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margin: 0; font-size: 100%; } - } - .c000 { margin-top: 0.5em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; } - .c001 { margin-top: 4em; } - .c002 { margin-top: 2em; text-align: right; } - .c003 { page-break-before: always; margin-top: 4em; } - .c004 { margin-top: 2em; } - .c005 { margin-top: 1em; } - .c006 { page-break-before:auto; margin-top: 4em; } - .c007 { margin-top: 2em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; } - .c008 { text-align: center; } - .c009 { vertical-align: top; text-align: left; padding-right: 1em; } - .c010 { vertical-align: top; text-align: right; } - .c011 { vertical-align: top; text-align: left; text-indent: -1em; - padding-left: 1em; padding-right: 1em; } - .c012 { vertical-align: top; text-align: right; padding-right: 1em; } - .c013 { margin-left: 5.56%; margin-right: 2.78%; text-indent: -2.78%; - margin-top: 2em; font-size: 90%; margin-bottom: 0.5em; } - .c014 { margin-left: 5.56%; margin-right: 2.78%; text-indent: -2.78%; - font-size: 90%; margin-top: 0.5em; margin-bottom: 0.5em; } - .c015 { margin-left: 2.78%; margin-right: 2.78%; font-size: 90%; text-align: right; - } - .c016 { margin-left: 2.78%; margin-right: 2.78%; font-size: 90%; } - .c017 { margin-left: 2.78%; margin-right: 2.78%; font-size: 90%; margin-top: 0.5em; - margin-bottom: 0.5em; } - .c018 { vertical-align: top; text-align: center; padding-right: 1em; } - .c019 { vertical-align: top; text-align: center; } - .c020 { margin-top: .5em; } - div.tnotes { padding-left:1em;padding-right:1em;background-color:#E3E4FA; - border:1px solid silver; margin:2em 10% 0 10%; } - .covernote { visibility: hidden; display: none; } - div.tnotes p { text-align:left; } - @media handheld { .covernote { visibility: visible; display: block;} } - .sc {font-style: normal; } - .footnote {font-size: 90%; } - .ph1 { text-indent: 0em; font-weight: bold; } - .ph1 { font-size: xx-large; margin: .67em auto; } - </style> - </head> - <body> - - -<pre> - -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Round About the North Pole, by W. J. Gordon - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - -Title: Round About the North Pole - -Author: W. J. Gordon - -Illustrator: Edward Whymper - -Release Date: July 1, 2016 [EBook #52462] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROUND ABOUT THE NORTH POLE *** - - - - -Produced by Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - - -<div class='tnotes covernote'> - -<p class='c000'> <strong>Transcriber's Note:</strong></p> - -<p class='c000'> The cover image was created by the transcriber and is placed in the public domain.</p> - -</div> - -<div class='ph1'> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c001'> - <div>ROUND ABOUT</div> - <div>THE NORTH POLE</div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div id='Frontispiece' class='figcenter id001'> -<img src='images/i_004.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>"DONE UP"</p> -</div> -</div> -<div class='c002'>Frontispiece</div> - -<div> - <h1 class='c003'>ROUND ABOUT<br /> THE NORTH POLE</h1> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c004'> - <div><span class='xlarge'>BY W. J. GORDON</span></div> - <div class='c005'>WITH WOODCUTS AND OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS</div> - <div>BY EDWARD WHYMPER</div> - <div class='c001'>NEW YORK</div> - <div><span class='large'>E. P. DUTTON AND COMPANY</span></div> - <div><span class='sc'>31 West Twenty-third Street</span></div> - <div>1907</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c001'> - <div><em>Printed in Great Britain</em></div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_v'>v</span> - <h2 class='c006'>PREFACE</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c007'>Among the many books about the Polar regions -there is none quite like this, dealing with the -gradual progress of exploration towards the north -along the different areas of advance within the Arctic -Circle.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The subject is always interesting, for few regions -have been the scene of more persistent effort and -exciting adventure and unexpected gains from the -unknown, particularly in the earlier days when the -endeavour to find the northern passages to the east and -west led to the beginning of our foreign trade.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It is often asked, "What is the use of further Arctic -discovery?" No one knows. Nor did any one know -the use of most discoveries before they were made.</p> - -<p class='c000'>When Eric landed in Greenland he was not in -search of cryolite for aluminium. When Cabral sailed -to Porto Seguro he knew nothing of the incandescent -gas-mantle. When Oersted looped the live wire round -the magnetic needle he was not bent on founding -electrical engineering. And when Linnæus noticed -the sleep of plants he had no intention of providing -a substitute for a clock in high latitudes where, though -<span class='pageno' id='Page_vi'>vi</span>the sunshine is continuous during the summer, the -plants within the Circle sleep as in the night time, -their sleeping leaves telling the traveller that midnight -is at hand.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Men have made up their minds to reach the Pole, -and thither they will go. What they will find when -they get there may not promise to be much, but what -they have found round about it has been enough to -influence considerably the history of the world.</p> - -<div class='lg-container-r'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>W. J. G.</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='lg-container-l'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'><em>July, 1907.</em></div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_vii'>vii</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CONTENTS</h2> -</div> - -<table class='table0' summary='CONTENTS'> -<colgroup> -<col width='82%' /> -<col width='17%' /> -</colgroup> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER I</td></tr> - <tr> - <th class='c009'></th> - <th class='c010'>PAGE</th> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>SPITSBERGEN</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_1'>1</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER II</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>SPITSBERGEN (<em>continued</em>)</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_24'>24</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER III</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>NOVAYA ZEMLYA</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_49'>49</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER IV</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>FRANZ JOSEF LAND</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_64'>64</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER V</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>CAPE CHELYUSKIN</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_84'>84</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VI</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>THE LENA DELTA</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_106'>106</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VII</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>BERING STRAIT</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_127'>127</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VIII</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>THE AMERICAN MAINLAND</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_146'>146</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER IX</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>THE PARRY ISLANDS</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_170'>170</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER X</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>BOOTHIA</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_190'>190</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'><span class='pageno' id='Page_viii'>viii</span>CHAPTER XI</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>BAFFIN BAY</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_215'>215</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER XII</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>SMITH SOUND</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_235'>235</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr><td class='c008' colspan='2'>CHAPTER XIII</td></tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>GREENLAND</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_259'>259</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c009'>INDEX</td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#Page_287'>287</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_ix'>ix</span> - <h2 class='c006'>LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS</h2> -</div> - -<table class='table0' summary='LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS'> -<colgroup> -<col width='5%' /> -<col width='73%' /> -<col width='20%' /> -</colgroup> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'>"<span class='sc'>Done up</span>"</td> - <td class='c010'><em><a href='#Frontispiece'>Frontispiece</a></em></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Nansen's <cite>First Crossing of Greenland</cite> (Longmans)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <th class='c011' colspan='2'> </th> - <th class='c010'>TO FACE PAGE</th> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The Summit of Oraefa</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg2'>2</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From a photograph</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Columbus</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg4'>4</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From the portrait at Versailles</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Samoyeds and their Dwellings</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg10'>10</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hartwig's <cite>Polar World</cite> (Longmans)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Franz Josef Fiord</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg14'>14</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From a drawing by Lieutenant Julius Payer</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Whalers among Icebergs</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg30'>30</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hartwig's <cite>Polar World</cite> (Longmans)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Sir John Franklin</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg34'>34</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">Le Tour du Monde</span></cite>, 1860 (Hachette)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Track of H.M.S. "Dorothea" and "Trent"</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg36'>36</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>A Voyage of Discovery towards the North Pole, performed in His Majesty's Ships "Dorothea" and "Trent," under the command of Capt. David Buchan, R.N., 1818</cite>, by Capt. F. W. Beechey, <span class='fss'>R.N., F.R.S.</span> (Richard Bentley, 1843.)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Parry Camped on the Ice</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg40'>40</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Captain Parry's <cite>Narrative</cite>, 1828 (Murray)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Parry's Boats among the Hummocks</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg42'>42</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Captain Parry's <cite>Narrative</cite>, 1828 (Murray)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>How our Ship stuck fast in the Ice</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg50'>50</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>A True Description</cite>, by Gerrit de Veer (Hakluyt Society, 1853)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>How we nearly got into trouble with the Sea-horses</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg56'>56</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>A True Description</cite>, by Gerrit de Veer (Hakluyt Society, 1853)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg90'>90</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From a photograph</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Fridtjof Nansen</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg96'>96</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>With autograph. From a photograph supplied by himself</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Reindeer</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg112'>112</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>By permission. From <cite>Short Stalks</cite>, by Edward Buxton (Stanford)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Samoyed Man</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg114'>114</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Seebohm's <cite>Siberia in Asia</cite> (Murray)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='pageno' id='Page_x'>x</span><span class='sc'>Ostiak Man</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg116'>116</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Seebohm's <cite>Siberia in Asia</cite> (Murray)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The Face of the Fur Seal</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg130'>130</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>The Seal Islands of Alaska</cite>, by Henry W. Elliott (Washington, 1881)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The Aleutian Islands</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg132'>132</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hartwig's <cite>Polar World</cite> (Longmans). From an original Sketch by Frederick Whymper</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Driving the Fur Seal</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg134'>134</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>The Seal Islands of Alaska</cite>, by Henry W. Elliott (Washington, 1881)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Fur Seals at Sea</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg136'>136</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>The Seal Islands of Alaska</cite>, by Henry W. Elliott (Washington, 1881)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The Parka of the Alaskan Innuits</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg138'>138</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Whymper's <cite>Alaska</cite> (Sampson Low)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The Frozen Yukon</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg140'>140</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Whymper's <cite>Alaska</cite> (Sampson Low)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Ascending the Yukon</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg142'>142</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Whymper's <cite>Alaska</cite> (Sampson Low)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Moose-hunting on the Yukon</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg144'>144</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Whymper's <cite>Alaska</cite> (Sampson Low)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Mahlemut Man</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg146'>146</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Whymper's <cite>Alaska</cite> (Sampson Low)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Winter Travelling on the Great Slave Lake</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg150'>150</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Franklin's <cite>Journey to the Polar Sea</cite>, 1819-22 (Murray, 1823)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Crossing Point Lake</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg152'>152</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Franklin's <cite>Journey to the Polar Sea, 1819-22</cite> (Murray, 1823)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Kutchin Indians</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg154'>154</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hartwig's <cite>Polar World</cite> (Longmans). From an original sketch by Frederick Whymper</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Preparing an Encampment on the Barren Grounds</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg156'>156</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Franklin's <cite>Journey to the Polar Sea, 1819-22</cite> (Murray, 1823)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Sir John Richardson</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg158'>158</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>With autograph, from a letter in the possession of Edward Whymper</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Back's Journey down the Great Fish River</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg160'>160</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Back's <cite>Arctic Land Expedition to the mouth of the Great Fish River in the years 1833, 1834, and 1835</cite> (Murray, 1836)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Sir William Edward Parry</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg170'>170</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>With autograph, from a letter in the possession of Edward Whymper</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Sir John Barrow</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg178'>178</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>With autograph</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>H.M.S. "Hecla" and "Griper" in Winter Harbour</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg180'>180</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>A Voyage for the Discovery of a North-west Passage</cite>, by Capt. Parry (Murray, 1821)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='pageno' id='Page_xi'>xi</span><span class='sc'>Parry's Discoveries on his First Voyage</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg182'>182</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>A Voyage for the Discovery of a North-west Passage</cite>, by Captain Parry (Murray, 1821)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>An Igloolik Eskimo carrying his Kayak</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg190'>190</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Parry's <cite>Second Voyage</cite> (Murray, 1824)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Parry's farthest on his Third Voyage</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg192'>192</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Parry's <cite>Third Voyage</cite> (Murray, 1826)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The "Victory"</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg194'>194</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Sir J. Ross's <cite>Arctic Expedition, 1829-33</cite> (Webster, 1835)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>North Hendon</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg196'>196</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Sir J. Ross's <cite>Arctic Expedition, 1829-33</cite> (Webster, 1835)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Eskimo listening at a Seal-hole</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg198'>198</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Parry's <cite>Second Voyage</cite> (Murray, 1824)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>H.M.S. "Terror" lifted by Ice</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg202'>202</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hartwig's <cite>Polar World</cite> (Longmans)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Fractured Stern-post of H.M.S. "Terror"</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg204'>204</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Capt. Back's <cite>Narrative, 1838</cite> (Murray)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The "Fox" escaping from the pack</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg208'>208</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From M'Clintock's <cite>Voyage of the "Fox"</cite></td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The "Fox" on a rock</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg210'>210</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From M'Clintock's <cite>Voyage of the "Fox"</cite></td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Discovery of the Cairn</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg212'>212</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From M'Clintock's <cite>Voyage of the "Fox"</cite></td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Sir Martin Frobisher</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg216'>216</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>The Three Voyages of Martin Frobisher</cite> (Hakluyt Society, 1867)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Eskimo awaiting a Seal</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg222'>222</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hartwig's <cite>Polar World</cite> (Longmans)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>A Greenlander in his Kayak</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg224'>224</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">Le Tour du Monde</span></cite>, 1868 (Hachette)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Baffin Bay in 1819</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg232'>232</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite>A Voyage of Discovery</cite>, by Capt. John Ross (Longmans, 1819)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Dr. E. K. Kane</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg234'>234</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From the Frontispiece to Kane's <cite>Arctic Explorations</cite>, 1856</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Kalutunah</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg236'>236</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">Le Tour du Monde</span></cite>, 1868 (Hachette)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The East Coast of Smith Sound</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg238'>238</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hayes' <cite>Open Polar Sea</cite> (Sampson Low)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Dr. I. I. Hayes</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg240'>240</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>By permission, from Hayes' <cite>Open Polar Sea</cite></td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='pageno' id='Page_xii'>xii</span><span class='sc'>The Shores of Kennedy Channel</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg242'>242</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hayes' <cite>Open Polar Sea</cite></td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Tyndall Glacier</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg244'>244</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hayes' <cite>Open Polar Sea</cite></td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>A Seal in Danger</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg246'>246</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Parry's <cite>Second Voyage for the Discovery of a North-west Passage</cite> (Murray, 1824)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Sir George Nares</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg248'>248</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From a photograph</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Sledges used by Sir Leopold M'Clintock and Sir George Nares</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg254'>254</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>(In the collection of Edward Whymper)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Bishop Paul Egede</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg258'>258</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From the Frontispiece to <cite><span lang="da" xml:lang="da">Efterretninger om Grönland</span></cite> (Copenhagen)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Greenlanders</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg260'>260</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From Hartwig's <cite>Polar World</cite> (Longmans)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>On level ground</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg262'>262</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>Nansen's <cite>First Crossing of Greenland</cite> (Longmans)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The Allan Liner "Sardinian" among Icebergs</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg264'>264</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From a photograph</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The "Germania" in the Ice</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg266'>266</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">Le Tour du Monde</span></cite>, 1874 (Hachette)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The Region round Mount Petermann</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg268'>268</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From a drawing by Lieutenant Julius Payer</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>The Last Days of the "Hansa"</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg270'>270</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>From <cite><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">Le Tour du Monde</span></cite>, 1874 (Hachette)</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011' colspan='2'><span class='sc'>Robert E. Peary</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg280'>280</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c011'> </td> - <td class='c011'>With autograph, from a letter in the possession of Edward Whymper From <cite>Nearest the Pole</cite>, by Commander Peary. By permission of Hutchinson and Co.</td> - <td class='c010'> </td> - </tr> -</table> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c006'>SECTIONAL MAPS</h2> -</div> -<table class='table0' summary='SECTIONAL MAPS'> -<colgroup> -<col width='6%' /> -<col width='56%' /> -<col width='36%' /> -</colgroup> - <tr> - <td class='c012'>1.</td> - <td class='c009'><span class='sc'>Spitsbergen</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg12'>12</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c012'>2.</td> - <td class='c009'><span class='sc'>Cape Chelyuskin</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg84'>84</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c012'>3.</td> - <td class='c009'><span class='sc'>The Lena Delta</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg106'>106</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c012'>4.</td> - <td class='c009'><span class='sc'>Bering Strait</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg128'>128</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c012'>5.</td> - <td class='c009'><span class='sc'>The Parry Islands</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg174'>174</a></td> - </tr> - <tr><td> </td></tr> - <tr> - <td class='c012'>6.</td> - <td class='c009'><span class='sc'>Greenland</span></td> - <td class='c010'><a href='#pg272'>272</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<div class='ph1'> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c001'> - <div>ROUND ABOUT</div> - <div>THE NORTH POLE</div> - </div> -</div> - -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_1'>1</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER I<br /> SPITSBERGEN</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Iceland—Greenland—America—Sebastian Cabot—Robert Thorne—The -North-east Passage—Willoughby—Chancellor—Borough—The North -Cape rounded—The White Sea reached—The First Arctic Search Expedition—Pet -and Jackman—Brunel—Cornelis Nai—Barents reaches -77° 20´—Second voyage of Nai—The Samoyeds—Rijp, Jacob Van -Heemskerck and Barents—Bear Island discovered—Spitsbergen discovered—The -Dutch reach 79° 49´—Stephen Bennet—Welden—Jonas -Poole—Henry Hudson reaches 80° 23´—Poole starts the British whaling -trade—Baffin's voyages to Spitsbergen—Pellham winters at Green -Harbour.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>The story of the lands within the Arctic Circle is -a record of the brave deeds of healthy men. -This would seem to be true were we to take the story, -if we could, back to the days when man followed the -retreat of the glaciers, as he may in turn have to retreat -before them, such a condition of things being not beyond -the range of probability though it may be remote. For -the boundaries of the frozen north are not dependent on -a line of latitude, and have never been the same from -period to period, or even from year to year. In some -cases they have changed considerably within the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_2'>2</span>Christian era, and it is evident that the ice is not -eternal. The fossils declare that the climate round -the North Pole has varied greatly, and must in -comparatively recent ages have been comfortably -warm, so genial indeed that some people would have -us believe that men came from there in their last distribution. -Not, however, with such migrants from -the far north do we concern ourselves, but with those -who have endeavoured to get there in historical times -by different lines of approach, as we follow the circle -round from east to west and note the record of each -section by itself.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Who was the first to sail to the northern seas we -know not. Suffice it for us that in 875 Ingolf the -<span lang="no" xml:lang="no">jarl</span>, from Norway, refusing to live under the sway of -Harold Haarfager, sighted Mount Oraefa. As he -neared the coast, overboard went the carved wood; -and where the wood drifted ashore he founded Reikjavik. -But he was not the first in Iceland, for the -Irish monastery had been there for years when he -arrived, though the monks retired to their old country -when they found the Norsemen had come to stay.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Then the Icelander Gunnbiörn, driven westward in -a gale, sighted the strange land he called White Shirt -from its snowfields, which Eric the Red, following a -long time afterwards, more happily renamed. "What -shall we call the land?" he was asked. "Call it Green -Land," replied Eric. "But it is not always green!" -"It matters not: give it a good name and people will -come to it!"</p> - -<div id='pg2' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_017.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE SUMMIT OF ORAEFA</p> -</div> -</div> -<div class='lg-container-l'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>From a photo</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_3'>3</span>Then the Norsemen worked further south. In 986 -Bjarni sighted what we now call America, and in 1000 -came the voyage of Leif Ericson, who, on his way -down the mainland, landing again and again, gave the -names to Helluland, Markland, Vinland—in short, -the Viking discovery of the New World.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Greenland, like the eastern coast of the continent, -was duly colonised, its two chief settlements being one -just round Cape Farewell, the other further north on -the same coast. In those days the island, or chain of -islands beneath an ice-cap, as many think it is, would -appear to have had a milder climate than it has -now. The colonies throve, their population becoming -numerous enough to require a series of seventeen -bishops, the last one dying about 1540, to superintend -their spiritual welfare. But the Eskimos, in their -migration from Asia across the Arctic islands, arrived -in the country before the middle of the fourteenth -century and gradually drove the Norsemen downwards, -the northern colony coming to an end in 1342 -owing to the enemy attacking during a visitation of -the Black Death.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Meanwhile Iceland, which touches the Arctic Circle -in its northernmost point, and extends but half as far -south of it as Greenland, increased in prosperity as a -sort of aristocratic republic, and produced more vernacular -literature than any country in Europe, in which, -as might be expected, the story of Greenland and the -American colonies was kept so well to the fore that -it became as familiar among the people as a nursery -tale. Thither, from Bristol, in February, 1477, went -Columbus; and thence it was he returned to seek a -patron for his western voyage across the Atlantic.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The first voyage of Columbus in 1492 gave a great -<span class='pageno' id='Page_4'>4</span>stimulus to maritime discovery, and many were the -projects for searching the seas for a new route to the -east. Of these the most important was that submitted -to Henry VII by John Cabot, of Bristol. -Much has been written, on slender and confusing -evidence, as to the share in its success due to him and -to his son, the more famous Sebastian; and, to be brief, -we cannot do better than follow Anderson, who, in his -<cite>Origin of Commerce</cite>, ingeniously evades the difficulty -by speaking, commercially, of "Cabot and Sons." -The Bristol firm, then, in 1497 despatched their ship -<em>Matthew</em> to the westward and discovered and took -possession of Labrador and the islands and peninsulas in -the mouth of the St. Lawrence, the district being at first -known as the New Found Land, a name afterwards -restricted to the largest island. And they had their -reward, as shown in the Privy Purse accounts of -Henry VII, where an entry of the 10th August, 1497, -appears—"To hym that found the new isle, £10." -Surely not an excessive honorarium for the finding of -a continent.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1498 another voyage of the same ship by way of -Iceland, in which some attempt seems to have been -made to colonise the newly discovered territories, resulted -in the discovery of Hudson Strait and a visit to -Labrador, judging by the finding of the deer in herds, -the white bears, and the Eskimos who are not known -to have ever crossed into the island of Newfoundland. -This was not the only English vessel to appear in -these parts at that time, for in the same year the Privy -Purse accounts record a gift of £30 to Thomas Bradley -and Launcelot Thirkill for going to the New Isle, -adding that Launcelot had already received £20 "as -preste" for his ship going there.</p> - -<div id='pg4' class='figcenter id003'> -<img src='images/i_021.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>COLUMBUS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_5'>5</span>It is evident that the fisheries were found to be -worth working, for no less than fifty Spanish, French, -and Portuguese ships were engaged in them in 1517, -the year of Sebastian Cabot's disputed voyage to -Hudson Bay. Ten years afterwards Robert Thorne, of -Bristol, wrote to the King, mentioning this voyage and -suggesting three sea routes to Cathay—by the north-west, -as Sebastian had attempted, by the north over -the Pole, and by the north-east—and, in 1547, when -Sebastian returned to England for good, after his long -service with Spain, he again, as the first Governor of -the Company of Merchant Adventurers, took up this -Cathay question, which had frequently been raised, -and fitted out, as a commencement, an expedition to -the north-east.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The ships were built at Bristol specially for the -purpose, and they were sheathed with lead, the first -so treated in this country. This sheathing of ships was -not the only innovation we owe to the most scientific -seaman of his time, for in his famous ordinances for the -voyage many excellent new things are enjoined, including -the keeping of a log and journal, which date -from this expedition. There were three vessels, the -<em>Bona Esperanza</em>, of one hundred and twenty tons, -Captain Sir Hugh Willoughby; the <em>Edward Bonaventure</em>, -one hundred and sixty tons, Captain Richard -Chancellor; and the <em>Bona Confidentia</em>, ninety tons, -Captain Durfourth. In Chancellor's ship, as master, -was the best navigator of the fleet, whose monumental -brass in Chatham Church is noteworthy for its -<span class='pageno' id='Page_6'>6</span>epitaph: "Here lieth buried the bodie of Steven -Borough, who departed this life ye xij day of July in -ye yere of our Lord 1584, and was borne at Northam -in Devonshire ye xxv<sup>th</sup> of Septemb. 1525. He in his -life time discouered Moscouia, by the Northerne sea -passage to St. Nicholas, in the yere 1553. At his -setting foorth of England he was accompanied with -two other shippes, Sir Hugh Willobie being Admirell of -the fleete, who, with all the company of ye said two -shippes, were frozen to death in Lappia ye same -winter. After his discouerie of Roosia, and ye -Coastes thereto adioyninge—to wit, Lappia, Nova -Zemla, and the Countrie of Samoyeda, etc.: he frequented -ye trade to St. Nicholas yearlie, as chief pilot -for ye voyage, until he was chosen of one of ye foure -principall Masters in ordinarie of ye Queen's Mat<sup>ties</sup> -royall Nauy, where in he continued in charge of -sundrie sea services till time of his death."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The ships left in May, but did not remain long -together. On the 2nd of August Willoughby and -Durfourth separated from Chancellor in a storm off -the Lofodens, and after devious courses, that might -have led anywhere, were frozen in on the coast of -Lapland, where they wintered and died, as did all the -men with them. Chancellor, having waited at the -rendezvous in vain, crossed the Arctic Circle, rounded -the North Cape—so named by Borough—and found -his way into the White Sea. While his ship was in -winter quarters near where Archangel now is, he made -a sledge journey to the Czar at Moscow, which led -to the formation of the Muscovy Company and the -beginning of England's Russian trade; and through -<span class='pageno' id='Page_7'>7</span>his meeting there with the Persian Ambassador came -about the mission of Anthony Jenkinson to the Shah, -which opened up for us the Persian trade. Never was -a voyage more successful. With it began the foreign -commerce of this country, and from it dates the rise -of our mercantile marine.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1556 Borough, in the <em>Searchthrift</em>, persevered -further east, and, passing between Novaya Zemlya and -Waigatz Island, through the strait that bears his name -spelt differently, entered the Kara Sea. Next year in -the same ship he was given the command of the first -Arctic Search Expedition, its object being to discover -what had become of Willoughby. Of one ship, the -<em>Confidentia</em>, he obtained news in an interview with a -man who had bought her sails, but the full story of -the disastrous end of the voyage remained a mystery -until the Russians found the ships and bodies and -Willoughby's journal, and took the ships round to the -Dwina. Then for the first time did people realise -what it meant to battle with an Arctic winter without -preparation, and many were those who withdrew their -interest in the frozen north, preferring tropical dangers -to the possibility of such accumulating miseries as the -journal records in due order in its matter-of-fact way, -its last entry being the terribly suggestive—"Unknowen -and most wonderful wild beasts assembling in fearful -numbers about the ships."</p> - -<p class='c000'>With Stephen Borough in the Chancellor voyage -was Arthur Pet—or Pett, a name not unknown in the -navy—who, after two centuries, has become notable -again through a strange discovery. In search of the -much-desired passage by the north-east he sailed from -<span class='pageno' id='Page_8'>8</span>Harwich on the 31st of May, 1580, in the <em>George</em>, of -forty tons, accompanied by Charles Jackman, in the -<em>William</em>, of twenty tons. His orders were to avoid -the open sea and keep the coast in sight all the way -out on the starboard side, and William Borough—Stephen's -brother, afterwards Comptroller of the Navy—gave -him certain instructions and notes.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Arranging with Jackman, whose little vessel sailed -badly, to wait for him at Waigatz, Pet went ahead -and endeavoured to pass through Burrough Strait, but -meeting with trouble from the ice, missed the passage, -and working round Waigatz to the south, entered the -Kara Sea through Yugor Strait, or as it used to be -called after him, Pet Strait. Coasting eastward with -the mainland in sight, he was, as might be expected, -much hampered by the heavy pack. On being joined -by the little <em>William</em> he made for the northward, seeking -a way to the east, but the "more and thicker was -the ice so that they could go no further," and, after -talking the matter over on the 28th of July, Pet and -Jackman reluctantly decided to return to Waigatz -and there decide on what should be done.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Their way back was difficult. They became shut in -so that "they could not stir, labouring only to defend -the ice as it came upon them." For one day they -were clear of it, but next day, the 16th of August, -they were encumbered again, though they got out of -the trouble by sailing between the ice and the shore, -which was a new experience. In this way they just -scraped through Pet Strait, and bore away in the open -sea to Kolguiev, both vessels grounding for a time on -the sands to the south of that island. On the 22nd of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_9'>9</span>August, two days afterwards, the <em>William</em> parted from -the <em>George</em> in a dense fog, while Pet brought his ship -home and dropped anchor at Ratcliff on Boxing Day.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The Dutch had for some time been trying to outstrip -the English on this route to the far east. In -1565 they had settled at Kola, and about thirteen -years afterwards had established the factory at the -mouth of the Dwina on the site of Nova Kholmogory, -generally known as Archangel. In 1584 Olivier -Brunel, their energetic emissary in Russia, sailed on -the first Dutch Arctic discovery expedition. He tried -in vain to pass through Pet Strait, and the ship, with -a valuable cargo of furs and mica, was wrecked on its -homeward voyage at the mouth of the Petchora.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Ten years elapsed, and then there sailed from the -Texel the expedition of Cornelis Nai, in which the -<em>Mercury</em>, of Amsterdam, was commanded by Willem -Barents. Barents—really Barentszoon, the son of -Bernard—sighted Novaya Zemlya, with which his name -was to be thenceforth associated, on the 4th of July, -and coasting along its mighty cliffs, peopled with their -myriad seabirds, passed Cape Nassau ten days later. -Thence reaching 77° 20´, and thus improving on John -Davis's record for the highest north, he struggled -through the ice to the Orange Islands and back, some -twenty-five miles, during which he tacked eighty-one -times and thereby sailed some seventeen hundred geographical -miles. Failing to proceed further, he came -south, and off Pet Strait—named by the Dutchmen -Nassau Strait—fell in with the other two ships returning -from their unsuccessful attempt to cross the Kara Sea.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next year a fleet of seven vessels under Nai left the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_10'>10</span>Mars Diep on another endeavour to get through to -China. One of the two chief commissioners on board -was the famous Van Linschoten, who had been on the -previous voyage, and the chief pilot was Barents, who -was in the <em>Winthont</em> (Greyhound) with Jacob van -Heemskerck as supercargo. Arriving at Pet Strait -they found it so blocked with ice that no passage was -possible, and Barents, in search of information, went -ashore on the mainland south of the strait and made -friends—in a way—with the Samoyeds, whose appearance, -as described by Gerrit de Veer, was "like that of -wild men," dressed as they were in deerskins from head -to foot, those of importance wearing caps of coloured -cloth lined with fur; for the most part short of stature, -with broad flat faces, small eyes, and bow legs; their -hair worn long, plaited, and hanging down their backs.</p> - -<p class='c000'>They were evidently suspicious of the Dutchmen, -who did their best to be friendly. The chief had -placed sentinels all round to see what the new-comers -were about and note everything that was bought and -sold. One of the sentinels was offered a biscuit, which -"he with great thanks took and ate, and while he ate -it he still looked diligently about him on all sides, -watching what was done." Their reindeer sledges were -kept ready—"that run so swiftly with one or two -men in them that our horses were not able to follow -them." They were unacquainted with firearms, and, -when a musket was fired to impress them, "ran and -leapt like madmen," but calmed down as soon as they -saw there was no malicious intention, to wonder much -more, however, when the man with the gun aimed at a -flat stone he placed as a mark, and, fortunately, hit and -broke it. The meeting ended satisfactorily; "after that -we took our leaves one of the other with great friendship -on both sides, and when we were in our pinnace -we all put off our hats and bowed to them, sounding -our trumpet; they in their manner saluting us also, -and then went to their sledges again."</p> - -<div id='pg10' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_029.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>SAMOYEDS AND THEIR DWELLINGS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_11'>11</span>Barents was by no means convinced that the strait -was impassable, and held out against the opinion of -the others for some days, but with the firm ice -stretching round in all directions he had to give in, -and on the 15th of September the fleet began the -voyage home. Much had been expected, and the result -was so conspicuous a failure that the States -General abandoned any further attempt at a north-east -passage on their own account, but decided to -offer a reward to any private expedition that proved -successful. Whereupon the authorities and merchants -of Amsterdam fitted out two vessels for a third -voyage, giving the command of one to Jan Corneliszoon -Rijp, and that of the other to Jacob van -Heemskerck, with Barents as chief pilot.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The ships left the Dutch coast on the 18th of May. -Four days afterwards they were off the Shetlands, -going north-east. On the 9th of June they discovered -an island, on which they landed. Here they saw a -prodigious white bear, which they went after in a boat, -intending to slip a noose over her neck, but when they -were near her she looked so strong that their courage -failed, and they returned to the ships to fetch more -men, and what seems to have been quite an armoury -of "muskets, harquebusses, halberds and hatchets." -Accompanied by another boat they attacked this -<span class='pageno' id='Page_12'>12</span>formidable beast for over two hours, one of them -getting an axe into her back, with which she swam -away until she was caught and had her head split open -by another blow from an axe. From this remarkable -bear, whose skin, we are told, was twelve feet long, -the island was named Bear Island.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Continuing northwards they sighted, on the 19th of -June, Spitsbergen, which they supposed to be Greenland—an -error that led to much confusion—and on -the 21st of June they landed and had another trying -time with a bear, whose skin proved to be thirteen -feet long. On one island of the cluster they found -the eggs of the barnacle goose, <em>Bernicla leucopsis</em>, -whose nesting ground was up to then unknown, and -on others they saw reindeer, for in this land "there -groweth leaves and grass." Returning to Bear Island -after attaining 79° 49´, some hundred and seventy -miles higher north than in 1594, Rijp departed for the -north again, and, failing to get beyond Bird Cape, -went home to Holland by way of Kola; and to Kola -he came back the year afterwards.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1603, following the Dutch, came Stephen Bennet -to call Bear Island Cherie Island, after his patron, and -find the walruses in thousands and the birds in millions. -A rocky tableland of mountain limestone and carboniferous -sandstone, with the usual fossils in unusual -numbers and a few coal seams in between; the ravines -faced and floored with fragments of every dimension -and shape, split off by the frost and weathered by -wind and rain: a grey, grassless, monotonous country, -except along the coast, where the guano from the vast -numbers of seabirds has coated the crannies and ledges -of the cliffs, that tower up perhaps four hundred -feet from the water, with a thin layer of soil in which -the scurvy-grass and a few other plants thrive amazingly, -though the island's complete flora contains but -forty species—such is Bear Island, the stepping-stone -to Spitsbergen, of which Jonas Poole took possession -in 1609 for the Muscovy Company.</p> - -<div id='pg12' class='figcenter id004'> -<a href='images/i_033.jpg'><img src='images/i_033_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>SPITSBERGEN</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_13'>13</span>Lying east of the influence of the Gulf Stream, -the range of temperature is of the widest. Often -the island is unapproachable owing to the ice, sometimes -it is even now as hot as Welden found it in 1608, -when, in June, "the pitch did run down the ship's -sides, and that side of the masts that was to the sun-ward -was so hot that the tar did fry out of it as -though it had boiled." That was a great year for -Welden, for he killed a thousand walruses in less than -seven hours and took a young one home with him, -"where the king and many honourable personages -beheld it with admiration, the like whereof had never -before been seen alive in England."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Poole did much useful work in these seas, but is now -little heard of, most of the surviving interest in such -matters being concentrated on Henry Hudson, who -was in the same service at the same time. Hudson -was, perhaps, a grandson of Alderman Henry Hudson, -one of the founders of the Muscovy Company, but -nothing is really known of him beyond his being a -captain in the Muscovy Company, who, on the 19th of -April, 1607, took the sacrament at St. Ethelburga's, -in Bishopsgate Street, with his son and crew "and the -rest of the parishioners." That he was a parishioner -may be true, but that all the ten members of the crew -<span class='pageno' id='Page_14'>14</span>were so is unlikely. Anyhow, they were outward -bound for Japan and China by way of the North Pole, -and sailed from Gravesend on the 1st of May.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Where he went is not clear in detail, as his latitudes -are seldom correct and his longitudes are not recorded. -He sighted Greenland north of Iceland, and, shouldered -off by the ice barrier, left it somewhere about Franz -Josef Fjord, working easterly by the edge of the -ice to Spitsbergen. Here he sailed round Prince -Charles's Foreland and went north, passing Hakluyt -Headland, which he named, reaching on the 13th of -July, 80° 23´, "by observation." He saw many whales, -but found his way blocked by ice; and after many -attempts, assuring himself that there was no passage -hereabouts to the north, sailed southwards for Bear -Island. On leaving this he seems to have gone west, -possibly to the coast of Greenland again, for on his -way home he lighted upon Hudson's Touches, now -known as Jan Mayen Island, the principal cape of -which bears the name of Hudson's Point—which may -be either Hudson's or Rudston's (after the Rudston -mentioned in Baffin's fourth voyage)—while another is -known as Young's Foreland, perhaps after the James -Young who was the first in the ship to sight the coast -of Greenland on the outward journey. He dropped -anchor in the Thames on the 15th of September all -well. He had not crossed the Pole, nor did he find -Spitsbergen stretching up to 82°, as he said, its most -northerly point being miles further south; but he -had gone beyond Van Heemskerck's furthest north and -found a fishing ground for whales and walruses which -proved of great commercial value.</p> - -<div id='pg14' class='figcenter id005'> -<img src='images/i_037.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>FRANZ JOSEF FIORD</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_15'>15</span>In 1610, Poole, finding that he could not land on -Bear Island owing to the ice, stood away to the north-west, -reached Spitsbergen, and worked along the -western side to Hakluyt Headland, where the ice -barred further advance. On his way up and down the -coast he gave many of the capes and bays the names -they still bear, and generally did so well that on his -return he was put in the place of Hudson, who had -left the service two years before, and made a sort of -special commissioner by the Muscovy Company "for -certain years upon a stipend certain" to make further -discoveries round Spitsbergen and to ascertain whether -there was an open sea further northward than had -already been found. In addition to searching for the -open polar sea, he was to convoy the <em>Mary Margaret</em>, -in which were six Biscayners "expert in the killing of -the whale," to Bear Island, and thence to Whale Bay in -Spitsbergen. In short, Poole was to start the British -whaling trade, the <em>Mary Margaret</em> being the first -British vessel to be employed in that lucrative but -hazardous occupation; and she was under the command -of Thomas Edge, whose name is borne by -Edge's Island.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The beginning was so promising that in 1613, two -years afterwards, a fleet of seven vessels went out to take -part in the fishery and clear away the foreigners who -had come to share in the good fortune; the company -claiming the islands on the ground of their purely -imaginary discovery by Willoughby, the Dutch resting -their claim on the real discovery by Van Heemskerck. -In this fleet as chief pilot was William Baffin—his -second recorded voyage. By him, who as usual kept -<span class='pageno' id='Page_16'>16</span>his eyes open, we have the first description of the -Spitsbergen glaciers. He was at the time—the 29th of -July—in Green Harbour in Ice Fjord. "One thing -more I observed," he says, "in this harbour which I -have thought good also to set down. Purposing on a -time to walk towards the mountains, I, and two more -of my company, ascended up a long plain hill, as we -supposed it to be; but having gone a while upon it, we -perceived it to be ice. Notwithstanding we proceeded -higher up, about the length of half a mile, and as we -went saw many deep rifts or gutters on the land of ice, -which were cracked down through to the ground, or, at -the least, an exceeding great depth; as we might well -perceive by hearing the snow water run below, as it -does oftentimes in a brook whose current is somewhat -opposed with little stones. But for better satisfaction -I brake down some pieces of ice with a staff I had -in my hand, which in their falling made a noise on -each side much like to a piece of glass thrown down -the well within Dover Castle, whereby we did estimate -the thickness or height of this ice to be thirty fathoms. -This huge ice, in my opinion, is nothing but snow, -which from time to time has for the most part been -driven off the mountains; and so continuing and increasing -all the time of winter (which may be counted -three-quarters of the year) cannot possibly be consumed -with the thaw of so short a summer, but is only -a little dissolved to moisture, whereby it becomes more -compact, and with the quick succeeding frost is congealed -to a firm ice."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next year he was out again in the <em>Thomasine</em>, one of -a fleet of thirteen vessels, and in endeavouring to pass -<span class='pageno' id='Page_17'>17</span>to the north-east, reached Wijde Bay, where at the -point of the beach at the entrance he "set up a cross -and nailed a sixpence thereon with the king's arms," -probably the neatest property mark in history. Thence -he went on to the entrance to Hinlopen Strait, completing -the journey along the north of the main island. It -was on this voyage that he endeavoured to find his -longitudes by observing the moon, for Baffin was the -first who attempted to take a lunar at sea.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Year by year the fishery increased, and the whale -fishers multiplied as if the sea were a goldfield, the -monopoly being respected until 1618, when the Dutch, -who had all along prospered more than the rest, proved -too strong for the English, and a compromise was -arrived at by which the different harbours were -allotted to the different nations for the processes -necessary in the preparation of the whale products for -shipment. But it was purely a summer industry. -There was no colony, and it did not seem as though -there would be one, for no man willing to winter in -the place could be found. Vainly were rewards offered -to those who would venture. In the north was the -ever-present barrier of ice, more distant some years -than others, but always there to come south and hold -the islands in its grip when the fishery was over, and -those who came early and those who stayed late saw -enough of the wintry landscape to make them doubt -if life were possible under such conditions.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Then the idea, not new to Englishmen, that colonies -should be started by criminals, was acted upon, and -the Muscovy Company procured the reprieve of a -batch of prisoners under sentence of death and landed -<span class='pageno' id='Page_18'>18</span>them in Spitsbergen under promise of a free pardon, -a handsome reward, and full provisions and suitable -clothes if they would remain there for a continuous -twelve months. But, as the ship that brought them -was preparing to return to London, "they conceived -such a horror and inward fear in their hearts" that -they besought the captain to take them back that they -might be hanged rather than perish amid such desolation; -and the captain "being a pitiful and a merciful -gentleman, would not by force constrain them to stay," -and brought them home again, when the company—who -could do no less—procured them a pardon. One -captain—of a different disposition—had left nine men -behind him, all of whom perished miserably; and -another, in 1630, left eight others, apparently through -causes beyond his control, whose adventure was to -form one of the most interesting episodes in Arctic -story.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It was on the 15th of August in that year that the -<em>Salutation</em> sent Edward Pellham and his seven companions -ashore to kill reindeer for the ship's provisions -on her voyage home. Taking with them two dogs, a -snap-hance, two lances, and a tinder-box, they landed -near Black Point, between Green Harbour and Bell -Sound, and, "laying fourteen tall and nimble deer -along," camped for the night. During the night -the weather changed and brought in the ice between -the shore and the ship, and in the morning the ship -had gone. The boat's crew made for Green Harbour, -thinking she would put in there to pick them up, but -she failed to appear, being due to leave the country in -three days, and after a fruitless attempt to catch her at -<span class='pageno' id='Page_19'>19</span>Bell Sound, they eventually took up their quarters -there on the 3rd of September.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here was one of the so-called tents of the whale-fishers. -"This," says Pellham, "which we call the -tent, was a kind of house built of timber and boards -very substantially, and covered with Flemish tiles, by -the men of which nation it had in the time of their -trading thither been built. Four-score foot long it is -and in breadth fifty. The use of it was for the coopers, -employed for the service of the company, to work, -lodge, and live in, all the while they make casks for the -putting up of the train oil." As this was too large for -their comfort, they very sensibly built another within -it. "Taking down another lesser tent therefore (built -for the landmen hard by the other, wherein they lay -whilst they made their oil), from thence we fetched our -materials. That tent furnished us with one hundred -and fifty deal boards, besides posts or stanchions and -rafters. From three chimneys of the furnaces wherein -they used to boil their oil, we brought a thousand -bricks: there also found we three hogsheads of very -fine lime, of which stuff we also fetched another hogshead -from Bottle Cove, on the other side of the sound, -some three leagues distant. Mingling this lime with -the sand of the sea-shore, we made very excellent good -morter for the laying of our bricks: falling to work -thereon, the weather was so extreme cold as that we -were fain to make two fires to keep our morter from -freezing. William Fakely and myself, undertaking the -masonry, began to raise a wall of one brick thickness -against the inner planks of the side of the tent. -Whilst we were laying of these bricks, the rest of our -<span class='pageno' id='Page_20'>20</span>company were otherwise employed every one of them: -some in taking them down, others in making of them -clean and in bringing them in baskets into the tent. -Some in making morter, and hewing of boards to build -the other side withal, and two others all the while in -flaying of our venison. And thus, having built the -two outermost sides of the tent with bricks and morter, -and our bricks now almost spent, we were enforced to -build the two other sides with boards; and that in this -manner. First we nailed our deal boards on one side -of the post or stanchion to the thickness of one foot: -and on the other side in like manner: and so filling up -the hollow place with sand, it became so tight and -warm as not the least breath of air could possibly -annoy us. Our chimney's vent was into the greater -tent, being the breadth of one deal board and four foot -long. The length of this our tent was twenty foot -and the breadth sixteen; the height ten; our ceiling -being deal boards five or six times double, the middle -of one joining so close to the shut of the other that no -wind could possibly get between. As for our door, -besides our making it so close as possibly it could shut; -we lined it moreover with a bed that we found lying -there, which came over both the opening and the shutting -of it. As for windows, we made none at all, so that -our light we brought in through the greater tent, by -removing two or three tiles in the eaves, which light -came to us through the vent of our chimney. Our -next work was to set up four cabins, billeting ourselves -two and two in a cabin. Our beds were the deer skins -dried, which we found to be extraordinary warm, and a -very comfortable kind of lodging to us in our distress."</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_21'>21</span>For fuel they knocked to pieces seven old boats left -ashore by the ships, storing the wood over the beams -of the tent so as to make a sort of floor protecting the -interior from snow driven in under the tiles, and, in -addition, they broke up a number of empty casks. To -make the wood last as long as possible they hit upon a -device for keeping the fire in—"when we raked up our -fire at night, with a good quantity of ashes and of -embers, we put into the midst of it a piece of elm -wood, where, after it had lain sixteen hours, we at our -opening of it found great store of fire upon it, whereupon -we made a common practice of it ever after: it never -went out in eight months together, or thereabouts."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Upon the 12th of September a small quantity of -drift ice came into the sound, on a piece of which they -found two walruses asleep, when "William Fakely -being ready with his harping iron, heaved it so strongly -into the old one that he quite disturbed her of her rest: -after which, she, receiving five or six thrusts with our -lances, fell into a sounder sleep of death." The young -one, refusing to leave her mother, was also killed; and -a week afterwards another walrus fell a victim; but -even with these the store of provisions was inadequate. -To make the food last, they put themselves on an -allowance of one good meal a day, except on Wednesdays -and Fridays which were fasting days devoted to -whale sundries—"a very loathsome meat," says Pellham, -in brackets—later on, for four days in the week -they fed upon "the unsavoury and mouldy fritters, and -the other three we feasted it with bear and venison." -"But," continues the narrative, "as if it were not -enough for us to want meat, we now began to want -<span class='pageno' id='Page_22'>22</span>light also; all our meals proved suppers now, for little -light could we see; even the glorious sun (as if unwilling -to behold our miseries) masking his lovely face -from us, under the sable veil of coal-black night."But -they were equal to the emergency. "At the beginning -of this darksome, irksome time, we sought some -means of preserving light amongst us; finding therefore -a piece of sheet lead over a seam of one of the -coolers, that we ripped off and made three lamps of it, -which, maintaining with oil that we found in the -coopers' tent, and rope-yarn serving us instead of -candle-wicks, we kept them continually burning."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Cheerful and resourceful as they were, their fits of depression -were not infrequent. "Our extremities being -so many, made us sometimes in impatient speeches -to break forth against the causers of our miseries; but -then again, our consciences telling us of our own evil -deservings, we took it either for a punishment upon us -for our former wicked lives; or else for an example of -God's mercy in our wonderful deliverance: humbling -ourselves therefore, under the mighty hand of God, we -cast down ourselves before him in prayer, two or three -times a day, which course we constantly held all the -time of our misery."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Their prospects got worse, but they never lost a -little hope. "The new year now began: as the days -began to lengthen, so the cold began to strengthen; -which cold came at last to that extremity, as that it -would raise blisters on our flesh, as if we had been -burnt with fire, and if we touched iron at any time it -would stick to our fingers like bird-lime: sometimes if -we went but out of doors to fetch in a little water, the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_23'>23</span>cold would nip us in such a sort that it made us as sore -as if we had been beaten in some cruel manner."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Provisions were running low; the men began to talk -of famine, and the outlook became daily gloomier until -the 3rd of February. "This proved a marvellous cold -day; yet a fair and clear one; about the middle -whereof, all clouds now quite dispersed and night's -sable curtain drawn, Aurora with her golden face -smiled once again upon us, at her rising out of her -bed; for now the glorious sun with his glittering beams -began to gild the highest tops of the lofty mountains. -The brightness of the sun and the whiteness of the -snow, both together, were such as that it was able to -revive even a dying spirit. But to make a new addition -to our new joy, we might perceive two bears (a she -one with her cub) now coming towards our tent; -whereupon we, straight arming ourselves with our lances, -issued out of the tent to await her coming. She soon -cast her greedy eyes upon us, and with full hopes of -devouring us she made the more haste unto us; but -with our hearty lances we gave her such a welcome as -that she fell down and biting the very snow for anger."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Then more bears came to be eaten; then the birds -began to arrive, and the foxes to come out of their -winter earths to be trapped to the number of fifty; -then the reindeer returned; and then, on the 25th May, -two ships of Hull came into the sound from which a -boat's crew landing unperceived came close up to the -tent and shouted "Hey!" And Ayers, the only man -at the moment in the outer tent, shouted "Ho!"—and -Pellham and his shipmates had proved it to be possible -to live through a winter in Spitsbergen.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_24'>24</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER II<br /> SPITSBERGEN</h2> -</div> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c004'> - <div>(<em>continued</em>)</div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c014'>The summer town of Smeerenberg—Himkoff winters in North East Land—Phipps -reaches 80° 48´—Scoresby the elder reaches 81° 30´—Scoresby the -younger—Voyage of the <em>Dorothea</em> and <em>Trent</em> under Buchan and Franklin—Parry -reaches 82° 45´—Torell and Nordenskiöld—Carlsen sails round -Spitsbergen—Swedish North Polar expedition under Nordenskiöld—Lamont—The -Diana coal mine—Leigh Smith—Conway.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>This wintering of the <em>Salutation</em> men occurred -when the Spitsbergen fisheries were most flourishing, -the prosperity continuing for seven more years. -So lucrative was the trade that on Amsterdam Island -under Hakluyt Headland, within fifteen miles of 80° -north latitude, about as far from the North Pole as -St. Malo is from John o' Groat's, there sprang up as -a summer resort the Dutch village of Smeerenberg. -Such was the bustle produced by the yearly visit of -two or three hundred double-manned vessels, containing -from twelve thousand to eighteen thousand men, -that this village of the farthest north was as busy as a -manufacturing town. The incitement of prices proportionate -to the latitude attracted hundreds of annual -settlers, who throve on the sale of brandy, wine, -tobacco, and sundries to the whale-fishers in shops of -all varieties, including bakehouses, where the blowing -of a horn let the sailors know that the bread had just -<span class='pageno' id='Page_25'>25</span>been drawn hot from the oven. In fact, hot rolls and -every delicacy could be had in Smeerenberg, which the -Dutch averred was as flourishing as Batavia, founded -by them a few years before. And when winter was -just about due every man—and woman—went back to -Holland. But the life of Smeerenberg was a short -and a merry one, for in 1640 the shore fisheries were -failing, and a year or so afterwards the lingerers of its -last season left it for good, clearing out from its houses -of brick and wood, demolishing its furnaces, removing -its copper cauldrons and coolers and casks and everything -that could be taken away, and leaving it in -desolation to be occupied in the next and subsequent -summers by polar bears.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Like all seaside resorts it had its rival. Close by is -the Cookery-of-Haarlem, abandoned at the same time, -but rather more hurriedly. When Martens went there -on the 15th of July, 1671, he found four houses still -standing, in one of which were "several barrels or -kardels that were quite decayed, the ice standing in -the same shape the vessels had been made of: an anvil, -smith's tongs, and other tools belonging to the cookery, -were frozen up in the ice; the kettle was still standing -as it was set, and the wooden troughs stood by it." -Behind these houses "are high mountains," he continues, -"if one climbeth upon these, as we do on others, -and doth not mark every step with chalk, one doth not -know how to get down again: when you go up you -think it to be very easy to be down; but when you -descend it is very difficult and dangerous, so that many -have fallen and lost their lives." Absurd as this chalking -of the steps may seem, there have been many who -<span class='pageno' id='Page_26'>26</span>have taken the hint from the careful Martens when -climbing in Spitsbergen, and many who have regretted -not having done so.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In ordinary summers the west side of Spitsbergen is -clear of ice, not so the eastern side, the difference being -due to the Gulf Stream, which, though evidently failing, -is traceable along the coast round Hakluyt Headland -and up to the ice barrier. In addition to this -there is the general cause, whatever it may be, which -makes the western coasts of all Arctic lands, isolated -or not, warmer than the eastern. Greenland, for -instance, is more approachable in summer from Davis -Strait than from the Greenland Sea, Novaya Zemlya -from Barents Sea than from Kara Sea, and so on with -all the islands and peninsulas of Asia and America. -Hence all this whaling was confined practically to the -western harbours of West Spitsbergen, the largest of -the group of islands. The next largest, North East -Land, was never much visited except from Hinlopen -Strait, though the Russians from time to time took -some interest in the north and east harbours, and would -have taken more, for it abounded in reindeer, if the -ice had not made the landing an enterprise of some -difficulty.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the east coast of North East Land, in 1743, a -Russian whaler was caught in the pack, and the mate, -Alexis Himkoff, remembering that a house had been -built there some years before, went on shore with his -godson, Ivan Himkoff, and two sailors, Scharapoff and -Weregin, in search of it, in case the ship should have -to be abandoned. They found the house, but, on -returning to the shore next morning, could see nothing -<span class='pageno' id='Page_27'>27</span>of the ship, which had apparently been carried away -and crushed in the ice. They had brought with them -a musket, a powder-horn with twelve charges of -powder, twelve bullets, an axe, a small kettle, a bag -with about twenty pounds of flour, a knife, a tinder-box -and tinder, a bladder of tobacco, and every man -had his pipe. That was their outfit.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The house was thirty-six feet in length, and eighteen -in height and breadth. It contained a small antechamber -about twelve feet broad, which had two doors, -one to close it from the outer air, the other admitting -to the inner room in which was a Russian stove, a kind -of oven without a chimney, serving at will for heating, -for baking, or for sleeping on. Realising that they had -a long stay before them, they began by shooting -twelve reindeer, one for each bullet. They then repaired -the house, stopping up all the crevices with -moss; and they then laid in a store of fuel from the -driftwood, there being no trees on the island. On the -beach they found some boards with nails in them, and -a long iron hook and a few other pieces of old iron. -And also there was a root of a fir tree in shape not -unlike a bow. Those were the materials they had to -make the best of.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A large stone served for an anvil, a pair of deer horns -did duty for tongs, and with these and the fire, the iron -hook was made into a hammer; and then two of the -nails were shaped into spear-heads, which were tied to -sticks from the driftwood with strips of deerskin. -With these weapons they began by killing a bear, -whose flesh they ate, whose skin they kept, and whose -tendons they made into thread and a string for the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_28'>28</span>bow formed out of the root of the fir tree. More -nails were forged into arrow-heads, tied with sinew on -to light sticks cut with the knife, the shafts being -feathered from the feathers of seafowl. With these -weapons they shot, before they had finished, two hundred -and fifty reindeer, and they kept the skins, as they -did also those of a large number of blue and white -foxes, as we shall see in the sequel. In their own -protection they killed nine bears, the only one they -deliberately attacked being the first.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To be sure of keeping their fire alight they modelled -a lamp out of clay, which they filled with deer-fat, -with twisted linen for a wick; but the clay was too -porous, the fat ran through it; so they made another -lamp of the same stuff, dried it in the air, heated it red -hot, and cooled it in a sort of thin starch made of flour -and water, strengthening the pottery by pasting linen -rags over it. The result was so successful that they -made a second lamp as a reserve. Some wreckage -gave them a little cordage and a quantity of oakum, -which came in for lamp-wicks. The lamp, like the -sacred fire, was never allowed to go out. To make -themselves clothes, they soaked skins in fresh water till -the hair could be pulled off easily, and rubbed them -well, and then rubbed deer fat into them until they -were pliant and supple. Some of the skins they prepared -as furs. Out of nails they, after many failures, -made awls and needles, getting the eyes by piercing the -heads with the point of the knife, and smoothing and -pointing them by rounding and whetting them on a -stone.