The condition of the party was so critical on the 27th that it became only too painfully evident that, to insure their reaching the land alive, the sledge must be considerably lightened in order to admit of a more rapid advance. The state of the party was on that day as follows: five men were in a very precarious condition, utterly unable to move, and consequently had to be carried on the sledges; five others nearly as bad, but who nobly persisted in hobbling after the sledges, which they could just manage to accomplish, for, as the sledges had to be advanced one by one, it gave them plenty of time to perform the distance; whilst three others exhibited all the premonitory scorbutic symptoms. Thus only the two officers and two men could be considered as effective!
“I therefore,” writes Markham, “decided to abandon the remaining boat, which would materially lessen the load to be dragged.”
On the 29th May the tents were pitched close to the boat that they abandoned on their outward journey. It was exactly in the same condition as when left.
On the 31st, whilst crossing some young ice between two heavy floes, one of the sledges broke through, and it was with difficulty that it was dragged out again.
On the 5th of June they reached land. Two days later, Lieutenant Parr started on an arduous march to the ship, in order to obtain assistance. Next day one of the invalids, George Porter, died. On the 9th a dog-sledge arrived from the ship, and on the following day a larger party, headed by Captain Nares, arrived. The ship was reached at 1.30 a.m. on the 14th of June. Out of the original party of fifteen men, three only were capable of dragging the sledge, the remaining eleven having to be carried alongside the ship on the relief-sledges.
Commander Markham on his return reported: “I feel it impossible for my pen to depict with accuracy, and yet be not accused of exaggeration, the numerous drawbacks that impeded our progress. One point, however, in my opinion is most definitely settled, and that is, the utter impracticability of reaching the North Pole over the floe in this locality; and in this opinion my able colleague, Lieutenant Parr, entirely concurs. I am convinced that with the very lightest equipped sledges, carrying no boats, and with all the resources of the ship concentrated in the one direction, and also supposing that perfect health might be maintained, the latitude attained by the party I had the honour and pleasure of commanding would not be exceeded by many miles, certainly not by a degree.”
To this Nares added: “In this I most fully concur. Markham’s journey, coupled with the experience gained by Sir Edward Parry in the summer of 1827, and more recently the memorable retreat of Lieutenant Weyprecht and his companions after having abandoned the Tegetthoff off the coast of Franz-Josef Land, proves that a lengthened journey over the Polar pack-ice with a sledge-party equipped with a boat fit for navigable purposes is impracticable at any season of the year.”
It was left for Nansen and Peary to prove that Nares and Markham were wrong.
We will now follow the sledge-party to the west. After parting company with Markham on the 11th of April, Aldrich and Giffard with their two sledges crossed Feilden Peninsula—the watershed of which was estimated to be 500 feet above the sea-level. They reached the shore of James Ross Bay on the 15th. Four hares were shot and traces of ptarmigan seen. These hares were the only game obtained. Crossing the bay, Crozier Island was visited on the 17th. On the 19th, the Parry Peninsula, 2½ miles in breadth, was crossed, and the shore of Clements Markham Inlet reached. On the 22nd, Cape Colan, the west point of the inlet, was arrived at, and a dépôt of provisions left for the return journey.
On the 25th, Giffard and his crew, after completing the other sledge to forty-four days’ provisions, parted company, to return to the Alert.