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Discovery of the Nortliwesi Passage.

Art. v.— discovery OF THE NORTHWEST PASSAGE.

DBASE AND SIMPSON S ARCTIC LAND EXPEDITION.

In the year of our Lord 1062, just four years before the battle of Hast,
ings changed the laws, the language, and the destinies of France and Eng.
land, and, with them, those of the world, North America was discovered
and colonized by the Norwegians, who appear to have coasted as far south
OS the Bay of Fundy certainly, and probably even to Massachusetts Bay.
W(j mol:e some allowance for the poetical fervor of the people who gave
the name of Green-land to a sterile waste of ice, where brandy frciezes by
the fuTside, and nothing green but moss was ever seen. Still, when they
assort they found grapes in the country they call Winel^nd, as they left be-
hind them accurate descriptions of the Esquimaux and other natives, such
as they are found at the present day, there is no reason to deny them the
honor of being the original discoverers. The Norwegian colony, however,
was early li.ist ; its story existed but as a vague tradition, and no way de.
tracts from the glory of Columbus and Cabot. From that time till the year
1818, nothing was learned of that region likely materially to affect the in.
terests of mankind.

In 1618, William Baffin discovered and explored the inland sea that now
bears his name, though its very existence was long discredited, and the nar-
rative of liis voyage was treated as a fable till his veracity was duly attested
l>y Captain Ross. His name was even expunged from the maps. Rather
more than a century after, Behring''s Strait was passed, and the separation
of the two continents in the west ascertained. Hearne reached the mouth
of the Coppermine River in 1772, and McKen/ie the mouth of McKenzie''s
River, twenty-one years later. These four points, then, were all that was
known of the shore of the American Arctic Ocean; and no benefit resulted
from ihat httle, if we except the settlement of Hudson's Bay, till the recent
explorations of Ross, Parry, Franklin, Beechy, and, though last, not least,
of Dcasc and Simpson. Let the reader read what follows with the best
map he can procure before him. It will be necessary to a correct under,
standing of the premises.

In 1818, Sir John Ross ascertained that the barrier of ice which closes
Baffin's Bay was penetrable, circumnavigated that great inland sea, and
opened a new ocean to the whale fishery, which has already been of great
benefit to Great Britain. He also invented an instrument for sounding the
depths of the ocean, and discovered a people of fishermen who pursued their
avocation without boats, or the use or knowledge of iron or other metals, in
a climate where the sun has scarce power to shine, and the very brutes
are yearly obliged to emigrate. These people knew no others, considered
themselves the only men on earth, knew scarcely a comfort, and yet they
were contented and happy. More than two thousand miles of coast were
restored to our knowledge of geography ; and all this, one would suppose,
was enough to entitle the gallant officer to the gratitude of the people he
represented; but it was not so. He did not do all that it was possible to
have done, as subsequent experience has demonstrated. He did not see
that there was an open passage into Lancaster's Sound, or enter it ; and
hence he sufTered a temporary disgrace. It was alleged that his officers
were more clear-sighted than himself, and hence he lost the confidence of

•'19 -57

/Hi ■ • '^.

Discovery of the Northwest Passage.

5SAGE.

lo of Hast.

and Eng.
discovered
s far south
isetls Bay.

who gave
J'<!L'zes by
'vhen they
ey left be.
lives, such
^ them the
, however,

way de.

1 the year
;ct the in.

I that now
d the nar.
y attested
Rather
separation
he mouth
;Kenzie's
tJiat was
; resulted
le recent
not least,
the best
t under.

li closes
sea, and
of great
ding the
!ed their
Btuls, in
' brutes
isidered
et they
3t Were
-ippose,
)ple he
ibie to
lot see
; ; and
•fficers
nee of

his government, was not employed again, and suffered an obloquy which his
subsequent unexampled energy, hardihood, and daring, were scarcely suffi-
cient to remove. The comparative success of Sir Edward Parrj', liis sue
cessor in command, overshadowed him like a cloud ; but, sweet arc; the
uses of adversity — Ins wrongs impelled him to exertions, which have put
him above the reach of calumny. He thus modestly defends himself against
the aspersions cast upon him :

" ill-',''' (Captam Parry,) " could not have believed that there was a passage
through Lancaster's Sound, or he would have told me that he thought so ;
for it would be to suppose him capable of gross misconduct, were I to ima-
girii^ tliat my second in command suppressed any oj)inion that could concern
tJK^ duty in which we were both engaged." Captain Ross is decidedly right
in his position, and exempts himself from all blame that must not be shared
by every man under his command. We are therefore to believe that no
part of the vituperation of the English periodical press emanated from any
of the officers of the Isabella, directly or indirectly. The contrary opinion
is too disgraceful to them as subjects, officers, and men, to be entertained
for a moment. At the worst. Captain Ross's fault was but an error in
judgment and worse can be alleged against even the immortal Cook.