</p> - -<p class='c000'>For six years they lived in this desert place. Then -<span class='pageno' id='Page_29'>29</span>one of them, Weregin, died of scurvy, and their -gloomy forebodings as to which was to be taken next -were broken in upon by their sighting a ship, to which -they signalled with a flag made of deerskin. The -signal was seen and they were rescued; and they took -back to Archangel two thousand pounds weight of -reindeer fat, their bales of skins and furs, their bow and -arrows and spears, and in short everything they possessed. -And they arrived there on the 28th of September, -1749, comfortably off from the value of the -goods they brought with them—the heroes of one of -the very best of true desert island stories.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Like most Russians they do not seem to have -suffered much from the cold or to have been inconvenienced -by the summer heat, which is also considerable. -In 1773, on the 13th of June, when Phipps -and Lutwidge anchored in Fair Haven, round by -Amsterdam Island, they found the thermometer reach -58½° at noon and descend no lower than 51° at midnight, -and on the 16th it rose in the sun to 89½° till a -light breeze made it fall almost suddenly ten degrees. -This was the expedition sent out to the North Pole, -mainly at the instigation of Daines Barrington, Gilbert -White's friend. The ships were the <em>Racehorse</em> and -<em>Carcass</em>; and, as every one knows, or ought to know, -as midshipman with Captain Lutwidge went Horatio -Nelson, then a boy of fourteen, who was to figure -largely in the world, though on this occasion he did -nothing remarkable beyond attacking a polar bear, -whose skin he thought would make a nice present for -his father, and bringing his boat to the rescue when -one of the <em>Racehorse</em> boats was attacked by walruses. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_30'>30</span>For another thing the expedition is memorable, that -being that the useful apparatus for the distillation of -fresh water from sea water, known to every seafarer, -was first used on this voyage, Dr. Irving, its inventor, -being the surgeon of the <em>Racehorse</em>. Another item to -be noted is that Phipps had with him a Cavendish -thermometer, which he tried the day after he crossed -the Arctic Circle, and found that at a depth of 780 -fathoms the temperature was 26°, while at the surface -it was 48°.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Phipps did all he could to go north, and, in -longitude 14° 59´ east, reached 80° 48', the nearest to -the Pole up to then, but he was foiled by the ice -barrier, which he tried to penetrate again and again. -He got his ships caught in the ice and took to his -boats, thinking he would have to abandon them, when -fortunately the pack drifted south, and the vessels, -clearing themselves under sail, caught the boats up -and took them on board. Then he went along the -edge of the ice westward, and, finding no opening, -gave the venture up and sailed for home.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The next to do good work within this area was -William Scoresby the elder, whose only equal as a -whale-fisher was his son. To him we owe the invention -of the crow's nest, that cylindrical frame covered -with canvas, entrance to which is given by a trap-hatch -in the base, reached by a Jacob's ladder from the topmast -crosstrees, the conning-tower, so to speak, carried -since by every ship on Arctic service. He was also -the inventor of the ice-drill and many another implement -and device used in Polar navigation; and he it -was who sloped off his fore and main courses to come -inboard to a boom fitted to the foot, used by every -whaler, by which, in fact, you may know them. He -also, long before the <em>America</em>, discovered the advantage -of flat sails, and, in order to get his weights well down, -he filled his casks with water as ballast and packed -them with shingle, so that, instead of going out light, -he was in the best of trim, with a power of beating -to windward that took him to the fishing ground in -double quick time and further into the ice, when he -chose, than any of his competitors.</p> - -<div id='pg30' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_055.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>WHALERS AMONG ICEBERGS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_31'>31</span>Out in the <em>Resolution</em> in 1806 he saw from his crow's -nest, in which he often spent a dozen hours at a stretch, -that below the ice-blink—the white line in the sky -which betokens the presence of ice—there was a blue-grey -streak denoting open water, and that the motion -of the sea around the ship must be due to a swell, -which could only come from open water to the northward. -On the 13th of May he started for this. By -sawing the ice, hammering at it, dropping his boats on -to it from the bow, sallying the ship—that is, rolling -her by running the crew backwards and forwards -across her deck—and, in fact, using every means he -could think of, he passed the barrier in the eightieth -parallel, and, on the 24th of June, attained 81° 30´, the -farthest north ever reached by a sailing vessel in these -seas. On that day there was not a ship within three -hundred and fifty miles of the <em>Resolution</em>. The bold -venture proved a thorough success; in thirty-two days -he filled up with twenty-four whales, two seals, two -walruses, and a narwhal—one of the most profitable -of his thirty voyages.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In this voyage the chief officer was his son, William -<span class='pageno' id='Page_32'>32</span>Scoresby the younger, whose <em>Arctic Regions</em> is the best -book ever written on the northern seas. Sent by his -father to Edinburgh University where he studied -almost every branch of natural and physical science, he -was thoroughly equipped for his task, and his practical -experience as a whaling captain and trained observer -stood him in such stead that his book is still the basis -of all scientific Polar research. His description of the -Spitsbergen coast as seen from a ship is as faithful to-day -as when he wrote it. "Spitsbergen and its islands, -with some other countries within the Arctic Circle, -exhibit a kind of scenery which is altogether novel. -The principal objects which strike the eye are innumerable -mountainous peaks, ridges, precipices, or needles, -rising immediately out of the sea to an elevation of -3000 or 4000 feet, the colour of which, at a moderate -distance, appears to be blackish shades of brown, green, -grey and purple; snow or ice, in striæ or patches, -occupying the various clefts and hollows in the sides of -the hills, capping some of the mountain summits, and -filling with extended beds the most considerable valleys; -and ice of the glacier form, occurring at intervals all -along the coast, in particular situations as already described, -in prodigious accumulations. The glistening or -vitreous appearance of the icy precipices; the purity, -whiteness, and beauty of the sloping expanse formed -by their snowy surfaces; the gloomy shade presented -by the adjoining or intermixed mountains and rocks, -perpetually covered with a mourning veil of black -lichens, with the sudden transitions into a robe of -purest white, where patches or beds of snow occur, -present a variety and extent of contrast altogether -<span class='pageno' id='Page_33'>33</span>peculiar; which, when enlightened by the occasional -ethereal brilliancy of the Polar sky, and harmonised in -its serenity with the calmness of the ocean, constitute a -picture both novel and magnificent. There is, indeed, -a kind of majesty, not to be conveyed in words, in -these extraordinary accumulations of snow and ice in -the valleys, and in the rocks above rocks and peaks -above peaks, in the mountain groups, seen rising above -the ordinary elevation of the clouds, and terminating -occasionally in crests of snow, especially when you -approach the shore under the shelter of the impenetrable -density of a summer fog; in which case the fog -sometimes disperses like the drawing of a curtain, when -the strong contrast of light and shade, heightened by a -cloudless atmosphere and powerful sun, bursts on the -senses in a brilliant exhibition resembling the production -of magic."</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1818 there went out the first British expedition -prepared to winter in the north. The vessels were two -whalers bought into the navy, the <em>Dorothea</em> and <em>Trent</em>, -the first under the command of David Buchan, the -other under that of John Franklin. Neither officer -had been in the Arctic region before, but Buchan had -done excellent service in surveying Newfoundland, and -Franklin had been marked for special duty owing to his -work in Australian seas under his cousin, Matthew -Flinders, and for the manner in which on his way home -he had acted as signal officer to Nathaniel Dance in -that ever-memorable victory off the Straits of Malacca, -when the Indiamen defeated and pursued a French -fleet under Admiral Linois. Dance's report gave -Franklin a further chance of distinction, for it led to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_34'>34</span>his appointment to the <em>Bellerophon</em>, whose signal -officer he was during the battle of Trafalgar.</p> - -<p class='c000'>They were instructed to proceed to the North Pole, -thence to continue on to Bering Strait direct, or by the -best route they could find, to make their way to the -Sandwich Islands or New Albion, and thence to come -back through Bering Strait eastward, keeping in sight -and approaching the coast of America whenever the -position of the ice permitted them so to do. A nice -little programme. But they started too early in a bad -season; they did not get so far north as Phipps; they -made accurate surveys and other observations; in -exploration they did little; and they had many adventures.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As they ranged along the western side of Spitsbergen -the weather was severe. The snow fell in heavy -showers, and several tons' weight of ice accumulated -about the sides of the <em>Trent</em>, and formed a complete -casing to the planks, which received an additional layer -at each plunge of the vessel. So great, indeed, was -the accumulation about the bows, that they were -obliged to cut it away repeatedly with axes to relieve -the bowsprit from the enormous weight that was -attached to it: and the ropes were so thickly covered -with ice that it was necessary to beat them with large -sticks to keep them in a state of readiness. In the -gale the ships parted company, but they met again at -the rendezvous in Magdalena Bay.</p> - -<div id='pg34' class='figcenter id006'> -<img src='images/i_061.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>SIR JOHN FRANKLIN</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_35'>35</span>Later on, off Cloven Cliff, there was a walrus fight -begun by the seamen and continued by the walruses -when they found themselves more at home in the -water than on the ice. They rose in numbers about -the boats, rushing at them, snorting with rage, endeavouring -to upset them or stave them in by hooking -their tusks on the gunwales, or butting at them with -their heads. "It was the opinion of our people," says -Beechey, "that in this assault the walruses were led on -by one animal in particular, a much larger and more -formidable beast than any of the others; and they -directed their efforts more particularly towards him, -but he withstood all the blows of their tomahawks -without flinching, and his tough hide resisted the entry -of the whale lances, which were, unfortunately, not -very sharp, and soon bent double. The herd was so -numerous, and their attacks so incessant, that there -was not time to load a musket, which, indeed, was the -only effectual mode of seriously injuring them. The -purser, fortunately, had his gun loaded, and the whole -now being nearly exhausted with chopping and sticking -at their assailants, he snatched it up, and, thrusting -the muzzle down the throat of the leader, fired -into him. The wound proved mortal, and the animal -fell back amongst his companions, who immediately -desisted from their attack, assembled round him, and -in a moment quitted the boat, swimming away as hard -as they could with their leader, whom they actually -bore up with their tusks and assiduously preserved -from sinking."</p> - -<p class='c000'>On one occasion Franklin and Beechey, when out in -a boat together, witnessed the launch of an iceberg. -They had approached the end of a glacier and were -trying to search into the recess of a deep cavern at -its foot when they heard a report as if of a cannon, -and, turning to the quarter whence it proceeded, perceived -<span class='pageno' id='Page_36'>36</span>an immense piece of the front of the cliff of ice -gliding down from a height of two hundred feet at -least into the sea, and dispersing the water in every -direction, accompanied by a loud grinding noise, and -followed by a quantity of water, which, lodged in the -fissures, made its escape in numberless small cataracts -over the front of the glacier. They kept the boat's -head in the direction of the sea and thus escaped -disaster, for the disturbance occasioned by the plunge -of this enormous fragment caused a succession of -rollers, which swept over the surface of the bay, -making its shores resound as it travelled along it, and -at a distance of four miles was so considerable that it -became necessary to right the <em>Dorothea</em>, which was then -careening, by instantly releasing the tackles which confined -her. The piece that had been disengaged wholly -disappeared under water, and nothing was seen but a -violent boiling of the sea and a shooting up of clouds -of spray like that which occurs at the foot of a great -cataract. After a short time it reappeared, raising its -head full a hundred feet above the surface, with water -pouring down from all parts of it; and then, labouring -as if doubtful which way it should fall, it rolled over, -and, after rocking about for some minutes, became -settled. It was nearly a quarter of a mile round and -floated sixty feet out of the water, and making a -fair allowance for its inequalities, was computed to -weigh 421,600 tons.</p> - -<div id='pg36' class='figcenter id007'> -<a href='images/i_065.jpg'><img src='images/i_065_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>TRACK OF H.M.S. "DOROTHEA" AND "TRENT"</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_37'>37</span>There were frequent landings, often with difficulties -in the return, due generally to attempts at making a -short cut to the shore or across the ice. Of these -short cuts the very shortest was that made by one of -the sailors named Spinks, who was out with a party in -pursuit of reindeer. The ardour of the chase had led -them beyond the prescribed limits, and when the -signal was made for their return to the boat some of -them were upon the top of a hill. Spinks, an active -and zealous fellow, anxious to be first at his post, -thought he would outstrip his comrades by descending -the snow, which was banked against the mountain at -an angle of about 40° with the horizon, and rested -against a small glacier on the left. The height was -about two thousand feet, and in the event of his foot -slipping there was nothing to impede his progress until -he reached the beach, either by the slope or the more -terrific descent of the face of the glacier. He began -his career by digging his heels into the snow, the -surface of which was rather hard. At first he got on -very well, but presently his foot slipped, or the snow -was too hard for his heel to make an impression, and -he increased in speed, keeping his balance, however, by -means of his hands. In a very short time his descent -was fearfully quick; the fine snow flew about him like -dust, and there seemed but little chance of his reaching -the bottom in safety, especially as his course was -taking him in the direction of the glacier. For a -moment he was lost sight of behind a crag of the -mountain, and it was thought he had gone over the -glacier, but with great presence of mind and dexterity, -"by holding water first with one hand and then the -other," to use his own expression, he contrived to -escape the danger, and, like a skilful pilot, steered into -a place of refuge amid a bed of soft snow recently -drifted against the hill. When he extricated himself -<span class='pageno' id='Page_38'>38</span>from the depths into which he had been plunged he -had to hold together his tattered clothes, for he had -worn away two pairs of trousers and something more. -That was all his damage, and we shall meet with him -again in the west out with Franklin and Captain Back.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the morning of the 30th of July the ships found -themselves caught in a gale with the ice close to leeward. -The only way of escaping destruction seemed -to be by taking refuge in the pack. It was a desperate -expedient rarely resorted to by whalers and only in -extreme cases. In the <em>Trent</em> a cable was cut up into -thirty-foot lengths, and these, with plates of iron four -feet square, supplied as fenders, and some walrus hides, -were hung around her, mainly about her bows; the -masts were secured with extra ropes, and the hatches -were battened and nailed down. When a few fathoms -from the ice those on board searched with anxiety for -an opening in the pack, but saw nothing but an unbroken -line of furious breakers with huge masses heaving -and plunging with the waves and dashing together -with a violence that nothing but a solid body seemed -likely to withstand; and the noise was so great that the -orders to the crew could with difficulty be heard. At -one moment the sea was bursting upon the ice blocks -and burying them deep beneath its wave, and the next, -as the buoyancy brought them up again, the water was -pouring in foaming cataracts over their edges, the -masses rocking and labouring in their bed, grinding -and striving with each other until one was either split -with the shock or lifted on to the top of its neighbour. -Far as the eye could reach the turmoil stretched, and -overhead was the clearness of a calm and silvery -<span class='pageno' id='Page_39'>39</span>atmosphere bounded by a dark line of storm cloud -lowering over the masts as if to mark the confines -within which no effort would avail.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"At this instant," says Beechey, "when we were -about to put the strength of our little vessel in competition -with that of the great icy continent, and when -it seemed almost presumption to reckon on the possibility -of her surviving the unequal conflict, it was -gratifying in the extreme to observe in all our crew the -greatest calmness and resolution. If ever the fortitude -of seamen was fairly tried it was assuredly not less so -than on this occasion; and I will not conceal the pride -I felt in witnessing the bold and decisive tone in which -the orders were issued by the commander of our little -vessel, and the promptitude and steadiness with which -they were executed by the crew."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The brig was steered bow on to the ice. Every man -instinctively gripped his hold, and with his eyes fixed -on the masts awaited the moment of concussion. In -an instant they all lost their footing, the masts bent -with the shock, and the timbers cracked below; the -vessel staggered and seemed to recoil, when the next -wave, curling up under her counter, drove her about her -own length within the edge of the ice, where she gave -a roll and was thrown broadside to the wind by the -succeeding wave which beat furiously against her stern, -bringing her lee in touch with the main mass and leaving -her weather side exposed to a floe about twice her -size. Battered on all sides, tossed from fragment to -fragment, nothing could be done but await the issue, -for the men could hardly keep their feet, the motion -being so great that the ship's bell, which in the heaviest -<span class='pageno' id='Page_40'>40</span>gale had never struck of itself, now tolled so continuously -that it had to be muffled.</p> - -<p class='c000'>After a time an effort was made to put the vessel -before the wind and drive her further into the pack. -Some of the men gained the fore-topsail-yard and let a -reef out of the sail, and the jib was dragged half up -the stay by the windlass. The brig swung into position, -and, aided by a mass under her stern, split the -block, fourteen feet thick, which had barred her way, -and made a passage for herself into comparative safety; -and after some four hours the gale moderated. Strained -and leaking the <em>Trent</em> had suffered much, but the -<em>Dorothea</em> had been damaged more; and both returned -to Fair Haven, where it was found hopeless to continue -the voyage, and thence, when the ships had been -temporarily repaired, they sailed for England. The -expedition had not done much, but it had given their -Arctic schooling to Franklin, Beechey, and Back.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In May, 1827, Parry, in the <em>Hecla</em>, was forced to -run into the ice, but not quite in the same way as -Buchan did. He was beset for three weeks, and then, -getting clear, proceeded to the Seven Islands to the -north of Spitsbergen, on one of which, Walden, he -placed a reserve of provisions; the ship, after reaching -81° 5´, going to Treurenberg Bay, in Hinlopen Strait, -to await his return.</p> - -<div id='pg40' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_071.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>PARRY CAMPED ON THE ICE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_41'>41</span>From here he made his dash for the Pole. He had -with him two boats of his own design, seven feet in -beam, twenty in length. On each side of the keel was -a strong runner, shod with steel, upon which the boat -stood upright on the ice. They were so built that they -would have floated as bags had they been stove in. On -ash and hickory timbers, an inch by an inch and a half -thick, placed a foot apart, with a half-timber of smaller -size between each, was stretched a casing of waterproof -canvas tarred on the outer side and protected by a skin -of fir three-sixteenths of an inch thick, over this came -a sheet of stout felt, and over all a skin of oak of the -same thickness as the fir, each boat weighing about -fourteen hundredweight—that is the hull, as launched. -One of these boats was named the <em>Enterprise</em>, the other -the <em>Endeavour</em>. They were intended to be hauled by -reindeer, but the state of the ice rendered this impracticable -and the men did the work themselves. Parry -took command of the <em>Enterprise</em>, the other being in -charge of Lieutenant James Clark Ross; and, altogether, -officers and men numbered twenty-eight.</p> - -<p class='c000'>From Little Table Island, where they left a reserve -as they had done at Walden, they started for the north—two -heavy boats laden with food for seventy days -and clothing for twenty-eight men, with a compact -equipment including light sledges, travelling in a sea -crowded or covered with ice in every form, large and -small, over which they were dragged up and down -hummocks, round and among crags and ridges, along -surfaces of every kind of ruggedness, of every slope -and irregularity, the few flat stretches broken with -patches of sharp crystals or waist-deep snow; through -lanes and pools of water with frequent ferryings and -transhipments, in sunshine and fog, and, strange to -say, frequently in pouring rain. They travelled by -night and rested by day, though, of course, there was -daylight all the time. "The advantages of this plan," -says Parry, "which was occasionally deranged by circumstances, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_42'>42</span>consisted, first in our avoiding the intense -and oppressive glare from the snow during the time of -the sun's greatest altitude, so as to prevent in some -degree the painful inflammation in the eyes called -snow-blindness which is common in all snowy countries. -We also thus enjoyed greater warmth during -the hours of rest and had a better chance of drying our -clothes; besides which no small advantage was derived -from the snow being harder at night for travelling. -When we rose in the evening we commenced our day -by prayers, after which we took off our sleeping dresses -and put on those for travelling, the former being made -of camlet lined with racoon skin, and the latter of -strong blue, box cloth. We made a point of always -putting on the same stockings and boots for travelling -in, whether they had dried during the day or not, and -I believe it was only in five or six instances that they -were not either still wet or hard frozen." When halted -for rest the boats were placed alongside each other, -with their sterns to the wind, the snow or wet cleared -out of them, and the sails, held up by the bamboo -masts and three paddles, were placed over them as -awnings with the entrance at the bow.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Progress was not great, sometimes fifty yards an hour, -occasionally twelve miles a day, that is on the ice, for -soon it was apparent that the distance gained by -reckoning was greater than that given by observation, -and Parry realised to his dismay that the pack was -drifting south while he was going north. But he -kept on till on the 21st of July he reached 82° 45´, -which remained the farthest north for forty-nine -years.</p> - -<div id='pg42' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_075.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>PARRY'S BOATS AMONG THE HUMMOCKS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_43'>43</span>During the last few days he had been drifting south -in the day almost as far as he had advanced north in -the night, and, having used up half his provisions, he -reluctantly abandoned the struggle as hopeless. "As -we travelled," he says, "by far the greater part of our -distance on the ice, three, and not infrequently, five -times over, we may safely multiply the road by 2½; -so that our whole distance, on a very moderate calculation, -amounted to five hundred and eighty geographical -miles, or six hundred and sixty-eight statute -miles; being nearly sufficient to have reached the Pole -in a direct line."</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1858 a Swedish expedition under Otto Torell -started from Hammerfest for Spitsbergen. He was -accompanied by A. Quennerstedt and Adolf Erik -Nordenskiöld. They explored Horn Sound, Bell -Sound, and Green Harbour. In Bell Sound they -dredged with great success for <span lang="la" xml:lang="la">mollusca</span>; they made a -botanical collection, chiefly of mosses and lichens, -found tertiary plant fossils, and, in the North Harbour, -carboniferous limestone beds with the tertiary plant-bearing -strata above them—in short, Nordenskiöld -entered upon his long and fruitful study of Spitsbergen -geology. Three years afterwards Torell took -out another expedition, Nordenskiöld going with him, -which was to explore the northern coast and then -make for the far north; but the ice conditions kept -them in Treurenberg Bay, where they visited Hecla -Cove and found Parry's flagstaff. In the course of -their journeys they noticed in Cross Bay the first -known Spitsbergen fern, <em>Cystopteris fragilis</em>; by the -side of a freshwater lake in Wijde Bay an Alpine -<span class='pageno' id='Page_44'>44</span>char was picked up; and, at Shoal Point, Torell discovered -in a mass of driftwood a specimen of the unmistakable -Entada bean, two and a quarter inches -across, brought there from the West Indies by the -Gulf Stream, as other specimens have been drifted to -European shores.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1864, the year that Elling Carlsen found the -navigation so open that he passed the Northern Gate -and sailed round Spitsbergen, Nordenskiöld, at the -head of a small expedition, was at work in Ice Fjord, -and, unable to go north on account of the ice, rounded -South Cape, entered Stor Fjord, visited Edge's Land -and Barents Land, and from the summit of White -Mountain, near Unicorn Bay, rediscovered the west -coast of the island reported by Edge two hundred and -fifty years before. In 1868, as leader of the Swedish -North Polar Expedition in the <em>Sofia</em>, he reached -81° 42´, in 17° 30´ east, the highest latitude then -reached by a steam vessel, and his farthest north; his -next Polar venture, four years afterwards, in the -<em>Polhem</em>, ending in his having to winter in Mossel Bay, -where his generous endeavour to feed one hundred and -one extra men, who were ice-bound, on provisions -intended for his own twenty-four, would have ended in -disaster had he not been relieved by Leigh Smith in the -<em>Diana</em>.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The <em>Diana</em> was the steam yacht built for James -Lamont, in which, like Leigh Smith, he cruised for -several seasons in the Arctic seas, combining sport with -exploration in a truly admirable way. To these two -yachtsmen we owe much of our knowledge of Spitsbergen, -Novaya Zemlya, and Franz Josef Land, but we -<span class='pageno' id='Page_45'>45</span>can only give them passing mention here. We must, -however, find room for Lamont's useful find of the -coal mine in Advent Bay, from which he filled up the -<em>Diana's</em> bunkers. "When I paid a visit to the coal -mine," he says, "I found it quite a busy scene for a -quiet Arctic shore. The engineer and fireman directed -the blasting, my English hands quarried, while the -Norwegians carried the sacks down the hill. The old -mate, the many-sidedness of whose character I have -so much valued on my various voyages, was digging -away with the rest, though I am sorry that in the -sketch his weather-beaten face is turned away. All -the rest are portraits, and the reader will notice that -Arctic work is not done in the attractive uniforms -known to Cowes and Ryde. The coal-bed was about -three feet thick, and lay very horizontally between -two layers of soft, mud-coloured limestone. It was -harder to obtain than I anticipated, because saturated, -through all the cracks and interstices, with water which -had frozen into ice more difficult to break through -than the coal itself, thereby rendering these fissures -worse than useless in quarrying. This is tertiary coal, -and is of fair quality, but contains a good deal of -sulphur. When we began to burn it, so much water -and ice was unavoidably mixed with it that the -engineers had to let it drain on deck in the hot sun -and then mix it with an equal bulk of Scotch coal. -Consumed in this way the ten tons obtained in three -days was a useful addition to the fast-dwindling stock -on board."</p> - -<p class='c000'>While Nordenskiöld was at Mossel Bay he attempted -a journey to the north, but was stopped by the ice -<span class='pageno' id='Page_46'>46</span>at Seven Islands, and returned round North East -Land. It took him five days to pass across the -twenty-three miles between Phipps Island and Cape -Platen over pyramids of angular ice up to thirty -feet high. On the coast, which he found extending, -as Leigh Smith had reported, much further to the -east than was shown on the charts, he met with the -inland ice ending in precipices from two thousand to -three thousand feet high. Ascending this ice they -had scarcely gone a quarter of a mile before one of -the men disappeared at a place where the surface was -level, and so instantaneously that he could not even -give a cry for help. When they looked into the hole -they found him hanging on to the drag-line, to which -he was fastened with reindeer harness, over a deep -abyss. Had his arms slipped out of the harness, a -single belt, he would have been lost. Along the level -surface every puff of wind drove a stream of fine snow-dust, -which, from the ease with which it penetrated -everywhere, was as the fine sand of the desert to the -travellers in the Sahara. By means of this fine snow-dust, -steadily driven forward by the wind, the upper -part of the glacier—which did not consist of ice, but -of hard packed blinding white snow—was glazed and -polished so that it seemed to be a faultless, spotless -floor of white marble, or rather a white satin carpet. -Examination showed that the snow, at a depth of four -to six feet, passed into ice, being changed first into a -stratum of ice crystals, partly large and perfect, then -to a crystalline mass of ice, and finally to hard glacier -ice, in which could still be observed numerous air -cavities compressed by the overlying weight; and, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_47'>47</span>when, as the surface thaws, the pressure of the enclosed -air exceeds that of the superincumbent weight, -these cavities break up with the peculiar cracking -sound heard in summer from the glacier ice that floats -about in the fjords. Occasionally broad channels were -crossed, of which the only way to ascertain the depth -was to lower a man into them, and frequently he had -to be hoisted up again without having reached the -bottom; such danger areas causing so circuitous a -route that much progress was impossible.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Prior to the explorations of Sir Martin Conway in -1896, it was supposed that this inland ice extended -over all the islands of the group, an area exceeding -twenty thousand square miles. He, however, proved -that so far as West Spitsbergen was concerned, this -was not the case. Crossing it he found much of the -interior a complex of mountains and valleys, amongst -which were many glaciers, as in Central Europe, but -with no continuous covering of ice, each glacier being -a separate unit with its own drainage system and -catchment area, the valleys boggy and relatively fertile, -the hillsides bare of snow in summer up to more than -a thousand feet above sea-level. In the rise of the -country from the sea it seems to have come up as a -plain which did not reach the level of perpetual snow, -so that as it rose it was cut down into valleys in the -usual way by the agency of water pouring off from -the plateau over its edge down a frost-split rock-face, -the valleys gently sloped, the head necessarily steep -owing to the face of the cliff being stripped off as the -waterfalls cut their way back.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Since Nordenskiöld's first expedition we have learnt -<span class='pageno' id='Page_48'>48</span>much of the geology and physical features of Spitsbergen; -and we hear no more of the poverty of its -flora and fauna. Now it has become a summer tourist -resort we are yearly increasing our knowledge of this -land of no thunderstorms, for centuries the largest -uninhabited area on the globe, the only considerable -stretch on which there is no trace of human occupation -before its discovery by the moderns in 1596, when it -was found by Barents and his companions.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_49'>49</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER III<br /> NOVAYA ZEMLYA</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Van Heemskerck and Barents reach Ice Haven—The ship in the ice—The -first crew to winter in the Arctic—The house the Dutch built—The bears—The -foxes—Intense cold—Twelfth Eve rejoicings—Preparations for -departure—Death of Barents—The boat voyage—Meeting with Rijp—Admiral -Jacob Van Heemskerck—Carlsen at Ice Haven—Finds the house -as described by De Veer—The relics at the Hague—Gardiner finds the -powder-flask—Gundersen finds the translation of the voyage of Pet and -Jackman—Second voyage of Hudson—His third voyage—De Vlamingh—Russian -explorers.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>We left Barents parting company with Rijp at -Bear Island, Rijp bound northwards. Barents, -taking his vessel eastwards, struck Novaya Zemlya at -Loms Bay, near Cross Bay, and bearing north-eastwards -reached the Orange Islands and rounded Cape -Mauritius. Steering south he got down into Ice Haven, -where at length, says De Veer, "the ice began to drive -with such force that we were enclosed round about -therewith, and yet we sought all the means we could to -get out, but it was all in vain: and at that time we had -like to have lost three men that were upon the ice to -make way for the ship, if the ice had held the course it -went; but as we drove back again, and the ice also -whereon our men stood, they being nimble, as the ship -drove by them, one of them caught hold of the beak -head, another upon the shrouds, and the third upon the -mainbrace that hung out behind, and so by great -<span class='pageno' id='Page_50'>50</span>adventure by the hold they took they got into the ship -again, for which they thanked God with all their -hearts." The same evening, that of the 26th of August, -1596, they reached the west of Ice Haven—now known -as Barents Bay—where they were forced to remain, -being the first crew on record to spend a winter in the -Arctic regions and survive to tell the story.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To begin with, the ice gathered round the ship and -lifted her bow four feet out of the water. Endeavouring -to right her by clearing the ice away, Barents was -on his knees measuring the height she had to fall when -the ice broke with "such a noise and so great a crack -that they thought verily they were all cast away." As -she lay upright again they tried in vain with crowbars -and other tools to break off the piled-up ice, and next -day in a heavy snow the pressure became such that the -whole ship was borne up and so squeezed that "all that -was both about and in it began to crack, so that it -seemed to burst in a hundred pieces, which was most -fearful both to see and hear, and made all the hair of -our heads to rise upright with fear." The grip continuing, -the vessel was driven up four or five feet and -the rudder squeezed off, which was replaced by a new -one, when she sank back into the water a few hours -afterwards owing to the ice drifting clear for a while. -Thus matters went on for a little time, the ship being -alternately lifted and released.</p> - -<div id='pg50' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_085.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>HOW OUR SHIP STUCK FAST IN THE ICE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_51'>51</span>On the 11th of September, as there was no hope of -escape, it was decided to build a house wherein to -spend the winter, and in seeking for a suitable position, -a mass of driftwood—"trees, roots and all"—was discovered, -"driven ashore from Tartaria, Muscovia, or -elsewhere," for there were no trees growing on the -land, "wherewith," says De Veer, "we were much -comforted, being in good hope that God would show -us some further favour; for that wood served us not -only to build our house, but also to burn and serve us -all the winter long; otherwise without all doubt we -had died there miserably with extreme cold."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The timber was collected and piled up in heaps that -it might not be hidden under the snow, and two sledges -were made on which to drag it to the site of the house. -This was heavy work in which all took part, four of -them in turn remaining by the ship, there being thirteen -men to each party, five to each sledge, with three -to help and lift the wood behind "to make us draw the -better and with more ease," and at the end of the first -week of it the carpenter died, so that only sixteen were -left. But the wood was brought along day after day, -some to build with, some for fuel; and the house was -built, the frost so hard at times that "as we put a nail -into our mouths, as carpenters do, there would ice hang -thereon when we took it out again and made the blood -follow"; and when a great fire was made to soften the -ground, in order that earth might be dug to shovel -round the house, "it was all lost labour for the earth -was so hard and frozen so deep that we could not thaw -it, and it would have cost us too much wood."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The house was roofed with deals obtained by breaking -up the lower deck of the fore part of the ship, and, -to make it weather-tight, it was covered with a sail on -which afterwards shingle was spread to keep it from -being blown off; and the materials of the cabin yielded -the wood for the door. Inside, the house was made as -<span class='pageno' id='Page_52'>52</span>comfortable as possible, as shown in the illustration -given in De Veer's book in 1598. Low shelves, with -partitions between, along the side served for sleeping -places; a cask on end with a square hole like a window -in the upper half was frequently used as a bath; a -striking clock and a time-glass marked the passing of -the hours; the large fire in the centre with its frame -and trivet and spit and copper pots and other kitchen -utensils served for warmth and cooking; and over the -fire hung a large lamp beneath the chimney, which -terminated outside in a cask giving it the appearance of -a crow's nest ashore.</p> - -<p class='c000'>While the house was building, and as long as the -sun was above the horizon, there was much trouble -with the bears, whose daily visits were always productive -of excitement. On the 26th of October, for -instance, the day after all the crew first slept in the -house, when the men had loaded the last sledge and -stood in the track-ropes ready to draw it to the house, -Van Heemskerck caught sight of three coming towards -them from behind the ship. The men jumped out of -the track-ropes, and as fortunately two halberds lay -upon the sledge, Van Heemskerck took one and De -Veer the other, while the rest ran to the ship, "and as -they ran one of them fell into a crevice in the ice, -which grieved us much, for we thought the bears would -have run unto him to devour him," but they made -straight after the others instead. "Meantime we and -the man that fell into the cleft of ice took our advantage -and got into the ship on the other side; which the -bears perceiving, they came fiercely towards us that -had no arms to defend us withal but only the two -<span class='pageno' id='Page_53'>53</span>halberds, gave them work to do by throwing billets of -firewood and other things at them, and every time we -threw they ran after them as a dog does at a stone that -has been cast at him. Meantime we sent a man down -into the caboose to strike fire and another to fetch -pikes; but we could get no fire, and so we had no -means to shoot"—their firearms being matchlocks. -"At the last as the bears came fiercely upon us we -struck one of them with a halberd on the snout, wherewith -she gave back when she felt herself hurt and went -away, which the other two, that were not so large as -she, perceiving, ran away."</p> - -<p class='c000'>When the bears had gone and the long night set in, -their place was taken by the white foxes, many of -these being caught in traps and furnishing skins for -clothes and flesh for meat—"not unlike that of the -rabbit"—that was "as grateful as venison." The 19th -of November was a great day. A chest of linen was -opened and divided among the men for shirts, "for -they had need of them." Next day they washed their -shirts, having evidently made the new ones in a hurry, -and, says De Veer, "it was so cold that when we had -washed and wrung them they presently froze so stiff -(out of the warm water) that although we laid them -by a great fire the side that lay next the fire thawed, -but the other side was hard frozen, so that we should -sooner have torn them in sunder than have opened -them, whereby we were forced to put them into the -boiling water again to thaw them, it was so exceeding -cold."</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 3rd of December and the two following -days it was so cold that as the men lay in their bunks -<span class='pageno' id='Page_54'>54</span>they could hear the ice cracking in the sea two miles -away, and thought that icebergs were breaking on -each other; and as they had not so great a fire as -usual owing to the smoke "it froze so sore within the -house that the walls and the roof thereof were frozen -two fingers thick with ice, even in the bunks in which -we lay. All those three days while we could not go -out by reason of the foul weather we set up the sandglass -of twelve hours, and when it was run out we set -it up again, still watching it lest we should miss our -time. For the cold was so great that our clock was -frozen and would not go, although we hung more -weight on it than before."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The snow fell until it was so deep round the house -that on Christmas Day they heard foxes running over -the roof; and the last day of the year was so cold that -"the fire almost cast no heat, for as we put our feet -to the fire we burnt our hose before we could feel the -heat, so that we had work enough to do to patch our -hose." On the 4th of January, "to know where the -wind blew we thrust a half pike out of the chimney -with a little cloth or feather upon it; but we had to -look at it immediately the wind caught it, for as soon -as we thrust it out it was frozen as hard as a piece of -wood and could not go about or stir with the wind, so -that we said to one another how fearfully cold it must -be out of doors."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next day, being Twelfth Eve, on which foreigners, -according to the old practice, hold the festivities now -customary in England on the following day, the men -asked Van Heemskerck that they might enjoy themselves, -"and so that night we made merry and drank -<span class='pageno' id='Page_55'>55</span>to the three kings. And therewith we had two pounds -of meal, which we had taken to make paste for the -cartridges wherewith, of which we now made pancakes -with oil, and to every man a white biscuit, which we -sopped in wine. And so supposing that we were in -our own country and amongst our friends it comforted -us as well as if we had made a great banquet in our -own house. And we also distributed tickets, and our -gunner was king of Nova Zembla, which is at least -eight hundred miles long and lieth between two seas."</p> - -<p class='c000'>In time the sun reappeared—as also the bears—and -the rigours of the winter relaxing, the men, on the -9th of May, applied to Barents asking him to speak -to Van Heemskerck with a view to preparing for -departure. This, after two other appeals, he did on -the 15th of May, Van Heemskerck's answer being -that, if the ship were not free by the end of the month, -he would get ready to go away in the boats. The two -boats, or, to be exact, the boat and the herring skute, -were then repaired and made suitable for a long sea -voyage, and on the 13th of June were in proper condition -with all their stores ready. Then Van Heemskerck, -"seeing that it was open water and a good west -wind, came back to the house again, and there he -spake unto Willem Barents (that had been long sick) -and showed him that he thought it good (seeing it was -a fit time) to go from thence, and they then resolved -jointly with the ship's company to take the boat and -the skute down to the water side, and in the name of -God to begin our voyage to sail from Nova Zembla. -Then Willem Barents wrote a letter, which he put -into a powder flask and hanged it up in the chimney, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_56'>56</span>showing how we came out of Holland to sail to the -kingdom of China, and what had happened to us." -Then Barents was taken down to the shore on a sledge -and put into one boat, the other sick man, Andriesz, -being placed in the other, and "with a west-north-west -wind and an indifferent open water" they set sail on a -voyage of over fifteen hundred miles among the ice, -over the ice, and through the sea.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Barents, though they little suspected it, had but a -few days to live. As they passed the northernmost -cape of Novaya Zemlya, "Gerrit," he said to De Veer, -"if we are near the Ice Point, just lift me up again. -I must see that point once more." They were amongst -the ice floes again; soon they had to make fast to one; -and then they became shut in and forced to stay there. -Next day their only means of safety lay in hauling -their boats up on to a floe, taking the sick men out on -to the ice and putting the clothes and other things -under them; but after mending the boats, which had -been much bruised and crushed, they drifted into a -little open water and got afloat. On the 20th of June, -about eight in the morning it became evident that -Andriesz was nearing his end. "Methinks," said -Barents, in the other boat, when he heard of it, "with -me too it will not last long." But still his companions -did not realise how ill he was, and talked on unconcernedly. -Then he looked at the little chart which -De Veer had made of the voyage. Putting it down, -he said, "Gerrit, give me something to drink." And -no sooner did he drink than he suddenly died. Thus -passed away their chief guide and only pilot, than -whom none better ever sailed the northern seas.</p> - -<div id='pg56' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_093.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>HOW WE NEARLY GOT INTO TROUBLE WITH THE SEA-HORSES</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_57'>57</span>Working their way down the west coast of the long -island, putting in every now and then in search of birds -and eggs, constantly in peril from the floating ice and -the bears, they slowly came south. When passing -Admiralty Peninsula they had to deal with a danger -of their own causing. They sighted about two hundred -walruses upon one of the floes. Sailing close to -them they drove them off, "which," says De Veer, -"had almost cost us dear, for they, being mighty -strong sea monsters, swam towards us round about our -boats with a great noise as if they would have devoured -us; but we escaped from them by reason that we had a -good gale of wind, yet it was not wisely done of us to -waken sleeping wolves."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Day by day De Veer tells the story of that adventurous -voyage, with its long succession of dangers and -disappointments, until they reached the mainland and -sent the Lapland messenger to Kola, who returned -with a letter from Jan Corneliszoon Rijp, who at -first they could not believe was the old friend from -whom they had parted at Bear Island; and more -briefly he continues the story until Amsterdam was -reached on the 1st of November, when the survivors, in -the same clothes they wore in their winter quarters, -fur caps and white fox-skins, walked up to the house of -Pieter Hasselaer to report themselves on arrival and -received the hearty welcome they deserved.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Though Van Heemskerck had failed to make the -passage to the east by way of the north, he was -perhaps destined for greater fame on the far less -rigorous route. Like Nelson he went on an Arctic -expedition that failed, and then secured a place in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_58'>58</span>history by a sea-fight in Spanish waters, for which his -countrymen will never forget him. He it was who -as Vice-Admiral of Holland fought the Spanish fleet -at Gibraltar in the decisive battle of the 25th of -April, 1607, in which with his twenty-six vessels he -attacked Juan Alvarez Davila's twenty ships and ten -galleons. Early in the struggle he had his leg swept -off by a cannon shot, but he remained on deck till he -died, gaining the complete victory which rendered his -countrymen free from hindrance on the road to the -Indies round the Cape of Good Hope, of which for -so many years they made such profitable use. It is -customary to give all the credit of the Arctic voyage -to Barents on the ground that his captain was no -sailor, but Holland knows no better sailor than Jacob -Van Heemskerck of Gibraltar Bay.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 9th of September, 1871, Captain Elling -Carlsen, sailing in the Barents Sea, which he had -entered round Icy Cape, landed in Ice Haven and -found the house just as De Veer had described it. -There it had stood in cold storage for 274 years, never -having been entered by human foot since Van Heemskerck -had shut the door. The bunks, the table, the -bath, the clock, in short everything, all in order, -as the orderly Dutchmen had left it. Never did a -voyage book receive such ample verification; never did -the description of an island home stand the test better.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Carlsen, to begin with, knew nothing of De Veer or -Barents, but he set to work in a conscientious way -and recorded the results like a true archæologist. -"Thursday, 14th," he wrote in his log, "Calm with -clear sky. Four o'clock in the morning we went -<span class='pageno' id='Page_59'>59</span>ashore further to investigate the wintering place. On -digging we found again several objects, such as drumsticks, -a hilt of a sword, and spears. Altogether it -seemed that the people had been equipped in a warlike -manner, but nothing was found which could indicate -the presence of human remains. On the beach we -found pieces of wood which had formerly belonged to -some part of a ship, for which reason I believe that a -vessel has been wrecked there, the crew of which built -the house with the materials of the wreck and afterwards -betook themselves to boats."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Bringing away a very large number of articles, he -resumed his voyage and landed at Hammerfest, where -Mr. E. C. Lister Kay, who happened to be there on a -yachting trip, bought them, thinking they would be repurchased -from him, at the price he gave, for one of our -own museums. In this he was disappointed, and the -collection was taken down to his house in Dorsetshire, -where Count Bylandt, the Dutch Ambassador, happening -to hear of it, called and bought it for his Government, -who placed it at the Hague in a room, the -exact imitation of that in Novaya Zemlya.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In July, 1876, Mr. Charles Gardiner, another English -yachtsman, when on a cruise in the <em>Glow-worm</em> in -Barents Sea, made a call at the house and brought -away many other relics, which he presented to the -Dutch, to be added to those at the Hague; and -among them was the powder-flask hung in the -chimney, containing the paper mentioned by De Veer. -The previous August Captain Gundersen had been -there in the Norwegian schooner <em>Regina</em>. In one of -the chests he found two charts and what he described -<span class='pageno' id='Page_60'>60</span>as Barents's Journal. The journal proved to be a -manuscript Dutch translation of the story of the -voyage in 1580 of Arthur Pet and Charles Jackman.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1608, eleven years after Barents died, Henry -Hudson, in the Muscovy Company's service, was sent -to China by the north-east. He sailed on the 22nd of -April from St. Katharine's, near the Tower of London, -and on the 3rd of June passed the North Cape on his -way to Novaya Zemlya, which he reached near Cape -Britwin twenty-three days afterwards. For some considerable -distance he had skirted the ice pack, vainly -endeavouring to get through to the northward and -enter the Kara Sea round the Orange Islands.</p> - -<p class='c000'>This being impracticable he ranged southwards looking -for a passage through at Kostin Shar, which in the -Dutch map he had with him was marked as a strait -and proved to be a bay. Had he been able to go a -little further north than Cape Britwin he might have -found that Matyushin Shar, like a rift in the rocks, -divides the long island in half, though at that early -season the ice would have probably been blocking it. -From Kostin or thereabouts he departed for home, his -voyage failing almost at the outset, owing to his being -two months too early.</p> - -<p class='c000'>While off the coast he sent his boat ashore several -times. "Generally," he says, "all the land of Nova -Zembla that we have yet seen is to a man's eye a -pleasant land; much main high land with no snow on -it, looking in some places green, and deer feeding -thereon; and the hills are partly covered with snow -and partly bare"—rather a different picture from that -given by De Veer of what it was like in the winter. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_61'>61</span>De Veer, too, had committed himself to the statement -that there were no deer in the country, but here were -Hudson's men frequently coming upon their traces, and -on the 2nd of July reporting that they had seen "a -herd of white deer, ten in a company," bringing on -board with them a white lock of deer's hair in proof -thereof.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On his return Hudson left the service of the Muscovy -Company. He went to Holland, and, early in -April, 1609, was sent out by the Amsterdam Chamber -of the Dutch East India Company. On the 5th of -May he rounded the North Cape, making for Novaya -Zemlya, and a few days afterwards reached the ice. -Here, according to Dutch accounts, his men mutinied, -but what happened during the trouble is not recorded. -Whether it was really owing to a mutiny, or, as is by -no means improbable, to secret instructions received at -his departure, Hudson, on the 14th, made sail for the -North Cape, passed it on the 19th, when he observed a -spot on the sun, and then went off westwards to Newfoundland, -making direct apparently for the mouth of -the river now bearing his name, which was discovered -by Verrazano in March, 1524, and surveyed by Gomez -in the following year, and was at the time of Hudson's -visit British territory.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The reason for this astonishing change of route was, -perhaps, that on some of the charts of the period, as on -Michael Lock's planisphere, this river, the Rio de Gamas -or Rio Grande of the Spaniards, was made to communicate -with what seems to be intended for Lake -Ontario, and this with the other lakes to the westward -was widened out into the waterway to the South Sea. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_62'>62</span>Thus Hudson drops out of our story at his first -mutiny, for he did not cross the Arctic Circle on his -fourth voyage, when his second mutiny ended his career -in the bay that bears his name, which, like the river -and the strait, was indicated on the maps years before -he went there.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1664 Willem de Vlamingh, the Dutch navigator, -or—to be cautious—the namesake of the Dutch navigator, -who thirty-one years afterwards found Dirk -Hartog's plate and named Swan River in West Australia -after the black swans, was in these regions and -rounded Novaya Zemlya into the Kara Sea, reaching so -far north that if his recorded latitude be correct he -must have sighted the Franz Josef archipelago, and, -contrary to the tendency of Arctic explorers, mistaken -land for a bank of mist or a group of icebergs. After -him neither Dutch nor English delay us, the opening -up of this continuation of the Urals being left to the -Russians, who found it first and named it—Novaya -Zemlya meaning simply New Land.</p> - -<p class='c000'>For years it was left to the Samoyeds and the walrus -hunters, whose persistent reports of deposits of silver in -its cliffs led to Loschkin's making his way round it and -spending two winters on its east coast. In 1768 Rosmysslof, -also on silver bent, wintered in Matyushin -Shar, that wonderful waterway, ninety fathoms deep, -bounded by high hills and precipitous cliffs, winding so -sharply that ships have been into it for a dozen miles or -so and seeing no passage ahead have come out again to -seek it elsewhere. In 1807 came Pospeloff, with Ludlow -the mining engineer, to settle the silver question -once for all, and settle it they did by showing that -<span class='pageno' id='Page_63'>63</span>everywhere the so-called silver was either talc or mica, -and naming Silver Bay ironically in memory thereof. -Fourteen years afterwards Lütke surveyed the west -coast, continuing during the next three summers; and -in 1832 Pachtussoff arrived to undergo in the course of -his really admirable work the hardships and privations -of which he died.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_64'>64</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER IV<br /> FRANZ JOSEF LAND</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Austro-Hungarian expedition of 1872—The voyage as planned—The drift of -the <em>Tegetthoff</em>—The polyglot crew—Discovery of Franz Josef Land—Payer's -description of an aurora—The sledge journeys—Crown Prince -Rudolf Land—Cape Fligely reached—Abandonment of the <em>Tegetthoff</em>—The -boat voyage to Cape Britwin—Leigh Smith's expeditions—Loss of -the <em>Eira</em>—The retreat in the boats—Jackson in Franz Josef Land—His -excellent survey work—The Italian expedition under the Duke of the -Abruzzi—Cagni attempts to reach the Pole and is stopped at 86° 34´—The -return journey.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>In 1871 Weyprecht and Payer were out in the -cutter <em>Isbjörn</em>, pioneering for their intended voyage -to the eastward, which started next year in the <em>Tegetthoff</em>, -the famous Austro-Hungarian attempt of 1872 -which may be described as an unintentional voyage of -unexpected discovery. The amount of credit due to -a man who starts to find one thing and lights upon -another has always been a contentious matter, and -this expedition afforded an extreme case for such -speculations. The plan was to go east-north-east, the -wintering places being undetermined, though they -might be Cape Chelyuskin, the New Siberian Islands, -or any land that might be discovered; and a return -to Europe through Bering Strait lay among the -possibilities of the venture, as an endeavour was to -be made to reach the coast of Siberia in boats and -penetrate south down one of the large rivers of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_65'>65</span>Northern Asia. What happened was that during the -afternoon of the 20th of August, when off the north-west -coast of Novaya Zemlya in 76° 22´ north, 63° 3´ -east, the ship was run into an ice-hole and made fast -to a floe, and during the night the ice, instead of parting -asunder, closed in and imprisoned her, so that she -never steamed or sailed again. In the ice and on the -ice she lay perfectly helpless, drifting with the floe, -and still in its grip when she was abandoned by her -crew on the 20th of May, two years afterwards.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It was a wonderful drift. North-easterly in the -main to begin with, then north-westerly, then easterly -to about 73°, then north, then west, in and out and -roundabout, till they reached much the same longitude -as they started from and then with a general tendency to -the northward. Autumn passed away; the Polar night -set in; and still they drifted ice-bound—a miscellaneous -company representative of the polyglot empire; "on -board the <em>Tegetthoff</em>," says Payer, "are heard all the -languages of our country, German, Italian, Slavonic, -and Hungarian; Italian is, however, the language in -which all orders are given," to which we should add -the Norwegian of Olaf Carlsen, the ice-master. During -the winter there was enough of occupation and amusement, -though private theatricals were impossible, as -they would have had to be given in four languages to -be intelligible to the audience.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The short summer came and went, and August had -almost gone when—it was on the 30th, in 79° 43´—there -came a surprise. The rays of the sun were fitfully -breaking through the gloom when suddenly the gliding -mists rolled up like a curtain, revealing in the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_66'>66</span>north-west the outlines of a rocky coast, which in a -few minutes grew into a radiant Alpine land. The -shore, however, was unattainable, as a rush over the -icefield soon showed, but from the edge of the fissure -that barred any further progress they could make out -its hills and glaciers and imagine the green pastures of -its valleys. They called it Kaiser Franz Josef's Land, -and along it they drifted during September till its outlines -faded as the wind began to drive the floe to the -south. But at the end of the month the direction of -the floe changed to the north-west, taking the <em>Tegetthoff</em> -up to 79° 58´, her highest north, near enough to -one of the islands for an effort to be made to land. -Six started from the ship over the grinding, groaning, -broken walls of ice, and when they were out of sight -of the ship a mist settled down which cut them off -from the sight of land and then so closely enwrapped -them that they could see nothing. Advance they -found hopeless, and as they returned they lost their -way and were saved by the sagacity of a dog they had -with them. All through October the drift continued, -and it was not until forenoon of the 1st of November, -two months after sighting the country, that they -managed to get ashore. This was on Wilczek Island -in the same longitude as Admiralty Peninsula in -Novaya Zemlya, and in the same latitude as Mossel -Bay in Spitsbergen.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The sun had retired for the winter nine days before, -and it was by the light of the moon that they first -explored the unknown country. Little could be done, -and, as it was much too late for attempting to shift -from the ship to the shore, the winter had to be spent -<span class='pageno' id='Page_67'>67</span>on board as the other had been. Through this winter, -as before, the auroral displays were remarkable, and -they are excellently described by Payer. Of one of -them, he says: "It is now eight o'clock at night, the -hour of the greatest intensity of the northern lights. -For a moment some bundles of rays only are to be -seen in the sky. In the south a faint, scarcely observable, -band lies close to the horizon. All at once it -rises rapidly and spreads east and west. The waves -of light begin to dart and shoot; some rays mount -towards the zenith. For a short time it remains -stationary, then suddenly springs to life. The waves -of light drive violently from east to west; the edges -assume a deep red and green colour and dance up and -down. The rays shoot up more rapidly; they become -shorter; all rise together and approach nearer and -nearer to the magnetic Pole. It looks as if there were -a race among the rays, and that each aspired to reach -the Pole first. And now the point is reached, and -they shoot out on every side, to the north and the -south, to the east and the west. Do the rays shoot -from above downwards, or from below upwards? Who -can distinguish? From the centre issues a sea of -flames. Is that sea red, white, or green? Who can -say?—it is all three colours at the same moment. The -rays reach almost to the horizon; the whole sky is in -flames. Nature displays before us such an exhibition -of fireworks as transcends the powers of imagination -to conceive. Involuntarily we listen; such a spectacle -must, we think, be accompanied with sound. But -unbroken stillness prevails, not the least sound strikes -on the ear. Once more it becomes clear over the ice, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_68'>68</span>and the whole phenomenon has disappeared with the -same inconceivable rapidity with which it came, and -gloomy night has again stretched her dark veil over -everything. This was the aurora of the coming storm—the -aurora in its fullest splendour."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Sledging was begun in March, Hall Island being first -visited, and, on the 26th, Payer, with six men, started -on his main journey up Austria Sound, reaching -Hohenlohe Island, where three men were left, and then -proceeding further north to Crown Prince Rudolf -Land. Off the southern promontory of this were -innumerable icebergs, up to two hundred feet in height, -cracking and snapping in the sunshine. The Middendorf -Glacier, with an enormous sea-wall, ran towards -the north-west; layers of snow and rents in the sea-ice, -caused by icebergs falling in, filled the intervening -space. Into these fissures Payer and his men were -continually falling, drenching their canvas boots and -clothes with sea-water. One of the men was sent on -ahead to find a path by which the glacier might be -climbed, and discovering a fairly open road the summit -was gained across many crevasses bridged with snow, -three of those at the lower part needing but a slight -movement to detach the severed portions and form -them into bergs.</p> - -<p class='c000'>While resting on the glacier looking down on the -semicircular terminal precipice and the gleaming host -of bergs which filled the indentations of the coast, one -of the men reported that his foot was swollen and -ulcerated, and he had to be sent back to Hohenlohe -Island. Just as the others were setting off, the snow -gave way beneath the sledge, and down fell Zaninovich, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_69'>69</span>the dogs and the sledge, while Payer was dragged backwards -by the rope. The fall was arrested at a depth of -thirty feet by the sledge sticking fast between the sides -of the crevasse. Payer, on his face, the rope attaching -him to the sledge tightly strained and cutting into the -snow, shouted that he would sever the rope, but -Zaninovich implored him not to do so as the sledge -would then turn over and he would be killed; hearing, -however, from Orel, that the man was lying on a ledge -of snow with precipices all around him and that the -dogs were still fast to the traces, Payer cut the rope, -and the sledge made a short turn and stuck fast again. -Then, telling Zaninovich that he must contrive to keep -himself from freezing for four hours, Payer and Orel -set off to run the six miles back to Hohenlohe Island. -Payer, as he went on ahead, threw off his bird-skin -clothes, his boots and his gloves, and ran in his stockings -through the snow. In an hour he reached the -camp, and leaving it unattended they all set off to the -rescue with a rope and a pole. Picking up his clothes -on the way, Payer and his men reached the crevasse; -one of the party was let down by the rope, and finally -Zaninovich and the sledge and dogs were brought -from their dangerous position four hours and a half -after their fall.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The advance was then resumed along the west coast -of Crown Prince Rudolf Land round the imposing -headland they named Cape Auk—the rocky cliffs being -covered with little auks and other seabirds, enormous -flocks flying up and filling the air, the whole region -seeming to be alive with their incessant whirring—and -following the line of Teplitz Bay, Payer mounted one -<span class='pageno' id='Page_70'>70</span>of the bergs detached from a glacier and saw open -water with ice bounding it on the horizon. As the -sheet over which their course lay became thinner, and -threatened to give way beneath them, they had to open -up a track among the hummocks by pick and shovel; -and when this failed they had to unload the sledge and -carry the things separately. At Cape Saulen they -camped for the night in the fissure of a glacier into -which they had to drag their baggage by a long rope; -and next day—the 12th of April, 1874—they went on -again and reached Cape Fligely, in 81° 50´ 43˝, their -farthest north.</p> - -<p class='c000'>With great difficulty they made their way back to -the ship, a long, toilsome journey through snow and -sludge, with open water in places where there had been -ice, which made them fear the <em>Tegetthoff</em> might have -drifted away again. The imminent danger of starvation -was ended by their reaching their depot on Schonau -Island, whence Payer went on for the remaining twenty-five -miles alone with the dog-sledge, the two dogs -giving much trouble until they struck the old sledge -track almost obliterated by snow, when they raised -their heads, stuck their tails in the air, and broke into a -run. Halting on an iceberg for a meal, the berg capsized, -and in a moment Payer was begirt by fissures, -water-pools, and rolling blocks of ice, from which he -managed to escape. When he turned into the narrow -passage between Salm and Wilczek Islands, Orgel -Cape, visible at a great distance, was the only dark spot -on the scene. At once the dogs made for it, and about -midnight he arrived there. With an anxious heart he -began the ascent; a barren stony plateau confronted -<span class='pageno' id='Page_71'>71</span>him; with every advancing step, made with increasing -difficulty, the land gradually disappeared and the -horizon of the frozen sea expanded before him; no ship -was to be seen, no trace of man for thousands of miles -except a cairn with the fragments of a flag fluttering in -the wind, and a grave half covered with snow. Still -he climbed, and suddenly three masts emerged. He -had found the ship; there she lay about three miles off, -appearing on the frozen ocean no bigger than a fly, the -icebergs and drifts around her having hidden her -amongst them. He held the heads of the dogs towards -her and pointed with his arm to where she lay; -and they saw her, and away they went, to find all but -the watch asleep.</p> - -<p class='c000'>After another sledge journey north-westwards to -Mount Brunn, from which Richthofen Peak was sighted, -preparations were made for abandoning the ship and -returning home. The three boats left the <em>Tegetthoff</em> -on the 20th of May, but so slow was the progress over -the difficult route that at the end of every day in the -first week it was possible for Payer to go back to her -on the dog-sledge to replenish the stores which had -been consumed; and at the end of two months of indescribable -effort the distance between the boats and -the ship was not more than eight statute miles. The -heights of Wilczek Land were still distinctly visible -and its lines of rocks shone with mocking brilliance in -the ever-growing daylight. All things appeared to -promise that after a long struggle with the ice there -remained for the expedition but a despairing return to -the ship and a third winter there with the frozen ocean -for their grave.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_72'>72</span>In the middle of July the fissures which had been -opening out around them became wider and longer, -progress reaching some four miles a day; then the -north wind blew and the icefield commenced to drift -to the south, to drift again north-east when the wind -changed. Backwards and forwards, amid every variety -of weather, including heavy rain, the pack ice moved -until it changed to drift ice, and, on the 15th of August, -the much-tried company got afloat at last in open -water and laid their course for Novaya Zemlya, where -they fell in with two Russian schooners off Cape -Britwin.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The next to visit Franz Josef Land was Leigh Smith, -whom we met with in the Spitsbergen seas. Building -the <em>Eira</em> especially for Arctic service, he started in -1880, the year she was launched, on a cruise to Greenland -and thence eastwards, which took him to the west -and north-west of the ground gone over by the Austrians. -He surveyed the whole coast from 42° east to -the most westerly point seen by Payer, and sorted it -out into several islands, but found no trace of the -<em>Tegetthoff</em>, for where she had been left was open water. -Encouraged by the success of his visit, in which the -observations and collections were unusually good, he -returned in the <em>Eira</em> the following year to meet with -much more unfavourable ice conditions. Finding it -impossible to get westward of Barents Hook the <em>Eira</em> -was, on the 15th of August, made fast to the land floe -off Cape Flora, and six days afterwards she was nipped -and stove by the ice and slowly sank in eleven fathoms -of water. As she settled down the steam winch was -set to work, and by its means half a dozen casks of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_73'>73</span>flour and about three hundredweight of bread were -saved from the main hold; and when nothing more -could be got from the lower deck the stores in the -after cabin were attacked, and within the two hours -from the discovery of the leak to the disappearance of -the ship, all these provisions and the boats and clothes -were safe on the ice; and the sails were cut away, and -with them and some oars a tent was erected in which -all the company, twenty-five in number, took shelter.