PEARY’S EXPEDITIONS (1886−1909)
Commander R. E. Peary is the most persevering and the most daring of all
Arctic explorers. He tells how he was induced to take an active interest
in Arctic exploration. An old book-store in Washington was a favourite
haunt of his, and one evening he there came across a paper on the Inland
Ice of Greenland, and found the subject so interesting that he followed
it up. He consulted various authorities, but found very conflicting
statements. He therefore determined to visit Greenland and investigate
the matter himself. He was then a lieutenant in the United States Navy.
The Navy Department having granted his application for leave, he made
the necessary arrangements, and left Sydney on the steam-whaler _Eagle_
in May 1886.
Arriving at Godhavn on 6th June, he left the whaler, and made
preparations to explore the Inland Ice from the neighbourhood of Disco
Bay. He was delayed two weeks at Godhavn by the ice before he could
embark for Ritenbenk, at the head of the bay.
On the 23rd June he left Ritenbenk with Christian Maigaard, who was
Assistant-Governor there, and eight natives, and made for Pakitsok
Fiord. The head of the fiord was reached on the 25th, and on the 28th
everything had been carried up to the ice-cap.
Peary’s sledging equipment had been made under his own supervision. He
had two 9-foot sledges, 13 inches wide, made of hickory, steel, and
hide, on a modified Hudson Bay pattern. With drag-ropes and lashings
each weighed 23 lb. He carried jacketed alcohol-stoves, 9-foot
double-ended ash alpenstocks with steel point and chisel, rubber
creepers, snow-shoes, and ski. His rations consisted of tea, sugar,
condensed milk, hard bread, pemmican, cranberry jam, baked beans, Liebig
extract, and an experimental mixture of meat, biscuit, and desiccated
potato.
The natives left the party at the edge of the ice-cap. On the 29th June,
Peary and Maigaard started due east. A few hours after setting out, a
furious storm came on, and it was deemed advisable to return to the head
of the fiord and wait there till the weather improved.
On the 5th July the storm abated, and Peary and Maigaard set out once
more. They reached the sledges, dug them out of the snow, and started
due east again.
After crossing a network of crevasses, they encountered a series of
lakes which were not frozen hard enough to support them. They had
frequently to wade through a morass of saturated snow.
On the 15th July another storm compelled them to lie up four days at an
elevation of 7525 feet above the sea. This camp was 100 miles from the
margin of the ice-cap, and was the farthest point reached. Only six
days’ provisions were left, and Peary decided to return.
The return journey was made rapidly, but they had several exciting
experiences. On one occasion Maigaard was nearly lost in a crevasse, and
on another Peary was swept away in a glacier stream.
On his return to Ritenbenk, Peary set out for the Noursoak Peninsula,
which he crossed alone to the edge of the Great Kariak Glacier, and then
returned. This journey across the peninsula occupied three days.
From this expedition to Greenland, Peary states that he returned with
the northern bacilli in his system, the Arctic fever in his veins, never
to be eradicated. He was full of enthusiastic plans for accomplishing
the crossing of Greenland. Duty, however, absorbed his energies during
the next few years, and in the meantime Nansen effected the crossing of
Southern Greenland over one of the routes which Peary had suggested.
Peary now fell back on his more ambitious scheme—the determination of
the northern limit of Greenland overland.
He laid his plans before the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences
and other learned bodies, and received their support. He then obtained
eighteen months’ leave, and made the necessary preparations for his
expedition of 1891−92. He approached the Dundee whaling companies and
the Director of the Greenland trade, but they refused to transport his
party to Greenland on any terms. He was therefore compelled to charter a
vessel, but was fortunately successful in raising funds to meet the
greatly increased cost.
Peary and a party of six, which included his wife, left Brooklyn in the
_Kite_ on 6th June 1891. His party consisted of Frederick A. Cook,
surgeon and ethnologist; Langdon Gibson, ornithologist and chief hunter;
Eivind Astrup; John M. Verhoeff, mineralogist and meteorologist; Matthew
Henson, body-servant.
The master of the _Kite_ was Captain Richard Pike, who was a famous
Arctic skipper. It was he who took Greely’s expedition to Lady Franklin
Bay, and he was in command of the _Proteus_ when Lieutenant Garlington
attempted to relieve Greely.
Peary had two whale-boats built for the expedition, and in these it was
intended to return to the Danish settlements from Whale Sound. He also
carried wood for a 12 by 20 feet house.
Godhavn was reached on 27th June, and left on the 29th. A stop was made
at Upernavik, where Peary expected to obtain a kayak and a native
interpreter, but failed to get either.
No obstruction to the _Kite’s_ progress was met until about 16 miles
north of the Duck Islands. Here the dreaded Melville Bay pack was
encountered, and the _Kite_ after boring her way from the 2nd till the
4th July was completely beset, and did not escape till the 17th.
On the 11th July the ice slackened a little, and the _Kite_ made
attempts to forge ahead. While at this work a large cake of ice struck
the rudder, jamming it hard over, and tearing the wheel from the hands
of the two men on duty. One of the men was thrown clear over the wheel,
and the next instant the iron tiller had caught Peary’s leg between it
and the deck-house, and snapped both bones just above the ankle. He was
immediately carried to the cabin, where his leg was set.
This was an extremely serious accident for Peary, and a man with less
determination would have given up the expedition and returned home. This
idea did not seem to occur to Peary. Even with a broken leg at this
critical period, he decided that everything must go on.
It was his intention to secure a winter camp on the north shore of
Inglefield Gulf; but the _Kite_ met unbroken ice, and was ultimately run
into McCormick Bay. Here a site for the house was soon selected, and
preparations were at once made to land provisions and stores.
On the 26th July work was commenced on the house. During the delay in
Melville Bay pack, Peary had the wood cut and fitted, and now it had
only to be nailed together and erected.
The interior dimensions of the house were to be 21 feet in length, 12
feet in width, and 8 feet in height from floor to ceiling. It consisted
of an inner and an outer shell, separated by an air-space, formed by the
frames of the house, and varying from 10 inches at the sides to over 3
feet in the centre of the roof.
On the outside of the frames was attached the outer air-tight shell
composed of a sheathing of closely fitting boards and two thicknesses of
tarred paper. To the inside of the frames was fastened the inner shell,
composed of thick trunk boards, and made air-tight by pasting all the
joints with heavy brown paper. This inner shell was lined throughout
with heavy blankets.
To still further protect it, a wall was built entirely around the house,
about 5 feet distant from it. The foundation of this wall was composed
of stones, turf, and empty barrels. Above this, the wooden boxes
containing tinned supplies were piled in regular courses in such a way
that the contents could easily be reached. From the top of these, canvas
was stretched to the side of the house so as to form a corridor.
When the snow came, a wall of this was built outside of the other, and
the roof of the house was also thickly covered with snow.
On the 27th July, Peary was taken ashore, strapped to a plank, and
placed in a tent near the site of the house, so that he might supervise
the work.
The _Kite_ departed for the south on the 30th July, and Peary and his
party were left to their own resources.
Near at hand rose cliffs of a reddish colour, and this fact induced
Peary to name his house “Red Cliff House.” Its position was found to be
77° 40′ north latitude, and 70° 40′ west longitude. It was therefore
about half-way between the Arctic Circle and the North Pole.
On the 12th August, Dr. Cook, Verhoeff, Astrup, and Gibson were sent to
Herbert, Northumberland, and Hakluyt Islands. They left provisioned for
fourteen days. The object of the journey was to obtain birds from the
loomeries, to make plans of Eskimo houses and villages, to communicate
with the natives and obtain from them furs and clothing. They were also
to try and induce a family of natives to settle near Red Cliff House.
They returned on 18th August with 130 guillemots, and also brought an
Eskimo family, consisting of a man, his wife, and two children, with a
kayak and harpoon, a sledge and a dog. They had shot a small walrus near
Herbert Island, and had towed it to Cape Cleveland, a little over 2
miles from the house. Several other walruses were obtained before the
end of the month.
On the 4th September the entire party, with the exception of Henson, set
out for the head of McCormick Bay with supplies intended for a dépôt to
be established on the Inland Ice in the neighbourhood of the Humboldt
Glacier.
On the 5th September, Astrup went up the slopes to the ice-cap to select
the best route for carrying up the provisions. He returned with a
favourable report, and estimated the distance to the ice-cap at less
than 4 miles.
On the 6th September, Astrup, Gibson, Verhoeff, and Cook started up the
bluffs with loads varying from 52 to 58 lb., and towards night on the
same day they carried up a second load. On the 7th the last loads were
taken up, and Astrup, Gibson, and Verhoeff, who were to form the Inland
Ice party, remained at the ice-cap, while the others returned to Red
Cliff House.
