FIRST VOYAGE.

On the 16th of January, 1819, Lieutenant Parry was appointed to the

command of his Majesty’s ship Hecla, a bomb of three hundred and

seventy-five tons; and the Griper, gun brig, one hundred and eighty

tons, commissioned by Lieutenant Matthew Liddon, was at the same time

directed to put herself under his orders. The object of the expedition

was to discover a north west passage into the Pacific. Every

individual engaged in the expedition was to receive double pay. They

took in provisions for two years, and also a supply of fresh meats and

soups preserved in tin cases, essence of malt and hops, and other

stores adapted to cold climates and a long voyage. The ships were

ballasted entirely with coals, and the men were supplied with an

abundance of warm clothing.

Captain Parry was to pass, if possible, through Lancaster’s Sound to

Behring’s Strait. If he succeeded, he was to proceed to Kamtschatka

and return to England round Cape Horn. Other instructions were given,

but much was left to his own discretion. He sailed in the beginning of

May, and proceeded up the straits of Davis, where he found the ice

close packed. As he was making his way towards the western shore, on

the 25th of June, the ice closed round the ships and arrested their

progress. Here the ice was so close, that the whales could not descend

in the usual way, but were obliged to go down tail first, much to the

amusement of the Greenland sailors. Their situation during the 28th

was unpleasant, and would have been dangerous to ships built in the

ordinary way. Each roll of the sea forced the heavy masses of ice

against the rudder and counter with great violence; but being so well

strengthened, they escaped without damage. While in this state, a

large white bear approached the Griper, attracted by the smell of some

red herrings, which the men were frying at the time. They killed him,

but he sunk between the pieces of ice, and they were unable to obtain

him. On the 30th, the ice began to slacken a little about the ships,

and after two hour’s heaving, they succeeded in moving the Hecla about

her own length to the eastward; and the ice continuing open after

eight hours’ incessant labor, they hauled both ships into open water.

Captain Parry having failed in his first attempt to approach the

western shore, came to the determination of trying to effect this

object, about the latitude of mount Raleigh, which forms one side of

the narrowest part of Davis’ Strait. They kept on during the 1st and

2d of July, without finding any opening. On the third day, the wind

having shifted to the south-west, another large chain of icebergs was

seen to the northward. They could find no bottom near these icebergs

with one hundred and ten fathoms of line. At four A. M. on the 4th,

they came to a quantity of loose ice floating among the bergs. The

breeze blew lightly from the southward, and wishing to avoid going to

the eastward, they pushed the Hecla into the ice, in hopes of being

able to make way through it. But it immediately fell calm and the ship

becoming perfectly unmanageable, was for some time at the mercy of

swells, which drifted her fast towards the bergs. The Griper’s signal

was made not to enter the ice, and after two hours’ hard pulling, they

succeeded in getting the Hecla clear of the icebergs, which it is very

dangerous to approach whenever there is a swell.

The ice was now so close that they found it impossible to proceed

further westward; and they made the best way they could, by beating

northward, until the 10th, when a thick fog came on, which made it

necessary to use great caution in sailing, to avoid the icebergs. The

reflection of light, however, is so strong from these vast bodies of

ice, that in the thickest fog they can be seen at a sufficient

distance to enable the navigator, if in smooth water, to keep clear of

them. The people succeeded in killing a large bear, which was seen

near them on a piece of ice, and towed it on board. These animals sink

immediately on being wounded, and to secure them, it is necessary to

throw a rope over the neck, at which the Greenland seaman are very

expert. After encountering many difficulties from the tenacity of the

ice, on the 21st Captain Parry reached latitude 73 deg. As he was

unwilling to increase his distance from Lancaster’s Sound, he

determined to enter the ice here. He accordingly ran in among the

floes, and on the evening of the 22d, the ships were so beset, that no

open water could be seen from the mast-head. The weather being clear

on the next day, and a few narrow lanes of water appearing to the

westward, they proceeded to warp the ships through the ice. At eight

P. M., they had advanced four miles to westward, and having come to

the end of clear water, they secured the ships in a deep bight or bay

in a floe, called by the sailors, Natural Dock. On the next day, a

boat was sent to try to find a lane of clear water leading to the

westward. She returned without success, and the weather was so foggy,

that it was with difficulty she found her way back to the ships by

means of muskets and other signals.

On Tuesday 27th the clear water had made so much to the westward, that

a narrow neck of ice was all that separated the ships from a large

open space in that quarter. The men were just ordered out to saw off

the neck, when the floes suddenly opened and allowed the Griper to

push through under all sail. Although they lost no time in attempting

to get the Hecla through after her, yet before they could effect it,

the passage was completely blocked up by a piece of floating ice,

which was drawn after the Griper, by the eddy produced in her motion.

Before they could haul it out of the channel, the floes pressed

together and wedged it immovably, and although the saws were used with

great effect, it was not until after seven hours’ labor, that they

succeeded in getting the Hecla into the lanes of clear water, which

opened towards the westward. They now perceived with pleasure, a

pitching motion of the vessel, which, from the closeness of the ice,

does not often occur in those regions, as a sure indication of an open

sea. The wind breezing up by one o’clock P. M., the ice had all

disappeared, and the sea was free from obstructions of any kind. Here

they found the whales so numerous, that no less than eighty-two are

mentioned in this day’s log. It is commonly thought by the Greenland

fishermen, that the presence of ice is necessary to insure the finding

of whales; but no ice was seen this day, when they were most numerous.

At half past five P. M., the high land about Possession bay came in

sight. Lancaster’s Sound was now open to the westward, and the

experience of a former voyage had given Captain Parry reason to

believe that the two best months for the navigation of those seas were

yet to come. This, together with the magnificent view of the lofty

Byaur Martin Mountains, which recalled forcibly to his mind the events

of the preceding year, animated him with expectation and hope. On the

31st, they anchored in Possession bay and discovered a flag staff

which had been erected on the former expedition. The only animals

found here were a fox, a raven, some ring plovers, snow-buntings, and

a wild bee. Several tracks of bears and reindeers were also seen upon

the moist ground. Three black whales were seen in the bay, and the

crown bones of several others were lying near the beach. The tide

rises here about eight feet, and the flood seems to come from the

northwest.

On the first of August, Captain Parry finding that the Griper could

not keep up with the Hecla, determined to leave her. He appointed the

middle of Lancaster Sound as a place of rendezvous, and crowding all

sail on the Hecla, he came towards evning in sight of the northern

shore of the sound; and the next day had a clear view of both sides of

it.

Having run due west nearly out of sight of the Griper, the Hecla hove

to for her to come up in longitude 83 degrees 12 minutes west from

Greenwich, there being not the slightest appearance of land to the

westward. The only ice met consisted of a few large bergs, much worn

by the washing of the sea. Whales were seen, and the wind increased so

that the top-gallant-yards were taken in. On the 4th, Lieutenant

Beechy discovered, from the crow’s nest, breakers to the northward.

They sounded, and found bottom with forty-five fathoms of line. The

Griper coming up, the vessels bore away to the westward. The sea was

here so clear of ice, that they began to flatter themselves, that they

had indeed entered the Polar Sea. Their vexation was therefore

extreme, when, towards evening, land was seen ahead. At eight P. M.,

they came to a stream of ice extending several miles in a direction

parallel to their course; and after sailing for two hours along the

edge of the ice, they found it proceeded from a compact body of floes,

which completely cut off their passage. The weather here was calm and

foggy, and the men amused themselves in pursuing white whales, which

were swimming about the ships in great numbers. But these animals were

so wary, that they seldom suffered the boats to approach within thirty

or forty yards of them, without diving. They also saw for the first

time, one or two shoals of nar-whales, called by the sailors

sea-unicorns. Finding that the sound or strait was closed, excepting

in one place to the southward, to this opening they directed their

course. They had sailed but a few hours, however, when it fell calm;

