CHAPTER XXXVI. Revisit Victoria Bay.—Packed Ice setting in the Sound.—Detention and difficult Escape. Return to the Whaling Depot.—Joyous News from the Ship.—All Hands summoned on Board.—Great Excitement.—Adieu to Bear Sound, Lupton Channel, and French Head.—Arrival on Board.—The Ship free from Ice.—Preparations for Sailing.—Visit to Ebierbing and Tookoolito.—Their readiness to go to America.—August 9th, 1862, the George Henry lifts Anchor, and gets under way for Home.—Friendly Adieux to the Natives.—Once more at Sea. -First Sign of Civilization for twenty Months.--Newfoundland.—Pilot comes on Board.— First News of the War.—Kindly Reception at St. John's. --Arrival at New London. Conclusion. I Will here give a few brief extracts from my journal, written while stopping at Cape True, commencing with "Thursday, July 31st, 1862. One year ago to-day the George Henry broke out of her ice-prison. This morning, Mates Rogers, Gardiner, and Lamb, with their three boats and crews, went out in the bay—Frobisher Bay—after walrus. A short time after they left a thick fog set in, and the tide carried them up opposite Countess of Warwick's Sound before they were aware of it. After the lighting up of the fog a little, they fell in with a shoal of walrus, of which they harpooned three large ones. This walrus party returned at 3 P.M. with three tons of fresh meat. There is no place in the world where a "living" is obtained with less work than here. These three walruses added make the whole number forty that have been taken since the George Henry's company first came here this season, not including some two or three young ones. แ 'Friday, August 1st. And still, as we learn, the George Henry is fast in the ice. Anxious are all of us to depart for the States, but King Ice will not yet let us go. A good 'nor'wester' would drive away the pack which presses so closely and so unrelentingly the west side of Davis's Strait, and allow the ice which holds dominion over the George Henry's pathway to the sea to give way. It may be the pack will keep us here another year; but I hope not. I trust in two weeks more we shall be on our way home, there to prepare for the voyage I have so much at heart. God grant an early deliverance from our ice foe. "August 2d. This afternoon, learning that the Innuits here were COUNTESS OF WARWICK'S SOUND. 559 about to remove up into Field Bay as far as the open water would allow them, I at once set my wits to work to devise some plan to secure some of them to accompany me again to Countess of Warwick's Sound, and to be of such service to me in the boat that I shall be able to keep good dead reckoning. I first conversed with Mate Rogers. He agreed to accompany me, with two of his men not otherwise engaged. The Innuits 'Miner' and 'Charley' signified a willingness to accompany me with their wives and kias. I hope now to complete my survey of the Countess of Warwick's Sound, and to be enabled to keep a correct account of distances. and courses made. Arrangements are now complete to start tomorrow, with the expectation of being absent two or three days. By that time I hope that we shall have word to vacate this place (Cape True), and make for the ship, to depart for the States. This will probably be my last research voyage before leaving for home. I wish the time would admit of my proceeding up to Kernuk-too-ju-a (Newton's Fiord), near which is that monument (see page 545) which the natives say was erected by kodlunas long, long time ago, which I have been so very anxious to visit since old Ookijoxy Ninoo first told me about it." At 8 A.M. of August 3d, with an increasing breeze, we left the whaling dépôt, my whole company being in one boat, except Charley and Miner, who were each in his kia. Our progress was good, and we got on without any mishap over half way; but when near Cape Cracroft, at the entrance to the sound we wished to enter, the storm which had been threatening for some time broke upon us all at once, tearing up the sea in its wildest fury, so that several times we were in great danger. The heavy squalls from off the high land at our right caused us to exercise the greatest caution in managing the little sail we were able to carry; the rain was pouring down, and the white-caps tumbled into our boat, making it necessary to keep incessantly bailing; but finally, after much skillful management on the part of Mate Rogers as boatsteerer, we effected a safe landing at Cape Ood-loo-ong. Directly after landing I ascended Harris Highlands,* to examine the Countess of Warwick's Sound, when, to my vexation, I found that between us and Hazard's Land,† Oopungnewing, Ni *The mountainous land between Lincoln Bay and Victoria Bay I named Harris Highlands, after J. N. Harris, of New London, Connecticut. + The land on the north of the Countess of Warwick's Sound, and east of Wiswell's Inlet, I named Hazard's Land, after A. G. Hazard, of Enfield, Connecticut. ountelik, and Kodlunarn, all was packed ice, and in such a state that no boat could be forced through it. The presence of this ice is accounted for in this way: the heavy, incessant gale of July 24th and 25th had driven the pack hard on to the west side of Davis's Strait, and when, on August 2d, another gale prevailed, coming from the southeast, it drove the rattling pack up into Frobisher Bay, filling it almost solid, except close inshore between Bear Sound and Victoria Bay. My hopes, therefore, to accomplish what I designed in making this final trip were doomed to be disappointed; but, while an opportunity remained for doing any thing, I determined to thoroughly examine the remarkable bay in which we then were—Victoria Bay—and its surroundings. This I did on the following day. The weather, however, was very bad, and it was with difficulty I could accomplish any thing at all. Then, too, we had to guard against being shut up in the pack; and our critical situation became so evident that, on the morning of the 5th, we saw that to delay our return a moment longer would be sheer presumption. Accordingly, at an early hour, we started, the whole company in the boat (the two kias were left at Cape Ood-loo-ong); but we had not gone far before we met the pack drifting in with the tide, and blocking up our way. And now began the usual work of hauling the boat over ice, tracking her through narrow channels, turning now to the right, then to the left, going forward a while, then back to another opening, and cutting away obstructions. Several hours of heavy labor were consumed in lifting, push THE ICE-PACK.