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A move was made next day to the land. On Cape -Flora a house was built mainly of earth and stones, -covered with sails, in which the winter was passed. -Fortunately the district abounds with bears and walruses, -and the meat from these, boiled with vegetables, -and served out three times a day into twenty-five -plates made out of old provision tins, proved the right -sort of fare to keep every one in excellent health. -Thanks in a great measure to Bob, the retriever, the -larder was kept full; but there being a shortness of -coal, recourse for fuel had to be made to rope and -blubber, so that no one could mistake the time when the -cooking was on. In fact, the odour and the smoke were -of great interest to the bears, who lingered about intending -to pay surprise visits, and the dog had always -to be sent in front of those leaving the house. One -day when out on his own account, Bob discovered a -school of walruses on the ice and reported the matter -in his own fashion, whereupon several of these were -shot, and after an exciting chase five were secured. In -January he found another school, of which three were -bagged and stowed alongside the house, although the -thermometer stood at forty below zero. On another -<span class='pageno' id='Page_74'>74</span>occasion he managed to tempt a bear up to the front -door, where it was promptly tumbled over, to his -evident satisfaction.</p> - -<p class='c000'>During the winter the party killed twenty-nine walruses -and three dozen bears. Once, when only a fortnight's -meat was left, and things began to look serious, -no less than eight bears were killed in two weeks. At -the end of April the birds returned, and in June the ice -was cleared away by a gale and walruses were seen -swimming on the water in hundreds. Never did a -wintering party meet with better fortune, and never -was one better managed.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 21st of June they started from Cape Flora -in four boats, six men each in three of them, seven in -the other, to reach the open sea, leaving in the house -six bottles of champagne in case any person might -look in, besides a few other things, and blocking up -the door to keep out the bears. Before the boats -reached the ice they crossed eighty miles of water, and -then six weeks' hard labour began, zigzagging through -channels, hauling over hummocky floes, sailing through -pools, halting for days on a floe with no water in sight, -but never doubting that a clearance would come. On -leaving the ice they steered for Novaya Zemlya, at first -in a gentle breeze, which rapidly increased to a gale in -a heavy thunderstorm, so that the boats, with their -sails of tablecloth and shirt-tail, had to be carefully -handled as they scudded before it at such a pace that -within twenty-four hours of leaving the ice they were -drawn up all safe on the beach at the entrance of -Matyushin Shar. Next morning the Dutch exploring -schooner, <em>Willem Barents</em>, was descried coming out of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_75'>75</span>the strait, and before the schooner was reached by the -boats there came round the point the <em>Hope</em>, which -Sir Allen Young, of the <em>Pandora</em>, had brought out as -a rescue ship for them. They had been driven by the -gale to the very spot on the very day they could be -best relieved.</p> - -<p class='c000'>From the reports of Weyprecht and Payer it -appeared that the north-east of Franz Josef Land -would make an excellent base for a start for the North -Pole, and Leigh Smith was led to the same view by -his visit to Alexandra Land, but along the south he -had made so many changes in Payer's map that a -further examination of the region was evidently desirable. -To effect this by a careful survey of the coasts, -Frederick G. Jackson landed near Cape Flora on the -7th of September, 1894, and began his residence of a -thousand days. Setting to work in a businesslike way, -and recording his progress in similar style, he disintegrated -the land masses into a group of some fifty size-able -islands, through which run two main waterways, -his British Channel and Payer's Austria Sound, both -opening out northwards into Queen Victoria Sea; -Crown Prince Rudolf Land being a large island at -the northern entrance of Austria Sound, Wilczek Land -at its southern entrance being about twice its size. -He defined the coast-lines for over eighty miles of -latitude, extending to fifteen degrees of longitude as -far west as the most westerly headland, Cape Mary -Harmsworth, and so cutting up Franz Josef Land that -not even an island now bears the name, which is used -only as that of the archipelago. Never in Arctic -exploration was work rendered more evident than in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_76'>76</span>the difference between the map as Jackson found it -and as he left it.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The <em>Windward</em>, with the expedition on board, -sighted the land on the 25th of August, but, stopped -by intervening ice, could not reach the coast until a -fortnight afterwards, the landing taking place at Cape -Flora, close to Leigh Smith's house, which was found -with the roof off. Not far away Jackson established -his headquarters, quite a little settlement, though the -expedition consisted of only eight men. Just as Leigh -Smith found no remains of the <em>Tegetthoff</em>, so Jackson -found no trace of the <em>Eira</em>. It had been intended -that the <em>Windward</em> should return after putting the -party ashore, but, shut in by the ice, she had to remain -during the first winter, getting away safely next -year, to return in 1896 and take away Nansen, who, as -we shall see further on, ended his long land journey -here. On her 1897 trip she departed with the members -of the expedition all well, so that neither ship nor man -was lost, the only serious casualties being among the -dogs and the Russian ponies which did such excellent -service.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Two years afterwards, in July, 1899, the deserted -settlement was visited by the Duke of the Abruzzi, -in his expedition in the <em>Stella Polare</em>, on his way to -the north, a few days before he met with his short -imprisonment in the ice in British Channel. His was -a successful run all the same, for he was in 82° 4´, to -the northward of Crown Prince Rudolf Land, or, as -it is now called, Prince Rudolf Island, twenty-seven -days out from Archangel. Passing Cape Fligely—the -latitude of which was afterwards found to be sixteen -<span class='pageno' id='Page_77'>77</span>miles south of the 82° 5´ Payer had made it—and -rounding Cape Auk, the <em>Stella Polare</em> went into -winter quarters in Teplitz Bay, whence Captain -Umberto Cagni started, on the 11th of March, 1900, -for his forty-five days' march towards the North Pole.</p> - -<p class='c000'>It was a great disappointment to the Duke to have -to stay with the ship instead of leading this well-equipped -and thoroughly organised sledge attempt, -but owing to an accident two of his fingers had been -so severely frost-bitten that they had to be amputated, -and, unless a second winter was to be spent in the ice, -a start was imperative before he could recover from -the operation. Thus all he could do was to assist at -the first encounter of the sledges with the pressure -ridges and wish Cagni the longest possible journey and -a safe return. There was every appearance of the -journey being a difficult one, for on the first day a -stoppage had to be made every quarter of a mile or -thereabouts for a road to be cut through the ridges -with ice-axes, while next day a new hindrance was -experienced in the young ice in the channels being too -thin at times to support the sledges, one of which began -to sink and was only extricated with difficulty, so that -only one sledge could be allowed on such ice at a time.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 13th of March the auxiliary sledge was sent -back, thus reducing the caravan to a dozen sledges and -ninety-eight dogs, which in a long line passed over -a vast plain covered with great rugged blocks of ice, -as though they had been thrown down confusedly by -a giant's hand to bar the way. The wind was north-east, -the cold intense, fifty below zero, not to be -particular to a degree or so, for, as Cagni says, when -<span class='pageno' id='Page_78'>78</span>the temperature is below twenty-two, and it is impossible -to use a screen or a magnifying glass, the -mere fact of approaching to read the scale on an unmounted -thermometer sends it up a couple of degrees, -and when the temperature is below fifty-eight an -approach makes a difference of three or four degrees. -So cold was it that the sleeping bags were as hard as -wood, and the men got into them after much effort, -not to sleep but to feel their teeth chattering for hours, -the only warm parts of the body being the feet clad in -long woollen stockings. "There are patches of ice on -our knees," says Cagni, "like horses' knee-caps, and we -have others, both large and small, sometimes thick -enough to be scraped off with a knife, everywhere, but -especially on our cheeks and backs and in all places -where the perspiration has oozed through."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Amid such surroundings the camp must have seemed -somewhat out of place. When a suitable site was -chosen the first sledge was stopped, and near it the -three other sledges of the third detachment were -drawn up at a distance of about ten feet from each -other. The sledges of the second detachment as they -came up formed a second line, those of the third forming -another. The tents were pitched between two -sledges, generally those in the centre, the guy ropes -being fastened to the sledge runners, those at the ends -to an ice-axe stuck in the ice. The sleeping bags were -then unpacked, the cooking stoves taken out of the -boats, and everything arranged under the tent. The -thin steel wire ropes to which the dogs were tethered, -when unharnessed, were stretched between the sledges -away from the tents. While the men were taking -<span class='pageno' id='Page_79'>79</span>the dogs out of the harness, which always remained -attached to the traces on the sledges, and tethering -them to the steel ropes, one of the guides took a -chosen victim to some distance from the camp, and -felled it with a blow from an ice-axe, then opened it, -skinned it quickly, divided it up into ten shares and -distributed these to the dogs, already destined to -undergo the same fate, these being the weakest and -most ailing—in short, this was the elimination of the -unfit.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 22nd of March the first detachment began -its return journey; it consisted of Lieutenant Querini -and two men, and it was never heard of again. The -way northwards continued extremely difficult, with -channels and ridges plentiful and the road so rough -that the sledges began to break up in the bows and -runners, some at last so badly that their fragments had -to be used to repair the others with. On the 31st the -second detachment was sent back, consisting of the -doctor and two men, and it got safely to the ship. The -third detachment, consisting of Cagni with two Courmayeur -guides—Petigax and Fenoillet—and a sailor, -Canepa, all four Italians, made the final effort. That -day they were on level ice and covered seventeen miles, -but at night a snowstorm came on and there was -trouble. After a rest they pressed forward in rapid -marches amid bad weather over the drifting fields. On -the 12th of April while raising camp a strong pressure -piled up within a hundred yards of them a wall from -thirty-six to forty-five feet high, the highest ridge they -had seen. Enormous blocks rolled down towards them -with loud crashes after being thrown up by other -<span class='pageno' id='Page_80'>80</span>blocks, lifted to the brow of the ridge and rolled over -in their turn, raising a cloud of ice-dust in their fall, -the loud continual creaking of the pressure drowned by -the booming of the cascade which shook the ice for -yards around. These ridges were constantly forming, -most of them remaining, some of them subsiding as the -edges drifted apart, and the channels thus caused were -even more difficult to deal with, some having to be -passed over thin ice, some ferried over on small floes. -But they did not cross the track all along, and during -the last few days the travelling was easy.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 24th of April the long journey reached its -end. "At ten minutes past twelve," says Cagni, "we -are on our way to the north. The ice is like that of -yesterday, level and smooth, and, later on, undulating. -At first the dogs are not very willing to pull, but encouraged -by our shouts and a few strokes, they advance -at a rapid pace, which they keep up during the whole -march. At five we meet with a large pressure ridge, -which almost surprises us, as it seems to us a century -since we have seen any; we lost a quarter of an hour in -preparing a passage through and crossing it. Beyond -it the aspect of the ice changes; the undulations are -more strongly marked, and large blocks and small -ridges indicate recent pressure, but luckily they do not -stop us or obstruct our way. Soon after six we come -upon a large channel running from east to west; we -must stop. Beyond the channel is a vast expanse of -new ice, much broken up and traversed by many other -channels. Even if I were not prevented from doing -so, I would now think twice before risking myself in -the midst of them. If we did push forward on that -<span class='pageno' id='Page_81'>81</span>ice, even for half a day, we would gain very few miles -and besides run the risk of losing a sledge. The dogs -are very tired, and we too feel the effects of yesterday's -strain. I therefore consider that it is more prudent to -stop here, and both the guides are of the same opinion. -The sun is unclouded. I bring out the sextant and -take altitudes of the sun to calculate the longitude -(65° 19´ 45˝ E.) while Fenoillet and Canepa put the -sledges in order and pitch the tent in a sort of small -amphitheatre of hillocks which shelter us from the -north wind. On that farthest to the north, which is -almost touched by the water of the channel, we plant -the staff from which our flag waves. The air is very -clear; between the north-east and the north-west there -stand out distinctly, some sharply pointed, others -rounded, dark or blue and white, often with strange -shapes, the innumerable pinnacles of the great blocks of -ice raised up by the pressure. Farther away again on -the bright horizon in a chain from east to west is a -great azure wall which from afar seems insurmountable." -The latitude was 86° 34´.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The outward journey took forty-five days; the homeward -took sixty, and proved a perilous adventure -owing to the drift of the pack to the westward and its -breaking up as the weather became warmer and the -southern boundary was approached. At first there -was good promise. The dogs knew they were going -back, and followed the outward track so fast that the -men, failing to keep up with them, for the first time -took a seat on the sledges and were drawn along at -four miles an hour. Progress was rapid for a few days -owing to there being now only four sledges and, in a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_82'>82</span>considerable degree, to the intelligence of the leading -dog, Messicano. Ever since leaving Teplitz Bay this -small white dog, with the intelligent eyes and bushy -legs, had held the first place in the leading sledge -because he followed the man at the head of the convoy -better than the others, and now when the guide was -behind or on the sledge, Messicano took the track at -a gallop with his nose on the snow, losing the way now -and then, but finding it again, though to the men it -was often invisible. The time came, however, when -the old track had to be left for a better course to the -ship, and then difficulties of every sort had to be overcome, -the delays being such that dog after dog had to -be killed to keep away starvation, and it was only with -seven of them and two sledges that Prince Rudolf -Island was reached from the westward on the 23rd of -June. "The snow is wet, which is very bad for -dragging the sledges, as it sticks to the runners and -tires our dogs exceedingly; we have still seven, but -only three that really pull (three to each sledge), for -Messicano is at the last extremity and can hardly hold -up the trace." Toiling on thus through the fog to Cape -Brorok a noise was heard in the distance like the -creaking caused by pressure among ice floes, and when -the fog lifted it was found that the sound was that of -the seabirds on the cliffs. Out on the icefield no signs -of life had been met with beyond the traces of a bear, -a seal that vanished, and a walrus that popped up -through thin ice to send Fenoillet scuttling off on his -hands and knees.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Meanwhile the ship, which had been seriously -damaged, had been made seaworthy. Liberated from -<span class='pageno' id='Page_83'>83</span>her berth by mines of gunpowder and guncotton, -she sailed from Teplitz Bay on the 16th of August, -and, after further unpleasant experiences in the ice, -reached Cape Flora, where a call was made at Jackson's -house in the vain hope of news of Querini; and -thence, after more ice complications, Captain Evensen -took her to Hammerfest. Though, as in all Arctic -endeavour, conditions were against them, the employment -of a Norwegian crew for the ship and an Italian -crew for the sledges had, under excellent management, -worked thoroughly well.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_84'>84</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER V<br /> CAPE CHELYUSKIN</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Chelyuskin reaches the cape—The Laptefs—Deschnef's voyage through -Bering Strait—Nordenskiöld's voyages to the Yenesei—The Siberian -tundra—The voyage of the <em>Vega</em>—Nordenskiöld rounds Cape Chelyuskin—Endeavour -to reach the Siberian Islands—Liakhoff's discovery—The -<em>Vega</em> passes the Cape North of Captain Cook—Frozen in within six miles -of Cape Serdze Kamen—Completes the North-east Passage—Nansen's -voyage—The <em>Fram</em>—Her drift in the ice—Nansen and Johansen start -for the Pole—They reach 86° 13´ 6˝—Their journey to Frederick Jackson -Island—The meeting with Jackson—Sverdrup's voyage to Spitsbergen.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>The tundras and shores of Siberia abound with -obstacles to exploration, and yet a third of the -threshold of the Polar regions has been surveyed along -their line. No spot remains unvisited on the northern -margin of the Asiatic mainland, the northernmost -point of which is Cape Chelyuskin in 77° 36·8´, so that -the Arctic Circle sweeps inland for 770 miles to the -south of it—in other words the cape is practically half-way -between the Circle and the Pole.</p> - -<div id='pg84' class='figcenter id008'> -<a href='images/i_123.jpg'><img src='images/i_123_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>CAPE CHELYUSKIN</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_85'>85</span>It was chiefly from the land that the northern coast-line -was surveyed by the Russians, whose Arctic work -has been immense and thorough, though not marked by -any striking discoveries. Cape Chelyuskin was first -reached, in May, 1742, by the explorer whose name it -bears, after a sledge journey from the Chatanga, he -being at the time second in command to Khariton -Laptef, whose first expedition in 1739 ended in the loss -of his ship three hundred miles from his winter quarters, -to which he had to travel on foot, losing twelve -men by cold and exhaustion on the way. Within the -preceding four years the survey of the coast west of it -had been completed in four stages—from Archangel to -Yalmal (that is Land's End); from Yalmal to the Obi; -from the Obi to the Yenesei; from the Yenesei to -Cape Sterlegof. In 1735 Pronchistschef, from the -Lena, failed to round Cape Chelyuskin from the east, -and returned to the Olenek to die but two days before -his young wife, who was his companion on his perilous -voyage. Two years afterwards Dmitri Laptef began -his explorations east of the Lena which took him to -Cape Baranoff, thus joining up to the discoveries of -the sable-hunters made a century before, including -those of Deschnef, who, in 1648, sailed from the -Kolyma to Kamchatka and went through Bering -Strait more than thirty years before Bering was born. -Thus the route of the North-east Passage was known, -although no man had travelled the whole way either -by land or sea, before the task was undertaken by -Nordenskiöld.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To begin with, Nordenskiöld made two voyages to -the Yenesei. In the first voyage he left Tromsoe in the -<em>Proeven</em> on the 14th of June, 1875, and reached what -he named Dickson Harbour at the mouth of the -Yenesei on the 15th of August. Sending back the -<em>Proeven</em>, which returned through Matyushin Shar, he, -with Lundstrom the botanist and Stuxberg the zoologist, -and three walrus-hunters, embarked in a boat they -had brought out with them and proceeded up the -estuary into the river; and during the first six hundred -<span class='pageno' id='Page_86'>86</span>miles they landed only twice. On the last day of the -month they caught up a steamer on which they became -passengers.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"We were yet," says Nordenskiöld, "far to the -north of the Arctic Circle, and as many perhaps -imagine that the little-known region we were now -travelling through, the Siberian tundra, is a desert -wilderness covered either by ice and snow, or by an -exceedingly scanty moss vegetation, it perhaps may not -be out of place to say that this is by no means the -case. On the contrary, we saw snow during our -journey up the Yenesei only at one place, in a deep -valley cleft some fathoms in breadth, and the vegetation, -especially on the islands which are overflowed -during the spring floods, is distinguished by a luxuriance -to which I have seldom seen anything comparable. -Already had the fertility of the soil and the -immeasurable extent and richness in grass of the pastures -drawn forth from one of our walrus-hunters, a -middle-aged man who is owner of a little patch of -ground among the fells of Northern Norway, a cry of -envy at the splendid land our Lord had given the -Russian, and of astonishment that no creature pastured, -no scythe mowed, the grass. Daily and hourly -we heard the same cry repeated, and even in louder -tones, when some weeks after we came to the grand -old forests between Yeneseisk and Turuchansk, or to -the nearly uninhabited plains on the other side of -Krasnojarsk covered with deep black earth, equal without -doubt in fertility to the best parts of Scania, and in -extent surpassing the whole Scandinavian peninsula. -This judgment formed on the spot by a genuine though -<span class='pageno' id='Page_87'>87</span>illiterate agriculturist is not without interest in forming -an idea of the future importance of Siberia."</p> - -<p class='c000'>In fact, Siberia is particularly rich in mineral and -agricultural wealth, and this voyage, which opened up -the route to and from Europe by the natural outlets -to the north, was of such commercial promise that -the explorer received for it the special thanks of the -Russian Government. As, however, there were people -who looked upon it as an exceptional voyage in an exceptional -year, Nordenskiöld next season took another -voyage to the river, this time in the <em>Ymer</em>, carrying -the first instalment of merchandise so as to begin the -trade; and he was followed in a few weeks by Captain -Joseph Wiggins, in the <em>Thames</em>, whose subsequent -voyages made the northern route well known.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Assured by the experience gained in these voyages -that the North-east Passage was possible to a steam -vessel of moderate size, Nordenskiöld, in 1878, was -enabled to fit out the <em>Vega</em>, and sailed from Tromsoe -on the 31st of July. Three other vessels accompanied -her, two bound for the Yenesei, one for the Lena, the -rendezvous being Khabarova. All went well. On the -9th of August the <em>Fraser</em> and <em>Express</em> proceeded up -the Yenesei to discharge their cargoes and return to -Europe in safety; next day the <em>Vega</em> and <em>Lena</em> left -for the eastward, and, after some risky navigation -among islands and through fog, lay for four days in -Actinia Haven, between Taimyr Island and the mainland, -vainly waiting for clear weather. Pushing on -through fitful fog they sighted a promontory in the -north-east gleaming in the sunshine, and rounding its -western horn anchored in a bay open to the north and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_88'>88</span>free from ice at the extremity of Cape Chelyuskin. -With the rounding of the most northerly point of the -Old World the first object of the expedition had been -attained. The salute fired in honour of the event -having frightened away the only polar bear who had -stood watching the ship from the western horn, some -of the party landed, the botanists to discover that -all the plants of the peninsula had apparently been -stopped on the outermost promontory when trying to -migrate further north. The flora was not extensive—a -few luxuriant lichens and twenty-three flowering -plants, eight of them saxifrages, most of them with a -tendency to form semi-globular tufts; the fauna consisted -of the bear, a few seals, a walrus, two shoals of -white whales, some ducks and geese, and a number of -sandpipers. Not so long a list as was obtained at -other landings, but by no means a bad one for the -half-way house to the Pole.</p> - -<p class='c000'>After passing the cape the course was laid for the -New Siberian Islands, but ice prevented progress -in their direction beyond 77° 45´, the highest north of -the voyage, and the ship had to work her way out by -the route she went in, thus losing a day, which had -serious consequences, though it proved the correctness -of Nordenskiöld's theory that the water delivered by -the Siberian rivers is, for a few months, of sufficiently -high temperature to give a clear passage to vessels -content to keep near the coast. On reaching the -mouth of the Lena the ships parted company, Captain -Johannsen taking the smaller steamer up the river as -intended and bringing the news of the rounding of -Cape Chelyuskin and the promise of the North-east -<span class='pageno' id='Page_89'>89</span>Passage being accomplished in one season, which was -not destined to be fulfilled.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Another attempt was then made by the <em>Vega</em> to -reach the islands to the north, but after sighting the -two most westerly of the group the shallow sea was -too crowded with rotten ice, and an idea of landing -on Liakhoff Island having to be given up for the -same reason, the course was altered so as to take the -ship round Svjatoi Nos (the Holy Cape), where in -April, 1770, Liakhoff had noticed the mighty crowd -of reindeer going south. Justly considering they must -have come over the ice from some northern land, he -went back on their tracks in a dog-sledge, discovering -two of the most southerly islands, and obtaining from -Catherine the Second as a reward the monopoly of hunting -the foxes and collecting the ivory there from the -fossil mammoths he found in abundance.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Forced to keep to the channel along the coast, which -daily became narrower, the <em>Vega</em> reached Cape Chelagskoi, -and when off this promontory Nordenskiöld -saw the first natives during his voyage. Two boats -built of skin almost exactly similar to the oomiaks, or -women's boats, used by the Eskimos, came out to the -ship, the men, women, and children in them intimating -by shouts and gestures that they wished to come on -board. The <em>Vega</em> was brought-to that they might do -so, but as none of the Chukches could speak Russian -and none of the Swedes knew Chukche, the interview -was not so satisfactory as expected, though the universal -language of pantomime with presents ensured a -favourable termination.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 12th of September the <em>Vega</em> passed Irkaipii, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_90'>90</span>the Cape North of Captain Cook, and by rounding it -Nordenskiöld joined up with the westernmost limit of -the Arctic discoveries of the great navigator. Cook -tried to weather it in August, 1778, but was turned -back by fog and snow, and thinking it was "not consistent -with prudence to make any further attempts to -find a passage into the Atlantic this year in any direction, -so little was the prospect of succeeding," he sailed -for Hawaii, where his intention of making the attempt -the ensuing summer came to nought owing to his -death.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 28th of September the <em>Vega's</em> progress for -the year was arrested by her being frozen in for the -winter on the eastern side of Kolyuchin Bay in the -northernmost part of Bering Strait, only six miles of -ice barring the way round Cape Serdze Kamen into the -open sea. During her detention of two hundred and -sixty-four days the scientific investigations of many -kinds that were undertaken were of lasting importance, -as they had been throughout, and when she was released -on the 18th of July, 1879, to come home by way -of Yokohama, the collections and records she brought -with her were simply enormous. No better work with -greater results was done by any Arctic expedition -than during this successful voyage, which was too well -managed to have much adventure. For it Nordenskiöld -very justly claimed the reward of twenty-five -thousand guilders offered in 1596 by the States-General -of Holland, the endeavour to win which sent out Van -Heemskerck, Barents, and Rijp.</p> - -<div id='pg90' class='figcenter id009'> -<img src='images/i_131.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ADOLF ERIK NORDENSKIÖLD</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_91'>91</span>We have seen how the Dutchmen built their house -at Ice Haven mainly of the driftwood from the Siberian -rivers. Similar wood from probably the same source is -found on the shores of Greenland and of almost all the -northerly islands of the Arctic Ocean. Further, the -Greenland flora includes a series of Siberian plants -apparently from seeds drifted there by some current. -Not only do trees and seeds travel by water from Asia -westward to America; at Godthaab, for instance, on -the western coast of Greenland, there was found a -throwing-stick of a shape and ornamentation used only -by the Alaskan Eskimos; and three years after the -foundering of the <em>Jeannette</em> to the north of the New -Siberian Islands there were found on the south-west -coast of Greenland a number of articles in the drift-ice -that must have come from the sunken vessel. For -these and other reasons it seemed clear to Fridtjof -Nansen that a current flowed at some point between -the Pole and Franz Josef Land from the Siberian -Arctic Sea to the Greenland coast, and so he set to -work to organise his daring expedition to strike this -current well to the eastward, trusting to its mercies to -take him to or near the Pole.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1893, when the <em>Fram</em> rounded Cape Chelyuskin, -Nansen had found the Kara Sea almost as open as -Nordenskiöld had done, but had met with more difficulties -among the islands off the Taimyr Peninsula. -A famous vessel, the <em>Fram</em>, the first of her kind, built -specially for the ice to take her where it listed in the -hope that she would drift to discovery like the <em>Tegetthoff</em>, -and not to disaster like the <em>Jeannette</em>. The -general idea was Nansen's, the carrying out of the -idea was Colin Archer's. As Nansen says: "We must -gratefully recognise that the success of the expedition -<span class='pageno' id='Page_92'>92</span>was in no small degree due to this man." Plan after -plan did he make of the projected ship, model after -model did he prepare and abandon before he was -satisfied: and never was a ship more honestly built. -With her double-ended deck plan, with a side of such -curve and slope that under ice pressure she would be -lifted instead of crushed between the floes, and with -bow, stern, and keel so rounded off that she would slip -like an eel from the embrace of the ice, she was of -such solidity as to withstand any pressure from any -direction. Her stem of three stout oak beams, one -inside the other, was four feet in thickness, protected -with iron; her rudder-post and propeller-post, two feet -across, had on either side a stout oak counter-timber -following the curvature upwards and forming a double -stern-post, with the planking cased with heavy iron -plates; and between these timbers was a well for the -screw and another for the rudder, so that each could -be hoisted on deck, the rudder with the help of the -capstan coming up in a few minutes. Her frames, -ten inches thick and twenty-one wide, stood close -together, carrying three layers of planking, giving -altogether a side of two feet or more of solid wood, -so shored and stayed for strength that the hold looked -like a thicket of balks, joists, and stanchions. With -a length of 128 feet over all, a breadth of thirty-six, a -depth of seventeen, and a displacement of 800 tons, -she was quite a <span lang="la" xml:lang="la">multum-in-parvo</span> engined with a -220 horse-power triple expansion, so contrived that in -case of accident or for any other cause the cylinders -could be used singly or two together. Rigged as a three-masted -fore-and-aft schooner, with the mainmast much -<span class='pageno' id='Page_93'>93</span>higher than the others—it being unusually high, for -the crow's-nest on the main-topmast was 102 feet -above the water—she proved equal to the demands on -her, though in her case strength and warmth had to be -thought of before weatherliness and speed. But her -speed was not so poor, for when steaming and sailing -after leaving Cape Chelyuskin on the 10th of September -she was doing her nine knots.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The day after she had entered the Nordenskiöld -Sea came a walrus-hunt, so graphically described by -Nansen that we must find room for an extract. "It -was," he says, "a lovely morning—fine, still weather; -the walruses' guffaw sounded over to us along the -clear ice surface. They were lying crowded together -on a floe a little to landward of us, blue mountains -glittering behind them in the sun. At last the harpoons -were sharpened, guns and cartridges ready, and -Henriksen, Juell, and I set off. There seemed to be -a slight breeze from the south, so we rowed to the -north side of the floe, to get to leeward of the animals. -From time to time their sentry raised his head, but -apparently did not see us. We advanced slowly, and -soon were so near that we had to row very cautiously. -Juell kept us going, while Henriksen was ready in the -bow with a harpoon, and I behind him with a gun. -The moment the sentry raised his head the oars -stopped, and we stood motionless; when he sank it -again, a few more strokes brought us nearer. Body -to body they lay, close-packed on a small floe, old and -young ones mixed. Enormous masses of flesh they -were. Now and again one of the ladies fanned herself -by moving one of her flippers backwards and forwards -<span class='pageno' id='Page_94'>94</span>over her body; then she lay quiet again on her back -or side. More and more cautiously we drew near. -Whilst I sat ready with the gun, Henriksen took a -good grip of the harpoon shaft, and as the boat -touched the floe he rose, and off flew the harpoon. -But it struck too high, glanced off the tough hide, -and skipped over the backs of the animals. Now -there was a pretty to do! Ten or twelve great weird -faces glared upon us at once; the colossal creatures -twisted themselves round with incredible celerity, and -came waddling with lifted heads and hollow bellowings -to the edge of the ice where we lay. It was undeniably -an imposing sight; but I laid my gun to my -shoulder and fired at one of the biggest heads. The -animal staggered and then fell head foremost into the -water. Now a ball into another head; this creature -fell, too, but was able to fling itself into the sea. And -now the whole flock dashed in, and we, as well as they, -were hidden in the spray. It had all happened in a -few seconds. But up they came again immediately -round the boat, the one head bigger and uglier than -the other—their young ones close beside them. They -stood up in the water, bellowed and roared till the air -trembled, threw themselves forward towards us, then -rose up again, and new bellowings filled the air. -Then they rolled over and disappeared with a splash, -then bobbed up again. The water foamed and boiled -for yards around—the ice-world that had been so still -before seemed in a moment to have been transformed -into a raging Bedlam. Any moment we might expect -to have a walrus tusk or two through the boat or to -be heaved up or capsized. Something of this kind -<span class='pageno' id='Page_95'>95</span>was the very least that could happen after such a -terrible commotion. But the hurly-burly went on -and nothing came of it."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The <em>Fram</em> had to follow the coast owing to the thick -pack barring the way across the sea. The mouth of -the Chatanga was passed, then that of the Olenek, and -then the influence of the warm water of the Lena -being apparent by the clearance of the floes, the course -was laid straight for the Pole in open water until -77° 44´ was reached, when, checked by the long compact -edge of ice shining through the fog, the route -became north-westerly until they stopped for fear they -should get near land, which was the very thing they -wished to avoid; and on the 25th of September in -about 78½° north latitude—north-west of Sannikof -Land—they were frozen in.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Preparations for wintering began. The rudder was -hauled up, the engine was taken to pieces, each separate -part oiled and laid away with the greatest care—for -Amundsen looked after it as if it were his own child—a -carpenter's shop was started in the hold, a smithy -arranged first on deck and then on the ice. But it all -had to be replaced, even the engine put together again, -for the pack cleared away for a brief period, to return, -when again the shiftings were made; and when the -windmill was put up to drive the dynamo, the winter -installation was in all senses complete.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Slowly the <em>Fram</em> drifted in her ice-berth, so slowly -that at the end of twelve months she had moved from -point to point only 189 miles, having returned no further -west than the longitude of the Olenek; her -highest north, attained on the 18th of June, being -<span class='pageno' id='Page_96'>96</span>81° 46´. In the main the drift was north-westerly, but -three times it had boxed the compass in irregular loops, -the only constant thing about it being that, in no -matter what direction she was taken, the bow of the -<em>Fram</em> always pointed south. Of grips she had many, -some of the pressures were enormous, once they were -severe enough to suggest measures for her abandonment, -but she survived them all unscathed. Early in -the drift it became apparent that the ice was packing -twice and slacking twice in every twenty-four hours, -and in this sea, as afterwards in the Atlantic area, the -influence of the tides, particularly the spring tides, was -unmistakable—as it was expected it would be—though -in the deep Polar basin the wind had more effect; and, -in truth, the wind was a factor throughout in the packing -of the ice and in the drift's direction. One thing was -clear, that the current was not taking the <em>Fram</em> across -the North Pole, but about half-way between it and -Spitsbergen; and if the Pole was to be reached some -of the expedition must attempt to get there over the -ice. This meant leaving the ship, going north, and -returning to the nearest known land, for, owing to the -irregularity of the drift, it was hopeless to think of -again reaching the <em>Fram</em>. During the second winter -the route of the ship trended more to the north, and, -after a loop all round in January, she reached 84° 4´ on -the 14th of March in the longitude of Cape Chelyuskin. -Here Nansen and Lieutenant F. H. Johansen, who -rather than not join the <em>Fram</em> had shipped in her as -stoker, left the ship with three sledges, two kayaks, and -twenty-eight dogs to go as far northward as they could, -their expectation being that they would reach the Pole -in fifty days. Had they remained in the ship until -November they would have saved themselves trouble, -for, as matters turned out, the embarrassing drift took -the <em>Fram</em> within eight miles of the farthest north -they attained after twenty-three days of strenuous endeavour.</p> - -<div id='pg96' class='figcenter id010'> -<img src='images/i_139.jpg' alt='Yours sincerely Fridtjof Nansen.' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_97'>97</span>The ice, fairly easy for a few days, soon became -terrible in the difficulties it offered to progress over it, -and the continual toil of hauling and carrying the -sledges, and righting them when capsized, soon told on -the two men to such an extent as to tire them out so -thoroughly that sometimes in the evening they fell -asleep as they went along. The cold, too, proved -singularly searching and severe. During the course of -the day the damp exhalations of the body little by -little became condensed in their outer garments, which -became transformed into suits of ice-armour, so hard -that if they could have been got off they could have -stood by themselves, and they crackled audibly at every -movement. The clothes were so stiff that the sleeve -of Nansen's coat rubbed deep sores in his wrist, one of -which got frost-bitten, the wound growing deeper and -deeper and nearly reaching the bone. "How cold we -were," says Nansen, "as we lay there shivering in the -bag, waiting for the supper to be ready! I, who was -cook, was obliged to keep myself more or less awake to -see to the culinary operations, and sometimes I succeeded. -At last the supper was ready, was portioned -out, and, as always, tasted delicious. These occasions -were the supreme moments of our existence, moments -to which we looked forward all day long. But sometimes -we were so weary that our eyes closed, and we -<span class='pageno' id='Page_98'>98</span>fell asleep with the food on its way to our mouths. -Our hands would fall back inanimate with the spoons -in them and the food fly out on the bag."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The further they went the worse became the conditions. -On the 8th of April, with ridge after ridge and -nothing but rubble to travel over, the work became so -disheartening that Nansen went on ahead on his skis -and from the highest hummocks viewed the state of -affairs; and as far as the horizon, lay a chaos of such -character that progress across was impracticable if he -and Johansen were to return alive. Here, then, they -stopped, this being their northernmost limit, 128 miles -from the <em>Fram</em>, 260 miles from the Pole, latitude -86° 13·6´, longitude 95°.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To reach this point they had been travelling north-westwards -for six days, the way due north being -impassable; but on turning south they seemed to enter -another country; so much did the going improve after -the first mile that in three days they covered over forty -miles. They were making for Petermann Land, which -does not exist, or for the wide-stretching Franz Josef -Land, also placed on the maps by Payer, which Jackson -had been cutting up into fragments while the <em>Fram</em> -was in the ice. Further south difficulties thickened -ahead of them till the road became almost as bad as -that to the north. Before they reached land the hundred -days they had allowed themselves had increased to -more than half as many again, their dogs had been -killed one by one to yield food for the rest, until only -two remained; Nansen was helpless with rheumatism -for two days; and Johansen was nearly killed by a -bear. Through a chain of disasters caused by storms -<span class='pageno' id='Page_99'>99</span>and fogs and snow and the state of the ice, they -threaded their way, sometimes by sledge, sometimes by -kayak, through mazes of open channels, leaping from -floe to floe and ferrying back to get their baggage over, -hundreds of yards on mere brash, dragging the sledges -after them in constant fear of their capsizing into the -water. Then the ice gave out and, taking to their -kayaks, they sailed and paddled to what is now known -as Frederick Jackson Island in the north of the Franz -Josef Archipelago.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here they wintered, quite at a loss at first to know -where they were, owing to their watches having run -down during a great effort of thirty-six hours at a -stretch, so that they did not know their longitude, -though they subsequently concluded they must be -somewhere on Franz Josef Land within 140 miles of -Eira Harbour. They built a hut and altogether lived -passably well, there being no lack of food, thanks -mainly to the bears, whose visits were embarrassing in -their frequency though the visitors were not unwelcome -when they came to stay.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 19th of May they set out for the south, down -British Channel, with their sledges and kayaks, and -five days afterwards, when off Cape M'Clintock, while -Johansen was busy lashing the sail and mast securely to -the deck of his kayak to prevent their being blown -away, Nansen went on ahead to look for a camping -ground and fell through a crack in the ice which had -been hidden by the snow. He tried to get out, but -with his skis firmly fastened could not pull them up -through the rubble of ice which had fallen into the -water on the top of them, and, being harnessed to the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_100'>100</span>sledge, he could not turn round. Fortunately, as he -fell, he had dug his staff into the ice on the opposite -side of the crack, and holding himself up with its aid, -and the arm he had got over the edge of the ice, he -waited patiently for Johansen to come and pull him -out. When he thought a long time had passed and -felt the staff giving way and the water creeping further -up his body, he called out but received no answer; and -it was not until the water had reached his chest that -Johansen came and pulled him out.</p> - -<p class='c000'>For a few days they were storm-bound. On the -3rd of June they started again down the channel, their -whereabouts still a mystery to them, nothing in the -least like it being on their map. Nine days afterwards, -after rounding Cape Barents on Northbrook -Island, the kayaks, which had been left moored to the -edge of the ice, got adrift. Nansen, running down -from the hummock, from which he had been looking -round, threw off some of his clothes and sprang into -the water. The wind was off the ice, and the kayaks -with their high rigging were moving away as fast as -he could swim. It seemed more than doubtful if he -could reach them. But all their hope was there, all -they had was on board; they had not even a knife -with them, and whether he sank or turned back -amounted to much the same thing. When he tired -he turned over and swam on his back, and then he -could see Johansen walking restlessly up and down on -the ice, unable to do anything, and having the worst -time he ever lived through. But the wind lulled, and -when Nansen turned over he saw he was nearing the -kayaks, and though his limbs were stiffening and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_101'>101</span>losing all feeling, he put all the strength he could into -his strokes, and eventually was able to reach them. -He tried to pull himself up, but was so stiff with cold -that he could not do so. For a moment he thought -he was too late; but after a little he managed to swing -one leg up on to the edge of the sledge, which lay on -the deck, and in this way he scrambled on board. -The kayaks were lashed together so as to form a -double boat, and the only way in which, owing to his -stiffness, he could paddle them was to take one or two -strokes on one side and then step into the other kayak -and take a few strokes on the other side. The return -was consequently slow, but it was a return, though -the ice was reached a long way from where the drifting -had begun.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next day but one came another perilous episode. -"Towards morning," says Nansen, "we rowed for some -time without seeing any walrus, and now felt more -secure. Just then we saw a solitary rover pop up a -little in front of us. Johansen, who was in front at -the time, put in to a sunken ledge of ice; and although -I really thought that this was caution carried to excess, -I was on the point of following his example. I had not -gone so far, however, when suddenly the walrus shot -up beside me, threw himself on to the edge of the kayak, -took hold further over the deck with one flipper, and -as it tried to upset me aimed a blow at the kayak with -its tusks. I held on as tightly as possible, so as not -to be upset into the water, and struck at the animal's -head with the paddle as hard as I could. It took hold of -the kayak once more and tilted me up so that the deck -was almost under water, then let go and raised itself -<span class='pageno' id='Page_102'>102</span>right up. I seized my gun, but at the same moment it -turned round and disappeared as quickly as it had -come. The whole thing had happened in a moment, -and I was just going to remark to Johansen that we -were fortunate in escaping so easily from that adventure, -when I noticed that my legs were wet. I listened, -and now heard the water trickling into the kayak -under me. To turn and run her in on to the sunken -ledge of ice was the work of a moment, but I sank -there. The thing was to get out and on to the ice, -the kayak filling all the time. The edge of the ice was -high and loose, but I managed to rise; and Johansen, -by tilting the sinking kayak over to starboard, so that -the leak came above the water, managed to bring her -to a place where the ice was low enough to admit of -our drawing her up. All I possessed was floating -about inside, soaked through. So here we lie, with -all our worldly goods spread out to dry and a kayak -that must be mended before we can face the walrus -again. It is a good big rent that he has made, at -least six inches long; but it is fortunate that it was no -worse."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The kayak was mended, and, after a long rest, it was -past noon on the 17th of June when Nansen turned -out to prepare breakfast. After doing so he went up -on a hummock to look around. Flocks of little auks -were flying overhead, and, amid the confused noise of -their calls, he heard a couple of barks from a dog. -Thinking he was mistaken he waited for a time, and -then the barking was unmistakable, bark after bark, -one of a deeper tone than the other. He shouted to -Johansen, who started up from the sleeping-bag incredulous. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_103'>103</span>The sound ceased, and, breakfast over, -Nansen went forth to investigate. Soon he came on -the footprints of a dog or wolf, and then, still doubting, -he heard a distant yelping that certainly came not from -a wolf. Making his way among the hummocks, he -heard a shout from a human voice, a strange voice—the -first for three years. Running up on to a hummock -he shouted with all his might. Back came a -shout in reply; and among the hummocks he caught -sight of a dog, and further off a man walked into view. -The man spoke to the dog in English. Thinking he -recognised Jackson, Nansen raised his hat as he met -him, and they shook hands heartily.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The contrast could not have been greater. One the -well-groomed, civilised European in a check suit and -rubber water-boots, the other in dirty rags black with -oil and soot, with long matted hair and shaggy beard, -and a face in which the complexion was undiscernible -through the accumulations which a winter's endeavours, -including scrapings with a knife, had failed to remove. -As they talked they had turned to go inland. Suddenly -Jackson stopped, and, looking the new arrival -straight in the face, said—</p> - -<p class='c000'>"Aren't you Nansen?"</p> - -<p class='c000'>"Yes, I am."</p> - -<p class='c000'>"By Jove! I'm damned glad to see you."</p> - -<p class='c000'>And seizing his hand he shook it again, his whole -face beaming with a smile of welcome and delight at -the unexpected meeting; and needless to say, both -Nansen and Johansen received the warmest of welcomes -from all at Elmwood. The <em>Windward</em> was then -on her way, and when she arrived the two Norsemen -<span class='pageno' id='Page_104'>104</span>from the farthest north went in her to Vardoe, where -they landed on the 13th of August.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Meanwhile the <em>Fram</em> had continued her leisurely -drift, north-west, south-west, north-west, west, then all -round the compass, still with her head pointing south, -until on the 15th of November she reached 85° 55·5´ in -longitude 66° 31´, thus giving Captain Otto Sverdrup -the honour of attaining the highest north in a ship. -Another winter was passed in her ice-berth, during -which she moved westerly. In February came another -complete triangle in her course, after which she went -south-west, and on the 16th of May turned due south. -Then, in the later days of the month with the southerly -drift continuing and open water on ahead, Sverdrup -resolved to set her free by mines, and on the 3rd of -June, as a result of the blastings, she gave a lurch, -settled a little deeper at the stern and moved away -from the edge of the ice until the hawsers tautened. -But, though she was afloat, the ice around still kept her -captive, and in the pool she drifted straight towards -Spitsbergen.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Again and again was steam got up and endeavour -made to break a way out, but day after day elapsed, -and it was not until the 13th of August that she passed -through the last floes into open water, and her thirty-five -months of imprisonment came to an end. Making -for Danes Island in Spitsbergen, she was there boarded -by Andrée, who was then preparing for his disappearance -in the balloon voyage to the Pole. Going on -direct to Skjervoe in Norway, Sverdrup landed at two -o'clock in the morning to wake up the telegraphist, -who told him that Nansen had reached Vardoe a week -<span class='pageno' id='Page_105'>105</span>before and was then at Hammerfest and probably -leaving for Tromsoe. For Tromsoe Sverdrup started, -after telegraphing to Nansen. And there, at four -o'clock in the afternoon of the 25th of August, 1896, -Sir George Baden-Powell's yacht <em>Otaria</em>, with Nansen -and Johansen on board, glided alongside the <em>Fram</em>, the -good little ship looking much weather-beaten though -none the worse for such a task of strength and endurance -as had been set no other in the story of the sea.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_106'>106</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER VI<br /> THE LENA DELTA</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Discovery of the Siberian Islands—Hedenström—Anjou and Wrangell—Migration -of reindeer—Animals and plants of the tundra—The northward -migration of the native tribes—The voyage of the <em>Jeannette</em>—Her -drift in the pack—Jeannette Island—Henrietta Island—The ship crushed -and sunk—Landing on Bennett Island—The boat voyage—The boats -separate in a storm—De Long lands on the Lena Delta—Nindemann -and Noros in search of assistance—Safety of the whale-boat—Fate of -De Long and his companions—Baron Toll's discoveries.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>The Siberian Islands, lying north of the delta of -the Lena, answer to the Parry Islands on the -American side, the two groups being separated by that -wide stretch of the Arctic Ocean communicating with -the Pacific through Bering Strait. At first the Asiatic -group was officially named after Liakhoff, then it was -called after the unwisely named New Siberia, but, -under any designation, it took half a century to find -the different islands, and considerably more to land -on them.</p> - -<div id='pg106' class='figcenter id004'> -<a href='images/i_151.jpg'><img src='images/i_151_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE LENA DELTA</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_107'>107</span>When Liakhoff discovered the one named after him -by the Empress Catherine, he also went north to -Moloi, and he seems to have visited Kotelnoi to the -north-west. In 1775 Chvoinof was sent to survey -these three, but he devoted most of his attention to -Liakhoff Island—fifty miles across—which he found -to consist, as reported, of hills of granite rising from -a mass of mammoth bones, sand, and ice, some of the -ice ancient enough to carry a deep covering of moss. -Though he stated that other islands could be made -out in the distance, nothing was done to verify his -discoveries, real or imaginary, until thirty years had -passed, when Thaddeus and Stolbovoi were reached. -Next year (1806) New Siberia, to the eastward, was -discovered by Sirovatskof, and two years afterwards -Bjelkof was added to the southerly portion of the -archipelago.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1809 Hedenström, assisted by Sannikof, began -his series of surveys extending over all these, and -cleared up much of the mystery concerning them. -From Thaddeus, Sannikof sighted, away to the northward, -what is now known as Bennett Island; and, -from New Siberia, Hedenström sighted Henrietta and -Jeannette Islands, and set out for them, and would -have reached them had his sledges not been stopped by -open water. Like his predecessors he was astonished -at the mammoth remains on Liakhoff Island.</p> - -<p class='c000'>According to his account, "these bones or tusks -are less large and heavy the further we advance -towards the north, so that it is a rare occurrence on -the islands to meet with a tusk of more than 108 lbs. -in weight, whereas on the continent they are said often -to weigh as much as 432 lbs. In quantity, however, these -bones increase wonderfully to the northward, and as -Sannikof expresses himself, the whole soil of the first -of the Liakhoff Islands appears to consist of them. -For about eighty years the fur-hunters have every -year brought large cargoes from this island, but as yet -there is no sensible diminution of the stock. The -tusks on the islands are also much more fresh and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_108'>108</span>white than those on the continent. A sandbank on -the western side was most productive of all, and the -fur-hunters maintain that when the sea recedes after a -long continuance of easterly winds, a fresh supply of -mammoth bones is always found to have been washed -from this bank, proceeding apparently from some vast -store at the bottom of the sea." Besides these multitudinous -remains of the mammoth Hedenström found -numerous remains of rhinoceros, the horn of which -was then thought to be a bird's claw three feet long.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To clear up the wide discrepancies in the maps the -Emperor Alexander, in 1820, equipped two expeditions -to proceed by land to the northern coast of Siberia -and properly survey it, the work to be carried as far -east as Cape Chelagskoi, whence a sledge party was to -start for the north in search of the inhabited country reported -to exist in the Polar Sea in that direction. One -of these expeditions, under Lieutenant P. F. Anjou, -was to commence its operations from the mouth of -the Yana; the other, under Lieutenant Ferdinand -Vrangel' (or, as he is generally known amongst us, -Wrangell or Von Wrangell), was to start from the -mouth of the Kolyma, his chief assistant being Midshipman -Matiuschkin. Both parties did good survey -work, but neither made any striking discovery. Anjou -reached 76° 36´ to the north of Kotelnoi; Wrangell -reached 72° 2´ (north-east of the Bear Islands, one -hundred and seventy-four miles out on the sea from -the great Baranoff rock), beyond which progress was -impossible owing to the thinness of the ice, which was -covered with salt water.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Wrangell had many perilous experiences. In his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_109'>109</span>fourth journey over the sea the ice broke up around -him and he found himself on a floe with a labyrinth -of water lanes hemming him in on every side and a -storm coming on from the westward. The storm -rapidly increased in fury, and the masses of ice around -him were soon dashing against each other and breaking -in all directions. On the floe, which was tossing to -and fro on the waves, he gazed in painful inactivity on -the conflict, expecting every moment to be swallowed -up. For three long hours he had remained unable to -move, the mass of ice beneath him holding together, -when it was caught by the storm and hurled against a -large field of ice. The crash was terrific, as it was -shattered into little pieces. At that dreadful moment, -when escape seemed impossible, he was saved by the -impulse of self-preservation. Instinctively the party -sprang on to the sledges and urged the dogs to full -speed, and as hard as they could gallop they skimmed -across the yielding fragments to the field on which -they had been stranded, and safely reached a stretch -of firmer ice, where the dogs ceased running among -the hummocks, conscious that the danger was past.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But it is not so much for adventures like this that his -account of his work is of continuing interest as for the -abundance of its notes and reflections on the country -and its life and climate. Once, for instance, when on -the Baranicha he was fortunate enough to witness a -migration of reindeer. "I had hardly finished the -observation," he says, "when my whole attention was -called to a highly interesting, and to me a perfectly -novel, spectacle. Two large migrating bodies of reindeer -passed us at no great distance. They were descending -<span class='pageno' id='Page_110'>110</span>the hills from the north-west and crossing the -plain on their way to the forests, where they spend the -winter. Both bodies of deer extended further than the -eye could reach, and formed a compact mass, narrowing -towards the front. They moved slowly and majestically -along, their broad antlers resembling a moving -wood of leafless trees. Each body was led by a deer of -unusual size, which my guides assured me was always a -female. One of the herds was stealthily followed by a -wolf, who was apparently watching for an opportunity -of seizing any one of the younger and weaker deer -which might fall behind the rest, but on seeing us he -made off in another direction. The other column was -followed at some distance by a large black bear, who, -however, appeared only intent on digging out a mouse's -nest every now and then, so much so that he took no -notice of us. We had great difficulty in restraining -our two dogs, but happily succeeded in doing so; their -barking, or any sound or motion on our part, might -have alarmed the deer, and by turning them from their -course, have proved a terrible misfortune to the hunters, -who were awaiting their passage, on which they -are entirely dependent for support. We remained for -two hours whilst the herds of deer were passing by, -and then resumed our march."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The way in which the deer are dealt with by the -hunters was seen by Matiuschkin when despatched by -Wrangell to survey the Anyui. "The true harvest, -which we arrived just in time to see, is in August or -September, when the reindeer are returning from the -plains to the forests. They are then healthy and well -fed, the venison is excellent, and as they have just -<span class='pageno' id='Page_111'>111</span>acquired their winter coats the fur is thick and warm. -The difference of the quality of the skins at the two -seasons is such, that whilst an autumn skin is valued at -five or six roubles, a spring one will only fetch one or -one and a half roubles. In good years the migrating -body of reindeer consists of many thousands; and -though they are divided into herds of two or three -hundred each, yet the herds keep so near together as to -form only one immense mass, which is sometimes from -thirty to seventy miles in breadth. They always -follow the same route, and in crossing the river near -Plotbischtsche, they choose a place where a dry valley -leads down to the stream on one side, and a flat sandy -shore facilitates their landing on the other side. As -each separate herd approaches the river, the deer draw -more closely together, and the largest and strongest -takes the lead. He advances, closely followed by a -few of the others, with head erect, and apparently -intent on examining the locality. When he has satisfied -himself, he enters the river, the rest of the herd -crowd after him, and in a few minutes the surface is -covered with them. Then the hunters, who have been -concealed to leeward, rush in their light canoes from -their hiding-places, surround the deer, and delay their -passage, whilst two or three chosen men armed with -short spears dash into the middle of the herd and despatch -large numbers in an incredibly short time; or at -least wound them so, that, if they reach the bank, it is -only to fall into the hands of the women and children. -The office of the spearman is a very dangerous one. -It is no easy thing to keep the light boat afloat among -the dense crowd of swimming deer, which, moreover, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_112'>112</span>make considerable resistance; the males with their -horns, teeth, and hind legs, whilst the females try to -overset the boat by getting their fore-feet over the -gunwale; if they succeed in this the hunter is lost, for -it is hardly possible that he should extricate himself -from the throng; but the skill of these people is so -great that accidents very rarely occur. A good hunter -may kill a hundred or more in less than half an hour. -When the herd is large, and gets into disorder, it often -happens that their antlers become entangled with each -other; they are then unable to defend themselves, and -the business is much easier. Meanwhile the rest of the -boats pick up the slain and fasten them together with -thongs, and every one is allowed to keep what he lays -hold of in this manner. It might seem that in this -way nothing would be left to requite the spearmen for -their skill, and the danger they have encountered; but -whilst everything taken in the river is the property of -whoever secures it, the wounded animals which reach -the bank before they fall, belong to the spearman who -wounded them. The skill and experience of these men -are such that in the thickest of the conflict, when -every energy is taxed to the uttermost, and their life is -every moment at stake, they have sufficient presence of -mind to contrive to measure the force of their blows so -as to kill the smallest animals outright, but only to -wound the larger and finer ones, so that they may be -just able to reach the bank. Such proceeding is not -sanctioned by the general voice, but it seems nevertheless -to be almost always practised. The whole scene is -of a most singular and curious character, and quite -indescribable. The throng of thousands of swimming -reindeer, the sound produced by the striking together -of their antlers, the swift canoes dashing in amongst -them, the terror of the frightened animals, the danger -of the hunters, the shouts of warning advice or applause -from their friends, the blood-stained water, and all the -accompanying circumstances, form a whole which no -one can picture to himself without having witnessed -the scene."</p> - -<div id='pg112' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_159.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>REINDEER</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_113'>113</span>The tundra has no more characteristic animal than -the reindeer. Over the mossy hillocks and the matted -tops of the dwarf birches he runs, or through the rivers -and lakes he swims, with his broad-hoofed, spade-like -feet never at a loss to find a footing. In the long -winter he is protected by his thick skin against the -influence of the cold, and is seldom at starvation point, -as he digs for food in the deepest snow, and is by no -means particular what he eats; and in the short -summer he is in luxurious ease, for the tundra, as we -have seen, is not always as bad as it is painted. In -exposed places near the coast it is little else than -gravel beds interspersed with patches of peat and -clay, with scarcely a rush or a sedge to break the -monotony, but by far the greater part of it is a gently -undulating plain, broken up by lakes, rivers, swamps, -and bogs; the lakes with patches of green water-plants, -the rivers flowing between sedges and rushes, -the swamps the breeding haunts of ruffs and phalaropes, -the bogs dotted with the white fluffy seeds of -the cotton-grass. Almost everywhere the birds are in -noticeable numbers, among the commonest being the -golden plover (who wears the tundra colours), the bluethroat, -the fieldfare, the whooper swan, and the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_114'>114</span>ducks and divers—particularly the divers—and, among -the birds of prey, the falcons and the rough-legged -buzzards, which, with the owls, find such abundant -provision in the lemmings that migrate in myriads -compared with which the reindeer troops are insignificant.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"The groundwork of all this variegated scenery," -says Seebohm, "is more beautiful and varied still—lichens -and mosses of almost every conceivable colour, -from the cream-coloured reindeer-moss to the scarlet-cupped -trumpet-moss, interspersed with a brilliant -alpine flora, gentians, anemones, saxifrages, and hundreds -of plants, each a picture in itself, the tall aconites, -both the blue and yellow species, the beautiful cloudberry, -with its gay white blossom and amber fruit, -the fragrant <em>Ledum palustre</em> and the delicate pink -<em>Andromeda polifolia</em>. In the sheltered valleys and -deep water-courses a few stunted birches, and sometimes -large patches of willow scrub, survive the long -severe winter, and serve as cover for willow-grouse or -ptarmigan. The Lapland bunting and red-throated -pipit are everywhere to be seen, and certain favoured -places are the breeding-grounds of plovers and sandpipers -of many species. So far from meriting the name -of Barren Ground, the tundra is for the most part a -veritable paradise in summer. But it has one almost -fatal drawback—it swarms with mosquitoes."</p> - -<div id='pg116' class='figcenter id011'> -<img src='images/i_163a.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>OSTIAK MAN</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div id='pg114' class='figcenter id012'> -<img src='images/i_163b.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>SAMOYED MAN</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_115'>115</span>The beauty of the tundra is, however, transient and -skin deep; it is only such plants as can live in the soil -that thaws that survive. Wherever the ground is dug -into, ice is sure to be reached; in fact, it may be said -that ice is one of the rocks of the subsoil, and in some -places these strata of ice that never melts have been -found to be three hundred feet thick—ice that has -remained in block since the mammoths got into cold -storage in it ages ago, for otherwise they would not -have lasted intact in skin and flesh as many have done, -like the very first discovered in a complete state, that -chipped out by Adams in 1807.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In such a climate, whose winter terrors are only too -prominent, all along the north of Siberia live the -ancient peoples driven towards the sea by those -mighty movements from the land of the Turk and -Mongol which, north and south, east and west, -flooded Europe and Asia with invaders—Ostiaks and -Samoyeds west of Chelyuskin; Yakuts, Chukches, -and others to the east of it, the descriptions of whose -unpleasant manners and customs appear to be written -with a view to showing how curiously local are the -laws of health. One may well ask, as Wrangell did, -why they should remain in so dreary a region and -take life so contentedly. And the answer may be -that they might go further north and fare worse, as -their predecessors in the eastern section would seem -to have done. Once, according to the legend, there -were more hearths of the Omoki on the shores of the -Kolyma than there are stars in the clear sky, and these -Omoki, or some other departed race, appear to have -left as their traces the remains of the timber forts and -the tumuli that are found on the coast, especially near -the Indiyirka, and the huts of earth and stones and -bones found all along from Chelagskoi to the straits, -similar remains of a departed people now existing in -the Parry Islands, over a thousand miles away. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_116'>116</span>According to another legend of more recent date, -there was an intervening land, the land that Wrangell -went to seek and the <em>Jeannette</em> went to winter at, -and the supposed site of which she drifted through, in -her last and longest imprisonment in the ice.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The <em>Jeannette</em> was the old <em>Pandora</em>, bought from -Sir Allen Young by James Gordon Bennett, and -accepted by and fitted out, officered, and manned -under the orders of the Navy Department of the -United States, her commander being Lieutenant -George Washington De Long. She left San Francisco -on the 8th of July, 1879, and two months afterwards -had been run into the pack and was fast in the -ice off Herald Island, drifting to her doom. Her -route, in the main, was north-westerly, with many -complicated loops, at first at the rate of half a mile a -day, then at two miles, then at three, showing that -the current from Bering Strait had been reinforced by -some other current as she went further west, and, -from its direction, there seemed to be land to the -northward which was never sighted.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Wrangell Land, passed to the south, proved to be -not a continent but a small island. No other land was -seen for a monotonous twenty months, and then, in -May, 1881, the ship drifted, stern first, past that -sighted by Hedenström from New Siberia, which was -found to consist of two islands, to be henceforth known -as Jeannette and Henrietta. On the 12th of June, in -latitude 77° 14´ 57˝, the <em>Jeannette</em> was crushed and sank, -her fore yardarms breaking upwards as she slipped -down through the rift in the pack, and a start was -made for the Siberian Islands over the ice; but the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_117'>117</span>drift had taken the party to 77° 36´, before they got -on their proper course, and after a most laborious -journey, lasting up to the 28th of July, they were safe -ashore on the land sighted by Sannikof from Thaddeus, -which De Long named Bennett Island.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Bennett Island was left on the 7th of August, the -party of thirty-three being in three boats, thirteen -under De Long in the first cutter, ten under Lieutenant -Chipp in the much smaller second cutter, and -ten, under Engineer George W. Melville, whose skill -and resourcefulness had been conspicuous throughout, -were given the whale-boat, the most suitable of the -three. Sail was made for Thaddeus Island, which was -reached in safety; after a halt of some days it was left -on the 31st of August. Then Kotelnoi Island was -reached and rested at; then the boats made for Semonovski, -which was left on the 12th of September.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The same day a gale came on in which the first -cutter had great difficulty in keeping afloat, the second -cutter disappeared never to be heard of again, and the -whale-boat, behaving excellently, went off before the -wind straight for the continent to reach in safety one -of the eastern mouths of the Lena, up which Melville -arrived at a Russian village on the 26th of September. -De Long's party ran their boat aground in shallow -water, on the 17th of September, and rafted and waded -ashore to one of the most inhospitable spots on the -globe. Heavily laden they made their way down the -dreary delta, toiling through the snow, delayed by the -tributaries which were not frozen over hard enough to -bear, hampered by sickness and disablement, and finally -dying one by one of starvation.