and the Griper, having spread both her top-masts, advantage was taken

of the calm weather to shift them. The Hecla’s boats were at the same

time employed in bringing aboard ice to be used as water. Berge-ice is

preferred for this purpose, but that of floes which is in fact the ice

of sea water, is also used. One of the boats was upset by the fall of

a mass of ice, but fortunately no injury was sustained. A breeze

springing up from the north-north-west, they made sail and stood to

the southward. After sailing a short time, they discovered that they

were entering a large inlet about ten leagues wide at its mouth, and

in the centre of which no land could be distinguished. The western

shore was so encumbered with ice that it was impossible to sail near

it. They therefore ran along between the ice and the eastern shore,

where there was a broad channel, with the intention of seeking a lower

latitude or a clearer passage to the westward. Since they had first

entered Lancaster’s Sound, the sluggishness of the compasses, and the

irregularity produced by the attraction of the ship’s iron, had been

found to increase rapidly as they proceeded to the westward. The

irregularity increased as they advanced to the southward, which

rendered it not improbable that they were approaching the magnetic

pole. The compasses therefore were no longer fit for the purposes of

navigation, and the binnacles were removed as useless lumber into the

carpenter’s store-room, where they remained during the rest of the

season. Being desirous of obtaining all the magnetic observations they

were able, on a spot which appeared so full of interest in this

department of science, two boats were dispatched from each ship to the

nearest eastern shore, under the command of Lieutenant Beechy and

Hoppner, who, together with Captain Sabine, were directed to make the

necessary observations. As soon as the boats returned, the ships hove

to the southward, along the edge of the ice, and by midnight the

channel was narrowed to about five miles. They could find no

soundings; the weather was serene, and the sun for the second time

that season just dipped below the northern horizon, and reappeared a

few moments after. They had hoped to find a passage to the south of

the ice, especially as the inlet widened considerably as they advanced

in that direction; but on the morning of the 8th, they perceived that

the ice ran close in with a point of land, which seemed to form the

southern extremity of the eastern shore. The prospect from the crow’s

nest began to assume a very unpromising appearance. The whole western

horizon from north round to south by east, being completely covered

with ice, beyond which no indication of water was visible. Captain

Parry therefore determined, as the season was fast advancing, to

return immediately to the northward, in the hope of finding the

channel between Prince Leopold’s Isles and Maxwell Bay more open than

when they left it, in which there could be little doubt of effecting a

passage to the westward. They had sailed to the southward in this

inlet about one hundred and twenty miles, Cape Kater being by the

observations in latitude 71 deg. 53 min. 30 sec., longitude 90 deg. 03

min. 45 seconds. They returned to the northward with a light but

favorable breeze. On the 10th, the weather was thick with snow, which

was succeeded by rain and fog. The ships moored to a floe, but when

the weather cleared, they found themselves drifting with the floe upon

another body of ice to leeward. They therefore cast off and beat to

the northward, which was very difficult to do, on account of the drift

ice with which the whole inlet was now covered. Although several days

were thus passed in contending with fogs, head winds, and all the

difficulties of arctic navigation, yet neither officers nor crews lost

health or spirits. They repined not at the dangers and difficulties of

their situation, but because the accomplishment of their hopes was

delayed.

A light southern breeze enabled them to steer towards Prince Leopold’s

Isles, which they found more encumbered with ice than before. Here

they saw a great number of nar-whales, lying with their backs above

the water in the same manner as the whale, and frequently with their

horns erect and quite stationary for several minutes together. Three

or four miles to the northward, they discovered an opening, having

every appearance of a harbor, with an island near the entrance. It was

named Jackson’s Bay. The whole of the 14th was consumed in the attempt

to find an opening in the ice, but as it remained perfectly close and

compact, on the 15th Captain Parry went on shore to make observations.

He landed in one of the numerous valleys, which occur on this part of

the coast, very much resembling bays, being bounded by high hills,

which appear like bluff head-lands. He ascended the hill on the south

side of the ravine, which is very steep, and covered with detached

blocks of lime-stone, some of which are constantly rolling down, and

which afford a very insecure footing. From the top of the hill no

water could be seen over the ice to the northwest; and the whole space

comprised between the islands and the northern shore, was covered with

a bright dazzling blink.

It was a satisfaction, however, to find that no land appeared, and

captain Parry was too well aware of the suddenness with which

obstructions, occasioned by the ice, are often removed, to be at all

discouraged by present appearances. On the top of this hill, he

deposited a bottle containing a short notice of his visit, and raised

over it a small mound of stones. The wind was light the next day, and

the ice being closed, the ships scarcely changed their position.

Despairing of being able to penetrate westward, in the neighborhood of

Prince Leopold Isles, captain Parry determined to stand towards the

northern shore again, and after beating for some hours among the drift

ice, the ships got into clear water near the coast. They had just

light enough at midnight to see to read and write in the cabin.

Passing along the shore, they left the ice behind them, and on the

21st they had nothing to hinder their passage westward, but want of

wind. But the wind freshening soon after, all sail was made to the

westward, where the prospect began to wear a more and more interesting

appearance. It was soon perceived that the land along which they were

sailing, and which had appeared to be continuous from Baffin’s Bay,

began now to trend much to the northward, leaving an open space

between that coast, and a distant land to the westward, which appeared

like an island, of which the extremes to the north and south were

distinctly visible. The latter was a remarkable headland, and was

named Cape Hotham. They discovered also several headlands on the

eastern land; between the northernmost of which and the island to the

westward, there was a channel of more than eight leagues in width, in

which neither land nor ice could be seen from the mast head. The

arrival off this noble channel, to which captain Parry gave the name

of Wellington, was an event for which they had all been anxiously

looking; for the continuity of land to the northward, had always been

a source of uneasiness to them, from the possibility that it might

take a turn to the southward, and unite with the coast of America.

Every one thought that they were now finally disentangled from the

land, which forms the western side of Baffin’s Bay; and that in fact

they had actually entered the Polar Sea. Fully impressed with this

idea, captain Parry gave to this opening the name of Barrow’s Straits.

Two thirds of the month of August had now elapsed, and they expected

that the sea would remain navigable six weeks more. The ships had

suffered no injury, they had a plenty of provisions, the crews were in

high health and spirits, and the sea before them, if not open, was at

least navigable. On the 23d, a fresh breeze sprung up, and although

Wellington channel was open to the northward, captain Parry judged it

best to try a large opening south of Cornwallis’ island. But their

disappointment was extreme, when it was suddenly reported from the

crow’s nest, that their passage was obstructed by a large body of ice.

Lieutenant Beechy discovered, however, that one part of the barrier

consisted of loose pieces of ice, and the Hecla being immediately

pushed into this part of it, succeeded, after a quarter of an hour’s

‘boring,’ in forcing her way through the neck. The Griper followed,

and they continued their course to the westward, having once more a

navigable sea before them. At 2 P. M., having reached longitude 95

deg. 67 min., they came to two extensive floes, which obliged the

ships to tack, as there was no passage between them. They then beat to

the northward in search of a passage, but none was found. After

several unsuccessful attempts to force a passage, they at last

succeeded by ‘boring’ through several heavy streams, and at midnight

were enabled to pursue their course to the westward.

The ships made very little way this night, but in the morning they

advanced with more speed, and more land was seen to the westward. The

space to the westward was now so broad, that captain Parry thought

best to appoint a place where the Griper should find the Hecla in case

of a separation. But about 7 P. M., this precaution was found to have

been needless, for the ice stretched across the strait, and barred the

passage. Captain Parry now resolved to seek a passage along the

northern shore. As the vessels were rounding the eastern side of the

island captain Sabine was despatched to make observations, and examine

the natural productions of the shore. He reported that he had found

the island much more interesting than any other parts of the shores of

the polar regions they had yet visited. The remains of Esquimaux

habitations were found in four different places. Some of them are

described by captain Sabine, as consisting of stones rudely placed in

an elliptical form. They were from seven to ten feet in diameter, the

flat sides of the stones standing vertically, and the whole structure

being similar to that of the summer huts of the Esquimaux, which had

been seen the preceding year. Attached to each were smaller circles of

about four or five feet in diameter, and from the moss and sand which

covered some of the lower stones, the whole encampment appeared to

have been deserted for several years. The fogs now froze hard upon the

rigging, which made it difficult to work the ship, as each rope was

increased to twice or three times its proper diameter.

On the evening of the 29th, a very thick fog came on, and they sailed

under such circumstances as have seldom occurred in navigation.

Observing that the wind always blew some hours steadily from one

quarter, the quarter-masters steered by the vane at the mast head,

instead of the compass, which was here utterly useless. At night the

ships made fast to a floe, about six or seven feet thick, which was

covered with numerous pools of water, all hard frozen. The officers

amused themselves in skating upon the pools, and the men in sliding,

foot-ball, and other games. Thus the ships remained until the 21st,

when a new expedient for sailing was adopted.