This Inland Ice party returned to Red Cliff on 12th September, and
reported that the attempt to establish a dépôt had been a failure. Owing
to the presence of deep soft snow, it was found that not more than one
sledge could be dragged at a time, and on the 8th September the party
advanced only 1 mile. On the 9th they were kept in camp by a snowstorm
and high wind. On the 10th they advanced 1 mile by noon, and as there
was no prospect of better sledging, they deposited one of the
sledge-loads on a nunatak at an elevation of 2600 feet above sea-level,
and returned to Red Cliff without their sledges or sleeping-gear.
On 22nd September, Peary sent Astrup and Gibson back to the Inland Ice
to study the condition of travel as far north-east as possible. They
dragged their sledges five days, and attained an altitude of 4600 feet;
but owing to snow-squalls, high winds, and hard hauling, they then
decided to return.
During October many Eskimo arrived at Red Cliff, and from this time
onwards various parties were coming and going all through the winter.
Some came from Cape York, nearly 200 miles away. Several of the women
were engaged to make fur clothing for the party.
During the winter Peary kept his party busy making sledges, odometers,
and various other articles required for the spring sledge-journey.
Peary devised and cut the patterns for the suits and sleeping-bags.
These were made from the skins of the deer shot by Peary’s men. The
skins were stretched and dried at Red Cliff, and the chewing was done by
the Eskimo women. This latter process makes the skins thoroughly soft
and pliable. A skin is folded with the hair inside, and is chewed along
the fold; then another fold is made, and the process is repeated until
the whole skin has been carefully chewed. After this, it is scraped and
worked with a blunt instrument. It takes two women about a day to chew a
big buck-skin, and they usually require to give their jaws a rest every
alternate day.
Peary took a series of photographs of seventy-five Eskimo, and Dr. Cook
took the anthropometrical measurements. It may here be mentioned that
Peary’s photographic work was excellently done, and added very much to
the value of his explorations.
On 18th April 1892, Peary started on a trip round Inglefield Gulf. The
purpose of the journey was to complete the necessary complement of dogs
for the ice-cap march, to purchase furs and materials for the equipment,
and as far as practicable map the shores of the gulf. Peary was
accompanied by his wife. He returned on 24th April, having in the short
space of one week made a sledge-journey of some 250 miles.
During the month of April most of the supplies for the great journey
over the ice-cap had been carried up to the edge of the ice. On the last
day of April, Dr. Cook, Gibson, Astrup, and five Eskimo left Red Cliff
with two sledges and twelve dogs, dragging the last of the supplies.
Peary and Henson followed on the 3rd May with the remaining eight dogs
and a large dog-sledge.
The three sledges used by Peary on this journey consisted of two long,
broad wooden runners curved at both ends, with standards supporting
light but strong cross-bars. The largest sledge was 13 feet long and 2
feet wide, with runners 4 inches wide, and standards 6 inches high. It
was composed entirely of wood, horn, and raw-hide lashings. It weighed
48 lb., and carried easily a load of 1000 lb.
The second sledge was 11 feet long and 2 feet wide, with 3½-inch runners
and 6-inch standards. It weighed 35 lb., and carried a load of 500 lb.
The third sledge, made by Astrup, was 10 feet long and 16 inches wide,
with 3-inch runners and 2-inch standards. It weighed 13 lb., and carried
a load of 400 lb.
The clothing consisted of a hooded deer-skin coat weighing 5¼ lb., a
hooded seal-skin coat weighing 2½ lb., a pair of dog-skin knee-trousers
weighing 3-9/16 lb., seal-skin boots with woollen socks and fur soles
weighing 2 lb., and an under-shirt; total, about 13 lb. With various
combinations of this outfit, Peary could keep perfectly warm and yet not
get into a perspiration, in temperatures from +40° F. to −50° F.,
whether at rest, or walking, or dragging a sledge.
Peary had twenty dogs for the journey, but one died from the fatal
_piblockto_, at the edge of the ice-cap. His dog-food consisted of
pemmican.
The provisions included pemmican, butter, Liebig extract, biscuit,
condensed milk, compressed pea-soup, compressed tea, and extract of
coffee. The daily ration was 2½ lb. per man.
From the edge of the ice-cap the sledges had to be dragged up one
snow-slope and down another for a distance of 15 miles, before reaching
the gradual slope of the true Inland Ice. This point was not reached
until the 15th May.
Peary took a true north-east course, and hoped to clear the heads of the
Humboldt, Petermann, and Sherard-Osborn indentations. From this point,
two short marches of 5 and 7 miles brought them to an elevation of 5000
feet, and early in the third march the highest summits of the Whale
Sound land disappeared, and they found that they were descending. They
had passed over the divide between Whale Sound and Kane Basin, and were
on the descent towards the basin of the Humboldt Glacier. This third
march was 12 miles, and the fourth was 20, and the distant mountain-tops
of the land between Rensselaer Harbour and the south-eastern angle of
Humboldt Glacier rose into view in the north-west.
On the fifth day they covered 20 miles over a gently undulating and
gradually descending surface. On the sixth march the surface became much
more hummocky, and Peary thought it advisable to deflect about 5 miles
to the eastward. At the end of this march there were signs of an
approaching storm, and a snow igloo was built for shelter.
The storm lasted forty-eight hours, and it took a long time to dig out
the sledges, which had been completely buried in snow-drifts, and reload
them.
Starting out from here, they found that the storm had made a good road
for them, and they covered 20 miles during the first march. On the
following day they again made 20 miles, and reached the point where
Peary decided the supporting party should leave him. They were now 130
miles from the shore of McCormick Bay.
It was here that Peary resolved to take only one companion with him. It
had originally been his intention to take two, but due to a frozen heel,
Henson had to be sent back to Red Cliff from the edge of the ice-cap.
All three of his companions volunteered to go with him. Peary decided
that Astrup should be his companion, that Gibson should return in
command of the supporting party, and that, on their return to Red Cliff,
Dr. Cook was to assume charge.
Next day, Gibson and Dr. Cook started on the return journey, and Peary
and Astrup continued the march towards the north-east. Peary had now
thirteen dogs. On the second march all the dogs were made to drag the
big sledge, and the other two sledges were put in tow of the big one.
Peary went ahead as guide, and Astrup followed driving the dogs. They
had gone but a short distance on this march when the big dog-sledge
broke down, one side bending inward and breaking all the standards on
that side. This at first seemed a serious accident, but by lashing the
broken sledge alongside another, and so making a broad 4-foot-wide
sledge with three runners, the difficulty was overcome. The accident,
however, had the effect of reducing the march to one of 10 miles. Next
day the snow was deeper and softer, and but 15 miles were covered.
During this latter march they began to ascend, and the snow was so deep
that the sledges sank in it nearly to the cross-bars. This made the
hauling so heavy that Peary contrived an impromptu sledge from an extra
pair of ski, and transferred to it 120 lb. from the big sledge. On this
day one of the dogs was ill, and at night it was killed and fed to the
others.
On the following day the up-grade and the deep snow compelled them to
make two journeys in hauling the sledge. Next day the surface
fortunately improved, and 15 miles were covered.
They were now evidently at the top of the grade, and soon began a
gradual descent toward the basin of the Petermann Fiord. During this
march they made 20 miles, and sighted land to the north-west.
On the last day of May the head of Petermann Fiord, with its guarding
mountains, suddenly came into sight, and Peary found it necessary to
deflect some 10 miles to the eastward to avoid the inequalities of the
glacier basin. Peary camped here thirty-six hours, and determined his
position and took bearings of the land.
From this camp the surface was comparatively level, and the highest
summits of the Petermann Mountains were kept in sight for 40 miles. Then
began a gradual rise, the snow becoming softer and deeper.
On the 5th June the summit of the next divide was reached at an
elevation of 5700 feet above sea-level. From here the travelling was
very good, and 19½ and 21 miles were made in two marches; and on the 8th
June they camped in sight of St. George’s Fiord, but they believed it
was Sherard-Osborn Fiord. At the end of this march a storm broke upon
them, and they were imprisoned in a rough shelter two days.
Peary now found that he was on the southern edge of a great glacier
basin, and to avoid this he deflected his course to the south-east,
which forced him to ascend steep icy slopes. It took two days of the
hardest work to get out of this trap, and at the end of them he had lost
15 miles of his hard-earned northing. During this climb, Peary’s best
dog, the king of the team, received a sprain. After limping at the rear
of the sledges for two or three days, he lagged behind, and was lost in
one of the ice-cap storms. Two dogs fell into a crevasse and hung
suspended at the end of their traces until hoisted out.
Starting again on a north-east course, they had not advanced far when
they were brought up by a group of enormous crevasses, and just as these
were reached a dense fog swept up from the glacier basin and delayed
them eighteen hours.
Peary now decided to strike farther into the interior, so as to avoid
these glacier basins, but in carrying out this plan he found the snow
increasing and the grade so steep that he was compelled to steer more to
the north.