Nevertheless, it does appear, notwithstanding his cwn rejection of the
idea, his promotion, and the disavowal of any intent to blame him, made by
the Admiralty, (after his subsequent triumphant success) that Captain Ross
did lose the confidence of his government ; for he was not employed to
command the next arctic expedition. That trust was confided to Sir Ed-
ward Parry, than whom no abler navigator could have been found, though
it was well known to the whole civilized world, that it w\s the object of the
keenest desire to the unfortunate Ross. If the reader vill follow Sir Ed-
ward Parry's course on the map, he will see that he penetrated Lancaster's
Sound to 113 deg. west longitude, and received the ravard promised by
parliament for that achievement. He was there stoppeJ by the ice. The
results of his expedition were the ascertainment of the impracticability of
any passage in that direction, of the probable separation of the great conti-
nent of Greenland from the American main, of the exiftence of a vast tract
of land towards, and probably to the North Pole, anc of Prince Regc :;'s
Inlet, through which it was hoped and believed that the long-sought passage
might be found, and which subsequent experience haj demonstrated to be
the true Strait of Anian. He establish'^''^'
latitudes where it had been believed an

valuable observations on the northern lights, i nd guessed correctly the true
position of therfnagnetic pole. Such improve: 'ents vere made in the mode
of wintering in high latitudes, as cannot fail to be of t^ast importance to the
future preservation of human life. This advantage done, in our estimation,
amply repays the expenses of all voyages of discovery past and future.
Moreover, an abundance of ornithological, piscatcry, and animal life was
discovered in those regions, which may be of gjeat future advantage to
British commerce ; nay, must.

In 1820-21, Franklin made his first unhappy, but sublime journey down
the Coppermine to the ocean, established the verccity of Hearne, which was
before doubted, and traced the coast eastwardh to Point Tiuuagain. He
also guessed the position of the magnetic pole, and made valuable discover-
ies in every department of natural science.

In Parry 'a second voyage, he discovered Melville Peninsula, a;id the Strait

the fact o' human existence in
imoossibilily ; he made various

7^
203560

ipl

Discovery of the Northwest Passage.

of the Fury and Ilccla, where ho vainly aouglu tlie expected passage. In
his tliird expedition, he sailed down Prince Regent's Inlet as far as latitude
12 deg. 30 tnin., in longitude 91 deg. west. Franklin, in two subsequent
expeditions, traced the line of coast between the Coppermine and McKeii-
zie\s rivers and westward from the McKen/ie to Cape Back ; and Captain
lieechy, oi" the B. R. N., passed through Behring's Strait to 156 deg. 21}
.sec. west longitude, leaving but 150 miles of coast to be surveyed be-ween
Bullring's Strait and Point Turnagain. Let the reader refer again to the
map, and he will sue that of the whole northern coast of America, between
Cape (Jarry, in Prince Regent's Inlet, and Icy Cape, but 650 miles ri'main-
ed to be explored ; and of these the Uneof 150 was known and deiined with
Huilicient accuracy for all commercial and geographical purposes. The
land seeii by Parry south of Mellville Island, and call<;d by him Banker's
Land, that on the western side of II 'gents Inlet, called by Captain Ross
Boothia Felix, that seen by Franklin, north of Coronation Gulf, is suj)posed by
Captain Ross to be one vast peninsula or continent, and is assuredly either
such or a great group of islands. We come now to Ross's recent discov.
eries, by which lie has satisfied himself that it is a peninsula, and that the ro
is no passage from the waters of Hudson's or Baffin's bays through Re-
gent's Inlet or any vhere else to the south of latitude 74 deg. His ne[)hew,
and second in command, liowcver, is of a different opinion. Tiie late ex-
pedition of Messrs. Dease and Simpson sets the question at rest, and proves
Sir John Ross to have been wholly mistaken. We shall presently abridge
it ; but finst, in justice to the brave and adventurous uncle and nephew, we
must give some account of their unparallelled sufferings and exertions.

