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 UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 
 
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I 
 
FARTHEST NORTH; 
 
 OR, 
 
 THE LIFE AND EXPLORATIONS OF LIEUTENANT 
 
 JAMES BOOTH LOCH WOOD, OF THE 
 
 GREELY ARCTIC EXPEDITION. 
 
 CHARLES LANMAN. 
 
 NEW TOEE: ' 
 D. APPLETON AND COMPANY, 
 
 1, 3, inn 5 BOND STEEET. 
 1885. 
 

 When we thi?ik of the adventure of our times ; when 
 we recall the great Arctic explorations that have called 
 forth an endurance and daring which have been unsur- 
 passed in other days ; . . . what is there that is more 
 romantic tha7t they are in any history of any age? 
 
 From a Thanksgiving Sermon by 
 Rev. Phillips Brooks. 
 
 Copyright, 1885, 
 By D. APPLETON AND COMPANY. 
 
 i 
 
P E E FA C E 
 
 It is believed that this book, with its true but 
 none the less stirring adventures, will be of much in- 
 terest to the general public, as well as gratifying to 
 the many warm friends of Lieutenant Lockwood. It 
 will likewise correct any erroneous impressions which 
 may have arisen from the publication of garbled ex- 
 tracts from the official journals kept by the different 
 members of the Greely party and, by order of the 
 War Department, laid open to the public. By this 
 order, Lockwood's journal and those of others became 
 public property, and hence any reference to them in 
 advance of their official publication is allowable. 
 
 The few pages devoted to the early life can not be 
 expected to especially interest the general public, but 
 will gratify Lieutenant Lockwood's friends. They 
 are here produced to give them permanency, and to 
 show his sterling character. 
 
 No attempt is here made to give a history of the 
 Expedition, and only so much of Lockwood's journal 
 is produced as shows his connection therewith. The 
 voyage to Lady Franklin Bay is given more in detail, 
 
2 PREFACE. 
 
 as it presents a lively picture of an interesting people 
 not much, known, and as it exhibits the buoyant spir- 
 its with which he entered upon the work, before dis- 
 sensions in camp had checked them, though without 
 marring his faithfulness and energy. The important 
 part he had in the enterprise, his zeal, energy, and 
 loyalty to his chief and to the cause, all are fully set 
 forth, and will be more clearly seen when the more 
 elaborate history of the Expedition shall be published 
 by Lieutenant Greely, as will shortly be done. 
 
 Although the journal has been freely used, its 
 language and style have not been closely followed, ex- 
 cept in those parts quoted which refer to Lockwood's 
 sentiments and feelings. The deep pathos of these 
 could be expressed as well in no other words. 
 
 His journal is very full and complete on the peril- 
 ous boat-voyage to Cape Sabine, and in the heart- 
 rending struggle for life in that ever-memorable hut 
 where he and so many others laid down their lives. 
 This has purposely been reduced to a few pages, giv- 
 ing the story only so far as Lieutenant Lockwood was 
 connected with it. The same, may be said as to the 
 home-life at the station on Lady Franklin Bay. 
 
 The portrait of Lieutenant Lockwood is from 
 an excellent photograph taken a short time before he 
 started for St. John's, and two of the woodcuts are 
 from photographs by Sergeant Eice. "Arctic Sledg- 
 ing" was made up from a description and a sketch by 
 Sergeant Brainard, and "Farthest North" from a 
 sketch by Lieutenant Lockwood. 
 
 The map is a reproduction of that published by 
 
PREFACE. 3 
 
 the London Geographical Society, which is an exact 
 transcript of maps drawn by Lieutenant Lockwood 
 and submitted by him to Lieutenant Greely with re- 
 ports of sledge-journeys. This map gives the names 
 agreed upon by Lieutenant Greely and Lieutenant 
 Lockwood, and are those referred to in the journal 
 and in this book. It is much to be regretted that 
 many of these names differ from those on the official 
 map published by authority to the world. The names 
 first giyen commemorate events connected with those 
 wonderful sledge-journeys, as will be seen in the text ; 
 and, if a few unimportant lakes and points were named 
 after friends and relatives, this might have been con- 
 ceded to one who accomplished so much, and that 
 much so well. The map of the London Geographical 
 Society will probably live, and the other perish, as it 
 should. 
 
 Captain Markham, Eoyal Kavy, soon after the re- 
 turn of the Greely Expedition, declared, in articles 
 published in a leading English magazine, that Lock- 
 wood never got beyond Cape Britannia, and that he 
 mistook Cape May for that cape, etc. It was thought 
 that, when the history of this sledge- journey was bet- 
 ter known, Markham would be glad to withdraw this 
 ungenerous aspersion. This is done so far as to admit 
 that Lockwood did reach 83° 24' north latitude, 44° 5' 
 west longitude ; but it is now said, in the article 
 "Polar Regions," of the new Encyclopaedia Britannica, 
 written by the captain's brother, that all this region 
 had previously been explored and exhaustively exam- 
 ined by the English expedition of 1875-'76. 
 
4 PREFACE. 
 
 This is very remarkable, in view of the fact that 
 Lockwood Island, which was reached by Lockwood, 
 is one hundred geographical miles east and forty miles 
 north of Cape Britannia which Beaumont saw at the 
 distance of twenty miles, but never reached. 
 
 In the same article are expressed sentiments in ac- 
 cord with those contained in this book, viz. : " If the 
 simple and necessary precaution had been taken of 
 stationing a depot-ship in a good harbor at the en- 
 trance of Smith's Sound, in annual communication 
 with Greely on one side and with America on the 
 other, there would have been no disaster. If precau- 
 tions proved to be necessary by experience are taken, 
 there is no undue risk or danger in polar enterprises. 
 There is no question as to the value and importance 
 of polar discovery, and as to the principles on which 
 expeditions should be sent out. Their objects are ex- 
 ploration for scientific purposes and the encourage- 
 ment of maritime enterprise." 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 I. Early Life . 7 
 
 II. Army-Life in Arizona 20 
 
 III. Army-Life est Nebraska 31 
 
 IV. Army-Life in Kansas 43 
 
 Y. Army-Life in Indian Territory and Colorado 52 
 
 VI. Preparing for the Arctic Regions . . .58 
 
 VII. From Newfoundland to Lady Franklin Bay . 64 
 
 VIII. House-building and Local Explorations . . 87 
 
 IX. Preliminary Sledge Expeditions and Life at 
 
 the Station Ill 
 
 X. "The Arctic Moon" 132 
 
 XI. Expedition to Lockwood Island .... 139 
 
 XII. From Lockwood Island to Lady Franklin Bay. 178 
 
 XIII. Waiting and "Watching 194 
 
 XIV. Resuming a Desperate Struggle . . . 229 
 XV. Across Gtrinnell Land 249 
 
 XVI. Preparing for Home 279 
 
 XVII. Homeward Bound 286 
 
 XVIII. The Final Catastrophe 296 
 
 XIX. The Woeful Return 317 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Portrait of James B. Lockwood. 
 
 Lockwood, Natives, and Kyack at Disco, Greenland. 
 
 Lockwood's Corner. 
 
 Sledging over the Arctic Floe. 
 
 Taking Observations at Lockwood Island. 
 
 Map showing Lockwood's Explorations. 
 
FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 EAELY LIFE. 
 
 In the following pages, it is proposed to record the 
 personal history of an American hero whose fortune 
 it was, at the sacrifice of his life, to visit and explore 
 the utmost limit in the Arctic regions ever attained 
 by human skill and enterprise. Aside from the in- 
 formation communicated to me by his family, the 
 materials placed in my hands consist of his private 
 correspondence and various journals which he faith- 
 fully kept while serving his country on the Western 
 frontiers, as well as in the inhospitable domain of the 
 North. As the poet Fitz-G-reene Halleck wrote about 
 a kindred character — 
 
 "He lived, as mothers wish their sons to live," 
 
 and, on the score of fidelity to duty, 
 
 " He died, as fathers wish their sons to die," 
 
 leaving a name that will long be honored in every 
 civilized land as that of a martyr in the cause of 
 geographical exploration. 
 
8 FAKTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Many of those connected with the Naval Academy 
 at Annapolis, Maryland, before the civil war, will re- 
 member a playful and mischievous boy, whose ready 
 smile and cheerful ways beguiled them in their hours 
 of relaxation. Others who were at that school after 
 the war will remember the same boy, grown into a 
 youth of sixteen years, rugged in aspect, devoted to 
 manly sports, and assiduous in all his duties. It is 
 the story of his brief but eventful life to which this 
 volume is devoted, written for the information of his 
 friends and all those who admire true heroism and 
 rare abilities when allied to sufferings for the public 
 weal. 
 
 James Booth Lockwood was the second son 
 and third child of General Henry H. Lockwood and 
 Anna Booth Lockwood. He was born at the Naval 
 Academy, Annapolis, on the 9th of October, 1852, 
 at which time and place his father — a Professor of 
 Mathematics in the Navy — instructed the midship- 
 men in the military branches, as he had done for 
 many years before. Both his parents were from the 
 State of Delaware, and came from the best stock of 
 that State; and, as his father taught his students 
 " how to shoot/' and prepare themselves for the con- 
 flicts of life, it was quite natural that the son should 
 have acquired a love of noble deeds and adventure. 
 
 Like many boys, he had his narrow escapes from 
 death, one of which occurred in April, 1860, when, 
 having fallen into the river froni the dock, he was 
 rescued in an insensible condition, and restored to 
 life with great difficulty. This escape must have been 
 
EAKLY LIFE. 9 
 
 recalled by him with, special emotion in after-years 
 amid his struggles with the ice of Smith's Sound. 
 
 His innate love of fun had been one of his charac- 
 teristics from childhood, nor was it subdued even 
 when recovering from the accident which nearly cost 
 him his life ; for, while lying in his bed, he peered 
 into his father's face with a quizzical smile, and re- 
 marked, " I was drowned, but not drowned dead." 
 
 When the Naval Academy was occupied by a gen- 
 eral of the army, in 1861, and the students and pro- 
 fessors were transferred to Newport, Ehode Island, 
 young Lockwood accompanied his father and fam- 
 ily, and was placed at a public school in that place. 
 After a brief residence in Newport, his father, being 
 a graduate of the Military Academy at West Point, 
 was called upon to command a volunteer regiment 
 of Delaware troops, and having been subsequently 
 commissioned a brigadier-general of volunteers, he 
 was placed in charge of the Eastern Shore counties 
 of Virginia and returned to the region of hostilities, 
 making his headquarters at Drummondtown, in 
 Accomac County. In this quaint and quiet place, 
 and while a mere stripling of ten years, young Lock- 
 wood displayed his love of adventure and active life 
 by forming a company of all the colored boys in the 
 village, erecting earthworks in a vacant lot, and, all 
 armed with corn-stalks and broom-handles, meeting 
 a company of white boys in mimic war — noisy, if not 
 dangerous to life or limb. The vanity of personal 
 strife, however, soon becoming irksome to his mind, 
 he turned his attention to horsemanship, and explored 
 
10 FAKTHEST NORTH. 
 
 the surrounding shores of Accomac on a Chincoteague 
 pony belonging to his father. He also spent many- 
 quiet hours conversing about horses and their habits 
 with the soldiers in the garrison, with whom he was 
 a special favorite. After a while, his father was 
 transferred to the command of troops at Harper's 
 Ferry, and there a new field of adventure occupied 
 the attention of the incipient hero. He was fore- 
 most in climbing the neighboring mountain-heights 
 and scaling precipices, and always on the lookout 
 for adventure along the waters of the Potomac. 
 Afterward, when living with his family near the 
 city of Baltimore, he displayed his activity and en- 
 ergy in other ways. When neighboring boys were 
 wont to trespass on his father's grounds and fruit- 
 trees, he was quite as ready to defend his home as 
 he had been in Accomac to maintain the national 
 struggle then rending the land. And here it was that 
 he often accompanied his father on his rounds among 
 the military works near Baltimore, and always at- 
 tracted the attention of the troops by his skill in rid- 
 ing. But these experiences were not deemed satisfac- 
 tory for molding the character of a boy, and then it 
 was that his father sent him to a boarding-school at 
 Bethlehem, in Pennsylvania, kept by a Mr. Schwartz, 
 a good scholar and strict disciplinarian. Of course, 
 like those of all boys, his letters teemed with com- 
 plaints. He was very homesick — a mere child sepa- 
 rated from all he loved. In one letter he spoke of 
 praying to God to make him satisfied. In after-years, 
 and when suffering all the horrors of the Arctic, his 
 
EARLY LIFE. 11 
 
 mother's prayer was that his childhood's star might 
 again arise, and lead his sorrowing heart to that com- 
 fort found only above. His chief grievances were a 
 Dutch dish regularly given to the boys, called scrapul, 
 and the discipline of powers administered to those 
 who failed in their studies. In this latter punish- 
 ment, the delinquent was required to raise to the for- 
 tieth, fiftieth, or one hundredth power any number 
 given him. However distasteful to him at the time, 
 he seems to have changed his mind upon the subjects 
 of food and discipline afterward ; for he became, after 
 his return home, a strong advocate of scrapul as a 
 physical, and of "powers" as a mental diet. Eeturn- 
 ing, in 1866, with his father to Annapolis, he was 
 sent to St. John's College in that place, and at that 
 time in a flourishing condition, under the able admin- 
 istration of James C. Welling, now the accomplished 
 President of Columbian College. Although his mental 
 abilities were acknowledged as superior, he preferred 
 action to books, and his success there was not satisfac- 
 tory to his father. Others known to be his mental in- 
 feriors took a higher stand. He, however, read some 
 Latin, and made considerable progress in mathematics. 
 Here we come to a new illustration of his character. 
 During his residence within the walls of the Academy, 
 a species of tyranny existed among the sons of naval 
 officers of his own age with whom he associated, which 
 he could not endure. Eank in the father was sup- 
 posed to give rank or prestige to the son. This theory 
 young Lockwood was unwilling to acknowledge, and 
 the consequence was that he soon found himself beset 
 
12 FAKTHEST NORTH. 
 
 by those whom he opposed. But then, as always with 
 the free and brave, right prevailed, and the aggressors 
 were sent to the wall, while the fearless victor very 
 soon became the peer of his associates. The situation 
 of the Academy offering peculiar facilities for boating, 
 fishing, swimming, etc., the professor's son became 
 an expert in all these exercises, making pets of his 
 sail and row boats, as he had done with the ponies of 
 Chincoteague. Many of the Annapolis students, now 
 high officers in the navy, have spoken of his frolic- 
 some pranks at that time within the grounds of the 
 Academy — for example, how he mimicked the strut 
 of the drum-major, how he teased the watchman by 
 hiding among the trees and bushes, personating an 
 intruder on the grounds, and how he alarmed the ser- 
 vant-maids and the children by appearing suddenly 
 before them like a phantom. He was more fond of 
 reading than of study, and among his favorite books 
 were those of De Toe, Mayne Eeid, and others of that 
 class. To what extent he was familiar with the his- 
 tories of John Ledyard and Joseph K. Bellot can not 
 be stated, but there is a striking similarity in their 
 characters, and indeed it was the fate of the latter, 
 like Lockwood, to lose his life in the Arctic regions. 
 They form a trio of remarkable explorers, whose fame 
 will be perennial, but it was the fate of the last one 
 mentioned to reach the highest success. During the 
 latter part of his residence at Annapolis, he spent 
 many of his spare hours on his father's farm. By 
 way of encouragement, his father assigned to him a 
 patch of ground for his special cultivation, with ferti- 
 
EARLY LIFE. 13 
 
 lizers and the use of a team. To the surprise of all, his 
 success seemed amazing, and his crops were good and 
 profitable. With the money thus secured he pur- 
 chased for himself a watch and a sporting gun. He 
 had a special fondness for dogs, and exerted over them 
 great influence. His fayorite in this direction was 
 a short-legged, long-bodied, common rat-terrier. In 
 the purity of this dog's blood, he was a decided believer, 
 which faith he maintained with many hot arguments, 
 and exemplified by teaching the animal a great variety 
 of tricks. Indeed, the high degree of training to 
 which he brought the dog Jack was remarkable. He 
 was always quiet and positive toward the animal, and 
 Jack gave his commands a serious and implicit obedi- 
 ence. One of the feats performed by the dog was to 
 carry a candlestick with a lighted candle wherever or- 
 dered to do so. Another was to this effect : the boy 
 would place a small scrap of paper on the parlor wall 
 at a height which Jack was hardly able to reach. 
 Jack's attention would then be called to the paper, 
 and the dog and master would retire up-stairs. Some 
 time afterward, Jack, in obedience to a mere word, 
 would proceed to the parlor, and, to the amusement 
 of those congregated there, launch his body at the 
 paper until he finally secured it, and then would carry 
 it to his master. Although this dog had a special 
 dislike for fire, he would, under orders, pull chestnuts 
 out of the hot coals, even if it took him an hour to 
 perform the task ; and it is also related of him that 
 on one occasion, when he slipped his muzzle on the 
 Academy grounds, he picked it up and took it to his 
 
14 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 master. When the lad's father was ordered to the Na- 
 tional Observatory, the family removing to Washing- 
 ton, the pet dog accompanied them, and the intimacy 
 between the dog and his master was unabated. They 
 often rambled through the streets together, and it 
 was during one of their walks along Pennsylvania 
 Avenue that the dog disappeared, and was never re- 
 covered by his owner, whose grief was most sincere 
 and manifest. He published an advertisement, and, 
 true to his regard for the departed, he spoke of it as 
 a pure-blooded animal ; which statement was prob- 
 ably the reason why the dog was never returned, as 
 no stranger could have believed in the alleged pedi- 
 gree of such an ungainly creature. 
 
 After young Lockwood's father and family had 
 become settled in Washington, it was decided that he 
 should return to Annapolis and take charge of the 
 farm until some more suitable or congenial employ- 
 ment should come into view. In looking over the 
 home letters which he wrote at that time, I find a 
 few developments of character which are worthy of 
 mention. For example, in February, 1872, he writes 
 as follows : 
 
 "I find Annapolis the same as ever. It would 
 hardly do for Eip Van Winkle to go to sleep here, for, 
 when he awoke, he would find no change, not even by 
 death." 
 
 After speaking in the same letter of a man going 
 to purchase implements in Baltimore, he says: "I 
 think it would pay one capable of judging of such 
 things, or one endowed with i Lockwood Common 
 
EARLY LIFE. 15 
 
 Sense,'" this allusion being to an imaginary manual 
 ■which the children had attributed to their father. 
 The quiet humor of the youthful farmer is manifested 
 in another letter after this fashion : " I have been suf- 
 fering all the week from the effects of a poison most 
 probably communicated from some vine. It mani- 
 fests itself pretty much as Job's troubles showed 
 themselves, and no position of body except standing 
 affords relief. I haven't yet got down into the ashes. 
 If tartar emetic produced these eruptions, they might 
 be attributed in some way to the evil agency of Mrs. 
 W ." 
 
 The person here alluded to was the one who be- 
 came notorious for the alleged poisoning of General 
 W. S. Ketcham, in Baltimore. Young Lockwood had 
 met her at a boarding-house in Annapolis after her 
 release from prison, and was agreeably impressed by 
 her conversation and manners. On a subsequent oc- 
 casion, when visiting his family in Washington, and 
 some severe remark had been made against the lady 
 in question, he demanded that the company present 
 should not abuse an absent friend in his presence. 
 Being of a sensitive nature in regard to the weather, 
 as is proved by several of his Annapolis letters, and by 
 such passages as the one now to be quoted, it seems 
 surprising that he should ever have decided to visit 
 the icy regions of the North. 
 
 " This gloomy weather," he says, " is by no means 
 calculated to elate one's spirits, but, on the contrary, 
 makes everything appear in its most dreary and deso- 
 late light, especially on a farm like this, and, though 
 
16 FARTHEST NOKTH. 
 
 the spring will bring more work and attention, yet I 
 shall hail its appearance with joy. I must confess 
 that I can not prevent a feeling of loneliness from 
 coming oyer me, particularly in the daytime, for at 
 night my lamp and open wood-fire make things more 
 cheerful, or rather less dreary." 
 
 As these letters were written from a farm, and 
 by a mere boy, they are chiefly devoted to asking for 
 advice as to how he should manage affairs, and to 
 reporting the condition of the crops ; but, in their 
 way, they prove that there was much solid man- 
 hood in the lad, and that he looked upon life as 
 something substantial, and not as a kind of dream- 
 land. 
 
 On one occasion, when visiting his home, he no- 
 ticed that one of his sisters was manifesting what 
 he thought an unreasonable excitement about the 
 advent of cockroaches in the kitchen, whereupon he 
 drew the figure of a vessel under full sail, beneath 
 which he wrote the following : " The brig Anna 
 Baby, bound to the north pole for a load of cock- 
 roaches." 
 
 On another occasion, after consulting the family 
 copy of Webster's Dictionary, he wrote upon one of 
 the fly-leaves, opposite the indorsements of Henry 
 Clay, Daniel Webster, and other distinguished men, 
 these words : " I regard this dictionary as very good, 
 especially when you can not get any other." 
 
 These incidents, though unimportant, help us to 
 appreciate the character of the critical and independ- 
 ent youth. 
 
EARLY LIFE. 17 
 
 The following example of the boy's ingenuity is 
 also worth mentioning : 
 
 In 1870 a brother-in-law gaye him a small, cheap 
 clock, about four and a half inches in diameter, which 
 he at once adapted to the purpose of waking himself 
 in the morning. After joining the slats of his bed to- 
 gether with battens, he sawed them through in the 
 middle and hinged the parts. That half of the ar- 
 rangement which was at the head of the bed was 
 supported only by a single prop. A minute collar of 
 lead was supported by one of the hands of the clock. 
 At the proper time the lead slipped from the hand 
 automatically, and, in failing, set in motion a system 
 of levers which were connected with the prop by a 
 string. Thus, with unfailing regularity, the prop 
 was jerked from its place, and the young occupant of 
 the bed was pitched headlong to the floor among his 
 pillows and bolster. When he tired of this apparatus, 
 it became his custom at night to hitch a string around 
 his foot, the end of the string being passed out of 
 the window and allowed to trail down to the kitchen- 
 door. At a definite time in the morning, previously 
 ordered, the colored cook pulled the string until she 
 received intimation of a successful result. 
 
 In the hope of finding more congenial employ- 
 ment, young Lockwood now fixed his mind on engi- 
 neer work in connection with railroads. He joined a 
 corps on the Texas and Pacific Eailroad line, and went 
 to the northeastern corner of the State of Texas, 
 where, for four months, he drove pegs and cut down 
 bushes in the virgin wilderness, which employment 
 
13 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 was only terminated by the failure of the company to 
 go on with its enterprise. What with the rough peo- 
 ple with whom he was compelled to associate, the 
 hard fare at the rude taverns, and a severe attack of 
 sickness, he had a very disagreeable experience, which 
 was enhanced by the non-payment of wages by the 
 company, and by the temporary loss of the spare 
 money furnished by his father, which was taken from 
 him by the rascality of a pretended friend, an em- 
 ploye of the railroad company. By careful financial 
 engineering, he managed to leave the wilderness of 
 Texas, went to Shreveport, and thence to New Or- 
 leans, where he took a steamer for Cincinnati, and on 
 this trip he met with one small bit of good fortune. 
 Owing to his limited means he contracted with the 
 captain of the steamer that he should be carried to 
 Cincinnati, 0., for a specific sum, all his meals to be 
 included in the passage-money. It so happened, how- 
 ever, that the steamer was detained by floating ice 
 for three weeks, but this caused no detriment to the 
 traveler's pocket, as time was not "nominated in 
 the bond." About eleven years after that experience, 
 the same traveler was fighting his way through the 
 ice of the Arctic seas and enduring the horrors of 
 Cape Sabine, finding it difficult to secure necessary 
 rations at any price or of any quality. 
 
 On reaching home, he began the study of book- 
 keeping with a view to the civil service. With others, 
 he was examined for a position in the Treasury De- 
 partment. He passed the examination with credit, 
 and received a mark much above the number required 
 
EARLY LIFE. 19 
 
 for passing, but, when the office-mark was thrown in, 
 as was then the custom, his average was reduced, and 
 those who had personal influence and understood the 
 " tricks of the trade " became the successful appli- 
 cants. 
 
II. 
 
 ARMY-LIFE IN ARIZONA. 
 
 Aftek finding that farming and railroad engineer- 
 ing were not exactly the employments he had fancied 
 them to be, young Lockwood resumed his studies 
 under the direction of his father. Not long after- 
 ward, however, he was seized with the idea of entering 
 the army, and, at the very outset of this venture for 
 a useful life, he was met with a blending of good and 
 bad fortune. Securing the influence of many friends, 
 he made a successful appeal to the President and the 
 War Department. He received orders for an exami- 
 nation before the proper tribunal, and, out of thirty- 
 eight young men who were examined in Washington, 
 he passed No. 1. He also had a higher mark than 
 any of those examined in other places at the same 
 time ; hence he was entitled to the highest commis- 
 sion as second lieutenant, and at one time it was re- 
 solved to give it to him ; but, as the examinations 
 were conducted in different places and before different 
 boards, it was decided to settle the rank of the ap- 
 plicants by lot, and Lockwood's number was forty, 
 instead of one to which he was justly entitled. He 
 was, however, promised a crack regiment, and hence 
 became second lieutenant in the Twenty-third In- 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN ARIZONA. 21 
 
 fantry, then commanded by two officers who had 
 gained distinction in the late war — Colonel Jefferson 
 0. Davis and Lientenant-Colonel George Crook. He 
 soon after joined the recruiting station at New York 
 for instruction. 
 
 The few letters that Lieutenant Lockwood wrote 
 home from New York contained yery graphic pictures 
 of what he there obseryed. His reception at the re- 
 cruiting-station was most cordial, one of the first 
 things done there by the recruiting-officers, to his 
 surprise, being to bring forth a demijohn of whisky ; 
 but from this hospitality he begged to be excused, only 
 one or two other young men following his example. 
 
 After a service of several weeks at the recruiting- 
 station in New York, he conducted recruits to the 
 Territory of Arizona by the way of Panama. The 
 party left New York in November, 1873, and, on 
 reaching San Francisco, went by steamer to Fort 
 Yuma, near the mouth of the Colorado Eiver, and 
 thence marched over the rugged and dusty plains of 
 Arizona to McDowell Post, a distance of more than 
 one hundred and fifty miles in the interior. 
 
 From the few letters that he wrote respecting his 
 trip from New York to San Francisco, we gather the 
 following items : 
 
 " Aspinwall is a dirty, sandy town, of no architect- 
 ural pretensions. I cannot better describe it than 
 by asking you to imagine Lockwoodville * with a lot 
 of palm- and cocoanut-trees growing in the vacant 
 lots, plenty of the sand and filth aforesaid, all the 
 
 * A suburb of Annapolis. 
 
22 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 darkies of Annapolis sauntering around, plenty of 
 children and many dogs, pigs, etc. However, I must 
 do Aspinwall justice — it has a neat little church, a 
 marble monument erected to some of its chief bene- 
 factors, and, what I should call, a remarkably fine 
 statue of Columbus, in bronze. It has an enormous 
 trade passing through it, from one ocean to the other, 
 and is really a place of great importance to the mer- 
 cantile world." 
 
 " TTe reached Panama between four and five in 
 the afternoon, after a very interesting ride across the 
 country, and were immediately embarked for the Con- 
 stitution — which lay two miles from shore — so that 
 I had no opportunity of seeing Panama, except from 
 the water. The ship left during the evening, and 
 ever since has been ' plowing the angry main' toward 
 San Francisco, excepting when stopping at some of 
 the towns along the coast. We have seen several of 
 these, and they are all of one type, that of Aspinwall, 
 though on a much smaller scale. Some that I saw 
 had not half a dozen wooden houses, but consisted 
 merely of reed-huts covered with straw. One of these 
 — Mazatlan — claims to have twenty thousand inhab- 
 itants, but does not appear to have more than one 
 tenth of that number. All the tropical fruits were 
 abundant at these places, and could be purchased for 
 a trifle. The Constitution is a side-wheeler of four 
 thousand tons, and has little motion, and, while sea- 
 sickers are abundant, I am not one of them. I have 
 gained ten pounds, and now weigh one hundred and 
 sixty-one. " 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN ARIZONA. 23 
 
 Lockwood's stay in San Francisco was too brief to 
 afford him much opportunity for observation, but 
 here is what he said of the Chinese : " I visited China- 
 town this evening, and saw the Celestials in all their 
 glory. I saw many strange and amusing sights in their 
 stores and shops and along their streets, as they are 
 very slow in adopting civilized customs. I send along 
 with this some Chinese pictures which I purchased. 
 I am very much pleased with San Francisco, and shall 
 leave it with many regrets. A walk through the Chi- 
 nese quarter is like a visit to some Chinese city on the 
 other side of the Pacific. " 
 
 The few events of his trip along the coast to Yuma 
 were to this effect : Soon after leaving the Golden 
 Gate, he experienced a storm that was far from pacific 
 in its character, far worse than any he had witnessed 
 since leaving New York ; he visited Magdalena Bay, 
 which impressed him as a barren, miserable place, 
 chiefly noted for its want of houses, and yet of some 
 importance as the shipping port of a dye-wood found in 
 that region ; he also stopped at Carmen Island, where 
 large quantities of salt were found in the dry bed of a 
 lake, and at Cape St. Lucas, but brought away no 
 favorable impressions from any of these remote places. 
 With Yuma City he was better pleased, describing 
 its houses as small, one-story affairs, built of adobe, 
 more Mexican than American in character, and its 
 streets as far more dusty than those of Washington 
 City ; and the mountains surrounding the city as 
 very imposing. The Colorado reminded him of the 
 Red River — the channel winding and running be- 
 
24 FAETHEST NORTH. 
 
 tween great mud-fiats and islands, all constantly 
 changing, and abounding in many kinds of water- 
 fowl. He was interested in the Indian inhabitants, 
 whom he pitied for their poverty and degradation ; 
 occasionally seeing a number of squaws reclining like 
 quadrupeds on the mud-flats or in front of their tiny 
 oval huts. 
 
 The sojourn of Lieutenant Lockwood in Arizona 
 lasted into the summer of 1874, and from the letters 
 which he wrote home from Post McDowell may be 
 gathered some interesting particulars, illustrating his 
 habits of close observation in regard to men and 
 events. 
 
 His journey from Fort Yuma to Camp McDowell 
 was full of interest and was greatly enjoyed. He had 
 for companions two brother officers and three ladies ; 
 traveled by ambulance, making marches of only about 
 fifteen miles ; camped out every night, Lockwood 
 himself sleeping on the ground outside. As the coun- 
 try was very desolate and barren, they traveled gen- 
 erally along the valley of the Gila, but their last 
 march was over desert land forty-five miles wide. 
 They saw many relics along the route, mounds, ruins, 
 and immense ditches for irrigation. One immense 
 pile of rocks, called the Painted Rocks, was entirely 
 covered with pictures of lizards, Indians, beasts, and 
 birds — supposed to represent a great battle in which 
 the Apaches conquered the Maricopas. There were 
 also along the road graves of men murdered by the 
 Indians. One grave, near Gila Bend, was of a man 
 named Lumley, a station -keeper, murdered by two 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN ARIZONA. 25 
 
 Mexicans — his successor exhibited a knife, used by- 
 one of the murderers, which had been found, and he 
 pointed out the spot where Judge Lynch had disposed 
 of the only criminal that happened to be captured. 
 While the travelers did not spend any money at hotels, 
 they were obliged to pay from twenty to thirty dollars 
 for being ferried across the Gila and Salt Kivers at 
 different points. 
 
 In one of his letters, written to his sister after 
 the rainy season, and soon after his arrival at Camp 
 McDowell, young Lockwood says : "I wish you could 
 see the pretty flowers around here ; they are prin- 
 cipally yellow and red, and each kind grows by itself. 
 They grow so close together that the ground is cov- 
 ered as with a carpet, To the west of this post there 
 is a wide plain covered with these flowers. There is 
 also a species of cactus called the Suwarrow, which 
 grows fifteen or twenty feet high — a sort of tree with- 
 out branches, but covered with thorns ; the outside 
 of this tree is of a green color and nearly as soft as 
 young asparagus, but inside it has a frame of wood. 
 These are all over the plain, in fact all over Arizona. 
 I often walk out here after dinner with a large dog 
 that belongs to one of the officers, and start up the 
 rabbits — great big Jack-rabbits, as they are called — 
 as large as a small dog. They can run very fast, 
 faster than any dog except a hound. Among other 
 curiosities about here are rattlesnakes and lizards — 
 the lizards as common as flies ; also crows as big as 
 hens and almost as tame. The post is entirely sur- 
 rounded by mountains." By way of contrast to this 
 
26 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 pleasing prospect, in another letter he gives the par- 
 ticulars of the murder of two men by the Indians 
 within twelve miles of the garrison, their bodies hav- 
 ing been fearfully mutilated. "I am still in the 
 land of the finite and material," he writes, " and the 
 Apaches have not yet disturbed the arrangement of 
 my back hair ; in short, I am alive and kicking." 
 
 On the 14th of May, Lock wood writes that " there 
 has been nothing new at the post except the arrival of 
 Lieutenant Schuyler, Fifth Cavalry. He has been 
 out on a scout for several months past, dropping in at 
 various posts now and then. He reports that he came 
 upon the Apaches southeast of here, killed twelve and 
 took fourteen prisoners. He is accompanied by Dr. 
 Corbasier and a party of thirty-one soldiers and 
 eighty-one Indian scouts. These scouts are composed 
 of Apache-Mojave, Tonto-Apaches, and other tribes, 
 closely allied to the Apaches proper. It seems strange 
 that they are thus willing to join the enemy in ex- 
 terminating their brethren ; but such is their na- 
 ture. They are hardly superior to the beasts, except 
 in shape, and even there the line of demarkation is 
 not very distinct. The Pimos, to the number of one 
 hundred or more, were here about a week ago, on 
 their way to punish the Apaches for stealing some 
 stock from them. When they returned, they reported 
 the killing of quite a number of their foes — some six- 
 teen or more — and taking many prisoners. Schuy- 
 ler's party confirm the report ; they came across the 
 camp of the Apaches, and the doctor said he counted 
 a large number of slain. The Pimos surprised the 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN ARIZONA. 27 
 
 Apaches when asleep and almost exterminated them. 
 They were armed with war-clubs, and of course man- 
 gled their bodies horribly. When found their heads 
 were all beaten in, and their bodies stuck full of ar- 
 rows and partially burned. The doctor says it was 
 the most sickening sight he ever beheld. The Apache 
 bands, off their reservations, are fast becoming ex- 
 terminated, over a thousand having been killed dur- 
 ing the last winter. General Crook will not allow 
 them to return to their reservations unless they bring 
 the heads of several of the ringleaders in the late 
 outbreak." 
 
 In another place, after alluding to the extravagant 
 accounts published about Arizona, he says : " One 
 would suppose, from reading the pamphlet I send 
 you, that Arizona is a fine agricultural country — which 
 is absurd ; and that it contains many flourishing 
 cities and towns, whereas even the river-bottoms re- 
 quire irrigation, and the ( cities ' are merely the nuclei 
 of towns." 
 
 On one occasion, after alluding to his enjoyment 
 of the newspapers sent him from home, and to the 
 early transfer of his regiment, he says: "It would 
 probably have been removed this spring but for the 
 financial panic and other commercial disasters. I 
 suppose if the rest of the year goes by prosperously, 
 and nothing occurs to prolong the gingerly, penny- 
 wise, pound-foolish policy of Congress called econo- 
 my (?), that the Twenty-third will probably be re- 
 moved next spring or fall." And again, he continues : 
 "Grant appears to have obtained great credit by his 
 
28 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 veto of the Inflation Bill. How Congress could pass 
 a bill which seems to be unacceptable and repugnant 
 to the whole people, I can not understand." 
 
 Alluding a second time to the pleasing character- 
 istics of frontier life, he tells his father that "a 
 party of Indian scouts arrived here yesterday from 
 Schuyler's command. They brought the news that 
 the lieutenant had jumped the Indians at Four Peaks — 
 a high mountain, forty miles off — killed eighteen and 
 captured six. The party brought in a wounded scout, 
 shot through the head, who is now in the hospital. 
 He was the only one wounded in the fight, or rather 
 slaughter, for these Indians rarely fight a party of any 
 size. I suppose these Arizona tribes are the most de- 
 graded, cowardly, and despicable savages in the coun- 
 try. Schuyler, as I understand, generally sweeps a 
 breadth of country fifty miles across, by means of 
 flanking-parties on the right and left, and has been 
 quite successful." 
 
 In speaking of his duties at the post, he says : "I 
 am officer-of-the-day every other day ; I mount the 
 guard every morning, attend all roll-calls, accompany 
 the captain in his inspection of quarters every morn- 
 ing, and afterward recite tactics. I also am present 
 with him at company-drill every evening, command 
 the company at Sunday morning inspection, sit on 
 boards of survey and perform other irregular duties." 
 
 After announcing the arrival of the paymaster at 
 the post, and alluding to expenses, he says: " Servants 
 in this country are paid enormously. The post-trader 
 pays his Chinese cook thirty dollars per month, and 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN ARIZONA. 29 
 
 has paid as high as one hundred dollars. Officers in 
 Arizona are compelled from necessity to employ sol- 
 diers in this capacity, though contrary to the regula- 
 tions." 
 
 In one of his letters, Lieutenant Lockwood gives 
 his opinion about some of his father's landed property, 
 and then goes on after this fashion : "The old farm 
 has additional charms for me now, after living in Ari- 
 zona, and I have come to think that there are many 
 worse places. Does distance lend enchantment to the 
 view ? or what is it ? I often long after some of the 
 delicious peaches and other fruit that the much-abused 
 farm produces in such abundance. However, if you 
 can dispose of the farm as you suggest, it will, no 
 doubt, be for the best, as the Lock wood family have 
 become so high-toned that I am afraid they will never 
 sloop (?) to live on a farm and become grangers." 
 
 In one of his letters written about this date, he 
 makes the following remark respecting his education 
 at Annapolis : "I don't think I care about being 
 present at the meeting of the alumni of my Alma 
 Mater, or, what she would be more pleased with, con- 
 tributing anything in the way of money. Enough has 
 been thrown away in teaching me what has never been 
 of any use. However, the old woman has my good 
 wishes." 
 
 In another letter, after speaking of an entertain- 
 ment he had attended, he said : "I don't know that 
 I should have enjoyed it, but for the presence of a very 
 pretty Spanish girl with whom I fell in love ; she 
 danced charmingly, but as she could not speak a word 
 
30 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 of English, nor I a word of Spanish, our conversation 
 was somewhat limited." 
 
 On the 4th of July when arrangements were com- 
 menced for removing the Twenty-third Eegiment to 
 Yuma, the lieutenant thus touches upon the national 
 anniversary : "1 have celebrated the day by being 
 very busy writing up the proceedings of a board of sur- 
 vey, and have a like job on my hands for to-morrow ; 
 indeed, I shall be fully employed now till we leave. 
 Some of the men, however, have been otherwise em- 
 ployed, viz., in parading before the guard-house with 
 logs of wood on their backs, as the reward of a 
 drunken frolic. Our march to Fort Yuma will 
 doubtless be very disagreeable, and for two weeks 
 we shall have dust and heat together with the fatigue 
 of travel ; but, on the other hand, the daily march 
 will not be more than fifteen miles, and as we shall 
 be well provided, I can't say that I look forward 
 to it with much dread. The wife of our captain is 
 even now interesting herself in the culinary arrange- 
 ments, so I presume the vitals will be good." Prom 
 the time of his uttering this amusing pun until the 
 following September, the letters of young Lockwood 
 give us no incidents of special interest, and we now 
 follow him into the State of Nebraska, his regiment 
 having been assigned to the favorite post of Omaha. 
 
III. 
 
 ARMY-LIFE IN NEBRASKA. 
 
 Haying entered upon duty at the barracks of 
 Omaha, he seems to have made himself especially use- 
 ful there, while enjoying some of the comforts of civ- 
 ilization, including good society. On the 25 th of 
 September, he wrote that he had been busy for a week 
 as the recorder of a court-martial. " We settled nine 
 cases, and, while we now stand adjourned sine die, I 
 suppose the court will soon be reconvened to try half 
 a dozen more men against whom charges have been 
 preferred. There have been, since my arrival here, as 
 many as sixty men in the guard-house, and courts-mar- 
 tial are the order of the day. I have to attend drills, 
 etc., every day, and hence my leisure and opportunities 
 for visiting the town have been limited. However, I 
 did go last night to a concert in town given for the 
 benefit of the grasshopper sufferers, several of these 
 sufferers from the country being present. You can 
 not realize what a nuisance these insects are in this 
 country. I have not yet seen them in any numbers, 
 or the effects of their ravages, but I am told they 
 sometimes actually stop the railway-trains. The in- 
 credible number of bed-bugs in this country is another 
 curious fact. I sleep so soundly that they do not dis- 
 
32 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 turb me. They infest every house at the post, and 
 they are also numerous in the city, the fences between 
 here and there being painted in many places, * Go to 
 Smith's for the great bed-bug buster.' " He became 
 a favorite in the refined society of Omaha, at that 
 time on the confines of civilization, but appearing to 
 him like a bit of New York city cut off and set down 
 in the wilderness, where, only a few years before, the 
 buffalo ranged in his native freedom. During his 
 residence at Omaha, young Lockwood was on the 
 most friendly terms with all his fellow-officers, with 
 one exception. After giving his father a very manly 
 account of that trouble, he writes a paragraph about 
 himself in these words : "With regard to myself, I 
 find this army-life about what I expected. It has its 
 pleasures and its crosses. I should prefer the cavalry 
 to the infantry, and am sorry I did not apply for that 
 arm of the service. I should like to remain in the 
 army two or three years longer, I think, and yet, 
 with a good opening, might do better in civil life. 
 Promotion is very slow, and the accumulation of any- 
 thing is not easy. These, of course, are rude impres- 
 sions and but half formed, but, as you ask for impres- 
 sions, I feel bound to give them just as they are. I 
 have not been in the army long enough to rise, nor 
 have I had the opportunity to gain any particular 
 reputation, but suppose mine is as good as the average 
 — that is, I think I have displayed as much aptitude 
 for my profession as is generally exhibited by men of 
 average ability, for of such I regard myself — perhaps 
 below the average. I hope this peroration will answer 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN NEBRASKA.. 33 
 
 your inquiries, and prove satisfactory in that respect. 
 Excuse the necessary egotism. I will thankfully re- 
 ceive any advice or corrections which the reading of 
 this, or your acquaintance with, my characteristics, 
 may suggest. I feel as though I had written a lot of 
 foolishness ; if you think so, please excuse." 
 