Before the fog commenced, and while they were sailing on a course,

which they knew to be the right one, the Griper was exactly astern of

the Hecla, at the distance of about a quarter of a mile. The quarter

master stood aft, near the taffrail, and kept her constantly astern,

by which means they were enabled to steer a tolerably straight course

to the westward. The Griper, on the other hand, kept the Hecla right

ahead, and thus they steered one ship by the other, for the distance

of ten miles out of sixteen and a half, which they traversed between

one and eleven P. M. The morning of the first of September brought a

breeze, and with it a snow storm, so that they were unable to shape

their course that afternoon. At one on the 2d, a star was seen, the

first that had been visible for more than two months. The fog came on

again, and there was not wind enough to enable them to keep the ships

under command. On the morning of the 3d, a northern breeze enabled

them to make considerable progress, and on the 4th, at nine P. M.,

they crossed the meridian of 110 deg. west from Greenwich, latitude 74

deg. 44 min. 20 sec., by which the ship’s company became entitled to a

reward of 5000 pounds, offered by the king’s order in council ‘to such

British subjects as might penetrate so far west within the Arctic

circle.’ On the 5th, they found the passage blocked up again, and as

no change seemed likely to take place, they came to anchor in a

tolerable roadstead, a mile and a half from the northern shore. In the

evening, Captain Sabine and some of the other officers landed on an

island, to which they gave the name of Melville Island. Here they saw

several flocks of ducks and gulls; tracks of the deer and musk ox were

also observed, and some addition made by the gentlemen to their

collection of marine insects. The bay of the Hecla and Griper, as they

called the roadstead where the ships lay, was the first place in which

they had dropped anchor since leaving England. The flags were hoisted

in honor of the epoch; the first time that the eye of civilized man

had looked on that barren and inhospitable region. In the afternoon

the ice was observed to be in motion; and the ship got under way and

sailed a short distance. But finding no opening, the ships were

secured to a floe, which it was necessary to do every night, the

weather being too dark to allow them to keep under way. Captain Parry,

fearing that the floes might change their position, determined to

remove nearer the shore. Two large masses lay aground, and the vessels

were secured between them and the shore. Parties went out and returned

with a white hare, some fine ptarmigans, a few snow-buntings, skulls

of the musk ox, and several reindeer’s horns; but they were unable to

meet with either of the two latter animals. Several lumps of coal were

also picked up, and were found to burn with a clear lively flame, like

canalcoal, but without splitting and crackling in the same manner. At

five A. M., on the 10th, a floe ran against the berg, within which the

Hecla was secured and turned it round as on a pivot.

They were now so surrounded with ice, that all they could do was to

attend carefully to the safety of the ships. On the 11th, one of the

officers killed the first musk ox they had yet been able to approach.

The packed ice remained immovable, and the ‘young ice’ rapidly

forming, farther progress was considered impracticable that season.

Captain Parry thought it best to run back to the bay of Hecla and

Griper and to pass the winter there. The signal for weighing anchor

was given on the 22d, but the cables had become so stiff with frost,

that it was five P. M. before the anchors were brought on board; and

they did not reach the anchorage till the evening of the next day. A

proper place being found, the ships dropped anchor on the edge of the

bay of ice, in the evening of the 24th; and on the next day, they

commenced cutting a canal. Two parallel lines were marked out a little

more than the breadth of the ships apart; along these lines, a cut was

then made with an ice saw, and others again at right-angles with them,

at intervals of from ten to twenty feet. The pieces thus cut, were

again divided diagonally, in order to give room for their being

floated out of the canal. The seamen, who are fond of doing things in

their own way, took advantage of a fresh northerly breeze, by setting

some boat’s sails on the pieces of ice, a contrivance which saved both

time and labor.

At half past seven P. M., they weighed anchor, and began to warp up

the canal; but the wind blew so fresh, and the people were so much

fatigued, that it was midnight before they reached the termination of

their first day’s labor. All hands were again set to work on the

morning of the 25th, when it was proposed to sink the pieces of ice

under the floe instead of floating them out. To effect this it was

necessary for some to stand on the end of the piece of ice, which it

was intended to sink, while others hauling upon ropes attached to the

opposite end, dragged the block under that part of the floe, on which

the people stood. The officers took the lead in this employ, and were

frequently up to their knees in water during the day, with the

thermometer generally at 12 deg. and never higher than 16 deg. At six

P. M. the Griper was made fast astern of the Hecla, and the two ships’

companies, being divided on each bank of the canal, soon drew the

ships to the end of their second day’s work. The next day at noon, the

whole canal was completed, a length of four thousand and eighty-two

yards through ice seven inches thick. The wintering ground was called

winter harbor, and the group of which the island formed a part, was

denominated Georgian Islands, in honor of the reigning sovereign of

Great Britain.

Having reached the place where they were probably to pass nine months,

and three of them in the absence of the sun, Captain Parry was called

upon to act in circumstances in which no British naval officer had

before been placed. The security of the ships, the preservation of the

stores, a regular system for the maintenance of good order,

cleanliness, and consequently good health; amusement and employment

for the men, were all to be attended to. Scientific observations were

also to be made, and Captain Sabine employed himself immediately in

selecting a place for an observatory, which was erected in a

convenient spot, about seven hundred yards to the westward of the

ships. The whole of the masts were dismantled, except the lower ones

and the Hecla’s main-top-mast; the lower yards were lashed fore and

aft amidships, to support the planks of the housing intended to be

erected over the ships; and the whole of this frame work was

afterwards roofed over with a cloth. This done, Captain Parry’s whole

attention was directed to the health and comfort of the officers and

men. The surgeon reported that not the slightest disposition to scurvy

had shown itself in either ship. In order to preserve this healthy

state of the crew, arrangements were made for the warmth and dryness

of the berths and bedplaces; and finding that when the temperature had

fallen considerably below zero, the steam from the coppers began to

condense into drops on the beams and sides, they were obliged to adopt

such means for producing a sufficient warmth, combined with due

ventilation, as might carry off the vapor and thus prevent its

settling on any part of the ship. For this purpose, a large stone

oven, cased with cast iron, in which all their bread was baked in the

winter, was placed on the main-hatch-way, and the stove pipe led fore

and aft on one side of the lower deck, the smoke being thus carried up

the fore hatch-way. On the opposite side of the deck, an apparatus had

been attached to the galley-range for conveying a current of heated

air between decks. For the preservation of health, a few alterations

were made in the quantity and quality of the provisions issued. The

allowance of bread was reduced to two-thirds. A pound of preserved

meat, together with a pint of vegetable or concentrated soup per man

was substituted for one pound of salt beef weekly; and a small

quantity of sour krout and pickles, with as much vinegar as could be

used, was issued at regular intervals. They were obliged to institute

the most rigid economy, with regard to their coals, as they were

unable to find any on the island, excepting a few lumps; and the moss

which grew in abundance was found totally unfit for the purposes of

fuel.

Great attention was paid to the clothing of the men, and one day in

the week was appointed for the examination of the men’s shins and gums

by the medical gentlemen, in order that any slight appearance of the

scurvy might be at once detected and checked by timely and adequate

means.

Under circumstances of leisure and inactivity, such as they were now

placed in, and with every prospect of its continuance, Captain Parry

was desirous of finding some amusement for the men during this long

and tedious interval. He proposed, therefore, to get up a play

occasionally on board the Hecla; and his proposal being readily

seconded by the officers, Lieutenant Beechy having been chosen

manager, the performance was fixed for the 5th of November, to the

great delight of the ships’ companies. In order still further to

promote good humor, and to afford amusing occupation during the hours

of constant darkness, they set on foot a weekly newspaper, which was

to be called the North Georgia Gazette and Winter Chronicle, and of

which Captain Sabine undertook to be the editor, under the promise of

being supported by original contributions from the officers of the two

ships. The meridian altitude of the sun was observed, for the last

time, on the 16th of October.

On the 26th the light was sufficient to allow of reading and writing

in the cabins, from half past nine till half past two. The rest of the

hours were spent by lamp light. It now became rather a painful

experiment to touch any metallic substance in the open air, with the

naked hand; the feeling produced by it exactly resembling that

occasioned by the opposite extreme of intense heat; and taking off the

skin from the part affected. They found it necessary, therefore, to

use great caution in handling the sextants and other instruments;

particularly the eye-pieces of the telescopes, which, if suffered to

touch the face, occasioned an intense burning pain; but this was

easily remedied by covering them over with soft leather. The month of

November set in with mild weather. The fourth was the last day that

the sun, independently of refraction, would be seen above the horizon

for ninety-six days; but the weather was too thick for making any

observations. On the 5th, their theatre was opened, with the

representation of Miss in her Teens; which afforded the men a great

fund of amusement. Even fitting up the theatre and taking it to pieces

again, was a matter of no small importance; as it kept the men

employed a day or two before and after each performance, which was a

considerable object gained.

