear of the pack we shortened sail, for the gale was in- 
 creasing violently, and we then plied up to Cornwallis 
 Island, in the side of which a small bay was found,
 
 1850. DROPPED ANCHOR. 353 
 
 which we entered about noon ; and, after one or two 
 short tacks, anchor was dropped for the first time 
 since we left Aberdeen. There is a muddy bottom 
 in the bay, and the depth varies from seven to eight 
 fathoms where the ships lay, it being about fifteen in 
 the middle of the entrance, whence it gradually lessens 
 to the beach. We observed a small cairn in the east 
 side of the bay, and from this we had no doubt it had 
 been previously explored by H. M. ships " Assist- 
 ance " and " Intrepid," or by parties from them. 
 
 The " Felix " behaved well in working clear of the 
 pack in the morning, but the " Lady Franklin " had 
 on several occasions to leave a leewardly wake for 
 her to follow ; and after getting clear of the ice, it 
 was painful to see that she missed stays several times. 
 This was owing to the position of the foremast, which 
 appeared to rise out of the bow, instead of being 
 a little behind it. She succeeded in gaining the 
 harbour at four o'clock in the evening; and, after 
 passing between the " Lady Franklin " and the land, 
 dropped anchor in four or five fathoms water. 
 
 VOL. i. A A
 
 S54 
 
 CHAP. XII. 
 
 ENTERING UPON THE ARCTIC WINTER. 
 
 Violent Gale. Preparations for a Continuation of the Search. 
 Walruses and Seals upon the Ice. Two Ships seen sailing East- 
 ward. Young Ice. View from Prospect Hill. Kate Austin 
 Lake. Frozen Soil. Animals upon the Land. Vegetation. 
 Assistance Bay. Dredging, Winter Quarters. Difficulties of late 
 Navigation. Anticipations respecting Winter. Health of the 
 
 Crew. Hard Water. Excursions Captain Austin's Squadron. 
 
 Intense Thirst; eating Snow. Pressure among young Ice. 
 Sea Salt in Ice. Excursion. Open Water off the Harbour. 
 Ducks still seen. Excursion Inland. Deep Ravines and Iftker 
 Bed. Bridges of Snow. Ships housed in. Store Houses. 
 Esquimaux Dogs. Tide Gauge. 
 
 THE wind continued to blow with increasing violence 
 during the whole day and night, and hopes were 
 entertained that we should be able to advance to the 
 westward. This could only happen by the present 
 wind opening out a passage on the south side of 
 Griffith's Island, and in the direction of Lowther 
 Island. 
 
 As soon as the crews had become a little refreshed 
 the watch was set, for we had all hands out in the 
 early part of the day, and the ships were cleared of 
 an immense accumulation of snow about the decks,
 
 1850. PREPARE TO CONTINUE SEARCH. 355 
 
 and ice upon their sides down to the water lines; 
 and preparations were made aloft for working them 
 in violent gales. A boat was landed from the 
 " Sophia," and another from the " Lady Franklin," 
 at a low point on the west side of the bay, with the 
 hope they might prove useful on our return from the 
 westward, if we should succeed in advancing. The 
 " Sophia," especially, was well rid of such an encum- 
 brance as a large whale boat across her stern. 
 
 It was intended to make a " depot " of provisions 
 where the boats were landed ; but, having already 
 contributed to one at Beechy Island, this was con- 
 sidered unnecessary, it being hardly proper to make 
 a depot within such a short distance of the one 
 laid down by the " Assistance " at Cape Hotham. 
 
 An anchor watch was set at night, as the ship was 
 lying very securely, and the anchor seemed to be in 
 good holding ground. The night was rather stormy 
 and had a wintry aspect, while the blue sky and the 
 stars could be seen towards the zenith, and the 
 horizon was so much obscured by drifting clouds, 
 that objects at a distance of three miles could not be 
 discerned. 
 
 September 13th. During the early part of the 
 day the wind continued to blow with unabated 
 violence, and the horizon was very obscure, but the 
 sky was clear towards the zenith. In the entrance 
 
 A A 2 

 
 356 SEALS AND WALRUSES UPON THE ICE. CH. XII. 
 
 of the harbour herds of walruses were seen moving 
 about in the water, and occasionally one of them 
 would go upon the ice ; but the weather was too cold 
 for them in that exposed state, so that they soon 
 re-entered the water. The temperature of the air 
 varied from + 14 to + 9, consequently it need not 
 be wondered that, with their wet hides, they could 
 not endure exposure for any length of time. Seals 
 were seen occasionally in the bay, but they never 
 ventured upon the ice. These animals are sometimes, 
 though rarely, found frozen at their holes by the 
 Esquimaux. Disease is probably the cause by which 
 they are impelled to leave the water in the depth of 
 winter. Mr. Petersen gave us little hope that walruses 
 would be found in those seas during winter, for he 
 says they all go south before winter fairly sets in. 
 He believed small seals would remain over winter, 
 as they keep breathing holes open in the ice. A few 
 eider ducks with their young frequented the entrance 
 of the bay, and they were often seen sitting upon the 
 ice at the eastern and western extremities of it. 
 
 The crews were very busy taking down the royal- 
 masts and putting up short top-gallant masts, and 
 examining other parts of the running rigging, so that 
 they might be in readiness to be used at a moment's 
 warning. In the evening the wind moderated a 
 little, but the sky became overcast with a blue misty
 
 1850. SHIPS SEEN RUNNING EASTWARD. 357 
 
 haze, which obscured the horizon so much that at a 
 distance of a mile and a half objects could not bi 
 clearly discerned. There was some doubt whether 
 we ought not to go out of the bay and try to push 
 westward, but it was removed by exercising that 
 caution which was necessary in such unsettled 
 weather, accompanied by very low temperatures. 
 
 At six o'clock in the evening, two ships were 
 seen running to the eastward, about a mile and 
 a half, or at most two miles, from our ships. 
 They could not be distinguished very clearly 
 through the mist, consequently there was a differ- 
 ence of opinion with respect to what they were. 
 Some supposed them to be H. M. ships " Assist- 
 ance " and " Intrepid," proceeding to Beechy Island ; 
 while others, those who had first seen them, said 
 they were schooner rigged vessels. It was certain 
 they must have been the American Expedition or a 
 detachment of Captain Austin's squadron. It was 
 impossible to communicate with them by means of 
 boats, without running risks of having to spend two 
 or three days and nights in the pack with a boat, 
 which would be by no means agreeable in such cold 
 weather. We did not telegraph, because the weather 
 was so thick that although we could see them, they 
 could not see us in the face of the land, which in 
 many parts was white with snow. In less than a 
 
 A A 3 

 
 358 YOUNG ICE. "FELTX" BESET. CHAP. XII. 
 
 quarter of an hour from first seeing them we lost sight 
 of them off the east point of the bay. 
 
 14th. During the night and morning young ice 
 formed extensively around the ships and in the 
 offing, until it reached the loose pack, which was at 
 a distance of five miles from the land. The " Felix " 
 was completely frozen in, and men could be seen 
 walking on the ice around her. The " Lady Frank- 
 lin " and the " Sophia " were still in open water ; 
 but frequently there was a large accumulation of 
 young ice around them. There was some difficulty 
 in keeping up communication between our two ships 
 on account of the young ice, for the boat many 
 times stuck in it in spite of all that six oars could do 
 to relieve her. 
 
 Captain Penny, Mr. Stewart, and others, went 
 ashore, and ascended a hill which was called Prospect 
 Hill. It is about four hundred feet high, and 
 commands a tolerable view of Barrow Straits. The 
 ice to the westward and southward of Griffith's 
 Island was exactly as we had left it on the llth, 
 four days previously. From that island, southward 
 to Capes Rennell and Walker, and eastward filling 
 up Barrow Straits, except five miles along the south 
 shore of Cornwallis Island, nothing could be seen but 
 an impenetrable barrier of ice, in which there were 
 some floes several miles in extent. I have already
 
 1850. VIEW FROM PROSPECT HILL. 359 
 
 remarked that there was open water along the south 
 shore of Cornwallis Island. It commenced at the 
 south point of Griffith's Island and extended eastward, 
 until the south-eastern side of the bay took it out of 
 sight. It was not open, however, in any part, for it 
 was covered almost throughout its whole extent with 
 young ice, which appeared to increase in thickness 
 from the land to the pack. At the land there were 
 a few narrow lanes among it; at the pack ice it 
 presented one entire sheet. In such a formation of 
 young ice our ships would do very little, unless with 
 a leading wind. The prospects from Prospect Hill 
 were exceedingly bad : to proceed westward was im- 
 possible ; eastward into the Wellington Channel we 
 might attempt, but with every chance of getting beset. 
 With steamers we should have been less dependent 
 upon the winds, and could have remained longer out 
 of places of shelter ; and at that moment, when we 
 dared not venture out of the bay with our ships, a 
 steamer was observed moving to the northward, close 
 to the east side of Griffith's Island. 
 
 At the foot of Prospect Hill, on its north-eastern 
 side, a lake was discovered, and named Kate Austin 
 Lake, out of compliment to the gallant com- 
 mander of the Expedition at that time in search 
 of Sir John Franklin. It is about a mile in 
 length, and a little more than a quarter of a mile 
 
 A A 4 

 
 360 KATE AUSTIN LAKE. CHAP. XII. 
 
 in breadth ; its direction is about E. S. E. and 
 W. N. W., and it is surrounded by hills rising gra- 
 dually to a height of four or five hundred feet, ex- 
 cept at its eastern extremity, where a small stream 
 escapes from it into a river which enters the bay. 
 The water in it deepens gradually from the edge 
 to the centre, where it is about two fathoms. On 
 the south side of the lake, and immediately at the 
 foot of Prospect Hill, there is an elevation of rough 
 rocks jutting out into it, causing a contraction in the 
 middle, which adds very much to its beauties. This 
 is called Rocky Point, and, upon a close visit, the 
 abundance of orange red lichens which variegate the 
 rough rocks on which they grow gives it a pictu- 
 resque appearance. After descending to the lake, 
 we found it covered with ice to a thickness of six 
 or eight inches; and through this ice, which was 
 quite transparent, we could see small fishes darting 
 about, apparently frightened by the noise of our feet 
 upon the ice above them. 
 
 Our return to the ships in the bay was along the 
 bed of a river ; and from the size and other features 
 which the stones in it presented, we had every reason 
 to believe, that there must have been very large runs 
 of water in it at some time previously, although it 
 was quite dry at present. The soil was frozen 
 hard everywhere, although from the fact that there
 
 1850. FROZEN SOIL. 361 
 
 was so little ice on the lake we had just left, we 
 might infer that it had not penetrated to a great 
 depth. It is difficult to ascertain the exact depth to 
 which it becomes thawed during the summer months ; 
 there is no doubt it must vary according to the 
 exposure and the declivity. In southerly exposed 
 parts there may be a depth of several feet of the 
 thawed soil ; whereas, when the exposure is northerly, 
 it may not be as many inches. Where the mean 
 temperature throughout the year is so far below the 
 freezing point of water, the soil must also be cooled 
 down to a depth far below the surface, before the 
 heat from the interior of the earth can overcome the 
 cold which is conducted from the atmosphere. The 
 depth beneath the surface at which the temperature 
 is kept at the freezing point of water by the heat of 
 the earth, will never vary ; for it is beyond the 
 immediate influence of heat and cold, during summer 
 and winter. It will be uninfluenced by conditions 
 of the seasons and by all external circumstances, 
 except elevation above the sea level and latitude. 
 There is a point, however, where it will vary, when 
 the action of the sun is sufficiently intense to 
 penetrate the thin crust of ice that forms during 
 winter; and it will probably be found where the 
 mean temperature throughout the year is about the 
 freezing point of water. 

 
 362 ANIMALS UPON THE LAND. CHAP. XII. 
 
 On some parts of the land there were accumulations 
 of snow, which had recently fallen. "We frequently 
 observed patches of it thickly marked by tracks of 
 lemmings and snow-buntings; and also, although 
 rarely, by tracks of hares and foxes. Some of the 
 lemmings and the snow-buntings were seen; the 
 former escaped by getting into their burrows in the 
 shingle. The snow in some parts appeared to have 
 been scratched up, as if they had been removing it 
 for the sake of the vegetation that might be found 
 underneath. It was rather strange to observe the 
 smooth surface thus broken over a tuft of the purple 
 saxifrage, where there had been at least half an inch 
 of snow above the plant. What instinct could have 
 led the creature to single out the exact spot on which 
 to bestow its toil ? Was it by the sense of smell, or 
 merely by detecting some arrangement of the surface, 
 which marked the presence of its food underneath? 
 I think it very probable that it was the latter ; for in 
 some parts the scratching appeared to have been in 
 vain. There is no doubt that all herbivorous animals 
 that may have to pass their winters in high latitudes, 
 follow this practice of pawing the snow from the 
 almost bare surface, in search of their food, which it 
 conceals. The musk-ox, the deer, the hare, and the 
 lemming, are the only animals belonging to this great 
 order which inhabit the North Georgian Islands;
 
 1850. PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 363 
 
 and although it is doubtful whether they all pass 
 their winters in these high latitudes, it cannot be 
 denied that there is provision for the largest of 
 them as well as for the smallest. In proof of the 
 burrowing propensity of animals not herbivorous, 
 Sir John Ross relates that he shot a hare in autumn, 
 during a violent snow storm, which buried it out of 
 sight, and prevented him finding it. In the following 
 spring two ravens (being the first birds to migrate 
 northward in spring) were observed digging in- 
 cessantly among the snow; and recollecting the 
 circumstance of having lost some game thereabouts 
 in autumn, he repaired to the spot, and arrived just 
 in time to pick up his hare, for which the ravens 
 had excavated through a depth of twelve feet of firm 
 snow ! It was frozen quite hard, and, of course, proved 
 to be as fresh and wholesome as if it had been shot 
 but two hours previously. 
 
 Vegetation appeared to be rather scanty, and every 
 plant was quite dry and withered-like with the frost. 
 From the circumstance of the frost setting in sud- 
 denly, the juices and nutritious products of plants 
 must be arrested, in the changes they undergo in the 
 process of ripening (a state which they hardly ever 
 attain), and in this state they remain until the thaw of 
 the following summer calls them into active circula- 
 tion. In the early part of this narrative, it has been
 
 364 VEGETATION. CHAP. XII. 
 
 observed that the crowberry (Empetrum nigruin), so 
 abundant in West Greenland, although unknown on 
 Cornwallis Island, has been found in immense 
 numbers in the middle of May, possessing all their 
 nutritious elements, and their juices sweet and un- 
 changed. Although probably seven or eight months 
 had elapsed since they had come to that stage of 
 development, having remained the whole of the 
 time frozen beneath the snow, their nutritious 
 elements seemed not to have suffered in the slightest 
 degree by being frozen. After being thawed, how- 
 ever, they soon lose all taste, and having collapsed, 
 the skin ruptures and the seeds escape into the soil, to 
 spring up, if they are not devoured by the little snow- 
 bunting or the redpole. In this way Nature lays 
 up stores for the winter use of those creatures which 
 have to pass their whole lives in the inclement regions 
 of the far North ; and in doing so, she vies with the 
 busy farmer, who cuts his grass while it is still green, 
 and makes his hay under the bright sunshine of 
 summer. 
 
 At an elevation of from twenty to thirty feet above 
 the level of the sea, and at a distance of a quarter to 
 half a mile from the high water mark, right round the 
 bay, there were a great number of small lakes, vary- 
 ing in depth from one to four or five feet, and on 
 which there was ice to a thickness of seven or eight
 
 1850. ASSISTANCE BAY. 365 
 
 inches. On the S. E. side of the bay, a little above 
 the beach, we found the cairn which had been built 
 by some of the officers of H. M. ships " Assistance " 
 or "Intrepid," which ships had passed westward 
 to Griffith's Island a few days before us. In con- 
 sequence of her priority of discovery, we considered 
 that she was entitled to have her name perpetuated. 
 Accordingly, it was called Assistance Bay. It is 
 entered by three streams, the largest of which 
 descends from a chain of small lakes, on the other 
 side of the hills, rising at the western extremity of 
 Kate Austin Lake. The smallest escapes from a 
 number of small lakes on the east side of the bay ; 
 and its whole length is not above two miles. Between 
 these two streams, which are, when they enter the 
 bay, about a mile apart, there is a third, to which 
 allusion has been made already. It descends from 
 the interior of the island, taking its source about 
 ten miles inland; and after passing within three 
 hundred yards of the eastern extremity of Kate 
 Austin Lake, it winds past the foot of Prospect 
 Hill, and then enters the bay. Assistance Bay is an 
 estuary, through which the melting snow on a great 
 portion of Cornwallis Island makes its exit into the 
 sea; and hence the muddy bottom which was dis- 
 covered when the anchors were dropped. After 
 going on board, the dredge was put down ; in spite
 
 366 DREDGING. CHAP. XII. 
 
 of the young ice, there were small openings caused 
 by the tide, which enabled the boat to tow the dredge 
 backwards and forwards. The depth varied from 
 seven to ten fathoms; and the bottom was every- 
 where muddy, without any stones. 
 
 It was very cold indeed, to work with the bare 
 hands among mud and slime, when the temperature 
 of the air was + 15 to +19; but it was more than 
 amply repaid by the varieties of animals, and the 
 beauties of plants, that came up from their muddy 
 habitats. The Whiting, Gurnard, Bull-head, and 
 the Sucking-fish of the British coasts, had their 
 representatives. But the greatest abundance of 
 animal life was among the Mollusca ; next to them 
 the Radiata ; and last, although also very abundant, 
 Crustacea. Although most of these may have been 
 known previously, it was not unimportant to be able 
 to extend their geographical range. There were also 
 Algae, both palmated and filamentous ; and among the 
 mud, with a magnifying power of 250 or 280 
 diameters, one could detect thousands of infusoria, 
 which moved by cilia, and siliceous diatomaceous 
 forms, probably naviculi. I believe a whole volume 
 might be written on a single haul of the dredge. 
 Next to the brittle star fishes among the radiata, the 
 Holothuria, or sea slug, was the most abundant. 
 Among the bivalve molluscs, one could see the living
 
 1850. WINTER QUARTERS. 367 
 
 animal of shells found in tertiary deposits over the 
 whole extent of the island, and at every elevation, 
 from the beach up to four or five hundred feet. 
 From side to side of the bay, and along the coast east 
 and west of it, there are flights of raised beaches, 
 Avhich impress the idea that the whole coast has been 
 rising from beneath the ocean. Besides beaches, 
 there were mounds, such as heavy masses of ground- 
 ing ice would have produced in loose shingle at the 
 bottom, a little below the water mark. 
 
 16th. The ice in Assistance Bay was daily in- 
 creasing in strength, and the " Lady Franklin " was 
 in great measure frozen in, but the "Sophia" was 
 still free to a certain extent, and could be extricated 
 from the ice in a very short time. The "Lady 
 Franklin," too, would soon be set free, if we saw any 
 chances of advancing to the westward. The weather 
 was generally very stormy, and there was hardly an 
 hour during a whole day which would afford a passing 
 glance at the ice in the Straits. 
 
 The water between the pack and the south shore 
 of Cornwallis, leading in the direction of Griffith's 
 Island, was considerably less than it had been since 
 we came to the westward of Cape Hotham. This 
 was owing to a strong S. "W. wind, which prevailed 
 for a day or two, and drifted the loose pack to the 
 north shore of the Strait. Wherever open water
 
 368 WINTER QUARTERS. CHAP. XII. 
 
 could be seen, there was on Its surface a firm coating 
 of young ice, which would offer powerful resistance to 
 the ships. It seemed to be so strong that a four knot 
 breeze would not carry our vessels through it. And 
 it would do the same to the steamers, although not 
 nearly to the same extent as to the sailing vessels. 
 It was very uncertain where the other expeditions 
 were, although on the 14th a steamer was supposed to 
 have been seen proceeding northward along the east 
 side of Griffith's Island. We were almost convinced 
 of one thing, that they had not been able to get to the 
 westward of that island, by going round its southern 
 extremity; and to have passed up between it and 
 Cornwallis Island would be found equally impossible. 
 On the 1 1 th, when we came in from the middle of 
 Barrow Straits, we found one floe extending from 
 side to side of the space between those two islands. 
 
 The question of going out of harbour (for Assist- 
 ance Bay we feared would be our winter quarters), 
 was receiving great attention, but the weather was 
 always becoming more and more discouraging. In 
 calm weather we dared not venture out, and when 
 there was wind it was accompanied by drifting snow, 
 which completely obscured the horizon, although the 
 clear blue sky could be seen quite distinctly from the 
 zenith to an altitude of 30 above the horizon. From 
 the surface of open water, evaporation was continu-
 
 1850. DIFFICULTIES OF LATE NAVIGATION. 369 
 
 ally going on, and the exhalation became condensed 
 a little above the surface, from the low temperature 
 of the air. A film of young ice might for a time 
 come over the surface of the water, and so far 
 prevent evaporation; but the tide or the wind was 
 continually shifting the loose pack from place to 
 place, and this invariably resulted in the destruction 
 of the young ice. 
 
 It was much to be regretted that all these circum- 
 stances should oppose our operations, at a period when 
 Arctic navigation could only be conducted. Late in 
 the season, when young ice and violent weather force 
 the most intrepid to seek shelter, the passages open 
 out, and the ice in them leaves the shore, to which it 
 had held fast during the whole summer, when work 
 would have been an amusement, and it drifts about 
 until it becomes again fixed at a distance of perhaps 
 one hundred miles from where it had started. It was 
 not without reluctance that submission was yielded 
 to the ice, that was beginning to defy our exertions 
 to continue the search for the missing ships. It was 
 painful to reflect upon how little had been accom- 
 plished by the best endeavours of so many ships and 
 willing crews ; and that reflection was rendered still 
 more painful when one associated with it the possi- 
 bility that some of the survivors of that unfortu- 
 nate expedition might at that moment be looking 
 
 VOL. I. B B
 
 370 LOOKING FORWARD TO THE WINTER. CH. XII. 
 
 and waiting anxiously for the help that would have 
 been gladly hailed two years before. With what dif- 
 ferent feelings did we and they look forward to the 
 winter ! Surrounded with comforts we had nothing 
 to fear. It could not be so with them, however, for 
 one thing after another would have failed, and their 
 slender stores of almost every article essential to com- 
 fort would be so exhausted, that, even surrounded by 
 ample resources, they could hardly look forward to 
 an agreeable winter. It was consoling to know that 
 men soon become accommodated to circumstances, and 
 that their dispositions, as well as their bodies, assume, 
 within due limits, the shape of the mould in which 
 they are placed. The length of time that had elapsed 
 was more than enough to inure the survivors to the 
 climate and to the circumstances which they had so 
 long endured ; and knowing also the never-failing 
 resources of British seamen, and the readiness and 
 ingenuity with which one thing is made to supply the 
 place of another, we had hopes that even the sixth 
 winter might pass over with safety, and that our 
 efforts to find them, by means of travelling parties in 
 the spring, would be crowned with success. 
 
 September 17 th. With the exception of one of the 
 crew of the "Sophia" who had to be exempted for a 
 few days from duty while suffering fromfurunculus, 
 there had not been a single instance of disease or ill-
 
 1850. HEALTH OF THE CREWS. 371 
 
 health in our expedition. It was discovered by mere 
 accident that of one the crew, also of the " Sophia," had 
 a small portion of the first bone of his middle finger 
 in a diseased state. It never proved in the least 
 annoying to him, nor did it in any way interfere with 
 his duties, and it never required surgical interference 
 except to remove minute spicula of bone as they 
 became detached by exfoliation. So long as it re- 
 mained quiet, and did not interfere with the man's 
 duties, nor affect his general health, it might be safely 
 let alone, and it would be sufficient to take active 
 measures for its removal when the motions of a joint 
 became affected by it. I thought it very probable, 
 also, that a spontaneous cure might take place after 
 exfoliation, and that it would heal up with little or 
 no loss of substance. 
 
 Looking forward to the Arctic winter, and having 
 before us the experience of others, we could not have 
 any doubt as to the proper course to pursue to main- 
 tain health and harmony among the crews. The ex- 
 action of a certain amount of duty to be discharged 
 daily by each person was indispensable, but it was 
 resolved it should be done in such a manner as would 
 make one and all feel quite at home in their winter 
 quarters. Exercise in the open air, always so essen- 
 tial to health of body and mind, would require to be 
 taken when the weather might be suitable, and in 
 
 B B 2
 
 372 HEALTH AND REGIMEN. CHAP. XII. 
 
 violent weather, when we should find it impossible to 
 be exposed with impunity, a diminished bill of fare 
 would be a compensation. 
 