 To the writer of this personal history, it seems as 
 if such sentiments as the above could come only from 
 a young man endowed with, the highest instincts of 
 ambition, honor, and true manhood, and can not but 
 be considered, with others of like character, as a suit- 
 able passport into the land of Odin and the glories of 
 Valhalla. 
 
 During his stay at Omaha, Lieutenant Loekwood 
 was detailed by General Ord, the commanding officer, 
 to visit those counties of Nebraska where grasshoppers 
 had destroyed the crops, for the purpose of determin- 
 ing to whom contributions which had been sent to 
 the general should be given. In this journey of sev- 
 eral hundred miles, made in the coldest weather, he 
 visited the several county towns, met the citizens, 
 and afterward laid before the general such testimony 
 as to the destitute, that the bounty was distributed to 
 the satisfaction of all. While on this duty, he traveled 
 ninety miles in twenty-four hours. The county people 
 with whom he conducted business, he designated as 
 " Grasshoppers." He greatly enjoyed the prairie 
 scenery through which he passed, especially the valley 
 of the Blue. 
 
 On the approach of Christmas at Omaha, our 
 young friend had an. attack of chills and fever, which 
 
34: FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 sent him to his bed. After deploring that he could 
 not perform his duties on the pending court-martial, 
 he gives us this holiday information : " Yesterday 
 was Christmas, and I am glad that the day comes 
 but once a year. With a large party I was occupied 
 until late in the afternoon making the rounds of the 
 many houses here at the post. In the evening, I ate 
 a fine dinner at General Ord's, and on top of that, 
 danced in the parlor until eleven or twelve o'clock, 
 and, as a consequence, am coming on as officer of the 
 guard to-day with a most gorgeous headache. So much 
 for Christmas. I have received two or three presents, 
 but have made none myself, from want of funds. I 
 just now heard a tremendous crash, and, on going 
 out, found a fine lunch, sent by Mrs. Ord, scattered 
 on the ground, and in the midst of the debris of 
 broken glass and china, the unfortunate bearer, who 
 had slipped and fallen on the ice in front of the door. 
 I was not particularly sorry on my own account, as I 
 could not have eaten the good things ' anyhow.' 
 Upon the whole, Christmas has passed away as it 
 usually does, pleasantly, though at the expense of 
 many unfortunate turkeys. I am sorry I could not 
 send home any presents, my pecuniary affairs being 
 in a straitened condition. I should like very much to 
 be at home about this time. I often wish I could hear 
 Lidie and Anna sing, although I suppose I would find 
 the girls, including Julia and Mary, much changed." 
 Remembering young Lockwood's remarks about 
 whisky-drinking in New York, the following state- 
 ment is worth quoting : " Most of the ladies at the 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN NEBRASKA. 35 
 
 post received visitors on JSTew-Year's-day, either sin- 
 gly or in groups. One marked feature of the day was 
 the general absence of liquor, its place being supplied 
 by coffee, chocolate, and other refreshments of a more 
 solid and less stimulating character. I noticed the 
 same thing in town, or rather that at those places 
 where I saw liquor, the ladies were less urgent than is 
 usually the case in pressing it upon the gentlemen. 
 However, there is less drinking at this post than at 
 any other I have seen, as large as it is. Although, 
 with few exceptions, all drink here, it is done quietly 
 at home and without excess. " 
 
 As our young friend had narrowly escaped with 
 his life from drowning at Annapolis, so did he from 
 the pranks of an unruly horse at the Omaha Bar- 
 racks. He was about mounting the horse for a ride, 
 when the animal started on the run before he could 
 get into the saddle, when he was thrown forward 
 upon his head. The trouble was owing to a defect in 
 the bridle. In accounting for his escape, he remarked 
 that his thick head was what saved his life. True to 
 his native pluck, he tackled the same horse a number 
 of times afterward, until the animal — a special favor- 
 ite — was subdued. 
 
 In the month of June, 1875, it would seem as if 
 something like homesickness was weighing down his 
 spirits, for he then began to write about employment 
 in civil life. Not that he disliked the army, but he 
 longed for some business that would enable him to 
 make a little money. He thought he could supply a 
 sufficient amount of energy to prosecute a commercial 
 
36 FAETIIEST NORTH. 
 
 venture. He felt that there was a great difference 
 between the roads that lead to wealth and to military 
 glory. If his father should chance to see an opening 
 that might give him a fortune in a few days at the 
 expense of a few hundred dollars or some hard work, 
 he wanted to be promptly notified. He broached 
 these business ideas at that time merely for the sake 
 of haying a subject for discussion when permitted to 
 visit his home. 
 
 The life at the Omaha garrison, during the sum- 
 mer of 1875, was comfortable but monotonous. The 
 faithfulness with which the young officer correspond- 
 ed with his parents is eminently characteristic of a 
 dutiful son. "When not writing about his surround- 
 ings and daily duties, or sketching the character of 
 his associates, he ventured to discuss business matters 
 with his father, frequently volunteering a bit of ad- 
 vice. He often alluded to the Annapolis farm and 
 to people and events connected with Georgetown, 
 now a part of Washington City, where he expected 
 the family to remain permanently. On every sub- 
 ject discussed, he manifested a clear head, and en- 
 livened his more serious talk with an occasional joke, 
 for which he seemed to have a fondness. In express- 
 ing his opinions on men and things, it seemed impos- 
 sible for him to hesitate or equivocate ; he always 
 went directly to the point, and, though charitable, 
 he could not refrain from looking out for the de- 
 mands of justice, as, for example, when alluding to 
 the death of a man who had been untrue to himself 
 and friends, he said " to die was about the best thing 
 
AEMY-LIFE IN NEBRASKA. 37 
 
 he could do." As to his jokes, they were not con- 
 fined to his private letters, as will be shown by one 
 of them practiced upon the post trader during a dull 
 period in the garrison. The trader in question, a 
 young fellow, had removed the balls from the pistol 
 of one of his clerks, with the intention of playing a 
 ghostly trick upon him that night. He told Lockwood 
 and another friend of his intention, and they deter- 
 mined to turn the tables upon the trader. They noti- 
 fied the clerk, and at midnight the amateur ghost rose 
 from his bed, enveloped himself in a white sheet, and 
 stole softly into the room of the unsuspecting clerk. 
 Just then an improvised noise was made outside the 
 door, when the clerk seemingly awoke with an excla- 
 mation of terror at seeing the ghost. The report of 
 the pistol was duly followed by the return of the ball 
 held in hand, a la ghost, but immediately after, the 
 poor ghost found himself completely drenched with a 
 bucket of water, which had been coolly set aside for 
 that purpose. At this unexpected turn of affairs, the 
 trader fled in the greatest consternation, leaving his 
 "trade-mark" behind, and, as he passed out of the 
 door, received a second pail of water from one of his 
 ghostly companions. The result was that it took a 
 long time for him to dry his saturated skin, and a 
 much longer for his title of Mr. Ghost to be lost by 
 the garrison boys. ISTot long after the above incident, 
 this personage found that there was not " the ghost of 
 a chance " of his continuing in business, as he became 
 insolvent and had to retire. It would appear that 
 while many of these military merchants on the front- 
 
38 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 iers have a chance to make fortunes, those who are 
 located near a city like Omaha find it difficult to make 
 both ends meet in their business affairs. 
 
 On reading the proceedings of Congress during 
 the winter of 1875, he writes to his father as follows : 
 " Congress seems to be looking around for some scape- 
 goat on which to pile the odium of the millions legis- 
 lated away, and, as usual, pitches on the army. It 
 seems to be the opinion here, however, that no reduc- 
 tion will take place this winter. If Congressmen con- 
 sulted occasionally others than the staff-officers living 
 in Washington with regard to military affairs, they 
 might find out the true whereabout of the tremendous 
 rat-hole which swallows up annually the sum of thirty- 
 four millions of dollars. It does not go to support 
 the army proper, but to support that enormous, over- 
 grown, expensive adjunct of the army, the staff, 
 which, created merely for the administration of the 
 army, now masters that which it was intended to sub- 
 serve, and has become superior to it in rank and influ- 
 ence, and in everything that rank and influence can 
 bring. But Congress seems to be blind to the fact 
 that expenditures are credited to the army, under the 
 army appropriation bill, which have no legitimate 
 connection with it, and which would still be required 
 if no army existed. Why is it that the army is the 
 perpetual foot-ball of these demagogues ? Is it thus, 
 at every session, to be bantered about by those who 
 do not understand the requirements of the country 
 in this respect ? Is not the causing of this period- 
 ical uncertainty respecting his fate the most perni- 
 
ARMY-LITE IN NEBRASKA. 39 
 
 eious thing that Congress can do to an officer ? 
 consistency, thou art a jewel ! How is it that the 
 nayy and other branches of the public service are not 
 subject to this constant tinkering ? But I am not in 
 Congress, and had better subside." The assertions 
 here made can not be controverted, and, coming from 
 a young man who had but recently passed his major- 
 ity, prove him to be the possessor of very substantial 
 abilities. He also expressed decided opinions in regard 
 to various noted officials charged with improper con- 
 duct in Washington at the time alluded to, all of 
 which have been sustained by subsequent develop- 
 ments. 
 
 Eemembering what he said about the drinking 
 customs of Omaha, on New-Year's-day, 1875, it is 
 pleasant to have him record the fact, on the 2d of 
 January, 1876, that "the most noticeable feature 
 during the previous day, in society, was the entire 
 absence, at most houses, of any intoxicating liquors, 
 and that he did not see a case of drunkenness during 
 the entire day — a thing very rare even in the cities of 
 the East." On a subsequent occasion, he mentions 
 the fact that, when one of his sergeants had been 
 drinking to excess, he put him in arrest, but released 
 him the next day, after warning him of the conse- 
 quences of a repetition of the offense, and "preaching 
 him a sermon on the evils of intoxication, moral, men- 
 tal, and physical." On one occasion, when his father 
 had asked how he spent his leisure time in the bar- 
 racks, he replied that he read, so as to combine pleas- 
 ure with profit, played on his flute, and studied the 
 
40 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 art of short-hand, which had long been a hobby with 
 him, and was to be in the future an important accom- 
 plishment. In an effort to read Draper's ( ' Intellect- 
 ual Development of Europe," he could only manage 
 about one half of the work, and to counteract its 
 dullness resorted to a novel, " The "Wandering Jew." 
 As he was frequently called upon to act as recorder of 
 the military court, he found his knowledge of stenog- 
 raphy very useful and very much of a relaxation, and, 
 on receiving a letter from one of his sisters which was 
 good but not very plainly written, he said that he had 
 been able to make it out by means of his skill in short- 
 hand writing. As to his studies, he had formed a 
 regular plan for prosecuting them, but was constantly 
 interrupted by extra official duties. Among other 
 things, he devoted himself to the German language, 
 and subsequently to French, and attained consider- 
 able proficiency. An idea of his habits of industry 
 may be gathered from what he wrote to his father, 
 when the General was placed on the retired list of the 
 navy : "So you are retired this month. You ought 
 to open an office, or do something to occupy your 
 mind. Every one needs something in the way of 
 business or duty. You will soon get tired of reading 
 continuously." On the approach of spring, and with 
 the expectation of obtaining a leave of absence during 
 the coming summer, he resumed a discussion with 
 his father about leaving the army for civil employ- 
 ment. He had entered it well posted in regard to 
 its disadvantages, and chiefly for the sake of hav- 
 ing something to do. He had now become more 
 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN NEBRASKA. 4-1 
 
 deeply impressed than before that promotion was so 
 slow, that his prospects of increased rank and pay 
 offered no inducements to any young man of energy 
 and industry, qualities which he certainly possessed. 
 He was not then ready for decisive action, but he was 
 determined to support himself, and would, therefore, 
 be on the lookout for advantageous prospects in some 
 other line of employment. In one of his letters, after 
 commenting upon the school which two of his sisters 
 were attending, he gives us this bit of experience : 
 " I am a school-teacher myself ; my pupils, the non- 
 commissioned officers of the company. They waste 
 the midnight oil, however, only in toning the tactics. 
 I go down and dilate and expatiate very profoundly 
 on the reasons and logic of this and that. This is 
 a pleasant school to have ; the authority and influ- 
 ence of the officer have their full weight in the or- 
 dinary school-room as elsewhere in the army." In 
 May, 1876, after giving an account of a proposed 
 demonstration, under General Crook, against the 
 Indians on the Yellowstone, he thus relieves his 
 mind: "Would that I belonged to the cavalry! I 
 like motion, action, and variety. To be sure, I 
 would rather be here (in Omaha) than where the 
 other companies are, but still would rather be in the 
 field than here." In June, 1876, the monotony of 
 his life was relieved by an order to take some con- 
 victs to the State prison near Fort Leavenworth, 
 which he described as the largest post in the country, 
 containing the post proper, the department head- 
 quarters, and the military prison. The State prison 
 
42 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 is about six miles from the town. ce Here/' he writes, 
 "are sent all the enlisted men who are dishonorably 
 discharged, conyicted of theft, or other not purely 
 military offenses. The inclosure is an immense yard, 
 surrounded by a high stone wall — the building, which 
 is on one side, haying an appearance somewhat like 
 the Smithsonian Institution. In the inclosure are 
 various other buildings, each one used as a workshop 
 for some trade, almost all the common trades being 
 represented. The prisoners, numbering about five 
 hundred, are together in the daytime, but not at 
 night, and are not allowed to talk with each other. 
 It was from this prison that the best features of the 
 new military prison were obtained, the board of offi- 
 cers on the management of the prison at Fort Leaven- 
 worth having decided it to be the best one to imitate." 
 In the autumn of 1876, when he was granted a 
 leave of absence to visit his parents, they found him 
 in personal appearance wonderfully improved and de- 
 veloped, the boy of 1873 having become a handsome 
 and accomplished gentleman. He was not slow, as 
 may be supposed, in making his way to Philadelphia 
 to visit the Centennial Exposition, which he greatly 
 enjoyed. 
 
IV. 
 
 AKMY-LIFE IN KANSAS. 
 
 Dueing Lieutenant Lockwood's absence on leave, 
 his regiment was transferred to Fort Leavenworth, 
 and there we find him early in 1877, and for about 
 two years thereafter. Of course, the garrison life of 
 an officer, in times of peace, is somewhat monotonous ; 
 but the letters which the lieutenant wrote from this 
 station contain some passages which are interesting 
 and illustrate his character, as will be seen in the fol- 
 lowing pages. Here it should be stated that, during 
 his sojourn at Fort Leavenworth, he made many 
 pleasant acquaintances, which ripened into friend- 
 ship ; among them being the widow of an officer, 
 with whom he boarded for some time, and whose 
 friendship he particularly valued. 
 
 At a time when there was quite a rage at the gar- 
 rison for private theatricals, one of the superior offi- 
 cers took the liberty, without previous consultation, 
 of putting Lockwood on the list of performers, where- 
 upon he declined the honor, as he thought Nature 
 never intended him for a star. In speaking of a little 
 difficulty between two of his friends, he manifests his 
 love of fun by stating that one of them had denied the 
 allegation and defied the alligator. When comment- 
 
44 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 ing upon some disagreeable March weather, he said, 
 " I don't think the ground-hog has seen his shadow, 
 and hence the latter part of the month ought to be 
 pleasant." After a remark on the proficiency he was 
 makiug in the study of French, he quietly continues, 
 "There are many here who speak it 'a VAmericaine, i 
 as if they thought that ' the chief end of man.'" 
 
 As if never satisfied with his acquirements, he 
 writes in one of his letters as follows : " My latest 
 hobby is telegraphing. The signal officer of the de- 
 partment has loaned me a small battery and an instru- 
 ment. We have put up the wires and are progressing 
 well. Telegraphy, like phonography, is easy to trans- 
 mit after some little practice ; but it is difficult to 
 recognize the sounds as they come over the wire, and 
 it requires as much practice as it does to recognize the 
 phonographic characters. I have the instrument on 
 the table before me, and can not fail to gain some pro- 
 ficiency at any rate." 
 
 In July, 1877, when the strikers and rioters were 
 making trouble in St. Louis, Mo., Lieutenant Lock- 
 wood's company and five others were ordered to that 
 city on duty. After their arrival, they waited in daily 
 expectation of mowing down the mob, but there was 
 little fighting, as the police and militia were found 
 to be amply sufficient to subdue all disturbance. He 
 was greatly pleased with the city and military quarters 
 of St. Louis, and felt that he would like to remain 
 there on permanent duty. The feature which pleased 
 him more than any other at St. Louis was a private 
 garden of about fifty acres, exquisitely planned, and 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN KANSAS. 45 
 
 containing the rarest and most beautiful flowers and 
 trees. The floral display, there, he thought superior 
 to that at the Centennial Exposition. The owner, a 
 bachelor named Shaw, nearly eighty years of age, and 
 a man of enormous wealth, paid out yearly in ex- 
 penses twenty-five thousand dollars. At the garden 
 residence of this millionaire, young Lockwood and a 
 friend were hospitably entertained — a wonderful con- 
 trast to the accommodations at a beer-saloon, near the 
 arsenal gate, where the army officers were obliged to 
 take their meals while in the city. Altogether the 
 trip was pleasant, but too expensive for men with 
 limited means. On their return to Fort Leaven- 
 worth from the Eden-like garden of St. Louis, they 
 were informed of Indian troubles in Montana, and 
 startled by a rumor that they must soon be off upon 
 a hunt for Indians — illustrating the vicissitudes of 
 army-life. 
 
 It was about this time that a specimen of Ameri- 
 can royalty visited Fort Leavenworth with his daugh- 
 ter, to whom young Lockwood had an opportunity of 
 being polite. This was a great cattle-man from Texas, 
 who was said to have fenced in a grazing-farm of a 
 million of acres, and who numbered his cattle by tens 
 of thousands. His name was King, and his title in 
 all the West was the " Cattle King of Texas." The 
 father and daughter were much interested in an 
 inspection of the fort, where they were hospitably 
 entertained. From that time onward for several 
 months, the dullness of garrison-life was only relieved 
 by parties, dinners, and theatrical amusements in the 
 
46 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 city, by the presence of an encampment of Indians 
 near the post, and by attendance at a grand recep- 
 tion and ball given at Kansas City by the Governor 
 of the State. The letters written by young Lock- 
 wood during all this period are elaborate and full of 
 interest to his parents, but not enlivened with any 
 incidents of public interest. The garrison courts 
 seem to have demanded very much of his attention, 
 because of his skill in taking down testimony by short- 
 hand, and he was frequently compelled to devote 
 many of his sleeping hours to the duty of writing out 
 his notes. 
 
 While going from the fort into town one day, he 
 witnessed what he called an awful spectacle — three 
 little boys in a state of intoxication. This recalled 
 the fate of one of his former companions in the East, 
 who had become a drunkard, and in a letter to his 
 father he recorded the following : " Liquor is cer- 
 tainly a terrible curse ; one constantly sees illustra- 
 tions of this in the army. You rather startled me in a 
 recent letter by telling me you had taken the pledge. 
 Had you departed from your abstemious habits in 
 this respect ? was my first thought, but I was at once 
 relieved by seeing that your allusion was to something 
 else. A rule that I have had for a long time and 
 seldom depart from, is not to drink before sunset and 
 never to do so in a saloon. It is rather superfluous 
 in me to have any such rules, as it is very seldom that 
 I have a desire to touch spirituous drinks, and then I 
 partake only for the sake of not appearing to be rude 
 in social matters." 
 
ARMY-LIFE Itf KANSAS. 47 
 
 On one occasion, after describing a splendid din- 
 ner which he had attended, he branches off npon his 
 own experiences in that line, stating that he had been 
 caterer for the " Bachelors' Clnb" during the current 
 month, and playing housekeeper for the first time in 
 his life. He was striving to feed the mess well and 
 to reduce expenses, the individual assessments amount- 
 ing to twenty-four dollars. 
 
 "We have a good deal of fun," he says, " at the 
 mess ; among other ways, by a resolution of the offi- 
 cers that I shall keep a record of the puns, jokes, 
 profane expressions, etc. Any one indulging in these 
 is put back or set forward on a regular motion and 
 vote by the members, and any one getting a record of 
 fifteen has to send to the store for a supply of cigars. 
 One of the mess, having the bad habit of saying, ' 
 Lord ! ' and ( Damn it ! ' when excited, gets a great 
 many bad marks, and is made unhappy. The stand- 
 ard of wit being very high, one seldom ' goes ahead. ' " 
 
 In May, 1878, when it was doubtful what Congress 
 would do about reducing the army, and Lieutenant 
 Lockwood thought that he might decide to leave the 
 service, he discussed with his father the question of 
 future employment. He thought favorably of a po- 
 sition in some telegraph company, thereby proving 
 that, in all his studies and leisurely occupations, he 
 was practical, and no visionary. Another idea that 
 he had was that he might play Cincinnatus, and again 
 go upon the farm. He also thought of a position in 
 connection with the Signal Service as one that would 
 
 suit him should he, from any cause, be compelled to 
 3 
 
48 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 leave the army ; and this suggestion, taken in connec- 
 tion with his subsequent career, is notable. He went 
 so far, indeed, as to ask his father about the practi- 
 cability of securing such a position in that corps, and 
 desired especially to know all about the necessary 
 qualifications. 
 
 On one occasion, after alluding to the possibility 
 of his being transferred for duty to some other place, 
 he says that it might be a good thing for him, as he 
 could not remain at Leavenworth always, and yet he 
 dreaded to be sent to some "far-distant and isolated 
 post." When he wrote those words, how little did 
 he imagine that he would eventually close his earthly 
 career in a land of supreme desolation within the Arc- 
 tic Circle ! 
 
 Subsequently — July, 1878 — he resumed with spe- 
 cial earnestness the consideration of being detailed for 
 duty in the Signal Service, and, with his father's ap- 
 probation, made the proper application. He thought 
 the proposed transfer would be of benefit to him in 
 many ways, and if he failed to make it so, he would 
 very quickly be ordered back to his regiment. 
 
 In September he was ordered to St. Louis for the 
 purpose of conducting some recruits westward, and 
 for a short time it was uncertain whether he would 
 have to go to Texas or the Territory of Wyoming, 
 whereby were shown the uncertainties which attend 
 life in the army. He took the recruits to Fort Lara- 
 mie, and, on his way, was in danger of being embroiled 
 with the Cheyenne Indians under Sitting Bull, but 
 returned in safety, by way of his old camp at Omaha, 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN KANSAS. 49 
 
 to his company at Fort Leavenworth. During another 
 trip, which he soon after took with his company, he 
 saw in western Kansas many Eussian immigrants. 
 They were poor, and had settled at great distances 
 along the streams to be near water, not always 
 easily found in these regions. They knew nothing 
 of the recent outbreak of the Indians, and, in- 
 deed, many of them had never seen an Indian. The 
 lieutenant also stumbled upon a colony of Swedes, 
 and at one place saw three women, whose husbands 
 had been killed by the Indians, and who were weeping 
 bitterly in their distress. While his company was on 
 the march he generally kept at the head of the column, 
 thereby receiving the title of Pedestrian of the Com- 
 mand. Much of the country over which they trav- 
 eled was monotonous in the extreme — wide stretches 
 of prairie reaching to the far horizon. Antelopes and 
 Jack-rabbits were frequently seen, and sometimes were 
 fired at without success. But, to his mind, the most 
 wonderful features about the country were the count- 
 less tracks and bones of the buffalo, while not a living 
 animal was seen. One of his guides informed him 
 that in former times he had killed three hundred in 
 a single day, so that it was no wonder that they were 
 now extinct. 
 
 In a letter to one of his sisters, in October, he 
 speaks of his return from this chase after Cheyenne 
 Indians, and then goes on to mention some amusing 
 incidents that had occurred at the post, and gives her 
 this bit of artistic advice : " I hope you will profit by 
 your talent for painting, not lury it in the ground, 
 
50 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 like the foolish steward. Painting is a great and yery 
 popular accomplishment ; there is none perhaps more 
 so." No matter what happened in or about the gar- 
 rison, he seemed always ready with his common-sense 
 opinions referring to passing events. For example, 
 after alluding to the burning of a stable, with thir- 
 teen mules, when some of them that had been released 
 ran into the fire from fright, he thus proceeds : " I 
 was talking ' over the wire ' with one of the men on 
 our telegraph line, and what he said is no doubt true, 
 and shows the short-sightedness of the Government. 
 He said that he and many of the other soldiers had 
 damaged or lost their clothes, and that if soldiers 
 were reimbursed for their losses on such occasions, 
 they would work with much more vim and energy, 
 and that he heard one man say that he would not lose 
 his new pantaloons for all the mules in the stable. Of 
 course, in the case of a private house on fire, I believe 
 the enlisted men would risk everything ; but in cases 
 of this kind, where Government property only is con- 
 cerned, this feeling has its existence. There is, too, 
 some reason for this feeling; for, no matter how hard 
 a soldier or officer may work at a fire to save public 
 property, the Government will not reward him even 
 by the restitution of his clothes. Nothing short of 
 an act of Congress would be authority for such an 
 issue." 
 
 That the heart of this young man was as pure as 
 his mind was bright, may be seen by reading the fol- 
 lowing remarks concerning the death of a little niece : 
 "I learn with deep regret the death of poor little 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN KANSAS. 51 
 
 Agnes, and sympathize heartily with Lidie and her 
 husband in their affliction, the depth of which none 
 but a parent can know. It should be a consolation, 
 however, that the disease carried the little one away 
 in all the innocence of childhood, before her mother's 
 love had been intensified with years, and her own in- 
 telligence had taught her to love and cling to life. The 
 sad news reached me on the day of the funeral of the 
 little daughter of a brother lieutenant. The little baby 
 seemed very amiable in life, and after death lost none 
 of her sweetness. I sat up with the remains during 
 the night before the funeral." Alas ! when this no- 
 ble-hearted young man gave up his own life, his only 
 night-watchers were the stars and the icy mountains 
 of the far-distant North ! 
 
 In December, 1878, the Twenty-third Regiment 
 received orders for service in the Indian Territory, 
 and a few weeks afterward entered upon its line of 
 march. In the mean time, the lieutenant made him- 
 self useful in performing the duties of an engineer 
 for the sanitary benefit of the Leavenworth garrison. 
 After some appropriate studying, he soon got the 
 knack of running the levels and measuring angles 
 with the theodolite. He found these new duties in- 
 teresting, preferring the field-work to the making of 
 the necessary profiles and other drawings, involving 
 measurements to the ygVir °^ an i ncn — rather a con- 
 fining employment. 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN INDIAN TERRITORY AND 
 COLORADO. 
 
 Fkom the spring of 1879 until the winter of 1881, 
 Lieutenant Lockwood spent a part of his time in the 
 Indian Territory, but chiefly in the State of Colorado, 
 The first duty of his company was to establish a can- 
 tonment on the Canadian Riyer. On their way thith- 
 er, they made a halt at Fort Supply, where the coun- 
 try was sparsely settled, and where the rolling prairies 
 seemed desolate and interminable. Those of his regi- 
 ment who had been ordered to Supply, he found in 
 miserable quarters — log-huts covered inside with can- 
 vas — old, cold, and forlorn in appearance inside and 
 out, and yet the canvas walls thus used and useless 
 were furnished at a cost of hundreds of dollars. After 
 leaving that place for the Canadian River, he was 
 made the engineer officer, and, with a view of mak- 
 ing a map of the route and surrounding country, de- 
 voted his time to the science of topography, being 
 rewarded by the hearty approbation of the officer in 
 command. 
 
 He had counted upon having some good hunting 
 on this route for turkeys and other game, but was 
 disappointed, owing to the fact, as was supposed, that 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN COLORADO. 53 
 
 several hundred Indians had passed through the coun- 
 try some weeks before and had gobbled up everything, 
 including a host of gobblers* On reachiDg their des- 
 tination, the company went into camp under a bluff 
 on the Canadian Eiver, where they were to remain 
 until buildings could be erected in the immediate 
 vicinity. At the conclusion of his first letter written 
 home from this camp, he says, "I am lying at full 
 length on a buff alo-robe with my paper on ( Daniel 
 Deronda,' and the position is not comfortable." 
 
 In June, Lieutenant Lockwood was sent with a 
 small party to Post Eeno, where troubles were appre- 
 hended with the Indians. It was not necessary to do 
 any fighting there, however, for the reason that the 
 chief inhabitants of the region were rattlesnakes, ta- 
 rantulas, and prairie-dogs, and the Indians in the vi- 
 cinity did not seem to be in a blood-thirsty mood. 
 Eeturning to the cantonment on the Canadian Eiver, 
 he was depressed by the discomforts of the place — no 
 society and many extra duties — but he, nevertheless, 
 found time and inclination to study the Spanish lan- 
 guage, as if determined not to leave a stone unturned 
 in his efforts to make himself useful, or ready for any 
 emergency. After confessing his fondness for social 
 intercourse, he writes: "At times I get the ennui 
 and blues very much. Still I try to preserve a philo- 
 sophic mind, and when the dark side of the picture 
 presents itself, I take a different stand-point, and thus 
 force myself to see, by contrast, the bright side. I 
 find, and ever have found, that the more occupied I 
 am, the better contented I feel." 
 
54 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 In April, 1880, he went upon a kind of exploring 
 expedition, riding in ten days a distance of nearly 
 three hundred miles, and on returning was glad 
 enough to have a little rest in his camp. But, before 
 he could fall into any idle habits, he was ordered west- 
 ward, with his command, on still more arduous duties. 
 In a letter from a camp near Saguache, on the borders 
 of Colorado, he sent home the following account of 
 what he had seen and experienced: "We left Fort 
 Garland on the 17th of May, and have since been 
 traveling across l San Luis Park,' the ' Valley of the 
 Gods.' This is a vast level plain in southern Colo- 
 rado, surrounded on all sides by high, snow-capped 
 mountains, which always seem within a few hours' 
 travel, and yet are miles and miles away. When one 
 considers that Blanco Peak is over fourteen thousand 
 feet above the sea-level, one does not wonder that it is 
 very plainly seen from where I am now writing. This 
 Paradise of the Gods is some two hundred miles long 
 by over sixty across, and is a veritable desert. I have 
 met nothing like it outside of Arizona. The vegeta- 
 tion consists of greasewood and sage-brush — some- 
 times not even this ; the irrigation-ditches that one 
 meets near the few streams seem hardly able to pro- 
 duce a feeble, stunted grass. For miles and miles, all 
 is pulverized dust, which, blown by the winds in blind- 
 ing clouds, covers everything like the ashes of a vol- 
 cano. Night before last one of these pleasant zephyrs 
 blew down several of the tents, and filled the air so 
 thickly with dust, that several of the command, who 
 had their hats blown off, were unable to find or re- 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN COLORADO. 55 
 
 coyer them. They say it sometimes rains here, but I 
 very much doubt it. The few ranches we have en- 
 countered are on streams descending from the mount- 
 ains, which sink in the plain after running a short 
 distance ; and bordering them are the squalid adobe 
 houses, the only habitations in the country. 
 
 "Improbable as it may seem, the owners say that 
 they raise potatoes, etc. Surely these mountains 
 should be of gold and silver to compensate for the 
 sterility of the soil." The prospect did not make 
 Lockwood hilarious, and he frankly said that he was 
 tired of army-life, and that eating almost nothing but 
 bacon, and going without any comforts caused him to 
 sigh for a return to the old Annapolis farm. He had 
 not the ambition to enjoy the glory of army-life in 
 such a wilderness. It might, indeed, give one a com- 
 petency, but it was a gold-mine in Arizona that had 
 recently given a fortune of fifty thousand dollars to 
 one of the officers of his regiment. After a short stay 
 at Garland and Alamosa, and catching a glimpse of the 
 Del Norte, the command reached the Cochetapa Pass, 
 near Los Pinos and the summit of the Eocky Mount- 
 ains ; and now the lieutenant began to experience a 
 kind of mountain-fever, which he called a weird con- 
 dition of the system. He was troubled with the short- 
 ness of breath usual at great altitudes. The six hun- 
 dred mules drawing the train of one hundred wagons 
 had great difficulty in passing through what he called 
 the terrible canons. Early in June, 1880, he reached 
 the Uncompahgre River, where the command en- 
 camped. Hardly had he obtained any relaxation 
 
56 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 before an order came from Fort Leavenworth, de- 
 tailing a general court and making him the judge 
 advocate, thereby proving that there was not much 
 rest for an officer of recognized ability. While anx- 
 ious to make money, he did not, while among the 
 mountains, follow the example of certain fellow-offi- 
 cers, who devoted some attention to mining specu- 
 lations, their mode of operating being as follows : 
 " For example, they secure the services of a competent 
 man, provide him with food, etc., and send him out 
 to prospect. Those in the Nineteenth have received 
 a very nattering letter from their man, who has 
 struck a very rich vein, according to Ids account. 
 But this and all similar ventures are mere chance. 
 Money, to the amount of twenty-five or fifty dollars, 
 seems little to invest in enterprises that may pay thou- 
 sands ; but these investments count up and are not 
 pleasant to consider when all ends in failure. One of 
 the officers has invested not less than thirty-three 
 hundred dollars in this mine-hunting business. He 
 goes it. alone, and has all the enthusiasm of an old 
 miner." Not caring to waste his money in specula- 
 tions of this sort, he improved his leisure in exploring 
 the scenery of the region, especially some canons 
 where the walls were several thousand feet high, and 
 also a stream called Cow Creek, where he had some 
 superb fishing and caught the largest trout he had 
 ever seen, while his companions killed a number of 
 deer. Among the scenes in which he was especially 
 interested was a hot spring which measured thirty 
 feet across, a waterfall two hundred feet high, and a 
 
ARMY-LIFE IN COLORADO. 57 
 
 small mining hamlet nestled in a pocket of the mount- 
 ains, and where, funny to relate, he and his compan- 
 ions were suspected to be tramps or horse-thieves. 
 Keturning to his regular cantonment on the TTncom- 
 pahgre, he was informed of a pending trouble with the 
 Ute Indians, when, according to his habit, he ex- 
 pressed this decided opinion : "If the sentimentalists 
 on Indian questions in the East could be brought out 
 here and made to feel and suffer the outrages which 
 these savages inflict on isolated settlers, there would 
 not be so many to support the Interior Department 
 in its abominable prejudice in all questions of Whites 
 vs. Indians." 
 
 In one of his letters, written from a cantonment 
 in Colorado, he mentions with pain the temporary fall 
 of one of his brother officers, who, while playing a 
 game of poker, was charged with dishonesty, thereby 
 pocketing a hundred dollars. The poor fellow had 
 been placed in arrest and was to have a trial. In 
 speaking of his manner of killing time in his Colorado 
 camp, he alludes to the fact of having two setter dogs, 
 which he was training for use and his own amuse- 
 ment, and further says that when not playing a game 
 of billiards at the store near the camp, he spent his 
 time in reading, the books then occupying his atten- 
 tion being, Tyler's "Baconian Philosophy," which he 
 greatly admired ; Swinton's " History of the Kebel- 
 lion," which he criticised with some severity ; and 
 Green's "Russian Campaign in Turkey," which in- 
 terested him greatly. 
 
VI. 
 
 PREPARING FOR THE ARCTIC REGIONS. 
 
 From this point, the story of Lieutenant Lock- 
 wood's life will be chiefly given from the records 
 which he kept during his sojourn in the Arctic re- 
 gions. For reasons which the general reader will 
 appreciate, all merely technical and official remarks 
 have been omitted, and only those retained which are 
 calculated to illustrate the personal character of the 
 man and officer, it being understood that his journals, 
 illustrating his merits and labors, will be fully set 
 forth in the official history, to be hereafter published, 
 of the expedition with which he was so honorably 
 identified. 
 
 In 1880 it was proposed by an International Polar 
 Commission, for the purpose of elucidating in behalf 
 of science the phenomena of the weather and of the 
 magnetic needle, that meteorological stations should 
 be established by various countries in different parts 
 of the polar regions. The Congress of the United 
 States made an appropriation for establishing a sci- 
 entific colony at the two places designated for the oc- 
 cupation of the Americans — viz., Point Barrow, in 
 Alaska, and Lady Franklin Bay, in Grinnell Land. 
 These stations were to be occupied for from one to 
 
PREPARING FOR THE ARCTIC REGIONS. 59 
 
 three years. At the time the expedition was being 
 organized in Washington for the latter place, Lieuten- 
 ant Lockwood was on a visit to his parents in that 
 city. Taking a special interest in the operations of 
 the Signal- Service Bureau, which had the business in 
 charge, he forthwith volunteered for the proposed ex- 
 pedition, and his services were accepted by the Sec- 
 retary of War. When the party for the Lady Frank- 
 lin Bay station was fully organized, it consisted of 
 First-Lieutenant Adolphus W. Greely, U. S. A., com- 
 mander ; Lieutenants F. F. Kislingbury and James 
 B. Lockwood, U. S. A., as assistants ; and Dr. 0. 
 Pavy, as surgeon and naturalist ; with a force of 
 twenty-two sergeants, corporals, and privates, all con- 
 nected with the army, and whose names are given as 
 follows : Edward Israel, Winfield S. Jewell, George 
 W. Eice, David 0. Ealston, Hampden S. Gardiner, 
 sergeants in the Signal Corps ; William H. Cross, ser- 
 geant in the general service ; David L. Brainard and 
 David Linn, sergeants of cavalry; Nicholas Saler, 
 corporal of infantry ; Joseph Ellison, corporal of in- 
 fantry ; Charles B. Henry, Maurice Connell, Jacob 
 Bender, Francis Long, William Whistler, Henry Bie- 
 derbick, Julius R. Fredericks, William A. Ellis, and 
 Roderick R. Schneider, privates in various branches of 
 the army; and, finally, two Esquimaux, Jans Ed- 
 wards and Frederick Christiansen, of Greenland. 
 
 In view of the possibility that Lady Franklin Bay 
 might become a permanent station, all the prelimi- 
 nary arrangements were made as complete as possible. 
 A steamer called the Proteus was secured for convey- 
 
60 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 ing the expedition to Lady Franklin Bay, and she 
 was ordered to await the arrival of the explorers at 
 the port of St. John's, in Newfoundland. Lieutenant 
 Lockwood sailed in a steamer from Baltimore with 
 the party and reached St. John's late in June. 
 
 Here it may not be out of place to submit a few 
 remarks on the utility of these Arctic explorations, 
 which are sometimes criticised by people who, with- 
 out due consideration, jump to hasty conclusions. In 
 former times their main object was to find open pas- 
 sages between the northern regions of Europe, Asia, 
 and America, and to settle the problem of the north 
 pole ; and statistics show that when these expeditions 
 have confined their operations within reasonable lim- 
 its, the mortality attending them has been remarkably 
 small — less than in ordinary commercial voyages. Sir 
 John Franklin went far beyond these limits, and left 
 no monuments by which he could be traced. De 
 Long put his ship into the polar ice with the design 
 of moving with the polar drift. The Greely Expedi- 
 tion was expected to be confined, and was confined, to 
 the well-known waters of Smith's Sound. It could, 
 therefore, be reached at any time, and, if necessary, 
 it could fall back upon a point accessible at all times. 
 All that was required to secure its safe return was a 
 luell-chosen base, and an absolute certainty that this 
 base would be maintained. Unfortunately, neither 
 requirement was fulfilled, and hence nineteen men lost 
 their lives. Sledge- journeys from established bases, 
 though fraught with great labor and discomfort, have 
 never been attended with serious loss of life. It is 
 
PREPARING FOR THE ARCTIC REGIONS. 61 
 
 now about one thousand years since the first Arctic 
 voyage was made, and their aggregate usefulness can 
 hardly be questioned when we remember that they 
 have developed fisheries that have built up the com- 
 merce and navies of nations, and that the direct re- 
 turn into the exchange of England has been far more 
 than the cost to her of all her Arctic explorations. 
 The Polar Commission, already alluded to, inaugur- 
 ated a new policy in regard to Arctic explorations, 
 and one whose utility can not be questioned. It had 
 its origin, in 1875, in the mind of a German discov- 
 erer named Carl Weyprecht ; and in the opinion of 
 many of the leading minds of the world, the meteoro- 
 logical observations inaugurated by him have done 
 much, and will do much more, to rectify errors in 
 the polar problem and bring to light information 
 about the ice zones, which will give the observers a 
 prominent position in scientific history. According 
 to Professor Joseph Henry, the problems connected 
 with physical geography and science, which are yet 
 unsolved, are the determination of the figure and of 
 the magnetism of the earth, complete knowledge of 
 the tides of the ocean, the winds of the globe, and 
 the influence of extreme cold on animal and vege- 
 table life. Surely the men who voluntarily toil and 
 suffer in their efforts to obtain the needed light on 
 all these subjects, are quite as worthily employed as 
 those who struggle for riches or political fame. In 
 the Professor's opinion, all the branches of science 
 above mentioned are indirectly connected with the 
 well-being of man, and tend not only to enlarge his 
 
62 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 sphere of mental activity, but to promote the applica- 
 tion of science to the arts of life. A French writer, 
 after applauding the plans of the Polar Commission, 
 concludes his remarks as follows : "The larger num- 
 ber of the civilized nations are striving by scientific 
 means to wrest the mysterious secrets of the deep 
 from the hidden recesses of the North." In 1884 the 
 number of nations that had entered heartily into the 
 project was thirteen ; fifteen polar stations, and over 
 forty auxiliary stations, had already been established. 
 That the reader may fully understand the operations 
 and exploits which are to be chronicled in the subse- 
 quent pages of this volume, it may be well to submit 
 the subjoined extract from the official report of Gen- 
 eral W. B. Hazen, Chief of the United States Signal 
 Service, for the year 1881 : " Owing to the very mobile 
 nature of the atmosphere, the changes taking place on 
 one portion of the globe, especially in the Arctic zone, 
 quickly affect regions very distant therefrom. The 
 study of the weather in Europe and America can not 
 be successfully prosecuted without a daily map of the 
 whole northern hemisphere, and the great blank space 
 of the Arctic region upon our simultaneous interna- 
 tional chart has long been a subject of regret to me- 
 teorologists. The general object is to accomplish, by 
 observations made in concert at numerous stations, 
 such additions to our knowledge as can not be acquired 
 by isolated or desultory traveling parties. No special 
 attempt will be made at geographical exploration, and 
 neither expedition is in any sense expected to reach the 
 north pole. The single object is to elucidate the phe- 
 
PREPARING FOR THE ARCTIC REGIONS. 63 
 
 nomena of the weather and of the magnetic needle as 
 they occur in America and Europe, by means of ob- 
 servations taken in the region where the most remark- 
 able disturbances seem to haye their origin." 
 