He had advanced in this direction only 4 miles when the big sledge again
broke down, and an entire day was lost in repairing it. Next day the
temperature became so high and altered the surface of the snow so much
that they found it impossible to go on. They had to wait a fall of
temperature, and this did not occur for two days. At this camp spare
articles weighing 75 lb. were thrown away.
Starting again, they made a march of 6¼ miles, going over the road
twice. The following day, land again made its appearance ahead of them,
and Peary deflected first to the north-east and then to the east.
Advancing 8 miles, they found themselves hemmed in by a series of huge
concentric crevasses, and to cross these it was necessary to take a
south-easterly direction. At one time two dogs fell into a crevasse, and
at another one of the sledges broke through.
Next day they covered nearly 18 miles, and on the following one they
made 20½ miles. Land was now visible to the north-west, north, and
north-east.
Towards the close of the next march a fiord with high sharp peaks on its
northern side came clearly into view. Starting again on the 26th June in
a north-east direction, Peary soon changed the course to east true, and
then to south-east, so as to avoid a fiord which was seen ahead.
Assuming this fiord to be Victoria Inlet, and thinking he could round
it, Peary kept on to the south-east till the 1st of July, but still the
mountains of the shore were in view. On this day a wide opening, bounded
on either side by high vertical cliffs, showed up in the north-east over
the summits immediately adjacent to the Inland Ice. Through this opening
could be seen neither the reflected ice-blink of distant ice-cap nor the
cloud-loom of land.
Peary now decided to reach this opening and discover whether it looked
out into the East Greenland Arctic Ocean. Changing his course to
north-east, he made for the red-brown mountains of the strange land. The
grade now became so steep that it was necessary to descend diagonally
along the slope.
The highest convex of a crescent moraine which climbed well up into the
ice-cap was selected as a landing-place, and after wading many streams,
and floundering through a mile of slush which covered the lower portion
of the ice, they clambered upon the rocks of the moraine 4000 feet above
the sea.
Here Peary left Astrup to look after the clogs while he hastened down to
the land for the purpose of climbing a summit some 5 miles from the edge
of the ice. He had not gone far when a snow-bunting fluttered up from
behind a rock, and not long afterwards he came across the traces of
musk-oxen. As he got farther from the ice, flowers of various hues made
their appearance, among them the yellow Arctic poppy.
Instead of 5 miles, the distance of the mountain lengthened to at least
12, and when it was reached at the end of an eight hours’ march, it was
only to find that two or three other summits intervened between Peary
and the view he wished. By this time the soles of Peary’s kamiks were
cut through, and some of the sharp stones had cut his feet. He patched
his foot-gear with a pair of seal-skin mittens and a skull-cap, and
after an hour’s rest he started on his return to Astrup, and reached him
after an absence of fifteen hours.
Peary now decided to take Astrup and the dogs, which numbered eight, and
three or four days’ supplies, and march overland. They started out on
3rd July 1892, carrying about 40 lb. each on their backs. On the second
day’s march they were fortunate in coming across musk-oxen, and
succeeded in killing two. This gave both the men and the dogs a welcome
change of food, and they feasted till they could eat no more.
After several hours’ rest, they again set out, and succeeded in gaining
a rocky plateau, 3800 feet above sea-level. This dropped in a
perpendicular cliff into a bay below. Looking out over a mighty glacier
on the right and through the broad mouth of the bay, they saw stretching
away to the horizon the great ice-fields of the Arctic Ocean. To the
west was the opening of a fiord which Peary believed was the one which
barred his northern advance, and he had paralleled its course across the
northern end of the mainland from Robeson Channel to the shores of
North-East Greenland. This channel, which Peary believes marks the
northern boundary of the mainland of Greenland, now receives the name of
“Peary Channel.”
To the north-west, north, and north-east stretched steep red-brown
bluffs on the other side of the bay. To the northward could be seen the
entrance of a second fiord, or channel, apparently extending to the
northwestward.
The land which stretched away to the north-east was free of snow. In
this direction land could be seen 60 miles away. From observations taken
by Peary on the cliff, afterwards named “Navy Cliff,” the position was
found to be 81° 37′ 5″ north latitude, and 34° 5′ west longitude. After
building a cairn and leaving a record, they retraced their steps towards
the ice-cap.
On this northern land, besides snow-buntings, two or three sandpipers, a
Greenland falcon, a pair of ravens, two bumble-bees, several
butterflies, innumerable flies, and about twenty musk-oxen were seen.
Flowers of numerous species were blooming in abundance.
Two days were occupied in getting back to Moraine Camp, and when it was
reached the feet of six of the dogs were cut and bleeding. It was
therefore necessary to rest and allow the dogs to recover, and it was
also necessary to thoroughly overhaul the impedimenta and put everything
in good order for the return journey.
The big three-runner sledge was reduced to its original dimensions, and
the foot-gear required a good deal of attention. At last, on 7th July,
all was ready, and they started up the icy slope.
In order to avoid crevasses and glacier basins, Peary returned on a
course well to the east of his upward one. On the first day only 10
miles were covered, but on the second they made 21½ miles, and ascended
1300 feet. On the 10th July an advance of 20 miles was made, and an
ascent of nearly 1000 feet. On the 11th the altitude rose 600 feet in
another march of 20 miles. The elevation was now 7300 feet above
sea-level. On this date one of the eight dogs became exhausted, and was
killed and fed to the others.
They now experienced a severe storm, which detained them two days. On
the first march after the storm they travelled 20 miles over a level
plateau in a thick fog.
Next day one of the dogs died, and now only six were left, and Peary
became anxious about the remainder. On the 18th July the fog cleared. On
the 21st, Peary decided to abandon one sledge and leave behind articles
weighing about 50 lb. The load was repacked on the small sledge.
Another of the dogs died on 28th July, but the remaining five were in
fairly good condition. On this day 22 miles were covered, and the next
few marches were even better. They were now east of the Humboldt
Glacier.
On the 2nd August they neared the divide between the Kane Basin and the
Whale Sound region, and next day they sighted land, after travelling 35
miles.
On the following day, when nearing the edge of the ice-cap, a relief
party came into view, and soon Peary had the pleasure of meeting
Professor Heilprin, who had come north in the _Kite_ to take Peary home.
Two days after his return to Red Cliff, Peary set out on a boat-voyage
into Inglefield Gulf, with the object of becoming better acquainted with
the northern shore. He explored Bowdoin Bay to its head, and at this
point Verhoeff, who formed one of the party, left to cross the glacier
to McCormick Bay, where he was to meet Gibson.
Leaving Bowdoin Bay, Peary passed eastwards along the gulf, and reached
a striking, precipitous island, which he named “Josephine Peary Island.”
On returning from this boat-voyage, Peary learned that Gibson had landed
Verhoeff at Five-Glacier Valley a few days after he had left Bowdoin
Bay. Verhoeff’s intention was to make an overland trip to the Eskimo
settlements in Robertson Bay, and he arranged with Gibson to return for
him at a certain time. The day after Peary’s return, Gibson arrived with
the news that Verhoeff had not turned up according to promise.
Peary at once set out with Gibson and a crew of his best Eskimo to
search for Verhoeff. Heilprin’s party and the _Kite’s_ crew also took
part in the search, which was continued six days and six nights. The
Eskimo ultimately succeeded in finding traces along the side of a
glacier, and these were found to pass on to the glacier itself, but they
disappeared on the unyielding surface of the ice.
The search was now given up. The conclusion arrived at was that Verhoeff
had fallen into one of the innumerable crevasses of the glacier and had
there perished. This sad incident naturally cast a deep gloom upon the
party, and on Peary especially.
Preparations were now made for the return home. Mrs. Peary distributed
many household utensils to the delighted Eskimo, who also received
numerous presents of wood, knives, iron, kettles, etc., which had been
brought in the _Kite_ from friends of the expedition.
At Godthaab, on the way home, some of the kayakers of the place treated
them to an exhibition of aquatic feats, such as turning a somersault in
the water and jumping one kayak over another. The remainder of the
voyage was completed without special incident.
* * * * *
Soon after his return from this expedition, Peary made preparations for
a more ambitious one. In order to raise funds, he delivered one hundred
and sixty-eight lectures in ninety-six days. From these he realised
13000 dollars. He also obtained some funds from other sources, and was
able to charter a ship named the _Falcon_ to take his party north, and
return the following season to bring him back.
Peary left Philadelphia in the _Falcon_ on 23rd June 1893. The ship
carried a steam-launch, and the two whale-boats, the _Mary Peary_ and
the _Faith_. The six dogs of the _White March_ and some carrier-pigeons
were also taken. In order to make a new experiment in Arctic work, Peary
took some burros which had been brought from Santa Fé. Several places on
the American coast were stopped at, and St. John’s was not left till
15th July. On the same day one of the dogs managed to slip its harness,
and was lost overboard. On the 17th, during heavy weather, two of the
burros died. The _Falcon_ touched at Battle Harbour on the Labrador
coast, in order that dogs might be purchased; but Peary met with but
little success. Other two stations were visited, but as a total result
only twenty dogs were obtained. On the 22nd July the _Falcon_ was headed
for the Greenland coast, and it arrived at Holsteinborg on the 26th.