 The lakes a few hundred yards beyond the beach, 
 about half a mile from the ships, were likely to 
 furnish us with water for some time, and after they 
 became frozen to the bottom, the ice in them could 
 be taken to the ships, as being preferable to snow 
 for furnishing a supply of water. The labour of 
 taking off the ice would prove a source of exercise 
 which could not be dispensed with, and it would con- 
 tinue throughout the whole year, until water should 
 again appear in the lakes. The water was found to 
 be very hard, and very ill adapted for washing. This 
 was what one might expect in a district where 
 limestone prevails. By mere chance, however, it was 
 discovered that it was only the water which had been 
 brought fluid from the lakes that possessed this 
 property of hardness, while that obtained by dis- 
 solving the ice which formed on its surface was quite 
 soft, readily yielding a lather with soap, and suited in 
 every respect for domestic purposes. This afforded 
 a proof, which no one could doubt, of the fact, that 
 the process of congelation precipitates the earthy or 
 saline matter which water contains. 
 
 A party was sent out in the direction of Cape 
 Martyr, which we believed to be twelve or fourteen
 
 1850. EXCURSION TO THE WESTWARD. 373 
 
 miles westward. The object of the party was to 
 ascertain, if possible, the position of the expeditions 
 we had left in that quarter on the llth. After they 
 had proceeded about six miles from the ships, they all 
 returned except two persons, and arrived at the ships 
 at four o'clock in the evening, without having seen 
 anything of the other ships. The two who did not 
 return with the main body of the party, went on four 
 miles farther, until they reached a hill on the east 
 side of a bay, on the opposite side of which Cape 
 Martyr could be seen very plainly, and answering the 
 description given of it by Captain Parry, when he dis- 
 covered it in 1819. From the top of the hill they saw 
 four ships lying within one to two miles of Griffith's 
 Island, moored to a floe which extended from that 
 island across to Cornwallis Island, which it joined a 
 little to the eastward of Cape Martyr. The western 
 and northern limits of the floe could not be seen, but 
 it was considered probable it extended westward to 
 the extreme limits of Griffith's Island. The ships 
 were clearly discerned to be no other than Captain 
 Austin's entire squadron. There was a little doubt, 
 however, with respect to two of the ships which were 
 next to Griffith's Island; one of the party was quite 
 satisfied that he had seen the two steamers and the 
 two ships, while the other person was less certain. It 
 was eight o'clock in the evening before they returned, 
 
 B B 3
 
 374 INTENSE THIRST. EATING SNOW. CHAP. XII. 
 
 and then they were very much fatigued, having 
 suffered a great deal from thirst, which they en- 
 deavoured to quench by eating snow. They were 
 in a state of torpor, which resembled intoxication in 
 a slight degree, and in that respect what had been 
 observed under similar circumstances at Melville 
 Island by Captain Parry, was acted over to the very 
 letter. 
 
 The use of snow when persons are thirsty, does 
 not by any means allay their insatiable desire for 
 water; on the contrary, it appears to be increased 
 in proportion to the quantity used, and the fre- 
 quency with which it is put into the mouth. For 
 example, a person walking along feels intensely 
 thirsty, and he looks to his feet with coveting eyes, 
 but his good sense and firm resolutions are not to be 
 overcome so easily, and he withdraws the open hand 
 that was to grasp the delicious morsel, and convey it 
 into his parching mouth ; he has several miles of a 
 journey to accomplish, and his thirst is every moment 
 increasing ; he is perspiring profusely, and feels quite 
 hot and oppressed ; at length his good resolutions 
 stagger, and he partakes of the smallest particle, 
 which produces a most exhilarating effect; in less 
 than ten minutes he tastes again and again, always 
 increasing the quantity, and in half an hour he has 
 a gum-stick of condensed snow, which he masticates
 
 1850. ANOTHER EXCURSION WESTWARD. 375 
 
 with avidity, and replaces with assiduity the moment 
 that it has melted away : but his thirst is not allayed 
 in the slightest degree ; he is as hot as ever, and still 
 perspires ; his mouth is in flames, and he is driven 
 to the necessity of quenching them with snow, which 
 adds fuel to the fire; the melting snow ceases to 
 please the palate, and it feels like red-hot coals, which, 
 like a fire-eater, he shifts about with his tongue, and 
 swallows without the addition of saliva; he is in 
 despair, but habit has taken the place of his reason- 
 ing faculties, and he moves on with languid steps, 
 lamenting the severe fate which forces him to per- 
 sist in a practice which in an unguarded moment he 
 allowed to begin. 
 
 September 18th. Captain Penny went out in the 
 direction of Cape Martyr, to observe more correctly 
 the position of the squadron at Griffith's Island. The 
 sky was always overcast with clouds or a misty 
 haze, which greatly obscured vision, and it was rare 
 indeed to get a correct view of the horizon. At 
 noon it was much clearer than usual, and this enabled 
 Captain Penny arid his party to get a better view of 
 Barrow Straits than we had for a few days previously. 
 The whole of it appeared to be full of loose pack ice, 
 which had small spaces of open water, covered with 
 young ice, among it. 
 
 There was a space along Cornwallis Island, and 
 
 B B 4
 
 376 PRESSURE AMONG YOUNG ICE. CHAF. XII. 
 
 extending to the westward as far as the south point 
 of Griffith's Island, in which there was very little 
 ice except a young formation, and it seemed to be 
 entirely deficient in no part; but it varied much 
 in thickness, in some parts only a mere film, in 
 others two or three inches without overlapping, and 
 where this was present, it might be six or seven feet. 
 The ships were just where yesterday's party had 
 described; they were beset very closely among 
 young ice at the edge of the old ice, which still 
 retained its position between the two islands. In 
 the afternoon the sky again became overcast, and a 
 fall of snow commenced. 
 
 When young ice is brought together by pressure, 
 and raised into heaps, which are sometimes one or 
 two feet above the surface of the water, and twelve 
 or fourteen feet underneath it, it does not maintain 
 this enormous thickness throughout the winter, but 
 is diminished from the under surface until it is of the 
 same thickness with the ice against which it has been 
 pressed up. This can be easily understood, from the 
 circumstance that it is formed at a lower temperature 
 on the surface of the water than that to which it 
 becomes exposed after being thrust twelve or four- 
 teen feet beneath. And there can be no danger of 
 confounding it with the different condition of ice- 
 bergs, which form at a temperature of +32, and
 
 1850. SEA SALT IN ICE. 377 
 
 remain solid until the temperature of the medium in 
 which they move, or are seen, is raised above + 32. 
 If one piece of sea-water ice, formed at a time 
 when the temperature of the air was +20, and 
 another piece of the same size, also sea-water, but 
 formed at a temperature of +30, be submerged in 
 the sea at a temperature of +30, nothing can be 
 plainer than that + 20 will dissolve, and + 30 will 
 remain solid; and the same thing would obtain, 
 suppose there were but a difference of 1 instead of 
 10, although it would be less marked. It is owing 
 to the different proportions of salt which each con- 
 tains. 
 
 September I9tk. The weather still continued very 
 unsettled, and we frequently had drifting snow and 
 violent squalls sweeping down the rugged ravines 
 around Assistance Bay. The snow fell so thick, that 
 many times intended excursions into the interior 
 of the island were put off. Although it was not 
 safe to leave the ships to any distance, there were 
 frequent shooting excursions, which occasionally 
 yielded a hare or a few ptarmigan, and no person 
 ever lost his way. The situation of the bay, the 
 point of meeting, as it were, of three rivers, made 
 travelling on the land, even in snowy weather, com- 
 paratively safe. On losing his way, one had nothing 
 to do but cross the land until he found a ravine,
 
 378 EXCURSIONS. CHAP. XII. 
 
 which he could follow downwards to its termination, 
 and then he would find the coast, or the bed of a 
 river, which would lead him to the ships. 
 
 Captain Stewart and another person went to 
 observe the position of the squadron at Griffith's 
 Island. They travelled out ten miles, and then they 
 were at the hill opposite Cape Martyr. The ships 
 appeared to have shifted their position a little, for 
 the ice in Barrow Straits had drifted southward 
 before anortherly wind, and left them in open water. 
 One of them appeared to have some of the loose pack 
 still about her ; but it was hardly discernible at the 
 distance from which they were observed. The floe 
 to which they were moored was still holding on ; but 
 open water could be seen at the N. "W. side of it, 
 extending across from the one island to the other. 
 From this it was doubtful whether it would continue 
 to hold out against the strong northerly winds, and 
 that made it appear probable that the Expedition 
 would shift its position as soon as possible. 
 
 September 23rd. Assistance Bay was now covered 
 with one continuous sheet of ice from the east to the 
 west point, but beyond them there was open water, 
 except when a southerly wind brought the ice in 
 Barrow Straits against the land. In still weather 
 young ice would form on this water, but it was 
 never permitted to shut it completely in ; the loose
 
 1850. DUCKS CAUGHT ALIVE. 379 
 
 ice invariably moved about sufficiently with the tide 
 to destroy the young ice, and prevent a continuous 
 surface. There were still a few ducks in the water, 
 and sometimes we had some sport shooting them. 
 They would have taken their departure for the 
 south long before now, had their young been able 
 to accomplish the journey. None of those birds 
 had been observed for a week or ten days, except 
 where there were young ones which could hardly 
 fly. The ducks, unlike the seals, came upon 
 the ice, and not unfrequently alighted on it at a 
 distance from the edge next the water, for the 
 purpose of attracting their young out of the water, 
 to teach them the use of their wings. Some of the 
 poor young things were caught by chasing them on 
 the ice, while their affectionate mothers hovered 
 over the heads of those who so mercilessly attacked 
 their helpless offspring. The walruses, which had 
 been so numerous when we entered the harbour, had 
 all disappeared, and we had little expectations of 
 seeing them again until the return of summer. 
 Some, however, might still have been in the open 
 water, although they never came upon the ice. 
 
 The crews were busily employed fitting the roofing 
 clothes, which had been made before leaving England, 
 but did not fit very well, owing to some mistake in 
 the cutting, about the two ends, fore and aft. By a
 
 330 EXCURSIONS INLAND. CHAP. XII. 
 
 little alteration they were found to suit much better, 
 and in a few days we hoped they would be ready to 
 cover our decks in like awnings, which would keep 
 out every particle of snow, and enable us to take 
 exercise beneath them during violent storms. 
 
 Assistance Bay was beginning to show signs of 
 life and activity. On this point a party of strollers ; 
 on that level plain two boon companions with their 
 guns ; wending his way in a rugged ravine, charmed 
 with its iron cascades, and wretchedly dreary, wild, 
 and barren aspect, a solitary individual ; and, chasing 
 one another playfully along the beach, the dogs, 
 were the objects that now began to meet and please 
 the eye. 
 
 Mr. Stewart and I took a walk with our guns 
 directly inland. Our course lay along the borders of 
 the middle stream which enters the harbour, and we 
 followed it seven miles. The interest of our journey 
 lay in the deep cut which the water of the stream 
 had made in the solid rocks. For the first four miles 
 the bed of the river is composed of fragments of rock 
 which have been made smooth by attrition; but 
 there are also fragments with sharp corners and rough 
 faces, and they vary in size and weight, from half an 
 ounce up to half a ton ; the nearer the harbour, 
 generally, the smaller and smoother they are. Be- 
 yond the third or fourth mile, it frequently presents
 
 1850. DEEP RAVINES. 381 
 
 the horizontal strata of secondary limestone, of which 
 the island is chiefly, if not entirely, composed; 
 and from this the two sides rise rapidly, and 
 sometimes perpendicularly, to a height of one 
 hundred and fifty or two hundred feet, and form 
 a horrid chasm. In some parts there are distinct 
 echoes, which one can hardly enjoy, for fear of 
 bringing about his ears some of the loose rocks from 
 the overhanging cliifs. In other parts again, and 
 very frequently, bridges of firm snow extend along 
 the chasm for two or three hundred yards, and 
 present a depth of forty feet over the arches, which 
 rarely exceed twice the height of a man, and vary in 
 breadth, sometimes occupying the whole bed of the 
 river. Those bridges proved effectual in damming 
 up the water for a time, and in some instances only 
 allowed it to escape gradually, but in others with 
 tremendous velocity, carrying huge masses of rock 
 before it, and demolishing all the bridges between it 
 and the sea. 
 
 At one part there was a ledge of rock stretching 
 across the bed of the river, which had been under- 
 mined to a depth of five or six feet beneath its inferior 
 edge, and over this the roaring cataract had to hurl, 
 with its burden of ice and snow, two months pre- 
 viously ; but now it was quite dry, and a cascade of 
 ice, the result of the last drainings of the stream,
 
 382 THE SHIPS HOUSED IN. CHAP. XII. 
 
 marked the character and power of the genus 
 loci. 
 
 September 30th. We began to feel by this time that 
 winter was truly setting in, and that it was necessary 
 to keep pace with it by endeavouring to advance with 
 our preparations. The awnings were fairly secured 
 in their places, but they were still subject to be traced 
 up at the sides in fine weather. A store-house for 
 our provisions was building on the shore, with as 
 much expedition as the weather and the accumula- 
 tions of snow permitted. Strong gales with drifting 
 snow were very common, and although the weather 
 at times appeared to be misty, it was frequently ob- 
 served that the mist was chiefly confined to a very 
 low stratum, while the clear blue sky could be dis- 
 cerned towards the zenith. 
 
 The snow, which accumulated into wreaths during 
 northerly winds, became consolidated in a short time, 
 and could be made into ashlar work of great nicety 
 and beauty. The walls and roof of our store-houses 
 were built of square blocks and slabs cut out of the 
 wreaths which accumulated during the northerly 
 gales. Those with southerly gales were not nearly 
 so firm, and they never were permanent, for the first 
 strong northerly wind removed them. The tempe- 
 rature was decreasing rapidly, and many times, during 
 clear weather and a keen wind from the north, those
 
 1850. THE ESQUIMAUX DOGS. 383 
 
 of us who had the greatest pretensions to hardiness 
 acknowledged that the cold was intense ; frost-bites of 
 hands and faces were very common, but friction of the 
 warm hand soon restored the circulation, and there 
 never were any bad results, except the loss of a patch 
 of skin, which a few days replaced. Foxes were 
 seen frequently, and the traps which Mr. Petersen 
 built on the land were fortunate enough to imprison 
 one occasionally. Some of them were let loose with 
 collars bearing inscriptions relative to the position of 
 the ships and Expeditions, &c., and others fell into 
 the jaws of the voracious dogs. 
 
 The clogs had increased very much in number since 
 we got them, on the 5th of June, at Uppernavik. 
 There were four females among them, and each had a 
 litter of from five to eight ; including young and old, 
 we had about fifteen in each ship. The young ones 
 were a month old, and as they ran about upon the ice 
 around the ships, those of one female mixed with those 
 of another ; this always resulted in the death of some 
 of them, and the seamen who had the charge of them, 
 had often to lament that some promising little cur 
 had been destroyed by some of the old males or 
 females. 
 
 The old male Esquimaux dog, when hard pressed 
 with hunger, will devour the young of its species ; 
 this, however, was not the cause of the deaths which
 
 384 TIDE GAUGE. CHAP. XII. 
 
 had happened with us among the latter. The young 
 dogs themselves frequently fought with great spirit, 
 and their sharp teeth left deep marks in their bleeding 
 ears. The mothers separated them very affection- 
 ately if they all belonged to her ; but if not, the in- 
 truders were severely bitten and often killed by her, 
 from the fear she had for her own. 
 
 A tide gauge was prepared and set a-going on 
 board the " Sophia," under the superintendence of 
 Mr. Manson, chief mate, and orders were received it 
 should be registered at least every hour. It would 
 have been very desirable to register it every half hour, 
 but, with our small crew, that was more than could 
 be accomplished without increasing their labours 
 during winter more than would be safe for their 
 health. The arrangement was a line securely an- 
 chored at the bottom, ascending perpendicularly, 
 through a hole which had to be kept open in the floe, 
 up to the projecting end of the trisail boom, which, 
 from being the ridge of the awning, was eight feet 
 from the quarter-deck, and thence forward and down 
 to the deck by means of two easy-going pulleys. To 
 this descending part a weight lighter than that at the 
 bottom was attached, and as the ship rose and fell 
 with the ice which surrounded her, thus responding 
 freely to the advancing or receding tide, so did the 
 weight against a graduated scale, which could be read
 
 1850. THE "FIRE-HOLE." 385 
 
 off to half an inch. The meteorological register, which 
 had been kept almost since we left England, was con- 
 tinued to be kept three-hourly. It would have been 
 desirable also to have had the temperature of the air 
 entered every hour ; but, for the reasons already men- 
 tioned, this, too, was found to be more than our ship's 
 company could accomplish with safety. The tide- 
 guage was beneath the awning ; this was a great com- 
 fort with coarse weather, since it could be read off, 
 in the depth of winter, by the assistance of the deck- 
 light. It was necessary, however, to go into the open 
 air, to clear the hole in the floe through which the line 
 passed ; and this was all the more urgent in very cold 
 weather, because then the coating of ice in it was so 
 thick as to derange the indications of the weight against 
 the scale. This opening was called the "fire-hole," 
 from the circumstance that water from it would be 
 useful in the event of fire breaking out on board the 
 ship. 
 
 VOL. I. C C
 
 386 
 
 CHAP. XIII. 
 
 COMMENCEMENT OF THE ARCTIC WINTER. 
 
 Foot-prints of a Bear. Short Excursion. Squadron at Griffith's 
 Island. Hummocky Ice. Boulders raised to the Surface. 
 Direction of the Tide. Clothing served out. Temperature below 
 Zero. Attempts to reach Griffith's Island. Party from Captain 
 Austin's Squadron. American Expedition gone Home Wintering 
 in the Pack. Object of the Party. Parties to Cape Martyr and 
 Cape Hotham. Frost-Bites. Fatigue and intense Thirst. A 
 Party absent. Severe Frost-Bite. Violent Weather. Pigeons 
 sent off with Balloons. Return of the Party to Griffith's Island. 
 The Cause of the intense Thirst. Rockets. Storehouse finished. 
 
 Preserved Pickles, Sfc. Banking up the Ships. Scale of 
 Victualling. Hunting Parties. Fox with a Collar. Party to 
 Griffith's Island. Return of the Party. More settled Weather. 
 
 Fishing on Kate Austin Lake. Scurvy on board the "Felix." 
 
 Preserved Potatoes. Carrots. Measures taken to remove 
 Scurvy. Thickness of the Ice. 
 
 October 2nd. Mr. Goodsir and I were sent in the 
 direction of Cape Martyr, to observe the position 
 of Captain Austin's squadron. As we proceeded 
 over the soft snow that had fallen but very re- 
 cently, during a south-westerly wind, we observed 
 recent foot-prints of a huge bear, leading to the 
 westward close along the land. They sometimes 
 appeared to lead out to seaward, and again inland to
 
 1850. FOOT-PRINTS OF A BEAR. 387 
 
 the top of an eminence whence a short view could 
 be obtained. In descending those eminences, the 
 foot-marks were altogether absent, but in their room 
 we found one continuous broad mark, which bruin 
 left when he sluggishly threw himself upon his side, 
 and slipped down the declivity upon the snow. It is 
 very likely we should have had a visit from the bear 
 at the ships, had it not been for the dogs, for 
 which its species has no particular attachment. 
 The slightest bark or howl among them would 
 prove quite sufficient to warn him of the danger at- 
 tending a nocturnal round in Assistance Bay. This 
 was much to be regretted on account of the want 
 of animal food for the use of the young dogs, 
 which we fully expected would be fit for spring and 
 summer travelling. After going westward about 
 seven miles we returned, having seen the squadron at 
 Griffith's Island, and satisfied ourselves that the ships 
 had not shifted their positions relative to one another 
 or to the land. They appeared to be still more 
 closely beset than when they were last seen by 
 Captain Stewart' and another person, who accom- 
 panied him on the 19th of September. 
 
 The ice along the beach was exceedingly rough, 
 and every day seemed to be increasing this condition 
 in a remarkable manner. This was altogether owing 
 to the bottom, which is rendered very irregular by 
 
 c c 2
 
 388 ROUGH ICE ALONG THE COAST. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 the action of grounding ice. Towards the close of 
 the season the fringe of ice, which, till then, may have 
 remained close along the land, drifts away and leaves 
 the beach all along the coast exposed to the action of 
 drifting ice, which often comes in with great force 
 and takes the ground. The pressure continues, and 
 whole piles of ice are raised up to a considerable 
 height. This, however, will depend upon the "fetch " 
 which the moving pack may have. The bottom, 
 composed of loose shingle or mud, is raised into a 
 number of irregularities, which are not confined to 
 the high or low water marks, but extend to a con- 
 siderable distance farther out than the latter. This 
 is owing to the heavy ice taking the ground in deep 
 water, while the light ice is carried to the high 
 water mark, where it, too, marks the beach, although 
 feebly, compared with the other. These moraines, as 
 they may be called, remain after the ice which raised 
 them drifts away, and they may vary in height from 
 less than one up to three or four feet. "When the 
 whole surface of the water close along the coast 
 becomes covered over with young ice, which rises 
 and falls with the advancing and receding tides, the 
 effect of so many elevations at the bottom will be to 
 throw the ice into a very confused state ; each heap 
 at low water presents a circular arrangement of up- 
 right fragments of ice, and, when the tide returns,
 
 1850. BOULDERS RAISED TO THE SURFACE. 389 
 
 they are hardly ever lowered to the level of the 
 otherwise smooth floe; in their upright position they 
 rest upon the edge of the heap, and resemble a crater, 
 in the centre of which, but far below its surface, the 
 gravel can be seen ; and, by the continued rise and 
 fall of the tide, a hinge-like action is kept up, which 
 invariably raises accumulations of gravel, sand, animal 
 remains, plants (seaweed), and living animals, and 
 also huge masses of rock in the form of boulders or 
 angular fragments, which all become imbedded in the 
 substance of the ice, where they remain until they 
 are set free the following season by the dissolution 
 of the ice. These accumulations are met with in the 
 ice throughout its whole thickness, until it begins to 
 lose the hinge action on the bottom, after which 
 there is little more than the blue ice itself. The ice 
 which the tide leaves dry in this manner becomes 
 exposed to the air; consequently, its temperature is 
 lowered to that of the air, and, when the water returns, 
 congelation goes on very rapidly ; the water also 
 escapes to the surface at the junction of the upright 
 fragments with the ice around them, and adds to the 
 thickness considerably, by undergoing early congela- 
 tion. Drifting snow is invariably detained in enor- 
 mous quantities where the ice is disturbed in this 
 manner ; and, before the end of winter, the craters 
 will be all obliterated, and a series of rounded 
 
 c c 3
 
 390 GOVERNMENT CLOTHING SERVED OUT. CH. XIII. 
 
 elevations and wreaths of snow, some of which may 
 be twelve to twenty feet deep, will mark the coast 
 for many miles, where the bottom is not quite level. 
 Some of the most regularly shaped of those crater- 
 like eminences presented a magnified resemblance of 
 the blisters which appear in mortar upon a wall, 
 when the lime has not been sufficiently slacked before 
 using. When we appi'oached close to them, the rush- 
 ing of the water attracted attention, and, on closer 
 observation, we discovered that its direction was 
 westward ; on our return to the ships, Mr. Manson 
 was able to satisfy us that the tide was rising, when 
 we observed its westward current ; and from this we 
 could safely infer that the flood tide goes in that 
 direction. 
 
 A whole suit of clothes was served out to the crews 
 of the two ships, from the sealskin cap and mittens 
 down to the stockings, boot-hose, and sea-boots. 
 The provision that had been made for our Expedition 
 in this respect was most ample; and the Admi- 
 ralty, by whose orders the articles had been munifi- 
 cently supplied, as well as their respective makers, 
 were equally entitled to our fondest remembrance 
 and warmest gratitude. In this we had an unexcep- 
 tionable proof of the care which the government of 
 Great Britain has for all who may have the good 
 fortune to be engaged in its services, and a feeling
 
 1850. TEMPERATURE BELOW ZERO. 391 
 
 was aroused, in the breast of every one, that we should 
 not be deficient in the faithful discharge of the duties 
 which so fond a parent had sent us to perform. On 
 the part of the men, there seemed to be a desire 
 to render implicit obedience to the orders of their 
 officers, and the latter endeavoured to be as merciful 
 as possible in their exactions, and to behave with the 
 utmost courtesy towards those who were under them. 
 During the fore-part of the day the sky was over- 
 cast, and there was a slight fall of soft snow ; the 
 wind was from S. E., and the temperature ranged 
 about -f- 12. In the evening the sky cleared up, 
 and the stars looked out, the wind freshened up 
 from the N. E., and at ten P. M. the temperature 
 was down to ^, but before midnight it was up to 
 + 7, owing to the sky becoming again overcast, which 
 prevented radiation of heat from the earth's surface. 
 The temperature frequently varied in this manner ; 
 and we often found that, even at a late hour in the 
 evening, when the sun was below the horizon, the in- 
 dications of the thermometer were higher if the 
 atmosphere were thick with clouds, than at noon, 
 if the sky were clear and cloudless. 
 