Captain Ross, juiging very justly, that the arctic seas could best be navi-
gated by vessels of ihallow draught, and not dependent on the wind, proposed
to the admiralty to attempt the northwest passage through Regent's Inlet
by steam ; but his Droffer was at once rejected. The unfortunate arc not
readily trusted. Smarting under unmerited censure, he proposed the scheme
to Sheriff Felix Boo;h, in whose favor we can forgive Ross for naming his dis-
coveries after him, m offensive fashion of man-worship which all the modern
explorers have foUoived, from Ross to Beechy. Why should the Strait of
Anian be rebaptizedby the name of a beast and a drunkard, "the fourth of
the fools and oppresscrs called George ?" If they had called their discoveries
after themselves, theie would have been some sense and justice in it. Mr.
Booth, however, dese.-ves to be immortalized, if only for his generous munifi-
cence. At first, he refused to aid Ross, because, as parliament had offered a
great reward for the piojected discovery, it would look like speculation in him
to do so ; but as soon as that offer was rescinded by government, this princely
individual at once advarced his friend twenty thousand pounds, and became re-
sponsible for the whole cf the expense of the expedition, and left him at liber-
ty to select his own officers and crew. He set sail in the steamship Victory,
with a company of twetty-four persons, in May, 1829, fitted forth in the
most complete manner possible, with stores for a thousand days. The ma-
chinery, however, provea defective. The labor of managing it was exces-
sive. It propelled the boat but three miles an hour at best, and it was ot
very little service at any time. The crew of a tender to the Victory
mutinied, and she was obliged to proceed alone. Seldom has a voyage
been commenced under more inauspicious circumstances. The Victory
lost her fore-top-mast in a gale, and one of her engineers was dangerously
wounded by her engine. Nevertheless, no man's heart failed him } and in

the firl
climatj
Regeif
inagiKJ
was wl
were A

tlU! Stll

the btj
tempol
the V
iiiontll

Discovery of the Northwest Passage.

assngc. In

I' a.s JutilLide
subscfjuent
kI Mclu;n.
lid Cuptuiii
deg. 21-1
d b(j.\vceii
g;iiu to thu
ii, Ltetwccji
'■« nimiin.
Liined witii

l-scs. 'I'l

l^uiiker's
ptuin Ross

ij'posod by
^dly either
'nt discov-

tlmt tiicro
;oiigii Re.
i^ nephew,
e late ex.
lid proves
y abridge
phew, we
|ions.

t be navi.
proposed
nVa Inlet
- are not
e scheme
ig his dis-
^' modern
Strait of
fourth of
icoveries
it. Mr.
5 munifi.
offered a
n in him
arincely
ame re-
fit liber.
Victory,

in the
he ma-
exces-
was ot
Victory
''oyage
'^ictory
rously
ind in

the first week of August the ship entered Lancaster Sound. Thus far th(5
climate had proveil as mild and auspicious as that of Italy. On entering
Regent's Inlet, the compass became useless, from the close vicinity of the
iriagnctic pole. On the twelfth, the ship made the spot where tlic Fury
was wrecked in A. I). 18ii5. The tent poles ere id on that occasion,
were still standing, but tlie wreck was gone. Though ir years had elapsed,
tlie stores were in excellent preservation, and had es ped the curiosity of
the bears, a circumstance to which the whole party owed their ultimatt;
temporal salvation. A good quantity of the stores was taken on boartl
the Victory ; enough to complete her complement for two years ami three
months. The gunpowder was destroyed, lest it should accidentally do
injury to the Esquimaux. The next day, the ship made Cape Garry, hither-
to the southern limit of the navigation of Regent's Inlet.

