The Council Bluffs nonpareil. [volume] (Council Bluffs [Iowa]) 1857-1867, 1859-10-22
SIR JOHN FRANKLIN.

rers the name Of Sir John Franklin unques-
tionably is the most prominent, for though
others have penetrated farther westward IN
to the frozen ocean and made more impor-
tant discoveries, none have been more en-
Enthusiastically devoted to the solution OF the
great Arctic problem, and none have elicit
ed 80 wide and melancholy an interest
touching their probable fate in the region
of perp tual winter. Others have sailed in
to the terrible Businesses Of the Polar Sea,
and like him miserably persisted. One
small company Uieut. McClurs's) actually
made the North West Passage, sailing IN
1850, 1851 and 1852, into the Arctic Ocean,
through Behring's Straits. and out to the
Atlantic throug ID Bafin's Bay-losing their
ship BY the way and being rescued by Sir
Edward Kelcher, near Melville Island
Lieut.. Parry sailed in 1919 through Baf6n's
Bay, Lancaster Sound, Barrow's Straits and
Melville Straits, to the 10Th meridian west,
and Lieut.. McCIintock, the same who has
just returned with the sad tidings of Frank
Inns fate, penetrated by the same route in
1851 to long. ia deg. % min. Kane
carried his explorations to the parallel of
50 deg. 81 min. north, and Parry on the OPP
posite side of the globe, with sledgs ex-
petition, attained 50 deg. As min. in the
year 1927. In the year 1886 Desse and
Simpson traversed the southern shore Of the
Arctic from the mouth of the Mackenzie riv-
or to Point Barrow, l55 deg. west longitude.
DR.. John Rae in several overland expedi-
tions travelled all around the relics left BY
Franklin, whose exact resting place has
been divulged. Ross, Scorosby, Beechy,
Bafin, and others, have made memorable
journeys under the Great Bear. But to
none has been accorded the universal SYM
patty which has invested Franklin and his
ill-fated crew during the past twelve years:
1t is not unlikely that more expeditions will
now set forth to ascertain exactly the fate
of the one hundred and five bravame who
abandoned the Erebus and Terror and push
ed for Great Fish River in lo47, though we
cannot dare ito hope that one Of the whole
number remains to tell the fate which has
buried them so long from the view OF the
civilized world.
Franklin's first Arctic expedition was
made in 1918, with the distinct object OF
finding the North Pole. In company with
Capt. Buchanan he sailed northward be-
tween Greenland and Spitzbergen, to the
unexampled latitude of "a deg. "a min.,
where be became imbedded in ice, encoun-
tered terrible dangers, and finally lost one
of his ships, which was crushed in the ice.
The only results of this expedition were
some interesting experiments on the elliptic
al figure of the earth, on the refraction OF
Dir in high ATTITUDES and on magnetic phe-
nomena near the pole.
A second expedition was undertaken by
Sir John in September, 1919, in company
with Sir John Richardson, Midshipmen
Hood and Black, and seaman named Hep
burn. Their course was nocthwestward
from York Factory on the western shore of
Hudson's Bay, overland to the mouth Of
Coppermine river, and thence eastward in
canoes along the southern Arctic shore $50
miles to Point Turnagan, where their fur
Their progress was barred by an impenetra-
bic wall. Their obi ect was 20 trace the Arc
tic coast, if possible to Batin's Bay. Oblig
ed to retrace their steps, they reached York
Factory in July, 1922, after an absence of
three years, during which they had Travelled
$500 miles, and suffered incredible hard
ships, such as eating the remains of their old
shoes, subssting on rock tripe and moses,
and sleeping on the ground with no cover
ing but blanket and deerskin, and the
thermometer ffty-seven degrees below zero.
Fransin's third expedition was undertake
en- in July, 1925, in company with DR.. Rich
ardson, Lieut.. (Sir George) Back, Mr.. Ken
dali, and Mr.. I. Drummond. The design
of the party was to proceed from Fort Chip
Great Bear Lake, and thence to the mouth
OF Mackenzie river. Here they were to sep
arate, one party (Frankln's) to proceed
westward. Franklin penetrated as far as
Return Reef, longitude l49 deg. - min.
ptnip pn - - ~.
som, had heen despatched around Cape
Horn, to make the headland north Of Bier
ings Straits, and wait for Franklin. Beech
ey followed his instructions and anchored in
kotEebue Sound, only JAG miles west of
Franklin, but the latter unfortunately was
not advised of Beechcy's presence, and
therefore returned to Great Bear Lake,
= yaere he met Richardson's party. On this
expedition franklin traced the Arctic coast
}I4 miles westward from the IN outh Of the
Mackenzie. Franklin returned to England
by the way of New York, and published the
narrative of his expedition in 1928.
His fourth and last expedition, so well
known to all readers, was undertaken in
lS4o, his crew consisting of l39 persons, in
the Ercbus and Terror. We gave list of
the various expeditions which have been
sent out from England and the United States
SIN search of Sir John Franklin" 1t should
have been mentioned in that connection that
Dr. John Rae, in 1854, found traces Of the
Erebus and Terror near King Williams Is
land, such as led Enthusiastically to the belief
that Franklin and his men had persisted
there. Among other relics he found board
with the word "Tcrror" inscribed upon it.
he also learned from the Esqumaux that a
party of ~ white men were seen on King
Williams Island in 1851 . and that their bod
les had been subsequently found by the say
ages at point not far northwest Of Great
Fish Rirer,
Franklin was born at Splsb7, Lincoln
SHIRE, April IL, 1856. Having shown a
strong prediction for the sea, his father,
n respectable yeomen, procured him mid
sh'pman's commission in the navy. In this
capacity he served at the battle of Copen-
hagen. In 1903, the ship Porpose, on
which he was serving, was wrecked on a reef
about 200 miles from the coast of Australia
In 1903 he took part in the battle of Trafal-
gar, and in the American war of lSl2.'l5
he commanded some gun boats at an en-
gaSement near New Orleans, where he was
wounded-hls wound and his galantry win
ming him Lieutenant's commission. In
august, 1873, he married Eleanor Porden,
daughter of an eminent architect. His
wife died two years later, the day after his
departure on the Mackenzie expedition. In
1879 he married Jane Griffin, the prescn.
Lady Franklin. Sir John died, as we are
now advised, June llth, 1877, in his sixty
second year.
E. 9 Peter Sharp says his wife is equal
to four "fulIs,' beautiful, arm full and aw.
full.
> John Mitchell advised all fugitive
slaves to return voluntarily to their masters.
The advice on the whole was good. Won't
John take it himself and 20 back Of his own
accord to Botany Bay.