 October 3rd. The weather was clear along the 
 horizon, and objects were plainly visible at the most 
 distant parts of it, although the sky was a little over- 
 cast, and heavy clouds were dispersed over the whole 
 
 c c 4
 
 392 AMERICAN EXPEDITION. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 atmosphere. There was a light breeze from about 
 N., and the temperature ranged from +10 to 2 
 during the whole day. 
 
 Mr. Penny and Mr. Petersen had on several 
 occasions made attempts to drive over with the dog- 
 sledge to Captain Austin's squadron ; but, owing to 
 the roughness of the ice along the land, which afforded 
 the only passage in that direction, and the loaded and 
 thick state of the atmosphere, they never succeeded 
 in accomplishing their object. They started again 
 at ten A. M., and were out of sight in a short time, off 
 the west point of the harbour. In four hours they 
 returned, accompanied by a party from H. M. S. 
 " Assistance," of three men and two officers, the 
 latter being Lieut. Mecham, and Mr. Ede, assistant 
 surgeon, who were on their way to Barlow Inlet, 
 to see if our ships, or the American ships, had found 
 shelter in it. We now learned for the first time that 
 the American Expedition had left this quarter, to re- 
 turn to America without delay ; and, as may be readily 
 supposed, we consulted our three-hourly registers of 
 the winds and weather, since the 13th of September, 
 the day on which they were seen passing Assistance 
 Bay at six P. M. The result of this examination of the 
 winds and weather was a difference of opinion, 
 whether they had got clear of the ice, and into the 
 entrance of Sir James Lancaster's Sound.
 
 1850. OPINIONS RESPECTING THE AMERICANS. 393 
 
 There were among us persons who were quite 
 sanguine of their safety, and who believed that 
 they had got clear; there were others, however, 
 who were not sanguine, but low-spirited, and doubted 
 very much the probability that they were safe or 
 clear of the ice. We regretted very much that 
 so much danger as we thought should involve the 
 expedition which the philanthropy of America had 
 sent out to the aid of Sir J. Franklin. It ap- 
 peared strange to us that they could have made up 
 their minds so suddenly to take such an important 
 step, as we always understood, by report, that they 
 were provisioned for three years. When they passed 
 Assistance Bay, there was a six knot breeze, which, 
 at nine P. M., three hours later, was down to four. It 
 was from W. N. W., and would carry them to Cape 
 Hotham. At midnight there was but very little 
 wind, and it was from N. ; the number one would 
 represent its force, and the temperature of the air 
 was about +15. On the following day the wind 
 was variable, and never of more force than the 
 number two would represent; the temperature of 
 the air was from +19 to +15. The next day, 
 Sunday, the 15th, the wind began to blow from 
 W. S. W. at an early hour, and increased in violence 
 till midnight, when it abated a little, and began to 
 veer to the southward; it continued the whole of
 
 394 WINTERING IN THE PACK. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 Monday and Tuesday, with a force of three or four, 
 and then veered to the E. N. E., and fell to one or 
 two. The temperature during Monday and Tuesday 
 ranged about + 20, having risen from + 1 5, which 
 it was at, at the commencement of the south- 
 westerly Avind on the morning of the 15th. Suppose 
 they got eastward of Cape Hotham, before the wind 
 failed them the evening we saw them, they would have 
 to accomplish thirty miles more before they could be 
 in a position to take advantage of the next south- 
 westerly winds, which to a certainty would close the 
 ice in upon Cape Biley. With even a light breeze they 
 might have got over those thirty miles ; and, although 
 we had not such a breeze where we were, the case 
 might have been different with them at a distance 
 from the land, and probably where there would be 
 more open water, which itself would cause a local differ- 
 ence in the wind, both with respect to force and di- 
 rection. It was difficult to come to a decided opinion, 
 but it seemed to lean to the side that they would be 
 entangled in the pack, somewhere, but beyond our 
 power of rendering them any assistance. We had 
 heard some of their officers or commanders say, that 
 wintering in the pack was preferable to being in a 
 place of shelter, upon the grounds that the ships 
 would move to and fro with the di-ifting ice, and be 
 set clear early in the season. There could not have
 
 1850. NO LETTERS FROM THE EXPEDITION. 395 
 
 been a more fallacious idea with respect to the Arctic 
 Regions; and, although it had come from high au- 
 thority, we never believed that they had the remotest 
 intention of attempting it. I do not know that ever 
 a ship wintered in the pack within the Arctic Circle, 
 without drifting southward. There may, however, 
 be an exception to this in the unparalleled voyage 
 of the "Terror "in 1836. 
 
 The Commander of the U. S. Expedition offered 
 to let Captain Austin have any supplies, such as 
 coals or provisions, that the vessels under his com- 
 mand could well spare on the eve of their return to 
 America ; but I do not believe that any transfer of 
 stores was made, owing very probably to the cir- 
 cumstances under which both Expeditions had been 
 placed when the "Advance" and "Rescue" bore up 
 on the morning of the 13th. The most remarkable 
 circumstance, however, was that no letters had been 
 sent on board the ships that were to return. One 
 would be inclined to think, that, however short a 
 letter might be, it would be gladly received at home, 
 coming as it were from winter quarters, and convey- 
 ing intelligence of the winter quarters of Sir John 
 Franklin's ships. 
 
 Captain Austin had sent out travelling parties 
 with depots, in the direction of Lowther Island, for 
 the Cape Walker journey in spring, and also in the
 
 396 AUTUMN TRAVELLING. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 direction of Melville Island. In our Expedition 
 was reposed no confidence whatever in autumn tra- 
 velling, especially if any part of the journey had to 
 be performed over ice on the sea, which, even in the 
 month of October, would not be exempted from the 
 danger of drifting about. The greatest objection, 
 however, lay in the extreme changeableness of the 
 weather at this season of the year, and the obscure 
 condition of the horizon. This can be proved, to the 
 entire satisfaction of those who are most anxious to 
 encourage travelling at this season of the year, by 
 referring to a three-hourly register of the weather 
 for the three weeks preceding the first week in 
 October, during which time there will not be found 
 an average of one hour out of the twenty-four in 
 which the weather has been sufficiently clear to enable 
 a person to discern objects distinct on the distant 
 horizon. There is nothing in this opposed to what 
 is known of the science of meteorology, and the laws 
 which govern meteoric vicissitudes. When the sea 
 in the Polar regions becomes almost entirely covered 
 with one continuous sheet of ice, and the land 
 becomes cooled down on the surface, far below the 
 freezing point of water, nothing can be more 
 rational than to expect a steady northerly wind, 
 and a clear and keen atmosphere, and cold always 
 increasing in intensity as the latitude is increased,
 
 1850. VIOLENT WEATHER IN AUTUMN. 397 
 
 provided one continue always on ice or land, as 
 the case may be. On the other hand, if the sea 
 and the land be unequally heated, as must happen 
 to a great extent in autumn, when the ice is 
 drifting rapidly about, and large sheets of water 
 are exposed to the air, to which it imparts a much 
 greater amount of heat than an equal extent of land, 
 and the land again imparts its heat or cold much 
 more suddenly than the water or the ice. In 
 this manner, when the face of nature presents the 
 greatest diversity with respect to ice, water, and land, 
 the conditions of the atmosphere, depending entirely 
 upon the conditions of the earth's surface, upon the 
 heat and light of the sun, and probably also upon the 
 phases of the moon, will also vary in obedience to the 
 varying circumstances of which they are the mere 
 results. 
 
 The officers of the party shot a bear in the vicinity 
 of Cape Martyr, very probably the one which Mr. 
 Goodsir and I were tracking on the preceding day, 
 which they willingly and kindly permitted us to have 
 for the use of our dogs, upon condition that it should 
 be properly skinned. The spot where they had left it 
 was carefully described, and directions were given 
 how to find it, by bearings from the land and by the 
 position of the ships at Griffith's Island. 
 
 By falling in with our Expedition, the intention
 
 398 THE OBJECT OF THE PARTY. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 the party had of going as far as Barlow Inlet was a 
 little modified, as far as the plan of accomplishing it 
 was concerned. It was determined now that a party 
 should set out for Cape Hotham and Barlow Inlet, 
 with an intention of returning the same night, and 
 on no account run the risk of being caught in a 
 storm ; rather than run this risk, it would be better 
 to wait until more settled weather should set in. 
 
 October 4th. At seven A. M. Lieut. Mecham, Mr. 
 Ede, Captain Stewart, and Mr. Goodsir commenced 
 their journey to Cape Hotham and Barlow Inlet; 
 and at the same time a party of nine men, with two 
 sledges and the dogs, went to Cape Martyr to bring 
 on board the carcass of the bear. Those of the crews 
 that remained on board were busily engaged building 
 our snow store-house. The morning was very clear 
 and starry, and in this respect it was an exception 
 to the twenty that had preceded it : there was a keen 
 northerly breeze, and the thermometer was so low as 
 5, until clouds began to rise from the horizon, and 
 to drift before the increasing wind ; then the tempera- 
 ture rose to + 3, but in the evening it again fell to 
 zero, and at midnight to 5. The barometer was 
 about 2 9 '90, and inclined to rise. As the day advanced 
 the weather became stormy, and before evening there 
 was a strong breeze with violently drifting snow. 
 Some of the men who had been engaged at their
 
 1850. FATIGUE AND INTENSE THIRST. 399 
 
 mason-work came off in consequence of the fre- 
 quency of frost-bites of the cheeks and ears; none 
 of the sufferers, however, ever lost more than a mere 
 film of the skin, as they had learned by this time to 
 attend to one another's faces and ears. 
 
 At five P. M. the Cape Hotham party returned very 
 much fatigued, having travelled as far as one of the 
 bluffs over Dungeness Point, and seen nothing of the 
 " Advance " and " Rescue," to discover which, if 
 possible, was the sole object of their journey. They 
 suffered intensely from thirst, and one of them had 
 his fingers slightly frost-bitten while holding the lid 
 of a metallic pocket flask over a flame which had 
 been raised with cotton rags and bits of fat, the 
 refuse of their dinner, for the purpose of melting 
 snow to quench their thirst. The sensation felt in 
 his bare fingers, while he held the metal cup full of 
 snow over the flickering flame, was of a burning 
 character ; and, at the time, he thought it was caused 
 by the flame, which very rarely reached so high up 
 on the sides of the vessel. 
 
 Eight P. M. arrived, but there were no signs of the 
 return of the party at Cape Martyr ; and, as the wind 
 howled and the snow drifted with violence, and 
 obscured the stars, which only peeped out at times, 
 we began to entertain fears for their safety. Mr. 
 Reid and I were sent out, with a party of three men
 
 400 A PARTY ABSENT. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 and refreshments, to meet them. Our orders were 
 to proceed six miles from the ships, following the 
 beach very carefully all the way, and, if we should 
 not meet them in that time, we were to return to 
 the ships without delay. Occasional glimpses of the 
 stars in the intervals between the showers enabled 
 us to keep in the proper direction when we had a 
 difficulty in making out the beach. The hummocks 
 were a great annoyance, and many a tumble did we 
 get among them ; but tumbles were not so bad as 
 going over the knees in the water, which oozed up all 
 round some of them where the ice was not permitted 
 to rise freely with the tide. After proceeding about 
 two miles we were fortunate enough to meet them, 
 and it was so dark that we mixed with them before 
 they recognised us. They were coming on very 
 cheerfully, and like ourselves they often tumbled 
 heels over head among the wreaths of snow and the 
 hummocks. Some of them were very much fatigued, 
 although they had very little to di'ag, for the dogs 
 dragged one sledge, and the other was left seven miles 
 from the ships when night came on and they could not 
 see to take it along. One of them had the fingers of 
 both hands rather severely frost-bitten. It was not 
 the depth or extent of the frost-bite that I did not 
 like, but the reaction and vesication that had com- 
 menced, as the result of partial attempts to restore
 
 1850. SEVERE FROST-BITE. 401 
 
 the circulation. That no time might be lost in getting 
 to the ships, each of the party got a little spirits, which 
 quickened their pace considerably, and at ten o'clock 
 we arrived. Each person was minutely examined 
 lest any parts, fingers or toes, might be frost-bitten 
 unknown to the sufferer, but no other person had 
 been the least touched except the person to whom 
 allusion has been made, and, as he belonged to the 
 " Lady Franklin," he fell under the care of Mr. Good- 
 sir after the assiduous use of the remedial agents 
 water and snow, in which his hands were kept for five 
 hours, although during the latter part of that time 
 they were so painful that he almost required 
 restraint to continue them in it. At the end of that 
 time reaction seemed to be commencing, and a system 
 of treatment was adopted which had a tendency 
 to keep it within bounds, lest there should be loss 
 of substance by sloughing. Sensation had not re- 
 turned to the points of the fingers, and this was 
 taken for a sign that there would be a little loss of 
 substance in those parts. On the back part of some 
 of them, sensation was also deficient ; from this we 
 might fear that stiffness in the motions of the fingers 
 might be the result, especially if the true skin should 
 happen to be implicated. 
 
 October 1th. There was a violent storm from 
 N.E., which lasted two whole days and nights. During 
 VOL. i. r> D
 
 402 VIOLENT WEATHER. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 the first twenty-four hours the temperature was 
 about 5, but latterly, as the wind veered to IN". 
 22 W., and the sky became overcast (for it was only 
 the horizon that was overcast before), it rose to + 7. 
 The snow-drift was sometimes so thick that a person 
 on the ice could not be discerned at a distance of two 
 hundred yards. 
 
 No persons went into the open air, and any exer- 
 cise we had was beneath our awnings, which were 
 securely fastened down. We had great fears for the 
 safety of the travelling parties that had been sent out 
 by Captain Austin a few days previously. If any of 
 them should happen to be exposed to the storm, and 
 find it necessary to accomplish their prescribed dis- 
 tance, it would try their constitutions, if not injure 
 them, and it would prove to them, as has been already 
 hinted at, "that autumn is not the time for sledge 
 travelling in the Arctic Regions." 
 
 The weather was beginning to improve, although 
 still it was very squally, and the snow drifted along 
 in great volumes. Lieut. Mecham resolved upon 
 returning with his party to Griffith's Island. During 
 their short stay in Assistance Bay, they were 
 gratified by a display of one of the plans proposed to 
 find out Sir J. Franklin, and hold communication 
 with him in his distant and unknown abode. In the 
 present case, however, it was not with the view of
 
 1850. CARRIER PIGEOXS SENT OFF. 403 
 
 corresponding with Sir J. Franklin's ships, but with 
 home, that Sir John Ross sent off two balloons, with 
 a carrier pigeon attached to each in a small basket. 
 The attachment was effected with great ingenuity by 
 means of a piece of slow match, which would liberate 
 them after twenty-four hours. Sir John said that 
 he expected in that time the wind, which was fair, 
 would carry them into the latitude and longitude of 
 the track of the whalers, and alighting on board those 
 ships they would take a passage to England I The 
 bottom of the baskets was the part by which they 
 would escape, for it was fastened in by means of 
 cord communicating with the slow match. Each 
 contained a little split peas, to serve as a last meal 
 for them before leaving their temporary abodes on 
 their aerial passage. It was to be regretted that a 
 well-filled balloon made its escape without its load, 
 from the carelessness of one of the officers of the 
 " Felix ; " however, another was soon filled, and it 
 was some consolation to know that the one that had 
 escaped would act as a pilot balloon for the others, 
 which, with their cars and enviable as well as im- 
 mortal pigeons, we soon lost sight of, on their long 
 journey to our native and happy land. There was 
 no person so home-sick as to request earnestly a seat 
 along with them. 
 
 Mr. Stewart, and one or two more persons belonging 
 
 D D 2
 
 404 CAUSE OF THE INTENSE THIRST. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 i 
 
 to our Expedition, accompanied Lieut. Mecham's party 
 to their sledge, which they reached a little after noon, 
 and found in a state of perfect safety ; but the sledge 
 which our men had left on the 4th had been disco- 
 vered by foxes, and the bear's flesh doubtless proved 
 luxurious morsels to them on several occasions during 
 the violence of the recent gale. After saying fare- 
 well to Mr. Mecham and his party, Mr. Stewart re- 
 turned to the ships in Assistance Bay, where he arrived 
 in the evening a little fatigued, having suffered as 
 usual from excruciating thirst. I believe the true 
 cause of such intense thirst is the extreme dryness of 
 the air when the temperature is low. In this state 
 it abstracts a large amount of moisture from the 
 human body. The soft and extensive surface which 
 the lungs expose, twenty- five times or oftener every 
 minute, to nearly two hundred cubic inches of dry 
 air, must yield a quantity of vapour which one can 
 hardly spare with impunity. The human skin 
 throughout its whole extent, even where it is brought 
 to the hardness of horn, as well as the softest and 
 most delicate parts, is continually exhaling vapour, 
 and this exhalation creates in due proportion a de- 
 mand for water. Let a person but examine the in- 
 side of his boots, after a walk in the open air at a 
 low temperature, and the accumulation of condensed 
 vapour which he finds there will convince him of the 
 active state of the skin. I often found my stockings
 
 1850. OPEN WATER. 405 
 
 adhering to the soles of my Kilby's boots after a walk 
 of a few hours. The hoar frost and snow which they 
 contained could not have been there by any other 
 means except exhalation from the skin. 
 
 October 8th. Mr. Petersen and several men started 
 with the dogs and their sledge to the westward, 
 along the coast ; and in a few hours they were seen 
 returning, with the remainder of the bear's flesh and 
 the sledge on which it had been left laid across the 
 dog-sledge, which the dogs were dragging along so 
 fast that the men could only keep up with them by 
 running. The dogs go very fast, when they are on 
 their return, if they know the way ; and then they do 
 not make their track as crooked as when they require 
 to be guided on by the whip. 
 
 The weather was very clear during the whole day, 
 and the horizon was remarkably visible in every 
 direction. There was also slight refraction to the 
 westward. Mr. Petersen reported a large space of 
 open water, extending westward to the south point of 
 Griffith's Island, along the south shore of Cornwallis 
 Island, and at the border of the ice which fringed it 
 to a breadth of nearly a quarter of a mile. He said 
 that nothing but water was seen to the westward as 
 far as Griffith's Island, but he did not see the ships 
 there, owing to a low stratum of misty vapour, which 
 obscured vision in their direction. 
 
 D D 3
 
 406 ROCKETS SENT OFF. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 The temperature of the air was much higher than 
 we could have expected it with such clear weather. 
 It ranged from +2 to -f 9 ; perhaps, and it is not 
 unlikely, the open water which has been reported, and 
 the gentle easterly wind, may have been the cause of 
 it. Whether we began to be more attentive to our 
 faces and ears with our own hands, I do not know, 
 but frost-bites of those parts were not nearly so com- 
 mon as they had been at first. It is not improbable, 
 however, that the circulation in the skin might 
 have undergone some peculiar initiation, which ren- 
 dered it less subject to the cold ; a slight hardening 
 of the skin, to retard evaporation a little, might be 
 quite sufficient to effect this change. 
 
 In case travelling parties from Captain Austin's 
 squadron might have lost their way, or be in the 
 neighbourhood of Assistance Bay, rockets were sent 
 off generally at eight P. M. I do not know whether any 
 of them were ever seen from the other squadron; 
 but some of those which they sent off were seen 
 from Assistance Bay. 
 
 October 9th. As soon as the store-house was finished 
 and the weather proved favourable, we commenced 
 to remove such stores from the ships as we knew 
 would not be injured by exposure to lower tempera- 
 tures than we would have on board ship. Pre- 
 served meat and carrots, bread, flour, sugar, and
 
 1850. STORE-HOUSE FINISHED. 407 
 
 other articles of provisions in substantial packages, 
 were removed without hesitation, and so also were 
 the ropes and fittings belonging to the rigging and 
 the sails. It was carefully observed that nothing 
 to attract foxes, or the dogs, was sent out of the 
 ships, and all the provisions were in such packages 
 as should be proof against the teeth of those invaders 
 if they should succeed in forcing a passage, by 
 removing some of the blocks of snow from the en- 
 trance, or by burrowing through or underneath 
 the wall. 
 
 After clearing out the between-decks, we found 
 abundance of room for spare articles, which had been 
 very much in our way in the cabins, and in our berths, 
 since the commencement of the voyage. In making 
 these changes an opportunity was afforded for ex- 
 amining all the stores, and especially bottles and jars 
 of pickled preserves. Some of them were found burst, 
 and others only with the corks thrown out. The 
 solid parts of their contents, and also most of the 
 fluid parts, were not lost; but that part of the 
 latter which contained the preservative principle and 
 resisted congelation was invariably lost. If a bottle 
 of porter became frozen, and consequently broken, 
 a mass of ice was found, which, when thawed, did 
 not yield porter, but a tasteless fluid of a slightly 
 brownish colour, the solid and alcoholic constituents 
 
 D D 4
 
 408 BANKING UP THE SHIPS. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 having all escaped. Our ink, too, in small earthern 
 bottles was frozen, and some of the bottles were 
 broken, but none of the ink was lost ; for the frozen 
 mass, together with a little fluid which was found in 
 the bottom part of the broken bottles, made as good 
 ink when thawed as if it had never been frozen. 
 
 October 14th. Our crews were busily employed 
 preparing to bank up the ships with snow. Accumu- 
 lations among the hummocks and at the beach in 
 various directions were cut up into blocks, and 
 sledged to the ships. This labour was divided among 
 them, some were cutting it up with shovels and long 
 knives, others loaded the sledges, while a third party 
 dragged them to the ships. Nothing but happiness 
 and merriment seemed to prevail throughout, and, 
 after the day's work was over, almost all on board 
 adjourned to the play ground, where various games 
 were followed. The red and happy countenances, 
 glowing with cheerfulness, which one met in the 
 merry groups on the ice almost every evening, were 
 ample indications of health, which were fully con- 
 firmed by the shouting, the gambols, and the tumbles 
 in the snow, in which all participated. 
 
 Since coming into winter quarters, and establish- 
 ing regularity in the amount of labour exacted 
 from the crews, the scale of victualling had under- 
 gone a modification, which resulted in a great saving
 
 1850. SCALE OP VICTUALLING. 409 
 
 of provisions, without reducing the daily allowance 
 below what would be necessary in such a cold 
 climate. It was always observed that in stormy 
 weather, when the men could not engage in work 
 or gymnastics, the amount of food consumed was 
 considerably less; and since coming into winter 
 quarters, although the temperature of the air had 
 been forty or fifty degrees colder, there was less 
 demand for food than during summer, when the 
 labour which each had to endure was almost in- 
 tolerable. In serving out provisions, our main 
 object was to have the wants of the men supplied 
 as adequately as possible; and as these depended 
 entirely upon the amount of exercise taken, which 
 varied very much at times, and upon the tempera- 
 ture, which also varied, the absurdity of establishing a 
 scale of victualling for the whole year will be plain. 
 In such a voyage as ours, where the object was to 
 keep up health among the crews, without undue 
 waste of the provisions, which could not be replaced, 
 the plan which had been adopted was based upon 
 the most correct principle, and any inefficiency that 
 might attend its operation would depend entirely 
 upon carelessness in keeping correct accounts of the 
 stores as they might be expended. It is well known 
 that, when seamen know that they are on strict 
 allowance, they will continue to receive it, although
 
 410 VICTUALLING. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 it may be much more than they can use ; but if they 
 have an idea that their commander is desirous that 
 they should have enough without waste, the person 
 who serves out the stores to the cook receives 
 intimation that their allowance is more than can be 
 used. Perhaps, such a system may appear to throw 
 the ship's stores at the mercy of the crew, and 
 without any doubt it does so ; but it is on the safe 
 side, and those in the merchant navy who have 
 tried it can testify that there is a saving in it, 
 of which they could have formed no idea. In the 
 article of bread, in our Expedition, the weekly 
 allowance was six pounds, and, at that rate, we had 
 enough for three years. It was served out every 
 evening, but not weighed, and the result of the not 
 weighing system was generally a saving of nearly 
 a pound per man per week. Of course, such a 
 system is opposed to the beautiful regulations of 
 the navy, and one who consults order and regularity 
 would never wish to see anything superadded that 
 might lead to anarchy : but, notwithstanding, it would 
 be well to adopt some " sliding scale," which might 
 have a safety-valve, both for the health of the crew, 
 and the undue consumption of the provisions. 
 
