The lands of silence

by Sir Clements R. Markham

CHAPTER XXXIII
THE ROUTE BY SMITH SOUND.
KANE—HAYES—HALL—NARES—MARKHAM

When my old messmate Admiral Sherard Osborn and I resolved to agitate until the Government was induced to dispatch another Arctic expedition, we selected the route of Sir Thomas Smith’s Channel as the one most likely to afford valuable scientific results. We strongly deprecated a mere rush for the North Pole, as not only useless in itself, but also as hindering important geographical work.

The Northern Sound seen by Baffin in 1616 was discovered by Captain Inglefield in 1852 to be a wide channel leading to the polar ocean, and the land on its western side, facing Greenland—also discovered, but not named, by Baffin—received the name of Ellesmere Island from Inglefield. He found the entrance of Smith Sound to be 36 miles across. His extreme northern point was 78° 28′ 21″ N.

In 1853 the American, Dr Kane, in the little brig Advance of 120 tons, with a crew of 17 men, started for Smith Sound very poorly equipped[144]. He had some thought of completing the search for Franklin in this direction, but his main idea was to push his way as far north as possible in the brig until he reached the (imaginary) open polar sea. The Advance was stopped by the ice only nine miles north of Inglefield’s most northern position, and there Kane was forced to winter, in a place which he named Rensselaer Harbour, on the east side of the Sound in 78° 37′ N. The coast consists of precipitous cliffs 800 to 1200 feet high, with a belt of ice about 18 feet thick resting on the beach[145].

Some short sledge journeys were undertaken in the spring, and Dr Kane himself went as far as a large discharging glacier, to which he gave the name of Humboldt. His steward, a man named Morton, with the Eskimo Hans Hendrik and a team of dogs, crossed the front of the glacier, and saw some open water caused by a strong current, the extent of which he exaggerated. Unable to extricate the Advance, Dr Kane and his people had to face a second winter, unprovided either with fuel or with anything but salt provisions. Scurvy soon attacked them, but they were saved by the kindly natives, who shared with them the proceeds of their hunting. Half the brig being burnt for fuel and the provisions nearly spent, Dr Kane abandoned her on May 17th, 1855, and the whole party retreated to the Danish settlement of Upernivik, which they reached on August 6th, 83 days after abandoning the brig. The story of their hardships and sufferings, as told in the charming narrative of the accomplished leader, is very interesting. His work contains the best account of the Arctic Highlanders, from whom they received so much kindness and hospitality. It is, however, to be regretted that from the exaggerated story of his steward, Dr Kane should have built up such an untenable theory as that of an open polar sea, for it misled many persons for a long time.

Dr Hayes, the surgeon of the Advance, obtained funds for an expedition to follow in the wake of Dr Kane. He sailed from Boston on July 10th, 1860, in the United States, a schooner of 133 tons, with a crew of 15 men. The little craft was blown out of Smith Sound three times before she was at last fixed in winter quarters, ten miles north-east of Cape Alexander, the western portal of the Sound, and 20 miles south of Kane’s winter quarters. Dr Hayes began his sledge travelling on April 4th in the following year. He started with 12 men, 14 dogs, and a metallic boat on runners; but the latter was sent back, and the party was reduced to four men and two dog sledges. Crossing the Sound, they reached the coast of Ellesmere Island on May 10th, and travelled northwards until the 18th. There was great abundance of animal life and consequent exemption from scurvy at his winter quarters, which he called Port Foulke. The schooner was broken out of the ice on July 10th and returned safely to Boston in October, 1861.

Ten years afterwards an expedition in the same direction was undertaken by an American named Hall. He was not a seaman, and possessed no scientific attainments, but he was endowed with undaunted persistence and enthusiasm and a very interesting personality. He was most deeply impressed with the sad story of the Franklin expedition, and for five consecutive years sought for relics along the south coast of King William Island, living with the Eskimos. In 1870 he began his agitation for an expedition to reach the North Pole, and the Navy Department handed over to him a river gunboat called the Periwinkle, of 387 tons. Hall changed her name to the Polaris[146].

A seaman was necessary to command the vessel, and Captain Buddington of New London, who had made thirteen whaling voyages, was selected, Captain Tyson being his chief mate. Dr Emil Bessels, who had been with the German expedition of 1869, had charge of the scientific work. Morton and the Eskimo, Hans Hendrik, who were with Dr Kane, joined, also three other Eskimos, friends of Hall, named Joe, Hannah, and their daughter Silvie. The outward voyage was fortunate. During August of 1871, Hall sailed up Sir Thomas Smith’s Channel with little difficulty from the ice until he reached a latitude of 82° 16′ N., on August 30th. The winter quarters were in a harbour on the Greenland side, named Thank God Bay, in 81° 38′ N.

Hall, with his dogs, went for a short autumn journey as far as an inlet which he named Newman Bay, its northern cape, called Brevoort, being in 82° 2′ N. and 61° 20′ W. He was taken ill on his return, became partially paralyzed, and died on November 8th. He was buried on shore, and a monument has been erected to his memory. Captain Buddington resolved upon returning without attempting anything further. On August 12th, 1872, the ship was again free, but once more became beset, and drifted out of Smith Sound by the current. On October 15th she was again beset, and so severely nipped that boats and provisions were got out on the ice. Suddenly the ice eased off, but Tyson and seventeen others, including several Eskimos, were left on the floe. This ice floe continued to drift to the south, but the means of building snow shelters were found on it, many birds were shot, and the Eskimo, Hans Hendrik, killed more seals than the whole party could consume. After a long drift down Baffin’s Bay, the forlorn people were picked up in 53° 35′ N. by the Tigress, Captain Bartlett, who took them to St John’s, Newfoundland, in good health.

Meanwhile the Polaris was driven to the north again by a southerly gale, and ran on shore at Littleton Island near the entrance of Smith Sound. Here the fourteen remaining men passed a second winter, plentifully supplied with fresh provisions by the friendly Arctic Highlanders. They built two boats, and began a southern voyage in July, 1873, until they were picked up by the English whaler Ravenscraig, whence they were transferred a few days later to the whaler Arctic (on which Capt. A. H. Markham was at the time) and brought to England. All the journals were in charge of Dr Bessels, himself an accomplished naturalist and good observer, and his results were afterwards published.