Here seventeen dogs were obtained, and near midnight of the same day the
_Falcon_ left for Godhavn, where it arrived on the 28th. Fur clothing,
ordered from Copenhagen, was found ready, and twenty dogs were obtained.
Peary had been mindful enough to take a present of oranges, lemons, and
pine-apples to Mrs. Anderson, the Inspector’s wife, and it gave great
delight to her and her family. Godhavn was left about 10 p.m. on the
28th, and Upernavik was reached on the 30th. Peary was disappointed in
finding that only ten dogs were to be obtained here, but he was informed
that he would get more at Tasiusak, about 40 miles to the north. The
latter place was reached early in the morning of 31st July, and
seventeen dogs were obtained. Peary had now on board eighty-seven dogs,
and the pandemonium caused by these howling, fighting, restless animals
was indescribable. The Duck Islands were reached about noon, and after a
few hours’ stay, the passage of the dreaded Melville Bay was begun. The
weather was excellent, and where two years before the _Kite_ had to
battle with the pack, there was open water with only a few scattered
icebergs. The passage was made in the record time of 24 hours and 50
minutes.
Peary landed and climbed Cape York. None of the natives here had seen or
heard anything of Verhoeff.
Bowdoin Bay, in Inglefield Gulf, where Peary intended taking up
quarters, was reached on the morning of 3rd August.
Peary selected the site of the house, and they soon set to work to build
this and unload the stores. The house was named the “Lodge.”
On the 12th August the _Falcon_ left the bay on a cruise for the
winter’s meat-supply. Near Herbert Island they were successful in
obtaining twenty-four walruses. During the hunt there was one exciting
event. A walrus had been shot, and a man was beside it on a cake of ice,
when the ice was struck by the _Falcon_ and capsized. The man was thrown
into the water under the ship’s stern, but he succeeded in clinging to
the rudder, from which he was released in safety.
The _Falcon_ next steamed north as far as Littleton Island, where four
other walruses were shot. While here, Peary and his party examined the
site of Polaris House, and found the place littered with miscellaneous
articles of no use to the natives. Peary also climbed to the top of
Littleton Island. He describes it as a terribly desolate, barren-looking
piece of rock.
The _Falcon_ now turned southward on the way to Olriks Bay, on the south
coast of Inglefield Gulf, for deer. During one night the party shot
seventeen deer, and as a sufficient supply of meat had now been obtained
for the dogs and natives during the winter, the _Falcon_ went back to
Bowdoin Bay.
On the 20th August the ship returned to America. Peary’s party,
including himself, now numbered fourteen persons:—
Samuel J. Entrikin, first assistant George H. Carr
Eivind Astrup, second assistant James Davidson
Edward E. Vincent, surgeon Walter F. Swain
E. B. Baldwin, meteorologist Hugh J. Lee
George H. Clark, taxidermist Mrs. Peary
F. A. Stokes, artist, an independent member
Mrs. Susan J. Cross (Mrs. Peary’s nurse)
Matthew Henson (Peary’s coloured man)
On 29th August, Astrup left the Lodge in charge of an Inland Ice party,
consisting of Carr, Davidson, and Lee. They took with them five sledges
and fifty dogs, with the intention of establishing a dépôt of supplies
as far in on the Inland Ice as possible.
On 7th September a letter was brought by one of the carrier-pigeons from
the Inland Ice party, asking for more dogs; and Peary visited the camp,
which he found 6 miles in on the cap. Astrup was suffering from
something in the nature of a chill, and the doctor had to be sent to
him. In a day or two he was much better, and able to continue his work.
On 12th September a little blue-eyed snowflake was born at the Lodge,
and named Marie Ahnighito Peary. She was bundled in soft, warm Arctic
furs and wrapped in the Stars and Stripes. This wonderful baby was of
extraordinary interest to the natives. Families journeyed from Cape York
in the south, and from Etah in the north, to satisfy themselves that she
was not made of snow. Until about six months old she lived in continuous
lamp-light.
On 13th September, Astrup was brought down from the ice-cap, suffering
from gastric trouble. The supplies were then 12 miles from the edge of
the ice, with the exception of two sledge-loads which were 3 miles
farther in. Carr and Davidson, who had brought down Astrup, started back
to rejoin Lee, but they lost themselves in a storm and had to return to
the Lodge. A day or two later they made a second attempt, and succeeded
in reaching Lee, who had been alone for a week. Here again a storm came
on, and confined them to the tent another week. They then all returned
to the Lodge, which they reached on 23rd September.
Two days later, Peary set out with the party; but at the moraine, at the
edge of the ice, it was found that three sledges which had been left
there had been blown away. They had in consequence to return to the
Lodge and make new sledges.
On 30th September, Peary, Davidson, and Lee succeeded in reaching the
camp on the ice-cap, and found the advanced sledges. Again they returned
to the Lodge for more dogs, and with these they advanced all the
supplies to a point 26½ miles from the moraine.
Peary wished to have them advanced still farther, but a gale kept the
party to their camp two days. They then descended to the Lodge, but the
storm lasted an entire week. Another attempt was made by nearly the
whole party to reach the ice-cap, but in consequence of a constant
succession of snowstorms and high winds it had to be given up.
The season was now so far advanced that Peary abandoned the idea of
taking the supplies farther until the spring.
On 31st October a large wave caused by a huge iceberg from the Bowdoin
Glacier burst up through the solid ice near the shore, rolled the
steam-launch over and over, and stove it in; dashed the whale-boat a
hundred yards up the valley, and ruined it; then, receding, carried away
all the oil-barrels. It had been Peary’s intention to put up an
electric-light plant, but the loss of the oil rendered this
impracticable.
While the ice-cap work was going on, Entrikin was busy hunting deer, in
which he was most successful. In two hunts he obtained no less than
sixty animals.
The long sunless winter had now begun, but the party were still kept at
work. Much in the way of Inland Ice equipment had to be got ready, and
various sledge-journeys were made for dog-food. About 700 miles were
travelled, and some 3000 lb. of dog-meat brought to the Lodge, and yet
no member of the party suffered any great discomfort. These journeys
were made in the moonlight.
The sun made its appearance on the 18th February 1894, and on this day
Lee, with two Eskimo and a team of dogs, set out for the cache on the
Inland Ice. Lee, unfortunately, lost his way during a storm, and after
wandering about for a night and a day, reached the Lodge in an exhausted
condition and with a frozen toe. This mishap disarranged Peary’s plans.
He had intended to start from the cache on 1st March. Lee was to free
the cache from the winter’s snows, bag the pemmican, and construct snow
igloos. The delay necessitated a further supply of dog-meat, which had
to be hauled a distance of at least 50 miles.
On the 6th March eight members of the party, with five Eskimo and some
eighty dogs, started for the ice-cap. Next day Peary left with two
Eskimo carrying several gallons of boiling hot tea in canteens, and
found the party about 2 miles from the moraine. Peary then returned to
the Lodge, which he finally left on 8th March, and reached the ice-cap
party in the evening.
Next day the cache was reached, and the snow was found to have drifted
about it during the winter to a depth of 4 feet. The Eskimo formed snow
igloos, and two days were spent here making preparations for the final
start. On the 10th March one of the dogs died from _piblockto_, the
dreaded dog-disease of Greenland, and this was naturally considered a
serious incident.
A start was made on 12th March, after considerable difficulty with the
dogs. Lee’s toe had been nipped again, and at night it was found that he
could not proceed much farther. Astrup also informed Peary that he was
threatened with the illness which attacked him in September, and that he
was not able to go on. This loss of two of his best men was a serious
blow to Peary’s plans. It had been his intention, should he reach
Independence Bay, to send one party northward, another south to Cape
Bismarck, and thence over the ice-cap to Whale Sound; while a third
party was to remain at Independence Bay and survey that region while
awaiting the return of the northern detachment.
On the 14th March, Peary, accompanied by Clark, returned to the Lodge
with Lee and Astrup. The Lodge was again left on the afternoon of the
15th. The night was passed in a snow igloo, and the party was reached
during the following afternoon. Next day the weather made it impossible
for them to advance, and so continued for three days. The temperature
was from 35° to 40° F. below zero.
On 22nd March a start was made, but the weather was still unfavourable,
and only 3 miles were covered. The party now experienced a violent
storm, which lasted till the 25th March. The velocity of the wind
averaged over 48 miles per hour during thirty-four hours, and the
average temperature was 50° F. below zero. In Peary’s opinion this storm
was the most severe ever experienced by any Arctic party.
