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dition destined to proceed through Sacheuse, the Eskimaux, called out Davis' Strait, and in case of his suc- to them in his own language, and a cess in finding the long-looked-for passage, he was instructed to proceed to Behring's Strait, through which he was to endeavour to pass into the Paific Ocean, and then to make the best of his way to Kamtschatka, and from thence to the Sandwich Islands, to refit and pass the winter, and return by the saine course in the spring, if it should appear safely practicable; if not, to proceed homeward by Cape

Horn.

The ships employed in this service, the Isabella and Alexander, were fitted out with extreme care, both as to strength and convenience, and furnished with a most ample supply of the best constructed instruments suited for the various observations and experiments to be made in the course of the voyage.

They took their departure from Shetland on the 3d of May, and made the best of their way to Davis' Straits, which they reached about the beginning of June, and found they were sufficiently early, as the ice was seen in great quantities in all directions; they worked on, however, through all obstacles, till, on the 17th of June, they reached Waygatt, or Hare Island, situated in Lat. 70° 43′ N. and Long. 57° 3′ W. and made fast to an iceberg about a mile from the island. They found here a number of ships employed in the whale fishery, all detained by the ice. After resting several days, the ice appearing to loosen a little, they cast off from the iceberg, and with much labour advanced, forcing their way through the loose ice; their progress was exceedingly slow, being occasionally for days together obliged to remain fast to the ice.

On the 9th of August they had reached lat. 75° 55′ N. long. 65° 32′ W., and were surprised by the appearance of several men on the ice. The first impression was that they were shipwrecked sailors, whose vessel had been crushed in a late gale; but on approaching they were discovered to be natives, drawn on rudely formed sledges by dogs, which they drove backwards and forwards with wonder. ful rapidity. When within hail, *

The following account of this Green lander is given by Captain Ross in the introduction:

"During our stay at Deptford, we were

joined by John Sacheuse, an Eskimaux, native of South-east Bay, Greenland, in lat. 69° N. and long. 50° W. It would appear, that he had concealed himself on board the Thomas and Ann, of Leith, in the month of May 1816: On being discovered, Captain Newton, who commanded that vessel, wished to land him again, but he earnestly entreated to be permitted to remain, and he was accordingly brought to

Leith. He returned to Greenland with the home, found his only near relation had same ship in 1817, and on his arrival at died in his absence. It was not ascertained, at his first outset, what were his motives for quitting his native country, but it seemed now, that the death of his relation was his reason for continuing in the ship, which he did, returning to Leith with her the same season. I had several conversa tions with him on the subject; he related many adventures and narrow escapes he had experienced in his canoe, in one of ried to sea in a storm with five others, all which he stated himself to have been carof whom perished, and that he was miraculously saved by an English ship. He also informed me, that he had, through the missionaries, been converted to Christianity, and the strong desire he had to see the country these good men came from, had induced him to desert his own; but that it was always his intention to return when he had learnt the Scriptures and the art of drawing. He related several traditions current in his country respecting a race of people who were supposed to inhabit the of communicating with them, and connorth; adding, that it was for the purpose verting them to Christianity, that he vo lunteered for our expedition. During his residence at Leith, in the winter of 1817, he had been taken notice of by Mr Nasmyth, the artist, who introduced him to Sir James Hall. His wishes to accompa ny us were made known to the Admiralty, through Captain Basil Hall, and he was consequently engaged as our interpreter. the natives will be apparent in the course His utility to us in communicating with of this narrative. He returned, like the the passage home; often repeating that rest of the crew, in perfect health during when he had got more instructions on religion, he would return to the wild people, and endeavour to convert them to Christiznity. His meritorious conduct was represented by me to the Admiralty in the strongest terms; their Lordships treated him with the utmost liberality, and, aware of the importance of his services on a future expedition, had taken steps to have him properly instructed, and for which purpose he was sent to Edinburgh; here he was

reply was made, though neither party appeared to be in the least degree intelligible to the other. On the ships tacking, they set up a simultaneous shout, and with many strange gesticulations went off in their sledges with all speed towards the land, and disappeared.

