5. Three boats were selected for the return expedition. Two of these were Norwegian whale-boats, 20 feet long, 5 feet broad, and 2½ feet deep. Lieutenant Weyprecht, Dr. Kepes, Lusina, Orasch, Latkovich, Palmich, Vecerina and Klotz, formed the complement of the one; and Zaninovich, Haller, Lukinovich, Scarpa, Stiglich, Pospischill, Midshipman Orel and I, the complement of the other. The third and somewhat smaller boat carried Lieutenant Brosch, Captain Carlsen, Cattarinich, Lettis, Sussich, Marola and Fallesich. Each of these boats rested on a sledge, and was laden with the following articles:—
- 10 light oars.
- 2 long steering oars.
- 1 sail and mast.
- 1 ice-anchor.
- 2 boat-hooks.
- 1 harpoon and line.
- 1 fishing-line.
- 1 small hatchet.
- 1 ice-borer.
- 1 screw-driver.
- 1 caulking-iron.
- 1 saw.
- 6 reserve sledge screws.
- 1 bag of nails.
- 2 Lefaucheux rifles.
- 1 Werndl rifle.
- 1 case with 100 shot cartridges.
- 1 case with 50 ditto.
- 2 cases of 50 Lefaucheux cartridges.
- 25 Werndl cartridges.
- 8 sledge traces.
- 6 lamps.
- 6 weights for measuring provisions.
- 2 pairs of reindeer shoes.
- 2 oil cans.
- 1 bag of nails.
- 20 boxes of lucifer matches.
- 1 steel and tinder.
- 1 compass.
- 1 sextant.
- 1 bundle of wicks.
- 1 telescope.
- 1 signal horn.
- 1 50-fathom line.
- 1 box of lard.
- 1 pair of tin-cutters.
- 1 grindstone.
- 3 bungs.
Spare Clothes.
- 1 pair of drawers.
- 1 shirt.
- 1 woollen undershirt.
- 1 pair of trousers.
- 1 spirit measure.
- 1 pair of scales.
- 1 spirit can.
- 1 lever.
- 1 funnel.
To each boat was attached a large sledge thus laden:—
| Pemmican—4 boxes of 50 lbs. | 200 | |
| ” 1 box of 25 lbs. | 25 | |
| ” 4 boxes of 5 lbs. | 20 | |
| 245 | ||
| Peasmeal—2 chests of 100 lbs. packed in tin | 200 | |
| ” 1 chest of 100 lbs. packed in paper | 100 | |
| 300 | ||
| Potted Meat—1 chest of 80 lbs. | 80 | |
| Boiled Beef—5 chests of 10 tins of 7½ lbs. | 375 | |
| ”” 4 ” 7½ lbs. | 30 | |
| 405 | ||
| Flour—3 boxes of 33 lbs. | 99 | |
| Bread—2 bags of 83 lbs. | 166 | |
| Chocolate—3 boxes of 30 lbs. | 90 | |
| Spirits—3 casks, each weighing 77 lbs. | 231 | |
| Salt—1 box of 12 lbs. | 12 | |
| Extract of Meat—2 boxes of 5 lbs. | 10 | |
| Tea—1 box of 3 lbs. | 3 | |
| Total | 1641 |
To this must be added 100 lbs. of bread for the dogs, and a shovel and a complete cooking apparatus for each sledge. Our load therefore amounted in provisions alone to about 50 cwt., and including everything, to about 90 cwt. Parry, with twenty-eight men, in 1827 had for his journey of sixty-one days two boats and four sledges, carrying a total weight of 75 cwt.—about 2½ cwt. therefore for each man. Notwithstanding great obstacles from the ice, his expedition was, perhaps, more favoured than ours, for he passed over 1½ degrees of latitude in thirty days.
6. Of our dogs, two only, Jubinal and Torossy, were available to drag the small sledge; 1 cwt. of bread was all we could take for them, and for the rest they had to depend on the product of the chase. Gillis was shot on account of his intractability, and Semlja because of her weakness. Only Pekel was allowed to accompany us; he only of the dogs had the right of going about at liberty; yet his life too was safe as long as our provisions lasted.