Ou the fifteenth, the Victory was on the shore of Boothia, thii'ty miles
south of Capo Garry ; but what avails it to indite the ship's itinerary ? The
strait was much clearer of ice than could have been expected — whales
abounded, so did the usual arctic animals, and the signs of tlie natives
were observed every where. In September, the ice formed, and the
weather became tempestuous. By the end of this month, all hope of fur-
ther progress was at an end ; the insurmountable obstructions of nature
forbade it, and preparations were made to winter in latitude 70 deg., long!-
tude 92 d(!g. 40 niin., three hundred miles further than any preceding ex-
pedition had gone, and within two hundred and eighty miles of Point Tiirna-
gain. The guns were taken out, the ship was unrigged, and frozen in for the
winter. A magazine was erected on shore, the engine was landed, and the
company began to amuse themselves by hunting polar bears, foxes, and seals ;
sjiirits were no longer used, divine service was regularly performed, &c.,
&c. ; a school was also opened. It is here justly observed that the tem-
perature of these regions is not, like that of Sweden and Norway, depen-
dent on the latitude. These are the facts from which this inference was
drawn : jikav

LATITUDE. LONGITUDE. TEMPERATURE.

92° 01' 06" Oct. 1829, was -;- 8° AM
07 " 1819, " — 6 oO/.
00 " 1821, " + 9 51/

46 " 1822, *' + 9 79/
43 " 1824, " 4-10 8.')/

69'

00"

110
83

81
88

48
11
52
54

Victory's Position, 69°
Melville Island, 74
Winter Island, 66
Igloolik, 69

Port Bowen, 73

In the course of January, 1830, the explorers made the acquaintance of
a party of Esquimaux, who had knowledge of the whites, and who did not
differ materially from their congeners described by Captain Pariy. We
regret that our limits do not allow us to dwell upon this interesting people,
and indeed the length to which we have already drawn this paper, warns
us to cut it short. Suffice it to say. that the company of the Victory were
lost to the world for four years, that they discovered the true position of the
magnetic pole to be in the supposed peninsula of Boothia, in latitude 70
deg. 5 min. 17 sec. and longitude 96 deg. 46 min. 45 sec. The dip of the
needle was here 89 deg. 59 min., within one minute of vertical, and con-
sequently, within a mile of the pole. The accuracy of science and mathe-
matical instrument makers can go no nighcr to perfection. The spot is
thus described : " The land at this place is very low near the coast ; but
rises into ridges fifty or sixty feet high, a mile inland. We wished that a
place so important had possessed more of mark or note. It was scarcely

!!il

mmmm

Discovery of the Northwest Passage.

censuraolc to regret that there was not a mountain to indicate a sj)Ot to
whicli so much interest must ever be attached, and I could iiiive pardoned
any one of us vvlio luul been so romantic or absurd as to expect that the
magnetic j)oic was an object as conspicuous as the mountain of Sindbad,
or a mountain of iron, or a magnet as big as Mont Blanc. But Nature
liad erected no monumorii to denote the spot she had chosen as tiie centre
of one of her great n.ud dark powers."

The widest puit of the [>eninsula of Boothia is ascertained to be but fif-
teen miies wide, of which ten are occupied by water, and a canal might
easily be cut through, were its possible navigation for about a month in the
year a desideratum. It was supposed by Captain Ross that the level of the
sea on one side of the isthmus of Boothia was several feet higher than on
tile other, and hence he inferred, though erroneously, that tliere was no
passage nigh this point. It is proper to observe here that the overland sur-
veys, and tlie assignment of the pole, were made by Commander James
Ross.

On May 29th, 1832, all hope of saving the Victory being at an end, and
it being impossible to brave another winter in that region, the company
left the ship for Fury Beach, which they reached, atler incredible hardship
and sulFerings, on the 1st of July. It was their only chance for life.
Here they found three of the shattered boats of the Fury, in which they
reached Leopold South Island in September following. Then, the ice bar-
ring all furtiier progress, they returned to Fury Beach.