 While the foregoing were to be considered as the 
 primary considerations, it was expressly stated in the 
 official instructions, that sledging parties, generally, 
 should work in the interests of exploration and dis- 
 covery, and should be conducted with all possible 
 care and fidelity. Careful attention was also to be 
 given to the collection of specimens of the animal, 
 mineral, and vegetable kingdoms. It will be seen that 
 all that was accomplished by Lieutenant Lockwood 
 was instigated by the mandate connected with the 
 use of the sledge. 
 
 It thus appears that the Greely expedition was not 
 only intended to accomplish a good work, but that 
 in all human probability the same might have been 
 accomplished without serious loss of life. That there 
 was a deplorable loss of life, we can only lament, leav- 
 ing for others to point out the causes of the disaster 
 which befell the expedition. 
 
VII. 
 
 FROM NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FKANK- 
 
 LIN BAY. 
 
 All things being ready, the Greely Expedition left 
 St. John's, Newfoundland, for Lady Franklin Bay, on 
 Thursday, July 7, 1881, in the steamer Proteus, Cap- 
 tain Pike. She was a barkentine, measuring two 
 hundred and fifty feet in length, and having a bur- 
 den of six hundred tons. Built in Scotland for the 
 whaling and sealing service, she had already made 
 several successful voyages within the Arctic Circle and 
 on the Labrador coast. The departure of the ship 
 elicited no demonstration from the people on the dock, 
 excepting a few cheers from some warm-hearted fisher- 
 men. Whether the good people of Newfoundland were 
 disgusted because they could not sell any more sup- 
 plies at extravagant prices, or were displeased with 
 the Yankee explorers for presuming to compete with 
 Englishmen in the icy North, are questions not to be 
 easily solved. 
 
 During his stay in St. John's, Lieutenant Lock- 
 wood wrote a letter to his mother, in which he gave 
 the following account of the city : 
 
 " St. John's is a queer and forlorn old place ; every- 
 thing is antiquated, slow, and behind the times in 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 65 
 
 every respect. The few hotels are more like third- 
 class boarding-houses ; a livery-stable is not to be 
 found in this city of thirty thousand. This condition 
 of affairs is said to be due to the religion of the place, 
 which is Eoman Catholic. It is charged that ignor- 
 ance and poverty are what this church most thrives 
 on, and it is certainly a thriving church here. The 
 other day the shops were all closed, and the place as- 
 sumed the appearance of Sunday — it was a holy day 
 for their patron saints, Peter and Paul. Only two 
 classes here — the poor and the rich — and everything 
 accords with the former class. Crooked streets and 
 mean, forlorn, dirty houses everywhere. The only 
 respectable public buildings are the Catholic churches 
 and the convents." 
 
 With the wind favorable, the sea calm, the sky 
 clear, and all in good spirits, away went the vessel 
 on her voyage to the North. A steam-launch, called 
 the Lady Greely, rested securely on the main deck. 
 It was arranged that the sergeants of the expedi- 
 tion should sleep in the cabin, eating at the second 
 table, and the rest of the men live forward ; and, 
 though somewhat crowded, it was hoped they would 
 all be comfortable. During the first twenty-four 
 hours, two hundred miles were made. Lieutenant 
 Greely and most of the men were sea-sick. At sun- 
 set on the second day out, the first iceberg was seen, 
 and attracted the special attention of the land-lub- 
 bers. On the 9th, gales from the northwest set in, 
 and the sick men became worse — the thermometer 
 marking forty degrees, the air being damp and un- 
 
66 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 comfortable. The wind moderated in the evening, 
 but left the sea very rough, so that the steam-launch 
 had to be secured in her cradle by braces. Although 
 then in the track of the St. Lawrence trade, not a 
 single vessel was seen, suggesting the idea that busi- 
 ness was not nourishing. As to Lieutenant Lock- 
 wood, he was in good spirits, and amused himself by 
 reading Kennan's interesting book on Siberian life. 
 On the following day the sea went down, and the 
 sick men came up from their berths and were able to 
 resume their places at the table, Lockwood and Kis- 
 lingbury being the only ones who had escaped sea-sick- 
 ness. When the former had finished Kennan's book, 
 he took up Barrow's " Yoyage within the Arctic Cir- 
 cle," reading it in the presence of several icebergs, 
 which appeared as if they intended to welcome the 
 band of Yankee adventurers to their inhospitable do- 
 main. 
 
 On the morning of the 11th, notwithstanding the 
 promise of fine summer weather, the sky became over- 
 cast, and at noon the captain, assisted by the vol- 
 unteers, including Lockwood, Israel, and Gardiner, 
 could hardly succeed in getting observations, and 
 though they reckoned the latitude at 58°, it was not 
 reliable. Rain, attended with high winds or gales, suc- 
 ceeded, the sufferers from sea-sickness finding refuge 
 in their berths. Ellis, one of the sergeants, suffered 
 more than the others, having refused all food since 
 leaving port. They could give him no aid save a lit- 
 tle wine and beef -tea. The cold, cheerless weather 
 depressed the spirits of all, but they hoped to get used 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 67 
 
 to it. The days were sensibly growing longer, be- 
 ginning at 1.45 A. m. and closing at 10 P. M. They 
 now remarked the absence of icebergs and ice-floes, 
 and wondered whether this meant that the previous 
 winter in the north had been so mild that but little 
 ice had formed, or that the spring had been so back- 
 ward that but little had become detached and drifted 
 southward. They had learned at St. John's that the 
 late winter had been the mildest ever known there. 
 At the close of the 11th, no land was in sight, and 
 they had made seven hundred miles. The steward in- 
 formed Lockwood that the men were growling about 
 their food, which was the same as that received in the 
 cabin. He thought this a bad sign for Arctic explor- 
 ers, but tried to make matters more satisfactory. 
 
 The next day was disagreeable, a cold rain falling ; 
 and though a strong head-wind was blowing, the 
 sea was smooth, betokening land or ice, it was sup- 
 posed. Accordingly, at 9 p. m., they were aroused 
 by the cry of "ice ahead," and, sure enough, there 
 was seen, extending over 90° of the horizon, the white 
 line indicating an ice-floe. Coming up to the ice, 
 they found it to consist of detached pieces flowing 
 southward. Some of these assumed the most fantastic 
 shapes — dogs, seals, and other animals, and even houses 
 and castles, readily presenting themselves to the imagi- 
 nation. One piece looked like an old ruin. The pil- 
 lars, dome, and vaulted roof, all were there ; indeed, 
 the effect was perfect. Again, other pieces presented 
 varieties of color most beautiful and remarkable. 
 Generally, the lower parts being dark blue, were sur- 
 
68 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 mounted by a stratum of pure white, resembling snow, 
 but really the purest ice. They were two hours in 
 getting through this floe. Although daylight was 
 continuous, they could not, because of fogs, distin- 
 guish the hours of sunrise or sunset. 
 
 On the following day the weather was still cloudy, 
 and another ice-floe detained them two hours. They 
 also saw many isolated pieces and large icebergs in the 
 distance. This ice, it was said, came from the east 
 coast of Greenland with a current which, flowing 
 around Cape Farewell, passes up the west coast half 
 way to Disco. It still proved interesting to the voy- 
 agers by reason of its fantastic shapes and diversified 
 colors — white, blue, and green. It rose a few feet 
 above the water-line, and the submerged portion of the 
 floe colored the water a most beautiful green. Seals 
 were then seen for the first time, basking in the sun 
 on the ice. Judging from the increased seas, they 
 expected no more ice-floes in front. The temperature 
 also indicated this, for it was sensibly warmer. Lock- 
 wood, who seemed never to be idle, now finished Bar- 
 row and took up Captain Nares's " British Expedi- 
 tion of 1875-76," reading, writing, and Bowditch 
 occupying much of his time. The crow's nest was 
 hoisted to the main-top on that day. This was a large 
 barrel or hogshead with peep-holes on the side and a 
 trap beneath. This afforded shelter for a man posted 
 there who looked out for the ice and the best way of 
 getting through it. 
 
 On the 16th, fogs detained them and interfered with 
 noon observations, but, lifting at three o'clock, they 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAT. 69 
 
 sighted the Greenland coast on the starboard bow, dis- 
 tant fifteen miles. The coast-line appeared exceed- 
 ingly rugged and broken, and the interior, mountain- 
 ous with deep ravines running very abruptly down to 
 the sea. The mountain-tops were covered with snow, 
 but generally the sides were bare of snow except the 
 ravines, which seemed to be filled up entirely. This 
 range of mountains reminded Lockwood of the Un- 
 compahgre chain in Colorado as seen from Los Pinos 
 Valley. They saw the usual number of gulls and 
 a species of duck called the sea-pigeon, also several 
 whales blowing and spouting in the distance, sur- 
 rounded by flocks of small birds which seemed to feed 
 on their offal. Kislingbury and the steward tried 
 rifles on these whales, but without success. One whale 
 being near by, with apparent design to cross the track 
 of the vessel, was met by the rifle-ball, but with no 
 other effect than to cause him to throw up his tail and 
 dive below the surface. The thermometer rose to 50° 
 on that day, rendering the deck, where all were assem- 
 bled to view the prospect, quite comfortable. They 
 then first witnessed the sunset since leaving St. John's, 
 because of the fogs and clouds that had constantly 
 attended the voyage. The sun's disk seemed greatly 
 flattened just as it disappeared at 10.20, and presented 
 much the appearance of a huge mushroom seen edge- 
 wise. Enough of twilight remained at midnight to 
 render the horizon visible. 
 
 On the 16th, they steamed cautiously through the 
 fog, making but fourteen knots between noon and 6 
 p. m. Then the high, bold bluffs forming the southern 
 
70 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 coast of Disco Island loomed up in the distance di- 
 rectly ahead. These bluffs are almost vertical and 
 probably five hundred feet high, and are desolate and 
 barren in the extreme. Their continuity is interrupted 
 only by deep ravines, or canons, which break through 
 at various angles to the sea. They there found them- 
 selves in the midst of a hundred icebergs of every 
 conceivable form and size, and in color of the purest 
 white, resembling in the distance huge mountains 
 of chalk. One of the sights that attracted special 
 notice consisted of two bergs connected by an immense 
 arch high enough overhead for the ship to sail be- 
 neath, reminding Lockwood of the Natural Bridge of 
 Virginia. On near approach it looked like marble 
 and was quite as smooth. Some time afterward, and 
 when two miles away, a signal-gun was fired for a pilot. 
 This was followed by a rumbling noise, which caused 
 the voyagers to look back, when they were surprised 
 to see this immense arch tumble over and fall into the 
 sea, throwing the spray a hundred feet into the air 
 and producing a commotion of the sea sensible two 
 miles away, and soon after followed by a noise like 
 distant thunder. Most truly sublime were both spec- 
 tacle and catastrophe ! Icebergs are regarded as very 
 dangerous both by the Esquimaux and by experienced 
 Arctic travelers, and are given a wide berth. 
 
 Moving on at a low speed, the steamer was finally 
 boarded by a white man attended by an Esquimaux, the 
 former introducing himself as Mr. Gleichen, the Gov- 
 ernor of Godhaven, Lively, or Disco, as the capital is 
 variously called. The vessel was soon twisted through 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. ft 
 
 the narrow opening behind which the town lies, and 
 the voyagers found themselves in the snuggest and 
 smallest harbor, for its depth of water, that any of the 
 party had ever seen. On one side were the high cliffs, 
 barren and rugged, and on the other the few habita- 
 tions which constituted the place, the only dwellings 
 presenting an appearance of anything more than squal- 
 id huts being those of the governor and of the in- 
 spector, a Mr. Smith. Besides the dwellings, there 
 were several warehouses and a church, all of wood. 
 The huts of the natives were to some extent of wood, 
 but strengthened and made warm by thick walls of 
 sod reaching to the eaves. 
 
 Greely, Kislingbury, and Lockwood immediately 
 went ashore to visit the inspector, whose house stood 
 near the water and presented a neat appearance. 
 Within they found quite an air of comfort and refine- 
 ment. A piano, a small billiard-table, a well-filled 
 book-case, carpets, pictures, and many other evidences 
 of civilization and even elegance were there. They 
 found the wife of the inspector very pleasant and 
 speaking English fluently, while her daughter and a 
 governess, though speaking English with difficulty, 
 were well dressed and ladylike. After taking wine 
 with these hospitable ladies, the lieutenants left their 
 commander to continue the conversation and wandered 
 forth to view the town. Passing without mishap sev- 
 eral cross-looking Esquimaux dogs, they found them- 
 selves in what seemed a carpenter's shop, on the large, 
 bare floor of which a dance was in progress. After 
 playing spectators for some time they indulged in a 
 4 
 
72 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 waltz with the prettiest girls in the room, and were 
 surprised and pleased to find how well they got along 
 together. Their round dances were found to be like 
 many figures of the "German" as danced in the 
 United States. Kislingbury gave the natives an ex- 
 hibition of the Indian dance, and thus became a fa- 
 vorite with them. 
 
 The dress of the men consisted of a pair of seal- 
 skin pantaloons and a woolen or checked shirt. That 
 of the women was very peculiar — indeed, unique. One 
 of the girls, whose dress may be taken to illustrate all, 
 wore a pair of seal-skin pantalets bound at the hips by 
 a red scarf and terminating just above the knees, 
 where they met the white canvas tops of a pair of 
 boots, or rather leggings. These reached to the calf, 
 and there met the tops of red seal-skin bootlets, into 
 which they were inserted. These leggings were 
 starched and prettily fringed at the top, and their 
 color indicated the state as to matrimony of the 
 wearer, white being reserved for maidens, and colors 
 for those that were married. This distinction was 
 afterward found to be general. The pantalets were 
 plain, except some red leather pieces sewed on in front 
 by way of ornament. The upper garment consisted 
 of a pretty, fancy-colored cassock, or jacket, extending 
 barely to the hips, replaced in cold weather by the 
 same of seal-skin with a hood. The upper part of the 
 jacket was concealed by a necklace, or rather by sev- 
 eral necklaces, sewed together flat, which formed a 
 collar covering the bosom and shoulders. The head 
 was covered by a kind of chaplet formed of fancy- 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 73 
 
 colored cloth, and the hair was done up in a queue, 
 which extended upward and backward from the top 
 of the head, and was tied with colored ribbon. The 
 wrists and neck were encircled with boas of dark-col- 
 ored furs, which contrasted well with the bright-col- 
 ored skin. The arms were bare to the short sleeves 
 of the jacket, and on the fingers were a number of 
 rings. So much for the Disco belles ! 
 
 The dancing officers did not reach their ship until 
 after midnight, and soon after the sun rose, flood- 
 ing all nature with his glorious light, and seemingly 
 affecting natives and strangers alike, for both were 
 seen standing around to admire and enjoy the bene- 
 diction of nature. 
 
 Inspector Smith visited the steamer, dressed in a 
 military coat with brass buttons, and military cap with 
 wide gold-lace band, but wearing seal-skin trousers. 
 The strangers soon found themselves surrounded by a 
 fleet of Esquimaux boats, called hijacks, resembling in 
 form a cigar cut in half lengthwise and turned up at 
 both ends. The framework of wood was covered with 
 seal-skin with the hair removed. In the center was a 
 hole into which the occupant inserted the lower part of 
 his body to the hips, drawing up at the same time a cy- 
 lindrical piece of seal-skin which was attached to the 
 rim of the hole. "When the top of this is gathered up 
 and secured over his chest, the man and boat are practi- 
 cally one, and both are water-proof under all circum- 
 stances. The upper surface of the kyack is but an 
 inch or two above the water when smooth, and when 
 rough, of course it is frequently submerged entirely. 
 
74 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 In this craft the kyacker braves the billows of the 
 open sea, and, provided with lance and harpoon to 
 slay his game, and bladder and rope to mark its 
 flight when struck and buoy up its body when killed, 
 he attacks the seal, walrus, or even the narwhal. In 
 South Greenland, where there is more open water, 
 the kyackers become very expert, and, by means of 
 their short, two-bladed paddles, can easily right them- 
 selves when upset, or even perform a complete revolu- 
 tion without changing position or posture. 
 
 On Sunday, the 17th, Lieutenant Lockwood called 
 on the governor, and then went into many of the 
 houses of the place ; he found the natives polite and 
 hospitable, living in clean, well-built huts, whose in- 
 terior presented nothing peculiar except that about 
 one third of the floor was raised a few feet, constitut- 
 ing a platform, which was used as the sleeping-couch 
 of the whole family by night, and by day as a place 
 of deposit for articles in daily use. The walls were 
 adorned with rough prints or illustrations from Euro- 
 pean and American papers. In one house was seen a 
 translation of the Psalms into Esquimaux. Their words 
 are run together, as in the German language. Lock- 
 wood made some purchases, giving in return an old 
 pair of pantaloons, old clothes being a circulating me- 
 dium, and preferred to money. He was surprised to 
 find that these people had a paper currency, the units 
 being the ocre and the crown, one hundred ocres 
 making one crown, while the crown is worth about an 
 English shilling. In dealing with one another, the 
 ocre seems to go a good way, but not so when a 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 75 
 
 stranger is dealt with ; and to do much, shopping with 
 this currency, one must carry a load of paper equal to 
 what was required of Confederate currency in war- 
 times to buy a barrel of flour. The coins were of 
 copper, valued each at five ocres. 
 
 On the following day, Lieutenants Greely, Kis- 
 lingbury, and Lockwood, all dined at four o'clock 
 with the inspector's family, by invitation of his wife, 
 in the absence of her husband on official duty ; the 
 courses being soup, fish, eider-duck, and canned green 
 peas, with a dessert of jelly ; wines and brandy being 
 served with the courses. The cooking and serving 
 were excellent, the waitress an Esquimaux damsel in 
 pantalets. Afterward, with others, they called on the 
 governor, and with him went down to witness a dance. 
 Lockwood learned that the population of the two 
 divisions of North and South Greenland together was 
 about nine thousand souls. 
 
 On the 19th, at the request of Lieutenant Greely, 
 Lockwood made an exploration of the mountain-cliffs 
 south of the town. After a long tramp over the 
 soggy moss, and up steep cliffs, much annoyed by in- 
 numerable mosquitoes, he returned to dinner, with 
 very little information worthy of mention. After 
 superintending some stowage, he again called to see 
 Mrs. Smith, the inspector's wife, and enjoyed her ex- 
 cellent piano-music, to say nothing of the wine and 
 cigars she offered. Then he went to the dance, 
 but not until after the men had left. These 
 Greenland dances, as already intimated, resemble 
 the Virginia reel, differing only in the alternate 
 
76 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 chasing of the partners through the two rows till 
 caught. 
 
 Haying completed their stowage and coaling, and 
 haying taken on board fourteen dogs with their food, 
 they would have left Disco but for the fogs. Dr. 
 Pavy, who had been left there by Howgate, joined the 
 party on the 20th, as surgeon, as Mr. Clay was ex- 
 pected to do at Eitenbank. They had some music 
 on the chapel organ in the evening, which was well 
 rendered. 
 
 The penning of the dogs was a scene of excitement 
 and amusement. Their snarling and biting and fight- 
 ing had no end until one of the number present was 
 acknowledged, for his prowess and valor, the victor by 
 all the others. Then the battle ceased, but only un- 
 til there was a new arrival, when the battle was re- 
 newed and the parvenu put hors de combat, or declared 
 king. In due time the steamer left Disco, and arrived 
 at Ritenbank between 10 and 12 A. m. The harbor 
 was found to be quite roomy and the entrance wide 
 and deep ; icebergs float into it, and thus render 
 Ritenbank less desirable as a harbor than Disco. 
 While there, with Mr. Clay (who now joined the ex- 
 pedition) and some of the men, Lockwood visited the 
 neighboring bird mountains or looneries, rowing up a 
 fiord some three miles distant. The approach to these 
 was manifested by the commotion among the innumer- 
 able eider-ducks and other wild fowl flying overhead, 
 swimming in the water around, or occupying the nar- 
 row ledges of the vertical cliffs on either side, some 
 of which were five hundred feet high and covered with 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 77 
 
 birds. The shot used being too small, would kill only 
 at short range, and it was difficult to obtain the game ; 
 consequently they got only seventy fowls of various 
 kinds. On their return they visited an Innuit 
 burying - ground, which, from its antiquity, must 
 contain many of the natives, whose blood is much 
 purer than that of the present stock ; for it is said the 
 present Esquimaux blood is now very much mixed. 
 The graves were oblong piles of lichen-covered stones, 
 containing the moldering skeletons, which were gener- 
 ally in a sitting posture. But little regard is paid to 
 the dead in Greenland. Influenza, and consumption 
 induced thereby, are rapidly carrying off the natives, 
 and this is increased by uncleanly habits, improper 
 food, and bad ventilation, the latter aggravated by the 
 introduction of small stoves into their close houses. 
 The present longevity, it is said, averages thirty-three 
 years. 
 
 The prevailing fogs greatly decreased the pleasure 
 the explorers would have had in viewing the grand scen- 
 ery in the passage to Upernavik, which they reached 
 on the 23 d of July, or in about fifteen days from 
 Newfoundland. They had in sight numbers of ice- 
 bergs, some of immense size. The whole western coast 
 of Greenland is skirted with islands, separated from 
 each other and the mainland by deep fiords. If it 
 were not for the fogs, a pleasant summer excursion 
 could be made through these fiords to the everlasting 
 barrier of glaciers, which render the interior a veritable 
 land of desolation. 
 
 Very soon after the expedition had arrived at 
 
78 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Upernavik, it was found necessary for some one to go 
 to a place called Proven, to obtain Esquimaux guides 
 and a supply of Arctic clothing, and to Lieutenant 
 Lockwood was assigned this duty. He and his help- 
 ers boarded the steam-launch, and, with Governor 
 Elburg as guide, proceeded on their way through an 
 inner passage leading to the place of destination. 
 Their course lay along rocky and precipitous cliffs, 
 many of them covered with auks and other wild fowl. 
 The cliffs attained an elevation of two and three thou- 
 sand feet, and were so smooth and regular as to have 
 the appearance of having been made by man. With- 
 out any shore whatever, large ships could lie alongside 
 in safety. On their arrival at Proven, they saw the 
 whole population in their picturesque costumes lining 
 the shore, to view what they had never seen before — a 
 craft moving without oars or sails. 
 
 Near the shore wore located four large warehouses 
 where seal-oil was deposited before shipment, and 
 where also were kept by the Danish Government sup- 
 plies of provisions for issue to the natives in case of 
 emergency. The huts of the, natives were found still 
 more primitive than those at Disco, for here the en- 
 trance was through a long, low gallery, requiring one to 
 grope in darkness almost on hands and knees. Lock- 
 wood softened the heart of the occupant of one by 
 presents of tobacco, and induced him to play on his 
 fiddle simple airs which he had picked up from whal- 
 ing-crews. This brought in all the damsels of the 
 town, and soon waltzes and other dances prevailed. 
 The lieutenant did not consider it beneath his dignity 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAT. 79 
 
 to " show a heel." He unfortunately answered affirm- 
 atively to the question, "Are you big captain ?" and 
 was also imprudent in giving an old lady a half-dozen 
 ocres. He was at once pounced upon by every one as 
 lawful prey, and, what through begging, extortion, 
 and other means, the " big captain " was soon rid of 
 all his change, and might have been reduced to a 
 state of nudity but for the timely arrival of the gov- 
 ernor, who took him home to dine and to lodge. The 
 soup, though sweet to the taste, was good ; floating in 
 it were lemon-peel and raisins. Next came reindeer- 
 steaks cooked in wine and most delicious. Potatoes 
 were the only vegetable. Cooking and serving excel- 
 lent. Brandy, beer, and wine in profusion. The meal 
 terminated by a general hand-shaking, according to 
 custom, and the governor kissed his wife. The lodg- 
 ing was equally agreeable, affording the luxury of a 
 clean feather bed. In the morning, and while yet in 
 bed, a young Esquimaux damsel in pantalets brought 
 the American a cup of strong coffee with a few crack- 
 ers. That day he took on board the launch two 
 Esquimaux, Frederick Christiansen and Jans Ed- 
 wards, lashing their kyacks behind, also the seal-skin, 
 dog-skin, and other clothing they had come for, and 
 at midnight left amid the hearty cheers of the natives 
 and the tears and lamentations of the friends of Jans 
 and Frederick who had come to see them off. 
 
 After an uneventful passage, and stopping only to 
 add one hundred and twenty-seven birds to their 
 larder, the launch reached the ship at 10 A. m. on the 
 25th. Lieutenant Kislingbury and a crew in the 
 
80 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 whale-boat afterward went to Sanderson's Hope Island 
 and secured several hundred more, so that there was 
 no scarcity of fresh food. In the mean time some 
 new dogs were secured, so that the total number now 
 on hand was thirty-two. 
 
 The ship left Upernavik on the 29th, and, keep- 
 ing the inner passage, made her way toward the north. 
 
 While crossing Melyille Bay on the 30th, there 
 was no ice in sight except bergs, and the sun shone 
 brightly. That state of things was a great surprise 
 to the explorers, as here it was that McClintock was 
 frozen in for a whole year, and Nares congratulated 
 himself in haying passed the bay without detention. 
 Indeed, Melyille Bay has always been regarded as the 
 bete noire of Arctic travel. An Arctic bear found on a 
 broken pack of floating ice was killed by Lieutenant 
 Kislingbury, and, when hoisted on board, was found 
 to weigh a thousand pounds and to measure seven 
 feet two inches in length. They were probably fifty 
 miles from land at the time. 
 
 On the last day of July, the Proteus party sighted 
 land, which they supposed to be Cape Dudley Diggs, 
 north of Melville's Bay. Much old floating ice was 
 seen, but so rotten as to offer no obstruction. Sev- 
 eral seals and many little auks were killed and secured. 
 
 About this time Lockwood and others observed 
 tokens of disrespect and insubordination on the part 
 of some of the men, which were traced to a certain 
 corporal as ringleader. Lockwood watched him with 
 care, and urged the propriety of sending him home 
 by the first opportunity, which was afterward done. 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 81 
 
 On one occasion, toward evening, the voyagers wit- 
 nessed the overturning of an iceberg three hundred 
 feet long and one hundred and fifty feet high. After 
 capsizing, it continued to revolve on several axes for 
 some time. Its change of base was preceded by the 
 fall of several detached pieces, thus shifting its center 
 of gravity. 
 
 The next day, August 1st, was clear and cool, and 
 without fog. Passed Dudley Diggs at noon and then 
 steered for Gary Islands, sighting them three hours 
 later. The officers looked hard for the crimson cliffs 
 near Dudley Diggs noticed by Sir John Ross, but ob- 
 served only some slight discoloration of the snow. 
 The glacier near this cape seemed to be two or 
 three miles long ; at the sea-shore, of inconsiderable 
 height, but in the background, attaining an imposing 
 elevation. The ship's compasses, as usual in this lati- 
 tude, were all crazy, occasioning some bewilderment 
 to the captain. The bear and seal meats were duly 
 served on shipboard, and pronounced palatable by 
 all, though to some the bear-meat was slightly fishy. 
 Two boats with all the officers and others landed on 
 the most easterly of the Oary Islands, and proceeded 
 at once to find and inspect the cache of provisions — 
 thirty-six hundred rations — left there by Sir George 
 Nares for his own safety. They were apparently in 
 good condition, notwithstanding many of the barrels 
 resting on their ends afforded opportunity for rain 
 and snow-water to enter. Some biscuits were found 
 moldy. Replaced the Nares record by a copy, and also 
 left a full record of the Proteus. There was found 
 
82 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 there an excellent whale-boat, turned bottom upward, 
 with oars and sails complete. This Lock wood urged 
 Lieutenant Greely to take along, but he preferred get- 
 ting the one at Eoulke Point. The former regarded 
 the supply of boats as too small, and circumstances 
 might arise which would cause them to regret not using 
 this one. They had only the steam-launch, a twenty- 
 four-feet whale-boat, and a small, fourteen-feet row- 
 boat — the whale-boat being the only one to be depend- 
 ed on in case of accident. The boat at Point Eoulke 
 was thought to be inferior. They picked up drift- 
 wood, an oar, and some burned pieces of a ship's stem 
 or stern. They also saw some red snow, and shot sev- 
 eral eider-ducks. The Cary Islands were found to be 
 barren masses of rocks without vegetation. 
 
 The steamer came to anchor at Littleton Island 
 at 9 A. m. on the 2d of August, just as the steering- 
 gear gave way. A party went to " Life-boat Cove" 
 and brought back a number of articles left by the 
 Polaris Expedition of 1873. They saw neither Esqui- 
 maux nor reindeer, but shot a walrus. Lieutenant 
 Greely made an effort to find the cairn left there by 
 Nares, and the letters left for ISTares by the Pandora. 
 He found the letters but not the cairn, though there 
 was a dismantled cairn afterward seen by others. Lock- 
 wood with a party of men put ashore several tons of 
 coal, which, as it had to be carried up some thirty feet 
 above the sea - level, he found no easy job. While 
 thus engaged, this party had an adventure with some 
 walruses, not unattended with danger. Having ex- 
 cited a drove of them by a simultaneous fire, the 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 83 
 
 animals came toward the boat, and at one time held 
 its inmates in peril. Lockwood alone was prepared to 
 meet the foremost, and by good luck slew one of them, 
 when all the rest disappeared. The walrus can be 
 killed only through the brain, and when wounded, 
 the animal is exceedingly ferocious. Numberless 
 boats haye been destroyed by them. Lamont thinks 
 the walrus superior to the bear for food. Those 
 they saw were evidently a female and her young, 
 and their safety was in haying killed the mother. 
 Littleton Island affords a good illustration of these 
 shores. The sides rise precipitously, sometimes in 
 steps composed of immense cubes of trap-rock, some- 
 times in steep slopes formed from the crumbling of 
 the same. The top of the island is seven hundred feet 
 high, according to Nares, and generally quite level. 
 Of soil, there is none. The summit afforded a fine 
 view of the sound, though somewhat obstructed by 
 fog. ISTo floating ice ; and the western coast with its 
 snowy mountains quite distinct. 
 
 Having crossed the strait during the night of the 
 2d of August, in the early morning they ran along the 
 western coast, which was very distinct and pictur- 
 esque, the bluffs and headlands being reflected by the 
 smooth sea. Striking the western coast near Cape Sa- 
 bine, at 8 A. m. they reached Cape Hawkes, a headland 
 over a thousand feet high and very picturesque. While 
 Lieutenants Greely and Kislingbury visited the cairn 
 there, Dr, Pavy and Lieutenant Lockwood went to find 
 the record on Washington Irving Island, both left by 
 Nares. They then continued their way with slight in- 
 
84: FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 terruptions from fogs until abreast of Franklin Island, 
 when they were obliged to lay-to because of fog. 
 They had not been delayed a moment by ice, and 
 were surprised to see so little of it. Their success em- 
 boldened them to hope that they might reach Lady 
 Franklin Bay without obstruction. Indeed, they 
 even thought of inducing Captain Pike to run on 
 until he reached the north pole itself, or at least till 
 he attained a higher latitude than did Nares. One 
 of the dogs haying died, they became impressed with 
 the thought that the poor curs suffered much from 
 being cooped up and from the damp weather. The 
 party continued on their way up Kennedy Channel 
 with everything favorable, having the finest weather 
 yet seen; air soft and balmy, sky clear, and water 
 smooth. 
 
 On reaching the vicinity of Franklin Island and 
 Carl Eitter Bay, they left there a small deposit of 
 hard bread, pemmican, and rum, and continued on 
 their way rejoicing ; and so onward until nearly 10 
 p. m., when, just above Cape Lieber, they encountered 
 an impenetrable pack extending all the way across 
 the channel, and as far ahead as they could see. The 
 ship made a savage dash at it, but in vain, and thus, 
 but eight miles from Lady Franklin Bay, and with 
 Cape Baird in full view, they were brought to a stand- 
 still. The mountains along the coast were covered 
 with snow, but the valleys and low places were bare. 
 The prominent objects of the landscape were all dis- 
 tinctly seen from their position — Capes Lieber and 
 Baird on the left, Franklin, Hans, and Hanna Islands 
 
NEWFOUNDLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 85 
 
 in the rear and left, and, in the far distance, Polaris 
 Promontory and Petermann's Fiord, with the glacier 
 beyond. A party that went on shore saw traces of the 
 nxusk-ox, but no animals were seen. 
 
 Several of the officers and men attempted the as- 
 cent of the promontory of Cape Lieber, a precipitous 
 cliff three thousand feet high, which seemed but a 
 stone's throw away, but to reach which required a long, 
 cold row, and then a fatiguing and painful climb. 
 Lockwood and two only of the party succeeded. The 
 difficulty was in the giving way of the crumbling 
 slate-rock, which formed an incline of 45°. Those 
 that reached the summit were rewarded by a grand 
 view, extending to the limit of vision. On their re- 
 turn, after clambering over some rocks cropping out of 
 the slippery snow and ice, they chose a short cut and 
 came down at a run, or rather slide, followed by a 
 miniature avalanche of debris. On the 6th of August, 
 it was found that the icy barrier, which, evidently 
 came from the Polar Sea, was moving south, carrying 
 the steamer along. Some game was seen in both air 
 and water, but none taken. Parties attempted to 
 reach the shore on the ice, but were recalled by signal, 
 as moving ice was seen from the ship, and also open 
 water near the shore. 
 
 From this point they slowly drifted south, with 
 high winds from the north which opened up lanes of 
 water which they did not think safe to enter. The 
 total drift amounted to ten miles. "With the low- 
 ering of temperature, it was suggested that it would 
 be well to move across the channel, along the pack, 
 
86 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 and, if needful, land on the Greenland shore, possi- 
 bly where Hall had wintered. 
 
 On the 11 th of August, the ice barrier gave way 
 under a change of wind and weather, leaying the 
 passage open. Under full steam and sail, and with 
 beautiful weather, they soon regained all the distance 
 they had lost by drift, passed Cape Lieber, and came 
 abreast of Cape Baird. Thence forcing their way 
 through the broken ice of the bay, and reaching 
 Bellot Island, which marks the beginning of Discov- 
 ery Harbor, they cut their way to a secure spot for 
 the ship to rest in. And thus ended the voyage to 
 Lady Franklin Bay or Sound. As this harbor, or 
 a spot in its vicinity called Fort Conger, was the 
 one where the Signal-Service station was to be es- 
 tablished, the steamer Proteus here ended her voy- 
 age, soon to return to Newfoundland. Discovery 
 Harbor, which was to be their home, is an indenta- 
 tion of the bay covered by Bellot Island on the south. 
 This indentation extends east and west some ten 
 miles, and is probably two or three miles from north 
 to south. Inclosing the harbor on three sides is a 
 line of rugged bluffs and hills (or rather mountains, 
 for they are two thousand feet high), those on the 
 east side sloping back gradually, but elsewhere pre- 
 cipitous and rugged in the extreme. Thus, with Bel- 
 lot's Island fifteen hundred feet high on the south, 
 was formed a harbor, landlocked and most admirably 
 sheltered. 
 
VIII. 
 
 HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLOEA- 
 TIONS. 
 
 Immediately after the explorers had anchored 
 their ship in Discovery Harbor, they saw a drove of 
 musk-oxen leisurely ascending the neighboring hills, 
 which they climbed with the facility of goats. This 
 was indeed a cheerful prospect for men in so isolated a 
 region and without fresh meat, and many of them 
 started forthwith in pursuit of the game, working 
 their way to the shore on the ice, but were com- 
 pelled to return after a vain attempt to follow the 
 animals oyer the hills. 
 
 Hitherto there had been no opportunity to make 
 any special discoveries, but now a comparatively new 
 field, to which the explorers were to devote all their 
 energies, came into view. Discovery, however, was to 
 be always subordinated to the duties of meteorological 
 observations. As this narrative proceeds, it will be 
 seen that Lieutenant Lockwood was not only emi- 
 nently active at all times, but most successful as an 
 explorer. 
 
 It being desirable to establish the station as near 
 as possible to the coal-mine on Watercourse Bay, Lock- 
 wood was dispatched with Messrs. Clay and Eyan, to 
 
88 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 report as to the practicability of carrying out this, the 
 original intention. According to the map prepared by 
 Nares, this bay lies seven miles distant on the strait, 
 and is separated from Discovery Harbor by the mount- 
 ain-ridge on the east, which terminates southward in 
 Distant Cape. They attempted the passage across these 
 hills, following a ravine leading in the proper direc- 
 tion, and had gone only a short distance when they 
 saw seven musk-oxen quietly grazing. Making a d&- 
 tour, they thought to take them unawares, but soon 
 saw them move away to some distance up a steep in- 
 cline. Expending vainly a few shots at long range, 
 they followed the animals up the hill, over a steep ledge 
 of rocks, and into a valley on the other side. Here the 
 men halted, concealed from view, and arranged plans 
 for their capture. The animals were covered by pre- 
 cipitous rocks on one side. Clay, Eyan, and Lock- 
 wood approached them simultaneously on the other 
 three sides, and thus had them surrounded and at 
 their mercy. Some depressions and other irregulari- 
 ties of the ground enabled the hunters, by crouching 
 low down, to approach the game unawares. Clay 
 firing first, the whole herd rushed toward Lockwood's 
 side, closing up as it came, and, seeing him, made 
 a charge. Dropping on one knee, he threw his car- 
 tridges down and blazed away with great rapidity. 
 Many shots telling, the animals halted before him 
 only a few rods off, and at once attempted a flank 
 movement ; but now Clay and Eyan closing up, the 
 herd was check-mated. In five minutes from the 
 first shot every animal of the herd — five grown and 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 89 
 
 two calves — lay dead before the hunters. The hunt- 
 ers were sorry they had killed the calves, but in the 
 excitement it could hardly have been otherwise. They 
 then returned to the ship to report their success, and 
 to have the carcasses brought in. This addition to 
 their larder was the occasion of great joy, not only as 
 giving a present supply of fresh meat, but in its 
 promise for the future ; not only as a luxury, but as 
 the only certain means of warding off the scurvy, so 
 much and so justly dreaded by Arctic explorers. 
 
 After supper of that day, Lockwood, ever ready 
 for adventure, again started for Watercourse Bay, 
 accompanied by Clay, Kalston, and the mate of the 
 Proteus. Following the small stream, which came 
 into the harbor at this point, for three miles, by an 
 easy and regular ascent between lofty mountains on 
 either side with a slope of about forty-five degrees, 
 and over ground and patches of snow thrown up like 
 potato-hills, they reached its head, and there, fortu- 
 nately, found another stream running in the other 
 direction. Following this, they were brought to 
 "Watercourse Creek, which runs into Watercourse Bay. 
 Being uncertain whether the coal-mine, said to be 
 on this creek, was above or below this point, they 
 followed the creek up-stream three miles, when, not 
 finding it, they retraced their steps to the point 
 where they entered the creek, and, finding it im- 
 possible to follow the bed, climbed the bank. Here 
 they saw two more musk-oxen, which they slew by 
 strategy as before, and, opening the carcasses with 
 penknives, left them to be carried in. Coming near 
 
90 FARTHEST NOKTH. 
 
 the month of the creek, Lockwood saw indications of 
 coal, and soon after reached the exposed seam of one 
 hnndred yards' extent by twenty-five feet depth, dis- 
 tant about three fourths of a mile from the sea. This 
 coal is said to equal the best of Welsh production. 
 Near here, they saw another musk-ox, whose life 
 they spared for the time, as they had so much meat 
 in store. Lockwood found, and so reported, that, 
 though Watercourse Bay had the merit of a near coal- 
 mine, and was nearer the grounds of future explora- 
 tions, it was not possible to use it at once for the un- 
 loading ship without great risk and labor because of 
 moving ice. Discovery Harbor, though full of ice 
 from sixteen inches to ten feet thick, was perfectly 
 landlocked and unobstructed. Ealston preceded the 
 party home, killing one musk-ox en route. The Arc- 
 tic summer was now at its height, lichen, moss, saxi- 
 frage, and various other little red, yellow, and blue 
 flowers, bright red moss, and tufts of green grass at 
 intervals, breaking the monotony of the somber rocks 
 and earth. But the enjoyment of these beauties of 
 nature could not then be indulged in, as all hands had 
 to take part in unloading the ship, a labor which was 
 soon accomplished. 
 
 The next business in order with the explorers was 
 to build a house, and they selected a site facing the 
 water, fifty feet from, and fifteen feet above it. While 
 this work was progressing, the men lived in tents. 
 
 On the 19th of August, all hands were sent ashore, 
 and the Proteus started on her return, but, passing too 
 near Bellot Island for safety, was caught in the ice and 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 91 
 
 delayed. Lockwood made an effort to follow in her 
 wake with the steam-launch, but failed, because of the 
 rapid closing in of the great masses of broken ice and 
 the wedging of small ice-masses into the screw and 
 well. The launch battled manfully with her foe, the 
 ice. Frequently he ran her under a full head of steam 
 against a massive floe, which would be shivered for 
 a few inches, the recoil causing the launch to roll 
 and pitch like a little giant. In young ice she would 
 sometimes split a sheet for ten or fifteen yards at one 
 impact. 
 
 Finding nothing to do while the house-building 
 was progressing, Lieutenants Lockwood and Kisling- 
 bury occupied themselves with tramping after ptar- 
 migans and other game over the mountains whose 
 steep sides formed the eastern entrance of the har- 
 bor, and the northern boundary. Viewed from the 
 house, their sides seemed gradual and their summits 
 not over twenty minutes' walk. In fact, however, the 
 sides were successions of slopes separated by preci- 
 pices, growing greater with the ascent. What below 
 seemed the top was only one of many that must be 
 passed before the real summit or divide could be at- 
 tained. They reached the summit marked by the 
 English cairn, and from there viewed the scene below. 
 How small the ship appeared ! and yet it seemed as 
 though they could throw a stone upon her. They 
 reached home with wolfish appetites, but with no 
 game. The ptarmigans, which they chiefly sought, 
 are provided, at this season, with a coat so nearly 
 resembling the shade of the rocks and grounds as to 
 
92 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 be almost indistinguishable. By a happy provision of 
 nature, in winter the feathers of this bird become 
 white with only a little black about the tail. 
 
