130. SURVEYING IN GREENLAND.
CHAPTER XLII.
CHARLES FRANCIS HALL AND THE INNUITS.
Hall’s Expedition.—His early Life.—His reading of Arctic Adventure.—His Resolve.—His Arctic Outfit.—Sets Sail on the “George Henry.”—The Voyage.—Kudlago.—Holsteinborg, Greenland.—Population of Greenland.—Sails for Davis’s Strait.—Character of the Innuits.—Wreck of the “Rescue.”—Ebierbing and Tookoolito.—Their Visit to England.—Hall’s first Exploration.—European and Innuit Life in the Arctic Regions.—Building an Igloo.—Almost Starved.—Fight for Food with Dogs.—Ebierbing arrives with a Seal.—How he caught it.—A Seal-feast.—The Innuits and Seals.—The Polar Bear.—How he teaches the Innuits to catch Seals.—At a Seal-hole.—Dogs as Seal-hunters.—Dogs and Bears.—Dogs and Reindeers.—Innuits and Walruses.—More about Igloos.—Innuit Implements.—Uses of the Reindeer.—Innuit Improvidence.—A Deer-feast.—A frozen Delicacy.—Whale-skin as Food.—Whale-gum.—How to eat Whale Ligament.—Raw Meat.—The Dress of the Innuits.—A pretty Style.—Religious Ideas of the Innuits.—Their kindly Character.—Treatment of the Aged and Infirm.—A Woman abandoned to die.—Hall’s Attempt to rescue her.—The Innuit Nomads, without any form of Government.—Their Numbers diminishing.—A Sailor wanders away.—Hall’s Search for him.—Finds him frozen to death.—The Ship free from Ice.—Preparations to return.—Reset in the Ice-pack.—Another Arctic Winter.—Breaking up of the Ice.—Departure for Home.—Tookoolito and her Child “Butterfly.”—Death of “Butterfly.”—Arrival at Home.—Results of Hall’s Expedition.—Innuit Traditions.—Discovery of Frobisher Relics.—Hall undertakes a second Expedition.—His Statement of its Object and Prospects.—Last Tidings of Hall.
Among the most remarkable expeditions ever undertaken in the Polar world is that of Charles Francis Hall, performed during the years 1860, 1861, and 1862. Its primary object was to discover the survivors of Sir John Franklin’s party; for at this time there was good reason to believe that out of the 105 who were known to be living on the 25th of April, 1848, some were still surviving. Towards the main purpose of the undertaking nothing was indeed accomplished. Hall came upon no traces of Franklin and his men; but he acquired a more accurate knowledge of the Esquimaux—or rather as they call themselves, and as we shall call them, the Innuits—a word meaning simply “men” or “people”—and their mode of life than was ever before, or is likely to be hereafter, gained by any other white man capable of telling what he saw, and a part of which he was. The remarkable book in which Mr. Hall describes his expedition[25] seems not to have come under the notice of Dr. Hartweg. It is proposed in this chapter to supplement the account of the Innuits from this work of Mr. Hall.
131. HALL AND COMPANIONS, IN INNUIT COSTUME.
Up to middle life Hall had resided in the inland city of Cincinnati. He had eagerly read every thing that he could find on record of the searches made for Franklin. Large ships and small ships had been sent out. Brave hearts and stout hands had been enlisted in the search, but with no tangible result beyond ascertaining the spot where the surviving 105 were when they abandoned their ships and took to the shore, hoping to make their way to their homes. Only two of these men were proven to have died; and it was more than probable that of the 105 known to have been living in 1848, some would yet be alive in 1860, for not a few of these men, if living, would be still of middle age.
Hall had read the story of the sufferings of Kane’s party during the long months of the Arctic winter, but he had come to the conclusion that most of these resulted from the mode of life adopted by them. The Innuits, he knew, lived to a good old age through a succession of such winters, and he believed that a civilized man could live where a savage could. This conviction was confirmed by one of Kane’s companions, who told him, “When we lived like the Esquimaux, we immediately recovered, and enjoyed our usual health. If Providence had so ordered it that we should cast our lot with the Esquimaux, I have no doubt that we would have lived quite as long, and in quite as good health as in the United States or England. White men can live where Esquimaux can, and frequently when and where they can not.”
So Hall grew into the conviction that some of these lost ones could yet be found; and he writes, “It seemed to me as if I had been called, if I may so speak, to try and do the work. My heart felt sore at the thought of so great a mystery in connection with any of our fellow-creatures, especially akin to ourselves, yet remaining unsolved.” How should he obey this call? His own means, beyond a stout frame and strong will, were of the smallest. He broached the project at the West, where it was received with favor. Then he came East, and was met with like consideration. Funds were raised, and the expedition which Hall contemplated was fitted out.
This expedition consisted simply of Hall himself. The cash contributed for the outfit was just $980, of which more than a third was contributed by Henry Grinnell, of New York. In addition to this was about a quarter as much in the way of presents. “These,” says Hall, “constituted all the means and material I had to carry out the great undertaking my mind had led me to embark in.” Hall’s list of the articles on his outfit for a three years’ residence and exploration is worthy of record. It shows in what way his $980 in cash was expended.