On the 11th, the thermometer fell to 26½ for the second time. The

wolves began to approach the ships boldly, howling most piteously on

the beach near, and sometimes coming along side the ships, when

everything was quiet at night; but they seldom saw more than one or

two together, and therefore could form no idea of their number. The

white foxes used also to visit the ships at night, and one of these

was caught in a trap, set under the Griper’s bows.

The stars of the second magnitude in Ursa Major were perceptible to

the naked eye, a little after noon on the 11th of December, and the

Aurora Borealis appeared faintly in the south-west at night. The cold

continued to increase. About the middle of the month, a serious loss

took place in the bursting of the bottles of lemon juice; in some

boxes of which, two thirds of the contents were found to be destroyed.

The vinegar also froze in the same manner, and lost much of its

acidity, when thawed. A few gallons of highly concentrated vinegar

congealed into a consistence like honey.

Theatrical entertainments took place regularly once a fortnight, and

continued to prove a source of infinite amusement to the men; and more

than one or two plays were performed, with the thermometer below zero,

on the stage on board the Hecla.

The _North Georgia Gazette_, which we have already mentioned, was a

source of great amusement, not only to the contributors, but to those

who, from diffidence of their own talents, or other reasons, could not

be prevailed on to add their mite to the little stock of literary

composition, which was weekly demanded; for those who declined to

write were not unwilling to read, and more ready to criticise than

those who wielded the pen; but it was that good humored sort of

criticism that could not give offense.

On Christmas day the weather was raw and cold, with a considerable

snow drift, although the wind was only moderate from northwest. Divine

service was performed on board. The men’s usual proportion of fresh

meat was increased, as also their allowance of grog, and the day

passed with much of the same kind of festivity by which it is usually

distinguished at home.

On the first of January scurvy made its appearance among them. Mr.

Scallon, gunner of the Hecla, had complained for some days, and the

symptoms were now decidedly scorbutic. It was found to be owing to the

dampness of his bedding, and proper measures were taken to prevent an

increase of the malady. By raising mustard and cress in small boxes

near the cabin stove, they were able to give Mr. Scallon and one or

two more patients nearly an ounce of salad per day. The vegetables

thus raised were necessarily colorless from the privation of light;

but they had the same taste as if raised in ordinary circumstances. So

effectual were they in the case of Mr. Scallon, that he recovered in

less than a fortnight.

Toward the end of the month they began to look out for the sun from

the mast head. On the morning of the third of February, the weather

being clear, a cross, consisting of the usual vertical and horizontal

rays, was seen about the moon. At twenty minutes before noon the sun

was seen from the Hecla’s maintop, at the height of fifty-one feet

above the sea, being the first time it had been seen for eighty-four

days, twelve days less than its actual stay below the horizon. There

was now, from eight o’clock till four, sufficient light for any kind

of work, and on the seventh they began to collect ballast for the

Hecla, to make up for the expenditure of stores.

The coldest part of the year was now approaching; yet the sun had

sufficient power to affect the thermometer, which rose from 40 deg. to

35 deg. when exposed to its rays. The distance at which sounds were

heard in the open air during the continuance of this intense cold was

truly surprising. Conversation carried on a mile off could be

distinctly heard. The smoke from the ships, too, owing to the

difficulty it has to rise in a low temperature, was carried

horizontally to a great distance. On the 15th, the mercury sunk to 55

deg. below zero, which was the most intense degree of cold observed

during the winter. Mercury was malleable in this state of the

atmosphere.

From this time the temperature gradually rose. The length of the days

had so much increased by the 26th of February, that a very sensible

twilight was visible in the north.

For the last three or four days of April, the snow on the black cloth

of the housing had begun to thaw a little during a few hours in the

middle of the day, and on the 30th so rapid a change took place in the

temperature of the atmosphere, that the thermometer stood at the

freezing, or, as it may more properly be termed in this climate, the

thawing point, being the first time that such an event had occurred

for nearly eight months, or since the 9th of the preceding September.

This rapid change in the weather revived their hopes of a speedy

departure from Melville Island; and they all had sanguine expectations

of leaving their winter quarters before July. On the first of May,

however, it blew a gale, and the sun was seen at midnight for the

first time that season. On the 6th, the people began the operation of

cutting the ships out of the harbor; and on the 17th, the ships were

once more afloat. On the 21st, some of the officers took a walk

inland, and were able to fill a pint bottle with water from a pool of

melted snow, which was the first they had seen; a proof of the extreme

severity of the climate.

A perceptible change had now taken place in the ice. The upper surface

was covered with innumerable pools of brackish water, so that the

liberation of the sea might be daily expected. Being desirous of

obtaining as much game as possible during the remainder of the time

that must be passed in Winter Harbor, Captain Parry sent out hunting

parties to remain ten or twelve miles inland, with orders to send

whatever game they might procure, to the ships, and also to observe

the ice from the hill tops, and report any change that might take

place.

The dissolution of the ice continued daily, and on the 22d, it was

observed to be in motion in the offing; settling to the eastward at

the rate of a mile an hour. The dissolution of the ice of the harbor

went on so rapidly, in the early part of July, that they were greatly

surprised, on the 6th, in finding that in several of the pools of

water, on its upper surface, holes were washed quite through to the

sea beneath.

On the morning of the 26th, there being a space of clear water for

three quarters of a mile to the southward, they took advantage of a

northern breeze to run as far as the opening would permit, and then

dropped anchor at the edge of the ice, intending to advance step by

step as it separated. The ice across the entrance of the harbor in

this spot, as well as that in the offing, appeared from the crow’s

nest quite continuous and unbroken, with the same appearance of

solidity as at midwinter.

On the 30th, the whole body of the ice was in motion toward the

south-east, breaking away, for the first time, from the points at the

entrance of the harbor. This rendering it probable that the ships

would soon be released, Captain Parry furnished Lieutenant Liddon with

instructions for his guidance during the coming season of operations,

and appointed places of rendezvous in case of separation.

On the first of August, the harbor was clear of ice, and there

appeared to be water in the direction of their intended course. At one

P. M., every thing having been brought on board, they weighed anchor

and ran out of Winter Harbor, in which they had passed ten entire

months of the year, and a part of the two remaining ones, September

and August.

After a few tacks, they had the mortification to perceive that the

Griper sailed much worse than before, though great pains had been

taken during her reëquipment to improve her qualities. By midnight the

Hecla had gained eight miles to windward of her, and was obliged to

heave to, to avoid parting company.

A southerly wind springing up the next day, made it probable that the

ice would close in upon the ships, and they therefore began to look

out for a situation where they might be secured inshore, behind some

of the heavy grounded ice. At one o’clock they perceived that a heavy

floe had already closed completely in with the land at a point a

little to the west-ward of them. A proper place having been found for

their purpose, the ships were hauled in and secured, the Griper’s bow

resting on the beach, in order to allow the Hecla to lie in security

without her. This place was so completely sheltered from the accession

of the main ice, that Captain Parry began to think of taking the

Griper’s crew on board the Hecla, and pursuing the voyage in that ship

alone.

Every moment’s delay cofirmed Captain Parry in the opinion that it was

expedient to attempt to penetrate to the southward, as soon as the ice

would allow the ships to move at all, rather than persevere in pushing

directly westward. He therefore ordered Lieutenant Liddon to run back

a certain distance eastward as soon as he could, without waiting for

the Hecla, should that ship still be detained, and to look out for any

opening to the southward, which might seem favorable to the object in

view, and then wait for the Hecla.

On the 15th, Lieutenant Liddon was enabled to sail, in the execution

of his orders. Captain Parry, however, observing that the Griper made

little or no way, hoisted the signal of recall, with the intention of

making one more attempt to penetrate westward. The ice had so far

separated as to allow him to sail a mile and a half along shore, when

he was again stopped. He was fortunate in finding a tolerably secure

situation for the Hecla within the grounded ice; but the Griper was

left by the wind in a place where, should the ice press upon her,

there could be no hope of safety. For fear of the worst, Captain Parry

made preparations to send parties to assist the Griper’s company, if

the wreck should become unavoidable; but they were shortly after

relieved from all anxiety on this account, by the recession of the ice

from the shore, whereby the Griper was enabled to gain a station near

the Hecla.