 October 17 th. Our preparations for winter went 
 on very rapidly, in spite of the stormy weather, which 
 was not by any means unfrequent. The temperature
 
 1850. HUNTING PARTIES. 411 
 
 during the three preceding days had been but once 
 below zero, although the sky was generally pretty 
 clear ; and the wind was for the most part northerly, 
 or northerly and easterly. The change from thick 
 to clear weather was hailed with great joy, although 
 we should have liked to see the drifting snow also 
 give way for a clear horizon. We had to desist 
 banking snow against the sides of the ships, owing to 
 the floe alongside sinking by the superincumbent 
 weight placed upon it. Its thickness was only 
 twenty inches, and the water from beneath oozed 
 through it and became frozen ; but it never became 
 quite hard, and, when a person walked over it, his 
 feet were in danger of being soaked through the 
 cork-soled "Kilby's."* 
 
 Our hunting parties had been very little encouraged 
 by success of late, so that they began to be ill got up 
 and little cared for. The tracks of hares and foxes 
 were frequently seen, but the creatures themselves 
 were so shy, and the colour of their fur so much 
 resembled that of the snow, that none of them were 
 hardly ever seen, except when Mr. Petersen's traps 
 imprisoned some of the latter. Great excitement 
 was caused, in Assistance Bay, by a fox being observed 
 with a collar round its neck. It found its way into 
 
 * Named after their celebrated maker at Woolwich.
 
 412 PAETY TO GRIFFITH'S ISLAND. CHAP. xin. 
 
 our store-house, and hid itself among the casks. 
 Twenty or thirty persons congregated at the door 
 by which the poor thing had entered, while some 
 went in to ferret it out ; and when it was dragged 
 out, the collar, instead of bearing the names of the 
 " Erebus " and " Terror," as some of us were foolish 
 enough to anticipate, bore the name of H. M. S. 
 ee Assistance," written but a few days before. 
 
 On several occasions, Mr. Penny and Mr. Peter- 
 sen, with a dog-sledge, attempted to go as far as 
 Griffith's Island ; but bad weather or open water close 
 to the rugged ice at the land always forced them to re- 
 turn. An attempt which they made on this day was 
 successful ; and at eight P. M. Mr. Abernethy, master 
 of the " Felix," returned from a journey he had made 
 towards Cape Martyr, and reported that he had seen 
 them strike out from that point in the direction of 
 the ships at Griffith's Island. We felt quite satisfied 
 of their safety ; and our disappointment from not see- 
 ing the rockets, which were to be sent off as the 
 signal of their safe arrival, was removed. 
 
 October 18th. Mr. Stewart and I went out in the 
 direction of Cape Martyr, with the expectation of 
 meeting Captain Penny, who said, when he left 
 Assistance Bay, that he would return on the follow- 
 ing day. The day and the excursion were remarkably 
 pleasant; and although we did not meet our Com-
 
 1850. RETURN OF THE PARTY. 413 
 
 modore, for he did not return on that day, we did not 
 consider the walk over the crisp snow and unyielding 
 ice altogether unprofitable. The insatiable thirst we 
 experienced had not become one* whit more accom- 
 modating than it had been on our journeys six weeks 
 before; in my estimation it was much less so, and 
 the enormous draughts of water which we swallowed 
 on our return to the ships would go far to prove that 
 some mysterious outlet had been opened since we 
 left them. The weather was very clear, and the tem- 
 perature varied about + 5, but it was down to + 1 
 and up to +9; there was very little wind iu the 
 morning, but at night it freshened up to a strong 
 breeze from N. or N. 22 W. 
 
 October 1 9th. In the morning the weather was very 
 unpromising, and we had no expectations that Captain 
 Penny would be able to return; at noon the wind 
 had fallen considerably, the sky was remarkably 
 clear throughout its whole extent, and the ther- 
 mometer was at + 4, but falling very fast. In the 
 evening, Captain Penny and Mr. Petersen arrived, 
 from whom we were glad to learn that all in the 
 other squadron were in good health and spirits, and 
 that no disaster had befallen any of the travelling 
 parties that had been out in the first week of this 
 month, although some of them were detained in 
 their tents for two days in succession. Slight frost-
 
 414 MOKE SETTLED WEATHER. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 bites had occurred, but none of them were of a 
 serious nature. Little or no good had been accom- 
 plished by these parties, except that some experience, 
 both by men and officers, had been obtained ; and in 
 that respect much good might be the result, although 
 it perhaps hardly compensated the great risk that was 
 incurred. 
 
 October 30th. The temperature of the air had 
 fallen much in the preceding fortnight; the lowest 
 we had observed was 14, and it happened at a time 
 when the sky towards the zenith was very clear and 
 cloudless, although there was over the land and the 
 horizon in some parts a thin misty film, which ob- 
 scured vision a little. The weather was every day 
 becoming more settled and the air sensibly drier, 
 for there was scarcely a half-day in which the blue 
 sky could not be seen, nor a night in which the stars 
 were not twinkling like sparkling diamonds on the 
 deep blue expanse which enveloped the bleak and 
 dreary world around us. 
 
 The fishes that had been observed beneath the ice 
 in Kate Austin Lake on the 14th of September were 
 discovered to be a species of salmon, and on several 
 occasions some of our men succeeded in hooking a 
 few, through holes which they opened for the pur- 
 pose in the ice on the lake. They did not appear to 
 be very numerous, nor were they very keen in taking
 
 1850. TRAFALGAR DAY. 415 
 
 the bait, which was generally a portion of the skin 
 from the breasts of those that had been caught. The 
 first one or two that were caught took a piece of 
 pork or some animal substance of that kind ; various 
 schemes were tried, but none suited so well as the 
 hooks, and I believe some of them failed altogether. 
 From thirty to forty pounds were brought to our 
 two ships, and perhaps half that quantity to the 
 Felix." 
 
 On Trafalgar day, which every naval officer com- 
 memorates with veneration, when our friends, the 
 gallant Sir John Ross, Commander Phillips, and Dr. 
 Porteus of the "Felix," met us at dinner on board 
 the " Lady Franklin," we had a hearty dish of fresh 
 salmon. Sir John said that he would endeavour to get 
 a large one, which he himself should carry to Captain 
 Austin, at Griffith's Island, although the distance was 
 at least twenty miles. He was quite elated by the 
 discovery that had been made ; for it recalled with 
 great force to his recollection how much indebted 
 they were, in the " Victory" voyage at Boothia Gulf, 
 to the supplies of salmon they obtained from lakes in 
 the neighbourhood of their encampments. The ice 
 on the lake was two feet thick, and the water at 
 the bottom was at a temperature of 33 to 34. 
 It was rather a novelty to see one here and there, 
 over the whole surface of the lake, squatted flat upon
 
 416 SCURVY ON BOARD THE " FELIX." CH. XIII. 
 
 the ice, at a hole, watching his hook and line, and 
 continually removing from the surface of the water 
 films of ice, which the low temperature of 10 
 to 14 as speedily produced. 
 
 Symptoms of scurvy broke out on board the 
 " Felix," and threw the crew of that ship into a 
 panic, which could hardly be removed without leaving 
 impressions upon our crews that they too might be 
 affected in a similar manner. It was impossible to 
 make light of it, for every sailor has a good idea that 
 scurvy is present when there are such symptoms as 
 languor and indisposition, spongy gums, oedematous 
 legs, and stiffness of the joints, especially the knees, 
 accompanied by livid spots, not unlike the result of 
 contusions. The appearance of scurvy, so early as 
 four months and a half after leaving home, certainly 
 implied that the provisions which had been in use were 
 exceedingly faulty. We learned that the scale of vic- 
 tualling was very generous on board the " Felix," and 
 that a very large proportion of preserved potatoes 
 was in daily use. Now it comes to be a most im- 
 portant question : Did scurvy really appear among 
 persons using preserved potatoes ? If it did, then 
 that tuber loses its valuable anti-scorbutic properties 
 in the process by which it is preserved. I believe 
 the crew of the "Felix" used them ad libitum for 
 upwards of two months previous to the appearance
 
 1850. MEASURES TAKEN TO REMOVE SCURVY. 417 
 
 of that disease. There was but one course to be 
 pursued with respect to the " Felix," and that was, 
 to send supplies of antiscorbutics, as we might be able 
 to spare them ; for it was very clear that the provi- 
 sions she had on board were not equal to the removal 
 of that disease, since it had come on under their use. 
 Accordingly, the preserved carrots, with which our 
 expedition was so munificently supplied by Mr. Ho- 
 garth, were highly prized by the crew of the " Felix," 
 and a larger allowance of them was granted every 
 week. Fresh potatoes, too, were devoured in a raw 
 state by some of them, and this evidently proved the 
 great demand there was for succulent vegetable mat- 
 ter. We let them have potatoes to be used in this 
 way as long as they could be spared. The man who 
 was affected sensibly with the disease was allowed 
 some porter, which was sent over once or twice a 
 week for his special use from the " Lady Franklin." 
 It may appear strange that a disease in another ship, 
 which was quite independent of our expedition, should 
 call for aid upon its first appearance. We wished to 
 prevent it taking a deep hold of those who were 
 likely to be affected by it ; and it was with this view 
 that such active measures were adopted, knowing 
 that, if once it fairly established itself in their minds as 
 well as in their bodies, far greater supplies would be 
 required ; nor would they be equally useful then in 
 VOL. i. E E
 
 418 THICKNESS OF THE ICE. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 curing the disease as they might be now in preventing 
 it. It must be acknowledged, however, that although 
 they were very reluctantly received, owing to the 
 etiquette \vhich was necessary to be observed with 
 respect to stores belonging to the Government, they 
 were consumed without any such feeling, in obedience 
 to the wants and longings which their absence had ex- 
 cited in every person on board the "Felix." If we 
 had permitted the disease to have gone on without 
 heeding it, except by merely inquiring for those affected 
 by it, in another month it would have been probably 
 established to such an extent that five times the 
 quantity of supplies that would check it now would 
 then hardly keep it in abeyance. 
 
 The ships were by this time almost completely 
 banked up with snow, and a gangway of the same 
 material, with two parapet walls sloped gradually 
 from the door in the awning to the surface of 
 the ice. The dogs were now located on the ice 
 in a little snow-house at the ship's bow; with a 
 quantity of straw between them and the cold and 
 soft ice beneath. The ice in the harbour was up- 
 wards of two feet thick. Since the 26th of September, 
 when it was ten or eleven inches, it increased at the 
 rate of half an inch per day. The ice on Kate 
 Austin Lake presented the same thickness with that 
 in the harbour, although it was seven or eight inches
 
 1850. THICKNESS OF THE ICE. 419 
 
 thick when the harbour was one continuous sheet 
 of water. This may appear rather strange, seeing 
 that fresh water freezes at a higher temperature than 
 sea- water; but it may be proper to observe that sea- 
 water ice, from the saline matter which it contains, 
 will probably conduct the heat faster from the water 
 underneath than fresh-water ice, and also that the 
 saline matter, reduced to a low temperature at the 
 surface, sinks while the water is congealing, and 
 cools the stratum into which it descends. The lakes 
 a little beyond the beach to which allusion has been 
 made already were frozen to the bottom, although 
 the depth of some of them was more than two feet. 
 This is probably owing to the proximity of the ice on 
 the surface with the bottom which must conduct the 
 heat away from the water, laterally, in addition to 
 the action of the air at the surface. It is not im- 
 probable that in the centre of Kate Austin Lake the 
 bottom does not present ice even after winter has 
 devoted itself to the extension of the ice from the 
 sides towards the centre. Here, then, we would 
 find a perforation in the frozen crust, which envelopes 
 the earth's surface in this high latitude. Were it not 
 so, it is highly improbable that the salmon could 
 exist between two ices. 
 
 November 3rd. During the whole of the month 
 of October the sun was very frequently attended by 
 
 E 2
 
 420 PARHELIC CIRCLES. CHAP. XIII. 
 
 most beautiful and brilliant parhelia and parhelic 
 circles, which were, for the most part, prismatic at 
 first, but were always becoming less so as the meri- 
 dian altitude decreased. At noon this was remarkably 
 well seen, for the mock suns were so bright, and 
 of the same yellow colour as the sun, that it was 
 very difficult to make any distinction between them. 
 Where the sun itself was, there appeared to be 
 two suns, placed the one above the other, not 
 vertically, but at an angle of 45, and a little more 
 than one diameter apart. The temperature of the 
 air always varied according to the state of the 
 weather, with respect to cloudy or clear, and the 
 direction and force of the winds. The minimum for 
 the season was 18 during a north-easterly breeze 
 and clear weather, and the maximum for October 
 was +18 during a south-east wind and thick weather. 
 During the nights, which now were beginning to be 
 rather long, the sky was generally very clear, and 
 nothing could be more pleasant than a midnight walk 
 on the floe about the period of full moon. We 
 looked forward to the winter with great confidence 
 that it would be short and happy, as our circum- 
 stances had to be accommodated to the absence of 
 the sun for a short time.
 
 421 
 
 CHAP. XIV. 
 
 DURING THE ABSENCE OF THE SUN. 
 
 Temperature of the Cabins. Vapour in the Berths. Bad Effects of 
 damp Beds. Temperature of different Regions, and the Presence of 
 Moisture. The Esquimaux lost. Scurvy extending. Theatricals. 
 School. Libraries. Peculiar Meteoric Phenomenon. Violent 
 Gale. Soft and hard Snow. Paraselenx. Lucubrations in the 
 
 open Air Mud from the Bottom. Infusoria. The Weather in 
 
 November. Luminosity oftlie Sea, A minute Acaleph. Tem- 
 perature and Density of the Sea -Water. Experiments. The 
 shortest Day. Christmas. Balls and Masquerades. Supposed 
 Route of the Missing Ships. Open Water in Barrow Straits. 
 Refraction. Aurora Borealis. Temperature. Mercury frozen. 
 
 Preparations for Travelling. Temperature of the Ships. 
 Bedding. Washing. Condensed Vapour in the Funnels. Barrow 
 Straits still open. Chloride of Silver not blackened by free Expo- 
 sure. Water- Cresses. Porter and Ale frozen. Raw Potatoes. 
 
 Soot in our Cabins. Return of the Sun. Effects of Winter. 
 
 Nov. I4ith. Soon after coming into Assistance Bay, 
 the temperature of the secluded parts of the ships fell 
 so much that the vapour in those parts became con- 
 densed, and appeared on bolt ends and the ceiling in 
 the form of large drops, which sometimes ran down in 
 streams, much to our annoyance, especially when it 
 occurred in our sleeping-berths. Some of the crew 
 and I among the number complained of rheumatic 
 
 E E 3
 
 422 TEMPERATURE OF THE CABINS. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 pains of the joints, which were always removed for 
 the time by walking and exercise, and were un- 
 doubtedly the result of the dampness of our beds. 
 After the temperature of the atmosphere fell, as the 
 season advanced, these apartments became cooled 
 below the freezing-point of water, the result of 
 which was the congelation of the condensed vapour 
 into ice, which accumulated enormously in our beds, 
 so that it was by no means unusual to find our 
 blankets adhering to the boards close to the ship's 
 side, and occasionally one's night-cap would become 
 fixed in a similar manner. For six weeks the tem- 
 perature of my little cabin was not above the freezing- 
 point of water, and it was generally about +22. Of 
 this I had an excellent proof in the fact, that a tumbler 
 containing a large mass of ice in its bottom lay upon 
 its side for the whole time without the latter being dis- 
 solved. But our rheumatic indisposition disappeared 
 entirely ; and every person was satisfied of the truth 
 of Captain (now Sir Edward) Parry's observation, 
 that no inconvenience arose from the condensed 
 vapour while it remained in the form of ice, no 
 matter in what quantity it accumulated. After the 
 banking up had been brought to a close, and our 
 decks were covered with a layer of snow over half- 
 inch boards, with felt underneath, the ice in our beds 
 again melted, and water dropped into our blankets
 
 1850. TEMPERATURE IN DIFFERENT REGIONS. 423 
 
 until they were sensibly wet. The re- application of 
 the cause excited our rheumatic affection ; and we 
 could have wished the embankments and the snow 
 on the deck had been a little less extravagantly 
 applied until the diminution of the temperature of 
 the external air again reproduced the ice, after which 
 everything went on comfortably. It would never 
 have suited to keep up a heat on board ship to 
 prevent the condensation of insensible vapour into 
 water ; for the difference between the two tempera- 
 tures to which we should be exposed on board ship 
 and in the open air would be so great as to injure 
 our health. The safest temperature for men to live 
 in on board ship during winter is about +40 or 
 + 50 ; but a range of from + 30 to + 55 may suit 
 very well; and with it, in the main cabins, hoar- 
 frost in the beds will never thaw if they are arranged 
 along the ship's sides, where the beds are generally 
 placed. It may appear exaggerated to state that the 
 difference between the two temperatures to which 
 we might be exposed alternately many times in the 
 day throughout the winter, would, even with the 
 above moderate, and in the eyes of some very low 
 range, be greater than the change which a person 
 would experience by being transferred from the 
 severest winter in Great Britain to the hottest part 
 of the intertropical regions. For example, in the 
 
 E E 4 
 
 \
 
 424 TEMPERATURE IN DIFFERENT REGIONS. CH. XIV. 
 
 cabin of the " Sophia'' + 60 might often be expected, 
 and, in the open air, not unfrequently 40 would 
 doubtless be felt before the end of winter. Between 
 these two extremes there are 100 degrees, fully 
 three times as much as the difference between the 
 mean temperature of Great Britain and that of the 
 tropics. But if the cabin should be heated up to 
 + 72 or more, and the air cooled down to 50, 
 which also may be expected, the two extremes would 
 be found 122 degrees apart. Let 122 be added to 
 + 38, about the mean temperature of our winter 
 months, and the result will be +160, something 
 unheard of, so far as I know, in the hottest tropical 
 climate. This will explain the difference of tempera- 
 ture to which we were alternately exposed; and it 
 will show that two distant extremes of heat and 
 cold can be endured with impunity when there is 
 little or no moisture present, and when those ex- 
 tremes are not owing to undue heating, but to 
 low degrees of cold. It will also be clear, that 
 nothing can hardly be more absurd than to increase 
 the distance between these two extremes by the 
 extravagant use of fuel, which ought to be used 
 moderately, and is one of the most indispensable 
 articles in an Expedition in the Arctic Regions. 
 
 The Esquimaux on board the " Felix " disappeared, 
 and no one knew whither he had gone. It was con- 
 jectured that he had left his ship with the inten-
 
 1850. THE ESQUIMAUX LOST. 425 
 
 tion of going to Griffith's Island, but the weather 
 proved so exceedingly stormy for two days after he 
 had been missed, that few expected he should have 
 found his way, or have been able to plod on over 
 the hummocks and the deep wreaths of snow. Yet 
 he accomplished the journey he had undertaken ; but, 
 " starless exposed," he had to pass one night in the 
 open air, at the mercy of the howling winds, and 
 drifting as well as driving snow, while the temper- 
 ature of the air varied from 10 to 3. Should 
 a bear, in one of his midnight rounds, have haply 
 crossed the track of poor Adam Beck and followed 
 it up, I leave the reader to conceive the appalling 
 result. After remaining a few days on board the 
 ships at Griffith's Island, he was dismissed by Cap- 
 tain Austin, who readily conceived the anxiety that 
 prevailed concerning him on board the " Felix," 
 and in Assistance Bay generally; and he arrived 
 at his own ship, which he fully expected he had left 
 for the Avinter, on the same day that he left the 
 other squadron. 
 
 The crew of the " Felix " were still affected with 
 scurvy, and new cases were occurring, without the old 
 being removed from the sick list. Dr. Porteus found 
 it an arduous duty to keep up the spirits of the suf- 
 ferers ; and it was not without its difficulties, for the 
 treatment he could adopt without altering the bill of
 
 426 SCURVY EXTENDING. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 fare, which was impossible by their own resources, 
 would prove of very little value in the removal of the 
 disease. The raw potatoes were still eaten with avidity, 
 and the allowances of carrots, &c. were increased to 
 meet the increasing demand. One poor man, over 
 whose grey head many a coarse and stormy night 
 had passed on the ocean, had a knee affected to such 
 an extent that he could not get out of bed. It had 
 suffered from some violent injury many years pre- 
 viously, but appeared to have quite, or nearly quite, 
 recovered its perfect use and freedom of motion, 
 until, more than two months ago, symptoms of weak- 
 ness and swelling came on, and gradually became 
 worse, until he was fairly laid up by it. In his case 
 we had an early and an unequivocal indication of 
 the presence of scurvy on board the " Felix " before 
 it had been generally understood or allowed that 
 there was present any disease whatever. The eager- 
 ness with which our preserved and fresh vegetables 
 were sought after, was a proof that they excelled in 
 nutritious properties the preserved potatoes, so abun- 
 dantly in use on board the " Felix." Allusion has 
 been made to this already ; but even here the ques- 
 tion must not be permitted to drop, until it shall be 
 proved that they really did or did not prevent the ap- 
 pearance of that disease. 
 
 On the fourth of this month, when our universi-
 
 1850v THEATRICALS. 427 
 
 ties in Scotland were receiving thousands from all 
 parts of that happy country within their venerable 
 walls, to commence the labours of the session, and 
 when the long evenings for balls, theatres, and 
 operas, were setting in, and fashionable life was 
 beginning to leave its pleasant rustic seats, to pass 
 the winter in many a nourishing city, the Arctic 
 Academy was opened under the favourable auspices 
 of our commander; and the boards of the Royal 
 Cornwallis Theatre were graced by a company of 
 actors, who seemed determined that their audience 
 should not want the amusement to be derived from 
 their able performances. Mr. Goodsir and Mr. Stuart, 
 the medical officers of the "Lady Franklin," were 
 the directors of the performances, and Walter Craig, 
 one of the seamon O f the same ship, was the stage- 
 manager, while the performers v,^^ _..i Q/>tft( j f rom 
 time to time out of the respective crews of the three 
 ships in Assistance Bay. The music was generally 
 tolerable, and certainly the songs were such as to 
 disarm, if not to charm, the severest critic. The 
 diversity of character, even among forty individuals, 
 presented almost every shade from the sturdy High- 
 lander to the Cockney. Those who were most 
 desirous to please their audience generally made the 
 greatest number of failures; but, if possible, the 
 amusement of a "break down" was better than the
 
 428 : THEATRICALS. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 completion of the piece; although those through 
 whom it occurred were always disappointed. The 
 theatre was on board the " Lady Franklin," and there 
 was comfortable accommodation for upwards of fifty 
 persons. Sir John Ross and Commander Phillips 
 were generally present; and nothing was more com- 
 mon than to see the Arctic admiral keeping time to 
 the music with both feet and hands, and at the con- 
 clusion of a piece uttering a few words of approbation, 
 which were as heartily merited as they were bestowed. 
 All went to the theatre to laugh and be laughed at ; 
 and those who " broke down " afforded as much 
 amusement as those who went smoothly and " charm- 
 ingly " through their performances. Saturday night 
 was generally chosen for these festivities, until the 
 good sense of the commanders bought that the 
 Sunday duti-^ -~ 1C interfered with, and then some 
 otner night or nights of the week were appointed. 
 The preparations which generally preceded the per- 
 formances for one evening, and the subsequent small 
 talk concerning merit and demerit, occupied the at- 
 tention of the seamen, and enabled them to pass 
 over hours that might have otherwise been taken up 
 in despondency, which doubtless could not be con- 
 ducive to health. 
 
 The printing press which had been provided for us 
 before leaving home by the kindness of some friends
 
 1850. SCHOOL. 429 
 
 was very useful in printing the bills, announcing in 
 detail each of the performances, and giving fictitious 
 names by which the characters were to be sus- 
 tained. One of the most amusing of the songs was 
 that of ' e Shon McNab ; " and it pleased so well, 
 that scarcely a "theatre night" was permitted to 
 pass without it; so well indeed, that " special 
 requests " for it became very common, and the person 
 who represented the original " Shon," although not 
 a Highlander, became a general favourite with men 
 and masters, but with none more than with Sir John 
 Ross. The dresses for some of these occasions could 
 not be got up very sumptuously ; however, some 
 calico (both black and white) which had been supplied 
 to the Expedition by the extreme kindness of Mr. 
 Smith, for the purpose of making kites, became 
 very useful in this way, without interfering with its 
 usefulness and application to the purposes which its 
 generous donor had originally intended. 
 