" All our attempts to push through were vain ; at length, being forced
by want of provisions and the approach of a most severe winter, to return
to Fury Beach, where alone there remained wherewith to sustain life ;
there we arrived on October 7, after a most fatiguing and laborious march,
having been obliged to leave our boats at Batty Bay. Our habitation,
wliich consisted in a frame of spars, 32 feet by 16, covered with canvass,
was during the month of November enclosed, and the roof covered with
snow from four to seven feet thick, which, being saturated with water when
the temperature was 15 deg. below zero, immediately took the consistency
of ice, and thus we actually became the inhabitants of an iceberg during
one of the most severe winters hitherto recorded : our sufferings, aggravated
by want of bedding, clothing, and animal food, need not be dwelt upon.
Mr. C. Thomas, the carpenter, was the only man who perished at this
beach ; but three others, besides one who had lost his foot, were reduced to
the last stage of debility, and only thirteen of our number were able to
carry provisions in seven journeys of sixty-two miles each to Batty Bay,
We left Fury Beach on July 8, carrying with us three sick men which wero
unable to walk, and in six days we reached the boats, where the sick daily
recovered. Although the spring was mild, it was not until August 15 that
we had any cheering prospect : a gale from the westward having suddenly
opened a lane of water along shore, in two days we reached our former
position, and from the mountain we had the satisfaction of seeing clear
water almost directly across Prince Regent's Inlet, which we crossed on
the 17th, and took shelter from a storm twelve miles to the eastward of
Cape York. Next day, when the gale abated, we crossed Admiralty Inlet,
and were detained six days on the coast by a strong northeast wind. On
the 25th we crossed Navy Board Inlet, and on the following morning, to
our inexpressible joy, we descried a ship in the offing becalmed, which
uroved to be the Isabella, of Hull, the same ship which I commanded in

wtuc

Discovery of Ike Northwest Passage.

fitc a spot to
iivc pardoned
pcct that the
1 of Sindbad,
But Nature
as tlic centre

to ho but fif.
canal miglit
montli in the
e level of the
gher tiian on
here was no
overland sur-
ander James

an end, and

:he company

:ble hardship

nee for life.

which they

the ice bai-.

joing forced
er, to return
sustain life ;
■ious march,

habitation,
ith canvass,
)vered Avith
water wjien
consistency
)erg during
aggravated
Iwelt upon,
led at this

reduced to
ere able to
Batty Bay.
which were
! sick daily
ust 15 that
g suddenly
)ur former
eing clear
crossed on
istward of
ralty Inlet,
vind. On
lorning, to
led, which
nanded in

181S ; at noon wo reached her, when her enterprising commander, who
had in vain searched for us in IVince Regent's Inlet, after giving us threo
cheers, received us with every demonstration of kindness and hospitality
which humanity could dictate."

We have only further to say of Captnin Ross, that his government were
so far liberal as to reimburse him and his noble friend, Felix Booth, th3
expenses they had actually incurred, that he received the honor (?) of
l<nii.dithood, and that all his officers were promoted. This was |)ri'tty
lilK'Tul lor a govermnent which appropriated thirty thousand pounds jirr
annum to provide the queen with a plaything; but what was knighthood or
title to such men as IJooth and the llusses / Their mortal bodies may
cnunble to dust ; but they can never die. There needs no statue to their
njcuK-iry — they have reared their own — and will never be forgotten while
till ri! is a tear in the eye of British pity, or a throb in the breast of the
British brave.

We leave Captain Ross and his gallant company, with regret that our
hmits will allow us to bear tliem company no longer. There is much of
interest in the narrative of their perils and suiFerings, at which we cannot
even glance. We mu.'-^t also try to pay a slight tribute of justice to Messrs.
Dease and Simpson, and to the Hudson's Bay Company. " Where in tho
annals of discovery," asks the London Athenaeum, " arc to be found such
touching examples of enterprise, fortitude, and perseverance, as are otlered
to us in the narratives of Hearne, Franklin, and Parry, not to say any
thing of Captain Ross's last voyage ?" The writer might have asked, in
addition, what combination of individuals since the creation of the world,
ever rendered so much service to science, to their country, and to mankind,
as the Hudson's Bay Company ? What do we know of two-thirds of an
entire continent, that is not derived directly or indirectly from their exer-
tions, their ]iatronage ? They have now rendered almost the last possible
benefit of the kind.

■ In June last, these gentlemen descended the Coppermine river, in pur-
suance of Governor Simpson's instructions. They explored Richardson's
river, discovered in 1838, which discharges itself into the sea in latitude
67 deg. 53 min. 57 sec, longitude 115 deg. 56 min. Here, as every where
else in America which the foot of man has ever yet pressed, were found
the all-enduring Esquimaux. In the first week of the following month, the
ice opened, they reached Coronation Gulf, the eastern limit of Franklin's
discoveries, and found it free from ice. Here may properly be said to be-
gin the region now first made known to the civilized world.