Next morning, however, eight sledges driven by the natives, approached by a circuitous route the place where the ships lay; they halted about a mile from them, but appeared afraid to venture nearer. In the meantime, Sacheuse was dispatched, bearing a small white flag and some presents, to endeavour to bring them to a parley. On approaching, a chasm was found in the ice, not passable without a plank, separating the parties from each other. Sacheuse placing his flag at some distance, returned to the edge, and taking off his hat, made friendly signs for them to approach as he did. They cautiously advanced, having nothing in their hands but the whips with which they guide their dogs, and after satisfying themselves that the chasm was impassable, seemed to acquire confidence. Words were exchanged for some time to little purpose, till Sacheuse thinking he perceived a resemblance to the Humooke dialect, holding up the presents, called to them in that dialect to come on ;" they then seemed to understand him, and replied in words which he made out to mean, "No, no, go away, we hope you are not come to destroy us." The boldest then approached the chasm, and drawing a knife from his boot said, "Go away, I can kill you." Sacheuse, not intimidated, told them he was a friend, and threw over some strings of beads, a checked shirt, and a knife, saying, "Take that ;" they now approached with caution, picked up the knife, then shouted and pulled their noses; Sacheuse perceiving this was their elegant mode of salutation, shouted in reply, and pulled his nose with the same gesture. They pointed to the ships, eagerly asking "What great creatures these were?" "Do they come from the sun or the moon?" "Do they give us light by night or by day?" Sacheuse replied, that they were houses of wood. This they

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unfortunately attacked by a typhus fever, which carried him off on the 14th of February, after a few days illness."

seemed to discredit, saying, "No, they are alive, we have seen them move their wings!" He then told them, he came from a distant country in that direction, pointing to the south. To this they answered, "That cannot be, there is nothing but ice there." On being asked where they lived, they pointed to the north, and said there was much water there, and that they had come here to fish for sea unicorns. It was then agreed that Sacheuse should pass the chasm, and he returned to the ship for a plank.

Having procured one, he passed over; the natives showed the greatest alarm on his approach, and earnestly entreated him not to touch them, or, if he did, they would certainly die. They evidently doubted extremely whether he was actually a human being, till one of them, after much hesitation, ventured to touch his hand; then pulling himself by the nose, set up a shout, in which he was joined by the others. Captain Ross, in hopes of obtaining some interesting information, now advanced along with Lieutenant Parry; they instantly retreated in great alarm towards their sledges; but on the Captain and the rest of the party pausing and pulling their noses, they also halted and returned this salute with great gravity; it was now evident it was meant as a friendly salutation. A few knives and small looking-glasses were now distributed, which seemed to give them infinite delight. In secing their faces in the glasses their amazement was extreme, and the natural and unrestrained expression of their surprise and pleasure was irresistibly ludicrous. With much difficulty they were persuaded to advance towards the ship, and on approaching, it was apparent they still believed it to be a living creature, looking at the masts, and examining every part with marks of the greatest fear and astonishment, and one of them cried out, in words perfectly intelligible to Sacheuse," Who are you? What are you? Where do you come from? Is it from the sun or the moon?" They were at length induced to go on board. Their amazement may easily be conceived; every thing was new to them. Their knowledge of wood was limited to some heath of a dwarfish growth, of course they knew not what to think of the quantity of timber they saw qa

board. The only article which they pretended to know was glass, which they instantly declared to be ice. They showed the same inclination to pilfering which appears common to all savages, but their choice of articles was unfortunate, for one of them, apparently without any idea of the weight of things, coolly attempted to carry off the smith's anvil, and another the spare top-mast, and seemed surprised at its resistance. They seemed to have no pleasure in music; some tunes being played on a violin, they paid not the least attention to it. On being offered some biscuit to eat, one of them put it in his mouth, but instantly spit it out with disgust, and some salt beef that was then offered produced the same effect. Being questioned as to the numbers of their nation, it was ascertained that they could not count beyond ten; but on inquiring if there were as many inha bitants as there were pieces of ice floating round the ship, they answered Many more;" a thousand fragments at least were at that time visible. Being now loaded with presents of various kinds, they took their departure, mounted their sledges, and drove off hallooing and pulling their noses, apparently in great glee.

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The ships were afterwards visited by another party of the natives, and we shall now proceed to lay before our readers a short summary of the information obtained from them, and the result of Captain Ress's observations respecting this secluded corner of the world.

The country to which Captain Ross gave the name of the Arctic Highlands, is situated on the north-east corner of Baffin's Bay, between the latitudes 76° and 77° 40′ N. and the longitudes 60° and 72° W. thus extending on the sea-shore for 120 miles in a N. W. direction, the breadth where widest does not exceed 20 miles, and towards the extremities is reduced to nothing. It is bounded on the south by a barrier of mountains covered with ice; as far as could be judged from the ships, this barrier is impassable. The interior country presents an irregular group of mountainous land, declining gradually from the high ridge before mentioned towards the sca, which it reaches in an irregular manner, and still at a considerable elevation, the sea cliffs ranging

from five hundred to a thousand feet in height.