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_118'>118</span>On the 9th of October De Long sent two of the seamen, -Nindemann and Noros, ahead in search of relief. -They had no food but what they could find, and on the -second day out their dinner consisted of a little willow -tea and a burnt boot sole. Next morning they burnt -another sole of a boot, and they spent the day struggling -through a morass in drifting snow, crossing -streams of all sizes, and halting for the night in so high -a wind that they were unable to light a fire and took -refuge in a hole in the snow from which they emerged -with difficulty in the morning, owing to the wind having -piled up the snow against the opening. At the end of -the third day they reached a deserted hut in which -were some deer bones, which they grilled and tried to -eat, and in the morning a gale was blowing and the -wild drifting snow was so thick that they had to remain -where they were and continue their diet of charred -bones and willow tea.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next day, Thursday, the 13th of October, they -began against a strong head wind. In the afternoon -they sighted a hut on the west bank of the river. -"They had seen one in the morning, but had in vain -attempted to cross the ice to it. Now they tried to -reach this, but were turned back by the brittle ice. -They kept it in sight as they moved southward, and -made another attempt to cross the ice, but it broke and -they came back. Then they saw that there was no -further progress possible to the southward on that side -of the water, and they returned to the ice. It broke -again, but they kept on. They went in up to their -waists, but managed to pull themselves up on the -stronger ice." The wind was blowing against them -<span class='pageno' id='Page_119'>119</span>and the ice was like glass, so that they were driven -back. They looked about for ice which had been -roughened by the ripples beneath, and finding some -they succeeded at length in reaching the other side, -where were two wooden crosses beneath a bank, which -rose fifty feet above them. They pulled themselves up -the bank, but when they came to the hut which they -had kept in sight they found it a ruin nearly full of -snow. "While Noros was trying to make a place in it -for shelter, Nindemann saw a black object farther along -to the south and went to it. It was a small peaked -hut without a door, but large enough to hold two men. -There were some fresh wood shavings outside the hut -and higher up on the hill two boxes. On going to -them Nindemann found them old and decayed, and he -began to break one of them open. When he had -ripped off the top he discovered that there was another -box enclosed; breaking into it he found a dead body, -and hastily left it. Doubtless the two crosses below on -the river bank were memorials of the two beings left -high up above the reach of the floods."</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the small hut they found a sort of floor, the -boards of which they pulled up for firewood, and in a -hole beneath was a box in which were a couple of fish -and two fish heads; and, as these were discovered, a -lemming came out of another hole and was promptly -caught. On the lemming, roasted on the ramrod, and -the fishes, which were so decayed that they dropped -apart as they were handled, they made their meal for -that day. Next day the snowstorm was so heavy that -they were driven back here after striving in vain to -make headway. On the Saturday, still without food, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_120'>120</span>they rested for the night in a fissure in the river bank, -where as a last resource Nindemann cut a piece off his -sealskin trousers and soaked it in water and burnt it to -a crust. Their breakfast consisted of the remains of -this toasted sealskin. During the day they saw a crow -flying across the river and in among the hills, and, as -the crow in these regions is rarely found away from the -haunts of men, Nindemann decided to cross the river -in the hope of meeting with either natives or game on -the other side. When darkness came on no shelter -was discoverable, and so, after a meal of more sealskin -and hot water, they went to rest in a hole in the snow. -Next day, during which they recrossed the river, their -experiences were similar and the end the same.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On Tuesday the 18th, after a terrible day, they came -upon a hut with a pile of wood close by, which proved -to be sledges, and these they broke up, as there was no -other firing. Next day as they were struggling on -they reached a place where there were three huts, in -one of which was a half-kayak and in it was some blue -mouldy fish; and here, attacked by dysentery, they -remained until the Saturday, unable to go any further. -About noon there was a noise outside like a flock of -geese sweeping by. Nindemann, looking through the -crack of the door, saw something moving which he took -to be a reindeer, and was going out with his rifle when -the door opened and a man entered, who promptly fell -on his knees when he caught sight of the gun. Nindemann -threw the rifle into a corner and, trying to make -friends with the man by signs, offered him some of the -fish, which the man by an emphatic gesture pronounced -not fit to eat. After some more of the sign -<span class='pageno' id='Page_121'>121</span>language it was clear that the native had no food with -him, and holding up three or four fingers to show that -he would return in so many hours or days he drove off. -About six o'clock in the evening, while they were preparing -their fish dinner, the visitor returned with two -other men, one of whom brought in a frozen fish which -he skinned and sliced, and while the sailors were eating -it—the first healthy meal they had had for weeks—the -natives invited them to accompany them, and brought -in deerskin coats and boots and finally got them into -the sledges and drove off to the westward for about -fifteen miles. Here there were two tents, and Nindemann -was taken into one, Noros into the other, and -both were well looked after, the natives doing their -very best to get them well.</p> - -<p class='c000'>This was intelligible on both sides, for the language -of kindness is universal, but as the sailors knew not the -language of their hosts, and the natives knew not the -language of their guests, the difficulty of being understood -by each other was great, and the delivery of the -urgent message in signs was almost impossible. Nindemann -did his best; he appealed to the man who seemed -to be the head of the party, and drawing in the snow a -map of the places where he had been, with every combination -of signs he could think of, he tried to explain -what he wanted. That he succeeded to a certain -extent was clear, though he did not think so at first, for -the natives loaded up their sledges, twenty-seven in -number, with reindeer meat and skins and fish, and -struck their tents, and, with over a hundred head of -deer harnessed up, started for the south. At noon, -when the deer were resting, the man for whom the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_122'>122</span>map had been drawn in the snow took Nindemann to -where he could show him a prominent landmark, and -asked by signs if that was where he had left his -friends. And on learning by signs that it was further -to the north, he shook his head as if sorry, and resumed -his journey to the south. During the next day they -reached Ku Mark Surka, where there were a number of -natives who were much interested in the new-comers, -and again the sailors used every effort to deliver their -message.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Immediately after breakfast on the morning of the -25th, Nindemann began talking to these people in -signs and pantomime. Soon one of them showed that -he had an idea of where the sailors came from, for -he spoke to one of the boys, who ran off and returned -with a model of a Yakutsk boat. Then they gathered -round and evidently asked if the ship was anything -like it. And in answer, Nindemann took up some -sticks and placed three of them in the boat to show -that his ship had three masts, and then he fastened -smaller sticks across to show that she had yards, which -seemed to surprise them greatly. Then he made a -funnel out of wood and put it in position, and pointed -to the fire and smoke to show that she was a steamer, -and then he cut out a propeller with his knife and put -it where the rudder was to show that she was a screw. -Continuing his work he soon chipped out so many -small boats to show how many she had; and then, -signing to one of the men to get him two pieces of ice, -he showed them how the ship had been crushed. -Pointing to the northward he tried to tell them that -the ship had been crushed up there; and then he put -<span class='pageno' id='Page_123'>123</span>away the ship and kept only three of the little boats to -tell that part of the story, and in the boats he put so -many sticks to represent the number of men in each. -When he had done this one of the men pointed to a -dog that was looking on and asked if the ship had any, -whereupon the sailor counted on his fingers to show -there were about forty, and by pantomime explained -that they had been shot. This being evidently -understood, Nindemann drew a chart of the coast-line, -and imitating a gale of wind showed that the boat he -came from went to the land at a certain point and that -he knew nothing of the others. Then he went on to -show how they had all left the boat, waded ashore and -walked along the river-bank, and he marked the huts -where they had stopped, and then he indicated where -one of the men had died and been buried in the river. -This was understood, for all the audience shook their -heads as if to say how sorry they were. But when he -tried to tell them that he had left the captain two days -afterwards and had been so many days on the way to -ask for help, they showed that they either did not or -would not understand; and really it was not easy to -make such a matter clear.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next day Nindemann made another attempt to get -them to understand the one essential, urgent fact that -help was needed, or the men would die; but no, he -could not do it. On the Thursday, despairing of the -hopelessness of his task and the helplessness of his -companions, he broke into tears and groans, and a -woman in the hut took pity on him and spoke earnestly -to one of the men, who came and said something -about a commandant. Then the sailor, who had -<span class='pageno' id='Page_124'>124</span>picked up a few words, asked him to take him to -Bulun, to which the man replied by again saying -commandant and holding up five or six fingers. Late in -the evening there arrived a tall Russian, whom Nindemann -supposed to be the commandant and addressed -in English, but he was a Russian exile who could -not understand him, though he seemed to know something -about the matter, for in what he said he clearly -mentioned Jeannette and Americansk. Nindemann -tried him in German, but at this he shook his head. -Then Nindemann showed him the chart given him by -De Long, which the Russian evidently did not understand, -though he said something that sounded like -St. Petersburg and telegrams. While this apparently -hopeless conversation was going on Noros was busy -steadily writing out a note that the two sailors had -drawn up, and the tall Russian—who we shall see was -really a most intelligent man—giving over his talk -with Nindemann in despair, coolly picked this up and -put it in his pocket, and notwithstanding the protest -of the Americans, walked off with it. In the morning -he came in and gave them to understand that he was -going to Bulun, and that they were to follow, and -soon afterwards the natives fitted them out with -clothing and boots and food and sent them off on a -sledge. At Bulun they were taken to the commandant, -who, after a little sign language from Nindemann, -showed that he understood, and said something -about a telegram. The sailors jumped at the idea, -and one of them dictated to the other a despatch to -the American Minister at St. Petersburg. This the -Russian took, explaining that the captain should have -<span class='pageno' id='Page_125'>125</span>it next day. Who the captain was the sailors could -not make out; but three days afterwards, that is on -the 3rd of November, while Nindemann lay on the -bed and Noros was sitting on the table, a man came in -dressed in fur.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"My God, Mr. Melville!" said Noros, recognising -him as soon as he spoke. "Are you alive? We -thought that the whale-boats were all dead!"</p> - -<p class='c000'>The exile had handed the note to Melville, whom he -knew as the captain, and his difficulty in understanding -the sailors had been in their speaking of one boat -while he had only seen the other. The whale-boat -crew had reached a village opposite to where he lived, -and he had agreed to take them to Bulun, and he was -on his way there to arrange for their transport when he -heard of the sailors. Like a sensible man he ordered -the men to be sent to Bulun, and had hurried there, -made his arrangements with the commandant and returned -to Melville, who, seeing the urgency of the -case as soon as he read the letter, had started at once, -leaving his party to follow.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Melville, as soon as possible, went off along the -track of the two sailors, who were too weak to go -with him, and eventually found the chronometer and -the log-books and other records; but the winter was -too far advanced for him to do more, and he had -to return, after a journey of over six hundred miles, -to try again in the spring. Then, accompanied by -Nindemann, he went north, and came upon the bodies -of the commander and those who had perished with -him, and three or four feet behind De Long, as if -he had tossed it over his shoulder, lay the journal in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_126'>126</span>which the last page was but a chronicle of death after -death.</p> - -<p class='c000'>This chapter must conclude with another tragedy. -In 1885 Dr. Bunge and Baron Toll made some important -investigations in the neighbourhood of the -mouth of the Yana; and next year Bunge among the -fossils of Liakhoff Island found not only mammoth -and rhinoceros, but horse, musk-ox and deer, and two -new species of ox. To these Toll, after discovering -that there were flourishing trees on Kotelnoi in the -time of the mammoth—nearly two hundred miles -north of their present limit—added frozen carcases -of musk-ox and rhinoceros, and bones of antelope -and tiger.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1902 Toll, pushing his geological researches -further north, reached Bennett Island, where he -collected bones of the mammoth and other recent -mammals, while the main mass of the plateau he -identified as of Cambrian age. These discoveries he -included in the record announcing his intention of -leaving for Kotelnoi, which was found in 1904 by the -expedition sent to his relief, for he was never seen -alive again.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_127'>127</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER VII<br /> BERING STRAIT</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Native stories of the distant continent—The Russians in Kamchatka—Bering's -expedition—The difficulties of his task—Builds a vessel and -reaches Kamchatka—Builds another vessel and discovers the strait named -after him by Captain Cook—His second expedition—Spangberg's voyage -to Japan—Bering reaches the American coast—His shipwreck and death—The -influence of the sea-otter and the fur-seal on geographical discovery—The -Arctic voyage of Captain Cook—Clerke's voyage—Beechey's -voyage—Point Barrow reached by the barge of the <em>Blossom</em>—Kellett's -voyage in the <em>Herald</em>—Boat expedition to Hudson Bay—Kellett reaches -72° 51´—Landing on Herald Island—Kellett sights Wrangell Island—Berry -in the <em>Rodgers</em> explores Wrangell Island—He reaches 73° 44´—Frederick -Whymper and W. H. Dall ascend the Yukon.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>Rumours of land over against the far corner of -Siberia had reached the Russians for years, and -many were the legends of those who had seen these -lands from the cliffs, or had been on the ice to look at -them more closely, or had gone away to them and -never come back. There was, for instance, the old -legend of Kraechoj, who believed he had found safe -shelter at Irkaipii from the Chukche vengeance, but -the Chukche made his way into the stronghold and -killed Kraechoj's son, whereupon Kraechoj escaped by -letting himself down with thongs to the boat and fled -to the land whose mountains can be seen in clear sunshine -from Cape Yakan; and there he was among his -people who had left Asia before him.</p> - -<p class='c000'>And among the official documents was the statement -<span class='pageno' id='Page_128'>128</span>made by the Chukches when they went to Anadyrskoi -Ostrog to acknowledge the dominion of the Russians, -that "The Noss is full of rocky mountains, and the -low grounds consist of land covered with turf. Opposite -to it lies an island, within sight of it, of no great -extent, and void of wood. It is inhabited by people -who have the same aspect as the Chukche, but are -quite a different nation, and speak their own language, -though they are not numerous. It is half a day's -voyage with boats from the Noss to the island. There -are no sables on the island, and no other animals but -foxes, wolves, and reindeer. Beyond the island is a -large continent that can be scarcely discerned from it, -and that only on clear days; in calm weather one may -row over the sea from the island to the continent, -which is inhabited by a people who in every particular -resemble the Chukches. There are large forests of fir, -pine, larch, and cedar trees; great rivers flow through -the country and fall into the sea. The inhabitants have -dwellings and fortified places of abode environed with -ramparts of earth; they live upon wild reindeer and -fish; their clothes are made of sable, fox, and reindeer -skins, for sables and foxes are there in great abundance. -The number of men in that country may be twice or -three times as many as that of the Chukches who are -often at war with them." That there was land in sight -somewhere seemed clear, but the reports differed in -placing it all the way round from the north to the east. -Many were the vain attempts to reach it from the -northward-flowing rivers, and it was left to be found -from the Pacific side.</p> - -<div id='pg128' class='figcenter id013'> -<a href='images/i_179.jpg'><img src='images/i_179_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>BERING STRAIT</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_129'>129</span>When Atlassof, in 1697, took the first steps in the -conquest of Kamchatka the Russians were already -known to the inhabitants. Long before him Fedotof -and a few comrades had made their way into the -country and intermarried with native women. They -had been held in great honour and almost deified as -being evidently of a superior race. For some time it -was supposed that no human hand could hurt them, -but this belief was rudely shattered when two of the -demigods quarrelled and fought, and one wounding the -other, the blood flowed. That flow of blood was fatal, -for the natives, judging that they were but ordinary -flesh, took an early opportunity of wiping them out, the -name of their leader being still traceable in that of the -Fedotcha River on the banks of which they had lived.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The Kamchadales had other tales to tell of visitors -from the east and south, and Atlassof himself discovered -on the River Itcha a Japanese who had been -wrecked on the coast two years before, from whom he -learnt of islands innumerable. But there were no -ships on the Pacific coast of Siberia, and nothing in -the way of discovery could be done until 1714, when -there arrived at Ochotsk a detachment of sailors and -shipwrights despatched thither overland. According -to one of the sailors, Henry Bush, a Dutchman, the -carpenters built a good durable vessel some fifty feet -long which was ready for sea in 1716 when the first -voyage was undertaken. The coast of Kamchatka was -made near the River Itcha, and sailing south they -reached the Kompakova, where they wintered and -found the whale that had in its body the harpoon of -European workmanship marked with Roman letters, -mentioned by Scoresby. Bush returned to Ochotsk in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_130'>130</span>July, to be sent in the following year to discover the -Shantar Islands, and next year, 1718, the Kuriles; thus -venturing into the Pacific beyond Cape Lopatka.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The last of these expeditions was due to the direct -order of Peter the Great, who, knowing nothing of -Deschnef, and finding the sea open to the north, resolved -on a voyage in that direction, his holograph instructions -to Admiral Apraxin being: "One or two boats -with decks to be built at Kamchatka, or at any other -convenient place, with which inquiry should be made -relative to the northerly coasts, to see whether they -are not contiguous with America, since their termination -is not yet known." Peter died, and the Empress -Catherine, carrying out these instructions in their -fullest meaning, began her reign with an order for the -expedition.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Veit Bering, Dane by birth and sailor by trade, had -voyaged to the Indies, east and west, and, like many -other men of enterprise, had entered the Russian -service at Peter's invitation. He had served with -distinction in the Cronstadt fleet in the war against -the Swedes, and, being in good repute for his knowledge -of ships and their handling, was appointed to the -command of the most remarkable Arctic enterprise on -record. Just as Nicholas ruled a line and ordered a -railway to be built there, so did Catherine in the same -imperial way order an exploring expedition, and it -was done. But it meant building the ship from the -trees of the forest on the coast of the Pacific and -carrying the materials and stores—everything but the -timber—right across the Russian empire in the days -when for thousands of miles there were not even roads.</p> - -<div id='pg130' class='figcenter id014'> -<img src='images/i_183.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE FACE OF THE FUR SEAL</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_131'>131</span>Bering's lieutenants were Martin Spangberg and -Alexei Tschirikof. With them and the rest of the -expedition he left St. Petersburg on the 5th of February, -1725. During that year they got as far as the -Ilim, where they wintered. In the spring of 1726 -they sailed down the Lena to Yakutsk, where they -parted company for a time owing to the difficulties of -the route to Ochotsk, the way not being passable in -summer with wagons, or in winter with sledges, on -account of the marshes and rocky ground. So Spangberg -set out, working along the rivers Aldan, Maia, -and Judoma, with part of the provisions and heavy -naval stores, while Bering followed overland through -uninhabited country with more stores on horses, and -Tschirikof remained to collect still more and follow in -the track of his commander.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Bering reached Ochotsk first. Spangberg was frozen -up in the Judoma, and thence he walked to Ochotsk -with the most necessary materials; but he suffered so -much from hunger on the way that he had to support -life by eating leather bags, straps, and shoes, and did -not reach Bering till the 1st of January, 1727, nearly -two years after leaving St. Petersburg. In the beginning -of February he returned to the Judoma and -brought away about half of his lading, the other half -being left for a third journey, which he made from -and to Ochotsk on horses. Meanwhile Tschirikof was -toiling along from Yakutsk, and did not arrive to -complete the party until the 30th of July.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On arrival Bering had to build a vessel to take his -most necessary naval stores and his shipbuilders across -the sea of Ochotsk to Bolscheretzkoi, which, in her, he -<span class='pageno' id='Page_132'>132</span>reached on the 2nd of September. From here he -followed the shipwrights, who went on ahead to fell the -trees, taking with them the provisions and stores, over -the backbone of the isthmus and down the Kamchatka -River to the mouth, a distance of some two hundred -miles, the journey being very slow on account of the -travelling being by dog-sledge. In short, it was -not until the 4th of April, 1728, that is, more than -three years after leaving St. Petersburg, that it was -possible to put on the stocks the vessel in which the -voyage to the north was to be made. But she took -only three months to build, being launched on the -10th of July, when she was named the <em>Gabriel</em>.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Laden with stores for forty men during a year's -voyage, she put to sea ten days afterwards, Bering -keeping close to the coast so that he could map it as he -went. On the 10th of August he was off the island of -St. Lawrence, which he so named, as it was the day of -that saint. In a day or two he had passed the East -Cape without seeing the American coast, and had -entered the Arctic Circle. And on the 15th he was -well through the strait, out in the Arctic Ocean, in -67° 18´ off Serdze Kamen, a promontory behind which -the coast trended to the west, as the Chukches had told -him it did; and he assumed, and rightly so, though he -had not gone far enough to prove it, that there was -no land connection between Asia and America. Whereupon, -as he had in his opinion accomplished his mission, -seeing no need for wintering in those parts, he put -the <em>Gabriel</em> about and was back in the Kamchatka -River on the 20th of September, after a voyage of seven -weeks in a vessel that took three months to build on a -spot that took over three years to reach—the plan of -campaign being much the same as that in which a -mountain stronghold is advanced on across a desert, -besieged for a few days, and captured by assault.</p> - -<div id='pg132' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_187.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_133'>133</span>After wintering, Bering went off next year on a -voyage due east in search of reported land, but, after -some hundred and thirty miles out, he was blown back, -and, rounding the south end of Kamchatka, put in at -the River Bolschaia; thence he crossed to Ochotsk, -whence he started for St. Petersburg, where he arrived -after an absence of five years. Catherine was dead and -another empress reigned in her stead, who was pleased -and satisfied if no one else was, and the 21st of February, -1733, saw him starting again in the same -laborious fashion to arrange other voyages as part of a -great scheme for the exploration of Northern and North-eastern -Asia. Some of these expeditions on the north -coast have already been mentioned; Bering's particular -task was to send Spangberg in search of Japan, while -he and Tschirikof, in separate ships, went eastward to -America. More stores and provisions went overland -across Siberia than before; Spangberg got again frozen -up on the Judoma and had to continue on foot to -Ochotsk, where he found plenty of food owing to -Bering having sent on ahead, in case of any such -trouble, a hundred horses, each of them laden with -meal. In June, 1738, Spangberg, in two newly-built -vessels and the <em>Gabriel</em>, was off to Japan, to reach the -Kuriles and return to winter in Kamchatka; but next -year he arrived there all well and found to his astonishment -that the Japanese knew as much about maps as -he did. He was still more astonished on his return to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_134'>134</span>be told by those high in office at St. Petersburg that he -could not possibly have been there as they had not got -it on their maps where he said it was, and, consequently, -he was to go where he had been as soon as he could to -make sure. He started on this voyage of verification, -but circumstances were against him and he did not -reach there; and his Japanese trip remained discredited -until the Russian geographers knew better. His voyage -thither had, however, used such a stock of provisions -that it was two years before the deficiency could be -made up, and it was actually the 4th of September, -1740, seven and a half years after leaving St. Petersburg, -when Bering, in the specially-built <em>St. Peter</em>, and -Tschirikof, in her sister the <em>St. Paul</em>, got off outward -bound to America.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In about three weeks they were at Awatcha Bay on -the east of Kamchatka, anchored in the fine harbour -named Petropaulovsk after the two ships, and here -they had to stay for the winter, so that they did not -leave Russian territory until the 4th of the following -June. A few days out the ships were separated in a -fog and storm, and the <em>St. Paul</em> reached the American -coast first, at Kruzof Island on the western shore of -Sitka Sound. The <em>St. Peter</em> three days afterwards, on -the 18th of July, drifted to the coast more to the -northward, at Cape St. Elias near the mighty mountain -of that name. In this neighbourhood amid much -fog Bering stayed six weeks until he was blown out to -sea, when, his men beginning to die from scurvy, he -resolved to return to Kamchatka. It was a voyage of -misfortune in a continual downfall, the men in want, -misery, and sickness, continuously at work in the cold -and wet, becoming fewer and fewer, so that there were -not enough to work the ship properly. It ended on -one of the Commander Islands by the vessel being -lifted by the sea clear over a reef into calm water. -Bering died—the island is named after him—and the -survivors of the crew, building a boat from the materials -of the <em>St. Peter</em>, arrived at Petropaulovsk on the 27th -of August, bringing with them a quantity of sea-otter -skins, which did more for discovery in those seas than -any imperial expedition.</p> - -<div id='pg134' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_191.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>DRIVING THE FUR SEAL</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_135'>135</span>As the sable had brought about the conquest of -Siberia, so did the sea-otter lead to the seizure of the -islands of the Bering Sea and the coasts of Alaska. -Three years after the return of the survivors of the -<em>St. Peter</em>, Nevodtsikof wintered on one of the Aleutian -Islands, and in a few years the fur-hunters were at -their exterminating work over the whole chain. In -time the fur-seal attracted as much attention, and, with -Pribylov's discovery, in 1786, of its rookeries on the -islands named after him, the trade became of such -increasing importance as to endanger in our time the -peace of the world. Every one has heard of the wonderful -haunts and habits of that strange eared seal which -seems to have come from the south through the tropics -to breed in the coldest limit of its range, now almost -entirely on the Pribylovs and the Commanders; how -it is pursued in skin boats and every sort of craft, and -scared in long lines to slaughter by clapping of boards -and bones and waving of flags and opening and shutting -of gingham umbrellas, until it promises to become -as extinct as Steller's sea-cow or as rare as the sea-otter.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_136'>136</span>Following Bering on the way to the north came -Captain James Cook, in H.M.S. <em>Resolution</em>, who gave -Bering's name to the strait. Cook sighted Mount -St. Elias in May, 1778, and, cruising slowly along the -coast with many discoveries and much accurate surveying, -was off, and named, Cape Prince of Wales, the -western extremity of America, on the 9th of August. -He then crossed the strait and plied back until on -the 18th he sighted and named Icy Cape in 70° 29´. -Close to the edge of the ice, which was as compact as -a wall, and seemed to be ten or twelve feet high at the -least, he sought persistently for a passage through, but -none was to be found; and after reaching 70° 6´ in -196° 42´ (163° 18´ W.) on the 19th, he turned westward -to the Asiatic coast, along which he went until he -sighted and named Cape North, as already stated. -Then, blocked by ice, east, north, and west, he returned, -passing Cape Serdze Kamen (Bering's farthest) -and naming East Cape, confirming Bering's observation -that it was the most easterly point of Asia.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On Cook's death at Hawaii Captain Charles Clerke, -of the accompanying vessel H.M.S. <em>Discovery</em>, took -command of the expedition and carried out Cook's -intention of making another effort during the following -year. The ice conditions were, however, worse. -The two ships found the ice block further south, and -as impenetrable as before, and Clerke's highest was -70° 33´ on the American side, on the 19th of July. -As it was Cook's last voyage, so it was Clerke's. He -was in a bad way with consumption, and continued his -work in the north, though, under the special circumstances -and being in command, he could at any time -have given up the obviously hopeless attempt and left -for a more genial climate, in which he would at least -have had a chance of longer life; but, remaining at -his duty, he died at sea on the 22nd of August, and -was buried at Petropaulovsk.</p> - -<div id='pg136' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_195.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>FUR SEALS AT SEA</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_137'>137</span>Captain Beechey, in H.M.S. <em>Blossom</em>, passed through -the strait in 1826 when sent north from the Pacific -with a view of meeting with his old commander, -Franklin, then on his second land journey. Beechey -took the ship to Icy Cape, whence on the 17th of -August he despatched the barge under the master, -Thomas Elson, to survey the coast to the north-eastward -as far as he could go in three weeks, there and -back. Elson reached his farthest on the 25th at a spit -of land jutting out several miles from the more regular -coast-line, the width of the neck not exceeding a mile -and a half, broadest at its extremity, with several -frozen lakes on it, and a village, whose natives proved -so troublesome that it was thought unsafe to land. -This was Point Barrow, in 71° 23´ 31˝, longitude -156° 21´ 30˝, the northernmost land on the western -half of the American continent. To the eastward -curved a wide bay—named Elson Bay by Beechey—the -shore-line of which joined on to the ice pack that -encircled the horizon. Here he was within a hundred -and sixty miles of where Franklin had turned back a -week before. Though Beechey did not meet Franklin -he did most useful work in these parts, for by him the -whole coast was surveyed between Point Barrow and -Point Rodney, to the south of Prince of Wales Cape.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Franklin was also the cause of the appearance of -the next British expedition in the strait. This was in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_138'>138</span>1848, Captain Henry Kellett, in H.M.S. <em>Herald</em>, with -Commander Thomas Moore in H.M.S. <em>Plover</em>, forming -the western detachment of the first series of search -expeditions. There were three detachments, one to -follow the <em>Erebus</em> and <em>Terror</em> from the eastward, -another under John Richardson to descend the Mackenzie -and search the northern coast, the other coming -in from the west to meet the ships should they have -made the passage. On this duty the <em>Herald</em> and -<em>Plover</em> were hereabouts for three seasons, the <em>Plover</em> -wintering, the <em>Herald</em> going south when the navigation -closed.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In October, 1826, Beechey had buried a barrel of -flour for Franklin on the sandy point of Chamisso -Island, ample directions for finding it being cut and -painted on the rock, and to call the attention of the -party to the spot the name of the <em>Blossom</em> was painted -on the cliffs of Puffin Island. When the <em>Herald</em> was -at Chamisso Island in 1849 Captain Kellett searched -for this flour and found it. A considerable space was -cleared round the cask, its chimes were freed, and, only -adhering to the sand by the two lower bilge staves, it -required the united strength of two boats' crews, with -a parbuckle and a large spar as a lever, to free it -altogether. The sand was frozen so hard that it -emitted sparks with every blow of the pickaxe. The -cask itself was perfectly sound and the hoops good, -and out of the 336 lb. of flour which it contained, -175 lb. were as sweet and well tasted as any he had -with him; so good indeed was it that Captain Kellett -gave a dinner party, at which all the pies and puddings -were made of this flour.</p> - -<div id='pg138' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_199.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE PARKA OF THE ALASKAN INNUITS<br /><br />(THE SHORTER COAT IS THAT WORN BY THE MEN)</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_139'>139</span>After the dinner party, on the 18th of July, the two -vessels started for the north, being joined as soon as -they stood from the anchorage by Robert Shedden in -his yacht the <em>Nancy Dawson</em>, who at his own initiative -had come up from Hong Kong to join in the search. -From Wainwright Inlet Kellett sent off the boats -under Lieutenant Pullen, two of which made the -journey along the northern coast and up the Mackenzie, -their crews thence making their way home eastwards -to York Factory.</p> - -<p class='c000'>When Kellett was about to commence his observations -at the inlet he drew a semicircle on the sand from -water's edge to water's edge, and placed the boats' -noses between its points. The natives seemed to -understand the meaning of this line. Not one of them -attempted to overstep it, and they squatted down and -remained perfectly quiet and silent. When a stranger -arrived they shouted to him, and he no sooner comprehended -the directions than he crept rather than -walked to the boundary, and squatted among the rest. -Afterwards they danced and sang and played football -with the seamen—who stood no chance with them at -that game—and when they had gone off, after all this -good behaviour, it was discovered that they had been -picking the pockets of some of the party, one losing a -handkerchief, another a glove, and Commander Moore -a box of percussion caps.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The boat party had a similar experience, without the -pocket-picking. Reaching Point Barrow they landed -to make observations and look about for traces of the -visit of the <em>Blossom's</em> boat, which they did not find. -Their interpreter did not understand the tribe, and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_140'>140</span>recourse was had to the universal language of signs. -"We made a rude model of a vessel," says Lieutenant -Hooper, "and performed sundry antics to signify what -we were in search of, but could elicit no information, -and so set to work at obtaining observations. We concluded -that these people must have been entirely misunderstood. -Far from evidencing any disposition to -assail or molest us, they were most docile and well-behaved, -agreeably disappointing us in their conduct. -When we arrived on the hillock, all, big and little, sat -down around us, and I amused myself by filling their -pipes, becoming a great favourite immediately in consequence. -They had among them a great many knives, -which we feared would influence the magnet. Mr. -Pullen therefore kindly drew off the crowd to a distance, -distributing among them tobacco, beads, snuff, -etc., and much to their credit be it said, there was -neither confusion nor contention, each taking his -allotted portion, and seeming delighted with his good -fortune. They took care not to come near the instruments, -finding that we did not like their approach; one -or two indeed came towards us, but retired instantly -when laughingly motioned back, and this should be -considered as a display of great forbearance, inasmuch -as their curiosity must have been highly excited. -When the observations were concluded they were -allowed to inspect the objects of their wonder; then -fast and thickly to utterance flew their expressions of -astonishment at the—to them—novel and splendid -instruments. The trough of quicksilver, liquid and -restless, especially attracted them, pleasure and wonder -were evident at the simple view, but when one or two -had permission to take some from the dish, and found -it ever elude the grasp, their astonishment knew no -bounds."</p> - -<div id='pg140' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_203.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE FROZEN YUKON</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_141'>141</span>From Wainwright Inlet, which is between Icy Cape -and Point Barrow, the <em>Herald</em> sailed along the pack to -the westward, reaching her highest north, 72° 51´, in -163° 48´, and, on the 17th of August, Kellett landed -on and named Herald Island in 71° 17´ 45˝, a mass of -granite towering nine hundred feet above the sea, under -five miles long and three broad, inhabited mainly by -black and white divers and yielding the collector only -four flowering plants. Further to the west he sighted -Wrangell Island, sailed past and named by the American -whaling captain, Thomas Long, in August, 1867.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1881 Wrangell Island was thoroughly explored -by another search expedition, that of Captain Berry in -the American ship <em>Rodgers</em>, who was in these parts -looking out for traces of the <em>Jeannette</em>. He found it -to be, not a continent as some had supposed, but an -island forty miles broad and sixty-six miles long, about -thirty miles from Herald Island and eighty from the -Siberian coast; and on it, as on all these Siberian -islands and the coast of Alaska, remains of the mammoth -were found. Examining the ice to the northward, -he reached 73° 44´ in 171° 30´, being fifty-three -miles further north than Kellett and twenty-four miles -further than Collinson in 1850. Returning from the -north to winter quarters he achieved another Arctic -record in his ship being destroyed by fire in St. Lawrence -Bay on the Asiatic side of Bering Strait.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Opposite this, on the American side, from Cape -York downwards the land trends away to the south-east -<span class='pageno' id='Page_142'>142</span>to Norton Sound, in which are the mouths of the -Yukon, one of the mightiest rivers of the world, its -volume being as great as, or according to some writers -greater than, the Mississippi. In a course of two thousand -miles it runs northwards to the Arctic Circle at -the now abandoned trading post of Fort Yukon, where -its waters are reinforced by its tributary, the Rat or -Porcupine, coming in from the north-east, and given -their seaward direction to the south-west. Up this -vast waterway in 1866 went Frederick Whymper and -William H. Dall.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Beginning with a sledge journey of a hundred and -seventy miles from Unalachleet, they struck the Yukon -on the 10th of November, gliding down a high steep -bank on to it. Hardly a patch of clear ice was to be -seen, the snow covering the whole extent. Accumulations -of hummocks had in many places been forced on -the surface before the river had become thoroughly -frozen, and the water was still open, running swiftly in -a few isolated streaks. From bank to bank was not less -than a mile, the stream flowing among several islands. -As they sledged up the river the dreary expanse of -snow made them almost forget they were on a sheet of -ice; and, as it winds considerably, their course was -often from bank to bank to cut off corners and bends. -Many cliffs abutted on the stream, and islands of -sombre green forest studded it in all directions.</p> - -<div id='pg142' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_207.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ASCENDING THE YUKON</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_143'>143</span>On the 15th they reached Nulato, six hundred miles -from the mouth, where they spent the winter. Here -they found a curious method of fishing practised all -through the season. Early in the winter large piles or -stakes had been driven down into the bed of the river, -and to these were affixed wickerwork traps like eel-pots -on a large scale, oblong holes being kept open over -them by frequently breaking the ice. This was cold -work, for the temperature ran low. "In November -and December," says Whymper, "I succeeded in -making sketches of the fort and neighbourhood when -the temperature was as low as thirty degrees below -zero. It was done, it need not be said, with difficulty, -and often by instalments. Between every five strokes -of the pencil, I ran about to exercise myself or went -into our quarters for warmth. The use of water-colours -was of course impracticable—except when I -could keep a pot of warm water on a small fire by my -side—a thing done by me on two or three occasions, -when engaged at a distance from the post. Even -inside the house the spaces near the windows, as well as -the floor, were often below freezing point. Once, forgetful -of the fact, I mixed some colours up with water -that had just stood near the oven, and wetting a small -brush commenced to apply it to my drawing block. -Before it reached the paper it was covered with a skin -of ice, and simply scratched the surface, and I had to -give up for the time being."</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 12th of May the Nulato River broke up and -ran out on the top of the Yukon ice for more than a -mile upstream; and in a few days the ice of the main -river was coming down in a steady flow at a rate of -five or six knots, surging into mountains as it met -with obstacles, and grinding and crashing and carrying -all before it, whole trees and banks being swept away -on its victorious march, the water rising fourteen feet -above the winter level. On the 26th Whymper and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_144'>144</span>Dall started with two Indians and a steersman in a -skin canoe, the river still full of ice, and navigation -difficult. They had proceeded but a short distance -when they came to bends, round which logs and ice -were sweeping at a great rate, so that it was necessary -for a man to stand in the bows of the canoe, with a -pole shod at one end with iron, to push away the masses -of ice and tangle of driftwood. They could often feel -the ice and logs rolling and scraping under the canoe; -and it was not the thickness of a plank between them -and destruction, but that of a piece of sealskin a -tenth of an inch thick.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 7th of June they were two hundred and -forty miles above Nulato, at the junction of the -Tanana, the furthest point reached by the Russians, -and soon were in a part abounding with moose owing -to their seeking refuge in the stream from the millions -of mosquitoes. Here the Indian hunters were busy, -not wasting powder and shot, but manœuvring round -the swimming deer in their birch-bark canoes until they -tired the victim out; and then stealthily approaching, -securing it with a stab from their knives.</p> - -<p class='c000'>After twenty-six laborious days against the stream -they reached Fort Yukon, the then furthest outpost -of the Hudson's Bay Company, six hundred miles -from Nulato, and, of course, managed and victualled -from the east. Here the amount of peltry was -astonishing, the fur-room of the fort containing -thousands of marten skins, hanging from the beams, -and huge piles of common furs lying around, together -with a considerable number of foxes, black and silver-grey, -and many skins of the wolverine, thought so -much more of by the Indians than by any one else -that they are used as a medium of exchange. All -these furs were brought in from the surrounding -districts, far and near, and traded for goods, as widely -distributed, among the native tribes whose representatives -gathered at the fort in such a miscellaneous -crowd that perhaps half a dozen dialects were heard in -a morning.</p> - -<div id='pg144' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_211.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>MOOSE-HUNTING ON THE YUKON</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_145'>145</span>In the crowd the busiest and most prominent were -the primitive Tananas, gay with feathers and painted -faces, looking like survivals among the local Kutchins -and the Kutchins of the upper river, the Birch River -men, and the Rat River men by whom the skins were -brought from the natives of the northern coast, as -were the messages from the Franklin search parties. -Indians were all of these, distinguishable by their -wearing the hyaqua or tooth-shell (<em>Dentalium entalis</em>) -through the septum of the nose, while the Mahlemut -wears a bone on each side of the mouth, a practice -common with all the Innuit, or Eskimo tribes, from -the Alaska Peninsula to Point Barrow, unless some -other form of labret happens to be the local fashion.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_146'>146</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER VIII<br /> THE AMERICAN MAINLAND</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>The Hudson's Bay Company—Samuel Hearne—His journey down the -Coppermine River—The North West Fur Company—Sir Alexander -Mackenzie—His journey down the Mackenzie—Sir John Franklin's first -land journey—Fort Enterprise—Back's journey to Athabasca—The rapids -of the Coppermine—Point Turnagain reached—The Wilberforce Falls—The -terrible crossing of the Barren Grounds—Franklin's second land -journey—Richardson's voyage to the eastward—Discovers Wollaston -Land and Dolphin and Union Strait—Franklin's voyage to Return Reef—Back's -journey down the Great Fish River—Discovers Montreal Island -and King William Land—The Parry Falls—Sir George Simpson—Peter -Warren Dease and Thomas Simpson—Exploration of the coast between -Return Reef and Point Barrow—Simpson advances beyond Point Turnagain -and discovers Victoria Land and Dease Strait—Their second voyage -down the Coppermine—Discovery of Simpson Strait—Reach the Great -Fish River—Their farthest east—Complete the survey of the northern -coast between Boothia and Bering Strait—The first to find the North-West -Passage.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>For two elks and two black beavers, paid yearly -whensoever the King of England entered their -estate, the Hudson's Bay Company were, in 1670, -presented by Charles II with the northern part of the -American mainland, thus ensuring an ample stretch of -British territory along the passage to the South Sea. -But the company soon ceased to be interested in any -such passage, finding quite enough to do in developing -the very profitable fur trade of their vast possessions. -With the exception of John Knight's disastrous voyage -to Marble Island in 1719, whatever attempts at discoveries -there may have been were kept quiet for fear -of aiding their rivals the French to the south, who -were fostering the trade in the region of the great -lakes; and not until the French dominion ended in -1763 and the Frenchmen's interests were passing to -an opposition British company was any effort made to -explore the coast of the Polar Sea.</p> - -<div id='pg146' class='figcenter id015'> -<img src='images/i_215.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>MAHLEMUT MAN</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_147'>147</span>Owing to Indian reports of rich deposits of native -copper and an abundance of fur-bearing animals, -Samuel Hearne, once a midshipman in the Royal -Navy, was sent by the company in 1769 to explore -to the west and north. After a journey of thirteen -hundred miles to the west he found the Coppermine -River and the Great Slave Lake, and he traced the -river to its mouth and emerged on the northern shore, -being the first known white man to see the Arctic -Ocean between the Boothia Peninsula and Bering -Strait. Among other things he was instructed to discover -a north-west passage, and he certainly did something -definite towards it by showing there was open -water so much further west; but, though he suspected -it, he was unable to prove that the northernmost point -of the continent was in the unexplored country between -the Coppermine and Hudson Bay.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1783 the North West Fur Company was formally -established, and after a severe struggle obtained, owing -mainly to the efforts of Alexander Mackenzie, a fair -share of the trade in the west of the region controlled -by the Hudson's Bay people. Mackenzie was at Fort -Chippewyan, on Lake Athabasca, and thence he was -sent in 1789 on an exploring voyage to the north. In -four birch-bark canoes, one of his party being an -Indian known as English Chief, who had been with -<span class='pageno' id='Page_148'>148</span>Hearne on his journey to the Coppermine, he started -down the Great Slave River into the Great Slave -Lake. After spending twenty days in crossing and -exploring this vast sheet of water, he entered the large -river now bearing his name, and down it amid many -dangers and difficulties, overcome by skill, persuasion, -force, good humour or good fortune, he reached the -sea on the 14th of July. He camped on Whale -Island, the name being given owing to one of the men -sighting a great many animals in the water, which he -at first supposed to be pieces of ice. "However," says -Mackenzie, "I was awakened to resolve the doubts -which had taken place respecting this extraordinary -appearance. I immediately perceived that they were -whales; and having ordered the canoe to be prepared, -we embarked in pursuit of them. It was indeed a -very wild and unreflecting enterprise, and it was a very -fortunate circumstance that we failed in our attempt -to overtake them, as a stroke from the tail of one of -these enormous fish would have dashed the canoe to -pieces. We may, perhaps, have been indebted to the -foggy weather for our safety, as it prevented us from -continuing our pursuit. Our guide informed us that -they are the same kind of fish which are the principal -food of the Eskimos, and they were frequently seen as -large as our canoe. The part of them which appeared -above the water was altogether white, and they were -much larger than the largest porpoise"—being evidently -belugas (<em>Delphinapterus leucas</em>).</p> - -<p class='c000'>Satisfied with a short canoe voyage on the sea, he -returned to the river and made his way back to the -fort, arriving there in the middle of September. He -<span class='pageno' id='Page_149'>149</span>had thus proved the existence of the sea twenty -degrees further west than Hearne had done. Three -years afterwards he started on his notable journey to -the Pacific at Cape Menzies, facing Princess Royal -Island, being the first white man to cross the Rocky -Mountains, and, as he had reached Fort Chippewyan -by way of Montreal, the first to cross North America -above the Gulf of Mexico.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Another of Hearne's Indians accompanied Franklin -on his first land journey in 1819, the object of which -was to explore the coast between Hearne's farthest and -Hudson Bay, thus filling in the gap in which the -assumed northern promontory was to be found. -Franklin, who was sent out by the British Government, -had with him, as surgeon and naturalist, Dr., -afterwards Sir, John Richardson, to whom as a boy -Robert Burns had lent Spenser's <em>Faerie Queene</em>, a -naval surgeon with a distinguished record, who while -on half-pay had studied botany and mineralogy at -Edinburgh. Like another member of the expedition, -George Back, who had been with Franklin in the -<em>Trent</em> and <em>Dorothea</em> voyage, he was destined to gain -a great reputation among Arctic explorers. With -Back was another midshipman, Robert Hood, whose -fate it was to be murdered by an Iroquois half-breed -who, through want of food, betook himself to cannibalism.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Landing at York Factory, in Hudson Bay, after an -exciting voyage, on the 30th of August, Franklin, -disregarding local advice, pushed on across the continent -during the winter, arriving at Fort Chippewyan on the -26th of March, the losses and trying experiences of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_150'>150</span>the long journey being mainly due to the rigours of -the climate at that time of year; and thence, in July, -the party followed Mackenzie's route to Fort Providence -on Great Slave Lake. Here they were joined -by Mr. Wentzel, of the North West Company.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Starting for the north on the 2nd of August in four -canoes, they were joined next day at the mouth of the -Yellow Knife by a band of Indians, under a chief -named Akaitcho, in seventeen canoes. The Indians -were to guide the party and supply them with food by -hunting and fishing on the way, but game and fish -proved scarce—and scarcer owing to the poorness of -the Indian marksmanship—provisions were short and -portages long, so that the journey, which soon led -across a series of lakes, was pursued under toilsome -and hazardous conditions until it ended at Winter -Lake in 64° 30´, where it became necessary to winter -in a log house built by Wentzel, and named Fort -Enterprise. The site was delightful: a hillside amid -trees three feet in diameter at the roots, the view in -front bounded at a distance of three miles by round-backed -hills, to the eastward and westward the Winter -and Roundrock Lakes connected by the Winter River, -its banks clothed with pines and ornamented with a -profusion of mosses, lichens, and shrubs.</p> - -<div id='pg150' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_221.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>WINTER TRAVELLING ON THE GREAT SLAVE LAKE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_151'>151</span>In a few weeks, however, the weather became so -severe that, according to Franklin, the trees froze to -their very centres and became as hard as stones, on -which some of the axes were broken daily, until but -one was left. And though at first the reindeer appeared -in numbers, their visits lasted only for a short time, -and the party, short of tobacco for the Canadian -voyageurs and of ammunition for the Indians, had so -poor an outlook that it became necessary to accept -Back's proposal to return to the forts and bring on -supplies which had not been forwarded as promised; -the failure being due to the journey, unlike the -successful ventures of Hearne and Mackenzie, being -pushed on regardless of climatal conditions, and, in -some degree, to the rivalry between the two fur companies -which were amalgamated while the expedition -was in progress.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Back set out accompanied by Wentzel and two -Canadians and two Indians and their wives, crossing -lakes frozen just hard enough to bear them, going wide -circuits to avoid those which were open, amid mist and -fog and storm, over rugged, bare country, through -dense woods and snow-covered swamps, rafting across -a river with pine branches for paddles, until Fort -Providence was reached. From here he sent back -Belanger with letters and a hundred bullets he procured -on loan. Belanger arrived at Fort Enterprise -on the 23rd of October alone; he had walked constantly -for the last six-and-thirty hours through a -storm, his locks were matted with snow, and he was -encrusted with ice from head to foot, so that he was -scarcely recognised when he slipped in through the -doorway.</p> - -<p class='c000'>At Fort Providence Back had to wait until the -Great Slave Lake was frozen over. On the 18th of -November he observed two mock moons at equal -distances from the central one, the whole encircled by -a halo, the colour of the inner edge of the large circle -a light red inclining to a faint purple; and two days -<span class='pageno' id='Page_152'>152</span>afterwards two parhelia were observable, with a halo, -the colours of the inner edge of the circle a bright -carmine and red-lake intermingled with a rich yellow -forming a purplish orange, the outer edge being a pale -gamboge. On the 7th of December he left, sledging -across the lake before the wind, for the North West fort -on Moose Deer Island, and finding at the Hudson's -Bay fort, also on the island, five packages of belated -supplies and two Eskimo interpreters on their way to -Franklin.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here he was told that nothing could be spared at -Fort Chippewyan, that goods had never been transported -so far in the winter season, that the same dogs -could not go and return, and that from having to walk -constantly on snow-shoes he would suffer a great deal -of misery and fatigue. Nevertheless he undertook the -journey in dog-sledges with a Canadian and an Indian, -leaving Wentzel behind. At times the weather was so -cold that they had to run to keep themselves warm, -and, owing to the snow, the feet of the dogs became so -raw that an endeavour was made to fit them with -shoes. With legs and ankles so swollen that it was -painful to drag the snow-shoes after him, Back hurried -on, reaching Fort Chippewyan on the 2nd of January -to find that he and all Franklin's party had been -reported to have been killed by Eskimos. Here he had -to wait a month, and then, with an instalment of what -he wanted, he set out on his return, arriving at Fort -Enterprise on St. Patrick's Day after a memorable -journey of over a thousand miles.</p> - -<div id='pg152' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_225.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>CROSSING POINT LAKE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_153'>153</span>During his absence he was told that the cold had -been so severe that Hood had found accurate observing -difficult owing to the sextant having changed its error -and the glasses lost their parallelism from the contraction -of the brass, a circumstance, combined with the -crystallisation of the mercury of the artificial horizon, -that might account for some of the diversity of results -obtained by Arctic navigators. And Richardson had -to tell him of an early discovery that when fishing and -the hands get cold by hauling in the line, the best way -to warm them is to put them in the water; and how the -fish had frozen as they were taken out of the water so -that by a blow or two of the hatchet they were easily -split open, leaving the intestines removable in one lump, -and yet that these much-frozen fish retained their -vitality so that he had seen a thawed carp recover so -far as to leap about with much vigour after it had been -frozen for thirty-six hours.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 14th of June Fort Enterprise was left, and -on the 25th the expedition began to cross Point Lake -on the way to the Coppermine, the river being reached -through Rocknest Lake on the 30th. Down the river -they paddled, taking the rapids as they went—in one -place three miles of them on end. "We were carried -along with extraordinary rapidity, shooting over large -stones, upon which a single stroke would have been -destructive to the canoes; and we were also in danger -of breaking them, from the want of the long poles -which lie along their bottoms and equalise their cargoes, -as they plunged very much, and on one occasion the -first canoe was almost filled with the waves; but there -was no receding after we had once launched into the -stream, and our safety depended on the skill and dexterity -of the bowmen and steersmen."</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_154'>154</span>There were rapids day by day affording almost every -possible chance of wreck except that due to driftwood; -the two worst being one where the stream descends for -three-quarters of a mile in a deep but narrow and -crooked channel which it has cut through the foot -of a hill of five hundred or six hundred feet high, -confined between perpendicular cliffs resembling stone -walls varying in height from eighty to a hundred and -fifty feet, on which lies a mass of fine sand; the body -of the river pent within this narrow chasm dashing -furiously round the projecting rocky columns as it discharges -itself at the northern extremity in a sheet of -foam. The other being where the river flows between -lofty stone cliffs, reddish clay rocks and shelving banks -of white clay, and is full of shoals. Franklin's people -had entered this rapid before they were aware of it, -and the steepness of the cliffs prevented them from -landing, so that they owed their preservation to the swiftness -of their descent. Two waves made a complete -breach over the canoes; a third would probably have -filled and overset them, which would have proved fatal -to all on board. This Escape Rapid, as it was named, -was, as it were, the gate into the territory of the Eskimos -who were soon met with in small parties all the way -down to the sea. It was passed on the 15th of July; -three days afterwards the Indians bade farewell to the -expedition in the morning, and in the afternoon the -canoes were afloat on the Arctic Ocean.</p> - -<div id='pg154' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_229.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>KUTCHIN INDIANS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_155'>155</span>From the river mouth Wentzel returned, as arranged, -with despatches, taking with him a number of voyageurs -and others, thus reducing the party to twenty in all in -two canoes. In these Franklin, nearly two years after -he had landed in America, went on his voyage to the -eastward to enter at last on the work he had been sent -to do. But the survey of this lofty rocky coast was no -easy matter; the sea was rough, the weather tempestuous, -the canoes were lightly built and only suited for -river work, and, in short, it was a most risky enterprise. -Tracing the shore of Coronation Gulf and coasting up -and out of Bathurst Inlet, Franklin reached Point Turnagain -in 109° 25´ W., at the entrance of Dease Strait, on -the 16th of August, 1821. Though the voyage had -extended over only six and a half degrees of longitude, -he had sailed 555 geographical miles; and then, as his -resources did not permit of his going further or of his -returning to the Coppermine, and in his own words -"Our scanty stock of provisions rendering it necessary -to make for a nearer place," he, on the 22nd, turned -back to ascend the Hood River.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here they soon reached the Wilberforce Falls, -beautiful and remarkable, but not easy of navigation. -"In the evening," says Franklin in his journal, "we -encamped at the lower end of a narrow chasm through -which the river flows for upwards of a mile. The walls -of this chasm are upwards of two hundred feet high, -quite perpendicular, and in some places only a few yards -apart. The river precipitates itself into it over a rock -forming two magnificent and picturesque falls close to -each other. The upper fall is about sixty feet high, -and the lower one at least one hundred, but perhaps -considerably more, for the narrowness of the chasm -into which it fell prevented us from seeing its bottom -and we could merely discern the top of the spray far -beneath our feet. The lower fall is divided into two by -<span class='pageno' id='Page_156'>156</span>an insulated column of rock which rises about forty -feet above it."</p> - -<p class='c000'>As the river above the falls appeared too rapid and -shallow for the large canoes they were taken to pieces, -and two smaller ones built from their materials. The -voyage in these lasted but three days, when the river -was abandoned as trending too far to the west, and the -party, carrying the canoes, proceeded overland to Point -Lake on their struggle of starvation across the Barren -Grounds. For days they had nothing to eat but lichens—species -of <em>Gyrophora</em> or <em>Umbilicaria</em> known as tripe-de-roche—a -diet varied with leather, burnt bones and -skins, an occasional ptarmigan, and, once, a musk ox, -until they were so weak that when a herd of reindeer -went strolling past they had not strength enough to -shoot at them.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The tragedy need not be lingered over. Back was -again sent for help, and, finding no stores at Fort -Enterprise, was on his way to Fort Providence when he -fell in with Akaitcho, who at once hurried to the rescue; -and on the 14th of July, 1822, Franklin, Richardson, -Back, and Hepburn the seaman, who had behaved as a -hero all through, returned to York Factory after a -three years' journey, fraught with peril and horror, by -land and water, of over six thousand three hundred -statute miles.</p> - -<p class='c000'>After he had been at home a year, Franklin suggested -that another attempt should be made to survey the -northern coast while Parry was at work in search of the -North-West Passage. The suggestion was accepted. -Accompanied by Richardson and Back, and by E. N. -Kendall as assistant surveyor—who had been out with -Captain Lyon in the same capacity—and by Thomas -Drummond as assistant naturalist, he left Liverpool on -the 26th of February, 1825.</p> - -<div id='pg156' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_233.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>PREPARING AN ENCAMPMENT ON THE BARREN GROUNDS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_157'>157</span>Taught by experience, the expedition was better -managed in every way. Instead of driving ahead -regardless of the season or the trade routine, the -ordinary conditions of local travel were kept in view -throughout, and the results were more in proportion -to the effort. Three boats were specially built at -Woolwich on Franklin's design and under Buchan's -superintendence. They were of mahogany with timbers -of ash, both ends alike, steerable by oar or rudder, the -largest 26 ft. by 5 ft. 4 ins., the two others 24 ft. by -4 ft. 10 ins., and with them Colonel Pasley's portable -boat, known as the <em>Walnut Shell</em> from its shape, 9 ft. -long and half as wide, with frames of ash fastened with -thongs and covered with canvas. The canvas was -"waterproofed by Mr. Macintosh, of Glasgow"—the -first instance of its use—and for the first time also what -we know as macintosh coats and overalls were issued -as part of the outfit, the process having been patented -in 1824.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The boats and stores were sent on ahead by way of -York Factory in 1824, and Franklin and his party, -travelling by New York and the lakes, caught them up -on the Methye River at sunrise on the 29th of June. -With them were several old friends, not the least -delighted being the two Eskimo interpreters, Augustus -and Ooligbuck, who were to be of the utmost importance -throughout. On the 8th of August they had got -along so well that they were at the junction of the Bear -Lake River with the Mackenzie. Here Back and Peter -<span class='pageno' id='Page_158'>158</span>Warren Dease of the Hudson's Bay Company, who -had joined the expedition to look after the local -arrangements, were sent off to build a house to winter -in on the banks of the Great Bear Lake, in Keith's Bay, -where the river leaves it; Richardson also left to explore -the northern shore of the lake, and Franklin and -Kendall continuing down the Mackenzie reached the -sea before the week was out in less than six months -from their departure from Liverpool. And on the 5th -of September they had returned upstream and were at -their winter quarters at the new house on the lake, -which Back had named Fort Franklin, to find that -Richardson had been along the northern shore and -noted as being the nearest point to the Coppermine the -entrance of the river he had named after Dease, which -was to be of so much service to him later on.</p> - -<p class='c000'>During the winter another boat, the <em>Reliance</em>, was -built on the lines of the <em>Lion</em>, the largest of the Woolwich -boats, and leaving Dease to complete the stores -for another comfortable winter, the expedition started -on the 24th of June. At Point Separation, at the -head of the Mackenzie delta, Franklin in the <em>Lion</em> -with Back in the <em>Reliance</em>—our old friend Robert -Spinks being his coxswain—took the western arm, and -Richardson in the <em>Dolphin</em> and Kendall in the <em>Union</em>, -carrying the <em>Walnut Shell</em> with them, took the eastern -arm.</p> - -<div id='pg158' class='figcenter id016'> -<img src='images/i_237.jpg' alt='Yours faithfully John Richardson' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_159'>159</span>Richardson, with a few more or less threatening -encounters with the Eskimos, ending fairly well owing -to Ooligbuck, and in constant danger of wreck avoided -by careful navigation, rounded Cape Bathurst in 70° 36´ -and discovered Wollaston Land, the coast-line of which -they left continuing to the east, when they reached -Coronation Gulf and, on the 8th of August, entered -the Coppermine, and thus filled in the gap of nine -hundred and two statute miles from Point Separation. -Leaving the <em>Dolphin</em> and <em>Union</em> at Bloody Fall on that -river, it being impossible to take them further, the -expedition, carrying the <em>Walnut Shell</em> with them, proceeded -along the banks, but finding they had no use -for the portable boat, owing to the shallowness of the -stream, they soon abandoned it, and in 67° 13´, where -the river is nearest to the north-eastern arm of Great -Bear Lake, the Coppermine was left and the course -laid across the Barren Grounds for Dease River. This -was reached three days afterwards, Richardson being -met at its mouth by Dease's people on the 24th of -August.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Franklin had similar experiences with the Eskimos, -and was as deeply indebted to Augustus for his tact -and bravery in dealing with them. Coasting along to -the westward, hindered by ice, bad weather and fog, -and tormented by mosquitoes, his progress was much -slower than that of Richardson. Delayed for some -days on or about Foggy Island, he had to give up his -intention of reaching Bering Strait, and not knowing -that Elson with the barge of the <em>Blossom</em> had come as -far east as Point Barrow, he gave the name of Cape -Beechey to the westernmost headland in sight, and -leaving Return Reef in 148° 52´ on the 18th of August, -after covering six hundred and ten statute miles through -parts not previously discovered, began his voyage back -to Fort Franklin, where he arrived on the 21st of -September. Meanwhile Richardson had gone off to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_160'>160</span>explore the Great Slave Lake, whence Drummond had -started on his journey among the Rockies; and, being -unable to get away till another winter had passed, -both Franklin and Richardson landed in England in -September, 1827, after an important and fruitful expedition -that had no death-roll.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Back was again in these regions in 1833 on his -expedition in search of Sir John Ross. Reaching the -Great Slave Lake, he built Fort Reliance at its north-eastern -corner and began the long winter there on the -5th of November. Soon afterwards Akaitcho put in -an appearance, and expressed his intention—which he -did his best to fulfil—of being of as much assistance -as he could; and later on Augustus made his way -across country to offer his services, but, either exhausted -by suffering and privation, or caught in a snowstorm, -he died alone near the Rivière à Jean.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Temperatures ranging from 50 to 70 minus were of -frequent occurrence, and, on one occasion Back, after -washing his face within a yard of the fire, had his hair -clotted with ice before he had time to dry it. Every -animal was driven away from the neighbourhood by -the cold, except a solitary raven which swept once -round the house and then winged his flight to the -westward. On the 25th of April a messenger arrived -at the fort with the news of the safe return of Sir -John Ross to England, but Back determined to proceed -with the journey for exploring purposes, taking -one boat instead of two, and, with Richard King the -surgeon, and eight men, he started for the Great Fish -River on the 8th of July.</p> - -<div id='pg160' class='figcenter id017'> -<a href='images/i_241.jpg'><img src='images/i_241_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>BACK'S JOURNEY DOWN THE GREAT FISH RIVER</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_161'>161</span>The voyage was a hazardous and adventurous one. -For five hundred and thirty geographical miles the -river was found to run through an iron-ribbed country -without a single tree on the whole line of its banks, -expanding into fine large lakes with clear horizons, -most embarrassing to the navigator, and broken into -falls, cascades, and rapids, to the number of no less -than eighty-three, pouring its waters into the Polar -Sea in latitude 67° 11´ and longitude 94° 30´; so that -his explorations on the northern coast were confined to -a section further east than Point Turnagain.