Cape Alexander is situated in latitude 68 deg. 56 sec, longitude 106
deg. 40 min. ; and thence to another remarkable point in latitude 88 deg.
33 mi , longitude 98 deg. 10 sec, the coast is one grcat bay, indented by
many smaller bays, with long projecting peninsulas, like those on the
western shore of Scotland, and studded, or rather choked, by islands innu-
merable. Thus it appears that the route of the surveyors was intricate,
and their duties harassing, though not dangerous ; for the islands protected
them from the seaward ice, and the weather was clear. Their most serious
detention was at a jutting cape called White Bear Point, in latitude 68 deg.
7 sec, longitude 103 deg. 36 min. Vestiges of the everlasting Esquimaux
appeared wherever the voyagers landed, and they appeared to exist in sin-
gle families or in very small parties. In June they travel inland to the
chase of the caribou, and return to the islands for seals when the winter

VOL. HI. — NO. I. 8

Discovery of the Northwest Passage.

Vi: '

sets in. In no mntoriJil respect do they s(!cm to dilFer from tlieir compa-
triots, as described by Ross, Franklin, ami Tarry.

A mucli larger river tlian tiie Coppermine tiills into tlie sea in latitude
68 (leg. 2 min., longitude 104 deg. 15 min., and is much freciuented by
reinde(!r and musk oxen. Tiiis will j)robubly be one day soon the location
of a trading post.

" Finding the coast tending northerly from the bottom of the great bjiy,"
says the despatch of the adventurers, " wo expected to be earritcl round
Capo Felix of Captain James Ross ; but on the 10th of August, at the
point already given, we suddenly ojjencd a strait running in to the soutli-
ward of east, where the ra[)id rush of tlu; tide scarcely kt't a doubt of the
existence of an open sea leading to the mouth of IJack's Great Fish River.
This strait is ten miles wide at cither extremity, but contracl^ to three in
the centre. Even that narrow channel is much encroached on by high
shingle islands ; but there is deep water in the middle throughout.

" The l:;ith of August was signalized by the most terrific storm we ever
witnessed in these regions. Next day it blew roughly from the westward,
but we ran southeast, passed Point Richardson and Point Ogle of Sir George
Back, till the night and the gale drove us ashore beyond Point Pechell.
The storm lasted till the 16th, when we directed our course to Montreal
Island. On its northern side our people found a deposit made by some of
Sir George Back's party. It contained two b;vgs of pemican and a quantity
of cocoa and chocoJate, besides a tin vasculum, and two or three other ar-
ticles, of which we took possession, as memorials of our having brcakiasted
on the spot where the tent of our gallant, though less successful, precursor
stood that very day five years before.

" The duty we had, in 1836, undertaken, was thus fully accomplished ;
and the length and difficulty of the route back to tlu; Coppermine would
have justified our return. We had all suffered from want of fuel and de-
privation of food, and prospects grew more cheerless as the cold weather
stole on ; but having already ascertained the separation of Boothia from
the continent, on the western side of Great Fish River, we determined not
to desist till we had settled its relation on the eastern side also. A fog
whic'> came on dispersed towards evening, and unfolded a full view of the
shores of the estuary. Far to the south, Victoria Headland stood forth so
clearly defined, that wc instantly recognised it by Sir George Back's
drawing. Cape Beaufort we seemed to touch, and with the telescope wo
were able to discern a continuous line of high land as far round as north-
east, about two points more northerly than Cape Hay, the extreme eastern
point seen by Sir George Back.

" The traverse to the furthest visible land occupied six hours' labor at the
oar, and the sun was rising on the 17th when we scaled the Rocky Cape, to
which our course had been directed. It stands in latitude 68 deg. 3 min.
56 sec. N., longitude 94 deg. 35 min. W. The azimuth compass settled
exactly in the true meridian, and agreed with two others, placed on the
ground. From our proximity to the magnetic pole, the compass had lat-
terly been of little use ; but this was of the less consequence, as the astro-
nomical observations were very frequent. The dip of the needle, which at
Thunder Cove (12th August) was 89 deg. 29 min. 35 sec, had here de-
creased to 89 deg. 16 min. 40 sec. N. This bold promontory, where we
lay wind bound till the 19th, was named Cape Britannia. On the rock that
sheltered our encampment from the sea, and is the most conspicuous object

on thi
that, i
storni!'
and

"O
coast
Next
it al
rul'uge

"F
rninolt

Discovery of the Northwest Passage.

r-to

their coiripa-

oa ill liititudo
('(liu;nf<;d by
1 tlic iucntion

^rval buy,"'

[irricil round

ugiist, iit tho

to the south.