After the storm was over, half of the dogs were found frozen fast in the
snow, some by the legs, some by the tails, and some by both. Two were
dead.
During the storm Davidson had his heel, and Clark a toe and three
fingers, frost-bitten. Davidson had to be sent back to the Lodge with
the doctor. This now reduced the party to four, and Peary made a cache
of supplies, and readjusted the loads.
Each of Peary’s companions now had a large sledge drawn by eighteen
dogs. During the first march they advanced 7 miles in a temperature of
46° F. below zero. On the 27th March they had considerable difficulty
with the sledges: one broke in the bend of one of the runners, and it
was converted into a three-runner sledge by lashing another sledge
alongside it; and a second one was seriously damaged.
While engaged in repairing the sledges, Entrikin had the soles of his
feet frost-bitten. To make matters worse, next day he strained his back
in making efforts to start the sledge. During the night the temperature
remained between 55° and 57° F. below zero.
The dogs were now in bad condition: three had been killed and used as
dog-food, another died from the effects of the storm, and several had
frost-bitten feet.
At the next camp Peary decided to rest two days, so as to give Entrikin
a final chance of recovery, and also with the object of getting the dogs
into better condition.
On the 3rd April, Entrikin’s feet were much better, and the party pushed
on a distance of 15 miles. On this day, however, one of the dogs was
attacked by the _piblockto_, and bit many of the other dogs before he
was shot. On each of the next two days a distance of 15 miles was
covered. During the next three days a storm confined them to their tent,
and two dogs died from exposure.
Another start was made, but only 7 miles were travelled. Two more dogs
died of _piblockto_, after biting nearly all the other dogs. The dread
disease had evidently gained a firm foothold.
On 10th April, Peary had reached a point 128 miles from the Lodge. One
man had frosted feet and must return. Another had both heels and great
toes frost-bitten, and had daily attacks of bleeding from the nose. The
third man had not quite recovered from cramp. Added to these troubles
was the serious condition of the dogs. Peary now saw that he could not
possibly carry out his plans. He might reach Independence Bay, but this
would consume all his pemmican, alcohol, and other provisions, and
destroy any chance of making another attempt next spring. He therefore
decided to cache his pemmican and return to the Lodge, and make another
attempt during the following year.
On the return journey a great many of the dogs died, only twenty-five
reaching the Lodge. Peary admits that previous to this experience he
believed that the Eskimo dog was capable of enduring the most severe
weather possible on the ice-cap. It is also evident that the members of
the party suffered greatly from the extremely low temperatures usually
experienced during the month of March. The serious outbreak of the
dog-disease could not have been foreseen.
The party on their return to the Lodge were very much exhausted, and it
required about a fortnight to recover from the strain and exposure.
Soon afterward, Peary set out to explore and survey Olriks Bay. He was
accompanied by Mrs. Peary. He found it to be a long narrow fiord 50
miles in length by about 2½ miles wide.
On 16th May he again left the Lodge to search for the “Iron Mountain” of
Melville Bay. He took Lee with him and ten dogs. On the way to Cape York
an Eskimo was met who undertook to act as guide to the object of Peary’s
search. Cape York was reached in ten days, after considerable
difficulties. Another march brought them to the meteorite, which Peary
measured and photographed.
The return journey was made under great difficulties. Sometimes they
were storm-bound and had to dig shelters in snow-drifts, at other times
they were wading through deep slush; again they were compelled to take
to the shore and climb the bluffs and make long detours overland.
Several glaciers were crossed, and at one place they were 3362 feet
above sea-level. The Lodge was reached on 6th June.
On 31st July news was received that the _Falcon_ had returned. During
August, Peary endeavoured to obtain deer, but was not very successful.
On 26th August the _Falcon_ again sailed for America. All Peary’s party,
with the exception of Lee and Henson, had decided to return home. The
_Falcon_ carried them safely to Philadelphia, but in returning to St.
John’s she was lost with all on board.
It will be most convenient here to give a brief account of a
sledge-journey made by Astrup after he returned invalided from the
ice-cap. On 6th April he started out with the intention of exploring the
shores of Melville Bay. He took with him Koolootingwah, the Eskimo. Cape
York was left on the 15th April, and over 40 miles were travelled the
first day. Astrup found the shore, from Cape York eastward, continually
broken by large and active glaciers. The night was passed in a snow
igloo, and next day 30 miles were covered. On the third day Thom Island
was reached. All the dog-food was now gone, and Astrup had provisions to
last only ten days. He therefore decided to examine the coast more
closely, and gradually work back to Cape York, where he arrived on 23rd
April. The Lodge was afterwards reached without special difficulty.
Peary and Matthew Henson, with five Eskimo, accompanied the _Falcon_
about 200 miles from the Lodge, and returned in the whale-boat. Lee
remained at the Lodge. Soon after Peary’s return he made preparations
for securing his winter’s meat-supply. Henson with some Eskimo went off
after deer, and returned a week later with six animals. Then Peary
arranged a walrus-hunt. Both whale-boats and five kayaks were employed,
and all the able-bodied men and boys of the village of Karnah. Such an
imposing flotilla had never been seen before in these waters. Peary had
decided to use a harpoon like the Eskimo, and in this he was very
successful. Off Herbert Island several large walruses were obtained, and
the boats returned loaded with meat.
Peary was now anxious to have the nearest of his caches on the ice-cap
visited and rearranged, and proper signals put up where the original
ones might be blown down. With this object in view, Lee, Henson, and the
Eskimo Nooktah set out on the 2nd October with twelve dogs. To Peary’s
great disappointment, they returned in four days without having found
any of the caches. There had been a most extraordinary fall of snow, and
poles which had stood 8 and 9 feet above the snow were now only 1 foot
above.
On 8th October, Peary, with Henson, and the Eskimo Maksingwah, more
familiarly known as “Flaherty,” set out for the ice-cap. On the second
day they reached the vicinity of the first cache, but no trace of it
could be found. Next morning signs of a coming storm induced Peary to
make preparations to meet it, and for some time it was not observed that
Maksingwah had decamped rather than face a storm on the dreaded ice-cap.
It was afterwards ascertained that it took the Eskimo four days to reach
the Lodge, and he was then in an extremely exhausted condition.
The storm confined Peary and Henson to the tent six weary days. Peary’s
thoughts during this time were far from pleasant. He saw that this
terrible storm was destroying the last chance of finding his caches, and
this meant not only the destruction of all the work of that year, but
also of the resources on which depended his chance of success next year.
When the storm passed over, a diligent search was made for the cache,
but no trace of it could be found. Peary had to acknowledge the terrible
fact that all his alcohol and pemmican, which with other provisions
weighed nearly a ton and a half, were buried beneath the ice-cap.
The blow was a severe one, but with his characteristic tenacity of
purpose Peary determined that venison and walrus-meat must take the
place of pemmican, and that coal-oil must serve instead of alcohol. The
idea of abandoning the journey, even after this overwhelming disaster,
he could not entertain.
During December, Peary and Lee made a sledge-journey to Cape York. One
of the main objects was to determine accurately the positions of some of
the capes, but the weather was unfavourable most of the time. During the
last stage of the return journey Peary was without food or sleep
forty-six hours, and travelled 60 miles.
Several other journeys were made during the winter, for dog-food and
various articles of equipment. Every effort was made to be prepared for
the ice-cap journey, but when the time came to depart Peary was far from
satisfied with his resources.
On 1st April 1895, Peary, Henson, and Lee, with six Eskimo, six sledges,
and sixty dogs, left the Lodge. On one of the sledges, drawn by thirteen
picked dogs, were the supplies for the return trip, and also those for
consumption at and beyond Independence Bay. It had also the tent and
sleeping and cooking-gear, the total weight being about 1000 lb. Another
sledge drawn by ten dogs held about 750 lb. of dog-food.
On the second day’s march the vicinity of one of the caches was reached,
and another determined attempt was made to find it, but in vain.
When the neighbourhood of the next cache was reached, a stop was made,
and the Eskimo were sent out to make a search. In a short time a bag was
found attached to a pole projecting only 3 inches above the surface.
Peary had stopped within 100 yards of it. This cache contained ten cases
of biscuit and a case and a half of milk, and was very acceptable.
During the search, one of the Eskimo took the opportunity to decamp with
his sledge and dogs.
During the next three days, journeys of 22, 28, and 30 miles were made,
and carried the party well into the snow-shed of the Humboldt Glacier.
They had now arrived near the pemmican cache, and a twenty-four hours’
search was made for it, but it ended in failure. Peary and Henson had
their noses frozen, and Lee and Peary each had a frost-bitten toe. Peary
had hoped against hope that this cache would be found, although he had
made up the rations of the journey without reference to it.
From this point the Eskimo returned along the tracks made by the
sledges. Never before had any of their tribe penetrated the heart of the
ice-cap.
