: Report on the Dominion Government Expedition to Hudson Bay and the Arctic Islands on board the D.G.S. Neptune 1903-1904 by Low A P Albert Peter - Canada Discovery and exploration; Neptune (Steamship); Hudson Bay Region Description and travel; Arctic Archip

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s Bay Company, who in self-defence were compelled to establish trading posts inland close to those of their rivals. In this manner the interior of British America was soon dotted with trading stations that extended over the whole territory from the bleak shores of the Atlantic to and beyond the Rocky mountains. The strong rivalry for furs soon led to collisions between the partizans of both companies, and blood was often shed; the natives were debauched with liquor, and general lawlessness continued until the amalgamation of the companies in 1820.

The wars with the American colonies and with France occupied the undivided attention of the British nation until after the final fall of Napoleon, and during this period nothing was done to further the renewal of the search for a northwest passage, until 1817, when Captain Scoresby published an account of the great disruption of the ice in the Greenland seas, and pointed to the ease with which explorations might then be carried on in the Arctics. He was aided by Sir John Barrow, secretary to the Admiralty, who, by his writings and personal influence, induced the British government to again undertake a series of Arctic explorations.

During the time that Parry was making his important discoveries by sea, Lieutenant John Franklin was employed in tracing the northern shores of the American continent. From 1819 to 1822 Franklin was engaged in leading an expedition overland from Hudson bay to the Arctic shores, in the vicinity of the Coppermine river. The Admiralty, who planned the expedition, knew practically nothing about the conditions for travel through the regions that it purposed exploring, and depended for aid solely upon the Hudson's Bay Company. Unfortunately, at this time the quarrel between the Hudson's Bay Company and the North-west Company was at its height, and the resources of both were consequently greatly crippled. The North-west Company were far stronger in the Mackenzie river valley, and their rivals, who were to help Franklin, were unable to give him very efficient aid, or to supply him with a large stock of provisions; in consequence, he started from the outposts with almost no food, determining to trust to his hunters for the provisions required for his party. This finally led to disaster, and on the retreat from the Arctic sea, over one-half of the party, including Lieutenant Hood, died of starvation. Franklin left England in the Hudson's Bay Company's ship, accompanied by Lieutenants Back and Hood, Dr. Richardson and one seaman. They arrived at York Factory, and there met four of the leading partners of the North-west Company, who were held prisoners by their rivals. As these men had spent a number of years in the Mackenzie river country, Franklin obtained much valuable information from them. After a few days at York, the party proceeded by canoes from there, 650 miles to Cumberland House, on the Saskatchewan river, where the first winter was passed. The following summer the party, reinforced by a number of Canadian voyageurs, started northward in canoes, and reached Fort Chipewyan, on Great Slave lake, before the ice had melted. The expedition, now consisting of twenty-five persons, started away from Fort Chipewyan with one day's supply of provisions and a totally inadequate amount of ammunition. Travelling to the north side of the lake, the party was further increased by a band of the Copper Indians, and all journeyed to Fort Enterprize, which was built near the edge of the barren lands, in latitude 64? 30? N. The total distance travelled during this season was 1,350 miles. Venison was plentiful during the winter, but the supply failed in the spring, so that a start was made over the barrens without any food except such as fell to the hunters from day to day. The distance from Fort Enterprize to the mouth of Coppermine river is 334 miles. The first 120 miles were made by tramping with canoes and outfit over the snow; the remainder was made in canoes, and the mouth of the river was reached on the 21st of July. Turning eastward, the shores of Bathurst inlet and Coronation gulf were surveyed to Point Turnagain, in latitude 68? 19? N. and longitude 109? 25? W. The canoes were detained here for several days by a snowstorm, and a retreat was necessary as soon as the weather moderated. The course along the coast was therefore retraced to Hood river, and that stream was ascended for a short distance. The equipment was reduced to the smallest compass, and a course was shaped overland for Fort Enterprize, the travelling being through deep snow. Game was very scarce, and the hardships soon began to tell on the weaker members of the party, with the result, as before stated, that half the number succumbed to cold and starvation. The survivors were succoured by Indians on the 7th of November, and reached the Hudson's Bay post on Great Slave lake on the 11th of December, and England in October, 1822.

In 1825-27, Captain Sir John Franklin resumed his exploration of the Arctic coasts of America in much happier circumstances. The rival fur companies had now amalgamated, forming one powerful company, with full control over the natives, and capable of rendering valuable assistance to an exploring party in the far north. Franklin, profiting by his former sad experience, had a large supply of pemmican prepared in advance, and stored at Fort Chipewyan. The journey from England was made by way of Montreal and the great lakes. After passing a winter at Great Bear lake, Franklin descended the Mackenzie to its mouth, and then surveyed the coast westward to Return reef, passing the northern end of the Rocky mountains, leaving only 160 miles of unsurveyed coast between his farthest point and Point Barrow, reached the same year by Captain Beechey in boats from Bering straits.