 The lieutenants then extended their excursions 
 over the mountains on the north side of the harbor, 
 availing themselves of a ravine, called the " Black 
 Canon, " which leads to a pretty waterfall. Climbing 
 out of this canon with difficulty over loose slate and 
 other debris, they found themselves on the high back- 
 grounds of the North Mountains. Thence moving 
 west over loose rock and snow, and through pools of 
 water, they finally came in sight of Musk-ox Bay, the 
 western extremity of Discovery Harbor. They then 
 retraced their steps, reaching home without having 
 seen a living object bigger than an humble-bee. 
 
 On the 23d, the house was occupied, though not 
 finished. Looking after their supplies, they found 
 that the foxes had made free with the carcasses of the 
 musk-oxen left near Watercourse Bay. Lockwood now 
 proceeded to superintend the laying out of the observ- 
 atory, digging for foundation pier of transit, etc. He 
 found the ground frozen after reaching thirty inches, 
 which may be taken as the depth where perpetual 
 frost begins. The ship being still detained, but with 
 a prospect of soon getting off, Lockwood wrote more 
 letters home in which he expressed an opinion about 
 the Proteus. Her chances of departing south were 
 doubtful. Detention there for the winter would be 
 embarrassing all around, as neither the ship nor her 
 crew were prepared to stay, nor the explorers able to 
 help them through the winter. 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 93 
 
 Just before her final departure, some difficulty 
 arose between Lieutenants Greely and Kislingbury, 
 which ended in the latter making a request to be re- 
 lieved from duty with the expedition, which request 
 was granted. One of the annoyances complained of 
 was the rule that officers should rise in the morning 
 with the men, and although Lockwood advised Kis- 
 lingbury not to make any further trouble, he decided 
 to pack up, board the Proteus, and return home. 
 In this, however, he was not successful, as the steamer 
 got away before he could reach her, and the order for 
 his relief was somewhat modified. After explaining 
 his action in this matter, Lieutenant Greely remarked 
 that, if anything should happen to him, he desired 
 that Lieutenant Lockwood should have command of 
 the expedition. Lockwood expressed himself as very 
 sorry for what his fellow-officer had done, and could 
 not understand his course of action. 
 
 As soon as the building was entirely finished, on 
 the 27th of August, the explorers found themselves 
 very comfortable. The dull, cheerless weather and 
 monotonous life were beginning to depress the spirits 
 of Lockwood, but he felt that, when settled down to 
 regular habits, he would not find the life in the north 
 more irksome than that he had experienced on the 
 Western plains of the United States. It may be men- 
 tioned that the final opening of the house, or govern- 
 ment station, was commemorated by the issuing of an 
 order from Lieutenant Greely, that the exploring expe- 
 dition along the northern coast of Greenland, which 
 had been marked out for Lieutenant Kislingbury as 
 
9£ FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 senior officer, was to be placed in command of Lieu- 
 tenant Lockwood. He now felt that the opportunity 
 for doing something creditable, for his own as well as 
 his country's reputation, was at hand, and his feelings 
 of depression gave way to those of enthusiasm. 
 
 On Sunday, the 28th of August, all work was sus- 
 pended, and some appropriate notice was taken of the 
 day. Lieutenant Greely read a chapter in the Bible, 
 having previously stated that any one would be ex- 
 cused from attending the service who had conscien- 
 tious scruples. The supply of drinking-water having 
 come up as an important question, demanded atten- 
 tion. The water was obtained from the ice-hum- 
 mocks in the harbor. Pieces of suitable size were 
 brought to the house on sledges and then melted in 
 a large metallic box near the stove, through which 
 and the stove ran a steam-pipe. Thus a liberal sup- 
 ply was kept up. 
 
 Wishing to establish a depot on the channel for 
 future explorations, Lockwood left with Sergeants 
 Brainard and Cross to explore St. Patrick's Bay, lying 
 northeast of the station and on the straits. The ground 
 being covered with snow, the Government boots were 
 soon soaked though, and the feet of the party became 
 wet and cold. Following a ravine, they soon reached 
 a lake near the summit of the hills in the rear, where 
 they saw a musk-ox grazing on the bank. The ani- 
 mal fled on seeing them, but stopped farther on. Ap- 
 proaching him under cover, Lockwood got a standing 
 shot and brought him down. Skinning him and di- 
 viding the carcass into quarters, they left the meat for 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 95 
 
 others to carry in and went on their tramp, which took 
 them midway between the " hog-back," an elevated 
 plateau on the north, and the rugged broken chain of 
 mountains which lie between Discovery Harbor and 
 Eobeson Channel. About noon they reached St. Pat- 
 rick's Bay, but at a point so different from that laid 
 down in their maps, that Lockwood felt some doubt as 
 to its identity, to settle which, they proceeded to ex- 
 plore a wide river-bed, followed by a deep canon, which 
 led into the bay near its head. With this view, and to 
 see the country to better advantage, they kept north 
 along the steep rocky sides of the "hog-back," over 
 rocks, great and small, compact and loose, and gener- 
 ally covered with snow. After two hours of laborious 
 travel, they found themselves high above the river- 
 bed and in a position giving them a good view north 
 and east. The main stream seemed to come from the 
 north, with a branch from the west, the whole through 
 lands of the most rugged description. Beyond the 
 river to the east, the hills were more sloping, yet rising 
 to an immense altitude between the river and the 
 channel beyond. It seemed not difficult to descend 
 into the bed of the river, walk up its frozen course, 
 and, taking advantage of some break in the cliffs a 
 few miles up, gain by a gradual ascent the high hills 
 beyond, thus obtaining a view of Eobeson Channel. 
 The descent, over rocks, stones, and snow, involving 
 great fatigue, took two hours. This brought them 
 to a level terrace extending from cliffs to cliffs, through 
 the center of which ran a deep cut or channel con- 
 taining the insignificant stream, the sole occupant of 
 5 
 
96 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 this immense cation. They gained the frozen stream 
 with difficulty, cut through the ice and got a drink, 
 and then regained the level terrace above, and began 
 their steep climb up the mountain beyond, through 
 a friendly rayine. One hour's work brought them 
 to an elevation which, at a distance, had seemed to 
 be the main summit, only to find that farther on 
 there were still higher points. Finally, at 6 p. m., 
 they reached an elevation where the slope seemed to 
 be eastward, and from which a magnificent view was 
 obtained of the channel from Cape Lieber to Repulse 
 Harbor, while directly east of them lay Newman's 
 Bay and Polaris Promontory. After erecting a cairn, 
 they started back, cold and hungry, satisfied that they 
 had seen the true St. Patrick's Bay. 
 
 Regaining the river- valley, they had a most fatigu- 
 ing climb to attain the pass through which they had 
 come, and where they had killed the musk-ox. Just 
 east of the lake, they encountered Dr. Pavy and Bice, 
 and soon after Ralston and Lynn, going to Lincoln 
 Bay via St. Patrick's Bay. Our party reached home 
 at midnight, with frost-bitten feet and empty stom- 
 achs, Lockwood finding his stockings full of ice and 
 one toe badly frost-bitten. 
 
 He was laid up for a week with frosted feet, and 
 had apprehension of losing some of his toes. Al- 
 though suffering greatly, he was made especially un- 
 happy by the thought of being disabled so early in 
 the campaign. Discussing the subject of scurvy with 
 Lieutenant Greely, they agreed in regarding the ex- 
 plorers much better provided against it, than was the 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 97 
 
 British expedition, in that their dietary list was more 
 complete. The English issued fresh beef but once a 
 week ; the Greely Expedition three times or oftener. 
 This expedition had also the great advantage of a 
 dry, warm, well-ventilated house. 
 
 Lockwood's report as to St. Patrick's Bay settling 
 that as the place for their first depot, Sergeant Brainard 
 with others proceeded to establish the same there by 
 means of the whale-boat, moving around Cape Dis- 
 tant. Lockwood was much annoyed that his disability 
 prevented his being one of those to carry out this 
 important feature toward their future explorations. 
 He took advantage of his non-active condition to fig- 
 ure out a design for an " ice-sledge," which he 
 thought would be an improvement on the Hudson 
 Bay sledge they had in use. Lieutenant Greely ap- 
 proving the plan, he proceeded at once to build one 
 by way of experiment. The duty assigned to Brain- 
 ard was duly accomplished, and Depot A was estab- 
 lished at St. Patrick's Bay. 
 
 Having received a gentle reminder from Lieuten- 
 ant Greely for oversleeping himself, Lockwood said 
 he could not complain, the offense not being his first 
 of the kind. The singular clearness of the atmosphere 
 had enabled him to make satisfactory sketches of Cape 
 Lieber and other prominent objects in the distance, 
 and also of the house. 
 
 Among the events which made the early days of 
 September somewhat lively were the following : Gardi- 
 ner reported a waif, in the shape of a boat twelve feet 
 long and an eight-men sledge, on the shore near Cape 
 
98 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Murchison. Lieutenant Greely with others, and Lieu- 
 tenant Kislingbury as a guest, went upon a two-days' 
 trip to the Bellows in search of game and to view the 
 land. They were successful in securing ten musk- 
 oxen, a dozen or more eider-ducks, and some other 
 game. Sergeant Lynn, returning from Cape Beechy, 
 reported a wagon and lamp on the shore, left by the 
 English. 
 
 Dr. Pavy returned from Lincoln Bay, but Eice, 
 taken on the return with severe inflammatory rheuma- 
 tism, was left four miles north of St. Patrick's Bay. 
 A party was at once sent for his relief, which brought 
 him in, in a bad way. Great difficulty was found in 
 lifting him up the steep cliffs between the station and 
 St. Patrick's Bay. 
 
 Lockwood, having recovered from his injuries, 
 went upon an expedition to the Bellows with Gar- 
 diner and the Esquimaux Erederick, using an eight- 
 dog sledge and carrying rations for four days, con- 
 sisting of roasted musk-ox, baked beans, butter and 
 sauce, hard bread, and chocolate. They visited Bleak 
 Cape, the entrance of the Bellows. The Bellows 
 they found to be a long, level valley, walled in by 
 lofty hills and cliffs, in some places two or three 
 thousand feet high. It bears the impress of having 
 been, at some far-distant period, the channel of a 
 glacier, its level surface being thickly strewn with 
 stones, while there are masses attached like shelves to 
 the sides of the cliffs and slopes. Eor twenty miles, 
 the valley preserves a width of nearly three miles ; be- 
 yond this, it narrows and changes direction toward the 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 99 
 
 west. A small creek runs through its entire length, 
 which generally they followed. The route was diffi- 
 cult, owing to the large number of stones imperfectly 
 covered with snow, and hence all riding ceased after 
 they entered the valley ; for the dogs could scarcely 
 pull the sledge and its load, and often required aid. 
 Here they met a piece of drift-wood, indicating that 
 the tide once flowed up the valley, for no tree or 
 wood had ever been seen away from tide-water. One 
 of the dogs becoming sick was turned adrift, trusting 
 to her following the party or returning home. Reach- 
 ing " Devil's Head," they went into camp by turning 
 up the sledge and hanging rubber blankets around to 
 shield them from the cold wind, and then ate a sup- 
 per of warmed-up beans and hot chocolate, and tum- 
 bled into the sleeping-bags, all of which they found 
 most enjoyable. 
 
 After a breakfast of chocolate, hard bread, and 
 some frozen cheese, they were delighted to see the sick 
 dog rejoin them. The sledge-runners were rapidly 
 wearing out, and they concluded to walk to the end 
 of the valley, leaving the Esquimaux with the sledge 
 and team while they pushed on as best they could. 
 
 Lockwood and Gardiner reached the head of the 
 valley at four, and, proceeding up the incline to the 
 west where it narrowed to a ravine, went on till they 
 came to a narrow gorge — its terminus. Having seen 
 all there was to see, and Gardiner complaining of a 
 game leg, they retraced their steps, reached the sledge 
 at 10 p. m., and at once, supperless, turned into their 
 sleeping-bags. Near the terminus of the valley they 
 
100 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 met two musk-oxen, but, haying only their knives 
 with them, did not venture on an assault, though the 
 animals stood still and quietly gazed at the intruders. 
 
 Beturning, they followed the creek, finding some 
 advantage from the ice which had formed during the 
 night. Lockwood saw and took back with him a few 
 pieces of wood-coal, or very soft coal, evidently of 
 recent formation, which had doubtless washed down, 
 but whence he knew not. Reaching Bleak Cape, they 
 decided to make a detour west to a canon near the 
 "Knife-edge," where the musk-oxen were killed by 
 Lieutenant Greely and party a few days before ; but no 
 musk-ox, dead or alive, was to be seen. Gardiner being 
 still lame, Lockwood abandoned some other objects he 
 had in view in making this trip, and, striking out di- 
 rectly across the bay and riding on the sledge, they 
 reached the station without incident. 
 
 Dr. Pavy made an unsuccessful attempt to reach 
 an estuary at the head of Lady Franklin Bay, from 
 which Lieutenant Greely thought a passage might 
 be forced westward to a supposed fiord or sea con- 
 nected with the waters leading through Behring 
 Strait into the Pacific Ocean. Unfortunately, find- 
 ing Lady Franklin Bay open beyond Stony Point, 
 the doctor returned without settling this interesting 
 question, which, as will he seen, Lieutenant Lock- 
 wood afterward solved. 
 
 Sixteen, or more, large Arctic wolves were seen in 
 one day on the ice, a few hundred yards from the 
 house. These were the first seen by them ; the Eng- 
 lish saw none here, nor do Kane, Hayes, or Hall 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 101 
 
 mention them. These wolves are large, strong, fierce- 
 looking beasts, perfectly white in color, and anything 
 but desirable customers to meet. 
 
 Lieutenant Greely, and Sergeants Brainard, Ben- 
 der, and Connell, left on an exploration above and 
 beyond "North Valley," a deep canon cutting 
 through the " hog's back " north of the station. They 
 left without sledges, carrying six days' rations, sleep- 
 ing-bags, etc. Following the "North Valley" up- 
 ward, and leaving it near its head, they soon found 
 themselves in a water-course running toward St. Pat- 
 rick's Bay. Turning westward, and going some dis- 
 tance, they came in sight of what they regarded as 
 the United States Range ; but, a heavy snow-storm 
 coming on, they cut short the trip after traveling 
 twenty-five miles, and returned. It was deemed un- 
 fortunate that the untoward weather prevented their 
 getting a good view from that range. The absence of 
 glaciers and large water-courses, the low altitude of 
 the range, and many other features in that region, all 
 seemed to indicate a large sea not far to the westward. 
 
 The building of Lockwood's sledge turned out a 
 failure, for the want of proper appliances. 
 
 On the 17th of September, the party celebrated 
 Whistler's birthday by a dinner of his own selection 
 — oyster soup, roast musk-ox, potatoes, corn, pear- 
 butter, cake, etc., and a glass of grog in the evening. 
 Two-story bunks were built for the men, giving more 
 room. The Signal-Service men — the observers — had 
 a little corner partitioned off, where they were to sleep 
 and work. Another corner was fitted as a wash-room, 
 
102 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 where warm water might be had, and where there 
 was a bath-tub, which all were expected to use every 
 week. Other arrangements had been provided pro- 
 ductive of comfort and health. Lock wood's time was 
 now chiefly occupied in drawing maps, making fin- 
 ished drawings from sketches, reading, and sledge- 
 work. 
 
 Dr. Pavy, with a party, went to take provisions to 
 the depots, but failed to get round Cape Murchison. 
 Not satisfying Lieutenant Greely, the latter himself 
 undertook the task, and, after considerable difficulty, 
 in which the sledge broke down, succeeded. On the 
 21st the sun presented a remarkable appearance, hav- 
 ing rainbows to the right and left, which nearly joined 
 above; also radiating vertical and horizontal beams of 
 light. 
 
 Lieutenant Kislingbury, after many futile efforts 
 with arsenic, succeeded in poisoning many wolves with 
 strychnine. Five of them bit the dust at one time, 
 and by this means the party was able to get rid of 
 these dangerous neighbors. This animal, as stated, 
 is perfectly white, and is not unlike the Esquimaux 
 dog, but larger and more formidable. 
 i On the 24th of September, Lockwood started on 
 a trip to Cape Beechy with Ellis, Fredericks, Kal- 
 ston, Biederbick, and one large sledge, to provision 
 Depot "A," distant twenty miles. They started with 
 two hundred and fifty pounds on the sledge, intending 
 to take on other food left near Cape Distant. Their 
 passage around this cape was accomplished only after 
 cutting away masses of ice. Beyond this, and with 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 103 
 
 their load increased to three hundred and fifty pounds, 
 they struck masses of rocks oyer which the sledge and 
 load had to be lifted. There they left the photograph 
 apparatus for Kice, and took lunch. Afterward they 
 passed Watercourse Bay, and the English wagon lying 
 on the shore, and halted for the night at 6 p. m. at Cape 
 Murchison, without any remonstrance on the part of 
 the tired-out men, notwithstanding some of them, 
 about noon, had proposed going on to Cape Beechy 
 without a stop. Indeed, Lockwood observed anxious 
 faces among them when he hesitated about stopping. 
 Eloe-bergs of every form and shape — square, oblong, 
 round, and pyramidal — from ten to forty feet high, 
 were scattered along the shore. Without the barrier 
 afforded by these, the floating floe, moving with the 
 noise of railroad-trains, would cut away the foot-ice 
 and render travel impossible. Using the tent at Depot 
 " A," and the bedding, etc., there, they got supper 
 over the spirit-lamp and crawled into their sleeping- 
 bags. The cold, cramped position, and dropping of 
 congealed moisture from the tent, robbed them of 
 sleep ; hence they rose at 5. 20, little refreshed. Beau- 
 tiful "sun-dogs" were noticed with the rising of the 
 sun across the strait. Toward noon similar appear- 
 ances, peculiar to the Arctic sun, were still more re- 
 markable — rainbows on either side, and joined above 
 the sun, while vertical and horizontal beams of white 
 light pierced the sun. They passed St. Patrick's Bay, 
 and, after a hard and cold day's work, reached Depot 
 " B," south of Mount Bufort and a little farther south 
 of Cape Beechy, at 3 p. m., the 25th. On the fol- 
 
104 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 lowing day, dragging an empty sledge, they returned 
 to the cache at St. Patrick's Bay, loaded up with three 
 hundred and fifty pounds, and returned to Depot 
 " B," tired, cold, and wet with perspiration, this last 
 being, perhaps, the greatest obstacle to Arctic travel. 
 The great exertion soon induces perspiration, which 
 being checked when labor ceases, you are at once sen- 
 sible of cold water and ice at the same time. It was 
 rare to have anything entirely dry after the first day 
 of work. The sole resource was to use the heat of 
 the body in the sleeping-bags at night. Mittens and 
 socks were the most important to keep dry, and the 
 most difficult. Their lamps being imperfect, they 
 found a difficulty in preparing their chocolate. The 
 alcohol took fire below and filled the tent with fumes 
 quite as unpleasant as the cold. Having left their 
 tin plates behind, they had to eat from one dish. 
 Eating was simply cramming, that their benumbed 
 fingers might give up the cold spoons and return to 
 the warm pockets. Yet with all these discomforts they 
 ate heartily, and with appetites unknown elsewhere 
 than in the Arctic regions; and, notwithstanding 
 dirt, cold, and alcoholic fumes, they had their jokes 
 and songs while lying in their sleeping-bags, trying to 
 keep warm and get to sleep. But their ills did not 
 end there, for whenever the canvas was shaken, frost- 
 like snow — condensed vapor — fell upon them, which 
 melted with the lighting of the lamp in the morning. 
 Truly, this was a rough, road to glory and fame ! 
 
 Two of the men, in consequence of the crowded 
 tent, had to sleep outside with the thermometer at 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 105 
 
 —15°, and left without breakfast, to return to the 
 station. The party soon followed them, and, after 
 stopping at St. Patrick's Bay to take on a log of drift- 
 wood observed there, which gaye them an additional 
 pull of five miles, reached the station long after dark. 
 Having taken something to eat and drink, they got 
 into their warm and dry beds, which never felt more 
 comfortable. 
 
 The next man to command a party was Dr. Pavy, 
 who had in view a long-projected trip to Cape Joseph 
 Henry, with the object of carrying out the wishes of 
 the Navy Department, that a search should be made 
 there for the Jeannette, and a signal placed indicat- 
 ing that help was near at hand ; another object was 
 to establish a depot for spring operations. His force 
 consisted of the Esquimaux Jans, Whistler, and two 
 dog-teams. His "constant weight" was two hundred 
 pounds, and he took rations for twenty days. He 
 counted upon other rations at Lincoln Bay left by the 
 English, and those nearer home left by Greely's men 
 at Depot "B," near Cape Beechy. He hoped with 
 these to establish a depot near the place where the 
 Alert had her winter quarters, and thus be ready in 
 the spring to surpass Markham. Lockwood was in- 
 clined to think the doctor a little too anxious to re- 
 tain personal comfort while exploring, to accomplish 
 much. He had been convinced that sledge-journeys 
 of any considerable extent in those high latitudes 
 could be made only by the sacrifice of every personal 
 comfort. 
 
 On the 2d of October, there was a remarkable and 
 
106 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 beautiful sunset. The lower part of the picture was 
 formed by the clear white ice of the harbor westward. 
 Then came the distant mountains, whose snow-capped 
 summits reached into a sky of beautiful green ; above, 
 a line of gold, and then blue and gold alternating, and 
 finally the deep-blue vault studded with masses of red 
 — on the whole a most gorgeous spectacle. 
 
 Finding this inactive life monotonous, Lockwood 
 started on an exploration of the streams which enter 
 St. Patrick's Bay from the north. Lynn, Bender, 
 Saler, Henry, and himself constituted the party, and 
 they proposed going by way of the gap through 
 the mountains rather than around Distant Cape. 
 They had not gone far before they regretted having 
 taken this short cut, for they found the way exceed- 
 ingly laborious from want of snow — so much so, that 
 they were six hours in reaching the steep, rocky bluffs 
 which overlook St. Patrick's Bay and the valley at 
 the north of it, and they were two more before reach- 
 ing the level of the bay. Indeed, this was only at- 
 tained by carrying their load piece by piece down the 
 cliffs and letting the sledge down by ropes. Here 
 they put up their tent and went into camp. Unfor- 
 tunately, they had neglected to bring candles, and 
 hence had to eat their meal in darkness. Lockwood 
 and Saler occupied one sleeping-bag, while the others 
 were in another. They passed the night cold and 
 sleepless. There being a birthday dinner at the sta- 
 tion, they had intended to walk back to it, a distance 
 of seven miles, but, on account of the condition of 
 the way, abandoned the idea. 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 107 
 
 Getting off at an early hour after a cold breakfast, 
 and reaching the bed of the water-course, they made 
 their way oyer its stony bed, so lightly covered with 
 snow as to rapidly grind away the sledge-runners, up 
 the canon, as grand as the stream was insignificant. 
 Finding their progress so much impeded, they left the 
 sledge behind and made their way without it. The 
 cold being intense, to keep up circulation they walked 
 rapidly, but suffered greatly in their feet and hands. 
 Having volunteered for this expedition, they were 
 ashamed to give it up, though often disposed to do 
 so. Thus, for three tiresome hours, they kept on 
 their way, either following the bed of the stream, or 
 along the mesa-like formations, which projected like 
 shelves from the mountain-sides. Finally, the valley 
 and mesas alike disappearing, the stream entered a 
 narrow gorge. Gaining an eminence, the further 
 course of the stream was indicated to them, and its 
 probable terminus in table-lands of great elevation 
 seen in the distance. Eeturning by the bed of the 
 stream until the valley had attained a width of half 
 a mile, they entered from the west a very picturesque 
 canon thirty feet wide with walls one hundred feet 
 high. Its walls were worn smooth, as though by the 
 action of ice, and there were small, basin-shaped holes 
 apparently made by bowlders caught by glaciers. They 
 also met with blocks of quartz much larger than could 
 possibly be moved by the force of any body of water 
 now passing through the canon. Notwithstanding 
 their exhausted condition, and the worn state of their 
 foot-gear from the numerous stones and rough ice 
 
108 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 they had passed oyer, they concluded not to spend the 
 night where they had left the sledge, but to go on to 
 Depot " A," near Cape Murchison. Adding their out- 
 fit to that of the depot, they had a night of less dis- 
 comfort than usual. On passing Cape Distant, they 
 noticed a broad channel of open water in the strait, 
 preventing any passage at that time. 
 
 On reaching the station, they found that the tem- 
 perature had been —16°, and it was probably 4° lower 
 where they had been. Lieutenant Greely was put- 
 ting in order a variety of reading-matter for the men. 
 Sergeant Brainard was absent at the Bellows, with 
 Rice and Bender, after musk-ox meat. They returned 
 later, badly frosted, but brought the meat to within 
 easy sledging distance. 
 
 The 7th of October, being Mrs. Greely's birthday, 
 was celebrated with a dinner made regal by the follow- 
 ing-named dishes : gumbo-soup, biscuits, old sherry, 
 Columbia River salmon with sauce sauterne, boiled 
 ham, asparagus, sago, corn, lima-beans, cold bread, 
 chocolate cake, strawberry and pineapple ice-cream, 
 dates, figs, grapes, prunes, candied fruits, coffee, and 
 Benedictine. 
 
 In Payer's "History of the Austrian Expedition to 
 Franz-Josef Land," Lockwood found much of inter- 
 est in connection with the requirements for a sledge- 
 journey — details of clothing and other matters best 
 suited to fit one to stand the cold. The book he con- 
 sidered of great value to any novice in Arctic sledg- 
 ing. He supposed that they themselves were much 
 better off than any expedition that had wintered with- 
 
HOUSE-BUILDING AND LOCAL EXPLORATIONS. 109 
 
 in the Arctic Circle. The most serious difficulties — 
 dampness, want of ventilation, and darkness — were 
 reduced with them to a minimum, while of fresh 
 meat, anti-scorbutics, and fuel they had an abun- 
 dance ; and if their assortment of clothing — particu- 
 larly foot-gear — had been better, they would haye had 
 nothing to desire. 
 
 Besides the large stock of coal left by the Proteus, 
 they had the coal-mine within ten miles. The men 
 seemed comfortable and contented. They had a bath- 
 room and bath-tub, with hot and cold water ready at 
 hand, and books and periodicals in abundance. Their 
 heating arrangements were generally perfect and quite 
 effectual. The light from the sun amounted to little, 
 and artificial light within-doors was required all day ; 
 but with a full moon, bright sky, and everything cov- 
 ered with snow, they had a flood of light almost an 
 equivalent. They had musk-ox meat almost every 
 day, and a large store on hand. They also had a large 
 supply of the best pork, lime-juice, cider, sour-krout, 
 pickles, onions and cucumbers mixed, and other anti- 
 scorbutics . The men were comfortable, seemed happy 
 and cheerful, and found many sources of amusement 
 — among others, from an anti-swearing society. De- 
 linquents were fined five cents each, the proceeds to 
 pay for a grand dinner on returning to the United 
 States. Several members incurred such enormous 
 fines as to become bankrupt, and were expelled. 
 These outcasts lay around and beguiled the unwary, 
 thus affording amusement to all except the victim. 
 Eice and Israel had a way of carrying on ridiculous 
 
HO FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 discussions. One evening they had an apparently- 
 angry dialogue, in which Eice personated a tipsy 
 lodger complaining of the fare and demanding his 
 bill, and Israel, an insulted landlord. Both seemed 
 entirely in earnest, and kept their countenances amid 
 roars of laughter and gibes from the men. 
 
IX. 
 
 PKELIMINAKY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS AND 
 LIFE AT THE STATION. 
 
 Amokg the amusements which helped to kill time 
 at the station of Discovery Harbor, officially called 
 Fort Conger, was that of celebrating certain birth- 
 days, and this chapter begins with what was done 
 when Lieutenant Lockwood attained his twenty-ninth 
 year. He confessed that he did not wish a "happy 
 return of the day " in the Arctic regions, and yet he 
 would be contented if they should all be as pleasant as 
 the one just experienced, in spite of the cold winds, 
 ice, snow, darkness, and anticipations of exposure and 
 fatigue when his spring travels should begin. He 
 spent most of the day in sewing canvas leggings to 
 his moccasins and altering his trousers, while Lieu- 
 tenant Greely entertained him with recollections of 
 his army experience during the rebellion, righting his 
 battles over again. His birthday dinner was some- 
 thing quite formidable, consisting of : 
 
 Pea soup a la Proteus, 
 
 Scalloped oysters a la Eastern Shore, 
 
 Deviled crabs a la Chesapeake, 
 
 Musk-ox a la Franklin Bay, 
 
112 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Potatoes a 1'Irlandaise, 
 Macaroni a lTtalienne, 
 Rice and curry a la Pacific Mail, 
 Blanc-mange, fruits, nuts, cake, ice-cream, 
 and black coffee. 
 Lieutenant Greely kindly added, from private 
 stores, some very good California port wine. Lock- 
 wood's reflections, however, carried him to his dis- 
 tant home, and he longed to know that all there were 
 well — that his dear parents and sisters were happy as 
 when he was with them ! Perhaps, even at that hour, 
 their thoughts and words were of him. On this day, 
 as frequently on his sledging journeys, he pictured to 
 himself the family circle in the far-off home. The 
 cold, fatigue, and monotony attending him and his 
 companions were rendered endurable by thus break- 
 ing away from the present. 
 
 On the morning of the 10th of October, Lockwood 
 started on a trip with Jewell across Lady Franklin 
 Bay for Cape Baird. Had no difficulty for a mile or 
 two beyond Dutch Island, but mist and fog then ob- 
 scuring their way and blotting out the landscape, they 
 kept on their course by compass. Soon they encoun- 
 tered heavy snow-drifts and many floe-bergs and fields 
 of rubble-ice, all unfavorable for sledging. Fortu- 
 nately, they had only themselves to transport. Though 
 the weather was cold, they soon found themselves op- 
 pressively warm from the labor attending the journey. 
 Profiting by past experience, Lockwood had this time 
 come out warmly dressed — viz., with two flannel shirts, 
 a woolen jersey, an under-shirt of light buckskin, 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. H3 
 
 heavy woolen drawers, a seal-skin over-all, and two 
 pairs of socks under light buckskin moccasins. He 
 then became convinced, that it was quite as great a 
 mistake to wear too much as too little clothing. Even 
 when they could ride on the sledge, which was not 
 often, there were numerous bad places where they had 
 to run with the dogs and lift the sledge over obstacles. 
 Trying to avoid the moving ice, they struck too far 
 westward, so that when they approached land they 
 found themselves some two miles within the cape for 
 which they had started. Stopping only to take a bite 
 of crackers and meat, they started to retrace their 
 steps, but not before daylight had left them, and they 
 had only the moon to show them the way. After 
 some time they thought to reduce the distance by 
 taking what they supposed was a short cut, but soon 
 found themselves scrambling over hummocky ice of 
 the most formidable character. They regained their 
 track, but not till overcome by thirst and fatigue. 
 Eesting at short intervals, they finally came in sight 
 of Dutch Island, and soon afterward were gladdened 
 by the sound of distant shouts. Dr. Pavy and Ser- 
 geants Brainard and Oonnell had come out to meet 
 them, and not empty-handed, for they bore a bag 
 of hot coffee, and never did coffee taste more de- 
 licious. Though the mercury was nearly nine de- 
 grees below zero, when they reached the house every- 
 thing they had on was as wet as if they had fallen 
 overboard. 
 
 The result of that reconnaissance was that they de- 
 cided to establish a " depot" near Cape Baird, which 
 
114 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 labor was duly carried out by Lockwood, Ellis, Saler, 
 and Bender. The weather being open, they start- 
 ed directly for Cape Baird, but, finding that route 
 impracticable, inclined westward and got into their 
 old track. After much delay and great labor, they 
 reached a point on the farther side, where they 
 found it necessary to encamp for the night. The 
 tent was pitched, chocolate boiled, and beans thawed 
 out, after which they crawled into their sleeping-bags, 
 trying to forget, if possible, that the thermometer 
 stood at —-24° without. Eesuming their journey, but 
 now with the discomfort of wind added to intense 
 cold, they made their way ashore, established the 
 depot of provisions, and with lightened sledges and 
 hearts retraced their steps. Noses were frozen during 
 the day, and only restored by friction, which made 
 them raw and uncomfortable. Very soon after start- 
 ing back, twilight disappeared, and they had only the 
 moon to light them on their way. Passing the rest- 
 ing-place of the previous night, they concluded to 
 make the journey to the house without stopping. 
 They stumbled on in the dark, a used-up party, 
 Lockwood having a sprained tendon Achilles, and 
 also a lame back. The air becoming calm, they 
 were enabled to stop sometimes and rest, which they 
 could not have safely done in their perspiring condi- 
 tion had the wind been blowing. When near Dutch 
 Island, Dr. Pavy and Lieutenant Kislingbury met 
 them with hot coffee, which so much refreshed them 
 that the rest of the journey seemed easy, although it 
 was probable that Lockwood's raw red nose, frosted 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. 115 
 
 toes, lame back, and tender heel, would be reminders 
 of this trip for a long time. 
 
 On the 16th of October the sun disappeared, to 
 rise no more until February. "With the mercury rang- 
 ing from —28° to —40°, Lockwood amused himself 
 by scraping off: the accumulated condensation of moist- 
 ure from the room on the window-panes near his cor- 
 ner, the ice being one inch thick. 
 
 About this time Lockwood took up a course of 
 Arctic literature, with which they were liberally sup- 
 plied. This was chiefly in yiew of his sledge-journey 
 in the coming spring. Feeling the need of exercise, 
 he left the station on the 23d for Depot "B," Cape 
 Beechy, with Brainard, Connell, and the Esquimaux 
 Frederick, and a sledge with eight dogs. At Depot 
 " A" they took on a small stoye and a bag of coal 
 from the mines, and thereby the tent at Depot " B " 
 became more comfortable than anything they had ex- 
 perienced away from the station ; notwithstanding, 
 they had a comfortless night, as the crowded condi- 
 tion of the tent compelled some of them to lie so near 
 the stoye as to endanger their safety. Lockwood woke 
 up to find a large hole burned in his blanket. After- 
 ward, the fire going out, they suffered more than 
 when they had had no fire at all. They erected a 
 snow-house for a depot here, forming the sides of 
 tough blocks of compact snow, and covering it with 
 the boat-sail supported by oars, and, by imitating the 
 natives in some particulars, had a house impervious 
 to cold. 
 
 While there, Lockwood, with Brainard, ascended 
 
116 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Mount Bufort, near at hand, and had an uninter- 
 rupted view of the straits as far down as Cape Lieber, 
 and of the opposite coasfc, between which and them 
 hung water-clouds, indicating open water. This fact 
 was also indicated by the roar, like a moving railroad- 
 train, made by the crushing of the ice in the current. 
 Haying passed another night in their warm snow- 
 house, they made their way next day to the station 
 in less than five hours, and found all hands there en- 
 gaged in erecting an ice wall around the house as 
 high as the eaves, and filling in with snow. This 
 proved most effectual in keeping the house warm. 
 
 Lieutenant Greely had an uncomfortable experi- 
 ence while assisting to make a tide-gauge. He fell 
 in and got a ducking — not his first experience in that 
 direction. Wolves were daily seen near the house, 
 and were so bold and fearless that the men deemed it 
 prudent never to leave the building without fire-arms ; 
 for, as the animals were of the same color as the snow, 
 they could not be easily distinguished. 
 
 On the 29th, a singular aurora made its appear- 
 ance, consisting of a ribbon of white light a degree 
 wide, stretching through the zenith from north to 
 south ; then another arch, 10° westward, whose 
 base touched the first ; and still another, also passing 
 through the zenith, and cutting the others at right 
 angles. 
 
 On the 80th, Lockwood commenced preparations 
 for a preliminary journey to Hall's winter quarters, 
 whenever the straits could be crossed and the weather 
 and light were suitable. Among other things, the 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. H7 
 
 saddler, Fredericks, made a tent to hold eight men, 
 using to that end two common " A" tents. 
 
 About this time, while cogitating on his room and 
 room-mates, Lockwood said : " Surely this is a happy- 
 quartet occupying this room ! "We often sit silent dur- 
 ing the whole day, and even a meal fails to elicit any- 
 thing more than a chance remark or two. A charm- 
 ing prospect for four months of darkness, such gloom 
 within, and penned up as we are in one room ! I have 
 doubts of getting over the straits, but I must be off as 
 soon as possible, for I find a relief in getting away." 
 
 Lieutenant Greely had felt himself compelled to 
 show his dissatisfaction with Dr. Pavy's explorations, 
 or rather attempted explorations. He and the doctor 
 had also adverse views as to how explorations should 
 be made. The doctor wanted to take along many 
 creature comforts, while Greely thought, with Lock- 
 wood, that nothing could be accomplished without 
 sacrificing all beyond bare necessities. 
 
 Having everything complete, Lockwood started on 
 the 1st of November to try the passage of the straits, 
 with Brainard, Lynn, Saler, Biederbick, Ellis, Fred- 
 ericks, and Connell, dragging an eight-man sledge, 
 weighing, with load, one thousand pounds. They 
 left sledge and load beyond Cape Distant, and re- 
 turned to lodge at the house, where all hands fortified 
 themselves with a first-class dinner, preparatory to 
 the labors of the next day. 
 
 They got off early, but, owing to the limited light 
 and other difficulties, found themselves some distance 
 from the snow-house near Cape Beechy when dark- 
 
118 FARTHEST NORTE. 
 
 ness overtook them. Having all in readiness on the 
 4th, they again got off, leaving Ellis at the snow- 
 house with an injured foot. This was unfortunate, 
 as he was a strong, willing fellow, with lots of pluck. 
 The prospects of crossing the straits at this time were 
 not encouraging, both from the short duration of light 
 and from the open waters. Still, they determined to 
 make the effort. This they first did with the whale- 
 boat, which they had picked up on their route. They 
 mounted it on the sledge, but soon found they could 
 not drag so heavy a body, and returned to the snow- 
 house. Rice, whom they found there, was then sent 
 with a dog-sledge to bring up a small boat from Cape 
 Murchison. Dr. Pavy, Lieutenant Kislingbury, and 
 Jans coming along en route for another attempt north- 
 ward, were surprised to see how comfortable they were 
 in the snow-house. 
 
 After extensive repairs to the small boat, they again 
 got off at noon, seven men and Lockwood himself drag- 
 ging the sledge, on which were the boat and one hun- 
 dred and fourteen pounds of rations. On reaching 
 open water, three only were to proceed in the boat, 
 the others to fall back on the snow-house. They got 
 along pretty well until they came to the hummocks, 
 through which, with extreme labor, and frequently 
 using an axe, they made their way, till they heard, in 
 the distance toward Polaris Promontory, the roar of 
 the grinding ice, indicating open water. Moving on 
 ahead of the party over very rough ice, and crossing 
 some wet, slushy ice fifteen or twenty yards wide, 
 Lockwood found himself on a level floe. He had 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. H9 
 
 gone only a short distance over this toward a dark 
 streak beyond, which he took for open water, when 
 he found that the floe upon which he stood was in mo- 
 tion. Eetreating over the bed of slushy ice, he found 
 this to be really only a thick mass of broken pieces in- 
 termediate between the moving floe and the firm ice. 
 He could readily thrust his ice-hook down through it 
 to the water beneath, and did so. Eeaching the sledge- 
 party, and viewing the difficulties of the situation, he 
 decided, all agreeing, on the impracticability of cross- 
 ing at this season. They accordingly displayed signal- 
 torches from the top of an iceberg, as agreed upon, 
 that Lieutenant Greely might know that they had 
 found the crossing dangerous and had abandoned the 
 effort. They returned in darkness, and with consid- 
 erable difficulty, guided somewhat by a signal-torch 
 displayed by Ellis at the snow-house. They remained 
 all day at the snow-house, which the men found so 
 comfortable that they preferred it to the restraints of 
 the station. At noon Lockwood and Brainard went 
 upon a tramp, and found the condition of the open 
 water to be such as to demonstrate the wisdom of their 
 return the evening before. The men made some ad- 
 ditions to the snow-house, which were regarded as a 
 great success. The return to the station on the 7th 
 was attended with more difficulty and labor than had 
 been expected, arising from a strong south wind hav- 
 ing worn away the foot-ice, and the small amount of 
 light ; hence, they soon had wet feet, which in that 
 region always means frost-bitten feet. So much were 
 
 some of the men used up by this journey of twenty 
 6 
 
120 FAETHEST NORTH. 
 
 miles, which had before been made in one day, that 
 they had to be conveyed on the sledge, and did not 
 reach the station till the third day. At Dutch Island 
 they met Whistler, who, missing Biederbick at the 
 ropes and seeing a human form on the sledge, came 
 to the conclusion that Biederbick was dead, and re- 
 peatedly exclaimed, "Poor Biederbick! poor Bieder- 
 bick!" 
 
 During a period of dullness at the station, Eice 
 and Henry projected a newspaper, to be called the 
 "Arctic Moon," and Lockwood, to whom, also, the 
 idea had occurred, agreed to join them as one of the 
 editors. They wanted something to dispel the mo- 
 notony which was depressing all hands, as all were 
 tired of reading, of cards and other games, while two 
 of Lockwood's room-mates were gloomy and taciturn. 
 To counteract this, he resumed his reading, especially 
 history and travels — anything but novels. Kane's 
 work interested him especially, and he considered 
 him a remarkable man, courageous, energetic, and de- 
 termined. Their own manner of life just then re- 
 minded Lockwood of a rainy day in the country in- 
 tensified. "Yet," says he, " why not be contented? 
 Books and leisure afford an opportunity for reading 
 and studying which we may never have again. We 
 have a warm, comfortable house, plenty of food, and 
 other things which many are without. Life in this 
 world is just what one chooses to make it. Man can 
 make of it a heaven or a hell." He felt anxious as to 
 the effect of one hundred and thirty sunless days upon 
 himself and men, as this might tell on their sledging 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. 121 
 
 in the coming spring. Nares's people broke down 
 under it, and, when sledging, were decimated by the 
 scurvy. They themselves were fortunate so far in not 
 having had a single man sick enough to keep his bed. 
 
 True to his intellectual instincts, Lockwood formed 
 a class in geography and grammar, consisting of Elli- 
 son, Bender, Connell, and Whistler, while Lieutenant 
 Greely taught them arithmetic. On the 22d of No- 
 vember appeared, with a nourish of trumpets, the first 
 number of the "Arctic Moon." Of course the editors 
 thought it a great success. It had for the frontispiece 
 a sketch of the house, drawn by Lockwood, while Eice 
 made fair copies of the paper by the hectograph pro- 
 cess — enough for all, and many to spare. 
 