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The expedition met with its greatest danger at -Escape Rapid, between Lake Macdougall and Lake -Franklin, on the 25th of July. Here the stream was -broken by a mile of heavy and dangerous rapids. The -boat was lightened, and every care taken to avoid -accident; but so overwhelming was the rush and whirl -of the water, that she, and consequently those in her, -were twice in imminent peril of being plunged into -one of the gulfs formed in the rocks and hollows. It -was in one of these places, which are fall, rapid, and -eddy within a few yards, that the boat owed its safety -to an unintentional disobedience of the steersman's -directions.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The power of the water so far exceeded whatever -had been witnessed on any of the other rivers that the -precautions used elsewhere were weak and unavailing. -McKay, the steersman, was endeavouring to clear a fall -and some sunken rocks on the left, but the man to -whom he spoke misunderstood him, and did exactly the -reverse; and then, seeing the danger, the steersman -swept the stern round; instantly the boat was caught -by an eddy to the right, which, snapping an oar, twirled -<span class='pageno' id='Page_162'>162</span>her irresistibly broadside on; so that for a moment it -seemed uncertain whether the boat was to be hurled -into the hollow of the fall, or dashed stern foremost on -the sunken rocks. Of how it happened no account can -be given, but her head swung inshore towards the beach -and thereby gave an opportunity for some of the men -to spring into the water and by their united strength -rescue her from her perilous position. Had the man -to whom the first order was given understood and acted -on it no human power could have saved the crew from -being buried in the abyss. Nor yet could any blame be -justly attached to the steersman, who had never been so -situated before and whose coolness and self-possession -never in this imminent peril forsook him. At the -awful moment of suspense, when one of the crew with -less nerve than his companions began to cry aloud to -Heaven for aid, McKay in a still louder voice exclaimed, -"Is this a time for praying? Pull your starboard -oar." Never could a reminder that <i><span lang="la" xml:lang="la">laborare est -orare</span></i> have been more opportune.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 1st of August Montreal Island was reached. -Nine days afterwards a log of driftwood, nine feet long -and nine inches in diameter, jocularly described as a -piece of the North Pole, was found on the beach, -which, as there are no trees on the Fish River or the -Coppermine, Captain Back was of opinion must -have come from the Mackenzie and drifted eastward, so -that he was on the main line of the land. The inference, -confirmed by the appearance of a whale, was -correct, but, misled, perhaps, by hilly islands, he missed -the channel through which it had come, blocking it, -in the manner of John Ross, with a range of mountains -<span class='pageno' id='Page_163'>163</span>that does not exist. Though he reached Mount Barrow -and mistook the head of Simpson Strait for an inlet, -thus failing to find one of the north-west passages, he -discovered and named King William Land and sighted -Point Booth at its eastern extremity. An attempt to -reach Point Turnagain to the westward and thus link -up with Franklin's farthest east, in which he might -have discovered the passage, proving impracticable -owing to the bogginess of the ground, Back began his -return from King William Land in latitude 68° 13´, -longitude 94° 58´, and entered on a wearisome journey -up the river and lakes he had come down, meeting -with a party from Fort Reliance on the 17th of -September.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A week after, when within a couple of days of the -fort, on that "small but abominable river" the Ah-hel-dessy -from Artillery Lake, Back discovered the Anderson -Falls. Toiling along over the mountains, every man -with a seventy-five-pound package on his back, he had -not proceeded more than six or seven miles when, observing -the spray rising from another fall, he was induced to -visit it and was well consoled for having left the boat -behind. "From the only point," says Back, "at which -the greater part of it was visible, we could distinguish -the river coming sharp round a rock, and falling into -an upper basin almost concealed by intervening rocks; -whence it broke in one vast sheet into a chasm between -four and five hundred feet deep, yet in appearance so -narrow that we fancied we could almost step across it. -Out of this the spray rose in misty columns several -hundred feet above our heads; but as it was impossible -to see the main fall from the side on which we were, in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_164'>164</span>the following spring I paid a second visit to it, -approaching from the western bank. The road to it, -which I then traversed in snow-shoes, was fatiguing in -the extreme, and scarcely less dangerous; for, to say -nothing of the steep ascents, fissures in the rocks, and -deep snow in the valleys, we had sometimes to creep -along the narrow shelves of precipices slippery with the -frozen mist that fell on them. But it was a sight that -well repaid any risk. My first impression was of a -strong resemblance to an iceberg in Smeerenberg -Harbour, Spitsbergen. The whole face of the rocks -forming the chasm was entirely coated with blue, -green, and white ice, in thousands of pendent icicles; -and there were, moreover, caverns, fissures, and overhanging -ledges in all imaginable varieties of form, so -curious and beautiful as to surpass anything of which I -had ever heard or read. The immediate approaches -were extremely hazardous, nor could we obtain a perfect -view of the lower fall, in consequence of the projection -of the western cliffs. At the lowest position -we were able to attain, we were still more than a -hundred feet above the level of the river beneath; and -this, instead of being narrow enough to step across, as it -had seemed from the opposite heights, was found to be -at least two hundred feet wide. The colour of the water -varied from a very light to a very dark green; and the -spray, which spread a dimness above, was thrown up in -clouds of light grey. Niagara, Wilberforce Falls on -Hood River, the falls of Kakabikka near Lake -Superior, the Swiss or Italian falls—although they may -each charm the eye with dread—are not to be compared -to this for splendour of effect. It was the most imposing -<span class='pageno' id='Page_165'>165</span>spectacle I had ever witnessed; and, as its berg-like -appearance brought to mind associations of another -scene, I bestowed upon it the name of our celebrated -navigator, Sir Edward Parry, and called it Parry's -Falls."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Back, like Franklin, owed much of the success of -his expedition to the cordial help of the Governor of -the Hudson's Bay Company, George, afterwards Sir -George, Simpson. Ever the fastest of travellers in the -north, Simpson had, in 1828, made a 3260-mile canoe -voyage from Hudson Bay to the Pacific, passing the -Rockies through canyons previously untried, and -slipping down mountain torrents and through unknown -rapids at such speed that hostile Indians let him pass -in sheer amazement; and all his life he was distinguished -for similar energy and celerity. When it -became clear that the British Government had no -immediate intention of completing the survey of the -northern coast, Simpson organised an expedition at the -Company's expense to undertake the task, and entrusted -the leadership to Dease, who had done such excellent -work for Franklin; and with Dease he associated his -own nephew, Thomas Simpson, in no way inferior to -his uncle in energy, speediness, or decision of character, -being in fact one of our very best explorers, Arctic or -otherwise.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Thomas Simpson, Master of Arts of Aberdeen and a -winner of the Huttonian, began characteristically by -starting off to Fort Garry—now Winnipeg—with a -view, as he says, "to refresh and extend my astronomical -practice which had for some years been interrupted -by avocations of a very different nature"; and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_166'>166</span>thence, in the winter, making his way to Fort Chippewyan, -a journey of 1277 miles, joining Dease there -more than a month before he was expected. Two -boats were built, light clinker craft of 24 ft. keel and -6 ft. beam, adapted for shallow navigation by their -small draught, both alike and honoured with the -classical names of the heavenly twins, <em>Castor</em> and -<em>Pollux</em>, each boat provided with a small oiled canvas -canoe and portable wooden frame. Of one, the steersman -was the redoubtable James McKay—"Pull your -starboard oar!"—and of the other, George Sinclair, -Back's bowman; and one of the bowmen was Felix, -who had been with Franklin in 1826. All told, the -expedition numbered fourteen.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Leaving Fort Chippewyan on the 1st of June, 1837, -they reached Bear Lake River on the 3rd of July, and -six days afterwards were out on the sea. On the 23rd -of July they camped at Return Reef, that is to say -they had traversed the whole extent of Franklin's -survey in a fortnight, and not without danger from -the ice and losing much time by doubling the floes, -however far they extended seawards. Once Simpson's -boat, which was of course leading, was only saved from -destruction by throwing out everything it contained -upon the floating masses. By means of portages made -from one fragment to another, the oars forming the -perilous bridges, and after repeated risks of boats, men, -and baggage being separated by the motion of the ice, -they succeeded with much labour in collecting the -whole equipment on one floe, which, being covered -with water, formed a sort of wet dock. There they -hauled up the boats, momentarily liable to be overwhelmed -<span class='pageno' id='Page_167'>167</span>by the turning over of the ice, three miles -from land, with the fog settled round them throughout -the inclement night.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Continuing westwards along new country, they -reached and named Cape George Simpson (after the -Governor) and, a little further on, Boat Extreme, -where, from the coldness of the weather and the interminable -ice, the further advance of the boats appeared -to be so hopeless that Dease agreed to stay in charge -of them while Simpson with five men, including -McKay and Felix, pushed ahead for Point Barrow on -foot. Passing McKay Inlet and Sinclair River, named -after the two steersmen, an Eskimo camp was reached, -where Simpson exchanged his tin plate for a platter -made out of a mammoth tusk, and borrowed an oomiak -which floated in about half a foot of water. In this -useful skin boat the journey was resumed to Point -Barrow, and on the 4th of August the survey completed -between Franklin's farthest and Elson's.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The winter was passed at the mouth of the Dease -River, on Great Bear Lake, where Fort Confidence -had been built ready for the expedition on its return. -On the 6th of June, 1838, a start for the coast was -made by the Coppermine route, that river being reached -on the 22nd, and its descent accomplished, on the spring -flood, in nine days. But it was a bad season, and the -navigation was so hampered by ice that no start was -made to the eastward until the 17th of July. At -Boathaven, in 109° 20´, Simpson again left the boats -and went ahead with Sinclair and six others who had -not been to Point Barrow. Passing Franklin's farthest -at Point Turnagain, he kept on for a hundred miles -<span class='pageno' id='Page_168'>168</span>along the whole length of Dease Strait, discovering -and naming Victoria Land, reaching Beaufort River -beyond Cape Alexander, and sighting an open sea to -the eastward. From here, in 106° 3´, the return began; -and by many devices and the unfailing skill of McKay -and Sinclair, the two boats were taken up the Coppermine -stream, falls and rapids and all, to the nearest -point to Fort Confidence, where they were hauled up -in readiness for next year.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 22nd of June, 1839, the boats again left for -the sea; and they were run down to Bloody Fall without -a stoppage in eleven hours. Again there were -fourteen all told in them, but this time one of the men -was Ooglibuck, who had come specially from Ungava in -Labrador, in the wonderful time of three months less -eight days, to join the expedition which was to meet -with great success and accomplish an Arctic boat -journey of over sixteen hundred statute miles.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Entirely blocked until the 3rd of July, and hindered -by ice difficulties all the way, the boats did not reach -the previous year's farthest until the 28th of July. -On the 11th of August, through an outlet only three -miles wide, they passed into the much-desired eastern -sea. "That glorious sight," says Simpson, after whom -the strait is named, "was first beheld by myself from -the top of one of the high limestone islands, and I had -the satisfaction of announcing it to some of the men -who, incited by curiosity, followed me thither. The -joyful news was soon conveyed to Mr. Dease, who was -with the boats at the end of the island, about half a -mile off." On the continent and on King William -Land, where Franklin's men were in time coming to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_169'>169</span>perish of starvation, reindeer were seen browsing on the -scanty herbage among the shingle. A terrible thunderstorm -followed, and then, doubling a very sharp point -on the 13th, Simpson landed and saw before him a -sandy desert. It was Back's Point Sir C. Ogle that he -had at length reached. Away in the distance was the -Great Fish River, and three days afterwards the party -were encamped on Montreal Island, where McKay led -the way to the provisions and gunpowder deposited by -Back among the rocks.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The expedition had performed its allotted task, and -the men were consulted as to whether they would continue -for a short distance to the eastward. To their -honour they all assented without a murmur; but the -cruel north-east wind forbade much progress in that -direction, and their farthest east was reached at Castor -and Pollux River. From there immediate return was -imperative, as not a day could be spared. And so, -from latitude 68° 28´ 23˝, longitude 94° 14´, they turned -back on the 21st of August, leaving the survey of the -north coast of the American mainland practically complete -from Bering Strait to Boothia.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Further, on their return journey they crossed to the -southern shore of King William Land and traced its coast -for nearly sixty miles, discovering and naming Cape -Herschel, south-eastward of which, in Simpson Strait, -M'Clintock found the remains of one of Franklin's -men. They thus linked up with what was to be the -route of the Franklin expedition and were the first to -find the North-West Passage for the command of -which the territory was given by Charles II to the -Hudson's Bay Company.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_170'>170</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER IX<br /> THE PARRY ISLANDS</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>John Rae—Wollaston Land and Victoria Strait—Overlaps Franklin's route—M'Clure -discovers Prince of Wales Strait—The North-West Passage—Banks -Land—M'Clure rescued by Bedford Pim—Collinson's remarkable -voyage—In Beaufort Sea—Reaches Banks Strait—Voyage to Cambridge -Bay—On Franklin's route—The North-West Passage sailed by Amundsen -along the track of the <em>Enterprise</em>—Sir John Barrow—Parry's first voyage—Penetrates -Lancaster Sound and discovers the Parry Islands—Stopped -by ice in Banks Strait—The search for Franklin—Sir John Ross—De -Haven—Penny—Austin—Ommanney—Osborn—Belcher—Kellett—M'Clintock—Drift -of the <em>Resolute</em>—Sledge work—Sverdrup's discoveries -during his four years in the north.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>The second to complete a north-west passage by -linking up with Franklin's voyage was Dr. John -Rae, an Orkneyman by birth, as energetic as Thomas -Simpson and evidently not inferior to him in stamina, -for in his Arctic journeys he walked a distance equal to -that of the circumference of the earth. In 1846 he -had surveyed the Committee Bay district between -Boothia and the Melville Peninsula, reaching it from -Repulse Bay, and in 1848 and 1849 he had been associated -with Richardson in searching for Franklin along the -coast from the Mackenzie eastwards. Next year, while -in charge of the Mackenzie district, he was again requested -to lead a Franklin search expedition, and, -starting from Fort Confidence on the 25th of April, -was on the sea by the 1st of May. Crossing over to -Wollaston Land, and making westward along the coast -on the 22nd of May, he rounded Cape Baring, just -above the seventieth parallel. Crossing to its continuation, -Victoria Land, on a second journey, he -travelled eastward, and, going up Victoria Strait, -rounded Pelly Point, also just above the seventieth -parallel, on the 12th of July, thus practically completing -the survey of the southern half of what Collinson -was to prove is one large island.</p> - -<div id='pg170' class='figcenter id018'> -<img src='images/i_253.jpg' alt='Yours very truly W Parry' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_171'>171</span>Off Pelly Point, it afterwards appeared, the <em>Erebus</em> -and <em>Terror</em> were beset in the ice in September, 1846, -and fifty miles to the south-east they had been -abandoned in April, 1848; but the only relic found by -Rae on this occasion was the doubtful one—picked up -in Parker Bay—of the butt-end of a flagstaff on -which was nailed a piece of white line by two copper -tacks, all three bearing the Government mark. This -was the first to be found of anything that could be -thought to be a trace of the missing ships, a sort -of promise of what he was to meet with four years -later; and it is worth noting that, had he not failed in -getting across the strait to King William Land, Rae -would in 1850 have probably discovered Franklin's -fate.</p> - -<p class='c000'>His farthest in these parts was passed in May, 1853, -by Captain Richard Collinson, in his sledge journey to -Gateshead Island from H.M.S. <em>Enterprise</em>, then wintering -in Cambridge Bay. The <em>Enterprise</em> and <em>Investigator</em> -had been placed under Collinson's command and sent -by way of Cape Horn to search for Franklin from -the west, the instructions being that the ships should -not part company; but regardless of this, Commander -Robert Le Mesurier M'Clure, of the <em>Investigator</em>, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_172'>172</span>happening to get through Bering Strait first, declined -to wait for his commanding officer, went off on an -expedition on his own account and, by a sledge journey, -joined Parry's track when in search of the North-West -Passage.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Steering north-east from Franklin Bay, M'Clure -reached the south of Parry's Banks Land and followed -the coast north-eastwards, discovering Prince of Wales -Strait and making his way rather more than half-way -up, until, near Princess Royal Island in 72° 50´, he -was caught in the ice and imprisoned for the winter. -On Trafalgar Day, 1850, M'Clure left the <em>Investigator</em> -on a sledge journey up the strait, and at sunrise on the -26th of October, from Mount Observation in 73° 30´, a -hill six hundred feet above the sea, he looked over -Banks Strait and Melville Sound, and saw the coast of -Banks Land terminating about twelve miles further on -and thence trending to the north-west, while Wollaston -Land, as it proved to be, turned eastward on the other -side at Peel Point. That evening Banks Strait was -reached at Cape Lord John Russell, and the North-West -Passage by Prince of Wales Strait clearly -demonstrated. The spot was not bare of vegetation, -and there were many traces of animals, for, fortunately -for M'Clure, there was no scarcity of game during his -three winterings in Banks Land—reindeer in herds, -musk oxen occasionally, hares in troops, ducks in -plenty, ptarmigan almost as numerous, and bears, -wolves, and foxes to feed on them; for instance, the -weights of three items in the bag, 1945 lb. of musk ox, -7716 lb. of deer, and 1017 lb. of hare, show fairly good -shooting.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_173'>173</span>Enclosing a record of the visit in a cairn, M'Clure -returned to the ship, from which in the spring three -sledge parties were sent out—Cresswell's to the north-west -finding that Banks Land was an island, Wynniatt's -to the north-east reaching Reynolds Point on the north -of Wollaston Land, and Haswell's down Wollaston -Land to within forty miles of where Rae turned back -about a week later—this being the only attempt at -searching for Franklin that the expedition undertook -after sighting Nelson Head. Released in July, the -<em>Investigator</em> retreated down the strait and attempted to -circumnavigate Banks Land, finding to the west a -coast as precipitous as a wall, the water deep—fifteen -fathoms close in, with the yardarms almost touching -the cliffs on one hand and the lofty ice on the other—and -the pack drawing forty feet of water, rising in -rolling hills a hundred feet from base to summit. On -shore the hills were as remarkable. Many of them -were peaked and isolated by precipitous gorges, about -three hundred feet deep. And all the way up them -were numbers of fallen trees, in many places in layers, -some protruding twelve or fourteen feet, one of these -trunks measuring nineteen inches in diameter. Says -M'Clure: "I entered a ravine some miles inland, and -found the north side of it, for a depth of forty feet -from the surface, composed of one mass of wood -similar to what I had before seen. The whole depth -of the ravine was about two hundred feet. The -ground around the wood or trees was formed of sand -and shingle; some of the wood was petrified, the remainder -very rotten and worthless even for burning." -And this forest bed is on the shore of the Beaufort Sea -<span class='pageno' id='Page_174'>174</span>in 74° north latitude, a similar one being in Prince -Patrick Island, on the other side of Banks Strait.</p> - -<p class='c000'>After one or two narrow escapes the <em>Investigator</em> -entered her last home at the Bay of Mercy, well -within the strait, near Cape Hamilton, the most -prominent of the three capes discovered from the -Dundas Peninsula by Parry's lieutenant, Beechey, -thirty-one years before. The winter passed, and on -the 11th of April M'Clure left the ship on a sledge -journey across to Parry's old quarters at Winter -Harbour, which were reached on the 28th, to find -nothing but a notice of M'Clintock's having been there -in the previous June. Noticing Parry's inscription -rock, M'Clure judiciously left on it a statement that -the <em>Investigator</em> was in want of relief at Mercy Bay. -But all through that year no news from the outside -came to Banks Land, and matters became serious -owing to the appearance of scurvy, notwithstanding -the abundance of fresh meat, for even in January a -herd of reindeer trotted by.</p> - -<div id='pg174' class='figcenter id019'> -<a href='images/i_259.jpg'><img src='images/i_259_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE PARRY ISLANDS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_175'>175</span>Another winter went wearily, each month with a -gloomier outlook than the last, and on the 5th of April -the first of the scurvy patients died. Next morning -M'Clure and Haswell were walking near the ship discussing -how they could dig a grave in the frozen -ground, when they noticed a man hurriedly approaching -from the entrance of the bay, throwing up his -arms and shouting at the top of his voice, his face as -black as ebony. When he came within talking range -the dark-faced stranger called out, "I am Lieutenant -Pim, late of the <em>Herald</em> and now in the <em>Resolute</em>; -Captain Kellett is in her at Dealy Island." And soon -the dog-sledge with two men came into view. Pim's -arrival was most fortunate for the sufferers, for the -captain, as a desperate resource, was—in spite of the -doctor's protests—just about to send off two sledge -parties of the invalids to take their chance of escaping -somehow, as there was no hope of their recovery in -the ship; and on examination by the doctor of the -<em>Resolute</em>, it was found that every man of the crew was -more or less affected by the disease. So the ship was -abandoned in Mercy Bay, and the officers and crew, -crossing to the <em>Resolute</em>, reached England by way of -Hudson Strait.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Collinson's was the most remarkable voyage ever -accomplished by a sailing-ship in the Arctic regions. -It lasted from 1850 to 1855—five years and a hundred -and sixteen days—all the way out across the Atlantic -and Pacific and home again in safety, traversing a -hundred and twenty-eight degrees of longitude in the -Arctic sea, coming nearest at the time to completing -the north-west passage by ship (up Prince of Wales -Strait), finding two north-west passages by sledge (one -joining with Parry's discoveries across Banks Strait, -the other with Franklin's up Victoria Strait), and -approaching nearer than any other naval expedition -to the great discovery by travelling up Franklin's -route for some distance, and passing within thirty miles -of the spot where the vessels he was in search of had -been abandoned, though unfortunately, like Rae, he -was on the west side of the waterway instead of the -east.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Passing Bering Strait in July, 1850, the <em>Enterprise</em> -went north from Wainwright Inlet into the Beaufort -<span class='pageno' id='Page_176'>176</span>Sea, until she was stopped by the heavy pack. Trying -east, to join with Parry's farthest, and then west, she -arrived, on the 28th of August, at 73° 23´ in 164°, and -here she turned south after having sailed over eleven -thousand miles without having to reef her topsails, an -unprecedented run of distance and fine weather combined. -Returning in 1851 from wintering at Hong -Kong, Collinson, with a southerly wind "too precious -to be wasted," made his way up Prince of Wales -Strait, knowing nothing of the visit of the <em>Investigator</em>, -to find ice blocking his way just at the northern outlet, -his furthest north, by ship, 73° 30´, forty miles beyond -M'Clure's winter quarters, as given in the record he -found in one of the cairns.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Unable to round the corner into Banks Strait owing -to the ice block, Collinson returned down Prince of -Wales Strait and followed the track of the <em>Investigator</em> -half-way up the west coast of Banks Land, though he -had found nothing to indicate she had gone in that -direction. Finding the ice conditions dangerous, he -retraced his route along the coast and went into comfortable -winter quarters in Walker Bay, at the entrance -of Prince of Wales Strait. By the end of November -the natives fishing for salmon-trout had cleared off, as -also had the reindeer, hares, and ptarmigan and other -birds, and on the 17th of March the ravens, which had -been the last to leave, were the first to return. In -April sledge parties went out, one of which under -Lieutenant Parkes crossed the route of the <em>Hecla</em> -along the strait and reached Melville Island at Cape -Providence on the way to Winter Harbour, short of -which, within sight of Point Hearne, Parkes began his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_177'>177</span>homeward journey, owing to his taking the tracks of -sledges and barking of dogs as indicating the presence, -not of M'Clure as it did, but of Eskimos, with whom, -being without weapons, he was unable to cope.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Released on the 5th of August, the <em>Enterprise</em> proceeded -to sea, coasting along past Rae's farthest and -Cape Baring, and so, where no ship had been, through -Coronation Gulf to Cambridge Bay. Here the winter -of 1852-3 was spent, and hence the sledges went up -Victoria Strait. At Finlayson Islands, what seemed -to be a piece of a companion-door was found among -the driftwood, which might have been a relic of the -lost ships; but that was all. During the return along -the northern coast the <em>Enterprise</em> was beset in Camden -Bay, and here the third winter was passed, release not -coming until the end of the following July, and Bering -Strait not being reached until the 21st of August after -a voyage, like that of the <em>Vega</em>, too well managed to -yield much adventure. Like all the other Arctic -voyages of this period, it failed in the one object it -was undertaken to achieve; but in days to come the -first ship to sail the passage from the Atlantic to the -Pacific was to follow Collinson from Cambridge Bay -along the route laboriously completed by the surveyors -of the mainland from James Cook to Dease and -Simpson.</p> - -<p class='c000'>M'Clure claimed and—to have done with the matter—obtained -the reward of £10,000 for discovering the -North-West Passage through Prince of Wales Strait, -though he sailed only half-way up it and, in attempting -to get round to Parry's farthest, lost his ship and -started sledging on the west side of the pack; while -<span class='pageno' id='Page_178'>178</span>Collinson took his ship much nearer to Parry's course -on the east side; and Franklin, by linking up with -Dease and Simpson over the ice by way of Victoria -Strait, had previously found another of the possible -passages, as shown by Collinson's voyage to Cambridge -Bay. But surely what was done by M'Clure, and by -Collinson in his northerly cruise, was to see where ships -could pass when there was no ice in the way, which -was no more than had been done by Parry, who had -taken his ship within sight of both their farthest, and -would have sailed into the Beaufort Sea had not the -pack forbidden it. It was Parry, in fact, who discovered -the main road, the route by Prince of Wales -Strait, like that by Peel Sound taken by Franklin and -successfully accomplished by Amundsen, being only -one of the many by-roads leading off along his course.</p> - -<p class='c000'>His famous voyage to Melville Island was due to the -influence of Sir John Barrow. Barrow, to whom more -than any other man this country owes its position in -Arctic story, was born in a small thatched cottage at -Dragley Beck, near Ulverston, in North Lancashire, in -1764, and, in a remarkable course of promotion by -merit, became second secretary of the Admiralty for -forty years under twelve or thirteen different naval -administrations, Whig and Tory; being so unmistakably -the right man in the right place that he was only dispensed -with once—on a change of First Lords—and -then was reinstated the next year. When he was -seventeen he was given the opportunity of a voyage -in a Greenland whaler, which he accepted, and that -was his only Arctic experience; but even when with -Macartney in China and South Africa, he kept up -his interest in the north, and in 1817, when at the -Admiralty, proposed to Lord Melville his plan for two -voyages of discovery, one to the north and the other -to the north-west, which opened the new era of Polar -exploration.</p> - -<div id='pg178' class='figcenter id020'> -<img src='images/i_265.jpg' alt='Yours very truly John Barrow' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_179'>179</span>The voyage to the north was that of Buchan and -Franklin in the <em>Dorothea</em> and <em>Trent</em>; that to the north-west -was undertaken by John Ross in the <em>Isabella</em> and -William Edward Parry in the <em>Alexander</em>. Of this we -need only say here that on their return from the north -of Baffin Bay, Ross and Parry coasted down the west -side and sailed into Lancaster Sound for a considerable -distance until Ross—who seems to have had the -mountain-finding eye and an unenviable gift for missing -straits—declared that it ended in a range of mountains -which he appropriately named Croker's; and, that -there should be no mistake about them, he gave a very -pretty picture of them as a full-page plate in his book. -Parry, however, saw no mountains and took the liberty -of saying so to Barrow when he reported himself at the -Admiralty, the result being the despatch of Parry's -expedition in the <em>Hecla</em> and <em>Griper</em> which left Yarmouth -on the 12th of May, 1819, and, for the first time -after leaving the coast of Norfolk, dropped anchor in -the bay named after them in Melville Island, on the 5th -of September.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Parry, before his voyage in the <em>Alexander</em>, had had -Arctic experience while lieutenant of the <em>Alexandria</em> -frigate engaged in protecting the Spitsbergen -whale fisheries, and knew thoroughly what he was -about. For instance, he worked his crews in three -watches, and had both his vessels rigged as barques -<span class='pageno' id='Page_180'>180</span>as the most convenient rig among ice, though the -<em>Griper</em>, a strong, slow gunboat, was rather too small to -be so treated, being only about half the tonnage of the -<em>Hecla</em>, whose measurement was under four hundred. -Had she been a little speedier more work might have -been done; but what was done was magnificent.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Entering Lancaster Sound, Parry found a strait not -blocked by mountains but thirty miles broad leading -into a region up to then unknown, except—so it is said—to -the Norsemen. On the 12th of August Prince -Regent Inlet was discovered and named, it being -George IV's birthday. Then North Somerset was -sighted and the course laid across Barrow Strait to -North Devon and its south-western peninsula known -as Beechey Island; then Wellington Channel was descried, -and then Cornwallis Island. Griffith Island was -discovered on the 23rd of August, Bathurst Island on -the 25th, Byam Martin Island on the 27th, where -Sabine, the astronomer of the expedition, found they -had passed north of the magnetic north pole. Then -the south side of Melville Island was coasted along, -Dealy Island being found on the 4th of September at -noon, and, at a quarter past nine at night, just after -passing Bounty Cape (named in honour of the event), -the <em>Hecla</em> crossed the 110th meridian west, and -became entitled to the Government grant of £5000 for -doing so—which Parry shared between the ships.</p> - -<div id='pg180' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_269.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>H.M.S. "HECLA" AND "GRIPER" IN WINTER HARBOUR</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_181'>181</span>Soon the ice became difficult and the ships had to -anchor, but, the conditions improving, the westerly -voyage was resumed. Cape Providence was passed and -Cape Hay sighted, but the ships could get no further -than about half-way between these capes, and they had -to return to Winter Harbour, where, on the 26th of -September, they were warped to their quarters through -a channel cut in the ice. The <em>Hecla</em>, sending down all -her upper masts except the main topmast, and the -<em>Griper</em>, housing her fore and main topmasts, used the -spars to support a roof which completely enclosed their -upper decks and made them both snug for the winter, -which did not seem so long owing to the efforts of the -officers to keep every one amused and on the move. -Parry, a host in himself, was well seconded by his -lieutenant, Beechey, late of the <em>Trent</em>, James Clark -Ross, one of his midshipmen, Captain Sabine, and -Lieutenant Liddon, the commander of the <em>Griper</em>, who -was almost disabled with rheumatism, and Lieutenant -Hoppner, also of the <em>Griper</em>. A couple of books of -plays on board proved a real treasure; owing to them -the Royal Arctic Theatre was started, the pioneer of so -many amateur theatrical ventures in the Polar seas, -and the <em>North Georgia Gazette</em> and <em>Winter Chronicle</em> -came into existence, the first of ship newspapers. On -Christmas Day there was a dinner of roast beef which -had been on board since May, the condition of -which, as Parry said, was an excellent testimony to the -antiseptic properties of a cold atmosphere; and the -food generally was good and abundant, and the management -and supplies far better than on many subsequent -expeditions. In the spring, game was found in fair -quantity, nearly four thousand pounds of musk ox, -deer, hares, geese, ducks, and ptarmigan being brought -on board.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In May the vessels were afloat again, though ice-bound, -and, in June, walking, not sledging, journeys -<span class='pageno' id='Page_182'>182</span>were organised, the furthest points reached being Cape -Fisher to the north and Cape Hoppner to the west. -On the 1st of August the vessels moved out of the -bay to the westward, and six days afterwards Beechey -called attention to the land with the three capes already -mentioned. "The land," says Parry, "which extends -beyond the 117th degree of west longitude, and is the -most western yet discovered in the Polar Sea to the -north of the American continent, was honoured with -the name of Banks Land out of respect to the late -venerable and worthy President of the Royal Society."</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 16th Cape Dundas was named, but progress -was impossible. For a week Parry made every endeavour -to pass, but the floes, forty to fifty feet thick, -heaped up by the tides from the east and the west so -as to form a wide-stretching landscape of hill and dale, -barred the way right across Banks Strait; and no -further west could be attained than 113° 46´ 43·5˝, in -latitude 74° 26´ 25˝. Thence Parry returned, hoping -to get through on another voyage, and bidding farewell -to the North Georgian Islands, as he called them, or -the Parry Islands, as we now know them, he came -home by the way he went out, through Lancaster -Sound. Needless to say, the very next season the -whalers followed on Parry's track, and Lancaster -Sound became the highway to a very profitable fishing-ground.</p> - -<div id='pg182' class='figcenter id021'> -<a href='images/i_273.jpg'><img src='images/i_273_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>PARRY'S DISCOVERIES ON HIS FIRST VOYAGE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_183'>183</span>Among the Parry Islands in 1851 were several -vessels in search of Franklin. Sir John Ross, aged -seventy-four, was there in the schooner-yacht <em>Felix</em> on -a private expedition chiefly memorable for the story -of his having sent off a carrier pigeon from his winter -quarters at Cornwallis Island, which reached his home—North-West -Castle, Stranraer, Wigtownshire—three -thousand miles away, in five days. Lady Franklin's -vessel, the <em>Prince Albert</em>, was there, with Captain -Forsyth and Parker Snow on board, an old fruit -schooner, and therefore the speediest sailing-craft -among the crowd. The Grinnell expedition of the -two American brigs, <em>Advance</em> and <em>Racer</em>, under De -Haven, was also there, to drift afterwards up Wellington -Channel and down again back into Baffin Bay; -as was a British Government expedition of the two -whaling brigs, <em>Lady Franklin</em> and <em>Sophia</em>, under Captain -William Penny, who was to discover the sea open north -of Wellington Channel. In addition to these was the -British squadron under Captain Horatio Austin in -H.M.S. <em>Resolute</em>, with H.M.S. <em>Assistance</em>, Captain -Erasmus Ommanney, and the old Cattle Conveyance -Company's boats known as H.M.S. <em>Intrepid</em>, Lieutenant -Cator, and H.M.S. <em>Pioneer</em>, Lieutenant Sherard Osborn, -these two being screw steamers used as tenders, which -proved of great value as tugs and ice-breakers.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 23rd of August Captain Ommanney found -Franklin's winter quarters on Beechey Island, and four -days afterwards Captain Penny came upon the gravestones -marking where the three men, two of the -<em>Erebus</em> and one of the <em>Terror</em>, had been buried in -1846, though nothing was discoverable of the route -intended to be taken by the ships. The news was -important, and the <em>Prince Albert</em>, acting as despatch -vessel, was immediately sent home with it, to return -next year with Kennedy and Bellot to make a discovery -of her own. Soon Captain Austin's four ships -<span class='pageno' id='Page_184'>184</span>departed, also to return in the following year, Sir -Edward Belcher, in the <em>Assistance</em>, being then in command, -Kellett being in the <em>Resolute</em>, M'Clintock in the -<em>Intrepid</em>, and Sherard Osborn again in the <em>Pioneer</em>. -Belcher's attempt ended in his abandoning his vessels -in the ice; one of them, the <em>Resolute</em>, as though in -mute protest, drifting from 74° 41´ for a thousand -miles, to be picked up by Buddington off Cape Dyer -in Baffin Bay, bought from him by the American -Government and presented to Great Britain, refitted -as she used to be, as a much-appreciated token of goodwill.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The great feature of these years was the wonderful -sledge work; by it mainly the northern coasts of the -islands discovered by Parry were surveyed and other -islands added to the archipelago, including the westernmost, -Prince Patrick, named after the Duke of Connaught, -who was at first known as Prince Patrick instead -of Prince Arthur. The sledges fitted out by Austin -traversed 1500 miles of coast-line, 850 of which were new, -the routes radiating between Osborn's 72° 18´ and Bradford's -76° 25´, M'Clintock going farthest, 760 miles, to -114° 20´ in 74° 38´. Those next year from Kellett at -Dealy Island covered 8558 miles, radiating from Pim's -74° 6´ (to rescue M'Clure) to M'Clintock's 77° 23´, a -run to 118° 20´ and back of 1401 miles, while Mecham -reached 120° 30´ on a trip of 1163 miles; and Belcher -from his winter quarters in Northumberland Sound, in -76° 52´, aided by Richards and Osborn, was almost as -busy further north.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Thus practically the whole belt of land and sea -westward between and including Lancaster Sound and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_185'>185</span>Jones Sound as far as 120° was searched and mapped, -the most northerly of the Parry Islands known up to -then being Finlay Island, North Cornwall, and Graham -Island. But in 1898 Captain Otto Sverdrup went up -Smith Sound in his old ship the <em>Fram</em> on an endeavour -to sail round the north coast of Greenland from west -to east. He had to winter in Rice Strait, near Pim -Island, and finding, to put it sportingly, that he was -to a certain extent trespassing on Peary's preserves, -decided to devote his attention to the unknown region -approachable through Jones Sound. In 1899, therefore, -he took the <em>Fram</em> up the sound, and, failing -to pass through Cardigan Strait, spent the three -following years among the fiords at the north-western -end.</p> - -<p class='c000'>From here he sent his sledge and ski parties far and -wide, west and south and north over an approximate -area of a hundred thousand square miles. Long -stretches of coast-fine were explored and named, in a -few cases unnecessarily, though, strange to say, the -unnecessary names were all royal ones, King Oscar -Land being the west of Ellesmere Land, Crown Prince -Gustav Sea and Prince Gustav Adolf Sea being the -Polar Ocean, and King Christian Land being simply -Finlay Island. Separated from Finlay Island by -Danish Sound and from North Cornwall by Hendriksen -Sound, he found two large islands, which—just as -John Ross named Boothia after his principal patron, -the distiller—Sverdrup named Ellef Ringnes and -Amund Ringnes after two of his supporters, the -brewers; his other discovery, Axel Heiberg Land—which -seems to be Peary's Jesup Land sighted in 1898—to -<span class='pageno' id='Page_186'>186</span>the west and north-west of these, being so called -after his other munificent patron.</p> - -<p class='c000'>His farthest south was Beechey Island, his farthest -west Cape Isachsen in Ellef Ringnes Land, his farthest -north Lands Lokk in Grant Land, in latitude 81° 40´ -and longitude about 92°, within sixty miles of Aldrich's -farthest along the north-eastern coast, the gap afterwards -traversed by Peary. Within these limits the -amount of coast detail filled in was remarkable. -Owing to the favourable condition of the ice and the -excellent management in all ways, the sledges frequently -did their fifteen miles and more a day. Though -the expedition lost its doctor during the first winter, -there was little trouble as regards health; and game -was in plenty right up to the far north where Hare -Fiord tells of hares in hundreds.</p> - -<p class='c000'>With hunting episodes the story is pleasantly varied, -one in particular being so graphically described by -Sverdrup that as a sample we may be forgiven a rather -long quotation. "The bear," says Sverdrup, "was -determined to go up a difficult stony valley a little -north of our tent, and, try as the dogs would to -prevent it, up the valley it went. Schei and I ran full -speed northward along the ice-foot, and soon heard -that the dogs had brought it to bay. We made a short -cut across some hills of grit, and, when we reached -the top of one of them, saw the bear on the other side -of the valley, sitting on a hill-top, which fell almost -sheer away. But on the north side it was accessible, -and here it was probably that the bear had climbed it. -There sat the king of the icefields enthroned on a kind -of pedestal, and the whole staff of yelping dogs standing -<span class='pageno' id='Page_187'>187</span>at a respectful distance. I tried a couple of shots, -but overrated the distance, and the bullets went over -the bear's head. I then told Schei to go and shoot it -whilst I looked on at the further development of the -drama. The bear's position was a first-rate one. It -had taken its stand on a little plateau high up on a -mountain crag; this little ledge was reached by a -bridge not more than a good yard in width, and there -stood the bear, like Sven Dufva, ready with his sledgehammer -to fell the first being that should venture -across. His majesty was not visible to Schei until he -came within a few feet of him, but then it was not -long before a shot was heard. The bear sank together, -and a few seconds afterwards all the dogs had -thrown themselves on to it. They tugged and pulled -at the bear's coat, tearing tufts of hair out of it, and -before we knew what they were doing, had dragged -the body to the edge of the plateau, where it shot out -over the precipice. The dogs stood amazed, gazing -down into the depths where the bear was falling swiftly -through the air—but not alone, for on it as large as -life were two dogs which had clung so fast to its hair, -that they now stood planted head to head, and bit -themselves still faster to it in order to keep their -balance. I was breathless as I watched this unexpected -journey through the air. The next moment the bear -in its perpendicular fall would reach the projecting -point of rock, and my poor dogs!—it was a cruel -revenge the bear was taking on them. I should now -have only three dogs left in my team. The bear's -body dashed violently against the rock, turned a -somersault out from the mountain wall and fell still -<span class='pageno' id='Page_188'>188</span>further, until, after falling a height of altogether at -least a hundred feet, it reached the slopes by the river, -and was shot by the impetus right across the river-ice -and a good way up the other side. And the dogs? -When the bear dashed against the mountain they -sprang up like rubber balls, described a large curve, -and with stiffened legs continued the journey on their -own account, falling with a loud thud on to the hardly -packed snow at the bottom of the valley. But they -were on their legs again in a moment, and set off as -fast as they could go across the river after the bear. -Not many minutes afterwards the whole pack came -running up, but when they were driven away from the -carcase, they lay down again to await their turn. I -hurried back to camp to fetch the dog harness; we -put a lanyard through the nose of the mighty fallen, -and set off. The dogs knew well enough that this -meant food for them, and the nearer we came to camp -the harder they pulled. In fact, I had to sit on the -carcase to keep them back, and, jolting backwards and -forwards, on this new kind of conveyance I made my -entrance into camp, in the light spring night." But -bears were few, compared with the musk oxen, which, -with the reindeer and hares, and with the wolves and -foxes, and stoats and lemmings, seals and walruses, -narwhals and white whales, represented the Arctic -mammalia.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The most singular experience met with was perhaps -the sledge journey through the ice tunnel on the return -across the Simmons Peninsula in 1900. Descending a -valley which became narrower and narrower Sverdrup -and Fosheim began to think it was going to end in a -<span class='pageno' id='Page_189'>189</span>canyon, but without any warning they were stopped by -a high wall of ice, perpendicular and inaccessible to any -one without wings. Looking about, Sverdrup found a -large hole which proved to be the beginning of a tunnel -through the glacier. Through this lofty vault they -sped. From the roof hung threateningly above their -heads gigantic blocks of ice, seamed and cleft and -glittering sinisterly; and all around were icicles like -steel-bright spears and lances piercing downwards on -them. Along the walls were caves after caves, with -pillars in rows like giants in rank; and over all shone a -ghostly whitish light which became bluish as they went. -"I dared not speak," says Sverdrup. "It seemed to me -that in doing so I should be committing a deed of desecration; -I felt like one who has impiously broken into -something sacred which Nature had wished to keep -closed to every mortal eye. I felt mean and contemptible -as I drove through all this purity. The -sledges jolted from block to block, awakening thunderous -echoes in their passage: and it seemed as if all the -spirits of the ice had been aroused and called to arms -against the intruders on their church-like peace."</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_190'>190</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER X<br /> BOOTHIA</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Christopher Middleton—Wager River—Repulse Bay—Parry's second north-west -voyage—Melville Peninsula—Fury and Hecla Strait—John Ross's -second Arctic voyage—Introduces steam navigation into the Arctic regions—The -whaler <em>John</em>—Ross misses the North-West Passage—Snow houses—Eskimo -geographers—James Clark Ross finds the Magnetic North Pole—Lyon -in the <em>Griper</em>—Back in the <em>Terror</em>—Rae's journey round Committee -Bay—Sir John Franklin's last voyage—Kennedy and Bellot—Discovery -of Bellot Strait—Rae's journey in 1854—His Franklin discoveries—M'Clintock's -voyage in the <em>Fox</em>—Lady Franklin's instructions—Captain -Charles Hall—Frederick Schwatka—Amundsen accomplishes the North-West -Passage.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>In July, 1742, Christopher Middleton, working -northwards in Hudson Bay from Fort Churchill, -made his way up Rowe's Welcome and entered a deep -inlet apparently leading to the South Sea. Middleton—who -gained his Fellowship of the Royal Society for -his variation observations at Fort Churchill, and was -the first to practise the modern method of finding -longitude by eight or ten different altitudes of the sun -or stars when near the prime vertical—spent eighteen -days in the inlet observing the tides, and then came to -the conclusion that it was an estuary; and he named -it Wager River after Sir Charles Wager, who was First -Lord of the Admiralty when he began his voyage. -Proceeding north, he reached his Repulse Bay, and at -the north-east end of it saw Frozen Strait, as he called -it, stretching away along the north of Southampton -Island towards Cape Comfort. Here, also from tidal -observations, he satisfied himself that Repulse Bay -afforded no passage to the westward and that Frozen -Strait led into Fox Channel.</p> - -<div id='pg190' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_283.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>AN IGLOOLIK ESKIMO CARRYING HIS KAYAK</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_191'>191</span>His opinions were disputed by those who only knew -the coast from his chart, and two vessels were sent out -to prove he was wrong. The reports of the captains -of these—there is no need to mention their names—were -embarrassing. Neither had been to Repulse Bay, -but both had been to Wager River, and they agreed -that it was unmistakably a river and not a strait; but -in every other respect, even in naming the places they -had seen, they were at variance. Thus the matter was -left in sufficient doubt to encourage some people in -believing in a north-west passage through Repulse Bay, -just at the Arctic Circle, and to seek this, Parry, on -his return from Melville Island, was despatched on his -second voyage.</p> - -<p class='c000'>This time the <em>Hecla</em> was commanded by George -Francis Lyon—the North African traveller—Parry -being in the <em>Fury</em>, a sister ship; both vessels, at Parry's -suggestion, being exactly alike so that their gear and -fittings were interchangeable. They sailed from the -Little Nore on the 8th of May, 1821, and going direct -up Frozen Strait, with much trouble from the ice, ran -into Repulse Bay on the 22nd of August. Here after -a careful examination it was ascertained beyond a doubt -that no passage existed through to the westward. -"Thus," says Lyon, "the veracity of poor Middleton, -as far as regards this bay at least, was now at length -established; and in looking down the strait we had -passed, he was fully justified in calling it a frozen strait. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_192'>192</span>We were now indisputably on our scene of future -action, the coast of America; and it only remained for -us to follow minutely the line of shore in continuation -from Repulse Bay."</p> - -<p class='c000'>During a stay at Gore Bay red snow was brought off -to the <em>Fury</em>, its colour being much fainter than that -found in the <em>Isabella</em> voyage at Crimson Cliffs in -Greenland; "the appearance of the mass was not unlike -what is called raspberry ice, in a far better climate, -where cold is made subservient to luxury." The colouring -of this is due to one of the Algæ, <em>Protococcus -nivalis</em>, and not as Peter Paterson said in 1671—ninety -years before De Saussure—to the rocks being "full of -white, red, and yellow veins, like marble; upon any -alteration of the weather, these stones sweat, which, -together with the rains, tinges the snow red." The -day on which this snow was found, the 30th of August, -was so warm that the party were glad to pull off their -coats and waistcoats. "The valleys were fertile in -grasses and moss; and the fineness of the weather had -drawn forth a number of butterflies, spiders, and other -insects, which would, by their gay colours and active -motions, have almost deceived us into an idea that we -were not in the Arctic regions, had not the Frozen -Strait, filled with huge masses of moving ice, reminded -us but too forcibly, that we were in the most dangerous -of them."</p> - -<div id='pg192' class='figcenter id021'> -<a href='images/i_287.jpg'><img src='images/i_287_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>PARRY'S FARTHEST ON HIS THIRD VOYAGE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_193'>193</span>Early in October the ships took up their quarters at -Winter Island on the coast of Melville Peninsula in -66° 32´, and there, during the cordial intercourse with -the Eskimos, Parry heard of the way through further -north which led him on his release in the following -July to discover Fury and Hecla Strait, along which -the ships passed to find their progress blocked by the -ice just beyond its entrance into Regent Inlet. Returning -through the strait, they reached the island of Igloolik -at the eastern entrance, and there they passed the -winter, Igloolik being an important Eskimo settlement, -with four fixed places of residence on it, to which as the -season changes the natives move in rotation. From -this island, as the health of the men did not permit of -his venturing to spend another winter in the ice, Parry -retraced his route and returned to England.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The ships dropped anchor in the Thames on Trafalgar -Day, 1823. Next year, on the 19th of May, they were -off again to the north to seek a passage to the west -down Prince Regent Inlet, Parry in the <em>Hecla</em>, Hoppner -in the <em>Fury</em>. It was a bad season. The ships were -late in leaving Baffin Bay and were hindered by new -ice in Lancaster Sound. So far from reaching the -strait discovered two years before, they could get no -further south than Port Bowen, in 73° 12´, where they -spent the winter in a singularly barren part of Cockburn -Land. Starting in July they went down to Cresswell -Bay, the ships being forced by the weather and the ice -to work—as is not unusual under such circumstances—in -almost every possible direction within every mile, -their track—as shown in the illustration—being most -complicated. The end of it all was that the <em>Fury</em> was -wrecked and her stores carefully taken out and left, on -what was named Fury Beach, for the use of future -callers in want of them. And the <em>Hecla</em> came home -alone.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Four years afterwards Captain John Ross, anxious -<span class='pageno' id='Page_194'>194</span>for further work in the north, started in search of the -passage by the same route. After some years of effort -he had succeeded in organising an expedition, the expenses -of which to the amount of over £17,000 were -borne by Felix Booth, with the exception of over £2000 -added by Ross himself. It was a memorable voyage -in many respects, and for one thing in particular that -is frequently passed unnoticed. This was the introduction -of steam into Arctic navigation. The <em>Victory</em> -was an old Isle of Man packet-boat of eighty-five tons, -which, by raising her sides five feet, Ross increased -to one hundred and fifty tons. Taking out her old -paddles, he replaced them with a pair of Robertson's -patents, hoistable out of water in a minute, so as to -clear the ice. The engine was also a patent, by Braithwaite -and Ericsson, who built the Novelty that appeared -at Rainhill. But neither Braithwaite nor Ericsson was -any happier in this production. Its great feature was -the doing away with the funnel, no flue being required -owing to the fires being kept going by artificial draught -derived from two bellows of unequal sizes—"the bellows -draught," in fact, like that of the Novelty which broke -down in the great locomotive contest won by the -Rocket. Had not Ross been a man of enterprise he -would never have ventured to sea with such an experimental -arrangement; but he did, and he suffered -for it.</p> - -<div id='pg194' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_291.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE "VICTORY"</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_195'>195</span>The "execrable machinery," as he inadequately -called it, went wrong from the first. On the way from -Galleons Reach to Woolwich, part of it became displaced, -causing a delay for repairs. At Woolwich, Sir -Byam Martin, the Comptroller of the Navy, and -Sir John Franklin went on board and said uncomplimentary -things about it, as also did the Duke of -Orleans (afterwards King Louis Philippe) and the -Duke of Chartres, though the Frenchmen were more -gentle in their phrases. From Woolwich to Margate -this remarkable engine, aided by the sails, took the -<em>Victory</em> in just over twelve hours, the boiler leaking so -much that the additional forcing pump had to be kept -working by hand all the time. Passing the Lizard, the -piston-rod was found to be so much worn on one side -by friction against the guide-wheels that a piece of iron -had to be brazed on to it. Then the keys of the main -shaft broke and the substitutes made on board broke -one after the other. "The boilers also continued to -leak, though we had put dung and potatoes in them by -Mr. Ericsson's directions." The air-pump drew quantities -of water; the feeding pump was insufficient to -supply the boiler. The big bellows nearly wore out; -so did the small one. Off the Mull of Galloway the -stoker fell into the machinery and had his arm crushed -and nearly severed above the elbow. Then the teeth -of the fly-wheel of the small bellows were shorn off, -and the boiler joints gave way, and the water, or -rather the potato soup, flowed out of the furnace -doors and put out the fire.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Enough has been said to show the difficulties under -which Ross first used steam on a voyage to the -northern seas. The list of damages need not be continued. -Every constituent part of the apparatus gave -way in turn; and when the <em>Victory</em> became imprisoned -for the winter, and the engineering staff had some time -on their hands, they employed it in taking what was -<span class='pageno' id='Page_196'>196</span>left of the installation, piece by piece, out of the ship, -laying it on the ice, and leaving it there.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Ross was to be accompanied by the whaler <em>John</em>, but -the men mutinied and refused to start, so that he went -on from Loch Ryan alone. The following year the -crew of the <em>John</em>, then on a whaling voyage in Baffin -Bay, again mutinied, killed the master, put the mate -adrift in a boat in the manner of Henry Hudson, and -lost the ship on the western coast, where most of them -were drowned.</p> - -<p class='c000'>With the <em>Krusenstern</em>, a boat of eighteen tons, in -tow, Ross crossed the Atlantic, sighting Sanderson's -Hope on the 29th of July, having left Scotland six -weeks before. Early in August he sailed through -Lancaster Sound, and, taking the opportunity of -removing his Croker's Mountains to the north-east -corner of North Somerset, went down Prince Regent -Inlet to Fury Beach. After completing his provisions -for twenty-seven months from the stores left behind by -Parry, he crossed Cresswell Bay, passed Cape Garry, -Parry's farthest south, on the 15th of August, and -next day, Sunday, "I went on shore," he says, "with -all the officers, to take formal possession of the new-discovered -land; and at one o'clock, being a few minutes -after seven in London, the colours were displayed with -the usual ceremony, and the health of the King drunk, -together with that of the founder of our expedition, -after whom the land was named."</p> - -<div id='pg196' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_295.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>NORTH HENDON</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_197'>197</span>"From the highest part of this land, which was -upwards of a hundred feet above the level of the sea," -he continues, "we had a good view of the bay and the -adjoining shores, and had the satisfaction to find that -the ice was in motion and fast clearing away. We -therefore resolved to wait patiently till we could see -an opening; and proceeded to the northern quarter of -this spot to make some observations on the dip of the -magnetic needle.... To this place I gave the name -Brown Island, after the amiable sister of Mr. Booth; -the inlet was named Brentford Bay, and the islands -Grimble Islands." And in his book is a beautiful steel -engraving by W. Chevalier, "Taking Possession. -Cape Hussard, Grimble Isle, Brentford Bay, Brown's -Island." In short, Ross found the place, landed -on it, took possession of it, named it and sketched -it. "The sketches from which the drawings were -made were taken by Mr. Ronald's invaluable perspective -instrument, and therefore <em>must</em> be true delineations."</p> - -<p class='c000'>And Ross passed on, apparently quite pleased with -himself. But the Fates had again been against him, for -this was the very North-West Passage he had come -specially to find; the bay, as Kennedy was to show, -being the entrance to Bellot Strait in which the <em>Fox</em> -was to winter when on the Franklin search. He had -blundered along from the island of North Somerset to -the mainland of America, and passed unheeded its -northernmost point, which M'Clintock was to name -Cape Murchison.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Working down the coast of the newly-named -Boothia, the <em>Victory</em> reached Felix Harbour, and there -she wintered. No Eskimos were seen until the 9th of -January, when thirty-one came to the ship and were -invited on board, a return visit being paid next day to -their village, which Ross named North Hendon. As -<span class='pageno' id='Page_198'>198</span>this was a typical Eskimo snow camp we may as well -copy his picture and quote his description.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"The village soon appeared, consisting of twelve -snow huts, erected at the bottom of a little bight on -the shore, about two miles and a half from the ship. -They had the appearance of inverted basins, and were -placed without any order; each of them having a long -crooked appendage, in which was the passage, at the -entrance of which were the women, with the female -children and the infants. We were soon invited to -visit these, for whom we had prepared presents of glass -beads and needles; a distribution of which soon drove -away the timidity which they had displayed at our first -appearance. The passage, always long, and generally -crooked, led to the principal apartment, which was a -circular dome, being ten feet in diameter when intended -for one family, and an oval of fifteen by ten where it -lodged two. Opposite the doorway there was a bank -of snow, occupying nearly a third of the breadth of the -area, about two feet and a half high, level at the top, -and covered by various skins, forming the general bed -or sleeping place for the whole. At the end of this sat -the mistress of the house, opposite to the lamp, which, -being of moss and oil, as is the universal custom in -these regions, gave a sufficient flame to supply both -light and heat; so that the apartment was perfectly -comfortable. Over the lamp was the cooking dish of -stone, containing the flesh of deer and of seals, with -oil; and of such provision there seemed no want. -Everything else, dresses, implements, as well as provisions, -lay about in unspeakable confusion, showing -that order, at least, was not in the class of their virtues. -It was much more interesting to us to find, that among -this disorder there were some fresh salmon; since, when -they could find this fish, we were sure that it would also -furnish us with supplies which we could not too much -multiply. On inquiry, we were informed that they -were abundant; and we had, therefore, the prospect of -a new amusement, as well as of a valuable market at -the mere price of our labour."</p> - -<div id='pg198' class='figcenter id022'> -<img src='images/i_299.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ESKIMO LISTENING AT A SEAL-HOLE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_199'>199</span>A few weeks later Ross was to see how these houses -were built. "Four families," he says, "comprising -fifteen persons, passed the ship to erect new huts about -half a mile to the southward. They had four heavy-laden -sledges, drawn each by two or three dogs, but -proceeded very slowly. We went after them to see -the process of building the snow house, and were surprised -at their dexterity; one man having closed in his -roof within forty-five minutes. A tent is scarcely -pitched sooner than a house is here built. The whole -process is worth describing. Having ascertained, by -the rod used in examining seal holes, whether the snow -is sufficiently deep and solid, they level the intended -spot by a wooden shovel, leaving beneath a solid mass -of snow not less than three feet thick. Commencing -then in the centre of the intended circle, which is ten -feet or more in diameter, different wedge-shaped blocks -are cut out, about two feet long, and a foot thick at the -outer part; then trimming them accurately by the -knife, they proceed upwards until the courses, gradually -inclining inwards, terminate in a perfect dome. The -door being cut out from the inside before it is quite -closed serves to supply the upper materials. In the -meantime the women are employed in stuffing the joints -<span class='pageno' id='Page_200'>200</span>with snow, and the boys in constructing kennels for the -dogs. The laying the snow sofa with skins and the insertion -of the ice window complete the work; the -passage only remaining to be added, as it is after the -house is finished, together with some smaller huts for -stores"—the design being similar to that of the yurts -of the Eskimos of the north, with a change of material, -snow for stone, and ice instead of seal-gut for the window -over the entrance.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Making friends with the Eskimos, and gaining a -great reputation by the carpenter fitting one of them -with a wooden leg, Ross obtained much valuable information -from them, particularly as to the geography -of the district. Like all Arctic men, he was impressed -by their quickness in understanding maps and their -skill in drawing them upon anything, snow, paper, or -otherwise, that lay handy. One of them, Ikmallik, -drew in the ship's cabin a map, which he reprints in his -book, showing the coast-line of the country south of -the <em>Victory's</em> quarters, with the capes, inlets, and islands, -giving the isthmus of Boothia and Committee Bay, and -Repulse Bay on the other side of the Melville Peninsula, -which is really wonderful, for neither the Eskimo, nor -Ross, had anything to copy from, it being nearly twenty -years before Rae's exploration; and the one thing it -clearly demonstrated was that there was no waterway -to the westward, south of Felix Harbour.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Ross owed much to Ikmallik, and really a good deal -of the time of the expedition was spent in confirming -the statements of that well-informed man. The west -coast of Boothia was surveyed down to Bulow Bay; -the east side from Cape Nicholas down to Cape Porter, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_201'>201</span>including the crossing of the upper part of James Ross -Strait, the discovery of Matty Island and the north-east -coast of King William Land from Cape Landon, -opposite Cape Porter—where Ross, as usual, missed a -strait—westward to capes Franklin and Jane Franklin, -within sight of which in the days that were coming, -by one of those remarkable coincidences so frequent in -the north, the <em>Erebus</em> and <em>Terror</em> were to meet their -fate.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The one conspicuous triumph of the expedition was -the journey of James Ross to the site of the Magnetic -North Pole, which he found on the western coast of -Boothia on the 1st of June, 1831. In the younger -Ross's own words, "the land at this place is very low -near the coast, but it rises into ridges of fifty or sixty -feet high about a mile inland. We could have wished -that a place so important had possessed more of mark -or note. It was scarcely censurable to regret that there -was not a mountain to indicate a spot to which so -much of interest must ever be attached; and I could -even have pardoned any one among us who had been -so romantic or absurd as to expect that the magnetic -pole was an object as conspicuous and mysterious as -the fabled mountain of Sinbad, that it even was a -mountain of iron, or a magnet as large as Mont Blanc. -But Nature had here erected no monument to denote -the spot which she had chosen as the centre of one of -her great and dark powers; and where we could do -little ourselves towards this end, it was our business to -submit, and to be content in noting by mathematical -numbers and signs, as with things of far more importance -in the terrestrial system, what we could but ill -<span class='pageno' id='Page_202'>202</span>distinguish in any other manner.... We fixed the -British flag on the spot and took possession of the -North Magnetic Pole and its adjoining territory in -the name of Great Britain and King William the -Fourth. We had abundance of materials for building, -in the fragments of limestone that covered the beach; -and we therefore erected a cairn of some magnitude, -under which we buried a canister containing a record -of the interesting fact; only regretting that we had not -the means of constructing a pyramid of more importance -and of strength sufficient to withstand the assaults -of time and of the Eskimos. Had it been a pyramid -as large as that of Cheops, I am not quite sure that it -would have done more than satisfy our ambition, under -the feelings of that exciting day. The latitude of this -spot is 70° 5´ 17˝, and its longitude 96° 46´ 45˝ west."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The <em>Victory</em> in the short summer of 1830 sailed a few -miles further south and spent the winter in Victoria -Harbour, to be there abandoned in May, 1832. Ross -in his boats made for Fury Beach, where, at Somerset -House, as he called it, he passed the following winter. -On the 26th of August, 1833, when in his boats off the -eastern mouth of Lancaster Sound, he was picked up -by the <em>Isabella</em>, his old ship, and in her he reached the -Humber in October of that year after four successive -winters in the ice, having been enabled to make so long -a stay by his fortunate find of the stores left by Parry.</p> - -<div id='pg202' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_305.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>H.M.S. "TERROR" LIFTED BY ICE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_203'>203</span>In 1824 Captain Lyon was sent out in the <em>Griper</em> to -winter at Repulse Bay, and thence crossing the isthmus -described by the Eskimos continue along to Franklin's -Point Turnagain; but the <em>Griper</em> was nearly wrecked -in Rowe's Welcome and did not reach Wager River. -The discoveries of Ross led to the renewal of this -attempt by Captain Back in the <em>Terror</em> in 1836. He -was to go to Wager River or Repulse Bay, and then -make his way into Prince Regent Inlet, and so west; -but he became imprisoned in the ice off Cape Comfort -during one of the severest winters known. Drifting up -Frozen Strait amid most perilous experiences, the ship, -lifted high above sea-level by pressure, lay at times -almost horizontal. Once "they beheld," he says, "the -strange and appalling spectacle of what may be fitly -termed a submerged berg, fixed low down, with one -end to the ship's side, while the other, with the purchase -of a long lever advantageously placed at a right angle -with the keel, was slowly rising towards the surface. -Meanwhile, those who happened to be below, finding -everything falling, rushed or clambered on deck, where -they saw the ship on her beam-ends, with the lee boats -touching the water, and felt that a few moments only -trembled between them and eternity."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Day after day the <em>Terror</em> defied the persistent effort -of the ice to smash her, but suffering much in almost -every timber she withstood it sufficiently to keep -together. For four months she was entirely out of -water, and when at last she was free, Back wrapped -her up as best he could, and brought her home with -the water pouring into her so that the men were so -wearied out that they could hardly have continued at -the pumps another day; and he ran her ashore in -Lough Swilly only just in time. Upwards of twenty -feet of her keel, together with ten feet of the stern-post, -were driven over more than three and a half feet on -one side, leaving a frightful opening astern for the free -<span class='pageno' id='Page_204'>204</span>ingress of water. The forefoot was entirely gone; -numbers of bolts were either loosened or broken; and -when, besides this, the strained and twisted state of the -ship's frame was considered, there was not one on board -who did not express astonishment that they had ever -floated across the Atlantic.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The next attempt to complete the coast of the -American mainland was made from the land, and at -the cost of the Hudson's Bay Company. Really it was -the expedition proposed by Simpson some five years -before, of which he would have been the leader had he -not been shot; and it was entrusted to the capable -hands of Dr. John Rae.