Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1869-10-15
Halls Arctic Exploration.
HIS DISCOVERIES RELATIVE TO SIR JOHN
FRANKLIN.

OF NeW lork, 10 Wnom IL was auuresseu
by DIR. c. f. Hall, whose recent return
from an Arctic expedition has been an
nounced
" The result of my sledge journey to
King Williams Land may be summed
up thus None of Sir John Franklin's
companions ever reached or died ON
Montreal Island. 1t was late in July,
1913, that Crozier and his party about
40 or 40 passed down the west coast of
King Williams Land in the vicinity of
Cape Herschel. The party was drag
ging two sledges on the sea-ice, which
was nearly in its last stage of dissolution
one large sledge laden with an aw-
ning-covered boat, and the other small
one laden with provisions and camp ma
terial. Just before Crozier and party
arrived at Cape Herschel they were met
by four families of natives, and both
parties went into camp near each other
Two Esquimaux men. who were of the
native party, gave me much sad but deep
ly interesting information. Some of it
stirred my heart with sadness, interming-
led with rage, for it was confession that
they with their companions did secretly
and hastily abandon Crozier and his
party to suffer and die for need of fresh
provisions, when, in truth, il was in the
power of the natives to save every man
alive The next trace of Crozier and
his party is to be found in the skeleton
which McClintock discovered little be-
low, to the southward and eastward of
Cape Herschel. this was never found
by the natives. The next trace is a
camping place on the seashore of King
Williams Land, about three miles east
ward of Pfeffer River, where two men
died and received Christian burial. AT
this place fish bones were found by the
natives, which showed them that Crozier
and his party had caught, while there, a
species of fish excellent for food, with
which the sea there abounds. The next
trace of this party occurs some five or six
miles eastward, on a long point of King
Williams Island, where one man died
and was buried. Then about S. S. E.
two and half miles further the next
trace occurs, on Todd's Islet, where the
remains of five men lie. The next cer-
tain trace of this party is on the west
! side of the islet, west of Point Richard
son, on some low land that is an island,
or part of the main land, as the tide
may be. Here the awniug-covered boat
and the remains of about thirty or thir,
ty-fve Of Croziers party were found by
the native Poo-yet-ta, of whom Sir John
Ross has given description in the ac
count of his voyage in the Victory
1S29-34
4 In the Spring of 1S49 a large tent wa'
found by some of the natives whom
saw, thefoor ofwhich was completely GOV
cred with the remains of white men
Close by were two graves. The tent wa
little way inland from the head of Ter
ror Bay.
In the Spring of 1861, when the sno,
; was nearly all gone, an Esquimaux pan
| ty, conducted by a native well know
, throughout the northern regions, foun
two boats with many skeletons in an
about them. One of these boats had bee
previously found by McClintock th
/, other was found lying from one-quarte
to one-half mile distant, and must hav
been completely entombed in snow at tn
time McClintocks parties were there, Q
they most assuredly would have seen it.
The same year that the Erebus an
Terror were abandoned one of them COZ
sumated the great Northwest passag
having five men aboard. The evident
of the exact number is circumstances
Everything about this Northwest pa
sage ship of Sir John Franklin's exp
dition was in complete order; four boa
Il were hanging high up at the ships side
anu oHC was ou iIC quiilct uCCA VI
vessel was in its winter housing of sa
or tent cloth. This vessel was found |
the Ook.joo-lik natives near O'Reilly
land, lat. 6S0 80 n, Ion. 99' so W
# early in the the spring of 1S49, it beir
4 frozen in, in the midst of smooth al
y unbroken foe of ice, of only one winter
formation. From certain evidences
Il have gained both at Ig-loo-lik and Xii
Williams Land, there must have been
dog of the greyhound species belongiI
to one or the two ships. | only knc
this through native testimony. 1t
1t quite likely that some one in Englal
can tell whether there was a dog
board either of the ships when Sir Jol
i Franklin left in 1S45.
To complete the history of Sir Jol
Franklin's last expedition. one must spel
summer on King Williams Land wi
is considerable party, whose only busint