The ice to the west and southwest, as seen from their present station,

gave them no reason to expect a speedy opening in the desired

direction. It apeared as solid and compact as so much land; to which

the inequalities of the surface gave it no small resemblance. Captain

Parry, therefore, determined to defer the attempt to try a more

southern latitude no longer.

The point at which the ships were now lying, and which is the

westernmost to which Arctic navigation has ever been carried, is in

latitude 74 deg. 26 min. 25 sec., and longitude 113 deg. 64 min. 43

sec. Cape Dundas seen yet farther west, is in longitude 113 deg. 57

min. 35 sec., by which the length of Melville island appears to be

about a hundred and thirty-five miles, and its breadth, at the

meridian of Winter Harbor, from forty to fifty miles.

At nine P. M., they were abreast of the place where they had landed on

the 5th, and here perceived that the ice closed with the land a little

to the eastward. There was no safety for the ships, unless they could

get past one of the small points at the embouchure of a revine,

against which a floe was setting the smaller pieces of ice and had

blocked up the passage before they arrived. After heaving two hours at

the halsers, they succeeded in getting through, and moored the ships

to some very heavy grounded ice near the beach. Hares were observed

here, feeding on the sides of the cliffs, and a few ptarmigans were

seen. The place where the Hecla was now secured, being the only one of

the kind which could be found, was a little harbor, formed, as usual,

by the grounded ice, some of which was fixed to the bottom in ten or

twelve fathoms. One side of the entrance to this harbor consisted of

masses of floes, very regular in their shape, placed quite

horizontally, and broken off so exactly perpendicular, as to resemble

a handsome, well-built wharf. On the opposite side, however, the

masses to which they looked for security were themselves rather

terrific objects, as they leaned over so much towards the ship, as to

give the appearance of their being in the act of falling upon her

deck; and as a very trifling concussion often produces the fall of

much heavier masses of ice, when in appearance very firmly fixed to

the ground, Captain Parry gave orders that no guns should be fired

near the ship during her continuance in this situation. The Griper was

of necessity made fast near the beach, in rather an exposed situation,

and her rudder unshipped, in readiness for the ice coming in; it

remained quiet, however, though quite close, during the day, the

weather being calm and fine.

In the evening of the 18th, some heavy pieces of grounded ice to which

the bow halser of the Hecla was fastened, fell off into the water,

snapping the rope without injuring the ship. Nevertheless, as every

alteration of this kind must materially change the centre of gravity

of the whole mass, it was thought prudent to move the Hecla out of her

harbor to the place where the Griper was lying, lest some of the bergs

should fall upon her deck and crush or sink her.

On the 20th and 21st, the young ice formed to such a degree, as to

cement together all the loose ice about the ships; nor did it thaw on

either of those days, though the sun shone clearly upon it for several

hours. The main body remained close and firm in every direction. The

same state of things obtained on the 22d, and in the morning of the

23d, the young ice was an inch and a half thick. A breeze springing up

from the westward put it in motion, so that by noon the ships were

able to warp out and proceed eastward. In a short time, however, the

ice closed so firmly around them that they became wholly unmanageable,

and received many blows, more severe than any they had received

before. After having drifted with the ice six miles, they were made

fast to some grounded ice.

The situation in which the ships were now placed, and the shortness of

the navigable season, caused great anxiety. Judging from the

experience of 1819, it was reasonable to conclude that about the 7th

of September, was the limit beyond which the ships could not keep the

sea with any degree of safety or prospect of success; but being

thoroughly impressed with the idea that it was incumbent on him to

make every possible effort, Captain Parry determined to extend this

limit to the 14th of September, before which date the winter would

have set in. The prospect was not very encouraging, even with this

extension; they had only advanced sixty miles this season, and the

distance to Icy Cape was yet between eight and nine hundred miles,

supposing them to find a clear passage. The provisions, too, were so

far reduced in quantity, that by no means could they be made to hold

out longer than till April, 1822, and the deficiency of fuel was even

more apparent. These and other minor considerations, induced Captain

Parry to ask the advice and opinions of his officers relative to the

expediency of returning to England. They all agreed that any attempt

to penetrate farther westward in their present parallel, would be

fruitless, and attended with loss of time that might be more

profitably employed elswhere. They advised that the vessel should run

back along the edge of the ice, in order to look for an opening that

might lead toward the American continent, and after a reasonable time

spent in the search, to return to England. This advice agreeing with

his own opinions, Captain Parry resolved to comply with it.

On the twenty-fourth the ships moved again, and found less ice as they

advanced, so that when, on the morning of the 27th, they cleared the

east end of Melville Island, the navigable channel was not less than

ten miles wide. A constant look-out was kept from the crow’s nest for

an opening to the south, but none occurred. The weather was hazy, so

much so that they were again obliged to steer the ships one by the

other. As they proceeded, several islands hitherto unknown, were

discovered, but no opening was seen in the ice, and when they had, on

the 30th, reached longitude 90 degrees, they became satisfied that

there was no possibility of effecting their object, and Captain Parry,

therefore, conceived it to be his duty to return forthwith to England,

in order that no time might be lost in following up his discoveries,

if his government should deem fit to do so.

The Hecla arrived at the Orkney Islands on the 28th of October; and

the Griper on the first of November. Thus did they return from a

voyage of eighteen months duration, in good health and spirits, with

the loss of only one man.

SECOND VOYAGE.――The discoveries made by the expedition under Captain

Parry in 1819-20, being believed to afford a strong presumption of the

existence of a Northwest Passage to the Pacific Ocean, the British

government commanded that another attempt should be made to discover

it. The Hecla having been found well adapted to this kind of service,

the Fury, a ship of precisely the same class, was selected to

accompany her. Captain George F. Lyon was appointed to command the

Hecla, and Captain Parry, whose efforts had made him justly

celebrated, was commissioned to command the expedition.

Some alterations in the interior arrangements of the vessels, such as

were suggested by the experience of Captain Parry, were made. Among

these was an apparatus for melting snow, which was found very useful,

and was so little in the way that it could not even be seen. Cots and

hammocks were substituted for the former bed places, and some

improvements were made in the manner of victualing the ships.

In his official instructions, Captain Parry was directed to proceed

into Hudson’s Strait, till he should meet the ice, when the Nautilus

Transport, which was placed at his disposal, was to be cleared of its

provisions and stores. He was then to penetrate westward, till he

should reach some land which he should be convinced was a part of the

American _continent_, at some point north of Wager River. If he

reached the Pacific, he was to proceed to Kamschatka; thence to Canton

or the Sandwich Islands, and thence to England, by whatever route he

might deem most convenient.

Accordingly, in the beginning of April, 1821, the three vessels sailed

from England. Nothing worthy of note occurred till they met with the

ice in Davis’ Strait, where the vessels were moored to an iceberg, and

the Nautilus was unladen. This done, she parted company on the 1st of

July, and sailed for England, while the Fury and Hecla stood towards

the ice, which they reached a little before noon, and ran along its

edge, keeping as much to the westward as possible.

On the 24th they reached the Savage Islands, and landed on one of

them. They are many――all exhibiting the same appearance of utter

sterility. That on which they landed was from six to eight hundred

feet above the level of the sea. Here they noticed the same

appearances of an Esquimaux camp as had been seen at Melville Island,

with a few pieces of fir, which proved that the savages, in these

parts, were not in want of wood, since they could afford to leave it

behind them. Hares and several species of birds were seen on this

island.

As soon as the exploring party returned on board, all sail was made to

the westward, the sea being now nearly free from ice. The next day the

hills on the coast of Labrador were seen. Thus they kept on till the

31st, discovering islands as they proceeded. On the afternoon of this

day, an Esquimaux _oomiak_ was seen coming from the shore of Salisbury

Island, under sail, accompanied by eight kayaks. In this boat were

sixteen persons, of which two were men, and the rest women and

children. In dress and personal appearance, these people did not

differ from the Esquimaux last seen, but their behavior was far less

offensive.

On the first of August, the ships kept on westward between Nottingham

Island and the north shore, which is fringed with small islands. This

channel is about twelve miles wide. In the course of the morning, some

Esquimaux came to the ships from the main land, bringing oil, skin

dresses, and walrus’ tusks, which they exchanged for any trifle that

was offered. They also offered toys for sale, such as models of

canoes, weapons, etc. Here, for the first time, the navigators saw the

dresses of the savages lined with the skins of birds, having the

feathers inside.