</p> - -<p class='c000'>After wintering at York Factory, Rae reached -Repulse Bay with two boats, the <em>Magnet</em> and <em>North -Pole</em>, on the 25th of July, 1846, and in his usual style -started immediately across the chain of lakes and -portages which make up the isthmus that now bears -his name, launching his boats in the tidal water of -Committee Bay on the 1st of August. Stopped by -ice on the west side and then on the east he returned -to Repulse Bay, where he built Fort Hope of stones -and roofed it with sails, and lived in it through the -winter on what he could shoot and catch, for many -weeks venturing on only one meal a day. Outside the -men kept themselves warm chiefly by building snow -houses and playing football; inside, as the only fuel -used was for cooking, the only thing they could do was -to wrap themselves in furs, and trust to their natural -heat in a temperature that ranged about zero.</p> - -<div id='pg204' class='figcenter id023'> -<img src='images/i_309.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>FRACTURED STERN-POST OF H.M.S. "TERROR"</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_205'>205</span>In April, with a couple of sledges, eight dogs, and -five men, he crossed the isthmus again and went straightaway -up the east side of Boothia to Ross's farthest -south, thus completing that coast-line. Back he went -to Fort Hope after a trip of nearly six hundred miles, -to start again on the 12th of May up the west coast of -the Melville Peninsula to Cape Ellice, which Parry had -sighted from the strait on that side. And he was back -once more at Fort Hope on the 9th of June. Thus -the survey of the northern coast was complete with -the exception of the gap between the Boothia isthmus, -on the west side, and Castor and Pollux River of Dease -and Simpson, which Rae in another famous effort from -Repulse Bay was to link up later on.</p> - -<p class='c000'>When Rae reached Lord Mayor's Bay on the east -coast of Boothia, Franklin, with the <em>Erebus</em> and -<em>Terror</em>, was off its west coast in the same latitude. -This was the reappearance of the <em>Terror</em> in the north. -After Back's voyage she had been repaired to sail with -the <em>Erebus</em>, under Sir James Clark Ross, when he discovered -the South Magnetic Pole; and on their return -the barques had been thoroughly overhauled and fitted -with auxiliary screws, the first time that the screw -propeller was used in Arctic work. Franklin was in the -<em>Erebus</em>, the <em>Terror</em> being commanded by Francis R. M. -Crozier as she had been in the Antarctic voyage. -Crozier was one of Parry's men, he having been in the -<em>Fury</em> in 1821 and in the <em>Hecla</em> on her two subsequent -expeditions.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The ships left England on the 19th of May, 1845, -and were last seen and spoken with on the 26th of -July in Melville Bay on their way to Lancaster Sound. -According to information gained during the long series -of searches, they passed through the sound and went -<span class='pageno' id='Page_206'>206</span>north for about a hundred and fifty miles, to 77°, up -Wellington Channel into Penny Strait—the first time -the passage had been made. Returning down the west -side of Cornwallis Island, discovering the strait between -it and Bathurst Island, they wintered at Beechey Island, -where three of the men died and were buried; and where -the most significant relic was about seven hundred tins -of preserved meat that seemed to have been condemned -as bad, just as the stock of similar stuff had in the -same year been condemned and thrown overboard at -Portsmouth.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Leaving Beechey Island in 1846, they went south -down Peel Sound, being the first to pass through it, -and Franklin Strait—another new discovery—to within -twelve miles of Cape Felix in King William Land, -where, on the 12th of September, they were beset -about half-way between Cape Adelaide in Boothia and -Pelly Point in Victoria Land. Hereabouts the second -winter was passed, and on the 24th of May a party -under Lieutenant Gore crossed the ice to Point Victory, -probably on a journey to examine the unknown coast -between there and Cape Herschel. On the 11th of June, -1847, Sir John Franklin died. The ships drifted a short -distance during their imprisonment in the ice, and the -third winter was passed some twenty miles further south -down Victoria Strait, where, on the 22nd of April, 1848, -when fifteen miles north-north-west of Point Victory, -they were abandoned, and the officers and crews, a -hundred and five in all, under Crozier's command, started -for Back's Great Fish River, some of them completing -the first North-West Passage in crossing Simpson Strait -and reaching Montreal Island.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_207'>207</span>The first undoubted traces of the lost expedition were -those discovered at Beechey Island, the news reaching -England in the <em>Prince Albert</em> in the autumn of 1850. -As soon as the winter was over this excellent little -schooner was again sent out by Lady Franklin under -the command of Captain William Kennedy, who took -with him as a volunteer Lieutenant Joseph René Bellot -of the French navy, and also John Hepburn, who had -been with Franklin on the land journey in 1819. -Kennedy wintered at Batty Bay in North Somerset, -and during a remarkable sledge journey, in which he -made the circuit of the island, he and Bellot reached -Brentford Bay, and, on the 21st of April, 1852, discovered -the strait named after the gallant Frenchman. -But he found no traces of the expedition through turning -to the north and crossing to Prince of Wales Island, -instead of going to the south at the western mouth of -the strait. He had, however, discovered the termination -of Boothia, the north point of the American continent -which men had been seeking for three centuries.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To the southern end of Boothia came the indefatigable -Rae. That cheery hero of the north left -Repulse Bay on the 31st of March, 1854, to complete -the Hudson's Bay Company's survey. On the 20th of -April he met a young Eskimo in Pelly Bay, who told -him the fate of the <em>Erebus</em> and <em>Terror</em>, and from him -and his people Rae obtained a number of small articles, -forks and spoons and so forth, which had undoubtedly -come from the ships, one of which had been crushed in -the ice, the other sinking after drifting further south.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Rae was not the man to return until he had attacked -the work he had set out to do, and he continued his -<span class='pageno' id='Page_208'>208</span>surveying with his customary accuracy, despatch, and -general alertness, striking across the peninsula, discovering -the Murchison River, reaching Simpson's -farthest at Castor and Pollux River, and thence proving -the insularity of King William Land by travelling up -the east coast of the strait now named after him—and -he was back again in August. He had almost finished -the survey of the northern coast-line; and he had -ascertained how and where Franklin's voyage had -ended, for which discovery the British Government gave -him the reward of £10,000, letting it be understood -that so far as they were concerned the Franklin searches -were at an end.</p> - -<p class='c000'>But Lady Franklin thought one more effort should -be made to unravel the mystery of her husband's fate, -and there were many who thought the same. Helped -to a certain extent by a public subscription, she organised -another expedition. The steam-yacht <em>Fox</em> was -bought from the executors of Sir Richard Sutton and -altered for Arctic work by her builders, the Halls of -Aberdeen clipper fame. As leader went Captain, afterwards -Sir, Frederick Leopold M'Clintock, who had -done such brilliant sledge-work in the north; like his -second in command, Lieutenant W. R. Hobson, he -gave his services gratuitously, as also did Dr. David -Walker and Captain, afterwards Sir, Allen Young, -then of the Mercantile Marine, who also subscribed -£500 towards the fund. Carl Petersen, the Eskimo -interpreter on the voyages of Penny and Kane, came -to join from Copenhagen, having landed there from -Greenland only six days previously. The British -Government, although declining to send out an expedition, -contributed liberally to the supplies, and sent on -board all the arms and ammunition and ice-gear and -every instrument that was asked for.</p> - -<div id='pg208' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_315.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE "FOX" ESCAPING FROM THE PACK</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_209'>209</span>Lady Franklin's instructions were so characteristic of -the noble-hearted woman whose name can never be forgotten -in Arctic story that they must be given in full:—</p> - -<div class='c015'>"<span class='sc'>Aberdeen</span>, <em>June 29, 1857</em>.</div> - -<div class='lg-container-l c016'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>"<span class='sc'>My dear Captain M'Clintock</span>,</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c017'>"You have kindly invited me to give you -'Instructions,' but I cannot bring myself to feel that it -would be right in me in any way to influence your judgment -in the conduct of your noble undertaking; and -indeed I have no temptation to do so, since it appears -to me that your views are almost identical with those -which I had independently formed before I had the -advantage of being thoroughly possessed of yours. -But had this been otherwise, I trust you would have -found me ready to prove the implicit confidence I place -in you by yielding my own views to your more enlightened -judgment; knowing too as I do that your -whole heart also is in the cause, even as my own is. As -to the objects of the expedition and their relative importance, -I am sure that you know that the rescue of -any possible survivor of the <em>Erebus</em> and <em>Terror</em> would -be to me, as it would be to you, the noblest result of -our efforts.</p> - -<p class='c017'>"To this object I wish every other to be subordinate; -and next to it in importance is the recovery of the unspeakably -precious documents of the expedition, public -and private, and the personal relics of my dear husband -and his companions.</p> - -<p class='c017'>"And lastly, I trust it may be in your power to confirm, -directly or inferentially, the claims of my -<span class='pageno' id='Page_210'>210</span>husband's expedition to the earliest discovery of the -passage, which, if Dr. Rae's report be true (and the -Government of our country has accepted and rewarded -it as such), these martyrs in a noble cause achieved at -their last extremity, after five long years of labour and -suffering, if not at an earlier period.</p> - -<p class='c017'>"I am sure that you will do all that man can do for -the attainment of all these objects; my only fear is -that you may spend yourselves too much in the effort; -and you must therefore let me tell you how much -dearer to me even than any of them is the preservation -of the valuable lives of the little band of heroes who -are your companions and followers.</p> - -<p class='c017'>"May God in His great mercy preserve you all from -harm amidst the labours and perils which await you, -and restore you to us in health and safety as well as -honour. As to the honour I can have <em>no</em> misgiving. -It will be yours as much if you fail (since you <em>may</em> fail -in spite of every effort) as if you succeed; and be -assured that, under <em>any and all circumstances whatever</em>, -such is my unbounded confidence in you, you will -possess and be entitled to the enduring gratitude of -your sincere and attached friend,</p> - -<div class='lg-container-r c016'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'>"<span class='sc'>Jane Franklin</span>."</div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<div id='pg210' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_319.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE "FOX" ON A ROCK</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_211'>211</span>The men of the <em>Fox</em> were worthy of the confidence -placed in them. Leaving Aberdeen on the 1st of July, -M'Clintock reached Disco on the last day of the month, -and, proceeding northwards, was, by a perverse freak of -fortune, beset in Melville Bay on the 8th of August, -and kept imprisoned thence onwards all through the -winter, drifting south through Baffin Bay and Davis -Strait. On the 26th of April, 1858, after a drift of -1194 geographical miles, the <em>Fox</em> escaped from the -pack and steamed to the eastward amid the most -perilous of ice experiences. Most men would have -returned and tried again; not so M'Clintock. He -boldly ran up the Greenland coast as if nothing had -happened and, making good deficiencies, resumed his -voyage. Soon after leaving Sanderson's Hope the -<em>Fox</em> was nearly wrecked near Buchan Island, remaining -on a rock until the tide rose again to set her free. -After calling at Beechey Island, M'Clintock followed -Franklin's track down Peel Sound until stopped by the -pack, when he retraced his course and tried Prince -Regent Inlet, reaching Bellot Strait on the 21st of -August. At Port Kennedy in this famous waterway—which -is like a Greenland fiord, about twenty miles long -and scarcely a mile wide at its narrowest part, the water -four hundred feet deep within a quarter of a mile of -its northern shore—he passed the winter.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 1st of March he reached by sledge the Magnetic -Pole and fell in with four of the Boothian Eskimos, -who, at the cost of a needle each, built him a snow hut -in an hour, in which they all spent the night. "Perhaps," -says M'Clintock, "the records of architecture do -not furnish another instance of a dwelling-house so -cheaply constructed!" Halting at Cape Victoria the -Eskimos came up from their village close by with a -number of small relics of the lost expedition. Returning -to the <em>Fox</em> after a journey of four hundred and -twenty statute miles in which the survey of the west -coast of Boothia was completed, everything was made -ready for three long sledge journeys of two sledges each, -the captain taking that for Montreal Island, and giving -Hobson the best chance of promotion by sending him -<span class='pageno' id='Page_212'>212</span>round the west coast of King William Land, while -Young took the Prince of Wales Land route.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the east coast of King William Land M'Clintock -met with more Eskimos, from whom he obtained relics -and obtained information. Pushing on, he reached -Montreal Island on the 15th of May, where the only -traces of a boat were some scraps of copper and an -iron-hoop bolt. A crossing to the mainland on the -18th of May revealed no more; and next day the -return journey began. Six days afterwards, walking -along a gravel ridge near the beach on the way to Cape -Herschel, M'Clintock found the first skeleton, partly -exposed, with a few fragments of clothing appearing -through the snow, evidently one of the men who, as -the old Eskimo woman said, fell down and died as they -walked along. Visiting Simpson's cairn at Cape Herschel -and meeting with nothing, he went on for about -twelve miles, where he caught sight of a small cairn -built by Hobson's party at their furthest south, reached -six days before, containing a note with the great news -that at Point Victory they had found what is now -known as the Franklin record.</p> - -<p class='c000'>This record, which has frequently been printed—in a -smaller size than the original—was one of the navy -bottle-papers with the request in six languages that -it should be forwarded to the Admiralty. A pale blue -paper, twelve and a half inches by eight, it was filled up -in the ordinary way, and then added to round the four -margins in the handwriting of Lieutenant Gore, Captain -FitzJames, and Captain Crozier, and signed by these -and C. F. Des Vœux. It had been first deposited four -miles away, so it said, "by the late Commander Gore," -in 1847, and next year found by Lieutenant Irving, -added to, and removed to the new cairn on the site of -Sir James Ross's pillar.</p> - -<div id='pg212' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_323.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>DISCOVERY OF THE CAIRN</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_213'>213</span>Brief as it was, it contained all the authentic information -regarding Franklin's voyage up to the time the ships -were abandoned. Resuming the return journey along -the edge of the strait where the meeting of the Pacific -and Atlantic tides keeps the ice drifting down from the -north-west almost constantly packed, M'Clintock reached -a boat with two skeletons and other relics already visited -by Hobson, who had found other cairns and many -relics, and, in Back Bay, another record by Gore, also -deposited in 1847, but giving no additional news.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Hobson was dragged alongside the <em>Fox</em>, on the 14th -of June, so ill with scurvy that he was unable to walk or -even stand without assistance. M'Clintock arrived five -days later; and on the 27th Allen Young returned -after an exploration of three hundred and eighty miles -of coast-line, which, added to that discovered by -M'Clintock and Hobson, gave a total of eight hundred -geographical miles of new coast as the work of the -expedition, besides what it had done in clearing up the -Franklin mystery.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In 1869 Captain C. F. Hall collected other relics -and sufficient information to account for seventy-nine -men out of the hundred and five who left the ships. -Ten years after that, Schwatka, in his long, careful -search of King William Land, discovered the grave of -Lieutenant Irving, in which were some fragments of his -instruments and the prize medal he won at the Royal -Naval College. Near by were many traces indicating -that it was the site of the first encampment of the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_214'>214</span>retreating crews after leaving their ships; and down -the coast he traced camp after camp, and death after -death. Irving's remains were brought away and are -buried at Edinburgh. The spot where they were found -was Cape Jane Franklin.</p> - -<p class='c000'>More fortunate than Franklin was Captain Roald -Amundsen. Leaving Christiania in the <em>Gjöa</em> on the -16th of June, 1903, he crossed the Atlantic and proceeded -down Peel Sound, past Bellot Strait, and along -the west coast of Boothia, where a fire on the ship did -a certain amount of damage, and, struggling thereafter -for ten days among shoals and rocks, down James -Ross Strait, past Matty Island into Rae Strait, he -dropped anchor in Petersen Bay, King William Land. -For his base station he required a site in which the -inclination was eighty-nine degrees, and at Gjöahaven, -in this bay, he found it in 68° 30´ N., 96° W.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here he arranged his headquarters for his observations -on the Magnetic Pole which were kept going -night and day for nineteen months; and here he stayed -for two winters, moving about in the country around -and over into Boothia, where he proved that the Pole -was not immovable and stationary, but in all likelihood -in continual movement. Leaving the south-eastern -corner of King William Land in his little ship he -passed through Simpson Strait, linking up with Collinson; -and, like him, he was delayed for a winter on the -coast of the American mainland. Through Bering -Strait he reached San Francisco, where the voyage -ended in the sale of the <em>Gjöa</em>. Thus of Amundsen it -can be said, without any qualification whatever, that -he accomplished the North-West Passage.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_215'>215</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER XI<br /> BAFFIN BAY</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Sir Humphrey Gilbert—Sir Martin Frobisher—His first voyage—The fateful -stone—First meeting with the Eskimos—The Cathay Company—Second -voyage—Third voyage—Frobisher builds a fort—The ships among the -floes—Captain Hall finds the Frobisher relics—Adrian Gilbert—John -Davis—His voyages and dealings with the Eskimos—Reaches and names -Sanderson's Hope—The Traverse Book—William Baffin—His first voyage -to Greenland—His fourth and fifth voyages—Discovers Baffin Land—Discovers -Baffin Bay—Smith Sound—Jones Sound—Lancaster Sound—Baffin's -farthest north—John Ross and Parry verify his discoveries.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>In 1566 Humphrey Gilbert—who was as near to -heaven by sea as by land—petitioned Queen -Elizabeth for privileges in regard to discoveries "by -the North-west to Cataia" as an alternative to a petition -he, in conjunction with Anthony Jenkinson, had presented -the previous year for a voyage by the north-east. -He received no answer; but ten years afterwards, -in support of this unanswered petition, he published -his <cite>Discourse of a Discovery for a New Passage to -Cataia</cite>. This met with approval, and led, with little -delay, to the expedition under the Martin Frobisher -who, among other noteworthy services, commanded -the <em>Triumph</em> in the Armada fight to such good purpose -that he was one of the five distinguished men knighted -by Howard in mid-channel after the battle off the -Isle of Wight.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Frobisher was a good seaman—but no mineralogist. -<span class='pageno' id='Page_216'>216</span>Mainly at the expense of Ambrose Dudley, Earl of -Warwick, and under the business management of that -old seafarer, Michael Lock, of the Muscovy Company, -he left Blackwall on the 7th of June, 1576, in the -<em>Gabriel</em> of twenty-five tons, accompanied by the -<em>Michael</em> of twenty tons—which deserted and returned -as soon as difficulties arose—and a ten-ton pinnace, -which ended by foundering off Greenland. All told, -the expedition numbered thirty-five, of whom the -<em>Gabriel</em> carried eighteen; and with these the voyage -through the Arctic Ocean was to be made to China.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Leaving the Shetlands at her top speed of a league -and a half an hour—which her master, good Christopher -Hall, proudly recorded—the <em>Gabriel</em> sighted Cape Farewell -on the 11th of July. Two days afterwards she -was thrown on her beam-ends in a storm, and was -rapidly filling with water flowing in at her waist when -she was relieved by the loss of her fore-yard and the -cutting away of her mizen-mast. Rounding the cape, -steering westward when he could among the floating -ice, Frobisher reached a high headland at the south-east -end of what is now Frobisher Bay, which he -named Queen Elizabeth Foreland. A few days afterwards -Hall, out in a boat seeking a way through the -ice for the ship, landed on what they called Hall's -Island, and, noticing a fog coming on, left hurriedly, -snatching up, as specimens of the plants, a few grasses -and flowers, and, as a rock specimen, a heavy black -stone picked up haphazard on the beach. The grass -faded, the flowers perished, and the fateful stone -remained.</p> - -<div id='pg216' class='figcenter id024'> -<img src='images/i_329.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>SIR MARTIN FROBISHER</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_217'>217</span>For fifty leagues Frobisher sailed north-westward -into the bay, thinking it to be a strait with Asia on -the right hand and America on the left. He landed -at what he called Butcher's Island, saw "mightie deere -which ranne at him and hardly he escaped with his -life in a narrow way where he was faine to use defence -and policie," and from a hill-top "perceived a number -of small things fleeting in the sea afarre off whyche -hee supposed to be porposes or seales or some kind of -strange fishe but coming nearer he discovered them to -be men in small boates made of leather," who only just -failed in capturing his boat before he reached it. Subsequent -conferences with the Eskimos ended in his losing -the boat with five men who had gone ashore to trade; -and finally, having lifted single-handed one of the -interesting natives, kayak and all, into the <em>Gabriel</em>, he -made sail for home.</p> - -<p class='c000'>When Lock went aboard on the ship's arrival there -were no riches from Cathay, nothing worth mentioning -beyond the Eskimo—who soon died—the kayak -and paddle, and "the fyrste thynge found in the new -land," the black stone. He carried away the stone, -after chipping off a few fragments for the friends -around, and after a week or two's consideration sent -some of it to the Mint to be assayed. The report was -not as he expected; the "saymaster" was of opinion -that it was marcasite, that is, iron pyrites. Not satisfied, -Lock sent some to another expert, who also said it was -pyrites. Then he tried a third man, who could find no -gold in it. And then he tried a fourth—this time an -Italian—who gave him the answer he wanted: "A very -little powder of gold came thereout."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Lock sent him some more, telling him frankly that -<span class='pageno' id='Page_218'>218</span>three other assayers "could find no such thing therein," -but again the Italian was equal to the occasion. "The -xviii day of January," writes Lock, "he sent me by his -mayde this little scrap of paper written, No. 1, hereinclosed; -and thereinclosed the grayne of gold, which -afterward I delivered to your majesty." For the Queen -had become interested in the wonderful stone which -was the talk of the town, its value increasing at every -recital until many believed, as Sir Philip Sidney seems -to have done, that it was "the purest gold unalloyed -with any other metals."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Lock was not the man to let such excellent advertisement -be lost, and forthwith he projected the Cathay -Company for which the charter was obtained from the -Crown on St. Patrick's Day, 1577. Lock was named as -Governor for six years with remuneration "for ever" -of one per cent on all goods imported; Frobisher was -named as Captain by sea and Admiral of the ships and -navy of the Company for life with a yearly stipend and -one per cent, like Lock, on all goods the Company -brought in. Queen Elizabeth—notwithstanding the -report from the Mint—headed the list of shareholders -with £1000; and Burghley, Howard, Leicester, Walsingham, -Hunsdon, Sidney, even Gresham, subscribed -for shares in this remarkable company.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To bring home more of the "golden ore," a new -expedition was entered upon at once, and on the 26th -of May, Whit-Sunday as it happened, Frobisher -started on his second voyage. He had three vessels, -the <em>Aid</em> of two hundred tons, lent him from the -Royal Navy, and the <em>Gabriel</em> and <em>Michael</em> as before, -and one hundred and twenty officers and men, of whom -<span class='pageno' id='Page_219'>219</span>thirty were miners and other landsmen, and, in addition, -six condemned criminals whom he was to land in Greenland -as colonists but put ashore at Harwich instead.</p> - -<p class='c000'>To the new land—named by the Queen Meta -Incognita, "the unknown limit of the outward course"—he -made his way without much adventure. Landing -on Hall's Island, he sought for more stone but -could find not so much as a piece as big as a walnut; -for Hall, who was again with him as master, had -apparently lighted, in the one sample, on the whole of -its mineral wealth. This disappointment, however, was -forgotten in the finding of occasional patches of pyrites -on the mainland and other islands which in due course -were visited. Thirty leagues up the bay a landing was -made on what was called Countess of Warwick's -Island, where more ore was found and a fort called -Best's Bulwark was built. That was Frobisher's -farthest on this voyage, and thence he sailed on the -24th of August, bringing with him two hundred tons -of pyrites, and, as a present for the Queen, a horn two -yards long, wreathed and straight, which he had found -in the nose of a dead narwhal.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The ore was received with rejoicings. Some of it -was deposited in Bristol Castle, some in the Tower of -London under four locks, but there was not enough of it; -and as there were then, as now, no furnaces in England -capable of getting gold out of marcasite, a new expedition -was despatched while the furnaces were being -prepared. This time the enterprise was to be on a very -different scale. Frobisher was given a fleet of fifteen -vessels, Drake's old ship, the <em>Judith</em>, amongst them, the -<em>Aid</em>, as before, being the flagship. He was to bring -<span class='pageno' id='Page_220'>220</span>home two thousand tons of mineral and find other -mines, if he could, besides taking out a colony of a -hundred persons to settle in Meta Incognita, for whom -the materials of a wooden house were among the miscellaneous -cargo.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The fleet left Harwich on the 31st of May, 1578. A -landing was made in the south of Greenland, which -Frobisher named West England and took possession -of, his point of departure from there being called by -him, "from a certain similitude," Charing Cross! Soon -he was among the ice floes. One of the ships was driven -on to a floe and sank with some of the materials for the -wooden house. Then followed a storm in which most -of the ships had a terrible experience. "Some," says -Captain Best of the <em>Ann Frances</em>, the chronicler of the -voyage, "were so fast shut up and compassed in amongst -an infinite number of great countreys and ilands of ise, -that they were fayne to submit themselves and their -ships to the mercie of the unmercifull ise, and strengthened -the sides of their ships with junckes of cables, -beds, masts, planckes, and such like, which being hanged -overboord, on the sides of their shippes, mighte the -better defend them from the outrageous sway and -strokes of the said ise. But as in greatest distresse, -men of best value are best to be discerned, so it is -greatly worthy commendation and noting with what -invincible mind every captayne encouraged his company, -and with what incredible labour the paynefull mariners -and poore miners (unacquainted with such extremities) -to the everlasting renoune of our nation, dyd overcome -the brunt of these so great and extreame daungers; for -some, even without boorde uppon the ise, and some -<span class='pageno' id='Page_221'>221</span>within boorde, uppon the sides of their shippes, having -poles, pikes, peeces of timber and ores in their hands, -stood almost day and night, without any reste, bearing -off the force, and breaking the sway of the ise, with -suche incredible payne and perill that it was wonderfull -to behold, which otherwise no doubt had striken quite -through and through the sides of their shippes, notwithstanding -our former provision; for planckes of -timber, of more than three ynches thick, and other -things of greater force and bignesse, by the surging of -the sea and billow, with the ise were shevered and cutte -in sunder at the sides of oure ships, that it will seeme -more than credible to be reported of. And yet (that -which is more) it is faythfully and playnely to be proved, -and that by many substantiall witnesses, that our -shippes, even those of greatest burdens, with the -meeting of contrary waves of the sea, were heaved up -betweene islandes of ise a foote welneere out of the sea -above their watermarke, having their knees and timbers -within boorde both bowed and broken therewith."</p> - -<p class='c000'>To add to the difficulties of the voyage Frobisher -lost his way, and entered what he called the Mistaken -Streight—now designated Hudson Strait—through -which he might have found his way to Cathay, had he -been so minded; but recognising that he was on the -wrong road he returned and reached his mining district -at the end of July. While the ore was being gathered -in, Best ventured into the upper part of Frobisher Bay -as far as the Gabriel Islands—the only exploring work -that was done—and early in September the fleet departed -on the homeward voyage.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Frobisher had left one unmistakable indication of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_222'>222</span>his visit behind him. On Countess of Warwick Island -he had built a house of lime and stone, and "the better," -says Best, "to allure those brutish and uncivill people to -courtesie, againste other times of our comming, we left -therein dyvers of our countrye toyes, as bells and knives, -wherein they specially delight, one for the necessarie -use, and the other for the great pleasure thereof. Also -pictures of men and women in lead, men a horsebacke, -lookinglasses, whistles and pipes. Also in the house -was made an oven, and breade left baked therein, for -them to see and taste. We buried the timber of our -pretended forte, with manye barrels of meale, pease, -griste, and sundrie other good things, which was of the -provision of those whyche should inhabite, if occasion -served. And insteade therof we fraight oure ships -full of ore, whiche we holde of farre greater price."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here we part from the Cathay Company. The inevitable -trouble came with the discovery that, practically, -the only gold the ore would yield was that put in as an -"additament" by the Italian. A very thick cloud -rolled over Frobisher, who, like Lock, seems to have -believed in the genuineness of the affair all through; -but soon his country had need of him and he came to -the front again in so worthy a manner that little more -was heard of his connection with this company that -failed.</p> - -<div id='pg222' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_337.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ESKIMO AWAITING A SEAL</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_223'>223</span>To complete the story. In 1861 (say three hundred -years afterwards) Captain Hall—hearing among the -Eskimos how numerous white men had arrived first in -two, then three, then a great many ships, how they had -killed several natives and taken away two, how five of -the white men had been captured, and how these had -built a large boat and put a mast in her and sailed away -to death when the water was open—went to Kod-lun-arn -(White Man's Island) and there found the house of -lime and stone as described, and traces of the diggings, -and many relics among which he made the collection -presented by him to the British Government.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the year 1583, when Sir Humphrey Gilbert, whose -<em>Discourse</em> gave so great a stimulus to Arctic discovery, -founded St. John's, Newfoundland—the first English -colony in America—a patent was granted by Queen -Elizabeth to his brother Adrian "of Sandridge in the -county of Devon," as one of the colleagues of the -Fellowship for the Discovery of the North-West -Passage. At this Sandridge—on the east of the Dart, -bounded on three sides by the river, some two miles -above Dartmouth—was the home of the three Gilberts -(John, Humphrey, and Adrian), whose mother by a -second marriage became the mother of Carew and -Walter Raleigh; and here, about 1550, of a family -also owning property in the small peninsula, was born -John Davis, as we know him, or John Davys, as he -signed himself, who was probably a playmate, and -certainly a life-long friend, of these five.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Davis was an accomplished seaman, the best of the -Elizabethan navigators, and a man of accurate observation, -always on the alert, whose reputation does not -rest only on the work he did in the northern and other -seas, for he was the author of <em>The Seaman's Secrets</em>, -the most popular practical navigation treatise of its -time. Very early, perhaps from the first, he was one -of the moving spirits in this new north-west enterprise, -for on the 23rd of January, 1583, we find Dr. Dee-who -<span class='pageno' id='Page_224'>224</span>had helped to send Frobisher on his first voyage—making -an entry in his journal that Mr. Secretary -Walsingham had come to his house, where by good -luck he found Mr. Adrian Gilbert, and so talk began -on "the north-west straits discovery"; and, next day, -"I, Mr. Awdrian Gilbert and John Davis, went by -appointment to Mr. Beale, his howse, where only we -four were secret, and we made Mr. Secretary privie of -the N.W. Passage, and all charts and rutters were -agreed upon in generall"—"rutter" being the French -"<span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">routier</span>," originating in <cite><span lang="fr" xml:lang="fr">Le Routier de la Mer</span></cite>, signifying -a book of sea routes. Another important friend -of Davis was William Sanderson, the representative -of the merchants by whom the expenses of the voyage -were borne, he being the chief subscriber. One of the -ships, the <em>Moonshine</em>, seems to have belonged to him, -and it was largely owing to his influence among the -shareholders that Davis was appointed captain and -chief pilot of the "exployt," in which he was to -practically rediscover Greenland.</p> - -<p class='c000'>There were two vessels, the <em>Sunshine</em> of London, -fifty-nine tons, with twenty-three persons on board, -and the <em>Moonshine</em> of Dartmouth, thirty-five tons, with -nineteen. They left Dartmouth on the 7th of June, -1585, but had to put in at Falmouth and then at the -Scillies, where Davis occupied the twelve days he -spent there in surveying and charting the islands. On -the 20th of July they were sailing down the east coast -of Greenland, and were so little attracted by it that -Davis called it the Land of Desolation. Nine days -afterwards he found a group of many pleasant green -islands bordering on the shore, while the mountains of -the mainland were still covered with snow, and here he -landed on the west coast at Gilbert Sound, as he named -it, near where Godthaab now is, and entered into communication -with the natives.</p> - -<div id='pg224' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_341.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>A GREENLANDER IN HIS KAYAK</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_225'>225</span>For such occasions, apparently, he had among the -<em>Sunshine</em> people four described as musicians, whom, on -sighting the Eskimos, he sent for. As soon as they -arrived from the ship he ordered them to strike up a -dancing tune, and to their merry music Davis and his -men began to caper as if they were enjoying themselves -immensely, while the lookers-on gradually increased -in number. "At length," he says, "one of -them poynting up to the sunne with his hande would -presently strike his brest so hard that we might hear -the blowe. This he did many times, before he would -any way trust us. Then John Ellis the master of the -<em>Mooneshine</em>, was appointed to use his best policie to -gaine their friendshippe: who strooke his breast and -poynted to the sunne after their order: which when he -had diverse times done, they began to trust him, and -one of them came on shoare, to whom we threwe our -caps, stockings and gloves, and such other things as -then we had about us, playing with our musicke, and -making signes of joy, and dancing. So the night -comming we bade them farewell, and went aboord -our barks."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The next morning, being the 30th of July, thirty-seven -canoes came up to the ships, their occupants -calling to the English to come on shore. "Wee not -making any great haste unto them, one of them went -up to the top of the rocke, and lept and daunced as -they had done the day before, shewing us a seales -<span class='pageno' id='Page_226'>226</span>skinne, and another thing made like a timbrel, which -he did beate upon with a sticke, making a noyse like a -small drumme." Whereupon Davis manned his boats -and went to the waterside where they were in their -canoes, "and after we had sworne by the sunne after -their fashion, they did trust us. So I shooke hands -with one of them, and hee kissed my hand, and we -were very familier with them. We bought five canoas -of them, we bought their clothes from their backs, -which were all made of seales skins and birdes skinnes: -their buskins, their hose, their gloves, all being commonly -sewed and well dressed: so that we were fully -persuaded that they have divers artificers among them. -Wee had a paire of buskins of them full of fine wooll -like bever. Their apparell for heate, was made of bird -skinnes with their feathers on them. We sawe among -them leather dressed like glovers leather, and thicke -thongs like white leather of a good length. Wee had -of their darts and oares, and found in them that they -would by no meanes displease us, but would give us -whatsoever we asked of them and would be satisfied -with whatsoever we gave them. They took great care -one of an other: for when we had bought their boates, -then two other woulde come and carie him away betweene -them that had soulde us his." He describes -them as "a very tractable people, voyde of craft or -double dealing, and easie to be brought to civiltie or -good order," the men of good stature, unbearded, -small-eyed, "by whom, as signes would permit, we -understood that towards the north and west there was -a great sea."</p> - -<p class='c000'>During his stay among these islands he found considerable -<span class='pageno' id='Page_227'>227</span>quantities of wood—fir, spruce, and juniper—which -whether it came floating any great distance or -grew in some island near he did not discover; but he -thought it grew further inland because the people had -so many darts and paddles which they held of little -value and gave away for insignificant trifles. He also -found "great abundance of seales" in shoals as if they -were small fish; but saw no fresh water, only snow -water in large pools, and he notes that the "cliffes were -all of such oare as M. Frobisher brought from Meta -Incognita."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Leaving the sound on the 1st of August he crossed -the strait now named after him and reached land in -66° 40´. In water "altogether voyd from ye pester of -ice" he anchored, "in a very fair rode, under a very -brave mount, the cliffs whereof were as orient as gold." -This mount he named Mount Raleigh, the roadstead -he called Totnes Rode, the sound round the mount he -named Exeter Sound, the foreland to the north he -called Dyer's Cape, the southern foreland being named -Cape Walsingham—all of which names remain. Here -white bears were killed "of monstrous bignesse," a -raven was descried upon Mount Raleigh, withies were -found growing low like shrubs, and there were flowers -like primroses, though there was no grass.</p> - -<p class='c000'>For three days Davis went coasting downwards, and -rounding the southern point of the peninsula, which he -named the Cape of God's Mercy, he entered what he -afterwards called Cumberland Strait, now Cumberland -Gulf, supposing it to be his way to the westward. It -was clear of ice; sixty leagues up islands were found, -among which a stay was made during five days of very -<span class='pageno' id='Page_228'>228</span>foggy foul weather. On the 15th of August "we -heard dogs houle on the shoare, which we thought had -bene Wolves, and therefore we went on shoare to kil -them; when we came on lande, the dogs came presently -to our boate very gently, yet we thought they came to -pray upon us, and therefore we shot at them and killed -two: and about the necke of one of them we found -a letheren coller, whereupon we thought them to be -tame dogs. Then wee went farther and founde two -sleads made like ours in Englande. The one was made -of firre, spruse and oken boards, sawen like inch -boards; the other was made all of whale bone, and -there hung on the toppes of the sleds three heads of -beasts, which they had killed. We saw here larkes, -ravens, and partriges"—probably rock ptarmigan.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Searching about, it was agreed that the place was all -islands, with sounds passing between them; that the -water remained of the same colour as the main ocean, -whereas in every bay they had been into it became -blackish; that a shoal of whales they saw must have -come from the west, because to the eastward no whale -had been seen; that "there came a violent counter -checke of a tide from the south-west against the flood -which we came with, not knowing from whence it was -maintayned"; that the further they ran westward the -deeper was the water, "so that hard abord the shoare -among these yles we could not have ground in 330 -fathoms"; and that, lastly, there was a tide range of -six or seven fathoms, "the flood comming from -diverse parts, so as we could not perceive the chiefe -maintenance thereof." For which six reasons it was -determined to continue the voyage to the westward if -<span class='pageno' id='Page_229'>229</span>the weather changed—which it did to worse with the -wind unfavourable, so that the ships had to run for -shelter and then sail for home, crossing the Atlantic -from Greenland in a fortnight. On arrival Davis -reported to Walsingham that the North-West Passage -was a matter nothing doubtful, but at any time almost -to be passed, the sea navigable, void of ice, the air -tolerable, and the waters very deep; and a voyage for -next year was decided on, for which the merchants -of Exeter, Totnes, London, Cullompton, Chard, and -Tiverton, and five private subscribers, "did adventure -their money"—to the amount of £1175—"with Mr. -Adrian Gilbert and Mr. John Davis in a voyage for -the discovery of China, the seventh daie of April in -the xxviij yeare of the rayne of or. soverayne Ladie -Elizabeth."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The fleet, consisting of the <em>Mermaid</em> of one hundred -and twenty tons, the <em>Sunshine</em> and <em>Moonshine</em>, and a -ten-ton pinnace named the <em>North Star</em>, left Dartmouth -on the 7th of May, 1586. On reaching Greenland the -<em>Sunshine</em> and <em>North Star</em> were sent up the east coast -of Greenland, while the <em>Mermaid</em> and <em>Moonshine</em> made -for Gilbert Sound.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Here the Eskimos received them cordially "after -they had espied in the boate, some of our companie -that were the yeere before heere with us, they presently -rowed to the boate, and tooke holde on the oare, and -hung about the boate with such comfortable joy as -woulde require a long discourse to be uttered: they -came with the boates to our shippes, making signes -that they knewe all those that the yere before had -bene with them. After I perceived their joy, and smal -<span class='pageno' id='Page_230'>230</span>feare of us, my selfe with the merchaunts, and others -of the company went a shoare, bearing with me -twentie knives: I had no sooner landed, but they lept -out of their Canoas, and came running to mee and the -rest, and imbraced us with many signes of hartie -welcome: at this present there were eighteene of them, -and to each of them I gave a knife: they offered -skinnes to mee for rewarde, but I made signes that it -was not solde, but given them of curtesie: and so dismissed -them for that time, with signes that they -shoulde returne againe after certaine houres." But -soon there were passing troubles owing to iron having -so great an attraction for them that they could not -resist stealing it. While amongst them, exploring the -country, Davis compiled the first Eskimo vocabulary -known, a list of some forty words written down -phonetically, most of them remarkably good approaches -considering that both parties were ignorant of each -other's language, none of them, however, except that -for "sea" being likely to be of any use in putting him -on the road to China.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On leaving Gilbert Sound, Davis when in latitude -63° 8´ "fel upon a most mighty and strange quantity of -ice, in one intyre masse, so bigge as that we knew not -the limits thereof, and being withall so very high, in -forme of a land, with bayes and capes, and like high -cliffe land, as that we supposed it to be land, and therefore -sent our pinnesse off to discover it: but at her -returne we were certainely informed that it was onely -ice, which bred great admiration to us all, considering -the huge quantity thereof, incredible to be reported in -truth as it was, and therefore I omit to speake any -<span class='pageno' id='Page_231'>231</span>further thereof. This onely, I thinke that the like -before was never seene, and in this place we had very -stickle and strong currants. We coasted this mighty -masse of ice untill the 30 of July, finding it a mighty -bar to our purpose: the ayre in this time was so contagious, -and the sea so pestered with ice, as that all -hope was banished of proceeding: for the 24 of July -all our shrowds, ropes, and sailes were so frozen, and -compassed with ice, onely by a grosse fogge, as seemed -to me more then strange, sith the last yeere I found this -sea free and navigable, without impediments."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Crossing the straits he repaired and revictualled the -<em>Moonshine</em> in an excellent harbour among islands where -they found it very hot and were "very much troubled -with a flie which is called Musketa, for they did sting -grievously." Forsaken by the <em>Mermaid</em>, he abandoned -the search in Cumberland Sound as he "found small -hope to pass any farther that way," and worked south, -it being too late to go northwards, crossing Frobisher -Bay, which he described as "another great inlet neere -forty leagues broad where the water entered with -violent swiftnesse, this we also thought might be a -passage, for no doubt the north parts of America are -all islands." Off the coast of Labrador he found a vast -shoal of codfish, of which he caught over forty with a -long spike nail made into a hook. These he salted, and -some of them, on his return, he gave, at Walsingham's -request, to Burghley, who, at an interview, encouraged -him to make a further attempt.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next year he was off again, this time "to the Isles -of the Molucca or the coast of China." He seems to -have been on board the <em>Ellen</em>, a small craft of some -<span class='pageno' id='Page_232'>232</span>twenty tons, his two other vessels being the <em>Sunshine</em> -as before, and the <em>Elizabeth</em>. These he left to fish for -cod in the straits while he went northward from Gilbert -Sound in his little "clinker," which he had probably -chosen as being handy for ice navigation. Running -along the land, to which he gave the name of London -Coast, he reached 72° 12´—the highest north up to then -attained—where he named the loftiest of the headlands -Sanderson's Hope, whose lofty crest piercing through -the driving clouds near Upernivik has become perhaps -the best-known landmark in the northern seas. Here -the wind suddenly shifting to the northward made -further progress impossible, and he had to shape his -course westerly, and then, owing to ice, which he in -vain endeavoured to get round to the north, he had to -turn southwards. Amid much fog, and with the ice -always present, he came down the coast of Baffin Land, -giving a name here and there on the way, until on the -31st of July he passed "a very great gulfe, the water -whirling and roring, as it were the meetings of tides," -which was probably the entrance to Hudson Strait. -Next day he was off the Labrador coast and named -Cape Chidley after his friend who died in the Straits of -Magellan, and on the 15th of August he laid his course -for England.</p> - -<div id='pg232' class='figcenter id025'> -<a href='images/i_351.jpg'><img src='images/i_351_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>BAFFIN BAY IN 1819</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_233'>233</span>Of this voyage Hakluyt prints the Traverse Book, -one of the earliest known. In it the full detail is given -for every day, arranged in nine columns, one each for -the month, the day, the hour, the courses, the leagues, -the elevation of the pole in degrees and minutes, the -wind, and a remarks column headed "The Discourse"—for -Davis was an exact and systematic man remarkable -for his latitudes never being wrong, though like -all those old navigators before the invention of the -chronometer, he was frequently out in his longitude. -He was going off again bound for the sea north of -Sanderson's Hope, but the coming of the Armada and -the death of Walsingham caused the postponement of -the project he did not abandon, for it seems that the -<em>Desire</em>, in which he discovered the Falkland Islands at -the other end of America, was to be his reward for -accompanying Cavendish round the world, and that in -her he intended to make his next Polar voyage.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The work he had set himself to do was done by -William Baffin, who first appears in the Arctic record -as pilot of the <em>Patience</em> in James Hall's Greenland -voyage in 1612, which ended in Hall being killed in -revenge for the kidnapping proceedings on the two -previous voyages under the Danish flag. Baffin then -made two voyages, as we have seen, to Spitsbergen in -the service of the Muscovy Company, and, in that of the -Company for the Discovery of the North-West Passage, -he made his fourth, in 1615. In Hudson's old ship the -<em>Discovery</em>, also her fourth trip to the north, he passed -up Hudson Strait to the end of Southampton Island, -where he abandoned the attempt to get through owing -to ice and shallow water, and returned after discovering -the land that Parry named after him.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In his fifth voyage, again in the <em>Discovery</em>, with -Robert Bylot again as master, he left Gravesend on -the 16th of March, 1616, and reached Sanderson's -Hope on the 30th of May, discovering the great bay -to the north which bears his name. Passing the -Women Islands and the Baffin Islands off Cape -<span class='pageno' id='Page_234'>234</span>Shackleton, he took the middle passage across Melville -Bay, coasting along by Cape York, by the cape named -after one of his directors, Sir Dudley Digges, and the -sound named after another of his directors, Sir John -Wolstenholme; along Prudhoe Land, entering the North -Water of the whalers, reaching Cape Alexander in -77° 45´, his farthest north; opening up and naming -Smith Sound, after Sir Thomas Smith, another of his -directors, and Jones Sound, after Alderman Sir Francis -Jones, another of the board, and Lancaster Sound, -after Sir James Lancaster of the East India Company. -Thus, coasting Ellesmere Land, North Devon, Bylot -Island, and Baffin Land, he continued his voyage from -the north on his way home. A good piece of work: -the discoveries so many and unexpected that people -ceased to believe in them, geographers going so far as -to erase his bay from their maps until, two hundred -years afterwards, Ross and Parry sailed over the land -of the unbelievers and confirmed Baffin's work in every -detail—and Ross, in his best mountain-finding manner, -reported no thoroughfare at Smith Sound.</p> - -<div id='pg234' class='figcenter id026'> -<img src='images/i_355.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>DR. E. K. KANE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_235'>235</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER XII<br /> SMITH SOUND</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Captain Inglefield—Dr. Kane—The open Polar Sea—Hans Hendrik the -Greenlander—Kalutunah the Eskimo—An Eskimo bear-hunt—A lesson -in catching auks—Dr. Hayes—His journey over the glacier—Tyndall -Glacier—Captain C. F. Hall—Joe and Hannah—Voyage of the <em>Polaris</em>—Drift -of the <em>Polaris</em>—The voyage on the ice-floe—The British Government -Expedition of 1875—The <em>Alert</em> and <em>Discovery</em>—The cairn on Washington -Irving Island—Discovery Harbour—How the <em>Alert</em> got into safety at -Floeberg Beach—Low temperatures—Nares on sledging—Description of -the sledges and their burden—Markham starts for the Pole—Reaches -83° 20´ 26˝—Outbreak of scurvy—Parr's walk—Aldrich's journey west—Beaumont's -journey east—The perilous homeward voyage.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>Lady Franklin, who incidentally did so much -for Arctic discovery, sent out the <em>Isabel</em> in 1852 -under Commander, afterwards Sir, Edward Augustus -Inglefield to search for her husband to the north of -Baffin Bay. Unlike John Ross, the names of whose -ships, <em>Isabella</em> and <em>Alexander</em>, are home by the capes -at its entrance, he found Smith Sound to be the highway -to the north. Steaming up the open water -"stretching through seven points of the compass," -noting the coasts as he went, he was turned back by the -ice in 78° 28´, at the entrance to the Kane Sea, with -Cairn Point and the way in to Rensselaer Harbour on -his right, and Cape Sabine and Ellesmere Land, which -he named, on his left; the farthest north he sighted -being Cape Louis Napoleon, the farthest east Cape -Frederick VII, now known as Cape Russell. Needless -<span class='pageno' id='Page_236'>236</span>to say he found no Franklin traces, although he really -looked for them.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Twelve months afterwards Dr. Elisha Kent Kane in -the United States brig <em>Advance</em> followed in his track -and wintered in Rensselaer Harbour, nine miles further -north. Ostensibly Kane was on a Franklin search, but -his real object was the Pole. He explored the sea -named after him, naming many landmarks, not always -placing them in their true positions, and underwent -many hardships. For one mistake he was famous for -a time, and his reputation now suffers. One of his expedition, -William Morton, almost reached Cape Constitution, -in about 80½°, which he placed some sixty -miles too far north, and described as the corner of the -north coast of Greenland; and from the southern horn -of the bay of which it is the northern boundary he -looked out over the south of Kennedy Channel, which -is open every summer, and mistook it for the Polar -Sea. And he returned with a report of an even more -wonderful discovery than the Polar Sea, for, according -to the illustration, he beheld the midnight sun dipping -in its waters on Midsummer Day.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In May, 1854, the month before Morton's discoveries, -Dr. Hayes and William Godfrey crossed the Kane Sea -to connect the northern coast with Inglefield's survey, -"but it disclosed no channel or any form of exit from -the bay," being, in fact, Ellesmere Land continued, and -yet on reaching the shore for the first time at Hayes -Point, three miles north of Cape Louis Napoleon, and -following it for two miles to Cape Frazer, they quite -unnecessarily named the country Grinnell Land. On -the other side of this sea the chief discovery was -Kane's Humboldt glacier, some fifty miles north-east -of their winter quarters, which was described as "the -mighty crystal bridge which connects the two continents -of America and Greenland," when, of course, it does -nothing of the sort.</p> - -<div id='pg236' class='figcenter id027'> -<img src='images/i_359.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>KALUTUNAH</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_237'>237</span>What with sickness, accident, and other disaster, it -became evident that the <em>Advance</em> would never leave her -wintering place, and in July Kane set off on a wild -endeavour to reach Beechey Island and obtain relief -from the Franklin search vessels, but he had to return. -Next month Hayes was sent to Upernivik, but he also -came back. Finally in May, 1855, the brig was abandoned -and the survivors began their journey to the -south. Fortunately on the outward voyage Kane, at -Fiskernaes, had engaged Hans Hendrik the Greenlander, -then a boy of nineteen, who became quite a -prominent figure in this and subsequent voyages, and -without him and Kalutunah, chief of the Etah Eskimos, -the whole party would have perished miserably.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Hans first appears when spearing a bird on the wing; -Kalutunah's first appearance was equally encouraging. -"The leader of the party," says Kane, "was a noble -savage, greatly superior in everything to the others of -his race. He greeted me with respectful courtesy, yet -as one who might rightfully expect an equal measure -of it in return, and, after a short interchange of salutations, -seated himself in the post of honour at my side. -I waited, of course, till the company had fed and slept, -for among savages especially haste is indecorous, and -then, after distributing a few presents, opened to them -my project of a northern exploration. Kalutunah -received his knife and needles with a 'Kuyanaka,' 'I -<span class='pageno' id='Page_238'>238</span>thank you'; the first thanks I have heard from a native -of this upper region. He called me his friend—'Asakaoteet,' -'I love you well'—and would be happy, -he said, to join the nalegak-soak in a hunt."</p> - -<p class='c000'>And the journey ended in a hunt, for the dogs caught -sight of a large male bear in the act of devouring a seal. -The impulse was irresistible; Kane lost all control over -both dogs and drivers, who seemed dead to everything -but the passion of pursuit. Off they sped with incredible -speed; the Eskimos clinging to their sledges -and cheering their dogs with loud cries. A mad, wild -chase, wilder than German legend—"the dogs, wolves; -the drivers, devils." After a furious run, the animal -was brought to bay, and the lance and rifle did their -work. There were more bears and more hunts, and -when Kane objected that this could hardly be called -northern exploration, he was told by Kalutunah, significantly, -that the bear-meat was absolutely necessary -for the support of their families, and that the nalegak-soak -had no right to prevent him from providing for -his household. "It was a strong argument," says -Kane, "and withal the argument of the strong."</p> - -<div id='pg238' class='figcenter id021'> -<a href='images/i_363.jpg'><img src='images/i_363_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE EAST COAST OF SMITH SOUND</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_239'>239</span>Bear-hunting hereabouts has its dangers, for the -Eskimos of the north are not armed with bows and -arrows as are those of the mainland. When the bear -is found the dogs are set upon the trail, and the hunter -runs by their side in silence. As he turns the angle -ahead his game is in view before him, stalking probably -along with quiet march, sometimes sniffing the air -suspiciously, but making, nevertheless, for a clump of -hummocks. The dogs spring forward, opening in a -wild wolfish yell, the driver shrieking "Nannook! -nannook!" and all straining every nerve in pursuit. -The bear rises on his haunches, views his pursuers, -and starts off at full speed. The hunter, as he runs, -leaning over his sledge, seizes the traces of a couple of -his dogs and liberates them from their burden. It is -the work of a minute; for the speed is not checked and -the remaining dogs rush on with apparent ease. Pressed -more severely, the bear stands at bay while his two -foremost pursuers halt at a short distance and quietly -await the arrival of the hunter. At this moment the -whole pack are liberated; the hunter grasps his lance, -and, stumbling through the snow and ice, prepares for -the encounter. Grasping the lance firmly in his hands -he provokes the animal to pursue him by moving -rapidly across its path, and then running as if to escape. -But hardly is its long body extended for the tempting -chase, before, with a quick jump, the hunter doubles -on his track, and, as the bear turns after him again, -the lance is plunged into the left side below the -shoulder; and that so dexterously, that, if it be an -inch or so wide of the proper spot, the spear has -to be left in the bear and the man has to run for -his life.</p> - -<p class='c000'>At this hazardous work Kalutunah was an adept, and -he was equally skilful at a much less dangerous game, -as Dr. Hayes was to discover when wintering in the -schooner <em>United States</em> in Foulke Harbour, further -south, in 1860-61. Hayes wished to learn how to -catch auks, and the Eskimo gave him a lesson. -Kalutunah carried a small net, made of light strings of -sealskin knitted together, the staff by which it was held -being about ten feet in length. Arriving about half-way -<span class='pageno' id='Page_240'>240</span>up the cliffs he crouched behind a rock and invited the -doctor to follow his example. The slope on which the -birds were congregated was about a mile long, and in -vast flocks they were sweeping over it a few feet above -the stones down the whole length of the hill, returning -higher in the air, and so round and round in a complete -circuit. Occasionally a few hundreds or thousands -would drop down as if following some leader, and in -an instant the rocks, for some distance, would swarm -with them as they speckled the hill with their black -backs and white breasts. The doctor was told to lie -lower, as the birds noticed him and were flying too -far overhead. Having placed himself as Kalutunah -approved, the birds began to sweep lower and lower -in their flight until their track came well within reach. -Then, as a dense portion of the crowd approached, up -went the net, and half a dozen birds flew into it, and, -stunned by the blow, could not recover before the -Eskimo had slipped the staff through his hands and -seized the net. With his left hand he pressed down -the birds, while with the right he drew them out one -by one, and, for want of a third hand, used his teeth to -crush their heads. The wings were then locked across -each other; and with an air of triumph the old chief -looked around, spat the blood and feathers from his -mouth, and went on with the sport, tossing up his net -and hauling it in with much rapidity until he had -caught about a hundred, and wanted no more.</p> - -<div id='pg240' class='figcenter id028'> -<img src='images/i_367.jpg' alt='I. I. Hayes' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_241'>241</span>Hayes did his best to disparage both Kalutunah and -Hans, to whom he was not quite so much indebted as -Kane, owing to his having given himself a better chance -of retreat by not taking the schooner out of Smith -Sound, his quarters in Hartstene Bay being only some -twelve miles north of Cape Alexander. He had come -to verify the existence of the open sea and sail to the -Pole across it if he could; and he verified it to his -own satisfaction. But he did not get so far north as -Morton, although he claimed to have done so, for he -climbed a cliff eight hundred feet high and looked out -over the open water—in Kennedy Channel—and did -not see the Greenland cliffs trending away northwards -within thirty miles of him, and visible all the way up -for two degrees north of Cape Constitution. Thus he -left the map as Kane left it, with Greenland cut off -short south of the eighty-first parallel, and his farthest -seems to have been the south point of Rawlings Bay, -where the <em>Alert</em> was forced on shore in August, 1876, -in 80° 15´.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"I climbed," he says, "the steep hillside to the top -of a ragged cliff, which I supposed to be about eight -hundred feet above the level of the sea. The view -which I had from this elevation furnished a solution of -the cause of my progress being arrested on the previous -day. The ice was everywhere in the same condition as -in the mouth of the bay across which I had endeavoured -to pass. A broad crack, starting from the middle of -the bay, stretched over the sea, and uniting with other -cracks as it meandered to the eastward, it expanded as -the delta of some mighty river discharging into the -ocean, and under a water-sky, which hung upon the -northern horizon, it was lost in the open sea. The sea -beneath me was a mottled sheet of white and dark -patches, these latter being either soft decaying ice or -places where the ice had wholly disappeared. These -<span class='pageno' id='Page_242'>242</span>spots were heightened in intensity of shade and multiplied -in size as they receded, until the belt of the -water-sky blended them all together into one uniform -colour of dark blue. The old and solid floes (some a -quarter of a mile, and others miles across) and the -massive ridges and wastes of hummocked ice which -lay piled between them and around their margins, were -the only parts of the sea which retained the whiteness -and solidity of winter."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Unfortunately for Hayes, the astronomer of the -expedition, August Sonntag, who had assisted Kane in -the same capacity, was frozen to death on a sledge -journey, and the doctor was left to do the work for -himself, with disappointing results, as with errors of -many miles in either latitude or longitude his journeys -can only be noticed in a very general way. In October, -1860, he proceeded for some distance over the glacier -to the east of his wintering place. The first attempt to -scale the glacier was attended by what might have been -a serious accident. The foremost member of the party -missed his footing as he was clambering up the rude -steps, and, sliding down the steep side, scattered those -who were below him to the right and left and sent them -rolling into the valley beneath. The next effort was -more successful, and, the end of a rope being carried -over the side of the glacier, the sledge was drawn up -the inclined plane and a fair start obtained. A little -further on Hayes was only saved from disappearing -down a crevasse by clutching a pole he was carrying on -his shoulder. Next day, the surface being smoother, -more progress was made, and they reached a plain of -compact snow covered with a crust through which the -feet broke at every step. The day afterwards the cold -grew more intense and a gale came on. At night the -men complained bitterly and could not sleep, and as the -storm increased in strength they were forced to leave the -tent and by active exercise prevent themselves from -freezing.</p> - -<div id='pg242' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_371.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE SHORES OF KENNEDY CHANNEL</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_243'>243</span>To face the wind was impossible, and shelter was -nowhere to be found upon the unbroken plain, there -being but one direction in which they could move, that -being with their backs to the gale. It was not without -difficulty that the tent was taken down and bundled -upon the sledge, the wind blowing so fiercely that they -could scarcely roll it up with their stiffened hands. -The men were in pain and could only hold on for a few -moments to the hardened canvas, their fingers, freezing -continually, requiring vigorous pounding to keep them -on the flickering verge of life. "In the midst of a vast -frozen Sahara, with neither hill, mountain, nor gorge -anywhere in view," says Hayes, "fitful clouds swept -over the face of the full-orbed moon, which, descending -toward the horizon, glimmered through the drifting -snow that whirled out of the illimitable distance, and -scudded over the icy plain, to the eye in undulating -lines of downy softness, to the flesh in showers of -piercing darts. Our only safety was in flight; and like -a ship driven before a tempest which she cannot withstand, -and which has threatened her ruin, we turned -our backs to the gale; and, hastening down the slope, -we ran to save our lives. We travelled upwards of -forty miles, and had descended about three thousand -feet before we ventured to halt."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next year he visited the large glacier in Whale -<span class='pageno' id='Page_244'>244</span>Sound which he named after Professor John Tyndall, -pulling first along its front in a boat and then mounting -its surface. As he rowed along within a few fathoms -of this two miles of ice, he found the face "worn and -wasted away until it seemed like the front of some vast -incongruous temple, here a groined roof of some -huge cathedral, and there a pointed window or a -Norman doorway deeply moulded; while on all sides -were pillars round and fluted and pendants dripping -crystal drops of the purest water, and all bathed in a -soft blue atmosphere. Above these wondrous archways -and galleries there was still preserved the same Gothic -character; tall spires and pinnacles rose along the -entire front and multiplied behind them, and new forms -met the eye continually. Strange, there was nothing -cold or forbidding anywhere. The ice seemed to take -the warmth which suffused the air, and I longed to pull -my boat far within the opening and paddle beneath the -Gothic archways."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Charles Francis Hall, of Cincinnati, was a man of a -very different stamp. He was a genius and a genuine -worker, an accurate observer and painstaking explorer -who believed above all things in thoroughness. -Realising that the best way to study the Polar regions -was to understand the Eskimos, who know most about -them, and utilise their local knowledge, he settled -amongst them, lived with them, adopted their customs, -and became as one of them in their huts and tents, -taking part in their sports and hardships. Two friends -he made amongst them, Ebierbing and his wife Tookoolito, -better known as Joe and Hannah, who accompanied -him till he died.</p> - -<div id='pg244' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_375.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>TYNDALL GLACIER</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_245'>245</span>After clearing up the Frobisher problem and throwing -some light on the Franklin mystery, he started in 1871 -to go as far north as he could across the reported Polar -Sea. To him Henry Grinnell, who did so much for -northern discovery, entrusted the American flag which -had been to the Antarctic with Wilkes in 1838, to the -Arctic with De Haven, with Kane and with Hayes, -and was a sort of oriflamme of Polar discovery. His -ship was the <em>Polaris</em>, of 387 tons, once the <em>Periwinkle</em>, -a name which seemed to be a little too unassuming. -Buddington, his sailing-master, was an experienced -whaling captain; his assistant, Tyson, destined for the -independent command of an ice-floe, was another -whale-fisher. The naturalist was Emil Bessels. On -board were also Joe and Hannah—of course—and -William Morton, to show where the sea was, and, -picked up at Upernivik, the indispensable Hans -Hendrik with his wife and three children.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The voyage was fortunate so long as Hall lived. -The <em>Polaris</em> found the Polar gates open before her. -She steamed right up Smith Sound, through Kane Sea, -up Kennedy Channel, into Robeson Channel—named -after the Secretary to the American Navy—until she -reached the ice, in 82° 16´, on the 30th of August, 1871, -the highest latitude then attained by a ship. Hall -would have pressed on into the ice, but Buddington -wisely refused, and hardly had the <em>Polaris</em> been headed -round when she was beset and carried southwards, to -escape in a few days and take refuge for the winter in -a harbour on the east of what is now known as Hall -Basin, protected at its entrance by a grounded floeberg. -The latitude is 81° 38´, the harbour Hall called Thank -<span class='pageno' id='Page_246'>246</span>God Bay. There in November he died; and close by -is Hall's Rest, where he is buried.</p> - -<p class='c000'>His death was the end of the enterprise. Buddington -wished to return as soon as the ship was released, -and eventually had his way, after a journey or two of -little importance. But he stayed too long. The ship -was clear in June, and he did not start until the 1st of -August, and he started by driving her into the pack, -anchored her to a floe, and drifted helplessly into -Baffin Bay, as De Haven had done through Lancaster -Sound in 1850. For eleven weeks the drift continued -until she was off Northumberland Island on the 15th -of October. Here in the middle of the night a violent -gale arose, and the crippled ship, nipped between two -masses of ice, was lifted bodily and thrown on her side, -her timbers cracking loudly and her sides apparently -breaking in. Two boats, all she had, were hurriedly -got on to the ice, and provisions, stores, and clothing -were being passed out, when with a roar the floe -broke asunder, and the <em>Polaris</em> disappeared like a -phantom in the gale. As the ice cracked and the -sides lurched apart, a bundle of fur lay across the -fissure. A grab was made at it, and the bundle was -saved. It contained the baby of Joe the Eskimo, -whose wife had been confined the year before in latitude -82°, perhaps the most northerly birthplace of any -of this world's inhabitants.</p> - -<div id='pg246' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_379.