Ifloiiht of the

Fisii River.

2 to tiiree in
on by high

out.

)rm we ever
e westward,
Sir George
)int Pechell.
to Montreal
by some of
id a quantity
ee other ar-
brcakfasted
1, precursor

Jomplished ;
mine would
fuel and de-
old weather
oothia from
-'rmincd not
Iso. A fog
view of the
)od forth so
rge Back 'a
ilescope we
d as north,
me eastern

abor at the
cy Cape, to
leg. 3 min,
ass settled
;ed on the
iss had lat-

the astro.
', which at
I here de-

where we

3 rock that
lous object

on this part of the coast, we crectcid a conical pile of poiuieroua siom-s,
that, if not pulled down by tlie natives, may defy the rage of a thousand
storms. In it was placcul u bottle, containing a sketch ul' our proceedings,
and possession was taken of our discoveries in the name of Victoria I.

" On the lOlh, the gale shifted, atid after crossing a bay, due east, the
coast bent away nortlu-ast, which enabled us to elUct <'i run of f(jrty miles.
Next day the wind resumed its former direction, and after pulling against
il all the morning and gaining only three miles, we were obliged to taku
rul'uge in the mouth of a small river.

" From a ridge, about a hiague inland, wc obtained a view of some very
remote blue land in the northeast, in all probability one of the southern
pn»niontories (jf Hoothia. Two consid(!rable islands lay fur in the oiling,
and others, high and distant, stretched from I'l to ENE.

" Our view of the low main shore was confined to five miles in an easterly
directi(jn, after which it appeared to turn off greatly to the right. Wo
could, therefi)re, scarcely doubt our having arrived at that large gulf uui-
formly described by the Esquimaux as containing many islands, and with
numerous indentations stretcliing southward till it approaches within forty
miles of Repulse and Wager bays. The exploration of such a gulf, which
was the object of the Terrors ill-starred voyage, would necessarily demand
the whole time and energies of another expedition, having a starting or
retreating [)oint much nearer to the scene of operations than Great Rear
Lake ; and it was (evident to us that any further perseverance could only
lead to the loss of the great object already attained, together with that of
the whole party. Wo must here be allowed to express our admiration of
Sir John Ross's extraordinary escape from this neighborhood, after the
protracted endurance of our ships, unparalleled in arctic story. The mouth
of the stream, which bounded the last career of our admirable little boats,
and received their name, lies in latitude 68 deg. 28 min. 27 sec. N., longi-
tude 97 deg. 3 min. W. ; variation of the compass, 16 deg. 20 min. W."

We have done our best to make the doings of Messrs. Dease and Simp-
son, and Sir John Ross, comprehensible. We something doubt whether
we have succeeded. As far as we know, there has as yet been no map,
great or small, of the recent discoveries, published either in this country or
in England ; and without such a facility, it is almost out of the question to
follow either of the exploring parties. Even were the line of coast well
defined, the absurd practice of American map makers of calculating longi-
tude from Washington, instead of from Greenwich, is excessively harass-
ing to the reader who attempts to accompany an English traveller on an
American chart.

One question arises from the whole subject, Cui bono ? What good is
to result from the lavish expenditure of wealth, the unremitted exertions of
five centuries, the loss of life that has attended the search after the no'-th-
west passage ? It has been said with apparent truth, that the passage now
demonstrated to exist, exists to no available purpose ; that it never lias
been and never will be passed. But these objections are rather specious
than real. The discovery of the magnetic pole alone, repays every sacri-
fice made in the cause of northern discovery from the date of Eric Raude
and his Northmen down to the time of Ross, Dease, and Simpson. Again,
if the passage can never be efTected ■ ae season, or by one vessel, does
It follow that it cannot be effected at all ? The contrary is demonstrated.
What has been done once can be done again. Every inch of the coaat

■H

Discovery nf the Norlhwest Passage.