 These trifles served to shorten, apparently, the 
 many hours of gloom and darkness, which were wear- 
 ing away the spirits of all. The men were now far 
 less hilarious than they had been, and, with the game 
 of chess to assist, silence reigned supreme. 
 
 Thanksgiving - day, with its games, sports, and 
 dinner, gave them a pleasant variety. First, came 
 the snow-shoe race of one hundred yards, Brainard, 
 victor. Next, the foot-race, with many contestants, 
 but Ellis coming out ahead. Then the dog-team race 
 to Dutch Island and return, under the Esquimaux 
 Jans and Frederick, the latter, victor. And, finally, 
 a shooting-match, necessarily at short range, and with 
 torches, Henry, victor. These and other out-door 
 exercises were followed by the grand feature of the 
 day, the Thanksgiving dinner, and not a poor one 
 either, even for a lower latitude than eighty- two de- 
 
122 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 grees. In the evening Lieutenant G-reely gaye out 
 prizes to the victors and second best, Eice acting as 
 master of ceremonies, rigged out in swallow-tail coat, 
 black pantaloons, white vest, and "boiled" shirt. The 
 mercury froze on that day, and Lieutenant Greely 
 brought in a teacupful, which looked like lead as it 
 comes from the mold. The moon also made its ap- 
 pearance, and all fully appreciated the blessing of this 
 luminary. 
 
 "What a change," exclaimed Lockwood, "when 
 she comes forth in all her beauty and loveliness, 
 flooding the landscape with her refulgent beams and 
 cheering the drooping spirits of benighted mortals ! 
 Even the poor dogs feel her influence ! " On the 
 1st of December, they had an almost total eclipse of 
 the moon, more remarkable there than an eclipse of 
 the sun elsewhere. During the phenomenon, the ex- 
 posed part of the disk was of a dull-red color. Lock- 
 wood took the altitude of the moon while crossing: 
 the meridian, using a saucer of molasses as an arti- 
 ficial horizon. She flooded the whole region with a 
 light, electric in appearance, and causing deep shad- 
 ows. In the evening they were treated to a display of 
 mock moons, with a circular band of bright light con- 
 necting them, and several bands or ribbons of light at 
 various angles, but all passing through the moon. 
 
 The Esquimaux, Jans and Frederick, having of 
 late been much depressed, efforts were made by kind- 
 ly attentions on the part of Lieutenant Greely and 
 others to dispel their gloom and assure them of the 
 friendly feeling entertained toward them by all. 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. 123 
 
 These good offices, however, all failed. Dr. Payy said 
 this state of mind was not infrequent among the natives 
 of lower Greenland, and often resulted in the wander- 
 ing off of the subjects of it, and, if not followed, by 
 their perishing in the cold. One morning Jans was 
 missing, and at once his tracks were followed by Dr. 
 Pavy, Brainard, Rice, and Whistler, with the dog- 
 sledge. Late in the afternoon they returned with 
 poor Jans, who was found nine miles away, follow- 
 ing at a rapid pace the ice-foot around Cape Murchi- 
 son. He returned unwillingly, and gave no reason 
 for his strange conduct. Rice and Whistler were both 
 rendered hors de combat by the journey, the former 
 by a fall from an ice-hummock, the latter by conges- 
 tion of the brain owing to having shaved before go- 
 ing out. Both Dr. Kane and Dr. Rink (in his book 
 on Greenland) refer to hallucinations similar to that 
 of Jans, and the frequent fatal consequences. 
 
 On the 14th of December appeared the second 
 number of the "Arctic Moon," which was thought 
 to be an improvement on number one, and was well 
 received. Lieutenant Greely gave a lecture on the 
 " Polar Question." 
 
 On the same day also, Esquimaux Frederick came 
 to Lieutenant Greely and asked permission to leave 
 the station, and, when asked why, said some one was 
 going to shoot him — a strange hallucination ! 
 
 On the 20th Lockwood writes : " The sun now be- 
 gins his journey to the north ; the backbone of the 
 winter is broken ! Walking out at noon to-day, I was 
 just able to see the hands of my watch by holding it 
 
124 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 close to my eye. The profound silence of this region 
 is quite as striking, and almost as disagreeable, as the 
 darkness. Standing still, one can almost hear his heart 
 beat. The sense of solitude is sublime." Speaking of 
 Arctic literature, he says that "Hayes' book, though 
 beautifully written, is far below that of Kane as to 
 information and reliability. "No one who has been 
 up Smith's Sound can fail to notice this." 
 
 On the 24th of December, after eating a birthday 
 dinner, the Christmas presents from an unknown 
 friend to every one of the party, were distributed. 
 The rooms were appropriately decorated, and every- 
 thing was done to render the occasion cheerful and 
 pleasant. Those articles not specifically assigned by 
 the donor were disposed of by lottery. 
 
 Lockwood indulged in the following reflections : 
 " How suggestive of home and of the dear ones 
 there ! How often do my thoughts wander away to 
 them ! Has Providence been equally kind to them 
 as to me ? The day with me suggests alternately 
 the past and the future. Will next Christmas find 
 me here, with everything around as auspicious as 
 now, and shall I then be able to look back with satis- 
 faction and self-complacency on my labors along the 
 Greenland coast ? Or will the future bring a record 
 of dreams unsatisfied, of efforts unproductive, of labor 
 in vain ? My mind is far away with that group at 
 home assembled together and doubtless regretting that 
 the absent one is not of their number. Could I but 
 see them for an hour, or know that all is well with 
 them, I should rejoice, indeed ! " 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. 125 
 
 The "Lime-Juice Club" gave an entertainment 
 on the same evening, at which Snyder affected Jans 
 to tears by his personation of an Esquimaux lady, 
 and Oonnell brought down the house as a martinet 
 captain, by exclaiming, when a soldier who had shot 
 himself was brought in: "Very sad affair, very sad, 
 indeed ! Charge him with two cartridges expended, 
 Sergeant." 
 
 Lieutenant Greely also gave the party as a lecture, 
 " Eeminiscences of the Battle of Fredericksburg," 
 which was interesting and two hours long, though 
 entirely ex tempore ; and Lockwood was announced 
 to lecture on "Arctic Sledging." 
 
 On the 31st, rations of rum were issued to help the 
 men welcome in the new year. They were also to fire 
 a salute with rifles. Fiddles were in full blast, with 
 singing and other marks of hilarity. 
 
 Loekwood's lecture on "Arctic Sledging" was 
 given January 3, 1882, and was well received. Being 
 confirmed in his opinion that he was no public speak- 
 er, he intended to leave lecturing for others there- 
 after. On the 9th he took his usual walk, notwith- 
 standing the thermometer was at 60° below zero, and 
 felt the cold chiefly on his nose. It seemed curious 
 to him, that when the thermometer was lowest, the 
 air was stillest. Were it otherwise, he supposed ex- 
 istence in the Arctic would be an impossibility. 
 
 But severe as was the weather, it did not deter 
 him from the study of science, as will be seen by the 
 following record, made on the 9th of January : "I 
 have been looking up the subject of nautical astrono- 
 
126 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 my for some time past, and to-day and this even- 
 ing, taking sextant, mercury, etc., and establishing 
 an observatory on top of an old barrel in front of 
 the house, commenced observations on the transit of 
 Markab, Capella, and other stars, but have not been 
 very successful. Everything conspires against one in 
 this climate. It reminds me of my observations last 
 spring. However, I hope by dint of practice to do 
 better. The winter is passing away slowly but surely. 
 The time is coming when I shall look at these stars 
 from grassy fields, on a summer night, in the temper- 
 ate zone, I hope. The stars up here are very bright, 
 and a great many of them circle around the pole and 
 never set. It is a beautiful sight. Arcturus, Aldeba- 
 ran, and others, besides being very bright, show dif- 
 ferent colors, red, violet, and green. Jupiter looks 
 immense." 
 
 Still absorbed with his astronomical studies, he 
 gives us the following on the 13th of the same month : 
 " The moon appeared after noon. How welcome she 
 is ! How a poet would rave over the moon could he 
 once experience a polar winter ! — not simply an Arctic 
 winter, for anywhere north of the Arctic Circle is the 
 Arctic, and the dark days which most expeditions 
 have seen are trifling compared with ours. I think it 
 would be a good idea to exile a first-class poet into 
 these regions for the purpose, but give him to un- 
 derstand he was never to return. How he would 
 sing ! " 
 
 On the 12th, they had a phenomenon they had nev- 
 er heard of — the precipitation of vapor with a per- 
 
PKELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. 127 
 
 fectly clear sky. It resembled a heavy mist or light 
 rain. 
 
 On the 16th occurred the first hurricane of the 
 season. It began in the morning with heavy south 
 wind and sudden fall of barometer. At noon the 
 wind whipped round to the northeast and blew with 
 indescribable fury, filling the air with snow-drifts, and 
 blotting out the view of everything even a few feet 
 distant. The anemometer registered sixty-five miles, 
 and then broke down. The noise of the storm, as 
 heard from the house, was as though on shipboard. It 
 must have given way but for the ice walls around it. 
 
 On the 20th, Lieutenant Greely issued a circular 
 letter, calling attention to the order that all should 
 be up for breakfast. Kislingbury and Dr. Pavy took 
 exceptions to this, and the latter declined to lecture 
 in his turn. 
 
 The next evening occurred a beautiful and unique 
 auroral display, the chief features of which were many 
 broad bands of pure white passing through the zenith 
 and reaching to the east and to the west horizon, 
 which blended, twisted, and curled in upon each oth- 
 er in a very remarkable manner. The spectacle was 
 viewed with wonder and amazement. 
 
 On the 26th, the twilight at noonday was quite 
 bright. The moon also lent her aid ; but low spirits 
 and a sense of oppression and homesickness prevailed, 
 all induced, doubtless, by want of exercise, and loneli- 
 ness. 
 
 " Another twenty-four hours," wrote Lockwood, 
 on the 6th of February, " of this interminable night 
 
128 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 nearly gone ! Thank God ! Sometimes it seems as if 
 this life must hold on forever, but tempus fugit up 
 here as well as elsewhere. The days and weeks seem 
 weeks and months in passing, and yet, in the retro- 
 spect, time seems to haye passed quickly, because 
 there is so little in the past to mark its progress, I 
 suppose." 
 
 Lockwood could not realize the extreme cold, and 
 seldom wore his gloves when going out for a few 
 minutes. Though he put on a thick dog-skin coat 
 and seal-skin over-all when taking his daily walk, he 
 really did not regard so much clothing necessary. 
 Exposure to such low temperatures, however, for 
 several hours, and particularly at night, was to be 
 dreaded. Many authorities — among others Lieuten- 
 ant Greely — spoke of a peculiar sensation in the 
 throat on first encountering a very low temperature, 
 as when going out of doors from a warm room, but 
 such was not Lockwood's experience. Provided it 
 was calm, he could stand any degree of cold he had 
 yet met with. Owing to the peculiar and admirable 
 construction of their house, the men were able to keep 
 up 50° of heat within, however cold without. 
 
 On the 13th of February, Lockwood with two men 
 went to see what damage had resulted from the late 
 storm to the observatory on the summit of Bellot 
 Island. Contrary to their expectations, they found 
 the snow not only deep, but with a crust just firm 
 enough not to bear. Consequently, they sent the 
 dog-sledge back, and proceeded on foot, frequently 
 sinking down knee-deep. Though the thermometer 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. 129 
 
 stood at — 65°, they got into a profuse perspiration, 
 which was not lessened by the steep and slippery as- 
 cent of two thousand feet. From this point the sta- 
 tion-house seemed only a black spot, and was hardly 
 recognizable as a house. Having made their inspec- 
 tion and fired their rifles several times as agreed upon 
 with Lieutenant Greely, who was experimenting on 
 sound, they returned. The result of these experi- 
 ments was, that at —65° sound travels nine hundred 
 and fifty feet per second. This was the coldest day 
 they had yet experienced, and still they did not suffer 
 with the cold. 
 
 The return to a warm house was an indescribable 
 comfort, and Lockwood thought that if this could 
 always be done, Arctic journeying would then be 
 nothing. It was unprecedentedly cold even for that 
 latitude. Pure brandy and also glycerine were frozen 
 hard. The poor dogs suffered, yet many of them 
 preferred to remain curled up on the snow-banks 
 outside, to occupying the tent and holes prepared 
 for them. 
 
 On the 19th, Lockwood made a dog-sledge trip 
 with Brainard and the Esquimaux Frederick to Depot 
 "B," to look for a good place to cross the straits. 
 Found that the snow had drifted so as to form a con- 
 tinuous inclined plane from the bluffs far outside the 
 snow-house and tent, thus almost concealing them. 
 They recognized the spot only by seeing the stove-pipe 
 jutting above the snow. Knowing how the mouth of 
 the tunnel lay from this point, they dug through the 
 hard, compact snow, cleared out the tunnel, and soon 
 
130 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 found themselves within the snow-house. The little 
 stove was swallowed up in a cone of snow reaching 
 from roof to floor. This had drifted through a small 
 aperture where the pipe pierced the roof. The fire 
 going out after they turned in, the room became ex- 
 tremely damp and chilly. However, they made up 
 for the discomforts of the night by a rousing fire in 
 the morning, over which they got up a grand break- 
 fast of musk-ox steak, beaos, coffee, and hard-tack. 
 They next sent the team with Frederick down to St. 
 Patrick's Bay for a bag of coal, while Lockwood and 
 Brainard walked over the straits toward Polaris Pro- 
 montory. Going out some four or five miles over ice 
 of varied nature, some exceedingly broken and hum- 
 mocky and some quite level, they returned, satisfied 
 that the time for crossing over was not yet. Frede- 
 rick had, in the mean time, returned, mended up the 
 hole in the roof, made a good fire, and prepared a 
 warm meal. 
 
 They again started out to test the important pas- 
 sage, taking a route farther north. There the rubble- 
 ice reached only two hundred yards from the shore, 
 beyond which, as far as they walked and could see, 
 smooth ice extended. They returned, satisfied that 
 this was the place to attempt the passage when the 
 time should arrive for their contemplated exploration 
 farther north. 
 
 They made the trip over the foot-ice to the station 
 (twenty miles) in four hours, thus proving the fine 
 condition of the sledge and dogs for traveling, and the 
 eagernesB of the dogs to rejoin their companions and 
 
PRELIMINARY SLEDGE EXPEDITIONS. 131 
 
 pups. All the way, they had before them to the 
 southward a rich glow on the horizon like the sun- 
 rise of a fine morning at home. They found the men 
 celebrating the 22d of February by match-games of 
 yarious kinds, and, after listening to an appropriate 
 speech on the Father of his Country, enjoyed a good 
 dinner. 
 
"THE ARCTIC MOON." 
 
 As already mentioned in this narrative, among the 
 events which occurred at the Greely Scientific Colony, 
 or Fort Conger, was the establishment of a newspaper, 
 the first ever issued so near the north pole, the near- 
 est approach to it previously having been ' e The Ice- 
 Blink/' issued by Kane's Expedition in 1854. It was 
 projected by G. W. Rice and C. B. Henry, but Lieu- 
 tenant Lockwood was the editor-in-chief. The sheet 
 was fifteen by nineteen inches in size, first prepared 
 in manuscript and then multiplied by photograph, 
 published on the 2d of November, 1881, and semi- 
 monthly as to time. As the musk-oxen, the walruses, 
 and the bears and wolves of Grinneli Land took no 
 interest in the enterprise, the patrons of the paper 
 were confined to the colony of explorers. In his 
 opening address, the editor proudly claimed that his 
 corps of contributors embraced the finest minds in the 
 country ; that his reporters would always be "on the 
 spot " ; that the journal was certain to be superior to 
 any other in the country ; and that the subscription 
 list numbered not less than twenty-five thousand — the 
 last assertion being a servile imitation of what often 
 appears in the papers of New York and other Ameri- 
 
"THE ARCTIC MOON." 133 
 
 can cities. And now, by way of giving the reader an 
 idea of the style and character of this unique jour- 
 nal, it is proposed to reproduce in this chapter, as 
 specimens, a collection of its editorials, contributions, 
 items of news, and advertisements. In an article on 
 " Christmas," the editor gives us the following pathet- 
 ic reflections : 
 
 "Our Christmas-time has come and gone, and, 
 although our geographical position is not a favorable 
 one for the complete observation of this joyous anni- 
 versary, it was attended with many of the happy feat- 
 ures that make its memory a pleasant landmark of the 
 dying year. No boughs of ' evergreen were berried 
 bright ' (our crop of evergreens failed this season), but 
 had they existed, the conditions for making them 
 ' white with rime ' were very favorable. 
 
 " Christmas always attracts a crowd of joyous 
 faces, and, although we missed the pleasure of ( child- 
 hood's grace and fair maiden's blushes' under the 
 mystic mistletoe, the stalwart, bearded men who 
 grasped hands under our smoke-begrimed roof felt 
 indeed the inspiration of the gladsome time when the 
 voice of man's good-will to man speaks forth in every- 
 thing. Could the possessors of the kind hearts and 
 hands that contributed so much to the pleasure of the 
 party have looked in upon the happy, smiling faces, 
 living again a day of their youth in the anticipation 
 and surprise attending the bestowal and opening of 
 the mysterious packages containing the presents, they 
 would have felt more than rewarded for their kind 
 thoughtfulness. Lips unused to the task framed 
 
134 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 grateful acknowledgments of the kind act. The in- 
 terest in our happiness taken by the wife of the com- 
 manding officer was repeatedly shown, and when, as 
 we sat down to our inviting Christmas dinner, we 
 contemplated a crowning proof of her kind good-will, 
 repressed enthusiasm could no longer be restrained, 
 and three rousing cheers for Mrs. Greely were given 
 with an effect which proved beyond cavil the vigor of 
 our lungs, and rendered unnecessary the weekly ex- 
 amination of the doctor. 
 
 " Of course, the festive season brought with it re- 
 grets that would not be repressed, and longings that 
 could not be satisfied, when processions of absent 
 loved ones and severed friends followed the funerals 
 of other Christmas-days through thoughts that would 
 wander over snow, and ice, and land, and sea, to the 
 happy firesides where we knew they were gathered. 
 But every one looked on the bright side of things, and 
 extracted as much comfort and pleasure as possible 
 under the circumstances ; we even knew one sordid 
 individual who congratulated himself on the immu- 
 nity of his exchequer from the heavy drafts generally 
 entailed by the purchase of Christmas presents. We 
 have not space to enter into a detailed account of all 
 the happy features of the holiday. Altogether, our 
 Christmas was a great success." 
 
 By way of showing that there was nothing very 
 frigid in the hearts of the explorers, another editorial 
 is submitted, on the New Year : 
 
 " Christmas is gone, with all its pleasant associa- 
 tions, and we find ourselves on the threshold of a new 
 
"THE ARCTIC MOON." 135 
 
 year. What thoughts the day recalls to a reflective 
 mind ! the exodus of the old, the advent of the new 
 year ; the past and the future, history and prophecy, 
 the ceaseless alternation of life and death, the eternity 
 of nature. 
 
 "The day is suggestive in another way. "Where 
 were we a year ago ? what doing ? what looking for- 
 ward to ? Where shall we be a year from now ? what 
 will be our surroundings, and what shall we look back 
 upon ? How distant seemed this day a year ago ! 
 how short now seems the time that has since elapsed ! 
 
 " The new year of 1882 finds us a community of 
 twenty-five men, living through the cold and dark- 
 ness of an Arctic winter, in a small house near the 
 north pole, thousands of miles beyond any civilized 
 habitation. A year ago saw us scattered — some in 
 the cities, some on the plains of the far West, some 
 occupied in quiet routine, some in the ceaseless 
 changes and activity of the field. Will the next year 
 find us here with our surroundings as satisfactory and 
 auspicious ? We trust so, and this day is eminently 
 a day for making good resolutions. We are free 
 agents, and the future depends, in great part, on our- 
 selves. Let us, then, determine that, so far as lies 
 within our power, we shall have no cause to look back 
 with regret on the year just ushered in. The phrase 
 is hackneyed, but none the less true : 
 1 Of all sad words of tongue or pen, 
 The saddest are these — it might have been.' " 
 
 And now we come to a contribution addressed to 
 the editor of the "Arctic Moon," as follows : 
 
136 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 "As Grinnell Land is a recognized Territory 
 of the United States, and has a territorial form of 
 government, a delegate from this Territory is to be 
 elected who is to take his seat at the opening of the 
 Forty-seventh Congress. The undersigned offers him- 
 self as a candidate for the office, on the following 
 platform : I am in favor of reaching the north pole 
 by balloon, a liberal appropriation for the purchase of 
 lime-juice, compulsory education, unlimited emigra- 
 tion, a homestead and sixty acres of land, one musk- 
 ox and two Esquimaux dogs to each actual settler. I 
 am also a strong advocate of woman's rights, but there 
 is no good in rights without the woman. I am pre- 
 pared to ' chaw ' the points on the above platform ; I 
 think it is ' plump, 5 and will stand without being 
 propped up. 
 
 (Signed) "Cornell." 
 
 And now, under the general heading of " Moon- 
 Beams" we come to the following paragraphs, which 
 are not only spicy, but characteristic of the time and 
 place with which they are identified : 
 
 "The British expedition found the ice in this har- 
 bor, January 1, 1876, twenty-eight and three-quarter 
 inches thick. Measurements made this day showed 
 thirty-four inches. Our average temperature for De- 
 cember was nearly eight degrees lower than theirs for 
 the same month. 
 
 " The darkest day being a thing of the past, we 
 shall soon find ourselves sliding down hill quite rap- 
 idly. We have made complete arrangements to have 
 
"THE ARCTIC MOON." 137 
 
 the sun interviewed on his return to this country the 
 latter part of February. 
 
 " The walrus seem to have emigrated, so that the 
 Dutch Island people now take their daily exercise in 
 peas. 
 
 <(i l wonder what is in the mess-boxes?' is the 
 oft-repeated query. Have patience, brethren, time 
 will show. 
 
 " Old Probabilities will be surprised to learn, that 
 his enterprising colony at this point is indulging in out- 
 door sports with the thermometer at 40° below zero. 
 
 " To-day, at Dutch Island, Lieutenant Kislingbury 
 was able to see the time of day holding his watch 
 about one foot from his face. 
 
 " Sergeant Cross has made another addition to his 
 already numerous trades — that of bottling samples of 
 air for the examination and scrutiny of those not fa- 
 vored with a sniff of Arctic breezes. 
 
 "Sergeant Brainard is excellent authority for the 
 statement that the gate-money taken at the racing 
 contest will be devoted to the advancement of geo- 
 graphical knowledge within the Arctic Circle. Such 
 being the case, the number of aborigines present will 
 be a crucial test of the desire on the part of the Grin- 
 nellites to bring their country into more general 
 knowledge. 
 
 "Wanted — A good family horse. Will buy it 
 cheap, or will take for his keeping, or keep for his 
 taking. To be used on good country roads and for 
 family driving. Must be very gentle. JSTo objections 
 to a Government mule. Address Jacob Doboy. 
 
138 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 a 
 
 Wanted — A poet for the ' Arctic Moon.' Must 
 be strictly temperate and a good speech-maker. No 
 tailors need apply. Address this office. 
 
 "Wanted — A humoristic writer for the ' Arctic 
 Moon.' The present incumbent has suddenly be- 
 come ill from too close application. 
 
 "Information wanted of the Greely Arctic Expe- 
 dition. It strayed away from home last July, and 
 was last heard from at Upernavik, Greenland. 
 
 " We beg leave to announce to the public that we 
 have made extensive improvements in our establish- 
 ment, whereby we can furnish at the shortest notice 
 bread, twists, rolls, cakes, pies, tarts, and, in fact, 
 anything in the baker's line. Wedding cakes made a 
 specialty. Are thankful for past patronage, and re- 
 spectfully ask its continuance in future. 
 " Frederick Shootman, 
 " Sak Francisco Longman - , 
 
 "Merchant Bakers." 1 
 
XL 
 EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 
 
 OiN" the 29th of February, Lieutenant Lockwood 
 went upon an experimental trip to Thank God Harbor 
 preparatory to his proposed grand expedition along 
 the coast of Northern Greenland. His companions 
 were Brainard, Jewell, Long, and the Esquimaux, 
 Frederick and Jans, with two dog- teams. As the 
 dogs, constantly yelping and howling, competed for 
 the mastery, they traveled rapidly, and, after many 
 twistings and turnings, reached their destination, 
 where they found the observatory still standing. 
 They took a necessary inventory, and, after a survey 
 of the dismal plain, visited the grave of 0. F. Hall, 
 where Lieutenant Lockwood recorded the following 
 touching notice in his journal : " The head-board 
 erected by his comrades, as also the metallic one left 
 by the English, still stands. How mournful to me the 
 scene, made more so by the howling of the winds 
 and the thick atmosphere ! It was doubtless best 
 that he died where he did. I have come to regard 
 him as a visionary and an enthusiast, who was in- 
 debted more to fortune than to those practical abili- 
 ties which Kane possessed. Yet he gave his life to 
 the cause, and that must always go far toward re- 
 
140 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 deeming the short-comings of any man. The conclud- 
 ing lines of the inscription on the English tablet, I 
 think good : ' To Captain Hall, who sacrificed his life 
 in the advancement of science, November 8, 1871. 
 This tablet has been erected by the British Polar Ex- 
 pedition of 1875, which followed in his footsteps and 
 profited by his experience.'" 
 
 The American inscription on the wooden head- 
 board was as follows : 
 
 IN MEMOEY OF 
 
 CHAELES FRANCIS HALL, 
 
 LATE COMMANDER U. S. STEAMER POLARIS, 
 NORTH POLE EXPEDITION. 
 
 Died November 8, 1871. 
 
 " I am the resurrection and the life ; he that believeth in me, 
 though he were dead, yet shall he live." 
 
 After various struggles with the snow, fog, and 
 cold weather, ending in frosted feet and faces, and 
 after inspecting a boat left by Buddington, they re- 
 turned by way of the snow-house at Cape Beechy, and, 
 all Tery much exhausted, reached the station, receiv- 
 ing a hearty welcome. Greely had been very anx- 
 ious about the party, owing to a storm of great vio- 
 lence, and had sent Dr. Pavy with men to their relief. 
 The trip thus made covered not less than one hundred 
 and forty miles. Lockwood now decided that on the 
 1st of April he would start upon his proposed expedi- 
 tion. This trip occupied his mind continually. He 
 hoped he might be successful, yet there were many 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 141 
 
 chances of failure. Who could divine the future ? 
 He felt that he ought to be able to reach Cape Bri- 
 tannia, but that was not enough ; he desired to do 
 more. 
 
 As the time for taking his departure approached, 
 Lockwood was greatly troubled with rheumatism, 
 but still was very busy in maturing his plans. 
 Lieutenant Greely wrote him a flattering letter, put- 
 ting the whole plan of operations in his hands and 
 placing at his disposal the entire personnel and mate- 
 rial of the expedition. This would include almost all 
 who could take the field. The men were becoming 
 enthusiastic and were showing an admirable spirit, 
 although they knew from experience that they were 
 to engage in no child's play. Almost all of those se- 
 lected had shown pluck hitherto. Without this ele- 
 ment no one could endure the hardships that they 
 might have to undergo. Should any of those selected 
 break down early, there were excellent substitutes 
 among those left behind. Lockwood was pleased with 
 an exhibition of pluck by Ellis, who walked all the way 
 from Depot ( e A" with a frozen foot, refusing the offer 
 of Jewell to bring him on the dog-sledge. Jewell, on 
 returning from Lincoln Bay, had orders to convey 
 stores to the " Gap," where the boat previously sent 
 over the strait lay. Hence, before starting, supplies 
 would be placed at Depot " B," at the " Gap," and at 
 a point intermediate on the frozen strait. 
 
 Having all things complete, Sergeant Brainard was 
 to proceed at once with the supporting parties to Cape 
 Sumner. He was to leave Depot " B " with a weight 
 
142 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 to drag of one hundred and thirty pounds per man. 
 Lockwood was to follow with dog-sledge loaded with 
 five hundred pounds of pemmican. Thus they would 
 concentrate at Cape Sumner with the six hundred 
 rations in hand, together with seven hundred pounds 
 of dog pemmican. The stores embraced pemmican, 
 bacon, corned beef, roast musk-ox, raw musk-ox, Eng- 
 lish beef, hard bread, canned beans, potatoes, sugar, 
 tea, chocolate, and coffee, besides which they carried 
 alcohol for cooking and lime-juice as an anti-scor- 
 butic. Their sledge ration had been made up by con- 
 sultation with Lieutenant Greely, though, of course, 
 it might be departed from if circumstances required. 
 The diet list was purposely a varied one. No rum or 
 spirits were taken except as a medicine. The main 
 supporting party consisted of Sergeant Lynn, Corporal 
 Ellison, and privates Biederbick, Whistler, and Henry. 
 
 Lieutenant Lockwood, Sergeant Jewell, and the 
 Esquimaux Frederick formed the advance party, while 
 Sergeants Brainard and Ealston, Corporal Saler, and 
 privates Connell, Fredericks, and one other man con- 
 stituted the second supporting party. 
 
 On the 2d of April, the main and second supporting 
 parties moved off in good style, amid the waving of 
 flags, firing of pistols, cheers, and other demonstrations. 
 Both Lieutenants Greely and Lockwood took occasion 
 to address the men a few words of encouragement and 
 advice. Lockwood confined his remarks to the neces- 
 sity of co-operation and subordination as the chief 
 essentials to success. He would follow with Jewell 
 and the dog-sledge, and, if he knew himself, would not 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 143 
 
 return unsuccessful. He got off at 8 p. it., with Jewell, 
 Frederick, and the dog-sledge Antoinette. The team 
 of eight consisted of " Eitenbank, the king," a large 
 white dog, at whose growl all the rest trembled ; 
 "Major," a friend of Eitenbank, and a very useful, 
 good-natured old fellow, hard-working and quiet, 
 without any special characteristics ; " Howler," a 
 large, lean, mean, ill-natured brute, whom they took 
 on board at Disco, and who lorded it over the rest till 
 Eitenbank came on board at the place of the same 
 name, when Howler was dethroned ; since which he 
 had been morose and misanthropic, and never associ- 
 ated with the other dogs. He set up the most un- 
 earthly howling whenever any other dog approached 
 him, especially if that other dog had designs on some- 
 thing he was engaged in eating or trying to eat — a 
 tin can, for instance. At the end of a march, when 
 the pemmican was being cut up, and he, with the 
 rest, was awaiting his opportunity to make a general 
 rush, his howling became almost unendurable. But 
 he was especially despicable, because he allowed any 
 and every dog of the team to jump on and bite him. 
 His only redeeming trait was his earnestness in pull- 
 ing, for, when the sledge stuck in deep snow or 
 rubble-ice, he was the last of the dogs to sit on his 
 haunches and look while you got it out. On sev- 
 eral occasions when Eitenbank was making efforts 
 to get inside the tent and steal the meat while all 
 were asleep, Howler had given the alarm by his un- 
 earthly howling. His place in the team was on the 
 right flank, and he kept it all the time, never drop- 
 7 
 
144 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 ping back and coming up in the wrong place, as did 
 the other dogs. Next to Howler was the " Woolly 
 dog," a dirty-looking cur with long white hair, which 
 made Howler's life a burden all the time by snapping 
 at him as he hauled by his side. Next came the 
 " kooney s," signifying in Esquimaux mother-dogs. 
 They were called " Black Kooney" and "White 
 Kooney," and were both good workers. Then came 
 " Ask-him," a pup when brought on board in Green- 
 land, but now of age, and bearing the airs of a veter- 
 an. He brooked insult from no dog but Eitenbank, 
 and evidently bided his time to contest the throne 
 with him. He had even taken upon himself the 
 kingly custom of biting the adjoining dog whenever 
 he felt the whip. On his left were two dogs already 
 named, " Major " and the " Boss." On the left flank 
 was "Gypsy," a little fat kooney dog which pulled 
 only under the lash, and yet by foraging and stealing 
 managed to get twice the rations of any of the rest, 
 and was always plump and fat. 
 
 The advance party reached Depot "A" in good 
 time, and took on five sacks (five hundred pounds) of 
 dog pemmican and some cans of corned beef, which 
 made their load very heavy. 
 
 On the 5th of April, Lockwood reached the snow- 
 house, and there found Brainard and the rest, making 
 thirteen altogether. They completely filled the house, 
 and also the dug-out in the snow-bank adjoining, 
 so that Lockwood and Jewell moved the provisions 
 out of the tent, and slept there, and Frederick in 
 the tunnel. The tent being snowed in to the ridge- 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 145 
 
 pole, and connected with the tunnel, they were quite 
 comfortable. On the same day they saw an eagle 
 on a floe-berg, which was considered a good omen. 
 After needed rest all hands took their departure. The 
 snow on the ice-floe was somewhat deep, and the loads 
 very heavy. The route across the straits, previously 
 determined on, was from Cape Beechy to within five 
 or six miles of the east shore, and then as direct as 
 possible to Cape Sumner. On reaching the tent on 
 the straits, about four and one half miles out, Lock- 
 wood dropped his load, and went back to look after 
 the sledges, then out of sight. He found Whistler 
 sick and unable to pull, and Biederbick and Conn ell 
 trying to pull the load without him — not an encour- 
 aging commencement of a long journey. Aided by 
 the dog-sledge, all soon reached the tent and camped 
 for the night. Lockwood, Jewell, and Frederick slept 
 in the wall-tent, pitched there some weeks before. 
 Lockwood writes at this point : "Finding it very cold, 
 I was glad to get up and out, leaving Jewell to the un- 
 happy work of getting breakfast. (Breakfast ! what 
 a misnomer in such cases !) I then went to the two 
 tents occupied by the others to inquire for healths. 
 Mr. Henry, correspondent of the ' Chicago Times' 
 (as he called himself), the same who had written on 
 the side of a large iceberg, ' Ho ! for Cape Britannia,' 
 said he could go no farther, as he had been suffering 
 dreadfully all night with rheumatism ; or, if he did 
 go farther, we would have to haul him back, while 
 from here he thought he could manage to hobble by 
 himself to the snow-house, and, after resting there and 
 
146 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 again at Depot 'A,' reach, the station. Henry is a 
 big fellow, oyer six feet in height, with apparently the 
 strength and physique of Hercules. It was a bad omen 
 for the rest of us when he broke down. Connell had 
 frozen his feet the previous day quite badly, and only 
 discovered the extent of the injury after getting into 
 camp, but thought he could go on, or at least was 
 determined to try. All hands looked very forlorn, 
 but generally were resolute and determined. Finally, 
 Jewell had the tea and canned meat warmed suffi- 
 ciently, and we stuffed ourselves with all there was to 
 stuff, and prepared to follow the others who had al- 
 ready started. We overtook Fredericks (the saddler) 
 struggling along in the snow with a sledge all by him- 
 self. He was a dwarf by the side of the giant Henry. 
 It was necessary to do something, and so I told Jewell 
 he must join Fredericks, and leave the Esquimaux and 
 me to manage the dog-sledge. I overtook the main 
 party about a mile and a half from camp, doing their 
 best. Connell could hardly walk at all, and it was 
 utterly impossible for him to pull. He was very re- 
 luctant to go back, but there was no alternative ; so, 
 throwing off the load, I took him on the dog-sledge as 
 far as Cape Beechy, whence he thought he could get 
 along by himself. On returning I picked up the load, 
 and proceeded to follow the trail of the others. The 
 snow soon became worse, and the sledge so often stuck 
 that I determined to double up — take half the load at 
 a time. The Esquimaux dogs can pull a very heavy 
 load, and through bad places, but the moment the 
 sledge comes to a dead halt they sit on their haunches, 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 147 
 
 turn complacently round, and wait till the sledge is 
 extricated. If not fully started, they will pull at 
 random, or not at all. On these occasions the hard 
 work comes upon the driver and others with the 
 sledge." 
 
 On the 7th, they joined the other wing of the ex- 
 pedition, finding them in camp some miles south- 
 west of the gap. The wind had been blowing and 
 snow drifting for some hours, and everything indi- 
 cated a storm. Lockwood and Frederick pitched tent 
 and went into camp, first bringing up the rest of the 
 load. 
 
 While the storm was still raging, they got off with 
 half the load, leaving the rest making preparations 
 for a move, and took a course for Cape Sumner, whose 
 steep, rocky face loomed up in the distance, terminat- 
 ed by a line of magnificent cliffs, which extended un- 
 broken, except by " the Gap," as far south as Cape 
 Lupton of Polaris fame. They traveled upon level 
 floes interrupted by ridges of hummocky ice, over 
 which they had to get the sledge as best they could, 
 and with frequent use of the axe. The wind blowing 
 stronger, and the air being obscured with driving 
 snow, they could with difficulty pick their way. Trav- 
 eling over the straits was like navigating a ship in a 
 tortuous channel. They soon found themselves in 
 the midst of a mass of rubble-ice of the worst de- 
 scription; gaps and chasms between the crags and 
 blocks of ice, often filled with loose snow, or entire- 
 ly obscured by that flying through the air. They 
 could barely see the. cliffs on their right, and could 
 
148 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 not recognize their position. The dogs became yery 
 much discouraged, Frederick also, and Lockwood him- 
 self felt in no yery enyiable frame of mind. After 
 many ineffectual efforts, and unloading and reloading 
 repeatedly, they left the load and attempted to ex- 
 plore a route to shore. Not succeeding, they hunted 
 for some suitable snow-drift in which to burrow, and 
 there await better weather ; but saw none. Finally, 
 the storm letting up for a moment, they found a 
 level floe, and, with the use of the axe, Lockwood and 
 Frederick got the sledge upon it. 
 
 On the 8th, at 3 a. m., they arrived at Cape Sum- 
 ner, and, getting through the rubble-ice near the 
 shore, gained the steep snow-slope which lay between 
 the foot of the cliffs and the line of immense floe- 
 bergs along the shore, stranded and pressed close up 
 to the snow-slope. Between the bergs and the slope, 
 the wind had made great gaps, deep and tortuous. 
 The only way to get along was either through these 
 gaps — often like pits — or to take the slope above and 
 run the risk of tumbling down into them, sledge and 
 all, sometimes fifteen or twenty feet. There was 
 often no alternative but the latter. Lockwood ex- 
 pected to find it calm there by reason of the pro- 
 tection of the bluffs, but, on the contrary, the wind 
 came down from above in gusts and whirlwinds, filling 
 the air with eddying columns of snow. When about 
 a mile from the Polaris Boat Camp, they encountered 
 an immense mass of snow entirely filling up the ra- 
 vine from top to bottom. Leaving the sledge, Lock- 
 wood went on to see if he could reach the Boat Camp, 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 149 
 
 but could hardly keep his feet on account of the 
 wind. Keturning, he and Frederick made a small hole 
 in the side of a large drift, and, pulling in everything 
 the dogs could possibly eat, prepared to " weather the 
 storm." By 9 A. m., supper had been eaten in dark- 
 ness, for they had no candles, and Frederick, wedged 
 close up to him in the frozen sleeping-bag, was snorting 
 away like a steam-engine. Lockwood soon fell asleep 
 too, but woke up to find the sleeping-bag and his foot- 
 gear and clothes wet with the moisture such close 
 quarters produced. Everything inside was thawing. 
 Soon after, masses of snow falling down through a 
 number of rents in the side and roof of the excavation, 
 he began to think they would be smothered alive. But 
 while thinking about it, he went to sleep again, leav- 
 ing Frederick snorting as before. Just how long they 
 slept in that snow-bank, they did not know, but when 
 they did wake up and try to emerge, they found them- 
 selves completely snowed in, and only got out by vig- 
 orous use of their knives, so hard and compact had 
 the ice and snow become. Frederick being able to 
 understand only signs and a very few words chiefly 
 referring to food, their conversation was very limited. 
 They found the dogs and sledge almost buried in 
 snow. Hastily harnessing up, they reached the Boat 
 Camp on Newman's Bay at noon. Here they again 
 went into camp by digging into a snow-bank and cov- 
 ering the hole with the tent. " Skaffer," or eating, 
 being first in order, they supplied themselves by thaw- 
 ing their prepared roast. Then they had a smoke — 
 that great solace of the traveler in every clime. Snow- 
 
150 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 houses and snow-holes, they concluded, haye many 
 objections, but they always haye the merit of being 
 warm. Feeling uneasy about Brainard and his par- 
 ty, imagining all manner of things about them, at 
 9 p. m., Lockwood left everything behind and went 
 forth with dogs and sledge to hunt them up, and at 
 midnight met them valiantly struggling along toward 
 the Boat Camp. They had found shelter from the 
 storm behind a large, friendly floe-berg, where the 
 tent could stand. On the 10th, preceding them, he 
 picked up the bags of pemmican he had put off, and 
 returned to Boat Camp, where they came also and 
 burrowed in the snow. All thus found themselves 
 at their first station. Jewell, being originally of the 
 party of the dog-sledge, lodged and fed with them 
 when together, he sleeping in a single bag, and Lock- 
 wood and Frederick together. "It was," Lockwood 
 remarks, " a choice of evils which to prefer — Frederick 
 groaning like a piece of machinery, or Jewell always 
 getting the stockings and wraps mixed up, and invari- 
 ably laying hold of the dry ones as his own." 
 
 " Snow-holes," he again says, "having the insu- 
 perable objection of asphyxiation, we repaired the 
 tents and returned to civilization — that is, went 
 really into camp. "Whistler and Bender were found 
 completely done up this morning both in flesh and 
 spirits — all kinds of pains, shortness of breath, spit- 
 ting of blood, faintness. Not being enthusiastic about 
 going farther, I deemed it best to send them back, 
 and they left at once for the station." 
 
 They now had several things to look to before go- 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 151 
 
 ing farther — to bring up the rations sent across to 
 the Gap, also to bring oyer those left at the tent on 
 the straits. 
 
 At midnight, Brainard and party, with three 
 Hudson Bay sledges, started on this work, and Lock- 
 wood left two hours after, with a dog-sledge and Fred- 
 erick, for the same purpose. Taking advantage of 
 smooth ice, interrupted now and then outside the pack 
 near shore, he soon overhauled Brainard, and they 
 reached the Gap together. There they found the boat, 
 which had been sent over with so much labor, a com- 
 plete wreck. They, however, placed it out of reach 
 of further damage, as it might yet become important 
 to them. They then went into camp by going into a 
 snow-burrow prepared there some weeks before when 
 the boat had been brought over, and proceeded to 
 have a feast, which possessed at least one merit, that 
 of being enough, for Lockwood did not deem it neces- 
 sary to adhere strictly to sledge rations till they had 
 left their base of supplies. Leaving the others to load 
 up and return to Boat Camp, he and Frederick left 
 with the dog-sledge for the food put out on the straits 
 en route. Part of this they took up and then joined 
 the others at Boat Camp, men and dogs well spent 
 and tired ; but a good meal, a good smoke, and a 
 snooze in their bags, set them all right. 
 