Peary now took the lead with a sledge drawn by twelve dogs, and set the
course by means of a boat-compass lashed on the top of the load. Henson
followed next with a sledge and trailer drawn by sixteen dogs; and Lee
brought up the rear with a long sledge and trailer drawn by fourteen
dogs.
When near the Petermann Fiord Basin, a storm delayed them forty-eight
hours. At this camp two dogs were fed to the others. During the next
week the long sledge was abandoned, and the loads rearranged.
An average elevation of 7670 feet had now been attained, and breathing
was much more rapid on increased exertion. Henson and Lee frequently
bled at the nose. The maximum elevation was found to be 7865 feet.
At the 400th mile one of the runners of Henson’s sledge broke, and the
greater portion of a day was spent in repairing the sledge with a runner
from one of the trailers. This new runner, however, only did duty for 12
miles, when it broke beyond repair. The sledge was now converted into a
three-runner one. On this day the last of the walrus-meat was fed to the
seventeen remaining dogs. It was now a case of dog eat dog, and in a few
days only eleven were left.
Peary saw that the land must be reached with all speed. He therefore
dismantled the three-runner sledge and cached everything except a week’s
supplies. They were now on the downward grade, and on the second day
they sighted land.
They were now over 500 miles from the Lodge in a direct line, and three
of the eleven dogs were thoroughly exhausted. Peary decided to leave Lee
here with the dogs, and push on with Henson in search of musk-oxen.
Peary and Henson started out from an elevation of 4800 feet above
sea-level. Four miles from the tent many huge crevasses were passed.
Peary recognised the group as one he had seen in 1892. Some miles beyond
these large crevasses a great number of small ones were met, into which
both Peary and Henson frequently fell, but were always able to save
themselves.
At the junction of the ice-cap with the land was a vertical wall of ice
impracticable of descent. Finally a glacier was found over which they
had to pick their way among crevasses.
The land consisted of bare jagged rocks which cut their boots and
bruised their feet. Leaving the sledge behind, they wandered about the
greater part of a day in a drizzling snowstorm in search of a
practicable route, but failed to find one, or to see any game. Next day
they returned to the tent on the ice-cap.
A serious condition of affairs now stared them in the face, but after
very little discussion all agreed to stake everything on finding
musk-oxen. They therefore started back for the cache, and when it was
reached Peary and Henson were quite used up.
One sledge and scant rations for themselves on the return journey were
left at this camp, and everything else was taken on towards the north.
When a point about 15 miles from the edge of the ice-cap was reached,
Peary found that they were approaching the land on a course about 5
miles east of the one on which he had descended to it in 1892. He was
here able to look over the eastern edge of the Academy Glacier basin,
and make out the summits of the east-coast land considerably farther to
the south than in 1892. Away due north a magnificent mountain was seen
which was not observed in 1892.
A large cone of detritus passed in 1892 was reached just in time to take
shelter from a storm which held them prisoners two days.
Peary here decided to leave Lee in the tent to give a frozen toe a
chance to recover, and to take Henson and all the dogs with him in an
attempt to find musk-oxen.
After travelling some miles, the sledge was stopped by a shallow cañon
when abreast of Musk-ox Valley. Here Peary left the sledge and dogs and
examined the valley, but could find no trace of musk-oxen. After making
an attempt to pass down the cañon, and failing, they climbed out of it
and made across country. A few miles beyond the valley, Peary shot a
hare. Previous to this they were having recourse to the dog-food, but
they now cooked and ate the entire hare. It was the first full meal they
had had in thirty-five days.
Next morning they started for a valley between Musk-ox Valley and Navy
Cliff. At the entrance of this valley traces of musk-oxen were found,
and ultimately they were tracked to near the crest of some mountains.
When about 200 yards from the oxen, Peary and Henson lay down behind a
large boulder to regain their breath. It was almost a matter of life or
death with them, and they quivered with excitement. At last they made a
rush for the oxen, and fortunately, instead of running away, the oxen
formed in line with lowered heads. In a few minutes several were shot,
and the remainder took to flight. So hungry were the men that as they
skinned the animals they ate the meat raw and thought it delicious.
After resting, they took up the trail of the remaining oxen. Having
followed them for twenty hours, Peary’s chagrin may be imagined when the
oxen were ultimately found near the camp he had left. Being now
thoroughly tired, they decided to take a few hours’ sleep before
attacking them, but when they awoke the oxen had gone. The trail was
again taken up, but after a chase of several miles a snowstorm came on,
and completely obliterated all tracks.
They now returned to the sledge, and using the musk-oxen skins, they
formed a kind of tent into which they crawled, and were soon asleep.
Next day, Henson was sent back with the sledge and a load of meat to the
moraine where Lee was. On the way there he came across the musk-oxen,
but the dogs gave chase and thoroughly frightened them.
About the fourth day, Henson and Lee joined Peary, and an attempt was
now made to reach the sea. Several days were spent in incessant
climbing, scrambling, and jumping over rocks, but at the end of it they
found themselves still some 3000 feet above sea-level. To reach the bay
ice it would be necessary to carry supplies on their backs for some
distance over rocks, then down a precipitous shore, across a glacier’s
lateral cañon, and then over several miles of crevasse-riven glacier.
Peary now found himself compelled to retrace his steps. A sharp look-out
was kept for fresh traces of musk-oxen, but no signs were discovered.
To reach the moraine was a hard struggle, but they were able to leave it
on the 1st of June to begin the homeward journey over the ice-cap. On
the second day they were fortunate in finding the cache without much
trouble.
Peary had now nine dogs and fourteen days’ rations for them. For himself
and his two companions he had thirty days’ half-rations of tea, biscuit,
and oil, and several days’ rations of frozen venison.
On the 3rd June the distance travelled was 25¼ miles, but all the party
had trouble with their feet and legs as a result of the severe work
among the rocks. On the 6th June, Lee was ill and quite used-up, but by
means of a line from the sledge to support himself by, he managed to
struggle along. On the 7th two dogs were quite exhausted, and were fed
to the other seven. On the 8th the larger of the two sledges was
abandoned. On the 9th, after 4 miles’ travelling, they were obliged to
camp on account of Lee. After fifteen hours’ rest and an extra supply of
milk, Lee was able to travel 20 miles during the following march.
Another dog fell exhausted on the 11th, and another on the 12th, leaving
five. On the 13th the five had been reduced to four, and on the 16th
only three were left. On the latter date the last of the dog-food was
consumed. On the 21st June the remainder of the venison was given to the
two remaining dogs, and on the 22nd one of the two dogs died. On the
23rd the summits of the land appeared. The remaining dog was now given a
pair of seal-skin boots and several yards of raw-hide line. Peary and
his companions had four biscuits remaining for supper and breakfast. The
Lodge was reached on the 24th June, and found to be intact.
The only dog to reach the Lodge was Panikpah, and it was fed by Peary
before he ate anything himself. The memory of the famine-days on the
ice-cap remained with the dog long after, and he might be seen at all
times hiding away every bit of meat or blubber, and every bone he could
find about the place. These noble dogs saved the lives of the party.
The journey of 500 miles across the ice-cap, from moraine to moraine,
was made in twenty-five marches of an average of 20 miles. The weather
on the whole was exceptionally good, or it would have been impossible to
cover the distance in so short a time.
Early in the morning of the 3rd August the _Kite_ arrived to take them
home. On the way south two of the Cape York meteorites were successfully
removed and shipped.
Peary made a summer voyage in 1896 for the purpose of obtaining the
third and largest of the meteorites. Before, however, it could be got on
board, the ship had to leave, in order to avoid being crushed by the
ice.
Still determined to obtain the meteorite, Peary made another voyage in
the summer of 1897, and was successful in shipping the meteorite and
taking it to the United States. This meteorite is the largest known, and
its estimated weight is between 90 and 100 tons.
On 12th January 1897, Peary announced his plan for reaching the North
Pole. A sufficient sum was to be raised to continue the work of
exploration for five years, if necessary. A ship was to be taken north
through Robeson Channel to the highest latitude possible along the
Greenland coast. Stores were then to be landed and advanced in stages
until the northern terminus of the North Greenland Archipelago was
reached, and from this point a dash to the Pole would be made. Should
the ship be unsuccessful in the passage of Robeson Channel, the party
was to land at Hayes Sound and devote the first year to explorations of
that unknown region.
In the spring of 1897, Morris K. Jesup suggested the formation of the
“Peary Arctic Club,” which raised funds for the expedition. At the end
of 1897, Alfred Harmsworth offered the _Windward_ to Peary, who accepted
it. As it could steam only at the rate of 3½ knots at most, Harmsworth
offered to have the _Windward_ re-engined, but unfortunately this could
not be done owing to an engineers’ strike. In consequence of this, Peary
had also to charter the _Hope_ as an auxiliary ship.