-GOOD NEWS. 561 ing, and pulling our boat over several miles of driving, drifting, whirling, crashing, thundering ice. Occasionally, while my company—both men and women—would be getting the boat upon an ice-floe, and dragging it along, the dogs and children accompanying, I would be busily engaged with my instruments taking my "last sights" of the principal places in and around the ever memorable "Countess of Warwick's Sound," which had been lost to the world for near three hundred years, but now was found. At last we got clear, arriving at open water, when we at once launched the boat and pushed off. From thence it was not long that we were on our way to Cape True, where we arrived in perfect safety, though, within two hours after our arrival, the pack ribbed the whole coast, and we thus narrowly escaped being closed in the second time. Two days after our return, on Friday, August 8th, we were agreeably surprised, in the early morning, by the arrival of Captain B in a boat direct from George Henry Harbor, in the upper part of Field Bay. He announced that the ship was nearly free, and that the ice of Field Bay was all broken up, and much of it had drifted out to sea. His orders were for all hands to proceed immediately on board. This news caused immense joy. All was excitement. Tents were quickly struck, boats were made ready, and stowed with such of the material as we intended carrying on board, and in a very short time we were ready for a start. As for myself, I had to regret the loss of some of my geological specimens, which I was obliged to abandon here on account of their weight in the already overloaded boat. At 4 A.M. we took our final leave of Cape True, after a friendly adieu to the people in that locality, with whom we had become so familiar. We struck direct for Hubbel's Point,* and soon after was passing up Bear Sound. The day was calm and clear, and the boats had to be pulled nearly the whole way; but no fatigue was felt while anticipating a speedy arrival on board the ship. At seven o'clock we were through Bear Sound, where the tide, as usual, was running very swiftly and strong, though it was in our favor. Many well-known spots were quickly passed, receiving our farewell, and we were soon through Lupton Channel, when we turned into Field Bay, which was seen to be nearly full of *This point, on the west side at the entrance of Bear Sound, I have named after Charles C. Hubbel, of Hudson, New York. NN drift-ice, moving out and in with the tide. French Head, the scene of poor John Brown's death, was gazed upon with some saddening memories; but the brightness of the day, and the hope before us of soon being under way for home, forbade much lingering on painful recollections. At 1 P.M. we passed Parker's Bay, and in an hour and a half more arrived at the ship, glad again to tread her decks, but more especially rejoiced to find her once more free. I went on shore immediately after to take some observations; and then, upon my return on board, and after a supper of hard bread and salt junk, I started with a boat's crew down the north side of the bay to Farrington Cape, to bring off Ebierbing and Tookoolito, with their child. I had previously asked them several times about accompanying me to the United States, and they had expressed a desire to do so. Now, however, the time for preparation was so short, and the event, withal, so sudden to them, that I feared they would not like to come; but on my arrival at their encampment, some seven miles down, I was agreeably surprised, after some conversation, to find them prepared to make the venture. In less than an hour these children of the icy North had packed up their effects, and, together with their child and their fine seal-dog "Ratty," were with us in the boat, ready to proceed on a voyage to a strange and distant land. My faithful dog Barbekark could not be forgotten nor left behind; he was already aboard. The arrangement we had made was, that they should accompany me to the States, and then on my voyage to King William's Land; and that, if the ice would admit of it, on leaving the States and getting near their country, I would stop with them to see their friends. The only objection they made was, that they were fearful they should lose their infant boy while on board the ship.* At the same time, Ugarng, "John Bull," Koodloo, and their wives, came along with us in their boats; and many other Innuit families, from various places near the ship, with whom we had been acquainted, did the same. It was near midnight when we got on board, and I found every thing in readiness for the vessel's departure on the following morning. Saturday, the 9th of August, commenced with calm and clear. weather. All were full of excitement. Every man felt equal to * Tuk-e-lik-e-ta, the infant child of Ebierbing and Tookoolito, died in New York City of pneumonia, on February 28th, 1863. |