Part 129
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.
SIR JOHN FRANKLIN.