The _Windward_ left New York on 4th July 1898, but Peary sailed from
Sydney, C.B., in the _Hope_ on the 7th. As soon as the Whale Sound
region was reached, Eskimo were engaged, and the work of hunting walrus
for dog-food was prosecuted by both ships.
At Etah, on 13th August, the two ships separated, the _Hope_ bound for
home, and the _Windward_ for the north. After a good deal of trouble
with the ice, the _Windward_ reached Cape D’Urville, near Cape Hawks, on
the 18th, but was here stopped by a large floe, and before the ship
could get farther it was frozen in.
As soon as Peary saw that preparations for winter would require to be
made, he landed a year’s supplies at the cape. He then took steps to
secure fresh meat, and in a short time a considerable number of
musk-oxen were obtained. He also began to survey the region near Hayes
Sound. He discovered that Bache “Island” is a peninsula, and that “Hayes
Sound” does not exist.
Peary now decided to utilise the winter moons in pushing supplies north
as far as Fort Conger, where he purposed to take his party in February.
From Fort Conger he intended to make an attempt on the Pole in the
spring.
Now commenced a series of desperate sledge-journeys. Snow igloos were
formed at several of the capes. At the end of October, Peary advanced
some supplies as far as Cape Frazer. At the end of the November moon
about 30 cwt. of supplies had been sledged as far as Cape Wilkes, on the
north side of Richardson Bay. The mean daily minimum temperature was
more than 40° below zero, and on four successive days it was 50° below
zero.
In the first light of the December moon, Peary with Henson and the
doctor and four Eskimo left the ship with the intention of reaching Fort
Conger. On the 28th all the supplies had reached Cape Lawrence on the
north side of Rawlings Bay. Next day Peary started from Cape Lawrence
with light sledges for Fort Conger. On the way the cold was so intense
that it was too much for one of the Eskimo, who had to be left in a
burrow in a snow-drift with a companion to look after him. Before Fort
Conger was reached the moon had departed, and Peary had to grope and
stumble in complete darkness across Lady Franklin Bay. On the 6th
January 1899 the party passed through the doorway of Fort Conger.
Biscuit from the table where it had lain fifteen years formed a lunch.
On reaching Fort Conger, Peary had a suspicious “wooden” feeling in his
feet, and on having them examined it was found that both were
frost-bitten. He ultimately lost eight of his toes.
The party remained at Fort Conger until the 18th February, when a start
was made for the _Windward_, which was reached in eleven days. The mean
minimum daily temperature during this period was the astonishing one of
−56.18°F., and on the day the _Windward_ was reached the temperature
went down to −65° F.
During April the supplies left at Cape Lawrence were moved to Fort
Conger. On 19th April, Peary again left for Fort Conger, although he
could not move without crutches, and Discovery Harbour was reached on
the 28th. Early in May he attempted to make a reconnaissance of the
Greenland north-west coast, but found Robeson Channel impracticable.
On the 23rd May, Peary and his party started for the ship, and covered
the 250 miles in six days.
In July, Peary crossed Ellesmere Land to the west coast. Soon after his
return from this trip, the _Windward_ was able to make its way to Etah,
where Peary communicated with a relief expedition in charge of Bridgman.
At the end of August both the _Windward_ and the relief ship were sent
home, and Peary and his party were left at Etah, where the winter was
passed.
On the 19th February 1900, Peary sent off a division of seven sledges to
Fort Conger; on the 26th February six other sledges left; and on the 4th
March he followed with nine sledges. He reached Fort Conger on 28th
March, and learned that the advance parties had killed twenty-one
musk-oxen close to Conger.
At Fort Conger, Peary decided to make a sledge-journey along the north
coast of Greenland. He left on the 11th April with seven sledges, and
followed very much the same route taken by Lockwood, but did not go
overland. The northern part of Cape Britannia Island was reached on the
4th May. From here he sent back the last of the supporting party, and
pushed on north with Henson and one Eskimo. Lockwood Island was reached
on the 8th May, and from the cairn erected by Lockwood, Peary took the
record, which had been perfectly preserved. From here one march carried
the party to Cape Washington, the farthest point seen by Lockwood. On
rounding this cape, Peary saw another headland still farther north. Near
this cape were very large glaciers which Peary believes are the
birthplaces of the “floebergs.” Still farther north another cape was
found, to which Peary gave the name “Cape Morris Jesup.” This was the
most northern point of the Greenland Archipelago. From this point Peary
started over the ice-pack towards the north, but found the ice
impracticable. He reached 83° 50′, and returned. He then travelled
eastward along the coast, which soon began to trend to the south-east.
In the same latitude as Cape Washington was found a magnificent cape,
which Peary named “Cape Bridgman.” Two marches beyond this cape brought
Peary to a point from which he recognised a mountain he had seen from
the ice-cap south of Independence Bay. The weather was now very foggy,
and Peary was compelled to stop at what he believed was an island in the
mouth of a large fiord. To this island he gave the name “Clarence
Wyckoff Island.” He had now reached the 83rd degree on the east coast.
After waiting two nights and a day for the fog to lift, he found it
necessary to start on the return journey. He left records at this camp,
and also at Cape Morris Jesup and Cape Washington. Quite a large number
of musk-oxen were seen along this most northern land.
The return journey was begun on the 22nd May, and Cape Morris Jesup was
passed on the 26th. They reached Fort Conger on 10th June.
The most northern point of the land to the north of Greenland had now
been determined, and Peary arrived at the conclusion that it was not a
favourable one from which to reach the Pole. The ice was very much
broken, and there was a comparatively rapid motion towards the East
Greenland current.
Peary now decided to winter at Fort Conger and make another attempt on
the Pole, starting from Cape Hecla, on the north coast of Grant Land.
During the autumn no fewer than 101 musk-oxen were killed.
On the 5th April 1901, Peary left Fort Conger with Henson, one Eskimo,
two sledges, and twelve dogs for his northern trip. A few days after
starting, he found that the condition of the party and of the dogs was
such that he could not hope for success, and he therefore returned to
Fort Conger.
On 17th April he started for the south with his entire party, and found
the _Windward_ at Payer Harbour on 6th May. He soon commenced to form
new caches along the coast towards Conger; and in July no fewer than 128
walruses were killed for dog-food.
The winter of 1901−2 was passed at Payer Harbour, where six of the
Eskimo died. On the 3rd March 1902, Henson was sent north in charge of
six sledges, and on 6th March, Peary followed with seventeen sledges.
The temperature was from 43° to 49° F. below zero. The distance of 300
miles to Fort Conger was covered in twelve marches.
On the 24th March 1902, Peary started north from Fort Conger with nine
sledges for Cape Hecla. Finding deep snow near Cape Joseph Henry, Peary
preferred to take the ice-foot route round it rather than cross Feilden
Peninsula. At the very extremity of the cape the sledges had to be
passed along a shelf of ice 3 feet in width and 75 feet above the sea.
On 6th April, Peary, Henson, and four Eskimo left Crozier Island, and
when opposite Cape Hecla turned north over the polar pack. Now began a
desperate struggle over rough ice. The route was a continual zigzag, and
the pickaxe had to be used constantly. In deep snow the dogs floundered
and were almost useless, and a sledge had now and again to be dug out of
a hole among snow.
On the 12th April they were storm-bound by a gale from the west which
caused leads to form. Under great difficulties the journey was continued
till the 21st April. On this date the latitude was 84° 17′ 27″. The ice
was still very rough, and the snow so deep that it was almost
impracticable. The entire pack seemed to be in slow motion towards the
east. Peary here decided to return. He hurried his departure in order to
utilise as much of his outward tracks as possible. He found, however,
that the movement of the ice had faulted the trail in various places,
and it was only with great difficulty that it could be followed. Crozier
Island was again reached on 29th April, and Fort Conger on 3rd May.
Fort Conger was left on 6th May, and Payer Harbour was reached on the
17th. The _Windward_ arrived on the 5th August, and conveyed Peary and
his party to America.
The year 1905 saw Peary again on his way to the north. His expedition
sailed from New York on 12th July 1905 on board the _Roosevelt_. Etah
was left on 16th August, and after various encounters with the ice the
_Roosevelt_ succeeded in reaching Cape Sheridan on 5th September. The
vessel here suffered severe pressure, which did considerable damage. It
was not floated again until the following summer, and this position
perforce became headquarters. The winter proved much milder than that
which the _Alert_ experienced in the same region.
During October many of the dogs died, and it was found that the cause of
the trouble was cured whale-meat, several tons of which had to be thrown
away. To make good this loss, many musk-oxen were obtained in the Lake
Hazen district and along the slopes of the United States Range.