 Their number was now reduced to nine, two hav- 
 ing been sent back soon after leaving the snow-house 
 (Depot "B"), and two from Boat Camp. The Hud- 
 son Bay sledges were much worn, and likely to become 
 useless. Lockwood now determined to return to the 
 
152 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 main station for new runners, leaving the men under 
 Brainard to bring up the supplies still out, and other- 
 wise make ready for the advance. The round trip 
 would be one hundred miles, and would add much 
 to the labor of the dogs, but there was no help for it, 
 as he could take no chances on the threshold of the 
 long journey before them. 
 
 Soon after making this resolve, he and Frederick 
 got off with their team, carrying nothing but an axe 
 and half a pound of tobacco. The dogs were in fine 
 condition, notwithstanding their recent hard work. 
 True, they supplemented their rations and thus 
 added to their strength by stealing thirty-five pounds 
 of bacon ! tf<r It is wonderful," Lockwood here re- 
 marks, "what these Esquimaux dogs can do. This 
 team, which was regarded as a scrub affair — Dr. Pavy 
 having had his pick of dogs — hauled ice all through 
 the winter, made a trip beyond Cape Beechy in Feb- 
 ruary, another to Thank-God-Harbor and Newman's 
 Bay in March, and then hauled a load to Lincoln 
 Bay and four days after started on this present trip ; 
 yet now they travel along as lively as ever — so lively 
 that the driver finds it difficult to keep up." 
 
 They duly reached the station, and, of course, 
 Greely and all were surprised to see them, probably 
 taking them for another cargo of cripples. After a 
 good sleep and a feast, they were off on their return 
 at 10 p. m. of the 14th. They took on the runners, a 
 feed of walrus-meat, a few other trifles, and also a 
 heliograph, the last to open communication in case of 
 delay or disaster. Stopping six hours at the snow- 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 153 
 
 house to rest and feed, they started across the strait 
 with a small load of meat, and, notwithstanding 
 some rubble-ice which delayed them, reached the 
 Boat Camp at 5.30 p. m., very tired and very sleepy, 
 too, having accomplished this remarkable journey of \ 
 one hundred miles in fifty-four hours. During their 
 absence, Brainard had brought in everything, and 
 all was ready for the advance as soon as they could 
 repair the sledges. 
 
 After repairing and rebuilding, they had for the 
 trip : 
 
 1. Dog-sledge, Lieutenant Lockwood and Esqui- 
 maux Frederick ; total weight, 743 pounds. 
 
 2. Large sledge (the "JSTares"), drawn by Ser- 
 geants Brainard and Ralston and Corporal Saler; 
 estimated total weight, 651 pounds. 
 
 3. Hudson Bay sledge ("Hall"), drawn by Ser- 
 geant Jewell and private Fredericks ; estimated total 
 weight, 300 pounds. 
 
 4. Hudson Bay sledge ("Hayes"), drawn by Ser- 
 geant Lynn and Corporal Ellison ; estimated total 
 weight, 300 pounds. 
 
 Of this weight, 225 pounds was of equipments, 
 independent of weight of sledges, and 900 pounds, of 
 food for men and dogs. 
 
 At 10.30 p. m., they left the Boat Camp and 
 crossed Newman's Bay, to a ravine, or narrow valley, 
 directly opposite, which the lieutenant called Gorge 
 Creek after finding it was not the route he had taken 
 it for — that of Beaumont's return. The others being 
 far behind, he left the sledge and proceeded on alone 
 
154 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 to explore. Passing through a narrow gap, the val- 
 ley widened out as before, in some places the exposed 
 stones offering a serious obstacle to heavily laden 
 sledges. Keturning, he and Frederick went back 
 with the team and assisted in bringing up the foot- 
 sledges. Then, after an advance of ten miles in eight 
 hours, all went into camp again. Leaving the camp 
 at 10 p. m., and doubling up from the start, they 
 made their way up the valley, through the gap, and 
 to the head of the valley beyond. They found the 
 exposed stones so annoying that Lockwood regretted 
 often he had not taken the route round Cape Bre- 
 voort, notwithstanding the rubble-ice. Though Lock- 
 wood felt confident he had reached the divide, yet, 
 throwing off the load, he sent Frederick with the team 
 back to assist the others, while he went ahead to fur- 
 ther reconnoitre. Although he ascended a high hill, 
 he could see little encouraging beyond. He returned 
 to the load and continued down-stream until he met the 
 others painfully advancing, when all went into camp, 
 after making an advance of six miles in eight hours. 
 
 Got off again with half -load at 10 p. m. Preced- 
 ing the others, Lockwood and Frederick made their 
 way over slightly undulating plains, keeping as far as 
 possible northward until they came to a decided de- 
 pression in that direction, sometimes following blind 
 leads, and then returning and continuing on their 
 former way. Lockwood finally saw before him the 
 crest of the bluff of a water-course, gaining which he 
 found to his joy a stream running north, which he 
 entered. Though filled with snow, it afforded good 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 155 
 
 traveling for the dog team. Continuing down this 
 stream, he passed between two large masses of rock 
 like a gateway. Here was a regular canon as straight 
 as a street and nearly level, whose sides were almost 
 perpendicular and extremely picturesque. Seeing no 
 signs of the sea, he resolved to camp here. To this 
 end, throwing off the half load, he went back for that 
 left behind, expecting to meet the foot-sledges on the 
 way. Disappointed in this, he returned to the ravine, 
 and at 6 p.m. he and Frederick were into their sleep- 
 ing-bags, feeling much uneasiness about their route, 
 for they had already traveled a much greater distance 
 than the English maps called for as lying between 
 Newman's Bay and the north coast. 
 
 Although the men with the drag-sledges had not 
 come up, Lockwood resolved to leave everything be- 
 hind and go ahead down the canon with the empty 
 sledge till assured that he was en route to the sea by 
 finding the sea itself. Carrying out this resolve at 
 10 A. M., the canon soon widened into a valley, with 
 deep, soft snow-bed or stones, and inclosed by lofty 
 mountains. He crossed this, and came to a gorge 
 like a railroad-cutting, through which the stream 
 ran. Ascending an adjacent hill, before him lay what 
 seemed an extended plain, which he recognized as the 
 sea, from a line of floe-bergs marking the coast. 
 
 Just where they were, he did not know, nor did he 
 find out till their return. The sea had been found, 
 so now they were to find and bring up the men and 
 sledges. Lockwood and Frederick, with the wearied 
 team, rapidly went back and happily found the ab- 
 
156 FARTHEST NOETH. 
 
 sent ones, safely, if not comfortably, camped along- 
 side their load. 
 
 All broke camp at 7 p. m. and proceeded to bring 
 up such of the impedimenta as had been left behind ; 
 after which they made their way with great labor 
 through the canon, valley, and gorge to the sea, reach- 
 ing there, at 4 a. m. of the 22d, with everything ex- 
 cept a seal-skin mit, which got adrift and went flying 
 before the wind over the hills like a bird ; for a terrific 
 snow-storm was then raging. They found great dif- 
 ficulty in making the tents stand, and, indeed, aban- 
 doned the attempt except as to one, into which they all 
 huddled to weather out the storm. The cooking was 
 confined to making a little tepid tea. They remained 
 in their bags, sleeping at intervals, and even going 
 without food and water rather than venture out. 
 
 Finally, on the morning of the 23d, the storm had 
 abated, and they ventured out, to find that the dogs 
 had taken advantage of the circumstances to eat up 
 twenty pounds of bacon and twelve pounds of beef, 
 although these had been secured, as was supposed, at 
 the bottom of a sledge. They had also eaten a 
 seal-skin mitten. After some repairs to the sledges, 
 which had suffered by the stony route passed over, 
 they proceeded on their way along the coast, keeping 
 on the ice-foot which here ran along a low, sloping 
 shore backed by a range of hills. At Drift Point, 
 the snow formed steep slopes, extending from the 
 bluffs (now near the sea) to the tops of the line of 
 floe-bergs along shore. There, the sledge "Nares" 
 breaking down, it was necessary to abandon it and 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 157 
 
 increase the loads on the other sledges, carrying 
 along the good parts of the "ISTares" to repair the 
 others when needful. Doubling up, they made 
 their way along those steep slopes until near Black 
 Horn Cliffs. Here the slopes became so abrupt that 
 they were driven on to the rubble-ice near the shore. 
 So difficult was their way over this with the heavily 
 loaded sledges, that in many places by standing pulls 
 only could progress be made. Near these cliffs they 
 went into camp after bringing up the half -loads left 
 behind, having advanced five miles in eight and a half 
 hours. Leaving half their stuff, they then made their 
 way over the rubble-ice, frequently using the axe, till 
 they came to the end of the cliffs, when the sledges 
 went back for the rest of the stuff, while Lockwood 
 looked for a more practicable route. Off shore, half 
 a mile seaward, he found a fair route, following 
 which he reached Cape Stanton. He thought Stan- 
 ton Gorge, where Beaumont had left forty rations, to 
 be near. These, however, he failed to find. After 
 taking a short nap in the lee of a hummock, he re- 
 turned to find Frederick and the dog-sledge. The 
 others coming up, all went into camp fully tired 
 out, for, besides the roughness of the ice, they had 
 encountered a stiff wind. Two ptarmigans were seen 
 near Cape Stanton. 
 
 On the 25th of April Frederick declined break- 
 fast — evidence of something wrong with him. Lock- 
 wood, therefore, resolved to go up to a gorge he had 
 seen the previous day, and there go into camp and lie 
 over a day. Frederick could hardly walk, and hence 
 
158 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 rode when it was possible. Finding a snow-slope 
 inside the hummocks, they made good progress and 
 reached "Gorge Best" in one hour. In the mean 
 while the sun came out, and the air became calm and 
 warm, affording a good opportunity for drying wet 
 clothes and bags. Lockwood gave a drink of brandy 
 to Frederick, and then displayed Mrs. Greely's silk 
 flag, as they had now attained a point higher than 
 any American had before reached. In the afternoon, 
 Jewell and Ealston succeeded in finding Beaumont's 
 cache farther on, and, as proof of their discovery, 
 brought back a can of rum marked " Bloodhound," 
 the name of his sledge. It was about there that his 
 first man was sent back with the scurvy. Afterward, 
 when all but two had the disease, they had to go on 
 or die in the traces. 
 
 On the 26th, Frederick was well, otherwise he 
 would have been sent back. They built a cache and 
 left one day's ration for men and dogs ; also, to lighten 
 load, snow-shoes, head and foot gear, blankets, indeed 
 everything they could do without. They reached Stan- 
 ton Gorge, dropped load, and Frederick was sent back 
 with the team for the rest of their stuff. The men 
 came in without doubling, having also found Beau- 
 mont's cache on a high hill. They all agreed that such 
 unnecessary labor was enough to bring on the scurvy. 
 They found there fifty-six pounds of pemmican, ten 
 pounds of bacon, and a large box containing bread, 
 potatoes, chocolate, tea, sugar, onion-powder, and 
 stearin e used for fuel, all of which were taken on to 
 Cape Bryant. Beyond this point, to Cape Stanton, 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 159 
 
 their route lay along the foot of steep snow-slopes 
 beneath the cliffs, with lines of floe- bergs and hum- 
 mocks outside, and was exceedingly rough. Lockwood 
 and Frederick, after crossing Hand Bay, passed the 
 men moving slowly and laboriously. Their troubles 
 were increased by frequent upsettings of the sledges 
 along the slope and by the friction of the splintered 
 bottoms owing to the runners cutting through. 
 
 It was not till 8 p. m. that they all reached Frank- 
 field Bay, and, thoroughly tired out, went into camp, 
 after an advance of nine miles in thirteen hours. 
 
 Here they cached one day's rations for all, and 
 then traveled along the low shore which skirted the 
 base of Mount Lowe, and came upon the snow-covered 
 surface of Frankfield Bay, a small and pretty harbor 
 surrounded by steep mountains. Beyond this bay, 
 they crossed a spit of land, going up a steep slope, and 
 down another equally steep at a run. There they 
 threw off a half load and went back for the rest. 
 Afterward all proceeded with half-loads, Lockwood 
 taking his post at the traces and pulling with the 
 men. After a while he dropped off to help Frederick, 
 while the men went on to Cape Bryant. Taking ad- 
 vantage of an interval of leisure, he got out the lamp 
 and made just two pint-cups of tea for Frederick and 
 himself. "Of all the occasions," he says, "when a 
 draught of tea tasted particularly good, none like this 
 lingers in my memory. Though without milk and 
 with very little sugar, it tasted like nectar. In fact, 
 as the gods never undertook any Arctic sledge-jour- 
 neys, their nectar was not half so delicious." 
 
160 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 On the 27th, Lockwood shot five ptarmigans or 
 Arctic quails. Sitting on a floe-berg, they were scarce- 
 ly distinguishable from the snow. The traveling on 
 that day was on the whole fair ; yet so heavily were 
 the sledges loaded, and so much worn, that when, 
 after making fifteen miles in twelve hours, they 
 reached Cape Bryant at 8.30 p. m., both men and dogs 
 were nearly exhausted. To add to their joylessness, 
 they had to be very sparing of their rations. Cracker- 
 dust was with them the grand panacea for short ra- 
 tions. This went into every stew, was mixed with 
 their tea, and was even taken alone, and found to be 
 very filling. By its aid, they persuaded themselves 
 that the short allowance was a hearty repast. 
 
 On the 28th, Brainard and others made an unsuc- 
 cessful search for a cache left there by Beaumont, but 
 got a good view of Cape Britannia from a high cliff. 
 Lockwood and Jewell also saw it from a height back 
 of the camp. Beaumont had seen Cape Britannia, 
 but never reached it. He got only thirty miles far- 
 ther than Cape Bryant ; that is, to the opposite side 
 of the fiord which here appears, and which they called 
 "Beaumont's Fiord." While Frederick brought up 
 some stores left behind, Lockwood busied himself 
 with many details connected with his further advance 
 toward the north, for now his supports were to leave 
 him and return to the Boat Camp, while Brainard, 
 Frederick, and himself, with the dog-sledge, were to 
 proceed alone. 
 
 Lockwood now satisfied himself by a careful in- 
 spection of the sledges that the supporting party 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 161 
 
 could go no farther, especially as some of the men 
 were suffering with snow-blindness. He therefore 
 broke up one of the sledges, and with it repaired the 
 remaining drag-sledge and the dog-sledge. Brainard, 
 also suffering with snow-blindness, remained in the 
 tent, while Lockwood with the others built a cache 
 and deposited therein the Beaumont stores and such 
 others as they could not take on. Food for the return 
 party to Boat Camp haying been dropped en route, 
 he decided to take with him twenty-five days' rations. 
 Hence their advance must be limited to the time these 
 rations would feed them, going northeast and return- 
 ing to Cape Bryant. 
 
 He started, therefore, with — 
 
 Men-rations, weighing 230 pounds. 
 
 Dog-pemmican, weighing 300 " 
 
 Equipments, weighing 176 " 
 
 Dog-sledge, weighing 80 " 
 
 Total 788 " 
 
 or about 98 pounds to each dog. 
 
 The weather, though cold, causing some frost- 
 bites, had been beautiful during their stay here. The 
 men had done their parts well, and had endured un- 
 complainingly much hard work, hardship, and expos- 
 ure. The supporting party left at 4 p. m., after hearty 
 hand-shaking and wishing good luck to Lockwood, 
 Brainard, and Frederick, leaving the three lonely and 
 depressed on that desolate shore. 
 
 And now, as the returning party disappeared in 
 
162 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 the distance, the explorers turned toward Cape Bri- 
 tannia. Although they started with a yery heavy load, 
 yet the traveling was fine, and, all three pushing, 
 they made rapid progress, haying Cape May directly 
 ahead and across the fiord. The dogs seemed to ob- 
 ject to going oyer the sea, and kept deflecting con- 
 stantly to the right, the only difficulty arising from 
 the deepening of the snow and its becoming soft. 
 When they got stuck, Brainard would pull at the 
 traces, while Lockwood would push at the ujDstand, 
 and Frederick diyide his energies between helping 
 them and inducing the dogs to do so. 
 
 At 1 A. m. on April 30th, they camped on the fiord, 
 well satisfied with their advance of sixteen miles in 
 eight hours without once doubling. 
 
 Moving off at 5 p. m. with full load, they had not 
 gone far before they were forced to throw off half of 
 it, and soon with this half they found it difficult to 
 get along, for the sledge would sink down to the slats 
 and the men to their knees through the deep, soft 
 snow. Lockwood could fully appreciate poor Brain- 
 ard' s efforts and labors in a fiord at the southwest, 
 when he crawled through snow waist-deep, and on 
 hands and knees, for two hundred yards. At 9 p. m. 
 they came to hummocks, pitched tent, threw off load, 
 and, while Lockwood prepared supper, the others went 
 back with the team to bring up what they had thrown 
 off. They had to adhere strictly to the allowance, for 
 they had rations for just so many days. They had 
 advanced six miles in seven hours and three quarters. 
 
 They started again the next morning with full 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 163 
 
 load, but soon had to pitch off again. Had better 
 traveling, on the whole, than on the previous day, 
 though meeting with ranges of old floes and hum- 
 mocks filled in with snow. Shortly after midnight, 
 they came abreast Cape May, the desire of Beaumont, 
 but which, with his crew broken down with scurvy, 
 and with heavy sledges loaded down with all kinds of 
 equipments, he never attained. The party pitched 
 tent near an immense floe extending as far back as the 
 eye could reach. Brainard and Frederick went back 
 for the dismounted stuff, while Lockwood turned cook 
 again, the first thing being to pulverize a lot of ice and 
 set it on the lamp to melt. Cape Britannia and Beau- 
 mont Island were very distinctly seen, the latter from 
 refraction double. Their allowance of alcohol was a 
 constant source of trouble. They could not afford 
 meat for both breakfast and supper, hence their sup- 
 per consisted of tea, cracker-dust, and bean-stew. 
 Advanced twelve miles in fourteen hours. 
 
 Lockwood and Brainard now took turns in cook- 
 ing, Frederick being excused. The two former did 
 not sleep well, and, as usual, the Esquimaux blew his 
 trumpet loudly, but not sweetly. They left at 7 p. m. 
 with full load, but as usual threw off a portion, leaving 
 Brainard with it. Toward midnight they came to 
 an open crack in the ice ten feet wide, through which 
 sea-water could be seen below, and had to follow it 
 several hundred yards before coming to a crossing. 
 Thinking this a favorable chance to get a deep-sea 
 sounding, they threw off the load, and Frederick went 
 back for Brainard and the balance of the stores, while 
 
164 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Lockwood got into a sleeping-bag and read "King 
 Lear " until their return. In sounding, they ran out 
 all the line they had, then four coils of seal-thongs, 
 then some rope, and finally Frederick's dog-whip, 
 and got no bottom at eight hundred and twenty feet. 
 They began to haul up after debating whether they 
 should not risk the dog-traces, when, presto ! the rope 
 broke, and all below was lost. Leaving their treasures 
 in the deep, they moved on with half-load oyer a low 
 line of hummocky ice haying the same general direc- 
 tion as the crack, namely, toward Beaumont's Island. 
 Beyond was an unbroken field of snow extending ap- 
 parently to Cape Britannia. Ice being required for 
 supper, they went into camp on the hummocks, going 
 back, however, for the stores left behind, having ad- 
 vanced eight miles in ten hours. 
 
 After taking bearings, they broke camp at 4 p. m., 
 and, with a full load, proceeded over the level snow- 
 field, broken here and there only by hummocks trend- 
 ing in a curve toward Cape Britannia. Until mid- 
 night the snow-crust sustained the sledge, but after 
 that, failing to do so, they had to reduce load. Wind 
 and snow coming on, they camped near a small ice- 
 mound, after advancing fourteen miles in fourteen 
 hours, and again brought up the stores left behind. 
 
 The next morning proved clear and calm, and gave 
 them a full view of the long-desired cape, which they 
 reached at 8 p. m., pitching tent on the ice-foot— 
 four miles in one hour and a half. Lockwood had 
 read so much of scurvy, deep snows, etc., as associated 
 with sledge-journeys in the experience of the English 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 165 
 
 expedition, that he had come to regard them as insep- 
 arable from such enterprises. Yet here they were, at 
 a point which Beaumont saw only from afar, without 
 the first and without serious difficulty from the others. 
 Cape Britannia had been the ultima Thule of Beau- 
 mont's hopes, and quite as far as Lieutenant Greely 
 expected Lockwood to reach. But he was able to go 
 much farther, and would do so. He built a cairn, and 
 deposited a record of their journey to date, also rations 
 for five days for use on their return, the spare sledge- 
 runner, and everything they could do without. Leav- 
 ing Frederick to see that the dogs did not eat up the 
 tent and everything in it, Lockwood and Brainard 
 climbed the adjacent mountain, two thousand and 
 fifty feet high, to view the magnificent prospect spread 
 out before them from that point. "We seemed," 
 Lockwood writes, "to be on an island terminating 
 some miles to the north in a rocky headland. To the 
 northeast, seemingly twenty miles away, was a dark 
 promontory stretching out into the Polar Ocean, and 
 limiting the view in that direction. Intermediate, 
 were several islands separated by vast, dreary fiords, 
 stretching indefinitely southward. Extending half- 
 -way round the horizon, the eye rested on nothing but 
 the ice of the Polar Sea ; in-shore, composed of level 
 floes, but beyond, of ridges and masses of the rough- 
 est kind of ice. The whole panorama was grand, but 
 dreary and desolate in the extreme. After erecting a 
 monument, we were glad to escape the cold wind by 
 returning." 
 
 While here, Lockwood took several astronomical 
 
166 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 observations. They broke camp at 7 p. m., and trav- 
 eled northward over smooth ice free from snow, to 
 the promontory, where they came in sight of the dis- 
 tant headland northeast, which they had seen from 
 the mountain-top. Hearing a low, moaning sound, 
 and looking to the north, they saw a line of hum- 
 mocks, and near it their old acquaintance, the tidal 
 crack, stretching in one direction toward Beaumont 
 Island, and in the other, curving toward Black Cape, 
 as Lockwood named the headland northeast of them. 
 Repairing their sledge, which had given way, they 
 proceeded toward this headland, having fairly good 
 traveling though somewhat obstructed by soft and 
 deep snow, and camped at midnight near a hummock 
 and not far from the crack, from which Frederick 
 tried, without success, to get a seal. This would 
 have relieved his mortified feelings at the loss of a 
 ptarmigan he had shot at the cape, and which Riten- 
 bank had stolen. Took observations for latitude and 
 longitude before turning into their sleeping-bags. 
 Advanced eleven miles in five hours. 
 
 The observations were repeated next morning, and 
 they then went on their course. After going a con- 
 siderable distance, they halted to rest and to view 
 the tide-crack, now near them and about one hun- 
 dred yards across, filled in here and there with young 
 ice or detached masses. This crack was incomprehen- 
 sible, differing from those seen in the straits, which 
 were near shore and so narrow as to attract little at- 
 tention. Frederick gave Lockwood to understand by 
 signs and gestures that after a while the ice outside, 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 167 
 
 or north of the crack, would moye off seaward. Ee- 
 suming their way, they soon after passed Blue Cape, 
 and thence crossing a small fiord got to Black Cape, 
 the bold, rocky headland they had seen from the 
 mountain. Beyond Black Cape, and in the same gen- 
 eral direction, but seen indistinctly, appeared a dark, 
 rocky cape, which Lockwood called Distant Cape, 
 because, seeming so near, it was yet so far, as they 
 afterward found. At Black Cape were seen bear- 
 tracks, also those of the fox, hare, and lemming, in 
 great numbers. The tide-crack here came near the 
 shore, and then extended directly across to the next 
 cape. The ice along shore indicated having sus- 
 tained enormous pressure. Great bergs and hum- 
 mocks, weighing thousands of tons, had been pushed 
 upon the ice-foot like pebbles. 
 
 The ice-foot offering better traveling, they fol- 
 lowed that course, though it took them somewhat 
 away from Distant Cape. Leaving it, they crossed 
 what seemed to them a little bay, but it took them 
 one hour and a half to reach the cape on the farther 
 side. Seeing a large fiord intervening between them 
 and Distant Cape which they had wished to reach 
 before encamping, they gave up the effort and pitched 
 their tent. Soon after, Frederick shot a hare, but 
 only wounding him, they had to expend all their re- 
 maining strength in running him down. But food 
 was now everything, and they spared neither the hare 
 nor themselves. They called that point Eabbit Point, 
 in memory of the friend who served them a good turn. 
 
 Advanced seventeen miles in ten hours. 
 8 
 
168 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Haying, on account of a snow-storm, failed to get 
 the sun on the south meridian, Lockwood waited un- 
 til it should come round to the north meridian, as 
 this matter of observations was important, and diffi- 
 cult to attend to en route. In the mean time, they 
 cached some rations. Saw some ptarmigans, but 
 failed to shoot them. Left near midnight, and hay- 
 ing crossed the hummocks thrust in against all these 
 capes, reached the level surface of an immense bay 
 which they were two and one quarter hours in cross- 
 ing, after untold labor and fatigue, through deep 
 snow, so wet that they seemed to be wading through 
 soft clay. They reached the opposite shore, bathed in 
 perspiration, Lockwood going in advance to encour- 
 age the dogs. Sometimes they went down waist-deep. 
 The mass of hummocks came up so near the cliffs as 
 to force the travelers outside. Still, Distant Cape was 
 farther on, with a fiord intervening. At four o'clock, 
 they reached this long-sought point, and looked ahead 
 to see what lay beyond. Away off in the same general 
 direction (northeast) was seen another headland, sepa- 
 rated from them by a number of fiords and capes, 
 which lay on an arc connecting Distant Cape with 
 that in the far distance. Inclining to the right, they 
 made their way toward one of these intermediate 
 capes. Sometimes seeing it and sometimes not, they 
 finally reached it at 6 a. m., and, being unable to see 
 anything ahead, went into camp. Soon afterward a 
 pyramidal island loomed up through the storm in the 
 northeast. They enjoyed part of their rabbit for sup- 
 per, almost raw, for they had no alcohol to waste on 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 169 
 
 luxuries, arid carefully laid away the other half for 
 further indulgence. But Eitenbank saw that half 
 rabbit stowed away, and he too liked rabbit, as will 
 be seen. After supper Lockwood made observations, 
 and of trials and tribulations this was not the least. 
 Face chilled, fingers frozen, and sun so low as to re- 
 quire him to lie in the snow ; the sun like a grease- 
 spot in the heavens, and refusing to be reflected ; 
 snow-drifts over artificial horizon cover ; sextant 
 mirrors becoming obscure, vernier clouded, tangent- 
 screw too stiff to work ; then, when one had nearly 
 secured a contact, some dog interposing his ugly body 
 or stirring up the snow ; such were some of the diffi- 
 culties to be overcome. Still, these observations must 
 be made, and carefully and correctly made, or other- 
 wise the chief value of the expedition would be lost. 
 They secured double sets of observations here, which 
 delayed them, but got on 2 near midnight from this 
 cape, which Lockwood called Low Point, and made 
 good time toward the dim headland at the northeast. 
 In two hours and a half they reached the cape, which 
 he named Surprise, because they came upon it unex- 
 pectedly looming up through the gloom. Beyond 
 and to the right was seen through the storm a dome- 
 capped island, the inevitable inlet intervening. The 
 traveling proving good, they reached it at four, and 
 found it to be the end of a long line of grand, high, 
 rocky cliffs, bearing far to the south. 
 
 The ice-foot here being free from snow, the 
 dogs took the sledge along at a trot, and the ex- 
 plorers rode by turns — the first time since leaving 
 
170 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Boat Camp. The trend of the coast-line becoming 
 nearly east, Lockwood began to think the time had 
 come for leaving the coast and striking off directly 
 toward the pole, as arranged for in his orders. As this 
 was a matter requiring full consideration, he stopped 
 to get an observation, bat, defeated in this by the 
 drifting snow, they went into camp at 6 A. m., having 
 advanced seventeen miles in less than seven hours. 
 
 After sleeping, Lockwood rose to take observa- 
 tions. While so doing, and hence out of the tent, he 
 heard a noise in it, and suspected mischief. Sure 
 enough, there was that old thief, Eitenbank, coolly 
 eating up the remains of the rabbit they had kept for 
 a second feast. A dash and a blow, and the dog 
 scampered off, dropping part of the animal in his 
 flight. They had reached the state of not being par- 
 ticular about what they ate, so they gathered up the 
 remains and ate them on the spot. 
 
 Eesuming their journey at 1 A. M., they traveled 
 under a long line of high cliffs, with hills in the 
 rear. The travel was excellent, but the weather 
 abominable— high winds, with falling and drifting 
 snow. After three hours of progress in an easterly 
 course, a headland was seen obliquely to their left, 
 between which and themselves lay a wide fiord. Aft- 
 er an observation of the sun, they struck directly 
 across this fiord for the headland in question, which 
 they finally reached after repeatedly losing themselves 
 in the mist and gloom. Here they stopped awhile 
 to eat pemmican and view the surroundings. Found 
 many rabbit-tracks, but saw none of the animals. In 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 171 
 
 Arctic traveling, one craves warm meat, but seldom 
 gets any but that which is frozen. Continuing along 
 this coast over a good ice-foot, they were pleased to 
 see on their left a small island with a high, narrow 
 ledge, a few hundred yards long. This they reached 
 and went to the north side or end of it. Mist and 
 snow shutting in the land farther on, and also that 
 already passed, they camped, having advanced twenty- 
 two miles in nine and a half hours. 
 
 Finding traveling so troublesome in the storm, and 
 much difficulty in getting observations, Lockwood re- 
 solved to remain there for better weather, all sleeping 
 as much and eating as little as possible. Indeed, Brain- 
 ard agreed with Lockwood that, if the easterly trend of 
 the coast should continue, they had better spend their 
 time in going directly north over the sea. On the 11th, 
 it being still stormy and no other land in sight, they 
 remained in their sleeping-bags on the island, which 
 from its shape was first called "Shoe Island," but 
 afterward "Mary Murray." All of them suffered 
 greatly with cold feet in the mean while ; and, although 
 Lockwood's feet were wrapped in blankets, furs, and 
 socks, they were like lumps of ice. To husband their 
 few rations, they had eaten very little of late, and 
 doubtless to this may be attributed their cold feet. 
 The dogs were ravenous for food. When feeding-time 
 came, it was amid blows from the men and fights 
 among the dogs that the distribution was made. Old 
 Howler was conspicuous on these occasions. That he 
 might secure all he could, he bolted ball after ball of 
 the frozen mass, and then would wander around, ut- 
 
172 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 tering the most unearthly howls while the mass was 
 melting in his stomach. He was, indeed, a character. 
 He had an air of utter weariness and dejection, as well 
 he might, for who can be more miserable than the de- 
 throned monarch, jeered, cuffed, and condemned by 
 his late subjects ? One day one of the dogs swallowed 
 a live lemming, and the little animal went squealing 
 all the way down to the corporation. 
 
 The weather clearing up a little the next morning, 
 Lockwood took sun observations, and soon after saw a 
 cape with very high land behind it, at the northeast. 
 But the storm setting in again, they could not attempt 
 to cross the mouth of the deep fiord intervening be- 
 tween them and the cape until nearly two hours after 
 midnight. The traveling being good, and aided by a 
 high wind, they made good time across the fiord toward 
 the cape, alternately visible and invisible, and reached 
 it in two hours. This cape proved to be the extremity 
 of a line of high, rocky cliffs, stretching toward the 
 southeast. Here they found the ice-foot entirely 
 obstructed by lines of floe-bergs and hummocks 
 pressed up nearly to the foot of the cliff, and to add 
 to their difficulty, the tide-crack ran here close to the 
 cape. With great labor they got the dogs and sledge 
 upon a hummock, thence along its surface, using the 
 axe, and finally lowered them down again, and, by a 
 bridge over the crack, gained a level floe half a mile 
 beyond the cape. There, finding a branch crack 
 twelve or fifteen feet wide, Frederick went forth to 
 seek a crossing, while Lockwood and Brainard ob- 
 tained a peep at the sun for position. The fog rising, 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 173 
 
 the grandest view they had yet seen was suddenly dis- 
 closed. To their right were seen the high cliffs con- 
 nected with the cape just passed, bending to the 
 southeast to form an inlet. Away beyond and across 
 this inlet, and east of them, was the farther shore — 
 a line of very high cliffs, terminating in a bold head- 
 land northeast of their position. Back of the cape 
 and cliffs, the land became higher and higher, till, just 
 east of the travelers, stood a peak apparently four thou- 
 sand feet high. Between them and the cliffs below the 
 peak was seen an island of pyramidal shape and quite 
 high. The explorers made good time toward it, over 
 a level floe, as some hummocks and tide-cracks at the 
 mouth of the inlet prevented them from going direct 
 to the cape. Thence, after a short rest and a relish of 
 pemmican, they took their way toward the cape, now 
 standing nearly north of them. Soon the snow be- 
 came so deep and soft that the sledge often sank be- 
 low the slats, the dogs to their bellies, and the men to 
 their knees. Fortunately, the load was very light, 
 and yet, had not the deep snow soon after become 
 dry and feathery, they could not have proceeded. It 
 was then that Lockwood promised himself never to 
 undertake another sledge- journey, a resolve afterward 
 easily forgotten when in camp with a full stomach. 
 Time, rest, plenty to eat, and a good smoke, some- 
 times make philosophers, was the reflection recorded. 
 About noon, after changing their course around an 
 easterly bend of the cliff, they came to what might be 
 regarded as the northern extremity of the cape, be- 
 yond which lay the inevitable fiord. Here they 
 
174 FARTHEST NORTH 
 
 camped on the ice-foot, below a mass of picturesquely 
 colored rocky cliffs, and essayed, but failed, to get obser- 
 vations. Their advance was sixteen miles in ten hours. 
 
 On the 14fch of May, occurred a storm so violent 
 that it seemed as if the tent must be blown down. 
 Eitenbank took advantage of it to burrow under the 
 tent and lay hold of a bag of pemmican, but a timely 
 blow on his snout " saved their bacon." After dis- 
 cussion with Brainard, Lockwood concluded to go no 
 farther, as their remaining rations would hardly suf- 
 fice to enable them satisfactorily to determine their 
 present position. While waiting for the sun that this 
 might be done, they improvised a checker-board from 
 the chopping-board, and played some games. After 
 a while, finding that the cliffs somewhat interfered 
 with the observations, they moved the tent farther 
 west, stopping to build a cairn, large and conspicu- 
 ous, and depositing a full record of their journey and 
 a thermometer. This cairn stood on a little shelf 
 or terrace below the top of the cliff. Brainard also 
 cut "XXX Bitters" on the highest rock of the cliff 
 he could reach, Lockwood telling him he only want- 
 ed to get a bottle for nothing on the strength of 
 his advertisement. They were engaged until mid- 
 night, chiefly in taking observations and in collecting 
 specimens of rocks and vegetation. Some snow-birds 
 were seen. 
 
 The next morning the weather became warm, 
 beautiful, and delightful, the sun bright and sky 
 clear, and there was no wind — surely a bit of sunshine 
 in a shady place. 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. 175 
 
 They took adyantage of this to bring out hand- 
 gear, foot-gear, bags, and rubber blankets to dry, 
 everything having been damp or wet for nearly a 
 week. Lockwood and Brainard got but a few short 
 naps after supper, for it was necessary for one of them 
 to be awake to insure their getting up at the right 
 time to take "double altitudes," etc. They secured 
 a complete set of observations, thirty-six in all. A 
 few hours later, Lockwood and Brainard started to 
 make the ascent of the cliffs and of the height beyond. 
 They gained a considerable elevation, and stood on a 
 little plateau overlooking both sides of the promon- 
 tory, the sea, and a large extent of mountainous coun- 
 try to the south thickly covered with snow. Lock- 
 wood unfurled Mrs. Greely's pretty little silk flag to 
 the breeze, and felt very proud that, on the 15th day 
 of May, 1882, it waved in a higher latitude than was 
 ever before reached by man. By careful astronomical 
 observations under peculiarly favorable circumstances, 
 they found themselves in latitude eighty-three 
 
 DEGREES AND TWENTY-FOUR AND A HALE MINUTES 
 NORTH, LONGITUDE FORTY DEGREES AND FORTY-SIX 
 AND A HALF MINUTES WEST OF GREENWICH, thus 
 
 surpassing the English, who sent the Nares Expedi- 
 tion of 1875-'76, costing upward of a million dollars, 
 for the express purpose of reaching the north pole, 
 and which expedition sent its chief sledge-party di- 
 rectly north over the ice for the purpose of making 
 latitude alone. The view from their lofty station 
 was grand beyond description. At their feet, toward 
 the east, was another of those innumerable fiords, 
 
176 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 a bald headland forming its farther cape, bearing 
 northeast. Seemingly projecting from its foot was a 
 low point of land, doubtless separated from another 
 by still another fiord. This was as far as Lockwood 
 could see in that direction — probably fifteen miles. 
 Thence round toward the north and in the direction 
 of Cape Britannia lay the vast Polar Sea, covered 
 with ice and desolate in the extreme. Toward the 
 south lay a yast panorama of snow-capped mountains, 
 so overlapping and merging one into another that it 
 was impossible to distinguish the topography of the 
 country. They stayed on the top only twenty min- 
 utes, and at 4. 50 reached camp again, greatly to the 
 delight of Frederick. He had seemed a good deal 
 " down at the mouth " of late, which Brainard thought 
 was caused by their long distance from home and the 
 absence of dog-food and "skaffer." Hastily packing 
 up their small load, they started on their return at 
 5.30 p. M. Though taking a more direct course across 
 the first fiord, they met with soft snow, which was 
 very tiresome to pass through. The weather now 
 commenced to cloud up again, threatening another 
 storm. It was yery fortunate that they reached their 
 farthest just in time to take advantage of the thirty 
 hours of fine weather. However, they were now 
 homeward bound, and did not care for storms or any- 
 thing else, provided they could "move on" nor did 
 they require any policeman to help them in that par- 
 ticular. 
 
 And now that Lockwood is returning from his 
 special expedition in safety and good health, a few 
 
EXPEDITION TO LOCKWOOD ISLAND. Iff 
 
 additional facts and a passing reflection on his exploit 
 will not be out of place. Lieutenant Lockwood's 
 motives in undertaking this special expedition, in 
 which he was so successful, he explained in these 
 words: "My great wish is to accomplish something 
 on the north coast of Greenland which will reflect 
 credit on myself and on the expedition. But there 
 are many ifs in the way — many visible contingen- 
 cies on which success depends, as well as many in- 
 visible ones which have never suggested themselves. 
 Among the former, scurvy stands like a giant, and if 
 this giant attacks us, far from accomplishing anything, 
 we may not ourselves get back." As we think of Lock- 
 wood, at the end of his journey, with only two compan- 
 ions, in that land of utter desolation, we are struck with 
 admiration at the courage and manly spirit by which 
 he was inspired. Biting cold, fearful storms, gloomy 
 darkness, the dangers of starvation and sickness, all 
 combined to block his icy pathway, and yet he perse- 
 vered and accomplished his heroic purpose, thereby 
 winning a place in history of which his countrymen 
 may well, and will be, proud to the end of time. 
 Of all the heroic names that have blossomed on the 
 charts of the Arctic seas during the present century, 
 there is not one that will hereafter be mentioned with 
 more pride and enthusiasm than that identified with 
 Lock wood Island, memorable as the nearest point to 
 the north pole ever reached by man. 
 
XII. 
 
 FKOM LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY 
 FKAISTKLW BAY, 
 
 Wheis" returning to Lady Franklin Bay, Lock- 
 wood and his companions* reached Shoe Island short- 
 ly after midnight. They deposited a record in the 
 cairn there, and proceeded to the cape west of the 
 island, where they went into camp, after a retreat 
 of twenty miles in eight hours. Lockwood suffered 
 much from his eyes, having evidently strained them 
 while endeavoring to see the sun during the late 
 stormy weather. The cold food, upon which alone 
 they could depend, seemed to weaken the stomachs 
 of all the party, and yet they plodded on. At Storm 
 Cape, they left the grand line of cliffs behind, and took 
 a compass course across the great fiord, amid a storm 
 as before when they crossed that inlet. As usual, 
 the dogs thought they knew best, and Frederick 
 thought he knew best, so the compass received little 
 consideration, and they inclined too much to the left, 
 being three hours and twenty minutes in crossing. 
 They stopped at a cairn and deposited a record. In 
 another hour they reached Pocket Bay, and in an- 
 other, Dome Cape, and then, crossing the inlet, went 
 into camp. "Skaffer" was soon ready, cold choco- 
 
LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY FEANKLIN BAY. 179 
 
 late, and a stew with lumps of ice floating round 
 in it, particularly unfortunate after a march which 
 was perhaps the most uncomfortable of the trip. It 
 had been blowing and snowing all day directly in 
 their faces — very severe on snow-blind eyes, which it 
 was necessary in crossing the fiords to keep open in 
 order to see the way. In addition to this, strange to 
 say, Lockwood suffered with cold hands. Generally, 
 while traveling, they were warm enough, and only 
 got cold when stopping ; but on that day they were 
 aching with cold a great part of the time. The dogs 
 had eaten up his seal-skin mits some time before, 
 and the woolen ones gave little protection against the 
 storm, with the mercury 30° below zero. They found 
 the ice-foot now generally covered with snow, but 
 they retreated twenty-seven miles in eight hours and 
 forty minutes. Left camp shortly after 5 p. m., and, 
 passing Cape Surprise, struck directly across the fiord 
 for Distant Cape. When opposite their old camp at 
 Low Point, a glacier was seen in the interior, a green 
 wall of ice lying at the foot of what looked like a low, 
 dome-shaped hill, but which must have been a mass 
 of ice covered with snow, as is all the interior of this 
 country. The travel over the floe was quite good, 
 but when just beyond Distant Cape, they found them- 
 selves in the deep snow of the wide fiord to the west 
 of it, a part of the route they had been dreading for 
 some time. They finally, however, reached the far- 
 ther side. The dogs must have smelled the pemmi- 
 can in cache there, for, during the last two hundred 
 yards, they bent all their energies to the work and 
 
180 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 seemed wild to get ashore. They pulled the sledge 
 through a fringe of hummocky ice at the coast in 
 a way that proved how they could pull when they 
 set their hearts on business. The weather during 
 the day was variable. When they started, it was 
 quite thick, and the wind blew strongly in their faces, 
 making the traveling very disagreeable ; but toward 
 the latter part of the march, the wind died away and 
 the sun appeared. The traveling was better than 
 when outward bound, the late storm having improved 
 it very much. Brainard did all the cooking, Lockwood 
 chopping the ice and assisting in various ways. They 
 got off a little after six, and in two hours were at 
 Black Cape. Here they stopped awhile and built a 
 cairn, and at Blue Cape stopped again. The next 
 four and a half hours they pursued their monotonous 
 course across the floe, Lockwood indulging in these 
 reflections : " What thoughts one has when thus plod- 
 ding along ! Home and everything there, and the 
 scenes and incidents of early youth ! Home, again, 
 when this Arctic experience shall be a thing of the 
 past ! But it must be confessed, and lamentable, it 
 is, as well as true, that the reminiscences to which my 
 thoughts oftenest recur on these occasions are con- 
 nected with eating — the favorite dishes I have en- 
 joyed — while in dreams of the future, my thoughts 
 turn from other contemplations to the discussion of 
 a beefsteak, and, equally absurd, to whether the stew 
 and tea at our next supper will be hot or cold." 
 