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>A SEAL IN DANGER</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_247'>247</span>On the ice were Tyson, with Sergeant Meyer, the -steward, the cook, six sailors, and nine Eskimos, men, -women, and children, including Hans and Joe. They -built a house, from the materials thrown out from the -ship, as a shelter; and they built snow houses as the time -went on and the floe diminished. Provisions they had -but few, but Hans and Joe were indefatigable. They -speared seals, caught fish, trapped birds, and, sometimes, -a bear would scramble up on to the ice for them -to shoot—and they never missed. In short, without -them the party would have starved to death.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The floe on which the castaways passed the winter -was about a hundred yards long and seventy-five broad. -On this they voyaged down the whole length of Baffin -Bay and through Davis Strait, the ice melting away -and getting smaller and smaller as they drifted south, -until on the 1st of April, when it was only twenty -yards round, they had to take to the remaining boat, -the other having been used for fuel. Once they nearly -touched the shore, but the wind rose and off they were -driven in the snow. When they were picked up by the -sealer <em>Tigress</em> in 53° 35´, near the coast of Labrador, on -the 30th of April, they had drifted fifteen hundred miles -in the hundred and ninety-six days that had elapsed -since they left the ship.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The <em>Polaris</em>, blown to the northward, reached land -at Lifeboat Cove in the entrance to Smith Sound, a -little north of Foulke Harbour, and here with the aid -of the Etah Eskimos the crew passed the winter; and, -in the spring, some of them went on an expedition in -the Hayes country and lost the famous flag. As the -ship could not be made seaworthy, two flat-bottomed -boats were built of her materials, and on the 21st of -June these were found hauled up on a floe in Melville -Bay, and their people rescued by the whaler <em>Ravenscraig</em>, -which shifted them into the <em>Arctic</em>, another Dundee -whaler, on board of which was Commander Markham, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_248'>248</span>who, with Hans Hendrik, four years afterwards, was to -follow up Hall's track to the north.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The results of this expedition were of considerable -importance. In five days Captain Hall had run five -hundred miles through what on most occasions has been -found to be an ice-choked sea. He completed the -exploration of Kennedy Channel, discovered Hall -Basin and Robeson Channel, and was the first to reach -the Polar ocean by this route. Greenland and Grinnell -Land he extended northward for nearly a hundred and -forty miles; and, north of Petermann Fiord, where he -showed that the inland ice terminated, he had found a -large area free from ice, with its wild flowers and -herbage and musk oxen.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Hall's remarkable success in taking a ship to so high -a latitude led to the Government expedition of 1875, -the first British attempt to reach the Pole since Parry's -failure in 1827. Three ships were employed: the <em>Alert</em>, -a seventeen-gun sloop; the <em>Discovery</em>, once the <em>Bloodhound</em>, -a Dundee whaler; and the <em>Valorous</em>. The -<em>Alert</em> and <em>Discovery</em> were specially prepared for the -voyage at Portsmouth by Sir Leopold M'Clintock who -was then Admiral Superintendent of the dockyard; -the <em>Valorous</em>, an old paddle sloop, required little alteration, -as her duty was merely to carry the stores that -could not safely be taken by the exploring vessels in -crossing the Atlantic and hand them over at Disco.</p> - -<div id='pg248' class='figcenter id029'> -<img src='images/i_383.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>SIR GEORGE NARES</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_249'>249</span>The leader, Captain George Strong Nares, when one -of the Franklin search officers under Kellett at Melville -Island, had distinguished himself by a sledge journey -in which he had travelled nine hundred and eighty -miles in sixty-nine days and reached 119½° west -longitude. He was known as one of the best navigators -in the Navy, and when called upon to go to the north -was in command of H.M.S. <em>Challenger</em>, then on her -famous voyage of scientific exploration in very different -seas. With him in the <em>Alert</em> was Commander Albert -Hastings Markham, whose experience, varied and considerable, -gained by his spending much of his spare -time within the Arctic Circle, rendered him especially -well fitted for the position. In command of the <em>Discovery</em> -was Captain Henry Frederick Stephenson; and -the officers of both ships were, like the crews, all -specially selected. There was no difficulty in the -manning. One commanding officer called at the office -at Portsmouth where the men were being entered and -asked for advice. "An order," he said, "has come on -board my ship, directing me to send volunteers for -Arctic service to this office. What am I to do? The -whole ship's company, nearly eight hundred men, have -given in their names."</p> - -<p class='c000'>The three ships left Spithead on the 29th of May, -1875, and were all at Godhavn on the 6th of July. -Nine days afterwards they left for Ritenbenk of the -curious name, which is an anagram of that of Berkentin -who was in charge of the Greenland department when -it was founded. Here the <em>Valorous</em> parted company to -return home after filling up with fuel at the coal -quarries on the north side of Disco Island, while the -two ships went to Proven to pick up Hans Hendrik, -who this time left his wife and children behind him.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Through Smith Sound, almost choked with ice, -progress was slow and difficult; but the passage was -safely accomplished, and so across Kane Sea and up -<span class='pageno' id='Page_250'>250</span>Kennedy Channel. On Washington Irving Island an -ancient cairn was found, evidently the work of white -men's hands and of great age, as shown by the state of -the lichens on it—yet another of the many indications -in the Polar regions that there was always a somebody -before the first on record. Crossing the mouth of -Archer Fiord, a snug harbour was found in 81° 44´, -where the <em>Discovery</em> was left to spend the winter, the -<em>Alert</em> going on, hampered much by the floes, though -helped at last by a south-westerly wind, until she had -to stop in 82° 27´ on the shore of the Polar Ocean, at -what was named Floeberg Beach, off an open coast -and with no more protection during the winter than -was afforded by masses of ice ranging up to sixty feet -in height aground in from eight to twelve fathoms of -water.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"The protected space," says Nares, "available for -shelter was so contracted and shallow, the entrance to -it so small, and the united force of the wind and flood-tide -so powerful, that it was with much labour and no -trifling expense in broken hawsers that the ship was -hauled in stem foremost. It was a close race whether -the ice or the ship would be in first, and my anxiety -was much relieved when I saw the ship's bow swing -clear into safety just as the advancing edge of the -heavy pack closed in against the outside of our friendly -barrier of ice. From our position of comparative -security the danger we had so narrowly escaped was -strikingly apparent as we gazed with wonder and awe -at the power exerted by the ice driven past us to the -eastward with irresistible force by the wind and flood-tide -at the rate of about a mile an hour. The projecting -<span class='pageno' id='Page_251'>251</span>points of each passing floe which grounded near -the shore in about ten fathoms of water would be at -once wrenched off from its still moving parent mass; -the pressure continuing, the several pieces, frequently -thirty thousand tons in weight, would be forced up the -inclined shore, rising slowly and majestically ten or -twelve feet above their old line of flotation. Such -pieces quickly accumulated until a rampart-like barrier -of solid ice-blocks, measuring about two hundred yards -in breadth and rising fifty feet high, lined the shore, -locking us in, but effectually protecting us from the -overwhelming power of the pack." The land had -already assumed a wintry aspect, and the ship soon -put on a garb of snow and ice, each spar and rope -being double its ordinary thickness from the accumulation -of rime. Around her everything was white and -solemn; no voice of bird or beast was heard; all was -still and silent save the gathering floes; and in two -days the men were able to walk on shore over the new -ice.</p> - -<p class='c000'>For eleven months she stayed here, secured by cables -to anchors frozen on to the shore to protect her from -gales on the landward side. With the ship housed in -awnings of tilt-cloth, with snow a foot thick laid on -the upper deck and banked up on each side as high as -the main-chains, with skylights and hatchways carefully -covered up, except two hatchways for ingress and -egress constructed with porches and double doors so as -to prevent the entrance of the bitter air, the crew here -passed the long Polar night. On the 11th of October -the sun disappeared, and then began those entertainments, -lectures, lessons, games, not forgetting the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_252'>252</span>Royal Arctic Theatre which opened on the 18th of -November, with which the winter was pleasantly whiled -away. "Can you sing or dance? or what can you do -for the amusement of others?" every man had been -asked before he was chosen, and the result was a -singularly happy time kept up until sunrise.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The cold was intense and long-continued. Even the -tobacco pipes froze, the stem becoming solidly clogged -with ice as the smoking went on unless it was made so -short as to bring the bowl unpleasantly close to the -mouth. On the 1st of April the temperature was -down to minus 64°, and three days afterwards it was -a hundred and five below freezing, the cold weather -preventing the departure of the dog-sledge for Discovery -Bay.</p> - -<p class='c000'>During the autumn, sledging parties had laid out -reserves of stores for the spring journeys, and a certain -amount of practice had been given to the men in what -was intended to be the chief work of the expedition. -The field, however, was not promising. On one occasion -Nares went out to look at it. He obtained a fine -view of the pack for a distance of six miles from the -land. The southern side of each purely white snow-covered -hummock was brilliantly lighted by the orange-tinted -twilight. The stranded floebergs lining the -shore extended from half to three-quarters of a mile off -the land. Outside were old floes with undulating -upper surfaces separated from each other by Sherard -Osborn's "hedgerows of Arctic landscape," otherwise -ridges of pressed-up ice of every size. "It will be as -difficult," was his verdict, "to drag a sledge over such -ice as to transport a carriage directly across country in -<span class='pageno' id='Page_253'>253</span>England." He gave a lecture on sledging at one of the -winter entertainments. It was interesting but not encouraging. -He told his hearers that if they could -imagine the hardest work they had ever been called -upon to perform in their lives intensified to the utmost -degree, it would only be as child's play in comparison -with the work they would have to perform whilst -sledging. "These prophetic words," says Markham, -"were fully realised, and were often recalled and commented -on by the men."</p> - -<p class='c000'>They had four different kinds of sledges. From the -illustrations it will appear how the eight-feet sledges -differed from those used by M'Clintock, the Nares -sledge being higher and more slender in the uprights. -The eight-men sledge, such as the Marco Polo—which -was bound for the Pole—had six uprights eighteen -inches apart. It was eleven feet long, thirty-eight -inches wide, eleven inches high, and weighed one -hundred and thirty pounds. The tent, made of light, -unbleached duck, was nine feet four inches long at the -bottom, eight feet at the top, seven feet wide and high, -and weighed forty-four pounds. The tent poles, five -in number, weighed five pounds apiece. The coverlet -weighed thirty-one pounds and a half, and the extra -coverlet twenty pounds. The lower robe weighed -twenty-three pounds, the waterproof floor-cloth fifteen. -The eight sleeping-bags weighed eight pounds apiece, -and the eight knapsacks, when packed, twelve pounds -apiece. The shovel and two pickaxes accounted for -twenty-one pounds, the store-bag for twenty-five, the -cooking gear for twenty-nine, the gun and ammunition -for twenty-five, the medical stores for twelve, the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_254'>254</span>instruments for fifteen, and the tent for nine and a -quarter. To this must be added a thousand and eighty -pounds for forty-five days' provisions for the eight men, -and we have the total of sixteen hundred and sixty-four -pounds odd, which with seven men at the ropes -gives each man a drag of about two hundred and -thirty-eight pounds. In the spring the weight decreases -as the provisions are consumed, but the rate of -decrease is not the same in the autumn, for then the -steadily falling temperature increases the weight of the -outfit by the moisture it adds to the tent and clothing. -In Markham's autumn journey the tent of thirty-two -pounds came back as fifty-five, the coverlet as forty-eight, -the lower robe as forty, the floor-cloth as forty, -and everything else was heavier than at the start.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The sledges mustered for their journeys on the 3rd of -April. Seven in number, they were drawn up in single -line according to the seniority of the leaders, all fully -equipped and provisioned, and manned by fifty-three -officers and men. On each was its commander's banner—a -swallow-tailed flag charged with a St. George's -cross and displaying the armorial bearings. As a precaution -against snow-blindness, the men had been -ordered to decorate the backs of their snow-jumpers -with any device they thought fit, the result being a display -of comic blazonry that often formed a topic of -conversation when others failed. For the same reason -the two boats carried on the north-going sledges were -gaily decorated with the royal arms, and the rose, -shamrock, and thistle; the artist, as on other occasions, -being Doctor Moss, whose great difficulty in the matter -was that in spite of the quantity of turpentine used in -mixing the paint it would persist in freezing so that the -brush became as stiff as a stick every few seconds.</p> - -<div> - -<div id='pg254' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_391.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -</div> -<table class='table1' summary=''> -<colgroup> -<col width='14%' /> -<col width='71%' /> -<col width='14%' /> -</colgroup> - <tr> - <td class='c018'><span class='sc'>Section M'Clintock</span></td> - <td class='c018'>SLEDGES USED BY (1) SIR LEOPOLD M'CLINTOCK AND (2) SIR GEORGE NARES</td> - <td class='c019'><span class='sc'>Section Nares</span></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class='c018'> </td> - <td class='c018'>(In the collection of Ed. Whymper)</td> - <td class='c019'> </td> - </tr> -</table> - -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_255'>255</span>Lieutenant Aldrich, supported for three weeks by -Lieutenant Giffard, was to explore the shores of Grant -Land, towards the north and west, along the coast-line -he had discovered in the previous autumn. Commander -Markham, seconded by Lieutenant Parr, was to accompany -Aldrich to Cape Joseph Henry and then strike off -to the northward over the ice. The other three sledges -were to accompany these as far as their own provisions -would allow, after completing the four's deficiencies and -giving them a fresh start from an advance post.</p> - -<p class='c000'>When Markham was only eleven days out, one of his -crew complained of pain in his ankles and knees, and -was of no help for the rest of the journey. This was -the first appearance of the scurvy which was to ruin so -many hopes, for man after man was taken ill and -became a passenger. To make matters worse no -rougher road was ever traversed by sledge. Over a -labyrinth of piled-up blocks of ice ranging to forty feet -and more in height, through which the road had to be -cut with pickaxe and shovel, and amid gale and fog and -falling snow, the painful progress went on. With many -a "One; two; three; haul!" the heavy mass would be -dragged where the men could hardly drag themselves; -one of the sledges taken a few yards by the combined -crews, who would then return for the other. On the -19th of April one of the boats was abandoned and this -made matters easier, but only for a time, as the disease -spread. At last it was decided to stop; and on the -12th of May a party of ten went ahead to reach the -farthest north.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_256'>256</span>"The walking," says Markham, "was undoubtedly -severe, at one moment struggling through deep snowdrifts, -in which we floundered up to our waists, and at -another tumbling about amongst the hummocks. -Some idea may be formed of the difficulties of the -road, when, after more than two hours' hard walking, -with little or nothing to carry, we had barely accomplished -one mile. Shortly before noon a halt was -called, the artificial horizon set up, and the flags and -sledge standards displayed. Fortunately the sun was -favourable to us, and we were able to obtain a good -altitude as it passed the meridian, although almost -immediately afterwards dark clouds rolled up, snow -began to fall, and the sun was lost in obscurity. We -found the latitude to be 83° 20´ 26˝ N., or three -hundred and ninety-nine miles and a half from the -North Pole."</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 8th of June Lieutenant Parr appeared on -the quarter-deck of the <em>Alert</em> greeting in silence the -one or two who chanced to meet him. That some -calamity had happened was evident from his looks. -He had walked on alone for forty miles to bring the -news that Markham's party were in sore distress. -Measures of rescue were instantly taken; Lieutenant -May and Doctor Moss, on snow-shoes, pushing ahead -with the dog-sledge laden with medical stores, while -Nares with a strong party followed. On their arrival -one man had died, and of the others no less than -eleven were brought back to the ship on the relief -sledges.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Ten days afterwards, fearing a similar fate had overtaken -Aldrich's party, Lieutenant May was despatched -<span class='pageno' id='Page_257'>257</span>to find him. As with Markham, scurvy had begun on -the outward journey, and it had become so bad on the -return that one of the men was being sent off to the -ship when May arrived with help. It had nevertheless -been a successful journey, the road being easier than that -by the northern route. Aldrich had traced the continuous -border of the heavy pack for two hundred miles from -Floeberg Beach, rounded Cape Columbia, in 83° 7´ N., -the northernmost point of Grant Land, and, along the -coast trending steadily south-west, had reached longitude -85° 33´ and sighted Cape Alfred Ernest in -longitude 86½°.</p> - -<p class='c000'>With his arrival there were over forty scurvy patients -on board the <em>Alert</em>; and Nares was to learn that the -sledge parties from the <em>Discovery</em> had been similarly -affected. Lieutenant Beaumont had gone along the -North Greenland coast, reaching, on the 21st of May, -51° W., in 82° 20´ N., and sighting Cape May, Mount -Hooker, and Cape Britannia. On the 10th of May, -while on his outward journey, he had sent back Lieutenant -Rawson to bring a relief party to meet him, and -Rawson with Hans and eight dogs, accompanied by -Doctor Coppinger, reached him on the 25th of June -when he was on his last possible day's journey, he and -two of his men dragging the sledge with four helpless -comrades lashed on the top of it.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The <em>Discovery</em> had also sent out Lieutenant Archer -to survey the fiord named after him, which opens out -into Lady Franklin Bay; and Lieutenant Fulford had -crossed the channel and explored Petermann Fiord. -In fact, the expedition's geographical work was of great -extent, as was the other scientific work, the most important, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_258'>258</span>as usual, being that done from the ships. -Among the odds and ends easily rememberable was the -haul of the seine in Sheridan Lake, near the wintering -station of the <em>Alert</em>, which yielded forty-three char -(<em>Salmo arcturus</em>), the most northerly freshwater fish; -the finding of the nest of the sanderling (<em>Calidris -arenarius</em>), now in the Natural History Museum, in -82° 33´, and the discovery of the nesting of the grey -phalarope and the knot in the same neighbourhood; -the thirty-feet seam of Miocene coal worked in Discovery -Harbour; and the Eskimo relics at Cape -Beechey, near the eighty-second parallel, which, in -connection with the encampments on the opposite -coast, suggested that there, at the narrowest part of -Robeson Channel, had been a crossing place from shore -to shore.</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 31st of July, 1876, the <em>Alert</em> was again under -steam after her long rest, and one of the most dangerous -voyages on record began. The ships, of from five -hundred to six hundred tons, were handled as if they -were small tugs; blocked, beset, pressed on shore, -Nares with consummate skill, constant watchfulness, -and never-failing patience, brought them through. But -they did not get out of Smith Sound until the 9th of -September, and then it was against head winds in -stormy weather amid icebergs innumerable that they -were slowly worked southwards and homewards.</p> - -<div id='pg258' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_397.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>BISHOP PAUL EGEDE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_259'>259</span> - <h2 class='c006'>CHAPTER XIII<br /> GREENLAND</h2> -</div> - -<p class='c013'>Hans Egede—The house of Eric the Red—Nansen's crossing of Greenland—Nansen -and Sverdrup row to Ny Herrnhut—Nordenskiöld's journeys—Berggren's -discovery—Nordenskiöld on the inland ice—Glaciers and icebergs—Diatoms -and whales—Edward Whymper's expedition—Greenland -in Miocene times—Graah—Scoresby—Ryder—The <em>Germania</em> and <em>Hansa</em>—The -Duke of Orleans—The Eskimos of Clavering Island—Franz Josef -Fiord—The drift of the <em>Hansa</em>—The Greely expedition—The International -Polar stations—Voyage of the <em>Proteus</em>—Lockwood reaches 83° 24´—Greely's -wagon—The Eskimo house at Lake Hazen—Greely Relief expeditions—The -rescue of Greely—Peary—His journey to Independence Bay—His -four years' expedition—Reaches 84° 17´—His Polar expedition of 1905—The -<em>Roosevelt</em>—The voyage to Cape Sheridan—Plan of the northern advance—Peary -reaches 87° 6´—Moxon's mariner.</p> - -<p class='drop-capa0_1 c007'>Hans Egede, aged twenty-two, priest of the -parish of Vaagen, in the north of Norway, -reading, in 1710, about the Norse colonists of the west—and -apparently knowing nothing of Thiodhilda—was -led to think that some of their descendants might -still be living in heathenism. Writing to the Bishop -of Trondhjem, he proposed to go out to these as a -missionary. The good father rather astonished him by -the reply that "Greenland was undoubtedly part of -America, and could not be very far from Cuba and -Hispaniola, where there was found such abundance of -gold," and, as those who went to Greenland might -bring home "incredible riches," he approved of the -suggestion.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_260'>260</span>Unfortunately, however, Egede had written his letter -without the knowledge of his wife, who by no means -thought with the Bishop until seven years afterwards, -when she changed her mind. Trying in vain locally, -Egede applied for support to Frederick IV of Denmark, -who finding him an earnest, honest, interesting man, -gave him his patronage, the result being that a company -was formed at Bergen for the development of -trade and the propagation of the gospel; and, on the -3rd of May, 1721, the <em>Hope</em> set sail from there for -Greenland with forty-six intending colonists, including -the missionary and his wife and family.</p> - -<p class='c000'>His landing-place was on an island at the mouth -of Godthaab Fiord, or Baal's River. He found the -Greenlanders very different from what he had supposed; -and also that the Dutch were carrying on a -profitable trade with them and keeping it quiet. To -begin with they were nothing like Vikings in appearance; -and their language, instead of being a Scandinavian -dialect, was of the same character as that of -the Eskimos of Labrador—and not at all easy to learn. -Learn it, however, he and his family did; and among -the Greenlanders they remained and laboured with -truly admirable energy and devotion, battling hard for -life amid much disaster until, with the help of his -son Paul, who succeeded him as superintendent of the -mission with the title of bishop, the settlement became -permanent, and other settlements arose from it up the -western coast as they are found to-day.</p> - -<div id='pg260' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_401.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>GREENLANDERS</p> -</div> -</div> -<div class='lg-container-l'> - <div class='linegroup'> - <div class='group'> - <div class='line'><em>From a photo by Dr. H. Rink</em></div> - </div> - </div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_261'>261</span>Though there were no Norsemen, there were many -traces of them, the most interesting being the house of -Eric the Red, near Igaliko. Here, close to Erik's -Fiord and overlooking Einar's Fiord, on one of the -prettiest sites in Greenland, was Brattelid—"the steep -side of a rock"—one side of it a natural cliff, the walls -of the other sides, more than four feet thick, built of -blocks of red sandstone from four to six feet in length -as well as in breadth and thickness, reminding the -visitor of those of Stonehenge, and evoking similar -wonderment as to how they were got into place. And -in his first colony, now called Igdluernerit, Egede -seems to have followed the Norsemen—at an interval—in -their architecture, to judge by the large stones in -the walls of his house, which, like Eric's, is now in -ruins.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Twelve years after Egede, came the Moravians to -take up their quarters at Ny Herrnhut, also at the -mouth of Godthaab (that is, Good Hope) Fiord. It -was here that Nansen and Sverdrup landed in October, -1888, having rowed up from Ameralik Fiord in their -"half a boat," as the Eskimos called it.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"Are you Englishmen?" they were asked.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"No," said Nansen, in good Norse, "we are Norwegians."</p> - -<p class='c000'>"May I ask your name?"</p> - -<p class='c000'>"My name is Nansen and we have just come from -the interior."</p> - -<p class='c000'>"Oh, allow me to congratulate you on taking your -doctor's degree!"</p> - -<p class='c000'>From which it is clear that Godthaab is not so much -out of the world as one would suppose.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Nansen with his three Norsemen and two Lapps had -reached the east coast in the <em>Jason</em>, and on the 17th of -July had left the ship in their boats to make their way -<span class='pageno' id='Page_262'>262</span>to the shore; but they had been caught in the floes, -and on them and among them they had drifted for -twelve days—an experience they had not bargained for. -Getting ashore at last near Cape Tordenskiold, they -worked their way back northwards along the coast, -spending a short time at an Eskimo encampment at -Cape Bille, until on the 15th of August they hauled -their two boats up near Umivik and started to cross -Greenland over the inland ice.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The country is now in its glacial period, and for days -they toiled across its glacial desert; each day alike in its -wearisome monotony. "Flatness and whiteness were -the two features of this ocean of snow," says Nansen; -"in the day we could see three things only, the sun, -the snowfield and ourselves. We looked like a diminutive -black line feebly traced upon an infinite expanse of -white. There was no break or change in our horizon, -no object to rest the eye upon, and no point by which to -direct the course. We had to steer by a diligent use of -the compass, and keep our line as well as possible by -careful watching of the sun and repeated glances back -at the four men following and the long track which the -caravan left in the snow. We passed from one horizon -to another, but our advance brought us no change."</p> - -<p class='c000'>By the 2nd of September they had all taken to their -skis on which they made great progress alone, but when -it came to hauling the sledges there was a difference. -Sometimes the snow proved to be very heavy going, -particularly when it was wind-packed, and then it was -no better than sand. One entry in Nansen's journal -will suffice: "It began to snow in the middle of the -day, and our work was heavier than ever. It was worse -even than yesterday, and to say it was like hauling in -blue clay will scarcely give an idea of it. At every -step we had to use all our force to get the heavy -sledges along, and in the evening Sverdrup and I, who -had to go first and plough a way for ourselves, were -pretty well done up."</p> - -<div id='pg262' class='figcenter id030'> -<img src='images/i_405.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>ON LEVEL GROUND</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_263'>263</span>When at last the wind became favourable they -hoisted sail, and off they went over the waves and drifts -of snow at a speed that almost took their breath away; -and when they reached the western slopes they slid -down them using the sledges as toboggans. At first -they had intended making for Christianshaab, but the -route had to be changed for that to Godthaab, and -the sea was reached some distance to the south. Here -they stitched the floor-sheet of their tent over a framework -of withies, and with oars made of canvas stretched -across forked willows and tied to bamboo shafts, -Nansen and Sverdrup boldly trusted themselves to the -waves and with much hard labour pulled into Ny -Herrnhut on the 3rd of October. Such was the first -crossing of Greenland, a really remarkable instance of -daring endeavour.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Further north, Nordenskiöld, in 1883, had attempted -to cross over the ice-cap from near Disco on the west -coast, but, hindered and finally stopped by crevasses -and other obstacles, could do no more than send -his Lapps to try their best on their skis, and -they returned after their journey eastwards of a -hundred and forty miles reporting similar monotonous -conditions all along their track. Thirteen years -before, he had, also from Auleitsivik Fiord, started out -with Berggren; and deserted by their followers, they -<span class='pageno' id='Page_264'>264</span>had gone on by themselves for some thirty miles east -of the northern arm of the fiord. It was on this occasion -that Berggren discovered <em>Ancylonema</em>, that small -poly-cellular alga forming the dark masses that absorb a -far greater amount of heat than the white ice and thus -cause the deep holes that aid in the process of melting.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"The same plant," says Nordenskiöld, "has no doubt -played the same part in our country; and we have to -thank it, perhaps, that the deserts of ice which -formerly covered the whole of Northern Europe and -America have now given place to shady woods and -undulating cornfields."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Nordenskiöld looked upon Greenland and its icefield -as a broad-lipped, shallow vessel with chinks in the lip, -the glacier being viscous matter within it. As more is -poured in, the matter runs over the edges, taking the -lines of the chinks, that is, of the fiords and valleys, as -that of its outflow. In other words, the ice floats out -by force of the superincumbent weight of snow just as -does the grain on the floor of a barn when another -sackful is shot on to the top of the heap already there. -When the glacier reaches the sea it makes its way along -the bottom under water for a considerable distance, in -some cases, as near Avigait, for more than a mile. This -is where the water is too shallow for it to affect the -mass, which forms a breakwater; though as a rule the -shore deepens more suddenly and the projection is less. -It was long supposed that the berg broke from the -glacier by force of gravity, but this is not generally so. -The berg is forced off from the parent glacier by the -buoyant action of the sea from beneath; the ice groans -and creaks; then there is a crashing, then a roar like -the discharge of artillery; and with a great regurgitation -of the waves the iceberg is launched into life. These -huge floating islands of ice are the most conspicuous -exports of Greenland; and their true magnitude is not -realised until it is remembered that only about an -eighth of their bulk appears above the water. Bergs as -large as liners we frequently hear of—one such is shown -in our illustration—but sometimes they are of much -greater freeboard, though the very large ones reported -as extending along the horizon are invariably groups of -several crowded together.</p> - -<div id='pg264' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_409.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE ALLAN LINER "SARDINIAN" AMONG ICEBERGS</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_265'>265</span><em>Ancylonema</em> has evidently plenty to do. Another -instance of the important part played by the insignificant -in these regions is suggested by the colour of the sea. -This varies from ultramarine blue to olive-green, from -the purest transparency to striking opacity; and the -changes are not transitory but permanent. These -patches of dark water abound with diatoms, while the -bluer the water the fewer are the diatoms; and where -they are most numerous, there the animals that feed on -them assemble in their greatest numbers. And these -animals are jellyfish, entomostracans, and, to a greater -extent, pteropods, their chief representative being <em>Clio -borealis</em>. In short, the animals that feed on the diatoms -are food of the Greenland whale, and where the waters -are dark the whale-fishers thrive. "I know nothing -stranger than the curious tale I have unfolded," says -Dr. Robert Brown, who worked out this remarkable -chain, "the diatom staining the broad frozen sea, again -supporting myriads of living beings which crowd there -to feed on it, and these again supporting the huge -whale. Thus it is no stretch of the imagination to say -<span class='pageno' id='Page_266'>266</span>that the greatest animal depends for its existence on a -being so minute that it takes thousands to be massed -together before they are visible to the naked eye."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Cold as Greenland is, there was a time when matters -were different. In token of this we have the Miocene -fossils collected by Edward Whymper during his -expedition from near Jakobshavn in 1867, which were -described and illustrated by Oswald Heer in the <em>Philosophical -Transactions</em> for 1869. A look at these is a -welcome relief after such a surfeit of ice. Here, as -well preserved as in the leaf beds of Alum Bay, are -the leaves and fruits of an unmistakable temperate flora. -Magnolias, maples, poplars, limes, walnuts, water-lilies; -myrica, smilax, aralia; sedges and grasses, conifers and -ferns: these at the least were all growing in Greenland -in its Miocene age. And even a thousand years ago -the climate must have been milder than now, to judge -by the farming reports of the colonists who seem to -have been quite at home along the coast, which, with -its innumerable islands and fiords, is as intricate as that -of Norway.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Searching for the ancient eastern settlement of the -Norsemen, W. A. Graah, in 1829, wintered at -Julianehaab, which in all likelihood is the site, although -he knew it not. Possessed with the idea that it must -be on the south-eastern coast, he devoted his attention -to that region only, finding Eskimos who had never -seen a white man and starting a trading intercourse -which led to most of them migrating to the less inclement -west. His work linked up with that of Scoresby, -who in 1822 charted the main features of the sea-front -from 69° to 75°. Ryder, seventy years afterwards, filled -in the details of much of Scoresby's work, and found -Eskimos further north, as Clavering had done in 1823, -when in the <em>Griper</em> during Sabine's observations at -Pendulum Island.</p> - -<div id='pg266' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_413.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE "GERMANIA" IN THE ICE</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_267'>267</span>It was to Pendulum Island, in 74° 32´, that Karl -Koldewey, after his preliminary run to 81° 5´ in 1868, -took the <em>Germania</em> to winter during the German expedition -of 1869. The two vessels, the <em>Germania</em>, a -small two-masted screw steamer of one hundred and -forty-three tons, built specially for Arctic service, -and the <em>Hansa</em>, only half her size, which had been -strengthened for the voyage, reached Jan Mayen on -the 9th of July, and, hidden from each other by fog, -sailed northwards for five days. On the fifth evening -the wind rose, the fog cleared, and a hundred yards in -front of them lay the ice like a rugged line of cliffs.</p> - -<p class='c000'>For a few days they sailed along it endeavouring to -find an opening to the north. Then, on the 20th, the -<em>Germania</em> ran up a signal to approach and communicate, -which was misunderstood, and, instead of repeating -it and making sure, the <em>Hansa</em> put up her helm, -fell off, crowded on all sail, and disappeared in the fog. -Koldewey, persisting in his efforts to get through the -pack, found an opening on the 1st of August. Nine -days afterwards he was again blocked, and finally, on -the 27th, he reached Pendulum Island, where he made -the <em>Germania</em> snug for the winter, which proved to be -remarkably mild.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The first sledge party travelling up one of the fiords -met with abundant vegetation and herds of reindeer -and musk oxen, and were visited by bears who had not -learnt to be wary of man; and when the bears came -<span class='pageno' id='Page_268'>268</span>back with the sun in February they were as troublesome -as those of Ice Haven to the Dutchmen. Several -sledge parties went out in the spring, and, notwithstanding -inadequate equipment, did excellent work. -In April, 1870, Koldewey reached 77° 1´, almost up to -Lambert Land, otherwise the Land of Edam. Here, -looking out over the ice-belt, they agreed that it was -"a bulwark built for eternity," and hoisting sails on -their sledges they ran back to the ship. But in 1905 -the Duke of Orleans arrived on the coast to reach -78° 16´ and discover that their Cape Bismarck was on -an island and their Dove Bay a strait.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In the neighbourhood of their winter quarters the -glaciers and mountains were well explored, and an -attempt was made to measure an arc of the meridian, -which proved to be rather rough work among such -surroundings. The snowstorms were particularly pitiless -and heavy, and the travelling decidedly bad. The -thaw began about the middle of May, and there was -more sledging through pools than usual, so that they -did not want variety in their occupations. On the -14th of July boating became practicable, and a voyage -was made to the Eskimo village found by Clavering -in 1823, on the island named after him, but the village -proved to be deserted and the huts in ruins—an unwelcome -discovery, for, as M'Clintock says in reference -to it: "It is not less strange than sad to find that a -peaceable and once numerous tribe, inhabiting a coast-line -of at least seven degrees of latitude, has died out, -or has almost died out, whilst at the same time we find, -by the diminution of the glaciers and increase of animal -life, that the terrible severity of the climate has undergone -considerable modification. We feel this saddening -interest with greater force when we reflect that the -distance of Clavering's village from the coast of Scotland -is under one thousand miles. They were our -nearest neighbours of the New World."</p> - -<div id='pg268' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_417.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE REGION ROUND MOUNT PETERMANN</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_269'>269</span>A little north of the seventy-third parallel Koldewey -discovered on his way home the magnificent Franz Josef -Fiord. Here the grandest scenery in Greenland is to -be found along its deep branches winding among the -mountains, one of which, Mount Petermann, is over -eleven thousand feet high. As the <em>Germania</em> entered -this remarkable inlet, which extends inland for some five -degrees of longitude, a fleet of icebergs were sailing out -of it with the current; the farther she advanced the -warmer seemed the temperature of the air and surface -water, and the wilder and more impressive became the -grouping of the mighty cliffs and peaks with their lofty -waterfalls and raging torrents and deep glacier-filled -ravines. It was the great geographical discovery of the -expedition.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Meanwhile Hegemann, trying to pass to the north -more to the westward, got the <em>Hansa</em> beset on the 9th -of September some twenty-four miles from Foster Bay. -As the ice-pressure threatened to become too great for -the vessel to resist, an elaborate house was planned and -built on the floe. Briquettes were used for the walls, -the joints were filled up with dry snow on which water -was poured, and in ten minutes it hardened into a compact -mass. The house was twenty feet long, fourteen -feet wide, and four feet eight inches high at the sides, -with a rising roof consisting of sails and mats covered -with deep snow. Into this house, which took a week -<span class='pageno' id='Page_270'>270</span>to build, provisions for two months were carried, -besides wood and fuel. The boats were put out, a -flagstaff was set up, and quite a little settlement was -started on the ice; and no sooner was it completed than -a violent snowstorm, lasting for five days, buried both -the ship and the house. The ice increased around, and, -the pressure of the accumulation lifting the <em>Hansa</em> -seventeen feet above her original level, everything of -value was removed from her on to the ice and into the -house. On the 22nd of October she sank, having -drifted below the seventy-first parallel; and all through -the winter the floe, which was about two miles across, -leisurely made its way to the south.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Off Knighton Bay Christmas was kept with all -possible honour. The briquette house was decorated -with coloured-paper festoons, and, by the light of the -sole remaining wax candle, the genial Germans made -themselves merry around a stubby Christmas tree -devised out of an old birch broom. Three weeks afterwards -the floe cracked beneath the dwelling. There -was barely time to take refuge, but all hands were -saved in the boats. For two days they remained in them, -poorly sheltered from the storm and unable to clear out -the snow. Then a smaller house was built of the ruins -of the old one, but it was only large enough for half -the party; and as the spring advanced the floe decreased, -breaking away at the edges as did that on -which the <em>Polaris</em> people drifted to Labrador.</p> - -<div id='pg270' class='figcenter id002'> -<img src='images/i_421.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>THE LAST DAYS OF THE "HANSA"</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_271'>271</span>At the end of March it entered Nukarbik Bay and -there it stayed four weeks, caught in an eddy, slowly -moving round and round just far enough from the -shore to render an attempt at escape impossible; twice -a day they went in with the tide and out with the tide, the -ice too bad for the boats and never promising enough -for a dash to the land. Having become thoroughly -acquainted with this portion of the coast with its bold -range of hills, its deep bays, its inlets, headlands, and -islands, a storm came on which cleared them out of the -eddy and drove them further south. Three weeks after -that the floe had become so diminished by the lashing -of the surge that it was hardly a hundred yards across, -and large fragments were slipping off every hour.</p> - -<p class='c000'>They had been on it for two hundred days and -drifted eleven hundred miles when, on the 7th of May, -water-lanes opening shorewards, they took to the boats -and ventured among the masses of ice, making for the -south. At first they had their difficulties in being -compelled to haul up on the floes to pass the night or -wait for a favourable wind, which meant severe work in -unloading and reloading. Once during their painful -progress of more than a month they were kept on a -floe for six days by gales and snow-showers. Finally, -after a long desperate effort, they reached Illuilek -Island, and thence proceeded close inshore among rocks -and ice to Frederiksdal, a couple of hours' walk from -the southernmost point of the Greenland mainland, -Cape Farewell being part of an island twenty-eight -miles further to the south-east. On the 21st of June, -eight days afterwards, they were at Julianehaab, whence -they sailed to be landed at Copenhagen on the 1st of -September, just ten days before the <em>Germania</em> steamed -into Bremen. Thus the expedition, by its two divisions, -ice-borne and ship-borne, had skirted nearly all that -was then known of the east coast from end to end.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_272'>272</span>On the north coast, Beaumont's discoveries were -extended by Lieutenant James B. Lockwood for ninety-five -miles, the trend of the shore taking him up to -83° 24´, three minutes and thirty-four seconds nearer -the North Pole than Markham reached out on the sea. -This was on the 13th of May, 1882, during the ill-fated -A. W. Greely expedition. Like most American expeditions -up to then this began well and ended badly, -worse, in fact, than any; and unlike them, and all others, -it consisted entirely of soldiers—as if a detachment of -Royal Engineers had been sent north on ordnance -survey work. It was, however, more miscellaneous, -for among its twenty-three members were representatives -of three cavalry regiments, six infantry regiments, -and an artilleryman.</p> - -<p class='c000'>This was to be the garrison of the International -Circumpolar Station at Lady Franklin Bay. The idea -of a ring of stations round the Pole for the study of -the natural phenomena for which the Arctic regions -afford so wide and important a field was not new, but -it was first reduced to definiteness and its adoption -secured by Karl Weyprecht of the Austro-Hungarian -expedition of 1872. At a meeting of German scientific -men at Gratz, in September, 1875, he procured assent -to his general principle that the best results in Arctic -inquiry were to be obtained by subordinating geographical -discovery to physical investigation. It had -long been evident that the most valuable results had -been obtained by the ships and fixed observatories, and -that the toilsome work of the sledges in their successive -approaches by a few more miles towards a mathematical -point, though most interesting to read about, had really -been of very little practical use owing to the necessarily -light equipment. Instead, therefore, of a number of -isolated attempts at irregular intervals, Weyprecht -suggested that the better way would be to attack the -subject systematically by a group of expeditions at -permanent stations working together long enough at -the same time for their observations to be dealt with as -part of a general scheme; and the suggestion was -approved although he did not live long enough to see -the stations occupied.</p> - -<div id='pg272' class='figcenter id031'> -<a href='images/i_425.jpg'><img src='images/i_425_thumb.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' /></a> -<div class='ic001'> -<p>GREENLAND</p> -</div> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_273'>273</span>Three International Polar Conferences were held, in -1879 and the two following years, at Hamburg, Berne, -and St. Petersburg, at the last of which it was arranged -that the stations should be fourteen in number, two in -the south and twelve in the north, these twelve being—(1) -The Austrian at Jan Mayen; (2) the Danish at -Godthaab; (3) the Finnish at Sodankyla in Uleaborg; -(4) the German at Kingua in Cumberland Sound; -(5) the British at Fort Rae on the northern arm of the -Great Slave Lake; (6) the Dutch at Dickson Harbour -at the mouth of the Yenesei; (7) the Norwegian at -Bosekop at the head of Alten Fiord; (8) the Russian at -Little Karmakul Bay in Novaya Zemlya; (9) the second -Russian on Sagastyr Island in the Lena Delta; (10) the -Swedish at Mossel Bay in Spitsbergen; (11) the -American at Point Barrow under Lieutenant P. H. -Ray, who met with marked success and brought his -men all home in safety; and (12) the second American -at Lady Franklin Bay, the winter quarters of H.M.S. -<em>Discovery</em>, which Greely renamed Fort Conger.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In direct opposition to the guiding idea of the -scheme, Greely's work was complicated by having -<span class='pageno' id='Page_274'>274</span>tacked on to it Howgate's proposal of another dash for -the Pole, his instructions requiring him to send out -"sledging parties in the interests of exploration and -discovery." Further, his expedition was fitted out in -a way that almost invited disaster. Let one instance -suffice. "In speaking of this instrument," he explains, -"it is necessary to say that a dip-circle was especially -made for the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition, but it -was by error shipped to the United States Coast Survey. -On calling for it, when the duplicate instrument -ordered could not be had in time, the late Mr. Carlisle -Patterson, then Superintendent, promptly promised that -it should be sent on to me at New York. On the day -of my sailing, a dip-circle, carefully boxed, was received; -but on opening it at St. John, an old, rusty, unreliable -instrument was found in the place of the new circle. -This resulted in unsatisfactory and incomplete observations -at Conger, for the old circle having upright -standards instead of transverse ones, as in the new, but -one end of the needle could be read. It must always -be a matter of regret that this unwarrantable and unauthorised -substitution by some person was made, which -materially impaired, if not effectually destroyed, the -value of our two-years' dip-observations." This sort of -thing reduced International Polar Research to a farce, -and the same spirit appeared in other departments, -more seriously than all in the relief proceedings, which -were conducted in a way that could only lead to starvation.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In August, 1881, the <em>Proteus</em>, with the expedition -on board, made her way up Smith Sound and Kennedy -Channel without serious hindrance until she entered -<span class='pageno' id='Page_275'>275</span>the south-eastern part of Lady Franklin Bay, where -the close, heavy pack brought her to a stop within -eight miles of her destination. She had come seven -hundred miles from Upernivik in less than a week, and, -faced by ice twenty to fifty feet thick, she had to wait -another seven days before she got into Discovery -Harbour. Here the party landed and a house was -built, and dissension arose which ended in one of the -company returning in the ship and another endeavouring -to do so and being too late, so that he had to remain as -a sort of tolerated volunteer. Two others were sent -away as being physically unfit; but, making up for -these, were two Eskimos engaged at Upernivik.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Preliminary sledging began at once, and in the spring -the two great efforts were made. The doctor's, towards -the Pole, left on the 19th of March and got adrift on -a floe from which the party escaped with the loss of -their tent, provisions, and some of their instruments. -According to Greely's report: "The farthest latitude -attained by this party is given by Dr. Pavy as 82° 56´, -it being estimated, as no observations for time, magnetic -declination, or latitude were made at any period during -his absence."</p> - -<p class='c000'>On the 3rd of April, Lockwood with twelve men -left for the coast of Greenland. Up to Newman Bay -four men had been sent back as unfit for field-work. -On the 16th, when the party started from here for the -north-east, Lockwood and Christiansen, the Eskimo, -were in advance hauling about eight hundred pounds -with a team of eight dogs, a three-men sledge following, -and then two two-men sledges; at Cape Bryant -the men-sledges were sent back, and Lockwood, -<span class='pageno' id='Page_276'>276</span>Brainard, and the Eskimo went on with the dog-sledge. -Cape Britannia was reached on the 5th of May, and -on the 13th they camped at Lockwood Island, and -there, for the first time, Americans reached a farthest -north.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"I decided to make this cape my farthest," reported -Lockwood, "and to devote the little time we could -stay to determining accurately my position, if the -weather would allow, which seemed doubtful. We -built a large, conspicuous cairn, about six feet high -and the same width at the base, on the lower of two -benches. After repitching the tent Sergeant Brainard -and I returned to the cairn, and collected in that -vicinity specimens of the rocks and vegetation of the -country, the sergeant making almost all the collection. -We ascended without difficulty to a small fringe of -rocks, which seemed from below to form the top. The -ascent, at first very gradual, became steeper as we went -up, but we had no difficulty, as for some distance below -the summit the surface is covered with small stones, -as uniform in size, position, etc., as those of a macadamised -road. Reached the top at 3.45 p.m. and unfurled -the American flag (Mrs. Greely's) to the breeze in -latitude 83° 24´ N. (according to last observation). The -summit is a small plateau, narrow, but extending back -to the south to broken, snow-covered heights. It commanded -a very extended view in every direction. The -barometer, being out of order, was not brought along, -so I did not get the altitude. The horizon on the land -side was concealed by numberless snow-covered mountains, -one profile overlapping another, and all so merged -together, on account of their universal covering of -<span class='pageno' id='Page_277'>277</span>snow, that it was impossible to detect the topography -of the region. To the north lay an unbroken expanse -of ice, interrupted only by the horizon."</p> - -<p class='c000'>On Midsummer Day Greely started with a four-wheel -wagon to explore Grinnell Land. The wagon, -in the men's vernacular, was a man-killer, and was -abandoned after they had dragged it a hundred miles. -On this journey much exploring work was done in the -unknown country, the most interesting find being that -of the Eskimo house at Lake Hazen. In this, according -to Greely's description, there were two fireplaces, -one in the east and the other in the south, both of -which had been built outward so as to take up no part -of the space of the room, which was over seventeen -feet long and nine feet wide. The sides of the entire -dwelling were low walls of sodded earth, lined inside -with flat thin slates, the tops of which were about two -feet above the level of the interior floor, and the bench -was covered with flat slabs of slate. Near by was a smaller -house of the same character, and around were a large -number of relics, including walrus-ivory toggles for -dog-traces, sledge-bars and runners, an arrow head, -skinning knife, and articles of worked bone. Next -year further explorations of the back country were -undertaken, so that some six thousand miles of the -interior were viewed, disclosing many fertile valleys -with their herds of musk ox.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Meanwhile the <em>Neptune</em>, with supplies for Fort -Conger, had in August, 1882, been vainly endeavouring -to get north, and, a few miles from Cape Hawks, had -turned back with the pack piling the ice as high as her -rail. Six attempts she made before she gave up and -<span class='pageno' id='Page_278'>278</span>retreated, after making several deposits of stores at -Cape Sabine and elsewhere. In July, 1883, the <em>Proteus</em>, -making a similar attempt to reach Greely, was crushed -in the ice off Cape Albert, her side opening with a -crash while the men were working in the hold, the ice -forcing its way into the coal-bunkers and then pouring -in so that as soon as the pressure slackened she went -down, escape to the south being effected in the boats.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Next year, matters having become serious, a naval -expedition consisting of the <em>Thetis</em>, the <em>Bear</em>, and -Nares's old ship the <em>Alert</em>, presented by the British -Government, was placed in the capable hands of -Commander Winfield Schley, who had with him George -Melville of <em>Jeannette</em> fame as engineer of the <em>Thetis</em>, -and matters were conducted in quite a different way -under much more favourable circumstances. Schley -intended to find Greely, at all costs, and he did so. -First he found a cairn at Brevoort Island, in which -were the papers deposited by Greely relating how he -had had to come south owing to shortness of supplies, -and how his party were then—21st of October, 1883—encamped -on the west side of a small neck of land -distant about equally from Cape Sabine and Cocked -Hat Island.</p> - -<p class='c000'>As it was then the 22nd of June, 1884, and they had -had only forty days' complete rations to live upon, -Schley hurried off at once. Had he been two days -later he would have been too late. There was a tent -wrecked by the gale, with its pole toppling over and -only kept in place by the guy ropes. Ripping it up -with a knife, a sight of horror was disclosed. On one -side, close to the opening, with his head towards the -<span class='pageno' id='Page_279'>279</span>outside, lay what was apparently a dead man. On the -opposite side was a poor fellow, alive but without hands -or feet, and with a spoon tied to the stump of his right -arm. Two others, seated on the ground, were pouring -something out of a rubber bottle into a tin can. -Directly opposite, on his hands and knees, was a dark -man with a long matted beard, in a dirty and tattered -dressing-gown with a little red skull cap on his head, -and brilliant staring eyes. As Colwell appeared, he -raised himself a little, and put on a pair of eyeglasses.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"Who are you?" asked Colwell.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The man made no answer, staring at him vacantly.</p> - -<p class='c000'>"Who are you?" again.</p> - -<p class='c000'>One of the men spoke up. "That's the Major—Major -Greely."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Colwell crawled in and took him by the hand, saying -to him, "Greely, is this you?"</p> - -<p class='c000'>"Yes," said Greely in a faint, broken voice, hesitating -with his words; "yes—seven of us left—here we are—dying—like -men. Did what I came to do—beat the -best record."</p> - -<p class='c000'>Near at hand were ten graves. The bodies, despite -Greely's remonstrances, were taken up and removed -for burial in the United States. "Little could be seen -of the condition of the bodies, as they had been clothed, -and all that appeared was intact. In preparing them -subsequently," says Schley, "it was found that six had -been cut and the flesh removed." One of these, that -of a cavalryman serving under the assumed name of -Henry, had a bullet in it. He had been shot, at -Greely's written order, "for stealing sealskin thongs, -the only remaining food."</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_280'>280</span>The next to add to our knowledge of the northern -coast of Greenland was Robert E. Peary, of the -American Navy, who seems to have devoted his life -to Arctic exploration. On his first expedition in 1886, -he penetrated with Maigaard for some distance into -the country in the neighbourhood of Jakobshavn as -a sort of pioneering venture. In 1891, accompanied -by his wife, when outward bound in the <em>Kite</em> in the -Melville Bay pack, he had his leg broken. The ship -had been butting a passage through the spongy sheets -of ice which had imprisoned her, when in going astern -a detached cake struck the rudder, jamming the tiller -against the wheel-house where Peary was standing, -and pinned his leg long enough to snap it between the -knee and the ankle. In spite of this he insisted on -being landed with the rest of the party at McCormick -Bay, a little to the north of Whale Sound, where a -house was built and the winter spent.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Making a good recovery, he set off in May to sledge -across North Greenland through snow and over it, and -over snow-arched crevasses, often, in cloudy weather, -travelling in grey space with nothing visible beyond -a foot or two around him. After fifty-seven days' -journey to the north-east and along Peary Channel, the -northern boundary of the mainland, he left the inland -ice for a strange country dotted with snowdrifts and -mostly of red sandstone, in which murmuring streams, -roaring waterfalls, and the song of snow-buntings -formed an agreeable change from the silence of the -desert of snow. Four days' hard labouring through -this brought him on the 4th of July to Independence -Bay on the north-east coast, where from Navy Cliff, -nearly four thousand feet high, he looked across to -Academy Land on the other side of the bay and beyond -it over the region leading down to the farthest north -of the Duke of Orleans. "It was almost impossible," -he says, "to believe that we were standing upon the -northern shore of Greenland as we gazed from the -summit of this bronze cliff, with the most brilliant -sunshine all about us, with yellow poppies growing -between the rocks around our feet, and a herd of muskoxen -in the valley behind us. Down in that valley -I had found an old friend, a dandelion in bloom, and -had seen the bullet-like flight and heard the energetic -buzz of the humble-bee."</p> - -<div id='pg280' class='figcenter id032'> -<img src='images/i_435.jpg' alt='R. E. Peary, U. S. N.' class='ig001' /> -</div> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_281'>281</span>Next year he and his wife were out again to take up -their quarters at a house they built at Bowdoin Bay, -where, in September, their daughter was born. In -March, 1894, he started for another journey across -Greenland, with twelve sledges and over ninety dogs, -but severe weather drove him back after travelling -some two hundred miles. Staying over that winter -instead of returning in the <em>Falcon</em>, he set out in the -spring, and under almost desperate circumstances -managed to reach and return from Independence Bay.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Following this came his expedition of 1898, in which -he spent four winters in the Arctic regions and almost -met with Petersen's fate by a venturesome winter -sledge journey, which resulted in the freezing of his -feet and the loss of eight of his toes. Travelling in -Grinnell Land he proved beyond doubt that it was -continuous with Ellesmere Land, as had been admitted -by those who named it. Following Lockwood's track, -he continued it up to 83° 54´, along Hazen Land, practically -<span class='pageno' id='Page_282'>282</span>completing the coast-line to Cape Henry Parish, -its furthest east, thus rounding the north of the Greenland -archipelago, and even there finding traces of -Eskimos and a fauna similar to that of other Arctic lands -hundreds of miles further south. And striking northwards -over the sea from Cape Hecla, with seven men and -six dog-sledges, into the breaking, drifting pack, he made -a dash for the Pole which ended at 84° 17´.</p> - -<p class='c000'>His next northern venture, though not more remarkable, -is destined, perhaps, to be remembered longer. -On it he sighted the new land away out in the sea -north-west of Grinnell Land, nearer to the Pole than -any other land discovered up to then, and where it was -expected to be. And out over the ice he went to -eclipse his 1902 record by nearly two hundred miles, -in the best planned of all his journeys.</p> - -<p class='c000'>In July, 1905, he had left New York in the <em>Roosevelt</em>, -a steamship of over six hundred tons and more than -a thousand horse-power, rigged complete as a three-masted -coasting schooner, able to hold her own almost -anywhere in the event of her engines becoming useless. -One hundred and eighty-two feet in length, thirty-five -and a half in beam, and sixteen and a quarter in depth; -sharp in the bow and rounded amidships; treble in -framing and double in planking, with sides thirty -inches thick, twelve feet of deadwood in her bow, and -six feet of false keels and kelsons, she was specially -built for the expedition as the strongest and most -powerful vessel ever sent on Arctic service, and was -launched on the 23rd of May, 1905, Mrs. Peary -naming her by smashing a block of ice against her -ironclad stem.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_283'>283</span>A month out from New York, the <em>Roosevelt</em> left -Etah laden deep with coal from the <em>Eric</em> that had -awaited her there, and having on board over fifty -Eskimos, of both sexes and all sizes, and some two -hundred Eskimo dogs. Leaving a reserve of provisions -at Bache Peninsula, she worked up through open -water and occasional ice to Richardson Bay, where -the pack looked so threatening that Peary literally -rammed his way across to the eastern side, and so continued -northwards. When off Cape Lupton the ship -received such rough treatment that the rudder was -twisted and the head-bands and tiller-rods broken, as -she ground along the face of the ice-foot "with a -motion and noise like that of a railway-car which has -left the rails"; but this was the only time she was in -serious danger during her most fortunate run. Resting -for six days in Newman Bay to repair damages and -make ready for a final effort, she was headed westward -to Grinnell Land through the floes, and after a continuous -battle of thirty-five hours, reached the ice-foot -at Cape Sheridan, a little north of the old winter -quarters of the <em>Alert</em>, and found her wintering place, -like her, just as the Polar pack closed in against the -shore. The endeavour had been to lay up in Porter -Bay, twenty-seven miles further north, but the state -of the ice made this impossible.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Provisions were plentiful, as no less than two hundred -and fifty musk oxen had been shot by the 1st of November, -and there were numbers of hares and several herds -of the white reindeer first mentioned by Hudson in his -second voyage three hundred years ago. During the -very mild winter eighty of the dogs died, and when -<span class='pageno' id='Page_284'>284</span>sledging began only twenty teams of six each were -available. The plan of the northern advance over the -ice was to divide it into sections of about fifty miles -each, with snow houses at each station, the nearest -station being supplied from the base and supplying the -next, and so on, thus keeping up an unbroken line of -communication gradually extending nearer to the Pole, -the sledges working backwards and forwards, outwards -laden and inwards empty, between station and station -along the line.</p> - -<p class='c000'>The land was left at Point Moss, north-west of Cape -Joseph Henry. At 84° 38´ a lead in the pack stopped -the way for six days until the young ice was thick enough -to bear, and forty miles further north the vanguard -drifted east some seventy miles during a storm for -another six days. On the 20th of April a region of -much open water was reached, and from midnight to -noon next day the last effort was made by Peary, -Henson, and a small party of Eskimos, the farthest -north, 87° 6´, being attained and immediately left in a -rapid retreat for safety.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Thus Peary went nearer to the Pole than Cagni by -thirty-two minutes or thirty-seven statute miles, both -being stopped by water with apparently similar conditions -ahead of them. What the conditions may be -along the intervening two hundred miles from Peary's -farthest nobody knows; but although a good many -things may happen between London and York, which -is about the same distance, there is good reason for -supposing that, even if there be land somewhere, the -road is over a sea more or less packed with ice which -is never without its channels.</p> - -<p class='c000'><span class='pageno' id='Page_285'>285</span>One thing is clear: the attainment of the Pole is a -matter of money. Given the funds, the men and the -dogs, and the ships, boats, sledges, and other things -will be forthcoming, and the journey accomplished, not -by a rush, but on some systematic station-to-station -plan; though it is not impossible that it may be done -by chance in some exceptional year, for the climate of -the north is variable and has a wider range of temperature -than that of Britain in its good years and its bad -years.</p> - -<p class='c000'>Let us hope there may be land at the exact spot, for -then the position can be checked at leisure, and there -will be no doubt of its having been reached. Joseph -Moxon, Hydrographer to the King, in 1652 met at -Amsterdam a sailor of a Greenland ship which "went -not out to fish that summer, but only to take in the -lading of the whole fleet to bring it to an early -market"—in other words, to act as a carrier—which -ship, before the whaling fleet had caught enough to -lade her, had by order of the Company sailed to the -North Pole and back again, and even two degrees -beyond it; no land seen, no ice, and the weather as it -was in summer-time at Amsterdam.</p> - -<p class='c000'>A sailor's yarn told in a tavern? Only this and -nothing more, perhaps; though a good many things -were kept dark in the whaling trade as in other trades. -But if there had been an island at the Pole we might -eventually have been able to verify that ancient -mariner's tale.