Having run forty miles in the night without seeing any ice, they came

the next morning to a pack so close as to prevent their farther

progress. The ships received very heavy blows, and with considerable

difficulty got clear of it. They ran along the edge several miles to

the northward, in search of an opening; but finding none, they stood

back to the southwest, to try what could be done in that quarter.

The expedition being now about to enter upon ground hitherto

unexplored, it became necessary for Captain Parry to decide on the

route he should pursue with most advantage; and after mature

deliberation, he came to the resolution to attempt a direct passage of

the Frozen Strait, though he greatly feared the loss of time that

would be the consequence of a failure.

After contending with the ice for several days, on the 11th, the ship

succeeded in getting to the northern land, and a party of the officers

landed upon a small rock, or islet, a mile and a half from the shore.

Soon after the party returned on board, a fresh gale from the north

compelled them to make the ships fast to the largest floe near, in

order not to lose much ground. The gale moderated about noon, and they

cast off from the floe and made sail. They made considerable progress

till evening, when the ice closed round them again. After sunset on

the 13th, they descried land to the westward, which they believed to

be a part of the continent. Yet they continued closely beset, and on

the 15th the Hecla drifted back with the ice, out of sight of her

consort. This was partly owing to the extraordinnry refraction upon

the horizon, which apparently diminished and distorted objects, at no

great distance, in a wonderful manner. On the next day, however, the

Hecla hove in sight, and upon which the Fury set sail and beat through

the channel. On the morning of the 17th, the weather being too foggy

to move, parties from both ships went on shore, to examine the country

and to procure specimens of its natural productions.

As soon as the weather cleared up, they returned on board, and sailed

to the northeast, where alone they had any chance of finding an

outlet. Having ascertained the continuity of land round this inlet,

they gave it the name of the Duke of York’s Bay. It was now certain

that the object of the expedition could not be effected in that

direction; and they therefore sailed back, through the narrow channel

by which they had entered, with the intention of seeking an opening

further north, without delay.

It would be tedious to tell of every obstacle that hindered or delayed

the ships. They pursued their intended course along the shore, when

the wind and weather permitted; and when unavoidably detained, they

landed. Among other places, they landed at Repulse Bay, in latitude 66

deg. 30 min. and longitude 86 deg. 30 min. From all indications, the

water through which they had been sailing, was the imperfectly known

Frozen Strait; and Captain Parry resolved to keep along the land to

the northward, and examine every bend or inlet, which might appear

likely to afford a practicable passage to the westward.

Sailing on the 23d along the northern shore of Frozen Strait, it was

observed that the land appeared in one place to consist of islands

only, behind which no land was visible. This part of the coast

appeared to Captain Parry so favorable to the accomplishment of his

enterprise, that he resolved to examine it more closely. Having beat

up to the mouth of an opening that seemed practicable, he found the

greater part of the channel filled with a body of ice, rendering

examinations in ships or boats impossible. The only means, therefore,

of exploring it were, to despatch a party by land. Captain Lyon

undertook this service, accompanied by five persons, furnished with a

tent and four days’ provision. The ships were anchored to await his

return a mile from the shore. The flood tide came _out_ of this inlet,

a circumstance that materially strengthened their hopes of success.

Captain Lyon first landed on an island, and then crossed a strait to a

steep point. Thence proceeding northward to a hill, he found the

strait continuous, and returned to the ships. On this short journey,

he passed the remains of a great many Esquimaux habitations. The

result of Captain Lyon’s excursion was to convince all concerned, that

a communication existed here between Frozen Strait and a sea to the

northward and eastward of it, and Captain Parry determined to explore

it as far as possible.

After drifting about some time in the ice, and more than once narrowly

escaping shipwreck, measures were taken to survey this part of the

Frozen strait; but little knowledge was gained by all their efforts.

On the 1st of September, the prospect of getting northward, was by no

means encouraging; and they were, from time to time, beset with ice,

and drifted back. On the 3d, they found that after a laborious

investigation, which had occupied a whole month, they had returned to

nearly the same spot where they had been on the 6th of August, near

Southampton Island.

On the 1st of October, rain fell, which immediately freezing, made the

decks and ropes as smooth as glass. For several days the thermometer

had been below the freezing point, and sometimes as low as 20 deg. at

night, which change, together with the altered aspect of the land, and

the rapid formation of young ice near the shores, gave notice of the

approach of winter. The commencement of this dreary season in these

regions may, indeed, be dated from the time when the earth no longer

receives and radiates heat enough to melt the snow which falls upon

it.

On the 8th the young ice on the surface began to give them warning

that the navigation of those seas was nearly eneed for the season.

When the young ice has acquired the thickness of half an inch, and is

of considerable extent, a ship must be stopped by it, unless favored

by a strong and fair wind; and even when making progress, is not under

the control of the helmsman, depending mostly on the thickness of the

ice on one bow or the other. Boats cannot be employed in such

situations with much effect.

When to these difficulties were added the disadvantage of a

temperature near zero, and twelve hours of daily darkness, Captain

Parry became convinced that it was expedient to place the ships in the

most secure situation that could be found, rather than run the risk of

being permanently detached from the land by attempting to gain the

continent. Accordingly a canal was sawed into a harbor on the south

side of a small island, to which the name of Winter Island was given,

and the ships were warped to their winter stations. Thus ended their

operations for the season, after having explored a portion of coast

six hundred miles in extent, one half of which belonged to the

continent of America.

The arrangements for passing the winter comfortably were pretty much

the same as those which had been made at Melville Island, with some

improvements, suggested by former experience. The theatre was better

fitted than before, and a school was established for the benefit of

such of the crews as might wish to learn to read and write. The lower

deck of the Fury was fitted for a church, and the companies of both

ships attended during the winter. The men were sent to walk on shore

for exercise, whenever the weather was favorable; and finger-posts

were erected in various parts of the island, to prevent them from

losing their way.

On the 11th of December, the weather being tolerably clear, stars of

the third magnitude were visible to the naked eye at forty minutes

past eight, and those of the second magnitude till a quarter past

nine, which may give some idea of the degree of light at this period.

The twilight was, of course, very long, and the redness of the sun’s

rays might be seen more than three hours after its setting.

On the 13th, the thermometer fell to 31 deg., being the lowest

temperature yet experienced. Rising on the 17th to 5 deg., the play of

The Poor Gentleman was performed. On Christmas eve the theatre was

again put in requisition, and the next day was celebrated to the

utmost extent their means would allow. Among the luxuries of the

Christmas dinner were a few joints of English roast beef, which had

been preserved expressly for the occasion, the first and last ever

eaten in Frozen Strait.

The same occupations, that had employed them at Melville Island served

to beguile the time this winter. Nothing material occurred till the

first of February, unless the circumstance of seeing a white bear may

be accounted so.

On the first of February, a number of Esquimaux were seen coming

toward the ships over the ice, and the appearance of huts was

discovered on the shore with a telescope. Captains Parry and Lyon,

with three or four others, set out to meet the natives who were slowly

approaching, to the number of twenty-five. As the officers advanced,

they stood still, awaiting their approach. They had no arms, but

carried only a few strips of whalebone, which they had brought for a

peace-offering, and which the gentlemen immediately purchased for a

few small nails and beads. There were several women and children with

the party, and the behavior of all was quite peaceable and orderly.

They were all handsomely dressed in deerskins, and some had double

suits.

However quiet these savages were, they did not exhibit the slightest

signs of apprehension or distrust. As soon as some understanding was

established, the officers expressed a wish to visit their huts, and

the Esquimaux readily complying, they all set out together. The

savages were greatly astonished on the way, to see a large dog,

belonging to the whites, fetch and carry; and the children could

scarcely contain their joy when Captain Lyon gave them a stick to

throw, and the dog brought it back to them. An infirm old man, who

supported himself with a staff, which he much needed, was left behind

by his companions, who took no notice of his infirmities, but left him

to find his way as he might, without reluctance or scruple.

An intercourse was kept up between the ships and the Esquimaux, as

long as the latter remained there, which was until the 23d of May,

when they set off with all their goods and chattels, including a

parting gift from Captain Parry.

The caulking of the bows being now completed, the ships were released

from the ice by sawing around them; an operation which made them rise

in the water six inches and a half, in consequence of the buoyancy

occasioned by the winter’s expenditure.

An increased extent of open water appeared in the offing, Captain Lyon

again departed, accompanied by nine persons, with a tent, fuel, and

provisions for twenty days. Each individual was furnished with a light

sledge, to draw his provision and baggage, which might weigh about an

hundred pounds. Their instructions were, after gaining the continent

to proceed along the coast and examine it, and to make observations

respecting the tides and the natural productions of the country.