 The school was conducted four nights in the week, 
 and three hours each night, in the half decks, by the 
 medical officers of both ships; and, generally speaking, 
 the men appeared to be very desirous to improve in 
 the various branches of a common school education. 
 Reading, writing, and arithmetic, were attended to, 
 and, occasionally, geography was introduced. Some 
 of them were really very ignorant ; and those were
 
 430 SCHOOL. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 the persons who were least desirous to learn anything 
 that cost them an effort. It was heartless work 
 for the man of thirty-five, who had been married for 
 fifteen years, to sit for hours together poring over 
 the simplest arithmetical calculations. There were 
 about a dozen in the " Sophia " who gave fair 
 promises that before winter was over they should be 
 able to work a lunar distance, or navigate a ship to 
 any part of the world. They all appeared to be 
 interested in geography; and although we were 
 very deficient in geographical books and maps, 
 having only one very old map of the world, and 
 a single copy of that excellent work, "Johnston's 
 Physical Atlas," which did not belong to the ship, 
 it was astonishing with what facility a very cor- 
 rect idea of the form of the earth, the distribu- 
 tion of land and water, the sources, directions, 
 and terminations of the rivers, the mountain 
 chains, with their heights, the extent and boundaries 
 of kingdoms, the distribution of heat and cold, of 
 animals, and of the varieties of the human race, was 
 obtained by persons who could hardly sign their 
 names, when practical illustrations of the various 
 subjects were made. From the experience of seamen 
 in their voyages round the world, now crossing it 
 from east to west, and again running due south or 
 north, while a third time they traverse it from
 
 1850. GEOGRAPHICAL DISCUSSIONS. 431 
 
 Quebec to Australia, thence to the Cape of Good 
 Hope down to New Zealand, and up the Mozambique, 
 eastward through the Straits of Malacca, saluting 
 the Celestial Empire, thence round by Cape Horn, 
 stealing guano from the Chilotans and the Patago- 
 nians, after they have paid their respects to the 
 Emperor of the Brazils, and been taken before the 
 Consul at Rio de Janeiro, for attempting to run 
 away for the " diggings " at California, their under- 
 standings are easily reached, when geography is made 
 practical by continual reference to the map, and to 
 the fact that the world is round. It was found that 
 much good was to be done by bringing geography 
 before them ; for generally, after they were left by 
 their teachers, discussions were commenced whether 
 Cape Horn is an island, or the Chinese are all 
 Romanists like the Mexicans, and whether the cro- 
 codiles of the Nile and the alligators of the Mis- 
 sissippi are the same species of animals ; and it was 
 often necessary to reply to their interrogations, and 
 to settle disputes, upon which had been exhausted 
 all the experience they could accumulate in the fore- 
 castle, where there were persons who had been in all 
 parts of the world. 
 
 We had slates and pencils which had been sup- 
 plied at Aberdeen, and also some paper, a little 
 of which could be spared to the seamen. This
 
 432 LIBRARIES CHAP. XIV. 
 
 proved very useful to all who had a taste for writing 
 and arithmetic. About eighty volumes were sent 
 on board the " Sophia," and upwards of twice that 
 number of books on board the "Lady Franklin," 
 by the government, for the use of their crews 
 during winter. These we found very useful; and 
 it was fortunate we were permitted to change them 
 from the one ship to the other, as soon as they 
 were read. Through the extreme kindness of Lady 
 Franklin, some very useful works on the Arctic 
 Regions were sent out to us in one of the ships 
 under the command of Captain Austin, which we 
 received about the end of June, when we first had 
 communication with that Expedition. One of the 
 seamen who had been in search of Sir John Franklin 
 a great many years ago on the coast of Van Diemeii's 
 Land, received a book with his name inscribed in 
 it by that lady, on which account he prized it very 
 highly. We also had a small collection of religious 
 books from the library of the Mariners' Chapel, 
 Aberdeen, for which we were indebted to the kind- 
 ness of Mr. Longmuir, the minister of that chapel, 
 whose zeal for the general welfare of seamen entitles 
 him to their thanks and support. These books, 
 together with tolerably large collections belonging 
 to the officers of both ships, were put into the men's 
 hands from time to time, and exchanged as often as
 
 1850. THE LIBRARIES. 433 
 
 was necessary ; and of course the result was, that 
 a taste for reading was acquired by them, which 
 increased with their increasing knowledge. For our 
 use in the cabins our own collections afforded much 
 more varied reading than our time would allow to 
 follow up ; and from the collection that belonged to 
 the ship we could get a reading of the Admiralty 
 Manual of Scientific Enquiry, " Darwin's Naturalist's 
 Voyage," " Humboldt's Cosmos," &c. &c. ; books 
 which are inseparable from the libraries of travellers 
 and seamen. Some of us had no small reason for re- 
 gretting that the Admiralty Manual had not come 
 into our hands before leaving England, where alone 
 provision could have been made to enable us to follow 
 up the valuable investigations which are therein 
 succinctly treated. 
 
 On the 9th, 10th, and llth we had a violent 
 snowstorm, which came on very suddenly from 
 south-east : the barometer had been falling with 
 a light northerly breeze, with clear weather and 
 almost a cloudless sky, for twenty-four hours pre- 
 viously, the temperature ranging from 17 to 
 10. On the previous night, between the hours 
 seven p. m. and midnight, there was an appear- 
 ance on the southern horizon which a little re- 
 sembled aurora borealis, and illuminated the snow 
 beneath it. It commenced about south-east and 
 
 VOL. I. F F
 
 434 PECULIAR METEORIC PHENOMENON. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 moved imperceptibly to south-west, where it disap- 
 peared about or soon after midnight. The oscillatory 
 motions of the aurora were altogether absent, nor 
 was there the usual arch-like appearance. The 
 only respect in which it had any resemblance to 
 that beautiful meteoric phenomenon, was in the 
 light yellow colour with which the snow beneath 
 was enlightened. Immediately before the gale came 
 on, the wind was from north, and the temperature 
 was 17. In less than ten minutes there was 
 an eight-knot breeze, and the temperature was up 
 ten degrees. The change was so sudden, that the 
 funnels through which the smoke had to escape had 
 not time to accommodate themselves to the new and 
 opposite direction which the wind assumed : the 
 result was, that our cabins instantly filled with 
 smoke, and the alarm of fire was given ; but 
 this alarm was soon put down, and the smoke 
 escaped by its proper passage as soon as the 
 wind skews of the funnels were shifted to the 
 weather side. In the same time the barometer fell 
 nearly T \jth of an inch; and after thirty hours of 
 an incessant gale, which the number 11 might 
 represent with regard to force, accompanied by 
 snow, when the first sign of amendment took place, 
 it had risen but g^o tn ^ an ^ ncn ' having fallen 
 505 from 2975 to 29-345 ; and the temperature 
 increased gradually from 17 to +8. It con-
 
 1850. METEORIC PHENOMENON. 435 
 
 tinued fifteen hours longer. In this time the 
 thermometer rose to +13, and the barometer to 
 29*45 ; after which, having abated to a force re- 
 presented by three, it veered round to north-west, 
 and blew violently for upwards of twenty-four 
 hours longer. In this time the temperature fell 
 to 17, and the barometer rose to 29*90, and 
 clear weather was established as the wind fell. 
 The snow which had fallen and accumulated into 
 wreaths during the south-east part of the gale, 
 was removed almost entirely; and if persons hap- 
 pened to have been walking over them in any part, 
 the foot-marks, which had been left by sinking 
 deep in the soft snow, remained raised distinctly 
 above the surface of the original snow on which the 
 recent wreaths had formed. This was owing to 
 the compression caused by the weight of those 
 passing over it, and it prevented the snow beneath 
 the mark of the sole being driven away. We had 
 a clear proof in this that the wreaths which accumu- 
 lated during south winds were not permanent, while 
 no wind whatever could affect those that had accu- 
 mulated during northerly winds. 
 
 November 23rd. That beautiful meteoric pheno- 
 menon which is described by Sir Edward Parry, and 
 in all respects resembles a parhelic circle (para- 
 selenci), was observed in the evening. The sky was 
 
 F F 2
 
 436 MOONLIGHT LUCUBRATIONS. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 almost perfectly cloudless at the time, the only ex- 
 ception to this being a thin mist or cloudy film, 
 which was drifting on the horizon and the north- 
 western sky, before a gentle northerly breeze. It 
 is pleasant in these regions to walk by moonlight. 
 The stars blinking as if they were about to go out, 
 the bright moonshine, the pure blue sky, and the snow 
 of spotless whiteness, all excite the profoundest ad- 
 miration of the works of the Most High. The death- 
 like stillness which reigns throughout nature carries 
 us away into the world of spirits, and we are thrown 
 passively into the wide arms of Omnipotence, until 
 the cracking sounds of the rending ice around the 
 harbour when the tide is receding, or the noise of the 
 young ice at the offing, which resembles the mingling 
 sounds of distant waterfalls when it is advancing, 
 remind us that we still belong to the cold and dreary 
 world. 
 
 A portion of the fine mud, and a little sea-water 
 from the bottom of Assistance Bay, seven fathoms 
 water, which contained abundance of decomposing 
 vegetable and animal matter, and living polygastrica, 
 was allowed to stand for a few weeks in my cabin, 
 where the temperature was frequently below + 24, 
 and never above + 32. The mud settled to the bottom 
 of the vessel, and left about an inch in depth of super- 
 natant fluid, which I examined very frequently. It 
 soon teemed with infusoria exactly the same as those
 
 1850. INFUSORIA. 437 
 
 that had been in it on the first examination to which it 
 was subjected, immediately after coming into my pos- 
 session; and I could follow them on the field of the 
 microscope, as they enjoyed their merry pastime in 
 thousands among the shreds and meshes of organis- 
 able matter in which the fluid abounded. Large 
 individuals were frequently observed, full of ova, 
 which they could be seen permitting to escape into 
 the fluid, in which they were to take up their future 
 abode. A little of this fluid was added to about 
 twenty times its volume of sea-water in a wine-glass, 
 and allowed to remain quiet and undisturbed for ten 
 days, exposed to the air, except under such a cover as 
 might prevent the access of dust, and to a temperature 
 of + 27 to + 34. In a day or two a film of creamy- 
 looking organisable matter appeared on the surface, 
 which prevented evaporation, and thus assisted its 
 countless inhabitants to maintain a higher temperature 
 than that of the air around them. The first examin- 
 ation proved that reproduction was going on by the 
 discharge of ova, which appeared like a pavement of 
 sparkling ocelli in the cambium on the surface; 
 while the water itself presented a living mass of 
 creatures of great beauty and fertility. Subsequent 
 examinations, after the cambium had disappeared from 
 the surface and evaporation had commenced, showed 
 very clearly that reproduction was going on, not by 
 
 F r 3
 
 438 INFUSORIA. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 the discharge of ova now, but by transverse fissure. I 
 could see twos very abundant, some attached by what 
 appeared to be a very slender hold, which often gave 
 way before my eyes, while others were attached from 
 side to side, and between those two extremes there were 
 all stages of separation. The cilia of both seemed to 
 act simultaneously from a state of perfect rest to active 
 motion, now standing, now moving forwards, now 
 backwards, slower, quicker, to this side and to that ; 
 now appearing to be listening attentively, and again 
 running, as if from an enemy : each two acted with 
 the utmost harmony, and, slender as the bond of union 
 might be when a magnifying power of 280 diameters 
 could not detect it, they appeared to be under the in- 
 fluence of the same will. It was very pleasant to 
 watch them between two plates of glass, with a mi- 
 croscope ; and not without reluctance did I wipe 
 them into a towel, and out of existence. There were 
 also very large naviculi in the fluid, which at one time 
 I thought were reproduced by longitudinal division: 
 this was very doubtful, for they did not appear to 
 multiply in nearly the same proportion as the ciliated 
 species, nor was I certain that they were in a living 
 state or endowed with the power of locomotion. 
 
 November SOtfi. During a northerly wind and a 
 clear sky, on the first day of this month, the tem- 
 perature fell to 17. The maximum +13 was on 
 the llth, during a strong S.E. gale, accompanied by
 
 1850. THE WEATHER IN NOVEMBER. 439 
 
 thick snow. The minimum 24 was on this day, 
 during a northerly wind and clear weather. The 
 lowest temperatures always occurred during northerly 
 winds and clear weather. The winds were now 
 prevailing from about N. or N. 22 W., although 
 occasionally there were smart breezes from the 
 southward, accompanied by dense falls of snow. 
 
 The floe in the harbour was upwards of three feet 
 thick, but even at this thickness it yielded to the 
 weight of snow which had been banked up around 
 the ships ; and the " Sophia " was in consequence 
 surrounded by a trench of water, which was deepest 
 close to the embankment, and shallowed away 
 gradually until, about six or seven feet from it, there 
 was no water nor deflection of the ice. The water 
 thus coming to the surface did not all freeze, although 
 the temperature was much lower than would be neces- 
 sary to freeze the surface of sea-water. A part of it, 
 however, became frozen, and the remainder, charged 
 to saturation with the saline ingredients, sought its 
 way through the ice to the water underneath. 
 
 We had frequent displays of Aurora Borealis ; 
 but in consequence of not possessing the necessary 
 instruments, the magnetic perturbations of which 
 that beautiful meteoric phenomenon is the result, 
 passed by unheeded. The atmosphere was every day 
 becoming sensibly clearer and freer from vapour, 
 
 T r 4
 
 440 THE SEA- WATER SUBMITTED TO CHAP. XIV. 
 
 During the absence of the moon, the nights exhibited 
 that dark appearance of the sky towards the zenith, 
 which is so common in the Arctic Regions ; and which 
 is owing to the absence of vapour, and a rarefied con- 
 dition of the atmosphere. 
 
 The crew of the " Felix " were beginning to cheer 
 up. Eight cases of scurvy had occurred by this 
 time, all of which were inclined to improve under 
 the use of the carrots, which continued to be 
 supplied from the " Lady Franklin." The other 
 stores of the " Felix," such as lime-juice and sugar, 
 were beginning to be very short. The deficiency was 
 made up from our Expedition, as far as was consistent 
 with our own safety and the demands of the invalids. 
 December 3rd. The sea-water in the fire-hole 
 astern of the ship was frequently observed to be 
 luminous, especially when agitated by the tide-line 
 that passed through it to the bottom. I endea- 
 voured on several occasions to ascertain the cause of 
 this, by examination with a compound microscope, and 
 also with a simple lens ; but there was considerable 
 difficulty in doing so, from the large quantity of 
 water that had to be submitted to the microscope, 
 and the rapidity with which congelation took place 
 after it was removed from the sea, and before it could be 
 taken on board. But a little ingenuity obviated these 
 difficulties. A minute acaleph was discovered, which
 
 1850. MICROSCOPIC EXAMINATION. 441 
 
 seemed to possess cilia, but as their motions were very 
 indistinct, it was very doubtful whether they were 
 present. The motions of the entire creature, however, 
 were very distinct, appearing to be effected by alter- 
 nating contraction and relaxation. Without a micro- 
 meter, it was impossible to ascertain its exact size ; 
 however, by comparison with other objects of known 
 size, it appeared to be about 7^0^ ^ an ^ nc ^ * n dia- 
 meter. The shape was perfectly globular, except when 
 in a state of motion, and then it was rudely pyramidal. 
 Each contraction followed by immediate relaxation, 
 performed with instantaneous quickness, was followed 
 by a state of quiescence, in which there was always 
 a return to the globular form; and it was during 
 this period of repose that the presence of cilia was 
 detected, although very indistinctly. Its colour and 
 consistence were that of a transparent, almost colour- 
 less jelly. There is no doubt the creature was an 
 acaleph, probably in a rudimentary stage of develop- 
 ment. In one of the contractile efforts it appeared 
 to burst, and it then disappeared like a soap bubble, 
 for which I might look in vain. This circumstance 
 gave rise to the idea, that the motions which had 
 been observed were performed convulsively, and 
 were not peculiar to the creature in its natural con- 
 dition. If this be a correct idea, it will give rise to 
 another, that cilia were really present, and that they
 
 442 LUMINOSITY OF THE SEA. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 constituted the chief, if not the only means the 
 creature possessed, of changing its position in the 
 water. 
 
 The temperature of the sea-water could not be as- 
 certained with anything like precision, owing to the 
 defective state of our thermometers, which ought to 
 have been such as would indicate within half or a 
 quarter of a degree of Fahrenheit's scale. Some 
 of them were ascertained, by means of the freezing 
 point of water with the barometer at 30 inches, to 
 have errors of two or three degrees ; and none could 
 be read to a lower division than half a degree. Ever 
 since the harbour became frozen over, we found the 
 temperature to be about 2 9 '5 or 30. Before this 
 took place, we found it so low as 28 ; but that was 
 generally when it was in a state of agitation by the 
 winds, the temperature of which was considerably 
 below + 28. This is easily accounted for by 
 the saline portion being kept in a state of inti- 
 mate admixture with the water by agitation, after 
 the former began to be precipitated by refrige- 
 ration. When a quantity was taken out of the 
 fire-hole, it invariably contained ice at 29*5, and 
 also after its temperature rose considerably above 
 30, but not to 32, the last particles of ice had not 
 entirely dissolved. A portion of sea-water, at a tem- 
 perature of 33, of specific gravity 1-0264, was exposed
 
 1850. TEMPERATURE OF SEA-WATER. 443 
 
 to a temperature of +18 for several hours, after 
 which the vessel, with the mass of ice which it con- 
 tained, was inverted, and allowed to remain several 
 hours more in the same temperature. A fluid escaped 
 from it in drops, which was collected in a vessel 
 placed beneath it ; and its specific gravity was found 
 to be 1-1004. This was one of a number of experi- 
 ments, all of which gave similar results, and proved 
 very clearly that a portion of sea-water will main- 
 tain a fluid state, by the proportion of its saline 
 ingredients being increased, according to the di- 
 minished temperature to which it is exposed. The 
 ice which formed at + 18 was dissolved, and its 
 specific gravity was found to be 1-015. This led 
 me to ascertain the density of the water obtained, 
 by dissolving a portion of the ice in the harbour, 
 which had formed at a temperature of +18 to 
 + 20, and had increased in thickness from beneath 
 at much lower temperatures; and although the 
 results in each experiment were not exactly the same, 
 they proved that sea-water ice hardly contains one- 
 fourth part of the salt of sea-water. The exact pro- 
 portion will depend upon the temperature, it being 
 very probable that the lower the temperature is, the 
 more salt the ice will contain. When the ice in the 
 harbour was three feet thick, a square cube was 
 removed from it by being cut out with ice-chisels.
 
 444 PROPORTION OP SALT IN ICE. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 Nearly two feet from its upper surface downwards 
 it presented a very hard structure, and very much 
 resembled sal ammoniac; the lower portion, which 
 occupied the remaining foot, was soft, pitting before 
 the pressure of one's finger, and of a very spongy 
 structure. The upper part transmitted light very 
 badly, it being as much as a person could do to 
 ascertain that there was a light placed on the opposite 
 side ; the lower portion, however, transmitted it 
 much better. This difference in the property of 
 transmitting light between the upper and lower 
 portions was owing to the former being more per- 
 fectly frozen than the latter, in consequence of which 
 it would contain more air: this was clearly seen 
 from the comparative dryness of the upper part, 
 while the lower was discharging water, and producing 
 a fringe of icicles all round it. 
 
 December 22nd. The shortest day at length ar- 
 rived. In the morning it was very close, but we 
 expected it to clear up ; at noon, however, there 
 seemed to be very little chance of that taking place. 
 The sky was overcast with mist and clouds ; and the 
 horizon was obscured with flaky snow, which was 
 falling in all directions around us. The weather 
 was exceedingly mild, for there was very little wind, 
 and the temperature had risen from 25 to 4. 
 Those who had been attempting to read the brevier
 
 1850. THE SHORTEST DAY. 445 
 
 type found it too small, but there were some in the 
 Expedition who could make it out. We always 
 found that, at noon, the thermometer in the open air 
 could be read off quite correctly with the light which 
 the southern horizon afforded. The health of our 
 crews, up to this time, was remarkably good, and the 
 comforts of the various apartments of the ships could 
 hardly be excelled. The presence of water in the beds, 
 or anywhere else, was no longer a source of annoyance, 
 for ice had taken its place, and accumulated in very 
 great quantities. The slight rheumatic complaints, 
 which some of the crew spoke of when their beds 
 were a little wet, disappeared ; and all of us looked 
 forward to a speedy termination to the winter, as our 
 Christmas festivities were fast approaching. 
 
 December 30th. The Christmas festivities passed 
 away cheerfully, and were remarkable for nothing, 
 except that the crews of the three ships dined on 
 Christmas Day on board the " Lady Franklin." 
 The between-decks of that ship was cleared up, where 
 the theatrical performances were conducted, and suf- 
 ficient accommodation was made for fifty persons to 
 sit down to dinner. The dinner cost the Expedition 
 little more than the usual allowances of provisions ; 
 and, at such a trifling expense, the seamen were all af- 
 forded the materials for diversified conversation for a 
 considerable time. During the dinner they conducted
 
 446 CHRISTMAS. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 themselves in a most orderly manner; and after it, their 
 loyalty to their sovereign, their respect for their com- 
 manders, their fond remembrance of their fellow 
 seamen at Griffith's Island, and their sympathy with 
 the friends of the missing, were not forgotten ; and 
 but for one or two persons who became a source of 
 rather unpleasant amusement to their more quiet 
 companions by being a little quarrelsome, the utmost 
 harmony prevailed throughout the whole evening. 
 
 The winter was passing on very rapidly, and 
 was leaving no such gloomy impressions as we had 
 looked forward to, from the descriptions we had 
 frequently read of Arctic winters. The duty we 
 had to discharge, combining, as it did, humanity with 
 discovery, tended to dispel everything of a gloomy 
 description from our minds. But in addition to 
 this, we had our schools and plays, our pic-nics and 
 fashionable dinners; in nautical phraseology, we had 
 "yarns," which mean anecdotes or stories, from 
 all parts of the world : each amused his companions, 
 whether it was in the quiet game of chess, or in whist, 
 in which much cheating was sometimes practised; 
 and, above all, we had keen discussions with respect 
 to the most probable route the missing expedition 
 had pursued. The merits of the various routes 
 to be followed by travelling parties in spring and 
 summer were fully discussed, and each route had
 
 1850. SUPPOSED ROUTE OF MISSING SHIPS. 447 
 
 some one to say something in its behalf. There 
 were in our Expedition some who never had any 
 other idea than that the missing ships had gone up 
 the Wellington Channel : there were others, how- 
 ever, who said that they had taken the route to Cape 
 Walker ; and there was a third party who would not 
 take upon themselves to say that they had gone 
 the one way or the other. Those who were for the 
 Channel route were at first in the minority; but by 
 giving good reasons for their opinions, and by esta- 
 blishing the proposition brought forward by Col. Sa- 
 bine, in the Preface to his translation of "Baron 
 Wrangell's Travels on the Northern Shores of Russia," 
 their numbers increased, and in a very short time a 
 single voice was not to be heard but in favour of the 
 Wellington Channel. This was very proper, because 
 the understanding to which Captain Austin and 
 Mr. Penny had come, left the channel for our Expe- 
 dition; while the Expedition at Griffith's Island was 
 to accomplish the various routes, to Cape Walker, 
 Bank's Land, Melville Island, and the south shore of 
 the Parry group or North Georgian Islands. The 
 missing ships might have taken either of these routes ; 
 but it suited our purpose best, to establish the idea 
 among the seamen, that they had taken the one which 
 we now intended to follow. 
 
