It blew fresh from the eastward during the night of the 28th, with continued rain, all which we considered favourable for dissolving and dislodging the ice, though very comfortless for Captain Lyon on his excursion. The weather at length clearing up in the afternoon, I determined on beating to the eastward, to see if any more of the land in that direction could be made out than the unfavourable position of the ice would permit at our last visit. The Fury then made sail and stood to the eastward, encountering the usual strength of tide off the southwest point of Tangle Island, and soon after a great quantity of heavy drift-ice, apparently not long detached from some land.
I determined to avoid, if possible, the entanglement of the Fury among the ice, which now surrounded her on every side, and to stand back to Igloolik, to hear what information Captain Lyon's journey might have procured for us.
At the distance of one third of a mile from Tangle Island, where we immediately gained the open sea beyond, we observed the Hecla standing towards us, and rejoined her at a quarter before eleven, when Captain Lyon came on board to communicate the result of his late journey, of which he furnished me with the following account, accompanied by a sketch of the lands he had seen, as far as the extremely unfavourable state of the weather would permit.
"Accompanied by George Dunn, I found Toolemak on landing, who welcomed us to his tent, in which for two hours it was scarcely possible to move, in consequence of the crowd who came to gaze at us. A new deerskin was spread for me, and Dunn having found a corner for himself, we all lay down to sleep, not, however, until our host, his wife, their little son, and a dog, had turned in beside me, under cover of a fine warm skin, all naked except the lady, who, with the decorum natural to her sex, kept on a part of her clothes. At ten A.M. we started, and found the sledge on a beach near the southern ice. Four men were to accompany us on this vehicle, and the good-natured fellows volunteered to carry our luggage. A second sledge was under the charge of three boys who had eight dogs, while our team consisted of eleven. The weather was so thick that at times we could not see a quarter of a mile before us, but yet went rapidly forward to the W.N.W., when, after about six hours, we came to a high, bold land, and a great number of islands of reddish granite, wild and barren in the extreme. We here found the ice in a very decayed state, and in many places the holes and fissures were difficult if not dangerous to pass. At the expiration of eight hours, our impediments in this respect had increased to such a degree as to stop our farther progress. Dunn, the old man, and myself therefore walked over a small island, beyond which we saw a sheet of water, which precluded any farther advance otherwise than by boats.
"In the hope that the morning would prove more favourable for our seeing the land, the only advantage now to be derived from our visit, since the fishing place was not attainable, it was decided to pass the night on one of the rocky islands. The Esquimaux having brought no provisions with them, I distributed our four days' allowance of meat in equal proportions to the whole party, who afterward lay down to sleep on the rocks, having merely a piece of skin to keep the rain from their faces. In this comfortless state they remained very quietly for eight hours. Our little hunting-tent just held Dunn and myself, although not in a very convenient manner; but it answered the purpose of keeping us dry, except from a stream of water that ran under us all night.
"The morning of the 27th was rather fine for a short time, and we saw above thirty islands, which I named COXE'S GROUP, varying in size from one hundred yards to a mile or more in length. Two deer were observed on the northern land, which was called Khead-Laghioo by the Esquimaux, and Toolemak accompanied Dunn in chase of them. On crossing to bring over our game, we found the old Esquimaux had skinned and broken up the deer after his own manner, and my companions being without food, I divided it into shares.
"Arriving on the ice, a skin was taken from the sledge as a seat, and we all squatted down to a repast which was quite new to me. In ten minutes the natives had picked the deer's bones so clean that even the hungry dogs disdained to gnaw them a second time. Dunn and myself made our breakfast on a choice slice cut from the spine, and found it so good, the windpipe in particular, that at dinner-time we preferred the same food to our share of the preserved meat which we had saved from the preceding night.
"As we sat I observed the moschetoes to be very numerous, but they were lying in a half torpid state on the ice, and incapable of molesting us. Soon after noon we set forward on our return, and, without seeing any object but the flat and decaying ice, passed from land to land with our former celerity, dashing through large pools of water much oftener than was altogether agreeable to men who had not been dry for above thirty hours, or warm for a still longer period. Our eleven dogs were large, fine-looking animals, and an old one of peculiar sagacity was placed at their head by having a longer trace, so as to lead them over the safest and driest places, for these animals have a great dread of water. The leader was instant in obeying the voice of the driver, who did not beat, but repeatedly talked and called it by name. It was beautiful to observe the sledges racing to the same object, the dogs and men in full cry, and the vehicles splashing through the water with the velocity of rival stage-coaches.
"We were joyfully welcomed to the dwelling of Ooyarra, whose guest I was now to become, and the place of honour, the deerskin seat, was cleared for my reception. His two wives, K~ai-m=o=o-khi~ak and Aw~a-r=un-n~i occupied one end, for it was a double tent; while at the opposite extremity the parents of the senior wife were established. The old mother N=ow-k~it-y~oo assisted the young woman in pulling off our wet clothes and boots, which latter being of native manufacture, she new-soled and mended without any request on our side, considering us as a part of the family. Dunn slept in the little tent to watch our goods, and I had a small portion of Ooyarra's screened off for me by a seal's skin. My host and his wives having retired to another tent, and my visitors taking compassion on me, I went comfortably to sleep; but at midnight was awakened by a feeling of great warmth, and, to my surprise, found myself covered by a large deerskin, under which lay my friend, his two wives, and their favourite puppy, all fast asleep and stark naked. Supposing this was all according to rule, I left them to repose in peace, and resigned myself to sleep.
"On rising, Dunn and I washed with soap in a pond, which caused great speculations among the by-standers, on some of whom we afterward performed miracles in the cleansing way. A large assemblage being collected to hear me talk of Ney-uning-Eitua, or Winter Island, and to see us eat, the women volunteered to cook for us; and, as we preferred a fire in the open air to their lamps, the good-natured creatures sat an hour in the rain to stew some venison which we had saved from our shares of the deer. The fires in summer, when in the open air, are generally made of bones previously well rubbed with blubber, and the female who attends the cooking chews a large piece, from which, as she extracts the oil, she spirts it on the flame.