On the surface of the land above the cliff, a scanty appearance of vegetation of a yellowish green colour, and here and there a spot of a heath brown, was to be seen. Similar traces of verdure were also occasionally apparent at the foot of the cliffs. The boundary of this region must be plac ed to the northward of Whale Sound at Cape Robertson; from that Cape towards the north the mountains rise immediately from the sea, and form a ridge similar to that which takes its rise at Cape Melville. Thus it is inclosed on all sides, and precluded from all possibility of communication by land with any other inhabitants of this country, should there be any to the eastward of this. The space between Cape Melville and Cape York forms a spacious bay, which Captain Ross named Prince Regent's Bay; and is of opinion, the whale fishery might be pursued here with great success, as the whales were large and numerous, and that a valuable trade might be established in black fox skins, great numbers of these animals being seen; these could be procured for European commodities of trifling value, such as knives, pieces of wood, crockery ware, &c. &c.

The inhabitants of this secluded district have no knowledge of any thing but what originates in their own country; nor have they any tradition how they came to this spot, or from whence they are derived; and it is a remarkable fact, that until the moment of the arrival of Captain Ross they believed themselves to be the only inhabitants of the universe, and that all the rest of the world was a mass of ice. The similarity of their language proves them to be of the same race as the South Greenlanders, who believe their country to have been peopled from the north; and the northern part of Baffin's Bay was probably originally peopled by a tribe from America.

The Arctic Highlanders are of a dirty copper colour, short in stature, seldom exceeding five feet, rather corpulent, and their features much rescmbling the Esquimaux of South Greenland. None of their houses were seen, but they described them as built entirely of stone, the walls being sunk about three feet into the

earth, and raised about as much above it. They have no windows, and the entrance is by a long narrow passage, nearly under ground. Several families live in one house, and each has a

lamp made of hollowed stone, hung from the roof, in which they burn the blubber of the seal, &c. using dried moss for a wick, which is kindled by means of iron and stone. This lamp, which is never extinguished, serves, at once, for light, warmth, and cooking. They have no vegetable food, but live entirely on the flesh of animals; the seal and seaunicorn are preferred, as being the most oily and agreeable to their palate. This diet does not appear unwholesome, all the natives that were seen, looking vigorous and healthy, and nothing was heard of any disease to which they were subject. Each man, when he was able to maintain a family, took one wife, and, if she had children, he was not permitted to take more; if otherwise, he took another, and the woman enjoyed the same privilege. They all lived under the government of one chief, to whom they paid a portion of all they caught or found. He was described as living in a house nearly as large as the ship, and that a great portion of the people lived near him.

Their dress is entirely composed of either seal or bear skins, worn with the hair outside, in the form of a close tunic, with a hood lined with feathers.

Their notions of religion or a future state may be gathered from the following passage:

«Ervick being the senior of the first party that came on board, was judged to be the most proper person to question on the subject of religion. I directed Sacheuse to ask him if he had any knowledge of a Supreme Being; but, after trying every word used in his own language to express it, he could not make him understand what he meant. It was distinctly ascertained that he did not worship the sun, moon, stars, or any image, or living crea

ture.

When asked what the sun or moon was for, he said, to give light. He had no knowledge or idea how he came into being, or of a future state; but said, that, when

he died, he would be put into the ground. Having fully ascertained that he had no idea of a beneficent Supreme Being, I proceeded, through Sacheuse, to inquire if he believed in an Evil Spirit; but he could not be made to understand what it meant.

The word "angekok," which means a conjuror or sorcerer, was then pronounced to him, in the South Greenland Eskimaux He said, they had many of language. them; that it was in their power to raise a storm or make a caim, and to drive off

seals or bring them; that they learned this art from old Angekoks, when young; that they were afraid of them; but they had generally one in every family. Mejgack gave precisely the same answers, and had the same notions but he was not so intelligent as Ervick. Finding that Otoomiak, the nephew of Ervick, a lad of eighteen years of age, was a young angekok, I got him in the cabin by himself, and, through Sacheuse, asked him how he learned this art. He replied, from an old ang ekok; that he could raise the wind, and

drive off seals and birds. He said that this was done by gestures and words; but the words had no meaning, nor were they said or addressed to any thing but the wind or the sea. He was positive that in this incantation he did not receive assistance from any thing; nor could he be made to understand what a good or an evil Spirit meant. When Ervick was told that there was an omnipotent, omnipresent, and invisible Being, who had created the sea and land, and all therein, he showed much surprise, and eagerly asked where he lived. When told that he was every where, he was much alarmed, and became very impatient to be on deck.