He set out on the 8th of May, and rested on the 9th at a low, rocky

point, which he called Point Belford. Proceeding northward, he had

given the following names successively to different parts of the

coast, viz: Blake’s Bay, Adderly’s Bluff, Palmer Bay, Point Elizabeth,

and Cape William; when, finding his provision and fuel half expended,

he judged it prudent to return.

Flocks of birds now began to give token of returning summer, and, on

the 25th, some Esquimaux, who came from an encampment to the westward,

reported having seen a great many reindeer. Yet at the close of May it

was a matter of general regret that there was little prospect of the

departure of the ice, and that few indications of a thaw had been

observed. The navigators could not fail to remember that at Melville

Island, though so much farther north, the season had, on the same day

two years before, advanced full as far as now at Winter Island. The

parts of the land which were most bare were the smooth, round tops of

the hills, on some of which were little pools of water. There were

also, on the low lands, a few dark, uncovered patches, looking, in the

snow, like islets in the sea. Vegetation seemed striving to commence,

and a few tufts of saxifrage oppositifolia, when closely examined,

discovered some signs of life. Such was the state of things on shore:

upon the ice, appearances were as unpromising. Except in the immediate

vicinity of the ships, where from incessant trampling, and the deposit

of various stores upon the ice, some heat had been absorbed

artifically, there was no perceptible sign of dissolution on the upper

surface, where six or seven inches of snow yet remained on every part.

In these circumstances, Captain Parry resolved to try what could be

done to release the ships by cutting and sawing. Arrangements were,

therefore, made for getting everything on board, and for commencing

this laborious work.

The operation began on the 3d of June, and was completed in sixteen

days, by severe and persevering labor. In the meanwhile, Nature seemed

unwilling to lend our mariners any aid: the dissolution of the ice was

so slow as scarcely to be perceptible. However, it was so weakened by

the cut made, that the first pressure from without effected a rupture,

so that a favorable breeze only was needed, to enable the ships to put

to sea. On the 2d of July, the wind, for the first time, became fair,

and the ships sailed.

Winter Island is ten miles and a half in length, from north-west by

north, to south-east by south, and its average breadth from eight to

ten miles. It is what seamen call rather low land; the height of the

south-east point, which was named Cape Fisher, out of respect to the

chaplain and astronomer, being seventy-six feet, and none of the hills

above three times that height. The outline of the land is smooth, and

in the summer, when free from snow, presents a brown appearance.

Several miles of the north-west end of the island are so low and

level, that when the snow lay thick upon it, our travelers could only

distinguish it from the sea by the absence of hummocks of ice.

The basis of the island is gneiss rock, much of which is of a gray

color, but in many places also the feldspar is so predominant as to

give a bright and red appearance to the rocks, especially about Cape

Fisher, where also some broad veins of quartz are seen intersecting

the gneiss; and both this and the feldspar are very commonly

accompanied by a green substance, which appeared to be pistacite, and

which usually occurs as a thin lamina adhering strongly to the others.

In many specimens these three are united, the feldspar and quartz

displaying tolerably perfect crystals. In some of the gneiss small red

garnets are abundant, as also in mica-slate. In lumps of granite,

which are found detached upon the surface, the mica sometimes occurs

in white plates, and in other specimens is of a dirty brown color.

There are several varieties of mica-slate, and some of these have a

brilliant metallic appearance, like silver; those which are most so,

crumble very easily to pieces. The most common stone next to those

already mentioned is lime, which is principally schistose, and of a

white color. Many pieces of this substance, on being broken, present

impressions of fossil-shells, and some have also brown waved lines

running quite through them. Nodules of flint occur in some masses of

lime, but they are not common. Iron pyrites is found in large lumps of

black stone, tinged externally with the oxyde of iron: it is here and

there met with in small perfect cubes.

Sailing northward along the coast, the ships were soon stopped by the

ice. While they remained stationary, a party of natives was discovered

on shore, who proved to be their neighbors of Winter Island. They were

cordially greeted by the officers and seamen as old acquaintances, and

loaded with presents. On leaving the ships, one of them sent Captain

Parry a piece of seal skin as a present, without the least prospect or

expectation of a return. We mention this trifling incident, merely

because it was the first and only undeniable proof of gratitude

observed among these people.

Slowly and painfully our navigators pursued their course northward,

always with difficulty and often with great danger. On the 12th of the

month, they discovered the mouth of a considerable river, and Captain

Parry went on shore to examine it. The water was fresh, and the stream

varied in breadth from four hundred yards to the third of a mile.

After ascending a mile and a half, the Captain heard the roar of a

waterfall. At the mouth, the banks of the river were about two hundred

feet high, but here they rose much higher, and the water ran on a more

elevated level. As Captain Parry proceeded inland, he found the stream

rushing with great fury over two small cataracts. Then turning a right

angle of the river, he perceived a greater spray, occasioned by a very

magnificent fall. Where the stream begins its descent it is contracted

to the breadth of one hundred and fifty feet, the channel being worn

in a solid bed of gneiss rock. After falling about fifteen feet, at an

angle of thirty degrees, the river is again narrowed to forty yards,

and as if collecting its strength for a great effort, is precipitated

ninety feet, in one unbroken mass. A cloud of spray rises from the

cataract, surmounted by an uncommonly vivid rainbow. The basin which

receives the fall is circular and about four hundred yards in

diameter, rather wider than the river immediately below. Above the

cataract, the stream winds in the most romantic manner imaginable

among the hills, with a smooth and unruffled surface. To this

beautiful water-course Captain Parry gave the name of Barrow’s River.

Its entrance is in latitude 67 deg. 18 min. 05 sec., and longitude 81

deg. 25 min. 20 sec.

The next day large herds of walrusses were seen upon the drift ice,

and all the boats were sent to kill some for the sake of the oil. The

sportsmen found them lying huddled together, piled upon one another.

They waited quietly to be shot, and were not greatly alarmed even

after one or two volleys. They suffered the people to debark on the

ice near them, but on their near approach displayed a somewhat

pugnacious purpose. After they got into the water three were struck

with harpoons and killed. When first wounded, they were quite furious:

one of them resolutely attacked Captain Lyon’s boat, and injured it

with his tusks. Those which remained uninjured surrounded the wounded

animals, and struck them with their tusks; whether to assist their

escape, or with a hostile intention, cannot be ascertained. Two of the

animals killed were females, and one weighed over fifteen hundred

pounds, which was not considered an uncommon bulk. The strength of the

walrus is very great. One of them being touched with an oar, seized it

with his flippers, and snapped it with the utmost ease. Many of these

animals had young ones, which, when assailed, they carried off, either

between their flippers or on their backs. They were most easily killed

with musket-balls, even after being struck with the harpoon, as their

skins are so tough as to resist a whaling lance.

On the 15th, the ships reached Igloolik, for the situation of which we

refer our readers to the map. Here they found a new band of Exquimaux,

who proved to be the acquaintances and relatives of those of Winter

Island. These people dwelt not in snow huts, but in tents, made of the

skins of the walrus and seal, the former shaved thin enough to allow

the transmission of light. They were clumsily made, and supported by a

kind of tent-pole, constructed by tying bones or deer’s horns

together. The edges of the tents were kept down by placing stones upon

them. To keep the whole fabric erect, a thong was extended from the

top to a large stone at the distance of a few yards. These abiding

places had little appearance of affording comfort or convenience.

From these people Captain Parry learned that he had unquestionably

been coasting the _continent_. He then determined to attempt to

penetrate a large inlet, stretching west-ward from Igloolik, which, at

the time of his arrival, was closed by a fixed barrier of ice, and

which he named The Strait of the Fury and Hecla. We shall not follow

the navigators in their arduous but unsuccessful efforts to penetrate

west-ward at this point, as we have already alloted more space to

their adventures than consists with our intended limits. Suffice it to

say, that after persevering in the attempt till the 30th of September,

they found themselves as far from the attainment of their object as at

first. The cold weather then setting in, they were compelled to lay

the ships up at Igloolik.

One important point was settled, however, beyond the possibility of

doubt. Finding his researches ineffectual by water, Captain Parry

undertook to explore the Strait of the Fury and Hecla by land. He

found it continuous, and pursued his journey far enough to see the

open sea beyond, thus proving the existence of a passage at this

point, though it was then, and probably ever will be, closed by an

insurmountable barrier of ice. Besides this result of his endeavors,

the position of Cockburn Island, and indeed of all the lands adjacent

to Igloolik, was ascertained, and correctly laid down on the map.