 The weather was very favourable, on most occa-
 
 448 OPEN WATER IN BARROW STRAITS. CH. XIV. 
 
 sions, for recreation in the open air, and for excursions 
 to the land around the bay, and to the offing, where 
 even yet a large lane of open water was seen along the 
 land ice on which we were walking, except when the 
 pack ice came in with the tide, or with a southerly 
 wind, in which case it was transferred to the opposite 
 side of Barrow Straits. We could see vapour ascend- 
 ing like columns of smoke from all parts of Barrow 
 Straits ; this could only take place from the exposed 
 surface of sea- water, and there is no doubt the expo- 
 sure which might be necessary was effected by the 
 whole pack shifting about, under the influence of 
 wind and tide, during the whole winter. It was often 
 reiterated in our hearing, that the water which we so 
 often observed was on the surface of the ice ! Than 
 this, I know nothing more unlikely, for it was in- 
 variably observed in Barrow Straits, where the ice 
 would be at greater freedom to float on the water than 
 close to the land. Even in Assistance Bay, the ice 
 rose and fell with the tides ; and in the fire- holes, the 
 water-line on the ice never varied a quarter of an inch. 
 If the ice be supposed to be overflowed by the water, 
 the thickness which it may acquire in a single 
 season will be very different, indeed, from what we 
 have been accustomed to; and the heat of half-a- 
 dozen summers may be required to dissolve the 
 formation of a single winter. The result of sea-water
 
 1850. AURORA BOREALIS. 449 
 
 being exposed to the air at such low temperatures as 
 20 to 30, was invariably the ascent of heated 
 air and vapour, which distorted in a remarkable 
 manner the land on the S. shore of Barrow Straits, 
 and Griffith's Island to the westward. The most 
 fantastic shapes appeared and disappeared with great 
 rapidity, and afforded great amusement to the be- 
 holders. They could see flag-poles, with their stream- 
 ing banners, castles in the air, and fairy halls, obelisks, 
 pyramids, and rugged mountain heights, all in rapid 
 succession : at one time the resemblance of a man of 
 the most perfect form and development, in a few 
 minutes dwindling into a mere pigmy, and again 
 swelling out into huge giants, who, like their 
 predecessors of whom we had often fondly read, in 
 their turn assumed the form of all sorts of beasts, 
 from the elephant downwards. 
 
 The Aurora Borealis was frequently observed, but 
 the extent and brilliancy of this beautiful meteoric 
 phenomenon never equalled what had been seen in 
 September and October, while crossing the Atlantic 
 in the latitude of Cape Farewell. The black ap- 
 pearance of the sky towards the zenith, at midnight, 
 was every day becoming more apparent, and the stars 
 sparkled like diamonds upon it ; but hitherto it did 
 not approach the limits of the blackness, under similar 
 circumstances, described by Sir John Ross in his 
 
 VOL. I. G G
 
 450 TEMPERATURE. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 voyage in the " Victory." The lowest temperature 
 entered in the register was 37, and it happened on 
 the 1st and the 3rd ; the maximum was 4, at noon 
 of the 22nd, being the shortest day. With the 
 minimum temperatures, the wind was northerly and 
 the sky clear ; and with the maximum it was 
 southerly, and the sky densely overcast. The wind 
 frequently varied much in force when it was 
 northerly, but the variations never assumed the 
 character of squalls ; for from a force represented by 
 2, puffs of piercing coldness swept across in a 
 minute, with- a velocity three or four times faster 
 than that which had been before or after it ; and if 
 one happened to be in its track, the hands had to be 
 instantly applied to the face to prevent frost-bite. 
 The weather was very rarely, indeed, so violent as to 
 preclude exercise in the open air ; when it was so, the 
 crews of both ships were marched round the deck of 
 the " Lady Franklin," with the drum and fife at their 
 head, which, with the assistance of a song occasionally, 
 enabled us to spend two hours very agreeably. The 
 drum was frequently used in the open air, when the 
 men marched in a body ; but the fife could not be used 
 Avithout danger of exposing the person who played it 
 to frost-bite ; and on this account it never enlivened 
 the out-of-door marches. 
 
 January \3th. The weather was every day be-
 
 1851. MERCURY FROZEN. 451 
 
 coming more pleasant, and the beautiful azure sky- 
 was generally without a cloud, except along the 
 horizon over Barrow Straits, which yielded a constant 
 supply of vapour to the thirsty atmosphere. Up to 
 this time the temperature had not been sufficiently 
 low to freeze mercury, but now it was down to 39 
 by Pastorelli's spirit of wine thermometer, and the 
 mercury was as solid as a leaden bullet. If a portion 
 thus frozen was taken into the bare hand, it suddenly 
 became fluid, and the part thus exposed to its power- 
 ful conducting property became frozen. We never 
 felt the slightest inconvenience from the cold, and 
 frost-bites were unheard of. This might have been 
 owing to greater caution on the part of persons when 
 exposed to low degrees of cold, than had been 
 adopted early in the season, when the weather was 
 much warmer, but at the same time sufficiently cold 
 to produce frost-bite. The snow on the floe, and on 
 the land, and everywhere, was very hard and resist- 
 ing, so that a person might walk over extensive 
 patches of it, without leaving a single impression of 
 his shoes in it. 
 
 Preparations for travelling were commenced with 
 vigour, and Captain Penny endeavoured to allot to 
 each in the Expedition a due share of the work. 
 With respect to cooking apparatus, our deficiency 
 was insurmountable ; for nothing relating to cooking 
 
 G G 2
 
 452 PREPARATIONS FOE TRAVELLING. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 for travelling parties had been supplied to our Ex- 
 pedition. The ingenuity of our mechanics was 
 taxed very severely; but it was gratifying to discover 
 that the conjoint schemes of the blacksmith of the 
 "Lady Franklin" and of the carpenter of the " Sophia" 
 promised fair to make up the deficiency a little, 
 although not to the extent that would make our 
 travelling comfortable. Neither tents nor sledges 
 were supplied ; but the carpenters had already made 
 two or three of the latter, which were in constant use 
 taking ice from the land, and the former were cut 
 and put into the hands of the sailmakers. "We often 
 had the quantity of ice weighed, which seven men 
 dragged to the ships at one time on any one of 
 the sledges, and it was generally found to exceed 
 fifteen hundred pounds, exclusive of the weight of 
 the sledge itself. The ice over which they had to 
 pass with the laden sledges was smooth ; and it ap- 
 peared to offer little resistance, whatever weight 
 had to be dragged along, provided that the proper 
 form of runner was used. AYe often saw the broad 
 runner shod with gutta percha in daily use, and 
 certainly it was a great way behind the solid wooden 
 runner shod with iron, and not more than an inch 
 and a half in breadth. 
 
 It was found necessary to be particular with some 
 of the crew who were not of active habits, for
 
 1851. TEMPERATURE OF THE SHIPS. 453 
 
 indigestion was sometimes the result of indulgence 
 in their usual allowance of food, accompanied by 
 want of exercise during violent storms. The system 
 of parading the crews of both vessels for two hours 
 on the capacious deck of the "Lady Franklin," 
 and marching them round and round, keeping step 
 with the music of fife and drum, was found of essen- 
 tial service in preventing this evil. There was an 
 exception to this, however, on Sundays. Lethargy 
 during the day was exceedingly common ; and it was 
 not without a decided struggle, or engaging in some 
 exciting duty at the time it came on, that one could 
 successfully keep it off. It is very probable that 
 it arose from too full living, and the absence f)f the 
 light of the sun, one of the most essential stimuli of 
 organic and animal life. 
 
 The temperature of the ships varied a little from 
 time to time, according to the force and direction of 
 the wind and its temperature. In the apartment oc- 
 cupied by the crew, fifteen in number, on board the 
 " Sophia," where there was a fire generally burning, 
 it was about + 50 ; but frequently it was below 
 + 30. The beds there, and the chinks of the 
 partition between it and the main deck, often pro- 
 duced large quantities of ice; but this never did 
 any harm, for it always continued in that state. I 
 often observed the temperature of the air which 
 
 G G 3
 
 454 TEMPERATURE OF THE SHIPS. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 rushed in at the lower part of the entrance of 
 that place so low as 3; while that at the top 
 was +50, rushing in an opposite direction; and 
 about midway between the top and the bottom, 
 within a space of four feet, that being the height 
 of the entrance, there was a neutral point, in which 
 the candle flame went neither out nor in, the 
 lower part of it appearing to incline inward, while 
 the upper inclined outward. In this there was a 
 simple illustration of the phenomena of winds and 
 typhoons, which rage across and devastate tropical 
 countries. In the cabins of the " Sophia," and in 
 the recesses, such as bed places, and lockers around 
 them, , the temperature frequently came down to 
 + 20 or +18. This, however, was only in the 
 parts " around " the cabins, where great quantities 
 of ice accumulated ; but in the two cabins it varied 
 considerably. At the top it was often up to -f 70 or 
 + 80, while at our feet -t- 24 was common. Sit- 
 ting on the sofa in the small cabin, where there 
 was a fire generally, although not constantly, a 
 thermometer at the height of a person's head was 
 at +50; at his feet it was +16. From observ- 
 ing such differences, and knowing that there were 
 still greater differences when the external air at 
 39 came into operation, we were very indifferent 
 and careless about ventilation; for so long as the
 
 1851. WASHING DURING WINTER. 455 
 
 fires were kept up, and the funnels carried away 
 the smoke and the heated air, the air within the ship 
 would undergo renewal with sufficient activity. The 
 bedding was generally aired before the fires once a 
 fortnight, but no part of it was permitted to be taken 
 on deck or into the open air, because, on being re- 
 introduced into the bed places, a deposition of vapour 
 took place, which made it sensibly wet. Personal 
 cleanliness was made stringent, and any deviation from 
 it was never allowed to pass by unheeded. Clothes 
 were sometimes washed in the galley, which, being 
 in the fore part of the ship, did not send any vapour 
 into other parts farther aft, being drawn off by 
 means of a funnel which led up through the awning 
 into the open air. Had the galley been in the middle 
 of the ship, it would have been far less easy to prevent 
 the spread of the vapour. The clothes which were 
 washed there were never very clean, because they 
 had to be dried in the fire-places, where there was 
 generally a good deal of smoke or soot from the use 
 of oil or candle for fifteen or eighteen hours out of 
 the twenty-four. 
 
 The schools were always attended, and the "per- 
 formances " continued to receive the support which 
 the zeal of the actors really merited. A masquerade 
 and a ball on the last night of December excited 
 great attention, and afforded an unusual amount of 
 
 G O 4
 
 456 CONDENSED VAPOUR IN THE FUNNELS. CH. XIV. 
 
 amusement to the crews of the three ships, among 
 whom nothing but the most praiseworthy ^harmony 
 always prevailed. 
 
 January 31 st. We were under the necessity of 
 attending very closely to the funnels since the tem- 
 perature became so low. The vapour resulting from 
 the constant combustion of coal in the fire-places be- 
 came frequently condensed at the top of the funnels ; 
 and, mixed with a quantity of sooty matter, it nar- 
 rowed the passage through which the upward current 
 had to pass, in consequence of which ventilation was 
 rendered less active, and the temperature of the 
 different apartments of the ship was raised in some 
 instances twenty degrees above what we had been 
 accustomed to. 
 
 Considerable difficulty was experienced with the 
 tide line ; interruptions in the register had taken 
 place but seldom since the 1st of October, and 
 we were quite sanguine that it would not be im- 
 possible to keep it going all winter. The saw 
 was frequently got out, and the opening was en- 
 larged considerably by removing a square portion of 
 the solid ice all round it. The temperature of the 
 water was always the same ; or, if there was any 
 difference, our ordinary instruments were not suffi- 
 ciently nice in their graduation to detect it. 
 
 On the 25th and 26th there was a violent gale 
 from N. and N. E., accompanied by a good deal o f
 
 1851. OPEX WATER IN BARROW STRAITS. 457 
 
 snow, which drifted along the horizon with great 
 violence. The barometer began to rise with a 
 northerly wind twenty-four hours before the gale 
 came on, and during the violence of the gale it rose 
 from 29-80 to 30-07. At first the temperature was 
 about 30 ; in about eighteen hours it rose to 
 15; and at the termination of the gale it fell to 
 -23, the wind being N. 22 W., N. 22 E. and N. 
 respectively. On the 27th the gale abated ; and as 
 the floe was free from drift, there were inducements 
 to make excursions over it to the land at the S. E. 
 and S. W. points of the harbour, and also to the 
 offing. On the return of the parties who had been 
 thus distributed, open water to the extent of two or 
 three miles in breadth was reported, stretching from 
 E. to W. along the south shore of Cornwallis Island, 
 and also in the direction of Griffith's Island. The 
 whole pack in Barrow Straits had shifted over to the 
 opposite side of the Straits, and hence such a large 
 space of open water on this side. It was really 
 beautiful to behold an extensive sheet of blue water on 
 the 31st day of the cold month of January, in those 
 dreary and icy regions, where we were led to believe 
 that in the depths of winter everything would be 
 firmly clasped under the powerful influence of in- 
 tense cold. 
 
 The sky, during the hours of daylight, which
 
 458 CHLORIDE OF SILVER. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 by this time were lengthening out very plainly, 
 was frequently spread over with fleecy clouds ; and 
 at night the Aurora, of a beautiful golden colour, 
 danced from E. to W. in vivid coruscations, and en- 
 livened our midnight scenes, although, as has been 
 remarked already, they were much less vivid than in 
 more southern latitudes. The temperature varied 
 with us much less than it did with Sir W. Edward 
 Parry at Melville Island in 1820. The maximum 
 was 10 on the 10th, and during a southerly wind 
 and an overcast sky, the minimum was 41 on the 
 21st, during long continued northerly winds and very 
 clear weather. 
 
 During the month of December, recently pre- 
 cipitated chloride of silver was exposed to the south- 
 ern horizon, with the idea that its white colour might 
 be changed to black, as there was always a little day- 
 light present. It was also exposed to the moonlight 
 at the same time. Frequent examinations were made 
 for fourteen days before and after the 22nd; but there 
 did not appear to be the slightest change from the 
 original white colour. Towards the 1st of January 
 it began to assume a very slight leaden tinge ; and 
 before this time, the 31st, it was considerably darker, 
 although the change even now was not what half a 
 minute's free exposure to the sun's rays would produce. 
 
 Water-cresses and mustard were reared with great
 
 1851 WATER-CRESSES. 459 
 
 care, and they were very highly prized. Several 
 stems were examined, and found to be four to five 
 inches in length. The proportion of water which 
 the young plants contained was so great, that one 
 could hardly expect to derive great benefit from 
 a few ounces of them every week. A portion was 
 exposed to a temperature of +90 to + 100, until it 
 ceased to lose weight by further exposure; the re- 
 mainder, containing all the antiscorbutic and nutriti- 
 ous properties of the plant, amounted to 6-5 per cent., 
 which was not nearly one half the weight of the seed 
 that had been used: the 93'5 which escaped, unfor- 
 tunately happened to be water. I tried the same 
 experiment several times with both mustard and 
 cress, so that I might, if possible, receive favorable 
 impressions with respect to the gardening; but the 
 results were invariably the same, for the water which 
 escaped by evaporation often exceeded 93 per cent. 
 I could hardly credit that a plant grown in the dark, 
 and destitute of every trace of green, containing 
 such a large proportion of water, and almost insipid 
 with the exception of the acrid principles of the seed 
 and its essential oil, could possess virtues worthy of 
 the slightest confidence. The young plants were 
 less acrid than the seed, and the essential oil had 
 almost all disappeared ; their weight, too, was about 
 half the weight of the seeds which produced them.
 
 460 FROST-BITES. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 Notwithstanding, its cultivation was encouraged and 
 continued zealously, and the amusement and re- 
 creation it afforded proved of great value to those 
 who devoted their attention to that department of 
 horticulture. 
 
 Frost-bites were now a little more frequent, but 
 never severe; and they always occurred as the result 
 of carelessness. If a part became frost-bitten once, 
 it ever after became more sensible of the cold and 
 more liable to be frozen. We required to have 
 candles burning on deck during the hours of clay- 
 light as well as at night; for the light from 
 without was too faint to penetrate through the 
 thick woollen awning which we always kept laced 
 as closely as possible to the bulwarks. 
 
 During violent storms, when the drift was very 
 thick, the snow sought its way through the 
 numerous crevices about the lacing of the awning 
 and the bulwarks. Large wreaths frequently accu- 
 mulated on the. deck, and required a good deal of toil 
 to get rid of them as soon as there was an improve- 
 ment in the weather. The condensation of vapour 
 on the inside of the awning, and large accumulations 
 of snow on its outside, had to be removed very fre- 
 quently ; indeed, these were standing duties which 
 came every morning. 
 
 Our lime-juice, vinegar, porter, and ale became
 
 1851. PORTER AND ALE FROZEN. 
 
 frozen in the casks. The effect of this in each, was 
 a separation between the essential and the watery 
 parts; the former escaping into the centre of the 
 cask, and the latter becoming frozen all round it. 
 Portions of the lime-juice from the centre and the 
 sides, dissolved separately, were found to be of 
 specific gravity 1*0582 and 1-0114. It was evident 
 that, to restore the mean specific gravity, we had but 
 to mix the two in due proportions. The porter and 
 ale had to be exposed to the temperature of the 
 cabins for a considerable time, before any could be 
 taken out of the casks, some of which were found to 
 have rejected a portion of the essential part which 
 remained fluid through the bung-hole, which the 
 expansion in the process of congelation had forced 
 open. Our carrots were found to be a little spongy, 
 owing to the pressure to which they had been 
 subjected, by being frozen in the tins. This, how- 
 ever, did not interfere, in the slightest degree, with 
 their good qualities or agreeable taste. Our potatoes 
 were beginning to be rather scarce ; consequently, we 
 could not afford the luxury of using them boiled, but 
 we enjoyed the still greater luxury of a salad of them 
 in a raw state. 
 
 February "7th. The temperature of the between - 
 decks, close by the mainmast, was 10. This 
 happened to be very near the chest where the
 
 462 SOOT IN THE CABINS. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 medicines were kept. With few exceptions, every- 
 thing fluid in it was frozen quite hard; castor oil 
 became as hard as horn, and contracted about one- 
 twelfth of its volume ; all the syrups and the various 
 preparations were one mass of ice, and in some cases 
 the bottles were found broken : the only loss that was 
 sustained by this was that of the glass. 
 
 The weather was very changeable, and a good deal 
 of snow was falling from time to time. Daylight 
 was increasing perceptibly every day, and new at- 
 tractions were always urging us into the open air. 
 The amount of sooty carbonaceous matter, the result 
 of the constant use of candles and oil, which was 
 deposited on the ceiling of the cabins, bed-cabins, 
 books, clothes, and everything that came in its way, 
 was so great, that one could trace the direction of the 
 currents of heated air, by the marks which it left 
 while making its exit through the chinks of doors 
 and various other outlets. 
 
 Some of the crew complained of bringing up very 
 dark coloured mucus from their lungs with efforts of 
 coughing. Their alarm at this was soon quieted, 
 when they were told it was the soot they inhaled with 
 every inspiration. This had been observed several 
 times since the commencement of winter, but of late, 
 as the weather had become much colder, and there 
 were fewer and shorter excursions made in the open
 
 1851. RETURN OF THE SUN. 463 
 
 air ; and also, as most of the crew were devoting their 
 spare hours to reading and repairing their clothes, it 
 increased very much, and really did alarm some, 
 until they made application on account of it. The 
 funnels of the cabin fires were still found almost 
 entirely closed up with condensed vapour and sooty 
 matter at the top; and nothing was more common 
 every morning than dirty stalactites of ice and soot, 
 some of which were two feet long, pendent from the 
 rim at the lower part of the chinks, where the smoke 
 made its escape. There was no doubt it arose from 
 condensation of vapour, the result of combustion ; for 
 it appeared in the greatest quantity during clear and 
 the coldest weather, when the air must have been in 
 a very dry state, and when there was no drifting snow. 
 Winter was now over ; and although it may have 
 been designated gloomy, T am sure there was none in 
 our Expedition who could say that it had left im- 
 pressions of gloom, or of anything disagreeable or 
 repugnant to the feelings, that would tend to encou- 
 rage any dislike to a repetition of it. But still, each, 
 beholding the glorious sun bursting forth into view, 
 and illuminating the southern sky, after an absence 
 of ninety-five days, could not deny gratitude to 
 Providence, by whose " Almighty and most gracious 
 protection " he and his companions had been guided 
 and preserved during winter, which, although neither
 
 464 THE EFFECTS OF WINTER. CHAP. XIV. 
 
 dreary nor long, yet did not merit to be placed in 
 comparison with the enlivening beauties of advancing 
 spring. 
 
 Although there were no cases of disease, nor os- 
 tensible signs which could possibly give rise to the 
 idea that the health of a single individual in our 
 Expedition had at all suffered, there were reasons 
 for coming to the conclusion that there was a slight 
 depression or want of tone, which would come in as 
 the result of an Arctic winter. The ghastly pale- 
 ness of features, which we had so often heard at- 
 tributed to the absence of light, and which \ve were 
 also told only came to be detected by the searching 
 beams of the welcome sun, was scarcely discernible 
 among us ; with respect to this, however, each 
 thought that his neighbour was a little affected, but 
 it never occurred to him that the same might be 
 doubly applicable to himself. 
 
 The man, whose middle finger had been found to 
 be diseased, was in excellent health ; but the affected 
 part of his hand, which had assumed a healing aspect 
 in November, became indolent in its action before 
 midwinter; and by this time, although the appear- 
 ance was nothing untoward, yet it was evidently not 
 healing up, but rather disposed to stand still. It is 
 hardly proper, however, to come to the conclusion 
 that the health of the crews of both ships had suffered
 
 1851. DENSE MIST. 465 
 
 from the effects of winter, because one person, with 
 a trifling ulcer of the hand, did not continue to 
 improve in health, as indicated by a healing process, 
 until the return of spring. 
 
 There was a dense mist over Barrow Straits which 
 obscured a full view of the sun ; and had it not been 
 for the constant evaporation which lodged on the 
 southern horizon, and obscured it five days out of 
 seven, we should have seen him a few days sooner. 
 
 VOL. i. H H
 
 466 
 
 CHAP. XV. 
 
 SHORT EXCURSIONS AND EXPERIMENTS. 
 
 Open Water reported in Barrmv Straits. Person lost his Way. 
 Snow-batting. Great Anxiety. Party from Griffith's Island. 
 An Arctic Winter only a Pastime. Kate Austin Lake Salmon. 
 Party to Griffith's Island. Minimum Temperature for the Season. 
 Theatricals. Freezing of Sea Water. Saline Efflorescence 
 on the Ice. Ice formed on Sea Water at low Temperatures. 
 Sea Salt in Snow. Density of Snow. Experiments on the Con- 
 gelation of fresh and salt Water. Moulding Character of Ice and 
 Snow Burrows. Snow a JVon- Conductor of Sound. Respirators. 
 " Vital Capacity." Evaporation from Ice. Parhelic Circles. 
 Travelling with Dogs. Open Water. Cloudy Weather and 
 low Temperatures. Return of our Party. Scurvy still on board 
 the "Felix." Seals seen. Dogs walking into the Water. 
 Preservation of the Eyes. Two Seals shot. Exposed Thermo- 
 meter about Zero. 
 
 February 13th. The weather for a few days, from 
 the 8th to the 10th, was rather stormy, the wind 
 prevailed chiefly from N. 22 W., and there was 
 snowdrift occasionally, which annoyed us very much 
 in our excursions on the ice and on the land. Several 
 parties went to the S. E. point of the bay, and a few 
 miles further to the eastward in the direction of Dun- 
 genness Point and Cape Hotham. On the return to 
 the ships of almost every party of strollers, open 
 water was reported in Barrow Straits, varying in
 
 1851. OPEN WATER IN BARROW STRAITS. 467 
 
 breadth from one hundred yards to two or three 
 miles, and extending from E. to W. as far as the eye 
 could reach in both directions, with hardly any in- 
 terruptions. At Griffith's Island it was about two 
 miles S. of the S. point of the island. It was im- 
 possible we could know that it reached so far as 
 Griffith's Island, it being enough for us that it was 
 lost sight of leading in that direction. Captains 
 Penny and Stewart reported not less than five miles 
 of open water, which they had seen on one of their 
 frequent excursions. The temperature of the water 
 was always the same, and the ice in the harbour was 
 still increasing in thickness at a steady rate. Large 
 wreaths of snow were often raised up during violent 
 gales ; and it was always observed that the accumu- 
 lations of southerly, easterly, and westerly winds 
 were invariably less dense and resisting than those of 
 the northerly winds. 
 