 They next camped some miles from North Cape, 
 opposite the immense fiord there, which runs inland 
 
LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 181 
 
 an interminable distance without visible land at its 
 head. Lockwood had intended going up this fiord to 
 what seemed like the opening of a channel on the 
 south side of Cape Britannia, but the uncertainty and 
 their fatigue finally induced him to continue the way 
 they had come, the weather being delightful. Eiten- 
 bank went about all day with his head and tail down, 
 perhaps repenting his numerous thefts. Advanced 
 seventeen miles in eight hours. 
 
 Left camp at 6 p. m., and in about three hours 
 reached North Cape, where they stopped some time 
 to take a sub-polar observation, making its latitude 
 82° 51'. Cape Britannia was reached without event, 
 and there they stopped long enough to get the rations 
 left in cache, and deposit a record, in the cairn ; then 
 continued on the floe a half-mile to get out of the 
 shadow of the mountain. At the cairn they got the 
 snow-shoes left there, and the spare sledge-runner. 
 They also collected some specimens of the vegetation 
 and rocks, and saw traces of the musk-ox, showing 
 that these animals wander even this far north. They 
 saw also some snow-birds. They had thought that 
 when they reached Cape Britannia they would feel 
 near home ; but now having reached it, the station 
 seemed as far off as at any point they had left behind, 
 and they could not rest until Cape Bryant was reached. 
 
 The sun was very bright and warm when they left 
 camp at 9.50 p. m., but a heavy fog hung like a cur- 
 tain on the horizon, and shut out the land all around. 
 They were, in fact ; traveling on the Polar Sea, out of 
 sight of land. Shortly after starting, Lockwood put 
 
182 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 on snow-shoes to try them, and found immense relief 
 at once. He blamed himself every day for a week for 
 not having tried them during the journey out, and 
 thus saved himself many hours of the most fatiguing 
 travel through deep snow. Bramard, seeing the advan- 
 tage, put on the other pair, and from that time there 
 was nothing about which they were so enthusiastic as 
 the snow-shoes. They afterward wore them more or 
 less every day. At 6 A. M. they went into camp on 
 the floe. The fog by this time had disappeared, and 
 everything was singularly bright and clear. Advanced 
 sixteen miles in eight hours, and got off again a little 
 after 8 A. M. 
 
 It was a beautiful day, calm and clear, and the sun 
 was really too warm for dogs and men. They got 
 along very well, however, on the snow-shoes, and one 
 of the men keeping ahead to encourage the dogs and 
 make a straight course, they finally reached, at the 
 place they had crossed before, their old friend, the 
 tidal crack, now frozen over. They lunched regularly 
 every day on pemmican and hard bread, and rested 
 whenever tired. A beautiful parhelion was seen, one 
 of the most complete yet observed, in the perfection of 
 its circles and the brightness of its colors. The blue, 
 yellow, and orange were very distinct. They went 
 into camp after four, the weather cloudy and threat- 
 ening snow, having advanced sixteen miles in eight 
 hours. They left again at 8. 40 p. m. Snow falling, and 
 no land being in sight, they kept near the right course 
 by means of the compass. Their course was north- 
 west (magnetic), the variation being in the neighbor- 
 
LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 183 
 
 hood of ninety degrees. Went into camp near St. 
 George's Eiord at 4.40 A. m., suffering a good deal 
 from snow-blindness afterward. During the march 
 were troubled very little, strange to say. Eations 
 were now getting low. The snow was very soft, 
 and, owing to this and the warm sun, the dogs 
 "complained" a good deal. Advanced sixteen miles 
 in eight hours. Started off again at 8.40 p. M., 
 reached shore shortly after twelve, about three quar- 
 ters of a mile short of Cape Bryant, and, following 
 the coast, pitched tent at the old camping-ground. 
 After visiting the cairn on the hill, they determined 
 to make up arrears by having a royal feast — antici- 
 pated for many days. " How nice that English 
 bacon must be ! How superior that English pem- 
 mican to the abominable lime-juice pemmican ! " 
 Brainard made a generous stew out of the afore- 
 said, with a liberal allowance of desiccated pota- 
 toes, etc., and they "pitched in!" But oh! what 
 disappointment ! Before eating a half-dozen spoon- 
 fuls they came to a dead halt, and looked at each 
 other. Even Frederick stopped and gazed. The 
 dish was absolutely nauseating. "Oft expectation 
 fails, and most where most it promises." Fortunate- 
 ly, there was left there a tin of frozen musk-ox meat, 
 with other stores rendered surplus by the supporting 
 party being able to go no farther. After this feast on 
 the English stores, they confined themselves to the 
 musk-ox. The English pemmican, though a little 
 musty, when eaten cold was quite palatable. This 
 and the bacon were each put up in metallic cases. 
 
184: FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 The bacon they subsequently found to be inclosed in 
 talloiv, and this it was that made their feast so disap- 
 pointing. After this they all went to look for Lieu- 
 tenant Beaumont's cache, left here when his party 
 was disabled by scurvy. The search was unsuccess- 
 ful, although they traveled the coast for two miles 
 and a half, advancing twelve miles in four hours. 
 Getting up at twelve, Lockwood and Brainard went 
 out to the tide-crack about half a mile from shore, 
 and, by means of a rope and stone, undertook to get 
 a set of tidal observations. They kept up the ob- 
 servations for nearly twelve hours, and then becom- 
 ing satisfied that their arrangements did not register 
 the tide, owing to the depth, currents, etc., gave it 
 up, much disappointed. All their work went for 
 nothing. These observations made their eyes much 
 worse, and both suffered with snow-blindness all the 
 rest of the way. 
 
 While thus occupied, the dogs took advantage of 
 their absence to visit the cache and eat up part of a 
 sack of hard bread and half a dozen shot-gun car- 
 tridges — the shot and the brass being rather indigesti- 
 ble. They left camp after midnight and a beautiful 
 morning followed, calm and clear, the sun unpleas- 
 antly warm ; and no wonder, since Lockwood was 
 wearing three heavy flannel shirts, a chamois-skin 
 vest, a vest of two thicknesses of blanket (double all 
 round), a knitted guernsey and canvas frock, besides 
 two or three pairs of drawers, etc. 
 
 They tramped along on snow-shoes, and a couple 
 of hours after starting, Brainard, who was on the 
 
LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 185 
 
 hill-side to the left, discovered, with his one unband- 
 aged eye, relics of Beaumont — an old Enfield rifle, a 
 pole shod with iron, a cross-piece of a sledge, three or 
 four articles of underwear, some cartridges, sewing- 
 thread and thimble, and the remains of a shoe with 
 a wooden sole about an inch thick. Other articles 
 mentioned by Lieutenant Beaumont in his journal 
 were not to be found. They may have been carried 
 off by animals or buried in the snow near by. The 
 articles found were in a little bare mound near the 
 ice-foot. " Poor Beaumont ! how badly he must have 
 felt when he passed along there with most of his party 
 down with scurvy, dragging their heavy sledge and 
 heavier equipments ! " Farther on, Lockwood shot a 
 ptarmigan on top of a large floe-berg thirty feet high, 
 and, by taking advantage of a snow-drift and doing 
 some " boosting," they secured the bird. They stopped 
 at cache No. 3 (near Frankfield Bay) and took out what 
 the supporting party had left there. Gave the dogs 
 the lime-juice pemmican and ground beans, but it 
 was only by seeming to favor first one dog and then 
 another that they were induced to eat it, thus illus- 
 trating the advantage of their " dog-in-the-manger " 
 spirit. Went into camp on the east shore of Hand 
 Bay. Their buffalo sleeping-bag now began to feel 
 too warm, but was always delightfully soft and dry. 
 Eyes painful. Advanced twelve miles in ten hours. 
 After crossing Hand Bay they made a short stop at 
 Cape Stanton. The Grinnell coast now became very 
 distinct, and seemed home-like. They could see Cape 
 Joseph Henry, or what they took for that headland. 
 
186 f FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 The floes off shore, consisting of alternate floes crossed 
 by ridges of hummocks, made very laborious travel- 
 ing. On reaching the cache near Stanton Gorge, they 
 got the rations left there. The traveling continued 
 very difficult and tiresome. On reaching the Black 
 Horn Cliffs, they decided, as their old tracks were en- 
 tirely obliterated, to follow along under the cliffs, 
 instead of taking the wide detour they had made go- 
 ing out. They got along pretty well for a while, and 
 then reached a mass of hummocks and rubble-ice. 
 There they found a relic of the past — a towel which 
 the men had used to wipe the dishes, and had lost or 
 abandoned. By dint of hard work they got through 
 this bad ice, crossed the smooth, level floe adjoining, 
 and then came to the next patch of rubble-ice. After 
 proceeding through this some distance, the sledge 
 needing relashing, Lockwood went on alone with 
 the axe, making a road as he went. Found the 
 site of their old camp on the shore, but, as the 
 snow slope there had become impassable, he kept 
 along the coast on the floe and finally found a land- 
 ing several miles to the west. Sledge and all got here 
 at eight o'clock, and they continued on over the snow 
 slopes, passing the remains of the "Nares" sledge 
 and reaching Drift Point, where they went into camp 
 alongside a big floe-berg, with lots of icicles upon it 
 waiting for them, having advanced twenty-two and 
 a half miles in ten hours. Finding strong winds and 
 snow from the west, they delayed starting till almost 
 midnight. The ice-foot along this low, sloping shore 
 being excellent, they made good time, in an hour 
 
LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 187 
 
 reaching the place of their first camp on this coast. 
 The melting of the floe-bergs and the fall of the snow 
 had so changed the general aspect, that the place was 
 hardly recognizable. At 2 A. m. they came opposite 
 the break in the cliff where they had entered on the 
 coast in April. They soon made out the dark object 
 seen previously from this point to be a cairn, and dis- 
 covered a small bay which they knew must be Eepulse 
 Harbor. Crossing this bay, they reached the cairn at 
 three o'clock. It was a tremendous affair, and the 
 tin can inside was full of papers by Beaumont, Dr. 
 Coppinger, and others. As a cold wind was blowing, 
 Lockwood made a short-hand copy of the documents 
 and left the originals. 
 
 Lockwood's eyes filled with tears as he read the 
 last postscript of the several which followed the main 
 record of poor Beaumont. Sitting on these bare rocks 
 amid snow and wind, with a desolate coast-line on one 
 side, and the wide, dreary straits on the other, he 
 could well appreciate what Beaumont's feelings must 
 have been when he reached here with his party all 
 broken down with scurvy, and, after trying to cross 
 the straits and failing on account of open water, had 
 no other recourse but to try and reach Thank-God 
 Harbor. His last postscript reads thus : 
 
 "Eepulse Harbor Depot, June 13, 1876.— Three 
 of us have returned from my camp, half a mile south, 
 
 to fetch the remainder of the provisions. D has 
 
 failed altogether this morning. Jones is much worse, 
 and can't last more than two or three days. Craig is 
 
188 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 nearly helpless. Therefore we can't hope to reach 
 Polaris Bay without assistance. Two men can't do 
 it. So will go as far as we can and live as long as we 
 can. God help us ! 
 
 (Signed) "L. A. Beauhokt." 
 
 He and Gray were the only ones left, and both shortly 
 discovered scorbutic symptoms. 
 
 Chilled through, Lockwood now continued along 
 the coast to the west, following the ice-foot under a 
 grand line of cliffs. After a while, they came to a 
 narrow break or cleft in the cliffs, the gateway of 
 a small mountain-torrent. It was like a winding 
 and dark alley in a city, with vertical sides rising 
 to the height of several hundred feet. Entering 
 it, they presently came to an immense snow-drift, 
 probably fifty or more feet high and filling up 
 the gorge like a barricade, with another a little be- 
 yond. They returned to the sledge, thoroughly satis- 
 fied that Beaumont never went through that place. 
 About seven they came to what seemed to be the 
 " Gap Valley " of the English, a wide, broad valley, 
 extending due south about three miles to a ravine. 
 They therefore turned off from the coast and fol- 
 lowed it, encountering a good deal of deep snow and 
 bare, stony spots. At 11 A. m. they camped in the 
 ravine near its head, thoroughly tired out. They 
 now had only one day's food left, and it behooved 
 them to make Boat Camp in another march, even 
 though fifty miles off. Advanced seventeen miles in 
 eleven hours. The dogs for several days had been on 
 
LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 189 
 
 short allowance, and during their sleep tore open the 
 bag of specimen rocks and stones, but fortunately 
 did not chew them up as they had done the cartridges. 
 Gettiag off at 3.29 and crossing the table-land, 
 they struck a narrow gorge running precipitately 
 down to Newman's Bay. At its head was a mountain- 
 ous drift of snow, which they descended on the run ; 
 then came a number of smaller drifts, completely 
 blocking up the gorge, oyer which they had to lower 
 the sledge by hand. Near the bay, they discovered a 
 singular snow-caye one hundred feet long, and occu- 
 pying the entire bed of the stream, arched through its 
 whole length by beautiful ribs of snow, from which 
 depended delicate snow-crystals. The entrance was 
 quite small, but inside, the roof was far above their 
 heads. They lost sight of its picturesqueness in the 
 thought of its fitness for the burrow of a sledge- 
 party. This brought them on the smooth surface of 
 the bay, with familiar landmarks before and around 
 them — Cape Sumner, Cape Beechy, and far in the dis- 
 tance, Distant Point and the land near Franklin Bay. 
 Looking back at the ravine from the bay, Lockwood 
 felt sure no one would ever take this little, insignifi- 
 cant, narrow gully for the route of a sledge-party, and 
 that no one traveling this, or the one they took going 
 out, would ever take either again in preference to going 
 round Cape Brevoort. They delayed along the shore 
 of the bay almost an hour, leisurely building a cairn 
 and viewing the scenery, and then going on, reached 
 the farther side at eight o'clock, making their last 
 final retreat of ten miles in five hours and a half. 
 
190 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 There was the whale-boat, and pitched alongside 
 it, anchored down by stones and held by ropes, the 
 six-man tent of the supporting party. Inside were 
 Sergeants Lynn and Ralston, and Corporal Ellison, 
 fast asleep. Lockwood had told Lynn to send back 
 to Conger three of his party on reaching Boat Camp. 
 The remaining three awaited his return. The work 
 of pitching tent woke up the other party, and soon 
 they heard the sound of the Polaris fog-horn (picked 
 up near by), and saw three heads projecting from the 
 tent, whose owners gave them a warm welcome, as 
 well they might, after awaiting their return nearly a 
 month at this place, the dreariest of all in that 
 dreary region. The remaining stores were ransacked 
 for a big feast, without regard to the rations. 
 Corned and boiled beef, canned potatoes and beans, 
 butter, milk, and canned peaches, made a meal fit for 
 a king or for gods that had just experienced an Arc- 
 tic sledge-journey. The monotonous life of these 
 men had been varied only by a visit from two bears, 
 and the arrival of Dr. Pavy — sent by Lieutenant 
 Greely with some rations. - 
 
 The news from the station was that Dr. Pavy with 
 Sergeant Rice and Esquimaux Jans had got only as 
 far as Cape Joseph Henry, when they were stopped by 
 open water. Lockwood had taken it for granted that 
 the doctor would attain Markham's latitude and excel 
 his own. Lieutenant Greely had been west from Eort 
 Conger on a trip of twelve days in the mountains, 
 and had discovered a large lake with a river flowing 
 out of it, which had no ice on its surface — something 
 
LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 191 
 
 very wonderful. The vegetation had also shown a 
 much milder atmosphere than anywhere else in these 
 latitudes. Numerous Esquimaux relics had been 
 found, and many musk-oxen seen. 
 
 Turning their backs on the Boat Camp, and with 
 many loud blasts on the Polaris fog-horn, they 
 started at 11.25 p. m. for Fort Conger. 
 
 The snow along the snow-slopes was badly drift- 
 ed, but with so many to help, they got along with- 
 out much delay and soon reached Cape Sumner. 
 They found the rubble-ice south of that point worse 
 than before, and here and there were little pools of 
 water. The weather was very thick, the wind blow- 
 ing and snow falling, and the farther side of the 
 straits completely hidden, so that they went via 
 the Gap, but there had to leave the shore and di- 
 rect their course as well as possible by compass. 
 Presently they could see neither shore, and got into 
 a mass of rubble-ice, mixed with soft snow-drifts. 
 Lynn and party (Ealston and Ellison) had not trav- 
 eled any for so long that they began to get very 
 much fatigued, and could not keep up with the 
 sledge. They had not slept since the arrival at the 
 Boat Camp, owing to the excitement of the occasion. 
 The driving snow hurt their eyes, and they were a 
 very sorry party. However, they kept on, and finally 
 came in sight of the west coast, and some hours after- 
 ward, finding good floes to travel over, a little be- 
 fore noon reached the "tent on the straits" — about 
 five miles from Cape Beechy — Ellison and Ealston 
 completely exhausted. 
 9 
 
192 FARTHEST NORTH, 
 
 En route again, they spread the American flag on 
 a long pole and carried it thus till they reached the 
 station. At the snow-house, where they remained 
 some hours to rest and get something to eat, they 
 found Ellis and Whistler, who had come up from 
 Fort Conger to look out for the party. 
 
 All found their eyes more or less affected except- 
 ing Frederick. Ealston's were so bad that he was sent 
 on in advance, led by Ellis. He walked almost the 
 whole way with his eyes closed. Lynn held on to 
 the upstanders of the sledge, and thus found his 
 way. 
 
 On the first day of June, Ealston and Lynn went 
 in advance, led by Ellis and Ellison. They could not 
 see at all, and, as their guides carried the guns and 
 each had his man made fast by a strap, they looked 
 very much like a party of prisoners. At Watercourse 
 Bay they met Lieutenant Greely, who had come out 
 to meet them, and was well satisfied with the result 
 of the expedition, and soon after they reached Fort 
 Conger. 
 
 Lieutenant Lockwood not only received many 
 hearty congratulations from his companions, but 
 even the weather, as if in sympathy with the gen- 
 eral gladness, became bright and cheerful. The im- 
 portant business of working out the latitude that 
 had been attained was now proceeded with. Efforts 
 were made to verify the prismatic compass which 
 was serviceable, but had a limited range. Much of 
 the ground around the station was bare of snow, 
 and, as the temperature was rising rapidly, Lock- 
 
LOCKWOOD ISLAND TO LADY FRANKLIN BAY. 193 
 
 wood felt as if lie would like to be off again on a 
 wild tramp. When he said something about certain 
 sledge operations in the future, Greely replied, "If 
 you are content to go, I will give you all the help I 
 
 \ r 9 
 
XIII. 
 WAITING AND WATCHING. 
 
 To a man of Lockwood's character, the return to 
 the station did not mean that idleness was to be the 
 order of the day, and while yet suffering from rheu- 
 matic pains in his back, shoulders, legs, feet, and 
 joints, he began to mark out a trip for himself 
 through Lady Franklin Bay. In the mean time, 
 some of the men were off trying to obtain fresh meat, 
 Frederick killing a hare and Jans a seal weighing 
 over five hundred pounds. Kislingbury amused him- 
 self with a pet owl, which delighted him with a pres- 
 ent of eggs. On the 9th of June, the people at the 
 station celebrated the birthday of their companion 
 Long by a good dinner, and on the following day 
 Lockwood, accompanied by his friends Brainard and 
 Frederick, started with a dog-train for his proposed 
 tramp. They made their first halts at Basil Norris 
 Bay and at Sun Bay, and traveling over a level bed 
 of what had once been a fiord, thence passed on to 
 Stony Point, and then to Miller's Island, where they 
 encamped. Although they saw a number of seals, 
 they succeeded in killing only a couple of hares and a 
 brace of brants. Their next stopping-place was Kep- 
 pel's Head, the route being very wet, in fact, almost 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 195 
 
 a continuous lake. Haying nothing to wear but his 
 moccasins, Lockwood's feet were saturated three 
 minutes after starting, and became so cold that he 
 thought they would freeze. The pools were some- 
 times so deep as to wet the load on the sledge. How- 
 ever, the dogs made good time, and they reached 
 Keppel's Head at 11 p. m. Here the traveling be- 
 came much better, and they were able to avoid a good 
 many of the pools. 
 
 Passing Keppel's Head, they kept a sharp lookout 
 for Hillock Depot, where Lieutenant Archer, R. J$., 
 had left a large number of rations. They searched 
 for some time before finding any signs, but finally 
 found the cac7ie, and near by some pieces of United 
 States hard bread, and a little bag of American tea. 
 This was interesting, as proving that to have been the 
 farthest that Long attained, although he claimed to 
 have reached the head of the fiord. The unpleasant 
 task then devolved on Lockwood of taking him down 
 a peg or two. Lieutenant Archer was a week reach- 
 ing this place, Hillock Depot, half-way up the fiord, 
 which is about sixty miles long. The scenery is 
 grand. High cliffs, generally nearly vertical, ran 
 along the shores everywhere. Whenever they looked 
 inland they saw a lofty mass of snow-covered mount- 
 ains. All this was so common, however, in all the 
 region, that it was only when neio that it was appre- 
 ciated. Lockwood and Brainard had a good laugh 
 at Long's expense, and then turned into the two-man 
 summer sleeping-bag, made of two blankets, trimmed 
 off so as to weigh no more than necessary, and inclosed 
 
196 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 in another bag of light canyas. Their breakfast con- 
 sisted of corned beef, baked beans, tea, hard bread, and 
 butter — a yery fine repast. Lockwood and Brainard 
 both thought that this kind of traveling did not pay 
 on a "picnic" excursion, but, as they had started to 
 go to the head of the fiord, they did not like to turn 
 back. The ice promised to be worse on their return, 
 and this, and Lockwood's lame foot, and the lameness 
 of one of the dogs, decided him to return. Leaying 
 camp on return, they soon reached Keppel Head, and 
 afterward Basil Norris Bay, where they camped, and 
 decided to remain a day or two and haye a hunt 
 for musk-oxen. Mud, water, and "sludge," as well 
 as Lockwood's lameness, proyed a drawback to his 
 success; but Frederick returned from his tramp, 
 bringing along a quarter of a musk-ox, haying killed 
 two and wounded a third, he said. They seemed to 
 haye cost two dozen cartridges, and he had probably 
 stood off at a distance and bombarded them. 
 
 Brainard returned after him. He had been up the 
 yale as far as the lake, and had seen a few geese and a 
 rabbit. He brought back a "skua" bird and some 
 Esquimaux relics ; had seen several circles of stone, 
 marking the summer camps of these people, and 
 picked up a good many bones, etc. All had some- 
 thing to eat, when the two started out with the dog- 
 team for the musk-oxen killed by Frederick. Then 
 came on a heavy rain, lasting for several hours, while 
 the snow and ice were fast disappearing. This was 
 the first rain they had seen in the country. 
 
 During their absence from the station, to which 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 197 
 
 they returned with their game, seyen musk-oxen had 
 been killed and four calves caught alive. The men 
 had had an exciting time. The animals formed a 
 hollow square with the calves inside, and did some 
 charging before they were all down. 
 
 The calves had been put in a pen a short distance 
 from the house, were very tame, and it was supposed 
 little difficulty would be found in raising them. They 
 ate almost anything. 
 
 On the 17th, Lockwood expressed his feelings as 
 follows : " I find myself oppressed with ennui, caused, 
 I suppose, by the present monotonous existence fol- 
 lowing the activity of my life since the early spring." 
 
 On the 22d of June, a " turn-stone " (a bird of the 
 snipe species) and two or three ducks were shot. The 
 little stream back of the house was babbling along at 
 a great rate, the snow fast disappearing. Tempera- 
 ture 44°, which was about as high as it was likely to 
 be, the sun having reached its greatest northern de- 
 clination, and the temperature not having gone above 
 this during the previous August. 
 
 On the 24th, Lieutenant Greely and a party left 
 for Hazen Lake and beyond, to visit the western coast 
 of the country if possible. In the mean time, the dogs 
 having attacked the young musk-oxen, came near 
 killing one of them. The dog King and two others 
 were found on top of "John Henry," the smallest 
 of the calves, and, but for Frederick happening to see 
 them and going to the rescue, "John Henry" would 
 soon have surrendered his ghost. 
 
 During a walk on the 28th, Lockwood found North 
 
 \ I P 
 
198 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Valley Eiver quite full, and rushing along like a 
 mountain-torrent. Open water-pools were numerous 
 near the shore. Had a fine view from Cairn Hill, two 
 thousand feet high, seeing extensive lanes of open 
 water toward Petermann's Fiord. Weather delight- 
 ful. 
 
 On the 1st of July they had the second rain of the 
 season, and Lockwood was gloomy ; existence ex- 
 tremely monotonous ; he was almost ashamed to con- 
 fess how "blue" he felt. Ducks and other fowl 
 brought in almost daily ; also Esquimaux relics fre- 
 quently brought in. Men arrived from Lieutenant 
 Greely's party on Lake Hazen and reported all well 
 there. He had found many interesting relics, and 
 had seen large droves of musk-oxen — between two 
 and three hundred — in Black Yale. On the 4th the 
 men at the station celebrated the day by displays of 
 flags, shooting and other matches, and a base-ball 
 game. They succeeded in getting the Lady Greely 
 afloat, and Cross repaired pipes found to be out of 
 order. They found that the flies were blowing their 
 fresh meat badly. Fearing that it might be lost, it 
 was ordered to be served more frequently. Long and 
 Ellis, who had returned from St. Patrick's Bay, re- 
 ported it as open. 
 
 Lieutenant Greely and party returned on the 10th 
 from Lake Hazen. They had a good view westward 
 for fifty miles from a mountain four thousand feet 
 high ; saw no sea, but many glaciers. Found a large 
 river entering the lake at its southwestern extremity. 
 
 Lockwood took the launch down to Dutch Island, 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 199 
 
 giving all the men an excursion. But for entertain- 
 ments of this sort he was afraid he should forget how 
 to talk. The officers often went through a meal 
 without exchanging a word ; so also through the day. 
 He could not say who was in fault. 
 
 Loose ice was still filling the harbor and bay — 
 paleocrystic floes that had floated in. 
 
 Brainard and Cross brought in eleven ducks killed 
 at Breakwater Point, having to swim in order to get 
 them. 
 
 Weather now mild, ice in harbor much broken up, 
 and channel outside open. Lieutenant Greely thought 
 there was every reason for expecting a relief-ship 
 soon. It was very desirable on many accounts that 
 she should come. A false alarm of her approach 
 created great excitement. Some one said he saw her 
 smoke in the distance. 
 
 The hunters brought in ducks or other game al- 
 most daily. A weasel was shot near the house — a 
 beautiful little animal, yellow with black tail. Dead 
 wolves were sometimes found — probably those poi- 
 soned in the winter. Brainard, Cross, and Ellis re- 
 turned from Beechy, where they killed three musk- 
 oxen, two dozen geese, and some ducks. 
 
 Lockwood occupied himself on his maps of the 
 Greenland coast, adding pictures of scenery from 
 sketches taken en route. 
 
 Jans, desiring to capture seals, tried to approach 
 them by interposing a cotton screen. But the seal 
 had too much sense to wait for him, and slipped off 
 the ice into the water. 
 
 AIT 
 
200 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 On the 31st, Lockwood measured some ice-floes 
 aground in the harbor, finding them to be fourteen 
 feet thick. He had seen many on his northern trip 
 which, by Nares's rule of one seventh above water, 
 would have been thirty-five to forty-five feet thick. 
 Of course, these were paleocrystic floes, the accumu- 
 lation of years. 
 
 On the 7th of August, Lockwood went with Lieu- 
 tenant Greely and a party in the launch to Cape 
 Lieber, finding the bay very free from ice. Left near 
 the cape some provisions for use in case of having to 
 retreat next year in boats, a subject which, from the 
 non-arrival of the ship, was then agitated. They got 
 many Esquimaux relics. The straits away down as 
 far as Franklin Island and Cape Constitution, as seen 
 from an elevation, were free from ice. They could 
 see nothing to prevent the ship from coming. Re- 
 turned in the evening, landing at Proteus Point, be- 
 cause a large floe-berg had floated in during their ab- 
 sence and occupied their harbor. 
 
 Lieutenant Greely did not expect the ship before 
 the 15th. Many eyes were daily fixed on the bold 
 profile of Cape Lieber, from behind whose rocky face 
 she must emerge, if she came at all. 
 
 On the 13th, Lockwood, with Brainard, Lynn, 
 Cross, Ralston, and Fredericks, started in the launch 
 on an excursion up Lady Franklin Bay to the head 
 of Archer Fiord, having in tow the boat Valorous 
 with Rice and crew as far as Musk-ox Bay. There 
 they left Rice and his boat and proceeded up the 
 Archer Fiord, somewhat annoyed by scattered ice and 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 201 
 
 by some large bergs which they had to go around. 
 They had not gone far up the fiord before they saw, 
 on a gentle slope of the southern shore, a herd of 
 musk-oxen grazing a few hundred yards from the 
 water. Though strategy was employed to approach 
 without being seen, the herd took the alarm and 
 scampered oyer the hills which terminated the slope. 
 Lynn, anticipating this, had gone some way up these 
 heights, but the animals by a detour avoided him and 
 soon passed oyer the crest of the heights. The slope 
 along there was sufficiently gentle to aiford foothold 
 to grass and willows, and thus presented a landscape 
 charming to those who had gazed on little other than 
 rocks and ice for so many months. Seeing two other 
 oxen some time after, near a steep hill overlooking a 
 rocky gorge, Lockwood, Brainard, and Frederick 
 went for them, Fredericks approaching in front, and 
 Lockwood and Brainard, by a flank movement, cut- 
 ting off retreat. This resulted in the slaying of both 
 animals. But how to get them to the launch was the 
 question, as they were then a mile inland. Finally, 
 cutting off the heads, they gave the bodies an impetus 
 down-hill. They went from steep to steep like com- 
 ets, leaving clouds of dust behind. Once or twice 
 they lodged on steps or terraces, from which they 
 were dislodged, thence to renew their journey down- 
 ward. Afterward several other musk-oxen and some 
 ptarmigans were shot, thus providing abundant food 
 for all hands, with a large surplus to carry back to the 
 station. 
 
 As they progressed up the fiord, the scenery be- 
 
202 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 came more and more grand and interesting. A gla- 
 cier was seen some distance inland, at the head of a 
 stream bordered by yertical cliffs curiously colored 
 and of fantastic shapes. One pinnacle was apparently 
 surmounted by an old dilapidated castle. Though 
 the fiord was not wide at Bulley's Lump, nor the cliffs 
 yery high, yet they encountered a furious wind, as 
 though blowing vertically. Toward the head of the 
 fiord, they saw numerous ducks and flocks of geese on 
 shore, apparently overcome by the force of the wind. 
 Many of these they added to their abundant stores. 
 Here, too, they found Esquimaux relics, indicating 
 the abodes of men long years ago — circles of stones, 
 yery old ; also pieces of drift-wood, whence coming 
 they marveled. Beaching the head of the fiord, where 
 the water became shallow, they landed, spread their 
 sleeping-bags on the rocks, and made amends for their 
 twenty-five hours' want of sleep. 
 
 Waking up, they found that the receding tide 
 had left them high and dry by one quarter of a 
 mile. This rendered Lockwood very uneasy, and in- 
 duced him to give up his intended journey of half a 
 dozen miles into the interior. He went, however, a 
 mile or so inland, and from a height saw a lake, and 
 several miles above it a glacier, apparently very large. 
 Vast cliffs, three thousand feet high, bordered the 
 valley or ravine he followed, and beyond these were 
 snow and ice clad summits of vast elevation. Yet 
 here, in this desolate region, were seen proofs of the 
 abode of man — circles of stones covered with lichens, 
 a proof of their antiquity. Here, also, he found the 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 203 
 
 hip-bone of some immense mammal, and afterward 
 added it to his museum. He returned to the launch 
 near the time of high tide, and after lightening, they 
 got the launch into deep water, with much labor, but 
 greatly to their relief. On their return they visited 
 Eecord Point, left a short account of their visit, and 
 copied that of Lieutenant Archer. He had explored 
 this fiord in 1876, occupying one month, but they did 
 it in sixty-nine hours. He traveled with sledges and 
 a supporting party— they with a steam-launch, all 
 being on board. Their coal getting low, they made 
 few other stops en route except to pick up their meat 
 and game, returning direct to the station. The re- 
 sult of the expedition, as to game, was, twelve musk- 
 oxen, three hares, twenty-four geese, thirty-six turn- 
 stones, six knots, three terns, and twenty ptarmigans. 
 Distance made, going and returning, one hundred and 
 forty miles. Long and others killed numbers of 
 musk-oxen during their absence, so that they now 
 had on hand about eight thousand pounds of fresh 
 beef. Another musk-ox was killed, soon after their 
 return, in full view of the house, and thus four hun- 
 dred and thirty pounds were added to their stock. 
 This was the eightieth musk-ox shot since their ar- 
 rival, the year before. They had a good view of the 
 bay and straits, both of which seemed open, offering 
 no obstacle whatever to the passage of the ship. 
 They were all very much disappointed at her non-ap- 
 pearance. 
 
 Lieutenant Greely, wanting Howgate's Fiord ex- 
 plored and surveyed, and Dr. Pavy wishing to make 
 
 \ i 
 
204 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 an excursion from Cape Baird, Lockwood, on the 
 21st, left in the launch, with Bice, Cross, Lynn, Fred- 
 ericks, Snyder, and Israel, and with Dr. Pavy and 
 Ellison as passengers, to land the doctor on the south 
 shore, and thence proceed westward to Howgate's 
 Fiord. Following a lead westward, they finally found 
 open water, which enabled them to reach the south 
 shore of the bay some five miles above Cape Baird, 
 where they landed the doctor and Ellison, with their 
 rations, etc. In crossing the open water, they had 
 strong south winds, and heavy seas which boarded the 
 launch and washed her from stem to stern. Though 
 much strengthened against ice, when heavily laden 
 she sat too near the water to be a comfortable sea-boat. 
 Thence they proceeded to Miller Island, where they 
 had smooth water, and were enabled to cook their food 
 and enjoy an excellent meal. They found much ice 
 in Howgate's Fiord, yet, after trying to kill a musk- 
 ox seen on shore, made their way to Ida Bay, at its 
 head, and proceeded to the north shore, for Israel to 
 lay out his base-line and take angles, and Bice to take 
 photographs of prominent objects. While they were 
 so doing, the others started in pursuit of a musk-ox 
 some distance from the shore. The animal, seeing 
 them, went up the valley at a rapid rate, leaving be- 
 hind him so strong a musk odor as to mark his wake 
 as distinctly by the smell as that of a steamboat is 
 marked by the eye. Lockwood abandoned the chase 
 for other duties, but the men kept on, and afterward 
 brought in the animal's carcass. These having re- 
 turned, and Israel and Bice having finished their 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 205 
 
 work, all proceeded toward a yery high, and con- 
 spicuous promontory, marking the entrance to the 
 bay, which Lieutenant Greely wished Lockwood to 
 ascend, and afterward go up the northern arm of 
 the fiord; but they were unable to do either, hay- 
 ing been brought to a full stop in the narrow channel 
 by an immense floe of old ice. They therefore re- 
 turned out of this cul-de-sac to the south shore, 
 where Israel wanted to take other angles. Here they 
 found traces of Esquimaux habitations — meat caches, 
 and yarious bone implements, all yery old. Thence, 
 via Miller's Cape, they made their way to Stony 
 Cape, not, howeyer, without great difficulty because 
 of moying ice, which sometimes forced them too close 
 to the island, and compelled them to make detours. 
 The weather threatening, they did not stop to take 
 other angles, but crossed to the head of the bay, near 
 the Bellows, and cast anchor ; and, while the others 
 slept, Lockwood walked up the Bellows in quest of 
 game, but saw none. 
 
 The yegetation was just sufficient to remind him 
 of the glorious trees and grasses of another zone far, 
 far away. Still, with all its desolation, Lockwood 
 thought it a yery picturesque region, and that per- 
 haps the moon, to one on its surface, presents a simi- 
 lar aspect. They left for the station on the 25th, 
 encountering much ice all the way. Off Cape Clear 
 it whirled about in such a manner as to threaten to 
 crush the launch. At one time a large piece of ice — 
 larger than the launch itself — was caught between the 
 moying pack and the grounded ice and thrown up 
 
 \ i 
 
206 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 into the air fifteen feet. Finally, they reached the 
 station, sadly disappointed not to see the masts of the 
 hoped-for ship. They could not divine the reason for 
 her non-appearance. Dr. Pavy thought that it never 
 started, for want of an appropriation. Lieutenant 
 Greely thought otherwise. It looked then as though 
 they would have to retreat in boats during the next 
 summer, and might fail to meet the ship in the chan- 
 nel ; or, on reaching Littleton Island, find she had 
 not been there, and then undoubtedly all of them 
 would perish. 
 
 A fine salmon-trout of three pounds and three 
 quarters was caught in a net about this time, and, 
 while Eice tried to obtain more, Brainard went to 
 Depot "B" on a hunt for musk-oxen and other 
 game. 
 
 On the 26th, Lockwood went across Lady Franklin 
 Bay in the launch after Dr. Pavy. Saw many seals, 
 but failed to secure any. Found the doctor and Elli- 
 son awaiting them, forlorn enough. They had reached 
 Carl Bitter Bay, seen musk-oxen, and discovered some 
 lakes. Lockwood left more stores over the bay, and 
 returned through much ice. It was pleasant to see 
 how readily the launch cut through the young ice 
 then forming in the midst of falling snow. 
 
 On the 28th, Lieutenant Greely, desiring some 
 further exploration up Ella Bay, and inland from its 
 head, Lockwood and a select party made several at- 
 tempts in the launch to accomplish it ; but the young 
 ice was forming so rapidly, there was so much pack- 
 ice, and the snow was obscuring the atmosphere so 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 207 
 
 badly, that Lieutenant Greely, after some hesitation, 
 decided they had better not go, and, instead, request- 
 ed them to take the long-boat Valorous to Cape Baird 
 and leave her there, and then lay up the steam-launch 
 for the winter. 
 
 This they attempted to do, but, on reaching 
 Dutch Island, had to give it up, as the entire harbor, 
 bay, and straits were full of drifting ice, many of the 
 floes standing five feet out of water. The launch 
 haying been left at anchor near the island, the next 
 morning Lieutenant Greely ordered all hands down 
 to the island to rescue her from impending peril. 
 They found her yery much careened and half full of 
 water. She had been anchored in shoal water, and, 
 heeling oyer at ebb-tide, had filled at the next flood. 
 Fortunately, no harm was done to the boat, which 
 might yet proye to be their salvation, and should be 
 got into safe winter quarters, as that season was evi- 
 dently already setting in. It was after this boat 
 excitement that Lockwood indulged in these reflec- 
 tions : "I find myself constantly reading oyer old 
 letters brought with me and received at St. John's, 
 though read before again and again. The effect is 
 depressing, bringing too strongly into view home and 
 the dear ones there. I am oppressed with ennui and 
 low spirits, and can't shake off this feeling, partly in- 
 duced by the cruel disappointment of no ship." 
 
 Subsequently he wrote, "Have been reading of 
 Kane and his travels. He is my ieau ideal of an 
 Arctic traveler. How pitiful that so bold a spirit 
 was incased in so feeble a frame ! Why is Nature 
 
 \ i .! 
 
208 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 inconsistent ? In the Arctic his health seems to haye 
 been fair. He of all his advance party escaped the 
 scurry. It was his spirit, doubtless, that kept him 
 up. Hayes does not compare with him. Though 
 beautifully written, there is an air of exaggeration 
 about Hayes' book, which destroys its interest. Doc- 
 tor Pavy, who has hitherto been the advocate of 
 Hayes, since his return from Carl Eitter Bay seems 
 to have changed his mind about him, and now agrees 
 with Greely and me that Hayes never reached Cape 
 Lieber. To have done so, he must have performed in 
 part of his journey ninety-six miles in fourteen hours 
 — an impossibility. 
 
 " The life we are now leading is somewhat similar 
 to that of a prisoner in the Bastile : no amusements, 
 no recreations, no event to break the monotony or 
 dispel ennui. I take a long walk every day along 
 shore to North Valley with that view, study French 
 a little, or do some tailoring, now doubly necessary, 
 as our supply of clothing is getting low. Our stock 
 of reading matter, unfortunately, is limited except 
 in Arctic books. One must live up here within him- 
 self, and is unfortunate if dependent on others for 
 happiness. The others are as moody as I am — Greely 
 sometimes, Kislingbury always, and as to the doctor, 
 to say he is not congenial is to put it in a very mild way 
 indeed. But why not study ? Well, the atmosphere 
 is not conducive to it. I must go on another sledge- 
 journey to dispel this gloom. Lieutenant Greely was 
 thinking of sending me to Lake Hazen to continue 
 his explorations, but thinks the snow too deep. I 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 209 
 
 will make a trip to the Bellows, and follow up the 
 canon at its head. 
 