Besides the Esquimaux found at Igloolik, our friends had the society

of the savages of Winter Island, who rejoined them shortly after their

arrival. We are sorry that we cannot relate the adventures and

observations of this winter, as they are extremely entertaining; but

as they are not important in their nature, we trust to be excused for

omitting them.

Igloolik is a low island, ten miles long and six broad, and exhibits

the same appearance of sterility as the adjacent continent, excepting

in places which have been inhabited by the natives. There, the

accumulation of animal substances has produced a luxuriant vegetation.

In some parts there are spots several hundred yards in extent, covered

with bright green moss. The whole land seems to be composed of

innumerable fragments of thin schistose limestone, some of which

contain the impressions of fossil remains, while others present the

cellular structure usually found in madreporite. The interior is

almost an entire swamp; but there are rising grounds, which, with the

remains of Esquimaux habitations upon them, are excellent landmarks.

East of Igloolik is a group of small islands called by Captain Parry

Calthorpe Islands. Like almost all the land in this vicinity, they are

low, but their geology differs from that of Igloolik, and resembles

that of Winter Island, being composed of gneiss. Two of this group,

however, are high and rugged. From the top of one of these there is a

view of the adjacent shores.

The entrance of the Strait of the Fury and Hecla is about three miles

wide, and is formed by two projecting headlands between which the tide

rushes with great velocity. The south shore is high, but of gradual

ascent, perfectly smooth and composed of beautifully variegated

sand-stone. Beyond the entrance the land is bold and mountainous.

Captain Parry, who it will be remembered explored the southern shore

of the Strait, states the hills to consist of gray gneiss and red

granite, rising, in some instances, a thousand feet above the level of

the sea. In some places he saw slate, and in others sand-stone. He has

left no positive data, by which we may determine the length of this

Strait; but as he was rather more than a day in accomplishing the

distance on foot, by a circuitous route, we may conclude that it does

not exceed fifteen or twenty miles. From the point where his journey

terminated he saw a continuous sea to the westward, open and

unobstructed save by ice and by one small island.

There are several islands in the Strait of the Fury and Hecla. On one

of these (Liddon Island) abundance of beautifully veined clay

iron-stone was found. The other minerals were asbestos, crystals of

carbonate of lime, and a great variety of sand-stone, of which the

island is formed.

Amherst Island is flat, and on the northern part is formed of black

slate, with strong indications of coal. This part of the island is

utterly bare of vegetation. In a low cliff of black and rugged slate

there is a beautiful and romantic grotto. The water oozing through the

sides and roof, has formed the most brilliant stalactites, which form

a splendid contrast with the shady part of the ebon grotto behind. The

other part of the island is of clay and limestone, on which there is a

very scanty covering of shriveled grass and moss.

The winter in Igloolik was spent like the preceding one, in amusements

on board ship, and intercourse with the Esquimaux.

On the 9th of August the ships ran out of their harbor, where they had

been detained three hundred and nineteen days. They were so

embarrassed by the ice, that little use could be made of their sails;

nevertheless, by the 30th of the month they passed Winter Island,

having been carried three degrees by the drift in which they were

beset. On the 9th of October, they made the Orkney Islands, and on the

10th reached Lerwick in Shetland, where they were received with many

congratulations on their safe return.

THIRD VOYAGE. The British Government having resolved to fit out a

third expedition, under Captain Parry, the Hecla and Fury were made

ready for sea, the latter under the command of Captain Hoppner, and

sailed from England on the 16th of May 1824. They were to attempt the

northwest passage at Prince Regent’s Inlet. Having crossed the

Atlantic without any material adventure, they made the bay of Lievely

in Disko Island on the 5th of July.

Sailing up Baffin’s Bay, on the 17th the ships came to ice, and after

many obstructions, only penetrated seventy miles to the westward. Here

they encountered a hard gale, and sustained several shocks that would

have crushed any ship of ordinary strength. They reached Lancaster’s

Sound on the 10th of September. The winds not being favorable, the

ships made small progress, and on the 13th the crews had the

mortification to perceive the sea ahead covered with ice, in

attempting to penetrate which they were soon immovably beset.

Nevertheless, the exertions of Captain Parry and his coadjutor were

unremitting.

The officers landed at one place, a little east of Admiralty Inlet.

The vegetation was, as usual in those regions, very scanty. With great

exertion and extreme difficulty, the expedition reached Port Bowen in

Prince Regent’s Inlet, on the 27th, where, by the middle of October,

Captain Parry deemed it advisable to lay up the ships for the winter.

Several journeys inland proved the country to be exceedingly broken

and rugged; so much so that the researches of the explorers were of

necessity confined to a very limited extent.

About midnight on the 27th of January, a brilliant display of the

Aurora Borealis was observed. It broke out in a single compact mass of

yellow light, appearing but a short distance above the land. This

light, notwithstanding its general continuity, sometimes appeared to

be composed of numerous groups of rays, compressed laterally, as it

were, into one, its limits to right and left being well defined and

nearly vertical. Though always very brilliant, it constantly varied in

intensity; and this appeared to be produced by one volume of light

overlaying another, as we see the darkness of smoke increase when

cloud rolls over cloud. While some of the officers were admiring the

exceeding beauty of the phenomenon, they were suddenly astonished at

seeing a brilliant ray shoot down from the general mass _between them

and the land_, thence distant about three thousand yards.

The principal animals seen were bears, foxes, hares and mice, but no

deer or wolves. These appeared but rarely, and the same may be said of

the feathered creation. In July, a canal was sawed in the ice, and the

ships were towed to sea. Captain Parry hoped to sail over to the

western shore of the inlet, but he had only made eight miles in the

intended direction, when he was stopped by the ice. As no opening

appeared in that quarter, he determined to try to cross more to the

northward. The most he gained was some knowledge of the character of

the shores.

On the 30th of July, the ships being beset close to the land, a hard

gale brought the ice close upon them. The Hecla received no damage but

the breaking of two or three hawsers; but the Fury was forced on

shore. She was heaved off again, with little injury, but this was but

the commencement of her misfortunes. On the 1st of July, she was again

nipped, and so severely strained as to leak a great deal. As the tide

fell, her stern, which was aground, was lifted several feet, and the

Hecla also remained aground. No place was found where the Fury might

be hove down to repair the damage, as the shore was everywhere lined

with masses of grounded ice. The ships were again made to float, but

it was found, notwithstanding incessant labor on board the Fury, that

four pumps constantly going could hardly keep the water under. In

these circumstances the only harbor that could be found was formed by

grounded masses of ice, within which the water was from three to four

fathoms deep at low tide.

On the night of the 2d, the ice came in with great violence, and again

forced the Fury on shore. The strength and number of the Hecla’s

hawsers only saved her from sharing the same fate. In the meanwhile

the crew of the Fury were completely exhausted by labor, and their

hands had become so sore by the constant friction of the ropes that

they could no longer handle them without mittens. In this situation it

was determined to land the stores and provisions of the vessel, in

order that she might undergo a complete repair.

Accordingly anchors were carried to the beach, by which the grounded

icebergs that formed the harbor were secured in their position, thus

enclosing a space just sufficient to admit both ships. In this

position a great part of the Fury’s stores were landed. The injury was

found to be more severe than had at first been supposed; indeed, it

appeared that the compactness of her fabric had alone saved her from

sinking. Nevertheless, no exertion was spared to render her seaworthy

again, though the daily pressure of the ice was another, and a very

great disadvantage.

In spite of every effort, it was found impossible to save the Fury,

and the Hecla was greatly endangered in the attempt. She was compelled

to leave the land and drift about among the ice, to avoid being forced

on shore. On returning, Captain Parry found that the Fury had been

driven farther on the beach than before, and nine feet of water were

in her hold. Her keel and bottom were more injured than ever. The

first glance satisfied Captain Parry that the vessel could never

return to England. By and with the advice of a council of his

officers, therefore, he decided to leave her to her fate, and as his

provisions would barely suffice for another twelvemonth, to return

home. In pursuance of this resolution the Hecla reached Sheerness on

the 21st of October. On the eastern shore of Prince Regent’s Inlet is

Cape Kater, the most southern point attained by the ships in this

expedition. It is in latitude 71 deg. 53 min. 30 sec. and longitude 90

deg. 03 min. 45 sec.