 February 18th. On the loth, about the time of 
 full and change, a violent gale came on from S. E., 
 with the atmospheric pressure decreasing, and a high 
 state of the thermometer. The sky was overcast, and 
 the snow drifted constantly and with great violence ; 
 so that many times it was extremely dangerous to go 
 into the open air to clear away the ice from the tide- 
 line at the ship's stern, or to read off the thermo- 
 meter. On the following day, at noon, the sun 
 
 H H 2
 
 468 PERSON LOST HIS WAY IN A STORM. CH. XV. 
 
 looked out for a short time, and we thought there 
 was to be a return to better weather. The wind 
 veered a few points to the eastward, and continued 
 to blow fiercely till the next morning. At an early 
 hour, groups could be seen on the floe in all directions 
 around the ships, no doubt congratulating each other 
 on having got over such a violent storm. There 
 was one person, however, on whom congratulations 
 were heaped by every person in Assistance Bay. 
 He happened to lose his way on Saturday evening, 
 at the commencement of the storm, and having 
 groped about for five or six hours, alighted on one 
 of the ships, which turned out to be the one he had 
 left. Exposure for six hours to a temperature not 
 exceeding 17, during a strong wind, told its tale 
 in the appearance of his cheeks and nose, which had 
 been severely frost-bitten, and had lost a great 
 portion of the skin. Had he lain down on the floe, 
 of course he must have perished, in which case the 
 Felix would have lost one of her crew. 
 
 A great deal of levelling was necessary before the 
 paths between the three ships were rendered passable. 
 The men, when they turned out with their shovels, 
 resembled a number of labourers turning out after a 
 storm to clear away the snow from the roads. There 
 was a little difference, however, between our blue 
 jackets and road-men ; for their work was often inter-
 
 1851. SNOW-BALLING. 469 
 
 rupted by snow-balling, in which they seemed to take 
 great delight. To behold so many strong, healthy, 
 and hearty men thus enjoying themselves, was a 
 source of inexpressible gratification to all who took an 
 interest in their health. 
 
 For a day or two after the storm, the weather was 
 very pleasant, the sky was generally very clear, and 
 fleecy and stratified clouds were spread over it. There 
 were halos around the moon during the night, and 
 beautiful parhelic circles, rich in the four prismatic 
 colours, around the sun during the day, which added 
 a charm to every thing we beheld. Our mechanics 
 were as busy as possible, preparing sledges and cook- 
 ing vessels for travelling. Several conjurors for that 
 was the name by which a cooking apparatus was known 
 were made, and found to suit tolerably, although 
 there would necessarily be a good deal of waste of fuel, 
 owing to the freedom with which the heat escaped as 
 it was generated in the " burner " within the con- 
 juror, at the bottom of the vessel intended for the 
 reception of snow to be melted into water, or of food 
 requiring to be cooked. 
 
 Early in the afternoon a person, in a state of 
 breathlessness and great anxiety, arrived on board the 
 " Lady Franklin." He had been detached from a 
 party belonging to the ships under Captain Austin's 
 command, which was on its way to Assistance Bay. 
 
 H H 3
 
 470 GREAT ANXIETY. CHAP. XV. 
 
 The party consisted of several men and two officers ; 
 and the reason for the sudden appearance of one of 
 the latter was, that one of his friends had been seized 
 with cramps in his stomach, the result of the free use of 
 snow to quench his thirst, which ended in something 
 described as a " fit." The assistance, which seemed 
 to be so much required from Assistance Bay, was 
 speedily and efficiently granted. The dogs were 
 soon harnessed to their sledge, and Mr. Petersen set 
 out with them at full gallop. The sun was on the 
 S. W. horizon at the time ; and as his bright beams 
 fell upon the ice and the white snow, forming an 
 illuminated path, which the dogs had to keep for a 
 part of their journey, the vapour as it escaped from 
 their lungs by rapid and panting expirations be- 
 came condensed, and, mixing with the fine snow 
 raised by their feet and by the sledge as it was 
 dragged along, they resembled griffins making their 
 way through the clouds with their chariot, and 
 vomiting liquid' fire. Half the crews of both ships 
 set out to meet the party ; such was their desire to 
 render help if it should be required. At 4 P.M. 
 the whole party arrived in perfect safety, the man 
 having recovered his spasms soon after the messenger 
 to our ships had departed. Mr. Bradford, surgeon of 
 H. M. S. " Kesolute," and Mr. Hamilton, mate of 
 H. M. S. " Assistance," were the officers of the party.
 
 PARTY FROM GRIFFITH'S ISLAND. 471 
 
 It was very gratifying to us to learn that our friends 
 at Griffith's Island had come through the winter in 
 good health and spirits. The feelings which ap- 
 peared to have taken possession of every one I met 
 were certainly very amusing. Xothing could be 
 heard but expressions of astonishment at the short- 
 ness and cheerfulness of the winter; and our kind 
 and most welcome visitors seemed to vie with us in 
 making it appear as a mere pastime, and the opposite 
 of what each had anticipated in an Arctic winter. 
 These expressions were a sufficient proof that the 
 winter had not failed to leave its impressions on our 
 minds, or to do its work on our constitutions, and 
 that it had been felt, too, although we had a desire to 
 conceal our true feelings from others as well as from 
 ourselves, lest we should lose confidence in ourselves, 
 or betray a cowardly feeling in speaking of the winter 
 with chilling recollections, or in dressing it up in its 
 real winter garb. Let those have the credit who 
 deserve it, for our good health and happiness during 
 winter ; and, with these blessings, let us ever associate 
 the victuallers of our Expeditions, Hogarth, Cooper, 
 Edwards ; and the clothiers and boot-makers, Brown, 
 Kilby, and others whose names I do not know ; and 
 also our respective commanders, who deeply inter- 
 ested themselves in everything that would conduce 
 to the good of all under their charge. 
 
 H H 4
 
 472 ICE ON KATE AUSTIN LAKE. CHAP. XV. 
 
 February 19th. Before and after noon there was a 
 beautiful parhelic circle, rich in the prismatic tints, 
 around the sun. The weather was very clear, and, 
 with the exception of the vapour in Barrow Straits, 
 which was never absent, there was hardly a cloud 
 upon the sky. Several of us went on an excursion to 
 Kate Austin Lake. The ice on it was six or seven feet 
 thick ; and its upper surface was rendered irregular, 
 and contained numerous fissures, which extended to 
 a depth of one or two feet. The irregularities on it 
 varied from one to three inches. It appeared very 
 strange how the surface, which had been left level 
 and as smooth as glass in September, should now be 
 thrown from its level, and, in some parts a little 
 roughened, when there was no disturbing cause, so 
 far as we knew. The ice was perforated in one or 
 two places, and lines were put down to take some 
 salmon. Several scores were seen, but only two 
 small creatures were obtained. Their movements in 
 the water were very slowly performed, and, from 
 looking at them at a depth of two fathoms, an idea 
 was obtained that they were in rather a torpid state. 
 I examined the viscera of the two that came into our 
 hands. The maw was quite empty, and the whole of 
 the viscera was infested with Nematodean entozoa, 
 which nestled in coils beneath the serous investing 
 membrane. Each nidus contained a quantity of thick
 
 1851. PARTY FOR GRIFFITH'S ISLAND. 473 
 
 viscid fluid, which, before it was laid open, gave it 
 the appearance of a yellow vesicle sunk in the tissue 
 which supported it. 
 
 February 24th. ~ The weather was remarkably 
 fine, there was little or no wind, and the temperature 
 was 41. The mercury, which we always kept 
 exposed in a broken tumbler, had been frozen for 
 nearly three successive days. Freely exposed to the 
 sun's rays, the thermometer generally rose 10 above 
 the shade, if the weather was clear. This day, at 
 3 P. M., it was 29, while the other was 39. The 
 party belonging to the squadron at Griffith's Island, 
 accompanied by Captain Stewart, Mr. Goodsir, 
 Mr. Stuart, and seven seamen, left Assistance 
 Bay to proceed to Griffith's Island. Mr. Petersen 
 also went with them with the dog-sledge, to make 
 sure of their safe arrival at their destination, and to 
 drive over some bears' flesh, which had been kindly 
 preserved, by the command of Captain Austin, for 
 the use of our dogs. Several bears had been seen 
 and shot at Griffith's Island during winter, but not 
 one in or near Assistance Bay. It is very probable 
 that the dogs which prowled about and so frequently 
 raised fearful bowlings were the cause why bears did 
 not pay their visits to us, as well as to the other ships. 
 The weather continued very fine throughout the day ; 
 and, although the temperature was always about
 
 474 VERY LOW TEMPERATURE. CHAP. XV. 
 
 41, we expected our friends would be able to ac- 
 complish their journey in safety. The distance was 
 about twenty miles ; rather long, I fear, to be safely 
 performed, when the thermometer indicates 77 below 
 the freezing point of water, it being at 45 before 
 midnight. 
 
 February 26th. Scarcely a day passed but we 
 had the sky adorned with mock suns and halos ; it 
 was always very clear and cloudless, except over 
 Barrow Straits, in which open water could still be 
 found, at a distance of two or three miles from the 
 ships in the harbour. In the evening Mr. Petersen 
 returned from Griffith's Island, bringing in the 
 " mails," as his package of letters was generally 
 called. Our party arrived safely at the ships, but they 
 were very much exhausted, having suffered severely 
 from thirst, frost-bites, and fatigue; the frost-bites 
 did not extend deeper than the skin, the thirst and 
 fatigue were soon recovered from, but the impression 
 which the combined effects of the three had made 
 would not soon be effaced; and a conviction arose 
 from it, or seemed to arise from it, that there was 
 great danger in travelling during such low tem- 
 peratures as they had experienced. 
 
 February 27th. A party of ten persons, under 
 the command of Commander Phillips, left the 
 " Felix " for Griffith's Island, chiefly for the sake of
 
 THEATRICAL ENTERTAINMENTS. 475 
 
 the exercise their limbs should have in accomplishing 
 such a long journey, and partly that they might be 
 present at a grand fete, the last performances for the 
 season, which, if the splendidly embellished printed 
 play-bills, that were flying about in all directions, be 
 true, ought really to vie with the Italian Opera, 
 Drury Lane, or the Lyceum. The whole dramatic 
 and singing force of the squadron was to be thrown 
 into one exquisitely grand entertainment, which 
 was to come off on the 28th, to commemorate the 
 commissioning of the Expedition, after which, work 
 in right good earnest was to take the place of amuse- 
 ment, and nothing was to be permitted but duty, the 
 one and all absorbing duty of preparing for travelling. 
 It will astonish our hard-working friends at home, 
 who have no confidence in sudden evolutions of 
 character, who insist upon the fact that long con- 
 tinued training is necessary, and indeed, essential, 
 before the human will can assume a relatively new 
 phase, to learn that Captain Austin's squadron 
 underwent its metamorphosis in one night; that it 
 closed its eyes and went to sleep with the deafening 
 roars of noisy festivity dinning in its ears; and 
 awoke next morning to follow the beckonings of 
 humanity, to devote itself wholly and solely to most 
 important duties, in spite of the frowns of Zero. 
 Was this owing to the limits which had been set to
 
 476 THEATRICAL ENTERTAINMENTS. CHAP. XV. 
 
 pleasant and amusing recreations, before they were 
 begun, or was it merely the result of reaction ? If 
 it was the former, great wisdom was displayed in 
 putting pleasure, " fickle jade," under arrest, before 
 she began to lose her charms, in allowing her to 
 retire clothed in her chaste and queenly attire, throw- 
 ing a bright effulgence on the pale faces of her 
 votaries, who were just merging into the dazzling 
 brilliancy of " Spring," from the gloomy depths of 
 Polar night. If it was the latter, great passiveness 
 and want of elasticity of mind, as well as want of 
 firmness of purpose, marked in a peculiar manner 
 those who heedlessly threw themselves into such 
 a dangerous stream, a stream which they ought to 
 have known would soon carry them beyond their 
 depth, a stream every day becoming more brackish, 
 and poisoning the air with a noxious effluvium, the 
 result of a true analysis of its elementary ingredients. 
 
 The weather was very favourable for the excursion, 
 but great fears were entertained by Sir John Ross 
 that the temperature should come down suddenly at 
 night, before his men could arrive at their destination. 
 
 During this month the .winds prevailed generally 
 from the north ; Aurora Borealis was very common, 
 but not vivid; storms were of short duration, and 
 the weather was for the most part very clear. The 
 maximum temperature for the month was 10, after
 
 1851. FREEZING OF SEA WATER. 477 
 
 a south-easterly wind had prevailed for two or three 
 days; and the minimum was 45 during clear and 
 almost perfectly calm weather. 
 
 One of the fire-holes about four feet square, which 
 had been opened between the " Lady Franklin " and 
 the " Sophia," was permitted to freeze over for forty- 
 five hours, during which time the temperature of the 
 air was rarely above 40, and not below 45. The 
 ice which formed in that time was ten inches thick ; 
 and its upper surface was very rough, and covered 
 with a fine white powder, in the form of tufts resem- 
 bling miniature molehills, planted so closely together, 
 that, at the base, each came in contact with its neigh- 
 bours on every side. A portion of this efflorescence, 
 as it may be called, was collected very carefully, and 
 permitted to dissolve, which it did very readily in the 
 temperature of our cabin; and at +37 its specific 
 gravity was 1-088, which showed that it contained 
 four or six times as much salt as sea water. The 
 rapidity with which congelation of the surface water 
 had taken place, prevented the descent of the particles 
 of saline matter, rendered dense by refrigeration ; and 
 as the watery particles necessarily became frozen, and 
 expanded, the saline particles were thrown to the 
 surface, by the pressure which the process of expansion 
 caused, and appeared in the form already noticed. 
 The ice formed under those circumstances is invariably
 
 478 ICE FORMED AT LOW TEMPERATURES. CH. XV. 
 
 rough, and it very soon thaws as the temperature in- 
 creases. Travelling over it is not accomplished without 
 great labour even on foot ; and it is much worse with 
 sledges, for the friction is increased very much ; and 
 if dogs are driven over it, they are seized with spasms, 
 which often prove fatal to any young ones that may 
 be among them. Mr. Petersen says, that, on the 
 eastern shores of Davis Straits, they avoid driving over 
 floes formed at low temperatures, for the reason that 
 it destroys their sledges and their dogs, more es- 
 pecially young dogs. He thinks the cramps are 
 owing to the dampness to which the dogs' feet are 
 exposed at low temperatures, the warmth of their 
 feet dissolving the particles of saline matter on 
 the surface. 
 
 Up to this time we were very much at a loss to 
 understand a fact, frequently observed by Baron 
 Wrangell, "crystals of sea salt deposited on the 
 surface of the ice. To attribute what that distin- 
 guished traveller had observed to evaporation even 
 in the slightest degree, appears strange, when it has 
 been proposed to have barriers of ice removed by 
 sprinkling sea salt over its surface. As he observes 
 that the sledges became rough, and the dogs suffered, 
 when ice with salt on it had to be crossed, there 
 seems to be little doubt but it was exactly the same 
 thing that we had observed, and had proved to be
 
 1851. SEA SALT IN SNOW. 479 
 
 owing, not to evaporation of sea water from the sur- 
 face of the ice leaving the saline matter, but to rapid 
 congelation of the surface of the sea itself. * 
 
 A portion of the solid ice, formed at a temperature 
 not above 40 nor below 45, yielded water of 
 density 1O113. Another portion of the same ice, 
 exposed to a temperature of +36 to +44 .for 
 twenty-four hours, so placed that the water con- 
 taining its saline ingredients could percolate through 
 it and away from it as soon as it melted, produced 
 a residuum of ice which yielded, when it was dis- 
 solved, water of specific gravity 1-00052, which 
 might be used for cooking purposes with perfect im- 
 punity. There could not be a better proof of the 
 power which temperature from +30 downwards 
 exercises over the saline ingredients of water. The 
 presence of this highly saline efflorescence on the sur- 
 face of ice formed on the surface of open water during 
 low temperatures, which would include the greatest 
 part of winter and spring, accounted for the invariable 
 and abundant indications of chlorides and sulphates 
 found in water obtained by dissolving snow from 
 wreaths on the floe, and also on the land, even at 
 a distance of several miles from the sea-coast. I 
 
 * WrangelTs Siberia and Polar Sea ; by Lieut.-Col. Edward 
 Sabine, R-X F.R. S., 2d edit. p. 134.
 
 480 DENSITY OF THE SNOW. CHAP. XV. 
 
 took a cube of snow, which contained eighteen cubic 
 inches, from one of the wreaths that had been raised 
 during a strong south-east wind on the 15th and 
 16th, when the temperature varied from 30 to 
 10, and found that the water which was produced 
 by melting it amounted to 6*0197 cubic inches at 
 + 62. By a simple calculation, the density of 
 the snow was found to be '3344, or a little more 
 than one-third the density of ice. On applying the 
 tests for chlorides and sulphates, the chief saline in- 
 gredients of sea-water, it was evident that they were 
 present, and in great abundance, considering that 
 the water had been obtained by melting snow, which 
 is generally understood to resemble rain water with 
 respect to softness and freedom from saline matter. 
 Another cube of the January deposition, from wreaths 
 upwards of half a mile inland, containing forty-five 
 cubic inches of snow, produced 11*5 fluid ounces, 
 19*895 cubic inches of water. By the same method 
 as before, the density proved to be *44. Thus, water 
 
 being 1000, 
 
 19*895x1000 
 
 7H = ' 44 - 
 
 45 
 
 Tests for chlorides and sulphates proved the pre- 
 sence of both these bases as abundantly as before. 
 The snow of density *33 was very soft and unresist- 
 ing; and it is very probable a strong north wind
 
 1851. EXPERIMENTS ON FREEZING PROCESS. 481 
 
 would remove it, unless a very low temperature 
 occurred soon after it fell. That of density '44 was 
 very hard and resisting ; walking over it left no im- 
 pressions of the shoes, and a heavily laden sledge 
 moved along it with great facility, and did not sink 
 one-eighth of an inch. There can be no doubt that 
 the source of the abundant indications of sea-salt in 
 the snow-water, is the salt particles which the freezing 
 process at low temperatures presses to the surface, 
 whence it is liable to be drifted away by the wind. 
 On one occasion we had to use snow instead of ice 
 for cooking purposes, owing to bad weather, and our 
 stock of ice from the lakes having run out unexpect- 
 edly. The water prepared from the snow did not 
 admit of the most distant comparison with that pre- 
 pared from ice, and a great deal more fuel was neces- 
 sary to dissolve the former. This was owing to the 
 greater amount of air which the snow contained. 
 
 A strong iron bottle of a capacity to contain 2337 
 minims of water at + 40, was exposed full of water 
 to a temperature of 17. In a few minutes a little 
 of the water began to escape at the orifice of the 
 bottle, which was about half an inch in diameter; 
 but after congelation commenced, which was in a 
 few minutes, the escape of water ceased, and a column 
 of ice could be seen ascending slowly through the 
 
 VOL. I. II
 
 482 EXPERIMENTS ON CHAP. XV. 
 
 orifice, moulded exactly to its shape, and emitting a 
 crepitating sound, which Avas interrupted by a loud 
 explosive report, accompanied by the sudden rejec- 
 tion of the ascending column, as if it had been fired 
 out of a pistol ; the height which it had attained was 
 eighteen lines, and it was found that expansion had 
 taken place by congelation in a ratio of -1028, 
 making the entire volume now 1102 instead of 1000, 
 which it was in a fluid state. After thawing the ice 
 in the bottle, it was found deficient 213 minims, 
 which reduced the original quantity from 2337 to 
 2124. If 1000 be taken as the specific gravity of 
 
 ., 2124x1000 ftno , . c 
 
 water, then = *9088 the specific gra- 
 
 2337 
 
 vity of ice. This gives ice below '92, which has 
 been generally looked upon as its specific gravity ; 
 the difference *012, however, is but trifling, and it 
 may be accounted for by the contractile property of 
 the metal of which the bottle is made. 
 
 After removing the bottle from the low tempera' 
 ture, and having placed it in a vessel containing 
 water a few degrees above the freezing point, I 
 observed that the ice in the orifice ascended at least 
 one-twelfth of the height of the former column, 
 which had been removed, and it did not begin to 
 recede until a crust of ice, which had formed on the 
 outside of the bottle, had fallen off, and the ice 

 
 1851. FREEZING PROCESS. 483 
 
 within had evidently begun to dissolve. In this 
 experiment there was a tolerable proof that ice 
 follows the same laws of contraction and expansion 
 by cold and heat as other substances, and as correctly 
 as I could estimate it, it appeared to be in a ratio of 
 00016 for every degree of the thermometer. 
 
 The temperature of the air being 43, barometer 
 30-03, and the weather calm, the iron bottle full of 
 water was exposed, and in half an hour a portion of 
 ice began to escape at the orifice, with crepitation 
 and explosive reports, which ceased after two hours. 
 The ice that escaped had the exact shape of the 
 orifice, but it was friable and presented a few trans- 
 verse fissures or cracks, which rendered it very easily 
 separable into sections or fragments. After intro- 
 ducing it into a temperature of +33 or +34, a 
 column of ice three-fourths of a line in height was 
 pressed through the orifice, and when the whole was 
 reduced to water there was found to be a defi- 
 ciency of 216 minims, very nearly in the same 
 ratio as before. The expansion, however, which 
 followed the increase of temperature from 43 to 
 + 32 was at variance with the results of the former 
 experiment, for, three-fourths of a line instead of 
 one and a half, and seventy-five degrees of the 
 thermometer instead of fifty, gave a ratio of -00005 
 
 II 2
 
 484 EXPERIMENTS ON FREEZING PROCESS. CH. XV. 
 
 for every degree of the thermometer, instead of 
 00016. This discrepancy does not alter the main 
 feature, that there is a decided contraction pro- 
 duced by still lower degrees of cold upon ice. 
 The same bottle was exposed full of water to 
 + 18, and the amount of water which the freezing 
 process displaced was found to be 240 minims, 
 which gave a ratio of '114, or an increase in volume 
 to 1114 instead of 1000. The column of ice pro- 
 truded through the orifice was very firm and free from 
 cracks, requiring an effort before it could be broken 
 off, and in its growth or ascent the crepitation was 
 so faint that it could hardly be detected by placing 
 the ear close to it. Sea water of density 1'0244 at 
 + 44, exposed to a temperature of -14, in the 
 iron bottle, began to freeze after two hours' exposure, 
 and a column of very porous ice rose to a height of 
 five lines ; thirty-two hours' further exposure in- 
 creased its height but one line, and after transferring 
 it to 29, a briny fluid oozed through the ice in the 
 orifice, and ran down the sides of the bottle. At a 
 temperature of +49 the deficiency amounted to 
 204 minims, and its density was reduced to 1'0114. 
 The density of the ice was estimated by calculation 
 to be -912, and its ratio of expansion -0965. 
 
 These experiments were interesting at the time, 
 because they filled up hours which might have hung
 
 1851. MOULDING CHARACTER OF ICE. 485 
 
 listlessly on our hands, and moreover they tended to 
 bear upon the important and interesting subject of 
 the descent of glaciers, which the untiring labours of 
 Professor Forbes have placed upon a sure basis. By 
 their assistance we could easily understand the cause 
 of the fissures in the surface of the ice on Kate Austin 
 Lake, and the . irregularities of its once smooth and 
 glassy surface. We also had very clear proofs of, to 
 use the words of Sir Charles Lyell, the moulding and 
 self-adapting power of ice under pressure, as if 
 it were a pasty substance, even at very low temper- 
 atures ; but we could not agree with respect to 
 friability, for it was invariably observed that this 
 property increased as the temperature decreased.* 
 The crepitating sound itself conveys the idea of fria- 
 bility at low temperatures ; and with respect to the 
 same condition, the sudden rejection of a portion, with 
 an explosive report, is most satisfactory. The para- 
 pets of our gangway, which were built up of square 
 blocks of very dense snow, began to yield soon after 
 they were finished, early in November, and notwith- 
 standing the low temperature throughout the winter, 
 they continued to yield, without falling, until the 
 upper part became overhanging, and was at right 
 angles with the portion on which it rested. The 
 
 * Sir Charles Lyell's Principles of Geology, 7th edit., p. 226- 
 ii 3
 
 486 WARMTH OF BURROWS. CHAP. XV. 
 
 same yielding property of snow was still better seen 
 in the curves which the transverse arms of a cross 
 assumed. They continued to be deflected, until the 
 extremities of the horizontal portion had each per- 
 formed a curve of 90, without presenting the 
 slightest trace of a fissure. 
 
