Shepherdstown register. [volume] (Shepherdstown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1955, 1856-01-05
The Haison Bay Co.'S Arctic Expedi-
tiOn.

The Halson Bay Co.'S Arctic Expedi-
ti0n.
The Montreal Herald has been favored
by an officer connected with the govern
men,, with an account of the Hudson Bay
Cos expedition in search of Sir John
Franklin, which contains some facts not
hitherto mentioned -
Everything portable was secured by
Messrs. Anderson and Stewart and brought
back, and are now on their way To Cana
Tia it would be useless to recount them
all, but we may mention, bar iron, rope
with the Government mark on II, oars
braIde with the broad arrow, pieces Of
bInling [remains of Aas,) a letter holder
a step of mast. &C., &C., all clearly
European and all Government supplies.
Is anything more wanted.
The weather is described as having
been "execrable," constant storms, with
ice, snow, rain, seets, hail, thunder end
whatever else can be conceived that is
dissgreeable. Ii is part Of the coast the
natives even consider uninhahila5le, mere
ly visiting il for short time in summer
when the deer pass that WY. On the
l4lh August. when the expedition com.
menced its relrea, from the coast, the
ground was covered with fresh fallen
snow, and the ice forming in fact, WIN
ter had sci in. Few further details OF the
last momenlS e the lost party have been
collected I'VE may mention one mourn
iul inciden, reported by EsquimauX wo-
men, who saw the last man die he was
large and strong, she said. and sat on the
sandy beach, his head resting on his hands,
anG thus The last survivor OF Franklin ;
EXPEDITION yielded up his brave spirit
Messrs. Anderson IL Stewart relraced
their steps 10 Great Slave Lake, from
whence the latter continued his Journey
onward 10 Red River settlement, and
thence via the Minnesota territory TO Mon
irea!, where he arrived on Friday evening
last. direct from the Arctic Sea, alter up
ward OF FIVE thousand miles travel in open
craft and through uninhabied regions,
without a halt. A few facts, taken at
random, may serve 10 bring home to our
appreciation what this North West eXpe-
dilion accomplished and went through
In thirteen months, TO day, the iroquois
who were sent from Lachine TO form part
OF The expedition returned thnher, thus
performing in one year the same service
Sir George Black got through in three.
For sixty DAYS and nights the party saw
10 fire, lege being no timber on the Great
Fish River or Arctic coast; and during
those sixty days they travelled incessant'
ly in open craft in wretched climate,
never had dry clothes or slept on dry
blankets, and never ale cooked Vlcluals
except on rare occasions, when they
made liihe lea by means of lamp
This party of sixteen in all travelled mi
bark canoes down one Of the most iurbu-
lent rivers known even 10 North west
voyagers venlured among the ice on the
Arctic sea, and returned to their starting
point without meeting with single accl-
dent either 10 person or properly--and,
wilh.l, performed all that was required
Of lhem and had they gone out four oI
five years earlier would, no doubt. have
been instrumental in saving the lives OF "a
portion of Franklin party.
One word in conclusion as 10 the Frank
lin Expedition. The two vessels Erebns
and Terror left England in lS43--were
las, heard Of in l945. They probably
tried several passages, but were batlicd by
the ice; and finally in lS4S were crushed,
probably in Victoria Straits. Many OF
The crews persisted, bu, one or more boats
got of with The survivors, who took all
The stores ,hey could collect and travelled
southwark towards the Arctic Coast, IN
the hope reaching some of the Hudson S
Bay Company's ports. The season OF
lS49 Was probably spent on tins dreary
Journey. and renewed in 1880. where
they reached lie coast AT the mouth OF
Fish River, but III so exhausted stale
that they could merely run their boat on
tue beach and crawl ashore 10 die. This
seems all that Is certain, and all that we
can ever know, 81 the late ol the Franklin
Expedition.