At the end of February 1906, Peary started on a sledge-journey with the
object of reaching the Pole. In three marches he reached Cape Hecla,
where his whole party assembled. From here he advanced over the pack-ice
with one main and several supporting parties. Open leads and rough ice
made progress slow, and a considerable portion of the track had to be
cut with pickaxes. At latitude 84° 38′ a broad lead extending east and
west as far as it could be seen completely barred the way. After a delay
of six days, Peary’s party managed to cross on young ice which bent
beneath their weight. Three days later a gale began to blow, and lasted
six days. The ice was broken up, and Peary and Henson were driven 70
miles to the eastward on a large floe. Peary could now receive no aid
from his supporting parties, and he decided to make a dash northwards.
His party now numbered eight. Everything was abandoned that was not
absolutely necessary, and every energy was bent on establishing a
record. The character of the ice was now much better than farther south,
but cracks and narrow leads increased. By forced marches Peary reached
87° 6′ on 21st April. By this time his sledges were nearly empty, and
the ice was still in motion towards the east. He was therefore compelled
to start on the return journey.
On reaching latitude 84° a lead was encountered over which no crossing
could be found, and they were forced to camp on a large floe which
drifted steadily eastward. Here some sledges were broken up to cook
dog-meat for the party. On the 5th May two Eskimo, sent out as scouts,
reported young ice a few miles distant. It was decided to attempt to
cross it. The thin ice bent beneath them, but by using snow-shoes the
crossing was effected in safety.
During the next week the party had to cut their way through a terrible
chaos of ice, and on the 12th May they reached the Greenland coast at
Cape Neumayer. Here they succeeded in obtaining four hares.
Near Cape Neumayer sledge-tracks were found, and as these had no doubt
been made by one of the supporting parties, Peary sent two Eskimo to
follow the tracks. They returned next day with Clark and his three
Eskimo, who were in a terribly famished condition. Fortunately, seven
musk-oxen were secured, and for two days the party ate and slept.
The remainder of the march back to the _Roosevelt_ was accomplished
without any special difficulty. Peary now called in the relief parties
who were still out. After a short rest, a trip was made to the west of
Grant Land. New land, named “Crocker Land,” was seen to the north-west.
On the 30th July, Peary again returned to the _Roosevelt_, which next
day started on the return journey.
Peary had decided that the ship was so badly damaged that it could not
safely remain another winter exposed to the ice. He therefore determined
to return home for repairs, and to sail again for the north during the
following year. At Lady Franklin Bay it was feared that the ship would
have to pass the winter there, but it fortunately managed to get free,
and the voyage was resumed.
At Etah the _Roosevelt_ was beached four days for repairs. Again the
journey was resumed, but severe storms were encountered, and it was not
till 13th October that the vessel reached Hebron, Labrador.
On 6th July 1908 the _Roosevelt_ left New York to carry Commander Peary
and his party once more to the Arctic regions. The necessary repairs to
the ship had not been finished in time for an expedition in 1907.
Sydney, Nova Scotia, was left on 17th July, and Etah on 18th August. The
usual course was taken across Smith Sound to Cape Sabine, and then
northward. Fog and ice were soon encountered, but the _Roosevelt_ slowly
worked her way north as far as Lincoln Bay, where she had to shelter
several days. On 2nd September Cape Union was passed, and on the 5th of
this month the _Roosevelt_ went into winter quarters near Cape
Sheridan—a little north of the position of three years before.
Commander Peary had decided to set out on his final attempt to reach the
Pole from Cape Columbia. The winter was occupied in transporting
supplies to this point.
On 15th February 1909 the first of the sledges left the _Roosevelt_, and
Peary brought up the rear on 22nd February. The total of all divisions
was 7 men of Peary’s party, 59 Eskimo, 140 dogs, and 23 sledges. A start
was made over the ice from Cape Columbia on 1st March. Bartlett had been
sent on ahead to make a trail. From this point the party consisted of 17
Eskimo, 133 dogs, and 19 sledges, in addition to the 7 men in command.
On the first day’s march 10 miles were covered, and on the second the
record made by Markham in 1876 was passed. A wide lake of open water was
encountered on 4th March, and here the party were delayed till the 11th.
A sounding taken here gave 110 fathoms. On the 14th the temperature
registered minus 59° F. The first supporting party was sent back on the
15th in charge of Dr. Goodsell, and on the following day Peary found it
necessary to send back Professor McMillan, who was suffering from a
badly frost-bitten foot. A sounding taken at this camp gave a depth of
825 fathoms, so that the Continental Shelf had now been passed. When
latitude 85° 23′ had been reached, the second supporting party,
commanded by Borup, turned back. The advance party had now been reduced
to 20 men, 10 sledges, and 70 dogs. Leads were frequently met, but good
marches were made daily. The third supporting party returned from
latitude 86° 38′ with Professor Marvin in command. This reduced the
advance division to 9 men, 7 sledges, and 60 dogs. The character of the
ice was now favourable for long marches, but still there was danger from
open leads. At the end of the second day’s march progress was stopped by
open water, and during the night the party found themselves in imminent
danger. The ice had broken Bartlett’s igloo adrift, and others were
threatening to follow suit. It was with great difficulty that the party
managed to save themselves and the dogs. There was considerable
commotion in the ice during the remainder of the night and the whole of
the next day. The ice then closed together and allowed the party to
proceed. North of this point the surface improved, and consisted mostly
of heavy old floes covered with hard snow and comparatively level. From
latitude 87° 48′ the fourth and last supporting party, commanded by
Bartlett, turned back.
Peary had now with him his servant Henson, who had been his faithful
companion on nearly all his journeys; Ootam, who had been with him when
he made his record three years before; two of the Eskimo who had been
with Clark when they narrowly escaped death from starvation; and a fifth
man was a young Eskimo who had shown great eagerness for the work. Forty
of the best dogs were selected, and five of the best sledges. The
supplies were ample for forty days, and Peary believed that with the
dogs he could make them last fifty days more.
A determined effort was now to be made to reach the Pole. During the
first march of ten hours 25 miles were covered, and after a few hours’
sleep another march of ten hours covered another 20 miles. Again a few
hours’ sleep, and a further march of 20 miles brought the party within
sight of latitude 89°. The temperature at this time was 40° F. below
zero. After a short sleep, the fourth march was made against a bitter
wind, and the distance covered was estimated to be at least 25 miles.
The party were now getting much fatigued, and it was found necessary to
take a longer sleep before beginning the fifth march.
During these four marches the weather had been brilliant, but with the
fifth it changed to a dense pall overhead, and the ice beneath was a
ghastly white with no relief. The surface, however, was even better than
before; there was scarcely any snow on the old floes, and a rise of
temperature to 15° F. below zero reduced the friction of the sledges. In
twelve hours no less than 40 miles were covered without a sign of a
lead. A hasty noon observation was now made, and the latitude was found
to be within 3 geographical miles of the Pole. Thirty hours were spent
in making observations, in going some 10 miles beyond the camp and about
8 miles to the right of it. Flags were planted, photographs were taken,
and the horizon was carefully searched through the telescope for
possible land. The minimum temperature during the thirty hours was 33°
F., and the maximum 12° F. below zero.
Peary had now at last reached the goal of his ambition—the goal he had
been fighting to reach through many years and under tremendous
difficulties. His dogged perseverance and stern determination must
excite the warmest admiration of every one. During the twenty-three
years from 1886 to 1909 he passed fifteen summers and eight winters in
the Arctic regions. No matter what view we may take of Dr. Cook’s great
achievement, we must admit that Commander Peary, much more than any
other man, deserved the great honour of being the first to reach the
North Pole.
The return journey was begun on the afternoon of 7th April. The distance
from Cape Columbia had been travelled in thirty-seven days, but Peary in
returning wished to cover five of the outward marches in three, and he
practically succeeded. For a large part of the way he was able to return
on his former track, and he had therefore the further advantage of not
requiring to build snow-huts. Cape Columbia was reached on 23rd April,
so that the distance of 475 English miles from the Pole had been
travelled in the astonishing time of sixteen days—an average of about
30 miles per day.
On arrival at the _Roosevelt_, Peary learned that Professor Marvin had
been drowned. Returning in command of the third supporting party, Marvin
had reached within 45 miles of Cape Columbia. He had gone on ahead of
his Eskimo, and had broken through young ice covering a recent lead.
When the Eskimo arrived, they found Marvin’s body floating in the water
some distance out from the ice.
On 18th July the _Roosevelt_ left her winter quarters, and reached Cape
Sabine on 8th August.
Peary’s final expedition brings out in a striking manner the contrast
between his methods and those of the British Expedition of 1875−76.
Commander Markham and Sir George Nares were emphatic in their opinion
that it was utterly impracticable to reach the North Pole over the ice
from the north of Grant Land. Peary’s route was considerably to the west
of Markham’s, and no doubt escaped much of the crushed-up ice
encountered by the British, but the fact that the full distance to the
Pole was covered in thirty-seven days, on at least eight of which Peary
was detained by open water, proves that the methods adopted were
incomparably superior.
[Illustration: CHART OF NORTH POLAR REGIONS.]