 Captain Penny suggested the idea of ascertain- 
 ing what amount of warmth and comfort could be 
 attained in a close burrow in the snow. In No- 
 vember a single individual raised the temperature of 
 one from 4,~ that of the air at the time, to + 20 
 in about twenty minutes ; but the heat of the snow 
 and the ice must have been much greater then than 
 it was at this time. Two burrows, each six and a 
 half feet long and two and a half feet wide, were 
 excavated about six inches above the level of the blue 
 ice, in a wreath which had accumulated during an 
 easterly gale. There was a thickness of at least 
 four feet above each, from the surface of the snow 
 downwards ; and the entrances into both were made 
 so as to shut very closely. A thermometer enclosed 
 in one of them for four hours rose to 2, the 
 temperature of the external air at the time being 
 29. Two persons, the capacities of whose lungs 
 were represented by 240 and 210, were enclosed in 
 them for an hour and a quarter ; at the end of which 
 time the temperature had risen from 28, that of
 
 1851. SNOW A BAD CONDUCTOR OF SOUND. 487 
 
 the air, to +3 and 3 respectively; the person 
 with the most capacious lungs raising it seven de- 
 grees higher than the other. To say the most of the 
 burrows, they were not warm ; and closed up in 
 them as the two persons were, an idea of being buried 
 alive was continually uppermost in their minds. 
 However, there is no doubt, had our circumstances 
 demanded it, but we should have overcome this idea, 
 and have appreciated the comforts of burrowing in 
 preference to sleeping in the open air. 
 
 While enclosed in the burrows, the two persons 
 kept up a conversation through the partition of dense 
 snow that intervened between them. They had to 
 bawl loudly to one another, although the thickness 
 of the partition did not exceed a foot. And when 
 they were spoken to through the doorway, which 
 was securely closed also with firm snow, one had to 
 call out in quite a stentorian voice before a reply 
 could be obtained. The thickness of the slab of 
 snow which closed the doorway was not above nine 
 inches. This is at once a proof of the bad con- 
 ductor of sound we have in snow. It is very probable 
 that the property of conducting sound diminishes 
 with the density from ice down to the softest snow. 
 
 Respirators were used on several occasions, and 
 they aiforded great relief from a constriction which 
 was often felt across the chest when one rushed into 
 
 II 4
 
 488 EESPIRATOES. CHAP. XV. 
 
 the open air at 43 out of the cabins at +60. 
 They soon, however, became unpopular, owing to the 
 immense accumulation of ice that always appeared 
 on everything with which the expired air came in 
 contact. The lips and nose, too, became liable to 
 frostbites after the use of this instrument, especially 
 if it were taken off in the open air. There was a 
 decided objection to the use of it when exercise had 
 to be taken in the open air ; the difficulty of breathing 
 became actually oppressive, and perspiration flowed 
 so profusely, owing to the over-heated state of the 
 individual, that every inducement to persist in its 
 use was laid aside. During sleep, however, in a 
 very cold atmosphere, it might prove useful, and, to 
 persons with very weak lungs its use could hardly 
 be dispensed with. 
 
 Various attempts were made with a spirometer to 
 ascertain the exact influence which sudden exposures 
 to extremes of heat and cold might have upon the 
 lungs. By the ingenuity of the carpenter of the 
 " Sophia" a spirometer was prepared, which indicated 
 the differences from one hundred and eighty to three 
 hundred and twenty cubic inches with the utmost 
 precision, although it went considerably beyond these 
 extremes. It was always observed, that violent ex- 
 ercise in the open air at low temperatures, reduced 
 the quantity of respired air very considerably. A
 
 1851. 
 
 SPIROMETRT. 
 
 489 
 
 190 
 
 1 BO 
 
 860 
 
 300 
 
 880 
 
 very common degree of diminution was one-seven- 
 teenth; but it was 
 often much below 
 this. Two healthy 
 persons, whose ca- 
 pacities two hun- 
 dred and sixty and 
 two hundred and 
 fifty-five cubic in- 
 ches will represent, 
 were engaged in 
 gymnastics on the 
 floe, in which they 
 had to run and vo- 
 ciferate until per- 
 spiration began to 
 appear. The tem- 
 perature was 30, 
 and there was very 
 little wind. After 
 two hours' exposure 
 the one was reduced 
 
 tO two hundred and Sr. ROM used cm board H. M S- 
 " Sophia, made from a description 
 
 forty-five, and the g iven in the " Lancet," vol. i. 1850. 
 other to two hundred and forty. A person who 
 expired two hundred and five cubic inches with 
 great ease, was exposed to air at + 98 in the dis-
 
 490 CAPACITY OF THE LUNGS. CHAP. XV. 
 
 charge of a duty which involved the voice to a con- 
 siderable extent. Immediately after the duty was 
 over, a powerful expiration amounted only to one 
 hundred and ninety. 
 
 When a quiet walk was taken over the ice at 
 any temperature, there was very little reduction, 
 and there was still less by the use of a respirator, 
 if the exercise was not such as to induce perspira- 
 tion. On one occasion an alarm was given that a 
 bear was to be seen at the offing, and a great 
 many persons went in pursuit of it as fast as they 
 could run. The alarm proved to be false; but, 
 before the mistake was discovered, some of them 
 had brought on violent anhelation and severe pains 
 and constriction across their chests, accompanied by 
 a short tickling cough and expectoration of a thin 
 watery fluid. The amount of air received into their 
 lungs, under those circumstances, must have been 
 considerably reduced: its quantity was not ascer- 
 tained, however, from a precaution which I adopted 
 for fear of any mischief occurring by causing any 
 effort to fill the lungs when they were already suffer- 
 ing from over-exertion. The rapid abstraction of 
 moisture and heat from the soft and extensive mucous 
 lining of the lungs could not fail to bring on very 
 great congestion, of which the symptoms complained 
 of were the results.
 
 1851. EVAPORATION FROM ICE. 491 
 
 While the temperature in the shade was generally 
 about 40, the entrances into the two burrows were 
 closed up for a few days, at the end of which time a 
 spirit of wine thermometer was introduced and allowed 
 to remain inside, with the entrance closed up as 
 before. After four hours the instrument indicated 
 2 ; so that the idea was laid aside which had been 
 entertained previously, that it was the heat of the 
 persons who had remained shut in for upwards of an 
 hour, which had caused the increase of temperature 
 we had noticed in the close burrows. The roof of 
 each appeared to be planted over with little rounded 
 masses of snow which followed the arch from side to 
 side, but did not descend the sides any distance. 
 There is no doubt this was owing to evaporation. 
 Several casks had been allowed to stand on the floe 
 during a great part of winter. Some of them wanted 
 ends and were inverted, while others had both ends 
 in, but the lower end invariably never touched the 
 snow except at the rim, which projected two or three 
 inches beyond the end or bottom. The interiors of 
 the casks were beautifully adorned with magnificent 
 crystals, which sparkled like diamonds and gems, 
 when we first saw them, as the casks were turned 
 over and exposed to the sun. 
 
 The following are the most common forms that
 
 492 
 
 EVAPORATION FROM ICE. CHAP. XV. 
 
 were observed ; in each the minute features are 
 nearly analogous. 
 
 It may appear strange that evaporation should go 
 on from the surface of ice or snow cooled so far below 
 the temperature at which liquefaction takes place. 
 The extreme dryness of the air, however, reconciled 
 us at once to the fact. Two pieces of wood, oak 
 and fir, each measuring two cubic inches, were care- 
 fully dressed and squared by the carpenter, and after 
 being dried at a temperature of +90 or 100, their 
 weights were ascertained, and carefully noted. They 
 were then put into a vessel with water at a tempera- 
 ture of + 40, until perfect saturation took place, and 
 having again weighed them, they were immediately 
 exposed to a temperature far below the freezing 
 point, sometimes to the extent of 60 to 70, where 
 they were allowed to remain for two or three months, 
 after which they were weighed ; the deficiency which 
 was found showed clearly that even from a frozen 
 surface a supply of vapour is not denied to the dry 
 and thirsty atmosphere above and around it. The 
 experiment was repeated several times with different
 
 1851. PARHELIC CIRCLES. 493 
 
 pieces of wood, but the results in all were nearly 
 exactly the same. 
 
 February 28th. At an early hour this morning the 
 sky became overcast, and the wind, which was north- 
 erly, veered to the eastward a few points. The tem- 
 perature, which the previous night had been down to 
 -43, rose at first to 37; but at this temperature 
 the mercury in the tumbler did not thaw, owing 
 probably to the thickness of the glass, and its non- 
 conducting property. Very soon after 3 A. M. the 
 temperature rose above 37, and then the mercury 
 thawed, having begun to soften first on the upper 
 surface. Yesterday, in the evening, there were most 
 beautiful parhelic circles, of the richest prismatic tints, 
 on the western sky. They were present during the 
 greater part of the day, but, as evening approached, 
 nothing 1 that I had ever seen of the same kind 
 
 C 
 
 equalled them. Their radii were 22 47' and 45, and 
 they were disposed vertically and horizontally to the 
 sun. The exposed thermometer, at right angles with 
 the rays, rose to 3, while in the shade it was 34. 
 At noon to-day the wind had increased to a strong 
 gale from E.X.E., and there was a constant whirling 
 about of immense volumes of drifting snow. Towards 
 evening the snow, still thickening in the wind, be- 
 came a little squally, the squalls resembling those 
 already alluded to, both with respect to coldness and
 
 494 PARHELIC CIRCLES. CHAF. XV. 
 
 violence. Captain Penny made a promise to Sir 
 John Boss to let him have the dogs and sledge, 
 accompanied by Mr. Petersen, to drive him over 
 to Griffith's Island, that he might be present at a 
 general meeting of the officers of the squadron under 
 the command of Captain Austin, in which they were 
 to consider fully the preparations for travelling, and 
 the time for starting. Sir John wished to impress 
 them with the importance of not leaving their ships 
 before the second week in May, for before that time 
 they might expect lower temperatures than 25, at 
 which he says human blood freezes. He was ex- 
 ceedingly reluctant to give up all expectations of 
 accomplishing the journey, even after the snow had 
 become so thick that we could hardly see the one 
 ship from the other, at a distance of one hundred 
 yards. 
 
 Mr.Petersen had no doubt our young dogs would be 
 able to perform a great amount of work along with the 
 old, if we could but get meat for them on the ice as 
 we went along. Travelling with dogs on the eastern 
 shores of Davis Straits is rendered easy by the short- 
 ness of their stages, from the proximity of the settle- 
 ments. If, however, a journey has to be performed 
 beyond the settlements, the ice presents as much food 
 as their dogs can use, in the way of bears and seals,
 
 1851. TRAVELLING WITH DOGS. 495 
 
 which they shoot as they go along. If Barrow 
 Straits should present the same facilities, Mr. Peter- 
 sen often said that he could make the northwest 
 passage with them with the greatest ease. The dogs, 
 young and old, seemed to have a great attachment to 
 us. Every morning, the moment they discovered 
 that one of us had gone into the open air, they all 
 came out of their kennel and crowded round us, 
 looking for nothing but caresses, which were often 
 lavishly bestowed. If more attention was paid to 
 one than to another, the individual thus favoured 
 was generally attacked by some of the others, and its 
 enjoyment was very generally short-lived among its 
 jealous neighbours. Owing to this some of the 
 young ones had so learned by habit to avoid our 
 attention, that they would run away the moment we 
 attempted to caress them. They were divided into 
 two packs, and each pack had its master, who attended 
 to their training, under the superintendence of Mr. 
 Petersen. While undergoing their training one could 
 often see a small dog- sledge flying over the ice with 
 a waft streaming from a short pole bearing some 
 motto, which had been rudely inscribed by the driver 
 with the burned end of a stick. If a party of the 
 seamen happened to meet one of their own number 
 thus exercising the dogs, they generally hailed him 
 in the words " What ship is that, and whither bound?"
 
 496 TRAVELLING WITH DOGS. CHAP. XV. 
 
 to which they hardly had time to receive the reply 
 " the packet for Melville Island and Behring Straits 
 with the mails" when he shot past and was out of 
 hearing. 
 
 March 4th. The weather was very stormy for 
 a few days: there was much snow, and the wind 
 prevailed chiefly from north-west. The thermometer 
 kept rather high, having been up to 9 on the 2nd, 
 the highest temperature noted in the shade this 
 season. 
 
 We could hardly expect our parties to have re- 
 turned from Griffith's Island previous to this time, 
 owing to the bad weather ; but now, as it was be- 
 ginning to improve, they might be looked for daily. 
 Our preparations for travelling were making rapid 
 progress in the hands of the mechanics; but they 
 found that a host of articles inconceivably numerous 
 and small would be required. Daily exercise in the 
 open air became imperative, and each seemed to 
 vie with his neighbour who could endure the cold 
 best, and be distinguished as a good and enduring 
 traveller. After the work of the day was got over, 
 a party of strollers went in the direction of the south- 
 east point of the harbour in the evening before sun- 
 set, and, on their return on board, they reported that 
 they had seen open water extending east and west 
 along Cornwallis Island, which varied in breadth
 
 1851. OPEN WATER IN BARROW STRAITS. 497 
 
 from one to two or three miles. They said it con- 
 tained a quantity of bay-ice, which was every moment 
 breaking up and overlapping, as the tide was bringing 
 in the loose pack at the offing. One of them was 
 confident he had seen a seal in it ; but his neighbours 
 were equally positive it was only a piece of ice turn- 
 ing over that had deceived him. 
 
 March 6th. The bad weather of yesterday pre- 
 cluded the idea that our parties would be able to 
 return. They might have pushed on on the previous 
 day, and I suppose would have done so had the 
 morning promised good weather. There was no 
 doubt of their safety so long as they remained on 
 board the other ships ; but on their way to Assist- 
 ance Bay some of them might break down, and be in 
 great danger of suffering themselves, and of knocking 
 up the whole party. Owing to those fears we kept 
 a close watch on the southwest point of the Bay, 
 where the first appearances of their return should be 
 discovered. At noon, the sun's rays received on the 
 ball of the thermometer were only 23, while the 
 shade was 28. This was owing to the presence of a 
 considerable amount of clouds or vapour, which pre- 
 vented the admission of the rays to the earth's surface. 
 It was frequently observed that now cloudy weather 
 was no objection to a low state of the thermometer ; on 
 the contrary, it seemed to be favourable to it, for the 
 
 VOL. I. K K
 
 498 RETURN OF THE PARTY. CHAP. XV. 
 
 earth's surface, including snow, ice land, &c., had 
 been cooled down to such a degree, that, in cloudy 
 weather, there was no heat to radiate from it, and 
 the sun's rays being excluded, a stratum of air lay 
 along the surface, and partook of the intense cold 
 which could be so easily spared. Ice and snow con- 
 duct heat very slowly. If a piece of fresh-water ice 
 be plunged into water after it has been exposed to a 
 temperature of 20 to - 30, it flies to pieces, in the 
 same way as red hot glass does when plunged into 
 water; and, if water be poured upon ice, the same 
 thing happens, and the crepitating sound is almost 
 loud enough to resemble small explosions. 
 
 At 3 P.M. our party from Griffith's Island was 
 espied on its return on the south-west point, and in 
 a short time all our companions were safe on board. 
 One or two, however, had suffered from frost-bite ; 
 but it was chiefly confined to the skin, and would 
 soon heal up. They were all very much fatigued, 
 and thought the journey quite long enough under 
 such circumstances. Very favourable reports were 
 brought from the squadron at Griffith's Island, both 
 verbally and by letters : the latter were chiefly con- 
 fined to the commanders, although even some of our 
 seamen had correspondents in the other squadron. 
 Preparations for travelling were said to have com- 
 menced in good earnest, and great stir seemed to take
 
 1851. SCURVY STILL ON BOARD THE "FELIX." 499 
 
 up the attention of all in that quarter. It was finally 
 arranged that the Wellington Channel should be 
 searched by our expedition, while Captain Austin's 
 was to do all the rest ; and the " Felix " was left in 
 the background, because it was not believed that 
 she possessed the means to accomplish anything with 
 safety or satisfaction. It was exceedingly gratifying 
 to see her crew all able to attend to their duties 
 There was one person, however, of whom scurvy had 
 taken a severe hold : all that could be done for him 
 proved of little value, since the supplies of preserved 
 vegetables and other antiscorbutics, which had been 
 granted by Captain Penny, were discontinued by the 
 request of Sir John Ross, who said that, now as his 
 crew was quite well, he desired not to continue a 
 burden to our expedition. He was still forced to 
 receive supplies of sugar, for that is an article which 
 persons possessing a slight scorbutic taint will not 
 want for a very short time without the disease shew- 
 ing itself vigorously, unless vegetable diet be sub- 
 stituted for salt-beef, a measure which could not be 
 adopted on board the " Felix " in Assistance Bay. 
 
 March 7th. Mr. Petersen went out with his 
 rifle to the edge of the open water beyond the south- 
 east point of the bay. The loose ice in Barrow 
 Straits sometimes narrowed the water very much ; 
 but this drifting about had a good effect in clearing 
 
 K K 2
 
 500 A SEAL SEEN. CHAP. XV. 
 
 away the young ice which formed rapidly on the 
 surface. To most of us it appeared to be the chief 
 cause or means by which a space of water should 
 have been kept open for so long a period, and at 
 such low temperatures. A seal was seen in tlie 
 water, but at too great a distance for Mr. Peterson's 
 rifle. When this was reported on board, we expected 
 that seals would be found upon the ice towards the 
 end of spring or the commencement of summer, 
 which might enable us to support our dogs on travel- 
 ling parties for an indefinite length of time. Some 
 of the young dogs accompanied one or two of the 
 men to the water; and having never seen water 
 before that time, one of them walked into it with the 
 utmost coolness and indifference, and was almost 
 drowned. The same thing happened to several of 
 them ; but by little and little, experience taught 
 them that a distinction was necessary to be made 
 between ice and water. 
 
 March Stk. The sky was very clear, and per- 
 fectly cloudless, and there was very little wind : it 
 increased, however, from the northward towards 
 evening. The rays raised the thermometer to 2 
 from 35, at which it happened to be in the shade. 
 The intense light, reflected into the eyes from the 
 white snow, produced great congestion, owing to 
 which one would have to grope about for a quarter
 
 1851. TEMPORARY BLINDNESS. 501 
 
 of an hour after coming below into the dark cabins. 
 It was ludicrous to see a person come into the cabin, 
 and, after staring at everything before him, take his 
 seat without observing any person, although three or 
 four might be present. It not unfrequently happened 
 that a person in this state came stumbling upon his 
 invisible companions, who generally endeavoured to 
 retain their laughter, until some such accident was 
 the signal for a general outbreak. 
 
 There was much said and schemed about and for 
 the preservation of the eyes. Various glasses were 
 in great requisition among some ; others used green 
 veils, which the foresight of the government had 
 supplied; and a third party used goggles, made of 
 wood or gutta percha. Each person had his idea, 
 and he considered himself entitled to maintain it, 
 because his experience bore him out in doing so. 
 Perhaps all in their several opinions were more or 
 less correct ; but it was certain that the human eye 
 protected, as it might or might not be, by veils, green 
 or black, single or double, neutral tint or no tint, 
 was sure to suffer, when the individual had to attend 
 closely to duties in the open air, exposed to the white 
 snow during intensely bright sunshine, for an undue 
 length of time ; and it was equally certain that the 
 cause of that most painful disease snow-blindness 
 would require to be removed before one could 
 
 K K 3
 
 502 PRESERVATION OF THE "EYES. CHAP. XV. 
 
 recover from it. There were generally two conditions 
 of the atmosphere which tended to produce this 
 disease : when the sky was cloudless, and the pure 
 rays were reflected into the eyes from the snow, and 
 when it was overcast with a misty haze, which 
 obscured the azure tint altogether, and sometimes 
 might be quite lurid and of a bluish white appearance ; 
 while at other times it did not obscure the sun 
 altogether, but seemed rather to render the light 
 from it doubly intense. The first of these was the 
 least hurtful, and a black screen proved a, very useful 
 protection from it : the other, however, seemed to 
 defy everything : but the most useful we found was 
 black crape in the form of veils, which could be 
 made single or double, according to the amount of 
 protection which one desired. Neutral tint preserves 
 suited very well, but only second to the black crape : 
 this is what one might expect ; for it is not the quality 
 of the light so much as its quantity that has to be 
 altered ; and it leads me to observations already made 
 on snow-blindness, in which the Esquimaux mode 
 of preserving the eyes is recommended, substituting 
 wire gauze, which is nearly the same as crape for 
 goggles, and putting it into the form of spectacles 
 with side shades. When the sky is overcast, the 
 light transmitted to the eye through an accumulation 
 of watery particles, in a state of ice, must undergo
 
 1851. TWO SEALS SHOT. 503 
 
 some change besides mere refraction perhaps partial 
 polarization, which exerts a most pernicious influence 
 over the eyes. When parhelia and parhelic circles 
 are present, which are caused by a process of double 
 refraction or polarization, there is no danger of snow- 
 blindness occurring. It is when the atmosphere 
 appears to be pervaded with congealed vapour, in a 
 state of " confusion," that the greatest caution must 
 be used to prevent it, and then the use of coloured 
 glasses may be had recourse to, but only second to 
 the wire gauze. 
 
 Mr. Petersen and one or two of the men went out 
 to the water to shoot seals, if by good chance they 
 should happen to come sufficiently near. They had 
 not been long on the out-look, until two appeared and 
 were shot, the one after the other ; and, fortunately 
 enough, they did not sink. This is different from 
 what we were familiar with in Davis Straits and the 
 Wellington Channel last summer and autumn ; and 
 it proves what Mr. Petersen had often told us, that 
 seals fattened during winter. Halkett's boat was 
 taken to the water, and inflated and launched into 
 it ; the temperature of the air at the time was 30, 
 the mean for that day being 33, 65 below the 
 freezing point of water. Mr. Leiper one of the 
 mates of the "Lady Franklin," got into the boat 
 and picked up one of the seals, but, unfortunately
 
 504 THE COMMON SEAL. CHAP. XV. 
 
 the other was drawn underneath the ice by the tide, 
 which had begun to return before they were shot. 
 The dogs soon drove the seal to the ships ; but by 
 that time it was frozen as hard as animal tissues could 
 be with such intense cold. It belonged to the species 
 of common seal (Phoca vitulina), which winters in 
 Davis Straits and the adjoining seas, breathing 
 through holes in the ice, which it keeps open during 
 winter, after it has become one continuous sheet 
 from shore to shore. It is very probable that this 
 seal has holes in the ice, independent of open water, 
 for we often saw it lying upon floes, along the east 
 shore of Davis Straits at holes which it must have 
 kept open during winter and spring, where the ice 
 was in a loose state all the season. Its stomach was 
 examined, and found to contain the remains of fish in 
 great abundance; and from the entire state of the 
 skeletons, there was no difficulty in recognising the 
 genus to which the Whiting belongs (Merlangus}, 
 which is so widely diffused in the Polar Seas. The 
 stomach presented deep perforations into the mucous 
 and cellular coats, in which whole bundles of Nematoid 
 entozoa could be seen sticking, like what has been 
 already compared to the tentacles of the sea anemone. 
 The dogs were very glad of such delicious morsels as 
 the entire seal-skin and bones afforded, for they had 
 been a considerable time without rich animal food.
 
 1851. DOG'S FOOD. 505 
 
 March 9th. The weather was every day becom- 
 ing clear and more pleasant, although the cold was 
 generally intense. Last night the mercury became 
 frozen, and continued in that state for nearly twelve 
 hours. The lowest temperature that was observed 
 was 36; probably the circumstance that the same 
 quantity of mercury having been frozen frequently 
 on previous occasions may account for the readiness 
 with which it now assumed the solid form. It was 
 to be regretted that we had not a self-registering 
 thermometer; for it is not unlikely that the tem- 
 perature was two or three degrees lower than had 
 been read off: in this case, the mercury would have 
 become solid at once, by the escape of heat, and the 
 thickness of the glass-tumbler would for a consider- 
 able time retain the cold. At noon the shade was 
 30, and the exposed instrument was 2; at 
 1 P.M. the shade was 31, and the exposed +2. 
 This was the greatest difference that had hitherto 
 been" observed between the shaded and exposed 
 instruments ; and it was also the first time that the 
 thermometer had been above zero this season, even 
 in the sun's rays. On the surface of the floe, where 
 there were gentle slopes to the southward, the 
 surface of the snow had become a little glazed, from 
 a very thin film of the snow melting, and again freez- 
 ing almost instantly. It did not appear to have
 
 506 EXPOSED THERMOMETER ABOVE ZERO. Cn.XV. 
 
 begun to thaw on the land, or even against the black 
 paint of the ship's side : from this fact we could 
 hardly question the correctness of the indications 
 of the exposed thermometer, although at the same 
 time it was extremely difficult to account for the 
 glazed appearance of the snow already noticed, an 
 appearance which at once conveyed an idea that the 
 temperature had been above the freezing point of 
 water. 
 
 END OF THE FIRST VOLUME. 
 
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