When told that there was

a future state, and another world, he said that a wise man, who had lived long before his time, had said that they were to go to the moon, but that it was not now believed, and that none of the others knew any thing of this history; they believed, however, that birds, and other living creatures, came from it. Although there is certainly no proof whatever that this people have any idea of a Supreme Being, or of a Spirit good or bad, the circumstances of their having conjurors, and of their going to the moon after death, are of a nature to prevent any conclusion from being drawn to that effect, especially as it must be evident that our knowledge of their language was too imperfect to obtain the whole of their ideas on the subject." pp. 127, 128, 129.

Their sledges are made chiefly of the bones of seals, tied together with thongs, and the lower piece or runners are formed of the sea-unicorn's horns. To these sledges six dogs are generally attached, cach dog having a collar of seal skin, to which one end of a thong about three yards long is tied, and the other to the sledge, so that they all stand nearly abreast, each drawing by a single trace, without reins. They are guided entirely by the voice, aid

ed by the sound of the whip. Their only other implements were spears about four feet and a half long, made of the sea-unicorn's horn, and small knives. The iron, of which these last were made, Captain Ross ascertained to be procured from a hill about 30 miles from the shore, where the natives assured him it was found in considerable masses lying on the surface, and sufficiently soft to be cut by the help of a hard stone. Captain Ross supposes these masses to be meteoric stones, and this conjecture has since been strengthened by the cireumstance of this iron being found to contain nickel, a peculiarity which distinguishes all those bodies hitherto

discovered.

The natives of this desolate spot, in spite of all their privations, appeared most happy and contented, and no temptation could induce any one of them to quit it in search of a better.

on the 77th degree of north latitude, ten leagues to the westward of Cape Saumarez, which forms the east side, and the bottom of this bay, the land was distinctOn the 20th and 21st, when off ly scen. Cape Clarence, at the distance of six leagues, the land which forms the west side, and the bottom of this bay, was also distinctly seen by the above-mentioned officers and myself, and by these two observations, the coast is determined to be connected all round. At each of these periods, this immense bay was observed to be covered with field-ice; besides which, a vast chain of large icebergs was seen to extend across it; these were apparently aground, and had probably been driven on shore there by southerly gales. It was also observed, that the tide rose and fell only four feet, and that the stream of it was scarcely perceptible. From these several considerations, it appears perfectly certain that the land is here continuous, and that there is no opening at the northernmost part of Baffin's Bay from Hackluit's Island to Cape Clarence. Even if it be imagined by The ships made sail from Prince those who are unwilling to concede their Regent's Bay on the 16th of August, opinions, while there is yet a single yarn of and, proceeding northward, reached their hypothesis holding, that some narrow Wolstenholm Sound on the 18th, and strait may exist through these mountains, found the land to agree extremely navigable, and that there is not even a well with the description given of it chance of ascertaining its existence, since by Baffin. On the 19th, Cary's Is- all approach to the bottoms of these bays lands were in sight to the S. E., and is prevented by the ice, which fills them to Smith's Sound, discovered by Baffin, so gicat a depth, and appears never to have was distinctly seen. Captain Ross moved from its station. Being thus satisconsidered the bottom of this sound fied that there could be no further induce to be about 18 leagues distant, but ment to continue longer in this place, and its entrance was completely blocked it being necessary to husband the little time up by the ice. On the 20th, the ships, yet remaining for the work which was still to be done, I ordered accurate bearings of by their reckoning, were in latitude 76 54 N.; to the north-eastward the different headlands to be taken, and there appeared a bay, which was judging the west side of the bay after the Luke having named the remarkable cape formed to extend to latitude 77° 45′ N., of Clarence, in commemoration of the but the land was distinctly seen form- birth-day of his Royal Highness, I shaped ing a chain of mountains from Smith's my course, on the morning of the 21st, Sound to the westward. This was towards the next opening which appeared evidently the northernmost, and form- in view to the westward."-p. 152, 153. ed the head of Baffin's Bay, but it was impossible to enter it, a firm field of ice covering its entire surface. All hope of a passage in this direction was now at an end, and Captain Ross thus recapitulates all the circumstances which disprove its existence.

"On the 19th of August, at fifty minutes past midnight, the ship being nearly

It is much to be regretted that this very curious and interesting fact was not verified on the spot. It surely might easily have been done, as the ships lay several days within 30 miles of the place pointed ut to Captain Ross.

it is evident that it must for ever be un

The ships now proceeded to the south-west to explore the western side of Baffin's Bay, and on the 29th August, when they were in lat. 74° 19′, an inlet, apparently about 45 miles wide, was discovered, the land on the north side lying in an E. N. E. and W. S. W. direction, and the south side nearly east and west. They entered the strait on the 30th, and during the whole of that day much interest was excited by the hope that a passage was at length discovered, but as the day advanced, the land was partially seen, extending across, the

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