Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1856-01-16
SIR JOHN FRANKLIN.

the following highly interesting additional par
ticulars of the journey and discoveries of
Messrs. Stewart, Anderson, and Others. who
recently returned from Montreal Island, near
the South Of Back River, in the Arctic Ocean
where they obtained evidence OF, the fate OF
Sir John Franklin and his comrades
The party reached the outlet or estuary of
the river on the 30th Of July. and skirted along
its eastern shore as far as Point Beaufort, but
found no traces to reward their search From
thence they crossed over TO Montreal Island,
twelve miles distant, lying near the western
shore OF the estuary probably,in that eros
sing, incurring as great peril as any in the
gloomy record of Arctic travels, pushing their
bark canoes boldly out into the Arctic Ocean,
and forcing their way thro' drifting masses of
Ice seven and eight feet thick. But they were
prepared to make any effort to reach the Is
iand which,i as well as Point Aigle, near it,
had been the places DIR. Rae understood the
Esquimaux to mean when describing where
the white party perished in 1850; and they
had the melancholy satisfaction of procuring,
on that very spot, the fullest possible confirm
alton of DIR. RAGS report. They also met Es-
quimaux in that vicinity who had seen the
whites, and gave much valuable information.
Suffice it to say, that on the Island were dis
covered the remains of boat which had been
partially destroyed by the natives for the s9ke
OF the wood and the metal fasteningS, although
there was sufficient left to identify it as be-
longing to the Franklin Expedition, one frag-
ment of wood (now, as well as some other
small relics, in possession of the Hudson's
Bay Company at Lachine) having the name
s.Terror'' branded on it, while another has the
name of Nc. Stanley (surgeon of the Erebus)
cut upon it, this latter being par: of snow |
shoe, evidently of English manufacture, being |
made of OAK, a species of wood no man accus- |
toned TO use snow shoes would ever select for
the purpose.
No paper or books, and no human remains,
were found; nor was it likely, as four years
had elapsed since this tragedy was enacted
upon a low sandy beach, exposed TO the storms
of four Arctic winters; aud there is little
doubt that either the sea has washed off. or
the sand has buried deep, the unfortunates
who perished on this spot. The Esquimaux
were very friendly, and freely displayed all
their treasures obtained from the boat, or
found nearit, and these consisted principally
Of the oars, used by them as tent poles, the
boat kettles, the empty preserved meat cases,
&c, &C., but no papers, and the natives sta
ted, with every evidence of sincerity, that
none had ever been seen OFF found. Everything
portable WAS secured by Messrs Anderson and
Stewart, AID brought back, and are now on the
way to Canada; it would be useless TO recount
them all, but We may mention bar iron, rope
with the government mark o,, II ,.rs i,~,,,,I1
with the broad arrow; pieces of bunting, re-
mains of flag, letter holder, a step of
mast, &c, all clearly European and all govern
ment supplies. Is any thing more wanted?
The weather is described as having been 5
'sexecrable,, = constant storms, with ice, snow.
RAIN sleet, hail, thunder, and whatever else
can be conceived that is disagreeable 1t isa
part Of the coast the natives, even, consider J
uniahabitable, merely visiting it fora short Q
time in summer, when the deer pass that way. {
Ontile l4ti August, when the expedition com I
menced its retreat from its coast, the ground = =
was covered with fresh fallen snow, and the t
ice was forming, in fact winter had set in. {
Few further details of the last moments of =
the lost party have been collected; we may i
mention one mournful incident reported by an 4
EsIuimaux woman, who saw the last man die $
he was large and strong, she said. and sat on a
the sandy beach, his head resting on his hands, /
and thus the last survivor Of Frankln's Expe- g
ditiOn yielded up his brave spirit. Messrs.
Anderson and Stewart retraced their steps TO
Great Slave Lake, from whence the latter con
tinued his journey Onwarjls TO Red River SET v y
tlement, and thence by way of the Minnesota /:
Territory to Montreal, where he arrived on
Friday evening last, direct from the Arctic
Sea, after upwards of i've thousand miles ira
vel II open craft, and through uHinhabited re-
sions, without halt. y few facts, taken at :,
random, may serve to bring home to our ap- f
probation what this Northwest expedition ac- u
complished aud went through In Is months A
to a-day; the Iroquois who were sent from La
chine to form part of the expedition, returned
thither, thus performing in one year the same a.
service that Sir George Back got through in o
three. "
For sixty days and nights the party saw no a
fire, there being no Tim Der on the Great Fish us
River or Arctic coast; and during those sixty :,
days they Travelled incessantly in open craft in m
a wretched climate, never had dry clothes-or ~
slept dry blankets, and never eat cooked IN
7ictuals except on rare occasions, when thew Z
made little tea by means of lamp This li
party Of sixteen in all, travelled in bark canoes p
iown one of the most turbulent rivers known. -
even to Northwest voyagers; yentured among ar
he ice on the Arctic sea- and returned to their - -
starting point without meeting with single G
.ecidaut a narsons or 1Y,ra,,a-t,- 10