While Franklin was thus engaged with one-half of his party, the other half, under the command of Dr. Richardson and Lieutenant Kendall, were exploring the coast between the mouths of the Mackenzie and Coppermine rivers. These surveys carried the exploration from Bering strait to Coronation gulf, with only a break of 160 miles between Return reef and Point Barrow, or through sixty degrees of longitude. The eastern end of these surveys was overlapped six degrees in longitude by the discoveries of Parry to the northward, and only a channel running north and south was required to connect them, and so complete the long sought northwest passage.

The chief discoveries were made by Lieutenant James Clark Ross, who, by several long sled journeys, traced a part of the shores of King William island, and of the west side of the peninsula of Boothia, up to the Magnetic Pole; also the shores of Lord Mayors bay and its vicinity in the Gulf of Boothia. During the retreat to Fury beach, Brentford bay was crossed several times without notice being taken of Bellot strait.

The Hudson's Bay Company undertook to fill these gaps of unsurveyed coast-line, and sent an expedition under the direction of Peter Warren Dease and Thomas Simpson, an expert surveyor. The western section was first completed in 1837. In 1838-39 the eastern portion between Point Turnagain and the estuary of the Great Fish river was surveyed by the same intrepid explorers, without any loss of life to their party, and without other hardships than those incidental to travel in the Arctics. The boat voyages, by which these surveys were completed, were the longest ever undertaken in arctic waters, and embraced sixty-two degrees of longitude between Point Barrow and Castor and Pollux river, the most eastern point of Simpson. While surveying the coast to the eastward, Simpson charted the south side of Victoria island and the south side of King William island.

Unfortunately the advanced state of the season would not permit Simpson to connect the mouth of Great Fish river with Regent inlet, or with King William sea. This the Hudson's Bay Company resolved to complete, and in 1845 selected Dr. John Rae for the work. Dr. Rae sailed in boats from Churchill to Repulse bay, where he passed the winter, supporting his party mainly by his own skill in hunting. The following spring he portaged his boats, by a number of lakes, across the Rae isthmus to the bottom of Committee bay, and surveyed the southern part of the Gulf of Boothia to Fury and Hecla strait on the east side, and to Lord Mayors bay on the west side, thus proving that land having the width of four degrees of longitude intervened between the Gulf of Boothia and the eastern bay of the sea explored by Dease and Simpson. Dr. Rae returned in his boats to York factory in the autumn of 1847, without losing a man of his party.

Before entering upon a short statement of the work of the search parties, the work and fate of Franklin's expedition may be traced. His instructions were to enter Lancaster sound, and, when in the vicinity of Cape Walker, to penetrate to the southward and westward in a course as direct as possible to Bering strait. A quick passage appears to have been made through Lancaster sound to Wellington channel, up which the ships sailed to the seventy-seventh parallel, and then down again on the west side of Cornwallis island, returning eastward to winter at Beechey island. Many traces of a winter residence were found there, including sites of workshops, forge and observatory. Over 700 empty meat cans, all labelled 'Goldner's Patent,' were found piled in regular mounds. A large quantity of similar tins supplied to the navy had been found to be putrid, and were condemned. This had probably happened to the tins left at Beechey island, and helped to hasten the starvation of the unfortunate crews two winters later. Three seamen died during the first winter, and were buried on the island. The next information concerning the fate of Franklin was obtained from a brief record, found on King William island by M'Clintock, in 1859. The record is as follows:

This was the original record, and a most mournful addition was made to it, on the 25th of April, 1848, after another winter in the ice. Here is the addition:

The rest of the sad story may be shortly told: the distance to the mouth of the Fish river, from the spot where the ships were abandoned, is about 250 miles. They started from the ships dragging heavy boats on sleds. M'Clintock found one of the boats on the west side of King William island with two skeletons inside it; and the Eskimos told him that the men dropped down and died in the drag ropes. The Eskimos living at the mouth of Fish river said that about forty white men reached the mouth of the river, and dragged a boat as far as Montreal island in the estuary, where the natives found it and broke it up. The last of the survivors died shortly after the arrival of the summer birds. It is exceedingly doubtful, if their strength had lasted, whether they could have travelled over the thousand miles of barrens separating the month of the river from the nearest trading post on Great Slave lake, but at least a trial would have been made.

It is impossible to give in this report more than a mention of the numerous searching expeditions, and a brief summary of the geographical work accomplished by them.

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