\ f

d :

*■

\ '.

from Behring's Strait to tho strait of the Fury and Ilocla has bcon navi.i
gated by Englishmen, excepting ii distaiico ot" less than one hundred ami
seventy. five miles ; and it is proved that any part of the distanee can b<i
traversed at a certain season of every year. It is certain that the hottomj
of Regent's Inlet may be reached in anyone year from Knghmd by a goo
steamboat, and that the voyage is attended with no greater danger than anvj
othe." whaling trip. What is to hinder tin; (.'stablishment of a trading posi
at tlu! isthmus of Hoothia, and anotluu- at the mouth of the Copp'Tiiiine 'j
A third is already near the mouth of the McKenzie. A f(jurth might bt
cstablishcid at Kutzt^bue''s Sound, which is approachable froin the I'acilicj
every year. Supposing steamboats to be kept at each of these stations ;J
who can calculate — who can guess the results ( Whales, seals, birds, and
fur-clad animals abound in tlu; sea of Hearnc and McKen/.ie. There isj
mjthing to hinder the; pursuit of them there. Men have wint(;reil in S[)itz.
bergen--men have been born, lived, and died, in the most northern regions]
of America yet known or even guessed at.

It is something to have added a ccjntinent nearly as large as Europe to]
the world, though it be but cold and sterile. It is sornething that we are|
enabled to ameliorate the condition of the natives of that country, to com.
municate to them a knowledge of the arts of life, and the blessings and;
promises of Christianity It is something that, without taking an inch of
ground from the poor iribes who live north of Lake Winne|)eg, without
injuring them in tho slightest degree, wo have improved their condition
while we have benefited ourselves; we have furnished employmen; o
liundreds and hundreds of tliousands. Wc have drained the lialf of a con-
tinent of its wealth without impoverishing it. Wo have served iho cause
of humanity. The miserable Esquimau no longer perishes by the ruthless
liand of the almost as degraded Dog Rib, and the degraded Dog Rib holds
his hut, his wife, his life, at the pleasure of the capricious Copper Indian
no more. The one is no longer able, or even willing, to oppress the other
as before. All parties have risen in the scale of being.

With these reasons for rejoicing there mingles one drop of bitterness —
no, of regret rather. We cannot feel bitterly to sec good done even by an
enemy ; far less by a friendly and a kindred people. We may, however,
without subjecting ourself to the imputation of envy or lack of charity, ex.
press our sorrow that no part of this harvest of true glory was reaped by
us. It is our consolation that we can fall back upon the honors of Lewis
and Clarke, of Daniel Boone, and many a hardy pioneer, whose enterprise,
fortitude, and magnanimity would have done honor to Parry, or Franklin,
or Ross, though they were displayed on a less conspicuous field of action
than theirs.

We have but two faults to find — one with Captain Ross, and the other
with his American publisher. The first is, there was no need, in speaking
of the not-too-highly-to-be-praised liberality of Felix Booth, of a sneer at
Benjamin Frankhn, who also had a heart as big as a whale, or a kraken,
or as Booth himself. Such a sarcasm was unworthy of Ross and of Booth.
The fault of the publishers is, the carelessness or stinginess which has sent
the work into the world without a chart, which might have been given for
twenty or thirty dollars, and the want of which takes away half its value.

L lias bcpn navi.
no liiiiuirL'd uik!
(listaiicj; can b(

that the hottoiii-
ijflaiid hy a n^uil
• laii^'cr than aiuj
t' a tradiiiif post]
10 CVi[)|)'.'rniin(! '
lljurth iiii<,dit 1)1
roni tho Pacific I

these stations ;
seals, hinJs, and
azie. Tiioro isi
ntv.wA ill Spitz.
lortiieni retiioiis:

' o'

j;e as Europe to'
iig that we an
ountry, to com.
e bk.'ssings anil
ing an inch of
inepeg, without
their condition
empioymcj.; n
c half of a con-
rved ihe cause
by the ruthless
Dog Rib holds
Copper Indian
press the other

of bitterness —
)ne even by an
may, however,
of charity, ex.
was reaped by
nors of Lewi's
ose enterprise,
i, or Franklin,
field of action

and the other
id, in speaking
of a sneer at
!, or a kraken,
and of Booth,
vhich has sent
been given for
lalf its value.