</p> - -<div class='chapter'> - <span class='pageno' id='Page_287'>287</span> - <h2 class='c006'>INDEX</h2> -</div> - -<ul class='index c004'> - <li class='c020'>Abruzzi, Duke of, The, <a href='#Page_76'>76</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Academy Land, <a href='#Page_281'>281</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Actinia Haven, <a href='#Page_87'>87</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Advance</em>, The, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_236'>236</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Aid</em>, The, <a href='#Page_218'>218</a>, <a href='#Page_219'>219</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Akaitcho, <a href='#Page_150'>150</a>, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a>, <a href='#Page_160'>160</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Alaska, <a href='#Page_134'>134</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Aldrich, Pelham, <a href='#Page_255'>255</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Alert</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_248'>248</a>, <a href='#Page_278'>278</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Alexander</em>, The, <a href='#Page_179'>179</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Alexander, Cape, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a>, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Alexandra Land, <a href='#Page_75'>75</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Alexandria</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_179'>179</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Alfred Ernest, Cape, <a href='#Page_257'>257</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ameralik Fiord, <a href='#Page_261'>261</a></li> - <li class='c020'>America, The Norse discovery of, <a href='#Page_3'>3</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Amundsen, Roald, <a href='#Page_178'>178</a>, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Ancylonema nordenskioeldii</em>, <a href='#Page_264'>264</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Anderson Falls, The, <a href='#Page_163'>163</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Andrée, S. A., <a href='#Page_104'>104</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Anjou, P. F., <a href='#Page_108'>108</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Ann Frances</em>, The, <a href='#Page_220'>220</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Antelope, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Archangel, <a href='#Page_6'>6</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Archer, Colin, <a href='#Page_91'>91</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Archer Fiord, <a href='#Page_250'>250</a>, <a href='#Page_257'>257</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Archer, R., <a href='#Page_257'>257</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Arctic</em>, The, <a href='#Page_247'>247</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Arctic Search Expedition, The first, <a href='#Page_7'>7</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Assistance</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_184'>184</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Atlassof, <a href='#Page_128'>128</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Augustus the Eskimo, <a href='#Page_157'>157</a>, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a>, <a href='#Page_160'>160</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Auk, Cape, <a href='#Page_69'>69</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Auleitsivik Fiord, <a href='#Page_263'>263</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Aurora Borealis, The, <a href='#Page_67'>67</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Austin, Horatio, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Austria Sound, <a href='#Page_68'>68</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Avigait, <a href='#Page_264'>264</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Baal's River, <a href='#Page_260'>260</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Back, George, <a href='#Page_38'>38</a>, <a href='#Page_149'>149</a>, <a href='#Page_151'>151</a>, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a>, <a href='#Page_160'>160</a>, <a href='#Page_203'>203</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Baden-Powell, Sir George, <a href='#Page_105'>105</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Baffin, William, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a>, <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Baffin Land, <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Banks Land, <a href='#Page_172'>172</a>, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a>, <a href='#Page_182'>182</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Baranoff Cape, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Barents Bay, <a href='#Page_49'>49</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Barents, Willem, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a>, <a href='#Page_49'>49</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Barnacle Goose, The, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Barren Grounds, The, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a>, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Barrington, The Hon. Daines, <a href='#Page_29'>29</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Barrow Point, <a href='#Page_137'>137</a>, <a href='#Page_167'>167</a>, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Barrow, Sir John, <a href='#Page_178'>178</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Barrow Strait, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bathurst Island, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a>, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bear, Black, <a href='#Page_110'>110</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bear Island, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bear, Polar, <a href='#Page_11'>11</a>, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a>, <a href='#Page_23'>23</a>, <a href='#Page_27'>27</a>, <a href='#Page_28'>28</a>, <a href='#Page_52'>52</a>, <a href='#Page_73'>73</a>, <a href='#Page_74'>74</a>, <a href='#Page_88'>88</a>, <a href='#Page_99'>99</a>, <a href='#Page_186'>186</a>, <a href='#Page_238'>238</a>, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Bear</em>, The, <a href='#Page_278'>278</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Beaufort Sea, The, <a href='#Page_173'>173</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Beaumont, Lewis Anthony, <a href='#Page_257'>257</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Beechey, Cape, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Beechey, Frederick William, <a href='#Page_35'>35</a>, <a href='#Page_137'>137</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Beechey Island, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a>, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_186'>186</a>, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Belanger, <a href='#Page_151'>151</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Belcher, Edward, <a href='#Page_184'>184</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bellot, Joseph René, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bellot Strait, <a href='#Page_197'>197</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bennet, Stephen, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bennett Island, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a>, <a href='#Page_117'>117</a>, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bering Strait, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a>, <a href='#Page_127'>127</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bering, Veit, <a href='#Page_130'>130</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Berry, Captain, <a href='#Page_141'>141</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bessels, Emil, <a href='#Page_245'>245</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Best, George, <a href='#Page_220'>220</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Best's Bulwark, <a href='#Page_219'>219</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bille, Cape, <a href='#Page_262'>262</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bird Cape, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Birds, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a>, <a href='#Page_88'>88</a>, <a href='#Page_113'>113</a>, <a href='#Page_114'>114</a>, <a href='#Page_141'>141</a>, <a href='#Page_160'>160</a>, <a href='#Page_172'>172</a>, <a href='#Page_181'>181</a>, <a href='#Page_228'>228</a>, <a href='#Page_239'>239</a>, <a href='#Page_258'>258</a>, <a href='#Page_280'>280</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bismarck, Cape, <a href='#Page_268'>268</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bjarni discovers America, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bjelkof Island, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Blossom</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_137'>137</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Boat Extreme, <a href='#Page_167'>167</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bolscheretzkoi, <a href='#Page_131'>131</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Bona Confidentia</em>, The, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Bona Esperanza</em>, The, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'><span class='pageno' id='Page_288'>288</span>Booth, Felix, <a href='#Page_194'>194</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Boothia, <a href='#Page_190'>190</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Borough, Steven, <a href='#Page_6'>6</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Borough, William, <a href='#Page_8'>8</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bosekop, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bounty Cape, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bowdoin Bay, <a href='#Page_281'>281</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bowen, Port, <a href='#Page_193'>193</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bradley, Thomas, <a href='#Page_4'>4</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Brainard, D. L., <a href='#Page_276'>276</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Brattelid, <a href='#Page_261'>261</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Brentford Bay, <a href='#Page_197'>197</a>, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a></li> - <li class='c020'>British Channel, <a href='#Page_75'>75</a>, <a href='#Page_99'>99</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Brorok, Cape, <a href='#Page_82'>82</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Brown, Robert, <a href='#Page_265'>265</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Brunel, Olivier, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Brunn, Mount, <a href='#Page_71'>71</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Buchan, David, <a href='#Page_33'>33</a>, <a href='#Page_157'>157</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Buchan Island, <a href='#Page_211'>211</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Buddington, J. M., <a href='#Page_245'>245</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bulun, <a href='#Page_124'>124</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bunge, A., <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Burrough Strait, <a href='#Page_7'>7</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bush, Henry, <a href='#Page_129'>129</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Butcher's Island, <a href='#Page_217'>217</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Byam Martin Island, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Bylot, Robert, <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Cabot, Sebastian, <a href='#Page_4'>4</a>, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cagni, Umberto, <a href='#Page_77'>77</a>, <a href='#Page_284'>284</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cambridge Bay, <a href='#Page_177'>177</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Camden Bay, <a href='#Page_177'>177</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Carcass</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_29'>29</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Carlsen, Elling, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a>, <a href='#Page_58'>58</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Carlsen, Olaf, <a href='#Page_65'>65</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Castor</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_166'>166</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Castor and Pollux River, <a href='#Page_169'>169</a>, <a href='#Page_208'>208</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cathay Company, The, <a href='#Page_218'>218</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Catherine, The Empress, <a href='#Page_130'>130</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cator, Lieutenant, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cavendish thermometer, The, <a href='#Page_30'>30</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Chamisso Island, <a href='#Page_138'>138</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Chancellor, Richard, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Char, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a>, <a href='#Page_258'>258</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Charing Cross, <a href='#Page_220'>220</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Charles's Foreland, Prince, <a href='#Page_14'>14</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Chelagskoi, Cape, <a href='#Page_108'>108</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Chelyuskin, Cape, <a href='#Page_84'>84</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cherie Island, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Chippewyan, Fort, <a href='#Page_147'>147</a>, <a href='#Page_152'>152</a>, <a href='#Page_166'>166</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Christian Land, King, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Chukches, The, <a href='#Page_89'>89</a>, <a href='#Page_115'>115</a>, <a href='#Page_127'>127</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Chvoinof, <a href='#Page_106'>106</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Clavering Island, <a href='#Page_268'>268</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Clerke, Charles, <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Clio borealis</em>, <a href='#Page_268'>268</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Coal, <a href='#Page_45'>45</a>, <a href='#Page_249'>249</a>, <a href='#Page_258'>258</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Collinson, Richard, <a href='#Page_171'>171</a>, <a href='#Page_175'>175</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Columbia, Cape, <a href='#Page_257'>257</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Columbus visits Iceland, <a href='#Page_3'>3</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Colwell, J. C., <a href='#Page_279'>279</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Commander Islands, The, <a href='#Page_135'>135</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Conferences, The Polar, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Confidence, Fort, <a href='#Page_167'>167</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Conger, Fort, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Constitution, Cape, <a href='#Page_236'>236</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Conway, William Martin, <a href='#Page_47'>47</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cook, James, <a href='#Page_90'>90</a>, <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cookery-of-Haarlem, <a href='#Page_25'>25</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Coppermine River, <a href='#Page_147'>147</a>, <a href='#Page_153'>153</a>, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a>, <a href='#Page_167'>167</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cornwall, North, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cornwallis Island, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a>, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Coronation Gulf, <a href='#Page_155'>155</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Countess of Warwick Island, <a href='#Page_219'>219</a>, <a href='#Page_222'>222</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Crow's Nest, The, <a href='#Page_30'>30</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Crozier, F. R. M., <a href='#Page_205'>205</a>, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Cumberland Gulf, <a href='#Page_227'>227</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Dall, W. H., <a href='#Page_142'>142</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Danes Island, <a href='#Page_104'>104</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Danish Sound, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Davis, John, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a>, <a href='#Page_223'>223</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Davis Strait, <a href='#Page_227'>227</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dealy Island, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a>, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dease, Peter Warren, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a>, <a href='#Page_165'>165</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dease River, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a>, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dease Strait, <a href='#Page_168'>168</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dee, Dr. John, <a href='#Page_223'>223</a></li> - <li class='c020'>De Haven, Lieutenant, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>De Long, G. W., <a href='#Page_116'>116</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Deschnef, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Des Vœux, C. F., <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Devon, North, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Diana</em>, The, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dickson Harbour, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a>, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Discovery</em>, H.M.S. (Cook), <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Discovery</em>, H.M.S. (Nares), <a href='#Page_248'>248</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Discovery</em>, The (Hudson), <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Discovery Harbour, <a href='#Page_250'>250</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Distillation apparatus, The, <a href='#Page_30'>30</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Dolphin</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_157'>157</a>, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dolphin and Union Strait, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Dorothea</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_33'>33</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dove Bay, <a href='#Page_268'>268</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Drummond, Thomas, <a href='#Page_157'>157</a>, <a href='#Page_160'>160</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dudley, Ambrose, <a href='#Page_216'>216</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dudley Digges Cape, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Durfourth, Captain, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Dyer, Cape, <a href='#Page_227'>227</a></li> - <li class='c004'>East Cape, <a href='#Page_132'>132</a></li> - <li class='c020'><span class='pageno' id='Page_289'>289</span>Ebierbing and Tookoolito, <a href='#Page_244'>244</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Edam, Land of, <a href='#Page_268'>268</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Edge, Thomas, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Edge's Island, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Edward Bonaventure</em>, The, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Egede, Hans, <a href='#Page_259'>259</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Egede, Paul, <a href='#Page_260'>260</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Eira</em>, The, <a href='#Page_72'>72</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Elizabeth</em>, The, <a href='#Page_232'>232</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Ellen</em>, The, <a href='#Page_231'>231</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ellesmere Land, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a>, <a href='#Page_281'>281</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ellis, John, <a href='#Page_225'>225</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Elmwood, <a href='#Page_103'>103</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Elson, Thomas, <a href='#Page_137'>137</a>, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Elson Bay, <a href='#Page_137'>137</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Endeavour</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_41'>41</a></li> - <li class='c020'>English Chief, <a href='#Page_147'>147</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Entada bean, The, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Enterprise, Fort, <a href='#Page_150'>150</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Enterprise</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_171'>171</a>, <a href='#Page_175'>175</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Enterprise</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_41'>41</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Erebus</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_171'>171</a>, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_205'>205</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Eric</em>, The, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Eric the Red, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a>, <a href='#Page_261'>261</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ermine, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Eskimo relics, <a href='#Page_277'>277</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Eskimos first met with, <a href='#Page_217'>217</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Eskimos, Migration of the, <a href='#Page_3'>3</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Eskimos, <a href='#Page_3'>3</a>, <a href='#Page_139'>139</a>, <a href='#Page_140'>140</a>, <a href='#Page_145'>145</a>, <a href='#Page_152'>152</a>, <a href='#Page_154'>154</a>, <a href='#Page_157'>157</a>, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a>, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a>, <a href='#Page_167'>167</a>, <a href='#Page_168'>168</a>, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a>, <a href='#Page_192'>192</a>, <a href='#Page_198'>198</a>, <a href='#Page_200'>200</a>, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a>, <a href='#Page_211'>211</a>, <a href='#Page_217'>217</a>, <a href='#Page_222'>222</a>, <a href='#Page_225'>225</a>, <a href='#Page_229'>229</a>, <a href='#Page_237'>237</a>, <a href='#Page_244'>244</a>, <a href='#Page_246'>246</a>, <a href='#Page_258'>258</a>, <a href='#Page_260'>260</a>, <a href='#Page_277'>277</a>, <a href='#Page_282'>282</a>, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Etah, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Evensen, Captain, <a href='#Page_83'>83</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Exeter Sound, <a href='#Page_227'>227</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Express</em>, The, <a href='#Page_87'>87</a></li> - <li class='c004'><em>Falcon</em>, The, <a href='#Page_281'>281</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Farewell, Cape, <a href='#Page_271'>271</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fedotof, <a href='#Page_129'>129</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Felix Harbour, <a href='#Page_197'>197</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Felix</em>, The, <a href='#Page_182'>182</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fern, The first Spitsbergen, <a href='#Page_43'>43</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Finlay Island, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Finlayson Islands, <a href='#Page_177'>177</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fish River, The Great, <a href='#Page_160'>160</a>, <a href='#Page_169'>169</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fishes, <a href='#Page_153'>153</a>, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a>, <a href='#Page_258'>258</a></li> - <li class='c020'>FitzJames, James, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fligely, Cape, <a href='#Page_70'>70</a>, <a href='#Page_76'>76</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Floeberg Beach, <a href='#Page_250'>250</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Flora, Cape, <a href='#Page_72'>72</a>, <a href='#Page_75'>75</a>, <a href='#Page_103'>103</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Forsyth, C. C., <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fossils, <a href='#Page_43'>43</a>, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a>, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a>, <a href='#Page_173'>173</a>, <a href='#Page_266'>266</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Foulke Harbour, <a href='#Page_239'>239</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fox, Arctic, <a href='#Page_23'>23</a>, <a href='#Page_53'>53</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fox, Black, <a href='#Page_144'>144</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fox, Silver-grey, <a href='#Page_144'>144</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Fox</em>, The, <a href='#Page_208'>208</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Fram</em>, The, <a href='#Page_91'>91</a>, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Franklin, Fort, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Franklin, John, <a href='#Page_33'>33</a>, <a href='#Page_149'>149</a>, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a>, <a href='#Page_195'>195</a>, <a href='#Page_205'>205</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Franklin, Lady, <a href='#Page_209'>209</a>, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Franklin Record, The, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Franklin Strait, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Franz Josef Fiord, <a href='#Page_269'>269</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Franz Josef Land, <a href='#Page_62'>62</a>, <a href='#Page_64'>64</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Fraser</em>, The, <a href='#Page_87'>87</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Frazer, Cape, <a href='#Page_236'>236</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Frederick Jackson Island, <a href='#Page_99'>99</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Frederiksdal, <a href='#Page_271'>271</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Frobisher Bay, <a href='#Page_216'>216</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Frobisher, Martin, <a href='#Page_215'>215</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Frozen Strait, <a href='#Page_190'>190</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fur-seal, The, <a href='#Page_135'>135</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fury Beach, <a href='#Page_193'>193</a>, <a href='#Page_202'>202</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Fury and Hecla Strait, <a href='#Page_193'>193</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Fury</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_191'>191</a></li> - <li class='c004'><em>Gabriel</em>, The (Bering), <a href='#Page_132'>132</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Gabriel</em>, (Frobisher), <a href='#Page_216'>216</a>, <a href='#Page_218'>218</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gabriel Islands, The, <a href='#Page_221'>221</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gardiner, Charles, <a href='#Page_59'>59</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Garry, Fort, <a href='#Page_165'>165</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>George</em>, The, <a href='#Page_8'>8</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Germania</em>, The, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gibraltar Bay, Battle of, <a href='#Page_58'>58</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Giffard, G. A., <a href='#Page_255'>255</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gilbert, Adrian, <a href='#Page_223'>223</a>, <a href='#Page_229'>229</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gilbert, Humphrey, <a href='#Page_215'>215</a>, <a href='#Page_221'>221</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gilbert Sound, <a href='#Page_225'>225</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gjöa, The, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gjöahaven, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Glaciers, <a href='#Page_16'>16</a>, <a href='#Page_46'>46</a>, <a href='#Page_68'>68</a>, <a href='#Page_189'>189</a>, <a href='#Page_242'>242</a>, <a href='#Page_237'>237</a>, <a href='#Page_244'>244</a>, <a href='#Page_264'>264</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Glow-worm</em>, The, <a href='#Page_59'>59</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Godfrey, William, <a href='#Page_236'>236</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Godthaab, <a href='#Page_91'>91</a>, <a href='#Page_225'>225</a>, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Godthaab Fiord, <a href='#Page_260'>260</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gore, Graham, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a>, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Graah, W. A., <a href='#Page_266'>266</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Graham Island, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Greely, A. W., <a href='#Page_272'>272</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Greenland, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a>, <a href='#Page_14'>14</a>, <a href='#Page_259'>259</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Greenland Archipelago, The, <a href='#Page_282'>282</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Greenland, East, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Greyhound</em>, The, <a href='#Page_10'>10</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Griffith Island, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Grinnell Land, <a href='#Page_236'>236</a>, <a href='#Page_277'>277</a>, <a href='#Page_281'>281</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Griper</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_179'>179</a>, <a href='#Page_202'>202</a>, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gulf Stream, The, <a href='#Page_13'>13</a>, <a href='#Page_26'>26</a>, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a></li> - <li class='c020'><span class='pageno' id='Page_290'>290</span>Gundersen, Captain, <a href='#Page_59'>59</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Gunnbiörn discovers Greenland, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Hakluyt Headland, <a href='#Page_14'>14</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hall Basin, <a href='#Page_245'>245</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hall, C. F., <a href='#Page_213'>213</a>, <a href='#Page_222'>222</a>, <a href='#Page_244'>244</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hall, Christopher, <a href='#Page_216'>216</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hall, James, <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hall Island, <a href='#Page_68'>68</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hall's Rest, <a href='#Page_246'>246</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hamilton, Cape, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hans Hendrik, <a href='#Page_237'>237</a>, <a href='#Page_245'>245</a>, <a href='#Page_249'>249</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Hansa</em>, The, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hare, <a href='#Page_172'>172</a>, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a>, <a href='#Page_181'>181</a>, <a href='#Page_186'>186</a>, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a>, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hare Fiord, <a href='#Page_186'>186</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hartstene Bay, <a href='#Page_241'>241</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hayes, I. I., <a href='#Page_237'>237</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hazen, Lake, <a href='#Page_277'>277</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hazen Land, <a href='#Page_281'>281</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hearne, Samuel, <a href='#Page_147'>147</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hecla, Cape, <a href='#Page_282'>282</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Hecla</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_40'>40</a>, <a href='#Page_179'>179</a>, <a href='#Page_191'>191</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hedenström, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Heemskerck, Jacob van, <a href='#Page_10'>10</a>, <a href='#Page_49'>49</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Heer, Oswald, <a href='#Page_266'>266</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hegemann, Captain, <a href='#Page_269'>269</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Heiberg Land, Axel, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Helluland, <a href='#Page_3'>3</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hendon, North, <a href='#Page_197'>197</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hendrik, Hans, <a href='#Page_237'>237</a>, <a href='#Page_245'>245</a>, <a href='#Page_249'>249</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hendriksen Sound, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Henrietta Island, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Henson, C., <a href='#Page_284'>284</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hepburn, John, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a>, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Herald</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_138'>138</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Herald Island, <a href='#Page_116'>116</a>, <a href='#Page_141'>141</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Herschel, Cape, <a href='#Page_169'>169</a>, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Himkoff, Alexis, <a href='#Page_26'>26</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hinlopen Strait, <a href='#Page_17'>17</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hobson, W. R., <a href='#Page_208'>208</a>, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hohenlohe Island, <a href='#Page_68'>68</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hood River, The, <a href='#Page_155'>155</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hood, Robert, <a href='#Page_149'>149</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hooper, William Hulme, <a href='#Page_140'>140</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hope, Fort, <a href='#Page_204'>204</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Hope</em>, The (Young), <a href='#Page_75'>75</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Hope</em>, The (Egede), <a href='#Page_260'>260</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Howgate, H. W., <a href='#Page_274'>274</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hudson Bay, <a href='#Page_62'>62</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hudson, Henry, <a href='#Page_13'>13</a>, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a>, <a href='#Page_60'>60</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hudson River, The, <a href='#Page_61'>61</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hudson Strait, <a href='#Page_4'>4</a>, <a href='#Page_62'>62</a>, <a href='#Page_221'>221</a>, <a href='#Page_232'>232</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hudson's Bay Company, The, <a href='#Page_146'>146</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hudson's Touches, <a href='#Page_14'>14</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Humboldt Glacier, The, <a href='#Page_237'>237</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hyaqua shell, The, <a href='#Page_145'>145</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Icebergs, <a href='#Page_35'>35</a>, <a href='#Page_230'>230</a>, <a href='#Page_264'>264</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ice-drill, The, <a href='#Page_30'>30</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ice Haven, <a href='#Page_49'>49</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Iceland, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Icy Cape, <a href='#Page_136'>136</a>, <a href='#Page_137'>137</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Igloolik, <a href='#Page_193'>193</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Igloos, <a href='#Page_198'>198</a>, <a href='#Page_211'>211</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ikmallik, <a href='#Page_200'>200</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Independence Bay, <a href='#Page_280'>280</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Inglefield, E. A., <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ingolf lands in Iceland, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Insects, <a href='#Page_192'>192</a>, <a href='#Page_281'>281</a></li> - <li class='c020'>International Polar Stations, The, <a href='#Page_272'>272</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Intrepid</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Investigator</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_171'>171</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Irkaipii, <a href='#Page_89'>89</a>, <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Irving, John, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a>, <a href='#Page_213'>213</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Isabel</em>, The, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Isabella, Cape, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Isabella</em>, The, <a href='#Page_179'>179</a>, <a href='#Page_202'>202</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Isachsen, Cape, <a href='#Page_186'>186</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Isbjörn</em>, The, <a href='#Page_64'>64</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Jackman, Charles, <a href='#Page_8'>8</a>, <a href='#Page_60'>60</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Jackson, Frederick G., <a href='#Page_75'>75</a>, <a href='#Page_103'>103</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Jakobshavn, <a href='#Page_266'>266</a>, <a href='#Page_280'>280</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Jan Mayen, <a href='#Page_14'>14</a>, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Japanese, The, <a href='#Page_129'>129</a>, <a href='#Page_133'>133</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Jason</em>, The, <a href='#Page_261'>261</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Jeannette</em>, The, <a href='#Page_91'>91</a>, <a href='#Page_116'>116</a>, <a href='#Page_141'>141</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Jeannette Island, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Jenkinson, Anthony, <a href='#Page_7'>7</a>, <a href='#Page_215'>215</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Jesup Land, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Joe and Hannah, <a href='#Page_244'>244</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Johansen, F. H., <a href='#Page_96'>96</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>John</em>, The, <a href='#Page_196'>196</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Jones Sound, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Joseph Henry, Cape, <a href='#Page_284'>284</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Journal, The, introduced, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Judith</em>, The, <a href='#Page_219'>219</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Julianehaab, <a href='#Page_266'>266</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Kalutunah, <a href='#Page_237'>237</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kamchatka, <a href='#Page_129'>129</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kane, E. K., <a href='#Page_236'>236</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kane Sea, The, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kara Sea, The, <a href='#Page_7'>7</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Karmakul Bay, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kay, E. C. Lister, <a href='#Page_59'>59</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kellett, Henry, <a href='#Page_138'>138</a>, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a>, <a href='#Page_184'>184</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kendall, E. N., <a href='#Page_156'>156</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kennedy Channel, <a href='#Page_236'>236</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kennedy, Port, <a href='#Page_211'>211</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kennedy, William, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a></li> - <li class='c020'>King, Richard, <a href='#Page_160'>160</a></li> - <li class='c020'><span class='pageno' id='Page_291'>291</span>Kingua, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>King William Land, <a href='#Page_163'>163</a>, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Kite</em>, The, <a href='#Page_280'>280</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Knight, John, <a href='#Page_146'>146</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kod-lun-arn, <a href='#Page_223'>223</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kola, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a>, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a>, <a href='#Page_57'>57</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Koldewey, Karl, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kolguiev, <a href='#Page_8'>8</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kolyuchin Bay, <a href='#Page_90'>90</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kompakova, The, <a href='#Page_129'>129</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kotelnoi Island, <a href='#Page_106'>106</a>, <a href='#Page_117'>117</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kraechoj, <a href='#Page_127'>127</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Krusenstern</em>, The, <a href='#Page_196'>196</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kruzof Island, <a href='#Page_134'>134</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ku Mark Surka, <a href='#Page_122'>122</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kuriles, The, <a href='#Page_133'>133</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Kutchins, The, <a href='#Page_145'>145</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Labrador, Discovery of, <a href='#Page_4'>4</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Labrets, <a href='#Page_145'>145</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lady Franklin, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lady Franklin Bay, <a href='#Page_250'>250</a>, <a href='#Page_272'>272</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lambert Land, <a href='#Page_268'>268</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lamont, James, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lancaster Sound, <a href='#Page_179'>179</a>, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a>, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lands Lokk, <a href='#Page_186'>186</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Laptef, Dmitri, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Laptef, Khariton, <a href='#Page_84'>84</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Leif lands in America, <a href='#Page_3'>3</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lemming, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Lena</em>, The, <a href='#Page_87'>87</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lena Delta, The, <a href='#Page_106'>106</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Liakhoff, <a href='#Page_89'>89</a>, <a href='#Page_106'>106</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Liakhoff Island, <a href='#Page_89'>89</a>, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lichens, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lifeboat Cove, <a href='#Page_247'>247</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Linschoten, Van, <a href='#Page_10'>10</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Lion</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_157'>157</a>, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Little Table Island, <a href='#Page_41'>41</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lock, Michael, <a href='#Page_61'>61</a>, <a href='#Page_216'>216</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lockwood, James B., <a href='#Page_272'>272</a>, <a href='#Page_275'>275</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lockwood Island, <a href='#Page_276'>276</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Log, The, introduced, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Long, G. W. De, <a href='#Page_116'>116</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Long, Thomas, <a href='#Page_141'>141</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Loschkin, S., <a href='#Page_62'>62</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Louis Napoleon, Cape, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ludlow, <a href='#Page_62'>62</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lunar at sea, The first, <a href='#Page_17'>17</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lundstrom, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lütke, <a href='#Page_63'>63</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lutwidge, Skeffington, <a href='#Page_29'>29</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Lyon, George Francis, <a href='#Page_191'>191</a>, <a href='#Page_202'>202</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Mackenzie, Alexander, <a href='#Page_147'>147</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Mackenzie River, Discovery of, <a href='#Page_148'>148</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Macintoshes, The first, <a href='#Page_157'>157</a></li> - <li class='c020'>M'Clintock, F. L., <a href='#Page_184'>184</a>, <a href='#Page_208'>208</a>, <a href='#Page_248'>248</a>, <a href='#Page_268'>268</a></li> - <li class='c020'>M'Clintock, Cape, <a href='#Page_99'>99</a></li> - <li class='c020'>M'Clure, Robert Le M., <a href='#Page_171'>171</a>, <a href='#Page_177'>177</a></li> - <li class='c020'>McCormick Bay, <a href='#Page_280'>280</a></li> - <li class='c020'>McKay, James, <a href='#Page_161'>161</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Magnet</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_204'>204</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Magnetic North Pole, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Mahlemut labret, The, <a href='#Page_145'>145</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Mammals, Fossil, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Mammoth, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a>, <a href='#Page_115'>115</a>, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Markham, A. H., <a href='#Page_247'>247</a>, <a href='#Page_249'>249</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Markland, <a href='#Page_3'>3</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Marten skins, <a href='#Page_144'>144</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Martens, F., <a href='#Page_25'>25</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Mary Harmsworth, Cape, <a href='#Page_75'>75</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Mary Margaret</em>, The, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Matiuschkin, <a href='#Page_108'>108</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Matthew</em>, The, <a href='#Page_4'>4</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Matty Island, <a href='#Page_201'>201</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Matyushin Shar, <a href='#Page_60'>60</a></li> - <li class='c020'>May, William H., <a href='#Page_256'>256</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Melville Bay, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Melville, G. W., <a href='#Page_117'>117</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Melville Island, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a>, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a>, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Melville Peninsula, <a href='#Page_192'>192</a>, <a href='#Page_205'>205</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Merchant Adventurers, The, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Mercury</em>, The, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Mercy Bay, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Mermaid</em>, The, <a href='#Page_229'>229</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Meta Incognita, <a href='#Page_219'>219</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Michael</em>, The, <a href='#Page_216'>216</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Middendorf Glacier, The, <a href='#Page_68'>68</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Middleton, Christopher, <a href='#Page_190'>190</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Mistaken Streight, <a href='#Page_221'>221</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Moloi, <a href='#Page_106'>106</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Montreal Island, <a href='#Page_162'>162</a>, <a href='#Page_169'>169</a>, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a>, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Moons, Mock, <a href='#Page_151'>151</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Moonshine</em>, The, <a href='#Page_224'>224</a>, <a href='#Page_229'>229</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Moore, Thomas E. L., <a href='#Page_138'>138</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Moose-hunting, <a href='#Page_144'>144</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Moravians, The, <a href='#Page_261'>261</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Morton, William, <a href='#Page_236'>236</a>, <a href='#Page_245'>245</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Moss, E. L., <a href='#Page_254'>254</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Moss Point, <a href='#Page_284'>284</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Mossel Bay, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a>, <a href='#Page_45'>45</a>, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Moxon, Joseph, <a href='#Page_285'>285</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Murchison, Cape, <a href='#Page_197'>197</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Murchison River, <a href='#Page_208'>208</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Muscovy Company, The, <a href='#Page_6'>6</a>, <a href='#Page_13'>13</a>, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a>, <a href='#Page_17'>17</a>, <a href='#Page_60'>60</a>, <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Musk ox, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a>, <a href='#Page_172'>172</a>, <a href='#Page_181'>181</a>, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a>, <a href='#Page_248'>248</a>, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a>, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Nai, Cornelis, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Nancy Dawson</em>, The, <a href='#Page_139'>139</a></li> - <li class='c020'><span class='pageno' id='Page_292'>292</span>Nansen, Fridtjof, <a href='#Page_91'>91</a>, <a href='#Page_261'>261</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Nares, G. S., <a href='#Page_248'>248</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Narwhal, <a href='#Page_31'>31</a>, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a>, <a href='#Page_219'>219</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Nassau, Cape, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Navy Cliff, <a href='#Page_280'>280</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Nelson, Horatio, <a href='#Page_29'>29</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Neptune</em>, The, <a href='#Page_277'>277</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Newfoundland, Discovery of, <a href='#Page_4'>4</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Newman Bay, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c020'>New Siberian Islands, The, <a href='#Page_88'>88</a>, <a href='#Page_106'>106</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Nindemann, <a href='#Page_118'>118</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Nordenskiöld, Adolf Erik, <a href='#Page_43'>43</a>, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a>, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a>, <a href='#Page_263'>263</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Noros, <a href='#Page_118'>118</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Norsemen discover America, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Northbrook Island, <a href='#Page_100'>100</a></li> - <li class='c020'>North Cape, The, <a href='#Page_6'>6</a>, <a href='#Page_89'>89</a>, <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'>North East Land, <a href='#Page_26'>26</a></li> - <li class='c020'>North-East Passage, The, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a>, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Northern Passage, The, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>North Pole</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_204'>204</a></li> - <li class='c020'>North Pole, Magnetic, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>North Star</em>, The, <a href='#Page_229'>229</a></li> - <li class='c020'>North Water, The, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>North-West Fur Company, The, <a href='#Page_147'>147</a></li> - <li class='c020'>North-West Passage, The, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Norton Sound, <a href='#Page_142'>142</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Nova Kholmogory, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Novaya Zemlya, <a href='#Page_7'>7</a>, <a href='#Page_9'>9</a>, <a href='#Page_49'>49</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Nulato, <a href='#Page_142'>142</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ny Herrnhut, <a href='#Page_261'>261</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Obi, The, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Observation, Mount, <a href='#Page_172'>172</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ochotsk, <a href='#Page_129'>129</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ommanney, Erasmus, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Omoki, The, <a href='#Page_115'>115</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ooligbuck the Eskimo, <a href='#Page_157'>157</a>, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a>, <a href='#Page_168'>168</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Oraefa, Mount, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Orleans, Duke of, <a href='#Page_268'>268</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Osborn, Sherard, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ostiaks, The, <a href='#Page_115'>115</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Otaria</em>, The, <a href='#Page_105'>105</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Pachtussoff, <a href='#Page_63'>63</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Pandora</em>, The, <a href='#Page_116'>116</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Parhelia, <a href='#Page_152'>152</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Parker Bay, <a href='#Page_171'>171</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Parr, Alfred A. C., <a href='#Page_255'>255</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Parry, William Edward, <a href='#Page_40'>40</a>, <a href='#Page_178'>178</a>, <a href='#Page_179'>179</a>, <a href='#Page_191'>191</a>, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Parry Falls, The, <a href='#Page_163'>163</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Patience</em>, The, <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Patrick Island, Prince, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a>, <a href='#Page_184'>184</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pavy, O., <a href='#Page_275'>275</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Payer, Julius, <a href='#Page_64'>64</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Peary Channel, <a href='#Page_280'>280</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Peary, Robert E., <a href='#Page_185'>185</a>, <a href='#Page_186'>186</a>, <a href='#Page_280'>280</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Peel Sound, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pellham, Edward, <a href='#Page_18'>18</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pelly Bay, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pelly Point, <a href='#Page_171'>171</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pendulum Island, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Penny Strait, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Penny, William, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pet, Arthur, <a href='#Page_7'>7</a>, <a href='#Page_60'>60</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pet Strait, <a href='#Page_8'>8</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Peter the Great, <a href='#Page_130'>130</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Petermann Fiord, <a href='#Page_248'>248</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Petermann, Mount, <a href='#Page_269'>269</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Petersen Bay, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Petersen, C., <a href='#Page_208'>208</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Petropaulovsk, <a href='#Page_134'>134</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Phipps, The Hon. Constantine John, <a href='#Page_29'>29</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pim, Bedford, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Pioneer</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Plants, <a href='#Page_43'>43</a>, <a href='#Page_88'>88</a>, <a href='#Page_91'>91</a>, <a href='#Page_113'>113</a>, <a href='#Page_114'>114</a>, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a>, <a href='#Page_192'>192</a>, <a href='#Page_248'>248</a>, <a href='#Page_264'>264</a>, <a href='#Page_266'>266</a>, <a href='#Page_281'>281</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Plover</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_138'>138</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Point Lake, <a href='#Page_153'>153</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Point Victory, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Polar Stations, The International, <a href='#Page_272'>272</a>, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Polaris</em>, The, <a href='#Page_245'>245</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Polhem</em>, The, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Pollux</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_166'>166</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Poole, Jonas, <a href='#Page_13'>13</a>, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Porcupine River, The, <a href='#Page_142'>142</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pospeloff, <a href='#Page_62'>62</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pribylov Islands, The, <a href='#Page_135'>135</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Prince Albert</em>, The, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Prince of Wales, Cape, <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Prince of Wales Strait, <a href='#Page_172'>172</a>, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Proeven</em>, The, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pronchistschef, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Proteus</em>, The, <a href='#Page_274'>274</a>, <a href='#Page_278'>278</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Protococcus nivalis</em>, <a href='#Page_192'>192</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Prudhoe Land, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Pullen, W. J. S., <a href='#Page_139'>139</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Quennerstedt, A., <a href='#Page_43'>43</a></li> - <li class='c004'><em>Racehorse</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_29'>29</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Racer</em>, The, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rae, Fort, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rae, John, <a href='#Page_170'>170</a>, <a href='#Page_204'>204</a>, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rae Strait, <a href='#Page_208'>208</a>, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Raleigh, Mount, <a href='#Page_227'>227</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rat River, The, <a href='#Page_142'>142</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Ravenscraig</em>, The, <a href='#Page_247'>247</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rawlings Bay, <a href='#Page_241'>241</a></li> - <li class='c020'><span class='pageno' id='Page_293'>293</span>Rawson, Wyatt, <a href='#Page_257'>257</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Red snow, <a href='#Page_192'>192</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Regent Inlet, Prince, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Regina</em>, The, <a href='#Page_59'>59</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Reikjavik founded, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Reindeer, <a href='#Page_10'>10</a>, <a href='#Page_18'>18</a>, <a href='#Page_23'>23</a>, <a href='#Page_27'>27</a>, <a href='#Page_28'>28</a>, <a href='#Page_60'>60</a>, <a href='#Page_109'>109</a>, <a href='#Page_150'>150</a>, <a href='#Page_169'>169</a>, <a href='#Page_172'>172</a>, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a>, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a>, <a href='#Page_181'>181</a>, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a>, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a>, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Reindeer, White, <a href='#Page_61'>61</a>, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Reliance, Fort, <a href='#Page_160'>160</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Reliance</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_158'>158</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rensselaer Harbour, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a>, <a href='#Page_236'>236</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Repulse Bay, <a href='#Page_191'>191</a>, <a href='#Page_204'>204</a>, <a href='#Page_207'>207</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Resolute</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_175'>175</a>, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_184'>184</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Resolution</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Resolution</em>, The (whaler), <a href='#Page_31'>31</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Return Reef, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a>, <a href='#Page_166'>166</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rhinoceros, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Richardson, John, <a href='#Page_149'>149</a>, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a>, <a href='#Page_170'>170</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Richthofen Peak, <a href='#Page_71'>71</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rijp, Jan Corneliszoon, <a href='#Page_11'>11</a>, <a href='#Page_57'>57</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ringnes Islands, The, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ritenbenk, <a href='#Page_249'>249</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Robeson Channel, <a href='#Page_245'>245</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rocky Mountains first crossed, <a href='#Page_149'>149</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Rodgers</em>, The, <a href='#Page_141'>141</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Roosevelt</em>, The, <a href='#Page_282'>282</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rosmysslof, <a href='#Page_62'>62</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ross, James Clark, <a href='#Page_41'>41</a>, <a href='#Page_181'>181</a>, <a href='#Page_201'>201</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ross, John, <a href='#Page_179'>179</a>, <a href='#Page_182'>182</a>, <a href='#Page_194'>194</a>, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Rudolf Island, Prince, <a href='#Page_75'>75</a>, <a href='#Page_76'>76</a>, <a href='#Page_82'>82</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Hudson's Point, <a href='#Page_14'>14</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Russell, Cape, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Ryder, Lieut., <a href='#Page_266'>266</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Sabine, Edward, <a href='#Page_181'>181</a>, <a href='#Page_267'>267</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sabine, Cape, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sable, The, <a href='#Page_135'>135</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sagastyr Island, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'>St. Elias, Cape, <a href='#Page_134'>134</a></li> - <li class='c020'>St. Elias, Mount, <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'>St. Lawrence Bay, <a href='#Page_141'>141</a></li> - <li class='c020'>St. Lawrence Island, <a href='#Page_132'>132</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>St. Paul</em>, The, <a href='#Page_134'>134</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>St. Peter</em>, The, <a href='#Page_134'>134</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Salmo arcturus</em>, <a href='#Page_258'>258</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Salmon trout, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Salutation</em>, The, <a href='#Page_18'>18</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Samoyeds, The, <a href='#Page_10'>10</a>, <a href='#Page_115'>115</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sanderson's Hope, <a href='#Page_232'>232</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sanderson, William, <a href='#Page_224'>224</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sannikof, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Schley, Winfield S., <a href='#Page_278'>278</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Schonau Island, <a href='#Page_70'>70</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Schwatka, Frederick, <a href='#Page_213'>213</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Scoresby, William, the elder, <a href='#Page_30'>30</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Scoresby, William, the younger, <a href='#Page_31'>31</a>, <a href='#Page_129'>129</a>, <a href='#Page_266'>266</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Seal, The Fur, <a href='#Page_135'>135</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Seals, <a href='#Page_31'>31</a>, <a href='#Page_88'>88</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sea-otter, The, <a href='#Page_135'>135</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Searchthrift</em>, The, <a href='#Page_7'>7</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Semonovski Island, <a href='#Page_117'>117</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Serdze Kamen, Cape, <a href='#Page_90'>90</a>, <a href='#Page_132'>132</a>, <a href='#Page_136'>136</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Seven Islands, The, <a href='#Page_40'>40</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Shackleton, Cape, <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Shantar Islands, The, <a href='#Page_130'>130</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sheathing for ships introduced, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Shedden, Robert, <a href='#Page_139'>139</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sheridan, Cape, <a href='#Page_283'>283</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Siberia, <a href='#Page_84'>84</a>, <a href='#Page_106'>106</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Siberian Islands, The, <a href='#Page_88'>88</a>, <a href='#Page_106'>106</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Silver Bay, <a href='#Page_63'>63</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Simmons Peninsula, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Simpson, Sir George, <a href='#Page_165'>165</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Simpson, Thomas, <a href='#Page_165'>165</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Simpson Strait, <a href='#Page_168'>168</a>, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a>, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sinclair, George, <a href='#Page_166'>166</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sirovatskof, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sitka Sound, <a href='#Page_134'>134</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sledges and sledge-work, <a href='#Page_184'>184</a>, <a href='#Page_252'>252</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Smeerenberg, <a href='#Page_24'>24</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Smith, Benjamin Leigh, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a>, <a href='#Page_72'>72</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Smith Sound, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a>, <a href='#Page_235'>235</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Snow, William Parker, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Snow houses, <a href='#Page_198'>198</a>, <a href='#Page_211'>211</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sodankyla, <a href='#Page_273'>273</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Sofia</em>, The, <a href='#Page_44'>44</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Somerset House, <a href='#Page_202'>202</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Somerset, North, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sonntag, August, <a href='#Page_242'>242</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Sophia</em>, The, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Spangberg, Martin, <a href='#Page_131'>131</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Spinks, Robert, <a href='#Page_37'>37</a>, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Spitsbergen, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a>, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a>, <a href='#Page_16'>16</a>, <a href='#Page_18'>18</a>, <a href='#Page_24'>24</a>, <a href='#Page_104'>104</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Steamship, The first Arctic, <a href='#Page_194'>194</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Stella Polare</em>, The, <a href='#Page_76'>76</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sterlegof, Cape, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Stoat, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Stolbovoi, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Stuxberg, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Sunshine</em>, The, <a href='#Page_224'>224</a>, <a href='#Page_229'>229</a>, <a href='#Page_232'>232</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Sverdrup, Otto, <a href='#Page_104'>104</a>, <a href='#Page_185'>185</a>, <a href='#Page_261'>261</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Svjatoi Nos, <a href='#Page_89'>89</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Tanana, The, <a href='#Page_144'>144</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Tananas, The, <a href='#Page_145'>145</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Tegetthoff</em>, The, <a href='#Page_64'>64</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Teplitz Bay, <a href='#Page_69'>69</a>, <a href='#Page_77'>77</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Terror</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_171'>171</a>, <a href='#Page_183'>183</a>, <a href='#Page_203'>203</a>, <a href='#Page_205'>205</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Thaddeus Island, <a href='#Page_107'>107</a>, <a href='#Page_117'>117</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Thames</em>, The, <a href='#Page_87'>87</a></li> - <li class='c020'><span class='pageno' id='Page_294'>294</span>Thermometer, The deep-sea, <a href='#Page_30'>30</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Thetis</em>, The, <a href='#Page_278'>278</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Thirkill, Launcelot, <a href='#Page_4'>4</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Thomasine</em>, The, <a href='#Page_16'>16</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Thorne, Robert, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Tiger, <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Tigress</em>, The, <a href='#Page_247'>247</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Toll, Baron E., <a href='#Page_126'>126</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Torell, Otto, <a href='#Page_43'>43</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Trent</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_33'>33</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Treurenberg Bay, <a href='#Page_40'>40</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Tripe-de-roche, <a href='#Page_156'>156</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Tschirikof, Alexei, <a href='#Page_131'>131</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Tundra, The, <a href='#Page_86'>86</a>, <a href='#Page_113'>113</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Turnagain, Point, <a href='#Page_155'>155</a>, <a href='#Page_167'>167</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Tyndall Glacier, <a href='#Page_244'>244</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Umivik, <a href='#Page_262'>262</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Union</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_157'>157</a>, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>United States</em>, The, <a href='#Page_239'>239</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Upernivik, <a href='#Page_232'>232</a></li> - <li class='c004'><em>Valorous</em>, H.M.S., <a href='#Page_248'>248</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Veer, Gerrit de, <a href='#Page_10'>10</a>, <a href='#Page_49'>49</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Vega</em>, The, <a href='#Page_87'>87</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Victoria, Cape, <a href='#Page_211'>211</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Victoria Land, <a href='#Page_168'>168</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Victoria Sea, Queen, <a href='#Page_75'>75</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Victoria Strait, <a href='#Page_206'>206</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Victory</em>, The, <a href='#Page_194'>194</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Victory, Point, <a href='#Page_212'>212</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Vinland, <a href='#Page_3'>3</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Vlamingh, Willem de, <a href='#Page_62'>62</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Vrangel', Ferdinand, <a href='#Page_108'>108</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Wager River, <a href='#Page_190'>190</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Waigatz Island, <a href='#Page_7'>7</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wainwright Inlet, <a href='#Page_139'>139</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Walden Island, <a href='#Page_40'>40</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Walker Bay, <a href='#Page_176'>176</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Walnut Shell</em>, The (boat), <a href='#Page_157'>157</a>, <a href='#Page_159'>159</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Walrus, <a href='#Page_12'>12</a>, <a href='#Page_13'>13</a>, <a href='#Page_20'>20</a>, <a href='#Page_31'>31</a>, <a href='#Page_34'>34</a>, <a href='#Page_57'>57</a>, <a href='#Page_73'>73</a>, <a href='#Page_82'>82</a>, <a href='#Page_88'>88</a>, <a href='#Page_93'>93</a>, <a href='#Page_101'>101</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Walsingham, Francis, <a href='#Page_224'>224</a>, <a href='#Page_229'>229</a>, <a href='#Page_231'>231</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Washington Irving Island, <a href='#Page_250'>250</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Welden, Captain, <a href='#Page_13'>13</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wellington Channel, <a href='#Page_180'>180</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wentzel, <a href='#Page_150'>150</a>, <a href='#Page_151'>151</a>, <a href='#Page_154'>154</a></li> - <li class='c020'>West England, <a href='#Page_220'>220</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Weyprecht, K., <a href='#Page_64'>64</a>, <a href='#Page_272'>272</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Whale fishery, The, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a>, <a href='#Page_17'>17</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Whale, Greenland, <a href='#Page_14'>14</a>, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a>, <a href='#Page_31'>31</a>, <a href='#Page_265'>265</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Whale Island, <a href='#Page_148'>148</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Whale, White, <a href='#Page_88'>88</a>, <a href='#Page_148'>148</a>, <a href='#Page_188'>188</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Whaling trade begins, <a href='#Page_15'>15</a></li> - <li class='c020'>White Man's Island, <a href='#Page_223'>223</a></li> - <li class='c020'>White Sea, The, <a href='#Page_6'>6</a></li> - <li class='c020'>White Shirt, <a href='#Page_2'>2</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Whymper, Edward, <a href='#Page_266'>266</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Whymper, Frederick, <a href='#Page_142'>142</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wiggins, Joseph, <a href='#Page_87'>87</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wijde Bay, <a href='#Page_17'>17</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wilberforce Falls, The, <a href='#Page_155'>155</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wilczek Island, <a href='#Page_66'>66</a></li> - <li class='c020'>William Land, King, <a href='#Page_163'>163</a>, <a href='#Page_214'>214</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>William</em>, The, <a href='#Page_8'>8</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Willoughby, Sir Hugh, <a href='#Page_5'>5</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Windward</em>, The, <a href='#Page_76'>76</a>, <a href='#Page_103'>103</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Winter Harbour, <a href='#Page_174'>174</a>, <a href='#Page_181'>181</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Winter Island, <a href='#Page_192'>192</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Winthont</em>, The, <a href='#Page_10'>10</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wollaston Land, <a href='#Page_158'>158</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wolstenholme, Cape, <a href='#Page_234'>234</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wolverine, <a href='#Page_144'>144</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Women Islands, The, <a href='#Page_233'>233</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wrangell, Ferdinand Von, <a href='#Page_108'>108</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Wrangell Island, <a href='#Page_116'>116</a>, <a href='#Page_141'>141</a></li> - <li class='c004'>Yakuts, The, <a href='#Page_115'>115</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Yalmal, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Yenesei, The, <a href='#Page_85'>85</a></li> - <li class='c020'><em>Ymer</em>, The, <a href='#Page_87'>87</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Young, Allen, <a href='#Page_75'>75</a>, <a href='#Page_116'>116</a>, <a href='#Page_208'>208</a>, <a href='#Page_213'>213</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Young's Foreland, <a href='#Page_14'>14</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Yugor Strait, <a href='#Page_8'>8</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Yukon, Fort, <a href='#Page_142'>142</a>, <a href='#Page_144'>144</a></li> - <li class='c020'>Yukon, The, <a href='#Page_142'>142</a></li> -</ul> - -<div class='nf-center-c1'> -<div class='nf-center c004'> - <div><span class='pageno' id='Page_295'>295</span>PLYMOUTH</div> - <div>WILLIAM BRENDON AND SON, LTD.</div> - <div>PRINTERS</div> - </div> -</div> - -<div class='tnotes'> - -<div class='chapter'> - <h2 class='c006'>TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES</h2> -</div> - <ol class='ol_1 c004'> - <li>Silently corrected simple spelling, grammar, and typographical errors. - - </li> - <li>Retained anachronistic and non-standard spellings as printed. - - </li> - </ol> - -</div> - - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Round About the North Pole, by W. J. Gordon - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ROUND ABOUT THE NORTH POLE *** - -***** This file should be named 52462-h.htm or 52462-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/5/2/4/6/52462/ - -Produced by Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was -produced from images generously made available by The -Internet Archive) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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