 " The hilarity in the other room is in marked con- 
 trast to the gloom in this. For several days the skat- 
 ing on the young ice of the harbor, now three inches 
 thick, has afforded pleasure to the men. Israel broke 
 in some distance from shore, and, being unable to 
 get out by himself, would have perished but for the 
 aid of others who saw him after he had been in the 
 cold water fifteen minutes. Biederbick is constantly 
 chaffed by the men for his persistent gunning expedi- 
 tions, from which he always returns empty-handed. 
 He takes everything seriously, and hence resents with 
 warmth any insinuations against Germany, particu- 
 larly if his own little principality of Waldeck be 
 assailed. Biederbick tried to poison some foxes, and 
 boasted of his plans. A fox having been caught by 
 some one else and killed, Henry placed the body near 
 Biederbick's poison, first placing within its mouth a 
 paper stating (as though written by the fox) how and 
 where he met his death. Soon after Biederbick in- 
 spected his poison, and finding the fox, brought him 
 home in triumph. Henry gravely declared the fox had 
 not been poisoned, much to Biederbick's amazement. 
 They proceeded to examine the fox, and Henry pulled 
 from its throat the certificate that had been placed 
 there. The men around laughed at Biederbick's ex- 
 pense, and he wilted." 
 
 The foregoing allusion to Dr. Kane can not but be 
 read with special interest, as it gives one an insight 
 into the noble character of Lockwood, who had the 
 
 \ i i 
 
210 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 heart to appreciate a man like the discoverer of Grin- 
 nell Land. Both, indeed, were men of rare and ex- 
 alted qualities, whose memories will always he treas- 
 ured with respect and affection hy the whole American 
 people. 
 
 An effort was made under Lieutenant Kislingbury 
 to raise, from calves caught, a herd of tame musk- 
 oxen. They became very docile and tractable, even 
 to the extent of hauling in teams. The chief diffi- 
 culty was to keep the dogs from them. One of these 
 calves was seriously wounded by them, and was there- 
 fore killed. It was rumored that its meat would be 
 served for dinner, and some of the men, to carry out 
 the joke, hung the quarters on the meat-rack near 
 the house. When other meat was served for dinner, 
 Fredericks, who had cared for the calf and named it 
 John Henry, ate nothing — very proper conduct for a 
 man of feeling and a hater of jokes. 
 
 Lockwood frequently went to the observatory with 
 Israel to get some insight into the workings of the 
 magnetic instruments. On "term-day," the instru- 
 ments were read every five minutes during the twenty- 
 four hours, and for one hour every twenty seconds. 
 " Poets write of the constancy of the magnetic needle," 
 said Lockword, "while in fact it is the most incon- 
 stant thing known. Not only does it vary yearly, but 
 monthly, daily, hourly, yea, every minute and second. 
 Here the magnetic disturbances are very pronounced, 
 and at times the magnetic needle is apparently almost 
 beside itself. The aurora, too, has frequently a very 
 noticeable effect upon it." 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 211 
 
 It was now becoming a matter for discussion that, 
 should they be so unfortunate as to have to spend a 
 third winter in this region, they would have to live 
 on salt meat and hard bread. Dr. Pavy said they 
 were already getting short of many articles of food, 
 and of some they were entirely out — short of sugar 
 and also of candles and foot-gear, of the latter, only 
 a few pairs of cork-soled boots, unfitted for use in 
 these parts, remaining. Lockwood felt that he would 
 rather take any risks in boats than stay there another 
 winter. 
 
 The weather, which had been variable, having 
 settled calm and clear, Lockwood started on his pro- 
 posed sledge trip up the " Bellows " with Jewell, the 
 Esquimaux Frederick, and an eight-dog team. Hav- 
 ing young ice most of the way and no load, they made 
 rapid progress to the tent at Basil JSTorris Bay. The 
 dogs moved at a gallop, giving to all the rare oppor- 
 tunity of a ride. Here they found sleeping-bags and 
 provisions. The next morning they reached Black 
 Rock Vale and followed the windings of its stream- 
 bed until they came to Lake Heintzelman, a beautiful 
 body of water, or rather ice, perfectly smooth and 
 free from snow, filling the whole valley, some three 
 miles wide, to towering cliffs, and extending about 
 five miles. So smooth was the surface that the dogs 
 could have pulled a ton. Feeling rather chilly, they 
 all held on to the upright of the sledge behind, and 
 were dragged along on the soles of their shoes. 
 Reaching the head of the lake, and finding the way so 
 rough as to endanger the sledge-runners, they deemed 
 
212 FARTHEST NORTE. 
 
 it best to go into camp and reconnoitre before pro- 
 ceeding farther. While Lockwood and Jewell got 
 supper, Frederick went on a hunt for musk-oxen. 
 The former afterward followed with the team to bring 
 in the game which he had killed, first skinning and 
 cutting it up, not an easy job, as they had only a very 
 dull hatchet and equally dull case-knives. They final- 
 ly succeeded, however, after much labor, and returned 
 to camp at a late hour. The ox killed was the only 
 one seen, although it was there — three miles above 
 the lake — that a hundred had been formerly seen. 
 The following morning being chilly and the sky over- 
 cast, they returned to the tent at Basil Norris Bay, 
 the dogs carrying the men, as well as nearly four hun- 
 dred pounds of meat, over the smooth lake at a rapid 
 rate. 
 
 "While crossing they heard an unusual noise, like 
 distant thunder, which at first they were unable to 
 account for, but finally concluded was due to the 
 cracking of the ice, arising probably from changes 
 of temperature. The whole expanse of ice was marked 
 by cracks extending in every direction, not, however, 
 coming to the surface, but visible below. 
 
 In returning to the station, they avoided some 
 rough places by hugging the south shore of the har- 
 bor, a rumbling noise of moving and crushing ice be- 
 ing heard in the direction of Dutch Island. On reach- 
 ing the station, they found that a large bear had visited 
 the house, dragging off the skeleton of a musk-ox 
 which Dr. Pavy had hung out to dry as a specimen. 
 Tracks of another bear were afterward seen near the 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 213 
 
 house. At Lieutenant Greely's request, Lockwood 
 ■with others followed these tracks, came in sight of 
 the animal, and saw him make his way toward the 
 middle of the straits through leads of open water and 
 over hills of ice with seeming ease. Of course, they 
 failed to add hear-meat to their well-stocked larder. 
 
 After enjoying a hot bath, which Lockwood com- 
 mended as a grand luxury, he penned the following 
 from his corner in the station-house : 
 
 " The men haye added a bagatelle-board to their 
 other sources of amusement, and sometimes have 
 bagatelle tournaments. Lieutenant Greely and I often 
 play chess, and sometimes I take a game of checkers 
 with the Esquimaux. These, by-the-way, seem much 
 better reconciled than they were last winter. Prob- 
 ably have come to understand us better, and we them. 
 
 "Much of my time has been occupied in making 
 maps of the several launch trips and in writing out 
 stenographic notes. Still, the monotony here is dread- 
 ful, and tells on all. It certainly does on me. Dr. 
 Pavy and Lieutenant Kislingbury spend much of their 
 time in the other room, and, when in here and Lieu- 
 tenant Greely absent, are engaged in the most gloomy 
 prognostications as to the future, and in adverse criti- 
 cisms on the conduct of the expedition. It is really 
 dreadful, and I sometimes think the life of an exile 
 in Siberia preferable to this. The absence of light 
 without keeps us within-doors, and the want of exer- 
 cise and fresh air promotes restlessness. Our supply 
 of books comprises only novels and Arctic literature. 
 A few really solid books of history, biography, essays, 
 
 i . ,i 
 
214 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 etc., are much, to be desired, though, under the cir- 
 cumstances, I suppose it would be difficult to concen- 
 trate one's mind on them. 
 
 "Our experiment with calves had to be given up. 
 All died but one. Long took that to Dutch Island, 
 but it would not stay. Like the human animal, the 
 poor thing wanted sympathy and something to love, 
 and followed him all the way back, notwithstanding 
 all he could do to restrain it. Tame foxes and tame 
 owls have also been given up. The former bit their 
 keepers, the latter ate each other up. The dogs 
 multiply rapidly, and would increase faster, but that 
 the pups are eaten by the old ones. I saw the mother 
 of a dead pup keeping Eitenbank from swallowing it, 
 while she hesitated whether or not she would do the 
 same thing herself. 
 
 "We are again building around our house with 
 ice, which proved such an addition last winter, and 
 the double sashes to the windows have been put in. 
 I have added a side-board to my bunk and covered 
 the adjacent walls with paper, thus adding to the 
 warmth. Much may be done to mitigate the evils of 
 this climate. The moral and social evils are what we 
 can not meet, or rather do not repel." 
 
 Mrs. Greely's birthday was again observed, chiefly 
 by a good dinner with wine furnished by Lieutenant 
 Greely. Lockwood's own birthday was also cele- 
 brated in like manner, when he recorded the follow- 
 ing : " After dinner Lieutenant Greely and I had a 
 long talk — reminiscences of army-life, speculations as 
 to our retreat in boats, etc. When alone, my mind 
 
\ I I 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 215 
 
 turned to the dear ones at home and the many warm 
 friends I had elsewhere, and to the happy days spent 
 with them. 
 
 " My corner, which is the coldest of all the cor- 
 ners, was improved by covering floor and walls with 
 paper. I also found an improvement by adding side- 
 boards to the bunk, and finally by converting the bed 
 into a regular sleeping-bag. Before this was done, I 
 sometimes became very chilly during the night after 
 the fires went down. Our lamps now burn all day. 
 How wearisome this constant artificial light becomes, 
 we know from the experience of last winter. I dread 
 it under our present social relations. Even Lieutenant 
 Greely refers to these as intensifying what would other- 
 wise not much distress him. My daily routine is some- 
 what as follows : Breakfast at half-past seven, with 
 scarcely a word spoken by any one. Then I smoke, 
 standing by the stove in the cook's room. After- 
 ward, tailoring or some other work. At noon, a walk 
 to Proteus Point if possible. Afterward, read or sleep 
 till dinner at four. Again smoke as before. Then 
 a few games of chess with Lieutenant Greely or check- 
 ers with the Esquimaux. Then read a little French 
 or a good deal of whatever I find most interesting. 
 Then to my army-bunk, to sleep till next morning, 
 when the same routine is repeated." 
 
 On the 20th, he made a trip to Depot " B " with 
 some of the men and two dog-sledges to bring down 
 the musk-ox meat left there in cache. They found 
 the foot-ice near shore so rough that they had to keep 
 well out, but still they made the eighteen miles in six 
 
216 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 hours, which may be regarded as fair traveling with 
 dogs. 
 
 They met many bear- tracks, but old, probably made 
 by the same animals that yisited the station. They 
 found that these animals, and also foxes, had found 
 their meat-cache and had done much damage, four 
 quarters of meat and fifteen geese having been eaten 
 by them or taken away. Returning next day with 
 what remained, and taking in more meat at St. Pat- 
 rick's Bay in still worse condition, they made their 
 way home over a sea of rubble-ice. To show the 
 effects of ice-movements, Lockwood observed, when 
 crossing Watercourse Bay on their return, the sledge- 
 tracks made the day before fifty feet in the air on top 
 of floe-bergs ! 
 
 They made a visit to some floe-bergs at the mouth 
 of Lady Franklin Bay to get specimens of colored ice 
 seen there on a berg. These were mostly yellow, but 
 some specimens almost black. On melting, they gave 
 an offensive odor, and made deposits of their color. 
 Analysis only could determine the nature of the col- 
 oring-matter. Young ice was measured, and found 
 to be twenty inches thick. 
 
 Lockwood would have been glad enough to be 
 away from that cold region, and yet he seemed de- 
 termined again to explore the north Greenland coast, 
 and thought that, under favorable circumstances, he 
 could go farther than he had already gone by at least 
 seventy-five miles, thereby manifesting a degree of 
 pluck almost unique in its character. Difficulties 
 might arise to defeat his plans, but, these surmount- 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 217 
 
 ed, all his energies and hopes would be directed to 
 returning home. It was Lieutenant G-reely's opinion, 
 however, that his "farthest" would not be again 
 reached in the present century. 
 
 On the 5th of November Dr. Pavy returned from 
 an expedition to Carl Eitter Bay, which he had 
 reached by following the valley back of Cape Lieber, 
 as the ice-foot was found impracticable. The dog- 
 food, or dried fish, taken, being insufficient and poor, 
 one of the dogs died, and was immediately eaten by 
 the others. The straits below were found quite open. 
 They killed one musk-ox, but could not bring in the 
 meat. On the return, so rough was the ice over the 
 bay that twelve hours were required to cross from 
 Cape Baird. 
 
 The doctor urged the policy of storing provisions 
 at Cape Hawkes for their boat-journey, a thing easier 
 to talk about than to do, as Cape Hawkes was one 
 hundred and fifty-five miles, in a straight line, south 
 of Lady Franklin Bay, and it would occupy a dog- 
 sledge to go and return at least one month. If any- 
 thing was to be done in that direction, all thoughts of 
 further exploration must be abandoned. The doctor 
 predicted that a naval expedition would be sent for 
 them the next year, Congress having hitherto failed 
 to provide for their relief. 
 
 In one of his tramps to Proteus Point, Lockwood's 
 feet were again frosted, owing partly to his imperfect 
 foot-gear, and he then became convinced that a light, 
 flexible moccasin was the best thing to wear in that 
 country. 
 
 \ i .■ 
 
218 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 For several days about the middle of November, 
 there were magnetic disturbances of a pronounced 
 character coincident with the storms and auroras they 
 were experiencing. Storms were always indicated by 
 rapid changes of barometer, but sometimes the ba- 
 rometer fell and no storm followed. Auroras had 
 recently been attended with varied colors, which was 
 unusual, as they had formerly been uniformly white. 
 A surveyor working there would find, at times, his 
 compass-needle almost unmanageable. Seals were 
 seen in the most unexpected places, one of them hav- 
 ing been killed with a hatchet in a tide-hole. 
 
 On the 21st, Lockwood was startled, when setting 
 out on his usual walk, to see what looked like smoke 
 coming from the roof of the house ; but what he mis- 
 took for smoke was only the condensation of vapor 
 escaping from the house. The appearance of the 
 smoke coming from the chimney, and of the steam 
 from the roof, projected as they were on the sides of 
 the snow-covered mountains, was very pretty. The 
 ice-wall around the house was a great protection, not 
 only keeping the hot air in, but protecting the house 
 from the furious blasts which would otherwise enter 
 it, if, indeed, they did not destroy it. 
 
 Lieutenant Greely resumed his lectures, which had 
 before proved so interesting. He gave one, which 
 they all admired, on the history of his native town, 
 Newburyport. Israel had also assumed the role of 
 lecturer on astronomy, with which he was familiar. 
 
 When Lockwood became desperate with ennui, he 
 got out his old letters and again read them, as they 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 219 
 
 carried him back to his distant home and parents and 
 sisters. He earnestly prayed that a kind Providence 
 would restore him to them. This was the end of all 
 his hopes. 
 
 On the 30th of November Lockwood wrote as fol- 
 lows : " This is the day Lieutenant G-reely appointed 
 for thanksgiving, and thankfully should we keep it ; 
 for we have not only escaped sickness and any serious 
 discomforts, but we have had undoubted success in 
 our efforts both scientific and geographical. We have 
 had a royal feast of soup, beef, corn, Lima beans, 
 pineapple-jelly, nuts, and figs." 
 
 Contrary to his resolve, a few days later he com- 
 menced reading novels. His feeling was that they 
 withdraw one from one's self, which is something 
 gained ; but they put one up in the clouds from 
 which it is often painful to descend. They cause 
 the reader to live for a time in an ideal world, and 
 bring him back to the stern reality with a sense of 
 disappointment. 
 
 On the 8th of December, Lockwood was greatly 
 impressed by the absence of light, and gave his views 
 as follows : " It is now very dark, even at noon, ex- 
 cept when we have the moon and a clear sky. Even 
 on the floe, where the pure white snow reflects every 
 bit of light, it is now so obscure that it is difficult to 
 see the path at one's feet ; and even the outlines of the 
 mountains, high above the horizon, are very dim. A 
 faint gleam of twilight over the south horizon, at 
 noon only, shows the direction in which the sun and 
 ' God's country ' lie. So dark is it that I have sev- 
 
 \ i i 
 
220 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 eral times stumbled oyer the dogs lying outside at the 
 door ; and when in a pathway, one has rather to feel 
 the way than see it, requiring the use of a lantern in 
 going from the house. 
 
 "No wonder, then, that the moon is so highly ap- 
 preciated in this benighted region. How delightful it 
 is, after a fortnight's absence, to haye her with us once 
 again ! How a poet would raye oyer the moon could 
 he once know a polar winter ! We haye her now in 
 all her glory, lighting up this yast desert waste, which, 
 covered with its mantle of snow and ice, now becomes 
 a thing of beauty. 
 
 "The effect of continued absence of sunlight is 
 yery marked in the complexion of all the men, as well 
 as in their loss of yigor. They are as blanched as 
 potato-sprouts in a dark cellar. Blessed orb of light 
 and life ! One can hardly imagine the one without 
 the other. The moral as well as the physical influ- 
 ence of sunlight is yery soon seen after the sun's reap- 
 pearance, the middle of February." 
 
 They still kept up birthdays, and the 24th was 
 that of Saler, when they had a feast selected by him- 
 self. The musk-ox beef was particularly good, being 
 young and tender, and free from the musk flavor so 
 common with old oxen. They were now used to this, 
 however, and it did not trouble them. 
 
 In the evening Lieutenant Greely brought out a 
 few Christmas presents to distribute, which had not 
 been issued the previous year, and there were some 
 prizes of tobacco, soap, etc., raffled for. A chromo- 
 picture of good "King Billy" of Prussia was given 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 221 
 
 to Long, whose hair is somewhat red. The hair in 
 the picture being of the same color, much mirth was 
 elicited, as Long was sensitive about his hair, and was 
 constantly chaffed by the men on that account. Lieu- 
 tenant G-reely made a few appropriate remarks, refer- 
 ring to the success of the expedition, and praying that 
 their good fortune might continue, etc. 
 
 The Christmas-dinner was remarkably good — one 
 that might have been enjoyed anywhere. The appe- 
 tites of the men and of the officers were equal to the 
 occasion. Of late some of them had shown less appe- 
 tite than formerly, possibly because their supplies 
 showing signs of failing in a few particulars, the table 
 had shown less variety. The average weight of the 
 men was found to be one hundred and seventy-one 
 pounds, Lockwood's weight being one hundred and 
 seventy-six, embodying a good deal of caloric. 
 
 On the 8th of January, 1883, after repairing some 
 damage done to the launch by the ice, Lieutenant 
 Greely announced his resolve to leave for home in 
 boats not later than August 8th, and sooner, if the 
 ice permitted. 
 
 On the 23d, efforts were made to cross the bay to 
 Cape Baird, but without success, the difficulties being 
 the absence of light, the intense cold, and the ex- 
 tremely rough ice. If was desired to open a passage 
 to Cape Baird, and make a depot of provisions there 
 for use on the retreat. Their first efforts carried these 
 stores only to mid-channel, but afterward Sergeant 
 Lynn and others carried them over to Cape Baird. 
 
 Much of Lockwood's time was of necessity occu- 
 
 \ i i 
 
222 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 pied in tailoring, and he had become quite an expert. 
 Service in the north not only demanded much cloth- 
 ing, but the garments must be strong and warm. 
 Their supply in store being somewhat limited and not 
 judiciously chosen, particularly in foot- and hand- 
 gear, all were from time to time engaged in repair- 
 ing old garments or making new. Eice suggested a 
 method of doubling the supply of woolen socks by 
 cutting off the legs of long stockings and sewing up 
 the bottoms of the leg part. For his proposed spring 
 trip, Lockwood was counting upon a rig consisting of 
 two merino shirts, three flannel shirts, one chamois 
 yest, one vest made of two thicknesses of army- 
 blanket, one woolen Jersey, one swan-skin cloth over- 
 shirt, one pair of merino drawers, two pairs of flannel 
 drawers, soldier's trousers, cloth cap covering head 
 and neck with a skirt covering the shoulders, and a 
 pair of moccasins over heavy woolen socks — all to be 
 worn at once, though seemingly heavy enough to 
 weigh down an elephant. The only clothing in re- 
 serve was woolen wrappers and socks for the feet, 
 and a seal-skin " timiak " for exceptionally cold 
 weather. Having suffered much from cold feet, Lock- 
 wood had paid special attention to foot-gear, but with- 
 out great success. Frequently he was kept awake 
 most of the night from this cause. He noticed that 
 the dogs suffered more in their feet than elsewhere, 
 and might be seen at any time standing around with 
 their feet drawn up under their bodies. The feet and 
 the nose seemed to be the only highly sensitive parts 
 of the Esquimaux dog, these being, indeed, the only 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 223 
 
 parts not covered with long wool. Lockwood never 
 tired of watching these animals. They were suscepti- 
 ble to kindness, though generally getting little of it. 
 They followed him on his lonely walks, and seemed 
 grateful for any notice or attention on his part. The 
 young pups soon became docile and tractable in har- 
 ness, though a little more difficult to manage than 
 old dogs. 
 
 When the 1st of March arrived, all hands were en- 
 gaged in preparing for their spring work. First in 
 order was the supply of their depot on the eastern 
 side, and Lockwood purposed leaving soon, to convey 
 several hundred pounds of rations to that place. As 
 usual in such cases, Dr. Pavy and two others of the 
 party indulged themselves in the most gloomy prog- 
 nostications as to the future, declaring that all idea 
 of further explorations should be abandoned, and all 
 their efforts applied to depositing provisions down the 
 straits to secure their safe retreat in boats in August 
 and September. Both Lieutenants G-reely and Lock- 
 wood did all they could to make a success of this expe- 
 dition, but the social atmosphere was not congenial, 
 and there was little enthusiasm manifested. How 
 different would have been this life if all had pulled 
 together ! Lockwood was impatient to be away from 
 this trouble and at work. If he could not go farther 
 than on his previous trip, he could at least try, and 
 no man could do more than his best. 
 
 On the 10th of March, Lockwood left with two 
 sledge-teams of ten dogs each for the purpose of plac- 
 ing supplies on the Greenland side of the straits — he, 
 
224 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Sergeant Brain ard, and Esquimaux Frederick, with 
 one sledge ; Sergeant Jewell, Corporal Ellison, and 
 Jans, with the other. After leaving Depot A, where 
 they added to their load, they had on each sledge 
 about nine hundred and thirty pounds, or nearly one 
 hundred pounds per dog. Found much rubble-ice 
 on St. Patrick's Bay, but, generally, the route to 
 Depot B was good, and the journey was made in 
 eight hours from the station. Although they had a 
 fire in the little stove of the depot tent, all passed an 
 uncomfortable night, not only from cold, but from 
 their cramped and crowded condition. Their feet 
 were higher than their heads, and the head in one in- 
 stance was under the edge of the damp, frost-covered 
 canvas. "Woolly" was found to be lame, and had 
 to be left in a hole in the snow-bank, with a supply of 
 hard bread ; Ellison was feeling badly, yet said, "All 
 right," and insisted on proceeding. Seeing no favora- 
 ble passage from Cape Beechy, they concluded to go up 
 to Wrangell Bay and try the passage direct from there 
 to Cape Brevoort. To reach Wrangell, they had to 
 leave the ice-foot and move out on the straits, and soon 
 found themselves in an awful mass of rubble-ice like 
 a vast plain covered with bowlders. A great deal of 
 chopping had to be done with the axe, and what prog- 
 ress they made, was with half-loads. They encamped 
 on the straits, and, while the others returned for the 
 discarded loads, Lockwood prepared supper, succeed- 
 ing only in making some ice into lukewarm tea, which, 
 with cold bread and meat, they hastily swallowed be- 
 fore creeping into their sleeping-bags. They secured 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 225 
 
 but little sleep, as may be imagined when it is known 
 that the thermometer registered that night —48°. 
 Under such circumstances, they seemed never com- 
 pletely unconscious, and got up in the morning under 
 the belief that they had not slept at all. 
 
 Beaching the south cape of Wrangell Bay, they 
 turned to the right and went directly toward Cape 
 Brevoort, still meeting with ice of the most formida- 
 ble kind, oyer which the heavily loaded sledges had 
 frequently to be lifted. Tired out, they camped at 
 5 p. m. in the midst of the strait. The first thing to 
 be done was to look out for the foot-gear. This al- 
 ways had a lining of frost inside as well as out, being 
 wet from perspiration if not from leakage. Brainard 
 always changed his stockings for dry ones when he 
 could do so, but Lockwood and Frederick generally 
 let theirs go, the latter from indifference to frost-bites, 
 and the former to escape the pain arising from tender 
 feet and fingers. By incasing his feet in dog- or 
 sheep-skin wrappings, he managed to pass the night 
 comfortably. 
 
 Ellison, being really sick, was sent back to the 
 depot to the tender care of Woolly. After moving 
 for a time over rubble, several of the pieces of which 
 came up to a man's shoulders, they were greatly en- 
 couraged by coming to a grand paleocrystic floe, whose 
 gently undulating surface stretched east, north, and 
 south as far as the eye could reach. This floe re- 
 minded Lockwood of a Western prairie, its mounds 
 and gullies making the resemblance more complete. 
 As an offset to this smooth way, they had to face an 
 
 \ IB 
 
226 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 icy north wind with, the thermometer from —35° to 
 —48°. Frederick got one cheek and. a finger frost-bit- 
 ten, Brainard his face, and. Lock wood, his nose. Here 
 they put .off the load, and. at a run with the empty 
 sledge returned to their former encampment, where 
 the tent was left standing, to await the return of 
 Jewell, who had gone back to Depot B to leave El- 
 lison with Woolly. 
 
 The next morning, packing everything on the two 
 sledges, they soon gained the smooth floe seen the day 
 before, whence, detaching Jewell for some stores at 
 Lincoln Bay, which he was to leave at this point and 
 then return to Fort Conger, Lockwood, Frederick, 
 and Brainard proceeded across the floe with as much 
 of the total loads as the dogs of their sledge could 
 drag. Coming within five miles of Cape Brevoort, 
 and seeing formidable ice in that direction, while 
 toward Newman Bay the ice was better, Lockwood 
 concluded to head toward that bay. They did so until 
 5 P. m., and then camped on the straits, completely 
 exhausted. During the night they had a violent 
 south wind, but they had campaigned too much 
 not to be prepared for this with tent-pins securely 
 driven. 
 
 In the morning they made their way over pretty 
 good floes with some rubble, and reached at noon the 
 whale-boat at Polaris Point, finding the rations in her 
 intact. Thence, following the snow slope along the 
 cliffs, and passing the point where Lockwood and 
 Frederick had spent many hours the year before in a 
 snow-hole, they passed round Cape Sumner through 
 
WAITING AND WATCHING. 227 
 
 masses of ice in some places piled fifty feet high, and 
 finally reached the Boat Camp on Newman Bay. 
 
 Having thns provisioned the Boat Camp, they took 
 a survey of the routes back, and concluding that, all 
 things considered, the one direct to Cape Beechy was 
 the best, returned by it with the empty sledge, making- 
 rapid progress and reaching the west shore in just 
 seven hours. Notwithstanding they had no load, the 
 passage was by no means easy, for they had to pass 
 over mountain-ridges, deep pits, and gullies in the 
 rubble-ice, where the dogs could scarcely keep their 
 footing. Lockwood was impressed, as often before, 
 with the power and endurance of the dogs. Elli- 
 son had left the depot, but Woolly still remained, and 
 there, also, they found Jewell, who had been up to 
 Lincoln Bay, where he found that the foxes had eaten 
 up a large part of the meat in cache there. 
 
 With Woolly on the sledge, they returned to the 
 station, meeting Snyder and Whistler en route with 
 a pup-team and sledge, going for Woolly. It was in- 
 teresting and touching to witness the demonstrations 
 and delight of these youngsters on meeting their 
 elders, among which were the mothers of some of 
 them. 
 
 Jewell said that, on his return to the depot, he 
 put away his dog-harness in one of the empty tents, 
 and that when he awoke the next morning he found 
 nothing remaining but the bone buttons and the 
 whip-handles, the dogs having eaten everything else. 
 Another dog-story is recorded as follows : 
 
 1 i Milatook had pups the other day, and all were 
 
228 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 killed except one. Ifc was discovered yesterday in a 
 very unfortunate condition, with tail frozen hard and 
 stiff, and legs in nearly the same condition. Some 
 of the men soaked the tail in water, and eventually 
 ' brought it to.' It is a sad tail." 
 
XIV. 
 RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 
 
 0:^ the 19th of March, fair weather came out of 
 the north, and not only cheered the hearts of the 
 whole colony at the station, but fired the desire of 
 Lieutenant Lockwood for the new campaign, which he 
 had long been contemplating. After a consultation 
 with Lieutenant Greely, he concluded to start on the 
 following day, or soon after. As usual, some cold 
 water was thrown upon his plans, one of the critics 
 declaring that they had experienced enough of that 
 kind of business ; and another, that they had better 
 be thinking of their coming fate. But Lockwood's 
 reasoning was as follows : " Before I go home, I must 
 make another ' strike ' on the north Greenland coast. 
 If the conditions of the ice are no worse, I ought to 
 be able to discover the northeast extremity of Green- 
 land, and add several miles to my latitude, although 
 Lieutenant Greely thinks that my present i farthest ' 
 will not again be reached in our day. I say nothing 
 about all this, however. Act first and talk afterward 
 has always been my way." 
 
 Lockwood was both hopeful and determined, and 
 on the 23d he received his final orders to the effect, 
 that, should he not be able to reach a higher latitude 
 
230 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 than lie did before without undue danger, or should 
 he or any of his men break down or become danger- 
 ously ill, he was to return forthwith. To this he re- 
 plied that he knew not what might happen, but he 
 intended, if possible, to reach the eighty-fourth paral- 
 lel. In anticipation of his own birthday, and to honor 
 the explorers with a good " send-off," Lieutenant 
 Greely gaye a dinner on the 26th, and, thus fortified, 
 they were prepared to move on the following day, 
 rejoicing. 
 
 Lockwood had two fine teams of ten dogs each as- 
 signed for his use, and, as before, the faithful Brainard 
 and Esquimaux Frederick were to accompany him. 
 Everything passed off quietly, without the excitement 
 or enthusiasm of the previous spring. They left the 
 station at 8.30 A. m., the advance sledge bearing the 
 silk flag of Mrs. Greely, with Brainard and Frederick 
 the Esquimaux ; the supporting sledge with Jewell, 
 Ellis, and Esquimaux Jans ; and then the pup-team 
 and sledge driven by Snyder, and carrying Greely and 
 Lockwood. On reaching Watercourse Bay, whence 
 they were to take back a load of coal, Lieutenant 
 Greely and team left them, after bidding God-speed, 
 and telling them to be sure and bring back the north 
 end of Greenland ! Eeaching Depot A in two and 
 a quarter hours, they took on two small seals left 
 there, and passing Depot B, where they obtained more 
 provisions, they reached Cape Beechy at 4 p. M. — the 
 dogs quite fresh, but the men much wearied. 
 
 When they resumed their journey, it was snowing 
 and the Greenland shore invisible. They took a di- 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 231 
 
 rect course by compass for Cape Sumner oyer rubble- 
 ice until they reached the first floe, on whose hard, 
 undulating surface they made rapid progress until 
 they came to rubble-ice again. Brainard, with axe in 
 hand, went ahead, clearing the way oyer impassable 
 places, until the high cliff of Polaris Promontory came 
 in sight. Finally, both Jewell and Ellis suffering 
 from pain, when three miles from Cape Sumner they 
 stopped for the night, after making twenty miles, and 
 all went into bags. 
 
 Moying early next morning with considerable 
 wind, they got into bad ice with cracks, down which 
 some of the dogs fell and had to be drawn up ; but 
 finally, finding a better route, reached the Polaris 
 Boat Camp, where, leaying some meat for the dogs 
 when returning, they continued on toward Gap Val- 
 ley, generally oyer rolling floes, and through rubble, 
 requiring a good deal of cutting, tugging, and push- 
 ing. 
 
 When three miles out they went into camp again, 
 leaving Ellis to prepare supper for all, while the 
 others, with both sledges, returned to the Boat Camp. 
 
 Leaving Brainard to get ready the alcohol to be 
 taken from the whale-boat, they kept on along shore 
 to the foot of the cliffs and the cache. Here they 
 found the snow-slopes much worse than on their last 
 yisit, but, the sledges being empty, they could have 
 gone along over anything except a stone wall, and 
 even that would have had to be very high to stop them. 
 Fox-tracks were seen near the cache, but they found 
 it intact. The ice they had piled about it was al- 
 
232 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 most covered by the drifting snow. The contents of 
 the cache, about one thousand pounds in all, were put 
 on the two sledges, and soon after they went down a 
 snow-bank so steep and hard that the sledges took 
 entire command, though all hands tried to hold them 
 back ; but the dogs keeping out of the way, no harm 
 was done. This was at Cape Sumner, whence they 
 returned to the Boat Camp. Here, taking on the 
 things prepared by Brainard, they returned to the 
 tents. After supper some hours were spent in getting 
 ready the rations for from twenty to forty-eight days. 
 Jewell and Ellis were both complaining; otherwise, 
 everything looked very promising. 
 
 On the morning of the 30th, it was clear overhead 
 but cloudy around the horizon, and a slight snow 
 was falling. The loads were about eleven hundred 
 pounds to each team, but the dogs did admirably, 
 and good speed was made, the ice being covered with 
 a very light depth of snow. At the mouth of the 
 gorge by which they were to ascend and cross the 
 Brevoort Peninsula, they reduced the load on each 
 sledge and started up this . narrow, rocky, winding 
 canon. The snow was hard and they were getting 
 along well, when right before them appeared a wall 
 of snow, so steep and hard that Lockwood had to 
 use his big knife, to ascend. It was about thirty 
 feet high. He went alone to view the situation. A 
 few yards beyond was a kind of ice tunnel whose roof 
 was about three feet high. Then came another high, 
 steep snow-drift with a snow-cavern alongside, prob- 
 ably fifty yards in length ; and also a few feet far- 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 233 
 
 ther was found a deep pit formed by the snow. 
 Climbing around this and proceeding half a mile, he 
 found that the gorge made a bend to the east and be- 
 came still more narrow and rocky ; but a side ravine 
 offered a chance to get out of this big gutter, up a 
 long, steep slope of hard snow, three or four times the 
 height of the preceding drifts ; and then Lockwood 
 found himself on the table-land overlooking Newman 
 Bay. 
 
 The sledges with great difficulty gained this com- 
 paratively level divide. The landmarks not being 
 altogether familiar to Lockwood, he took a long walk 
 after supper to a distant ridge, where, seeing the sea- 
 coast, his way became perfectly clear. It was a 
 lonely and dismal walk, and the ridge seemed to get 
 farther away as he approached it. After more than 
 two hours' absence he returned to the tents, crawled 
 in alongside of Sergeant Brainard, and was quickly 
 lulled to sleep notwithstanding the snoring of Fred- 
 erick. The horrid sound issuing from his bag was 
 as loud as a brass band at a circus. 
 
 The process of getting breakfast was to be preferred 
 to that of getting supper. When a man went into 
 camp, after a toilsome day of travel, and had helped 
 to pitch tent and unload the sledge, it was hard, while 
 covered with frost, with cold and perhaps wet feet, to 
 chop ice and meat, and handle cold metal. 
 
 After an uncomfortable night, with the tempera- 
 ture down to —45°, they started again. Proceeding 
 several miles, they reached a narrow, winding ravine, 
 and finally a gorge, which they followed until they 
 
234 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 came to the head of the wide Gap Valley, and thence 
 to the sea-coast. Turning east, they continued on a 
 few hundred yards, and were then stopped by the ice- 
 wall, which crowded so closely to the shore that the 
 sledges could not be hauled through. Lockwood and 
 Frederick pitched the tent, while Brainard went ahead 
 with the axe, and, after much hard work, made a 
 passage about one eighth of a mile long through this 
 place. They managed to worry through with half 
 the load by three o'clock, and, leaving Brainard to get 
 supper, Lockwood and Frederick went on with half 
 the load for about one and a half miles. The route 
 beyond the bad place was excellent. Dropping the 
 load, they returned to the tent by four o'clock. Jew- 
 ell came along later, he and Ellis complaining again 
 of their difficulty in keeping up with the sledge when 
 it went faster than a slow walk. 
 
 While approaching the cairn at Eepulse Harbor, 
 on the 1st of April, Brainard's sharp eyes discovered 
 the site of the English depot of rations, which con- 
 tained Lieutenant Beaumont's sextant, an English 
 flag, a cooking-lamp, old clothes, and some foot-gear. 
 The road before them was excellent, and they made 
 good time, soon passing the route of the preceding 
 year, which reached the coast just east of Eepulse 
 Harbor. 
 
 On coming near Drift Point, they were better able 
 to see the northern expanse outside the ice- wall which 
 lined the coast and had interrupted the view. Lock- 
 wood saw a good deal of young ice interspersed with 
 holes, and leads of open water. The main pack be- 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 235 
 
 yond seemed permeated by leads of what had been 
 quite recently open water. Dark, misty "water- 
 clouds " were seen everywhere northward. The young 
 ice extended along shore in both directions as far as 
 they could see, and out from shore a hundred yards 
 or more. Beyond it was the polar pack, broken into 
 small floes and rubble-ice, which had a glistening 
 green appearance, as though recently pushed up by 
 the grinding of the fields about it ; all this was very 
 surprising. 
 
 They made their way over the snow-slopes of Drift 
 Point and beyond until the near approach of the cliffs 
 on one side and the ice-wall on the other brought 
 them to a halt eighty miles from Fort Conger. Here 
 they encamped with everything, having come thus far 
 in six days. 
 
 The ice-wall along here was from forty to fifty 
 feet high. Outside, there was a good deal of ice late- 
 ly formed, with smooth floes. They passed on near 
 the foot of the bluffs, to see if there was any way of 
 getting along the cliffs, making their way between 
 the ice-wall and the foot of the steep slopes of the 
 bluffs with great effort. The debris of stone, etc., 
 from the cliffs above made the route almost impracti- 
 cable for a sledge. Before reaching Black Horn Cliffs, 
 they were obliged to find a route along the top of the 
 ice-wall, and thus got a short distance along the bot- 
 tom of these vertical cliffs. But now, from a fissure 
 in the cliffs above, came a steep drift of very hard 
 snow, slanting down to the water at its foot. To 
 scale the cliffs by means of this drift was dangerous, 
 
 \ i i 
 
236 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 as a slip would inevitably have taken one directly into 
 the water. 
 
 By cutting steps in the snow they gained a consid- 
 erable elevation, but, on looking round a point of 
 rocks, the height beyond was so much greater and 
 worse than they expected, that they could not proceed. 
 All along shore was the crack of open water about a 
 yard wide, with young ice beyond, through which a 
 stone or fragment of ice might be thrown. Dense 
 water-clouds appeared in many directions. They re- 
 turned to camp, and, after enjoying some tea, Lock- 
 wood gave Jewell the tidal rod to make observations, 
 while with Brainard he started out again, this time 
 to the south and up a stream-bed, at whose mouth 
 they were encamped, hoping to find a route back of 
 the cliffs overland. They soon found themselves in 
 a ravine with high, rocky sides, and encountered a 
 steep snow-drift. Beyond was a small hole in the 
 snow, which seemed to be a cavern or grotto formed 
 of snow and ice, and probably running down to the 
 bed of the stream — if that may be called a stream 
 which has no water. Beyond this were exposed 
 rocks under foot, and they saw ptarmigan-tracks, 
 where the birds had used their wings in getting 
 down a snow-drift. Finally, they came to a branch 
 ravine from the southeast, the main stream leading off 
 toward the south. They turned up the branch, and 
 kept on for a while, when the high rocky sides seemed 
 to come to a formation of ice like a glacier, a hun- 
 dred feet high, at least, and very steep. The crest was 
 perpendicular. The route thus far was difficult yet 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 237 
 
 practicable, but it was clearly impossible for a dog- 
 team to haul an empty sledge up this place, and yet 
 it was the only place where there was anything else 
 than an inclined plane of rocks. The glacier was 
 covered with snow, but in many places the ice could 
 be seen cropping out, the snow being only a thin cov- 
 ering. Some ice-grottoes were also seen. They clam- 
 bered up the rocks to the left, and found themselves 
 on a stony plateau. Off to the east was an elevated 
 ridge or knoll, toward which they traveled about a 
 mile and a half. On gaining it, the barometer showed 
 an elevation of thirteen hundred feet. Toward the 
 south was a chain of mountains running east and west, 
 through the western extremity of which the main 
 stream-bed they had ascended seemed to break, about 
 six miles from the sea. The branch appeared to end 
 at the glacier ; but to the east of it the land sloped 
 north and south, and formed a surface-drain which, 
 running east, soon narrowed into a gorge, and, bend- 
 ing to the north, reached the sea just west of Eest 
 Gorge, as well as they could make out. At the bend 
 was a large formation of ice or snow. 
 
 They returned to camp at 3 p. m., and found 
 every one there walking vigorously up and down to 
 keep warm, or, rather, to keep from freezing, the 
 thermometer marking —48°. Jewell left his beat 
 every few minutes to note the height of the water on 
 the tide-rod. There was now nothing else to do ex- 
 cept to get into the sleeping-bags, and this in cold 
 weather always involves a change of foot-gear. At 
 six o'clock Brainard had prepared supper, and shortly 
 
 \ I 
 
238 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 after, the advance sledge-party was trying to sleep. 
 Jewell kept on taking observations until after eleven, 
 when he canght the high tide. It was a severe ordeal, 
 but he preferred to do it, without assistance, as it 
 was much better for the record. 
 
 Brainard complained of want of sleep, and Lock- 
 wood's rest was much the same as usual — an uneasy, 
 oppressed feeling of being half asleep and half awake ; 
 every few hours getting broad awake, and wondering 
 if it were time to rise, or how much colder his feet 
 would have to get before freezing. Having decided 
 to examine the main ravine running south, Lockwood 
 started from camp before eight, with Brainard, Fred- 
 erick, and Ellis. On reaching the branch, he and 
 Ellis continued south, and the other two went up the 
 branch. Continuing along between the high, rocky 
 sides of the ravine, with abundance of hard snow 
 under foot, but some bad snow-drifts, they found a 
 very good sledge-route. After a while, they came to 
 a huge formation of snow, filling the whole breadth of 
 the ravine, and sloping up — in one place by a very easy 
 ascent — to the west bank. Gaining this, they contin- 
 ued on and reached a ridge some twelve hundred feet 
 high, which commanded a view of the sea, and of the 
 valley to the south as far as the mountains. The val- 
 ley seemed to grow wider and deeper as far as the 
 mountains, through which it broke from a southwest 
 direction. No break or defile of any kind offered an 
 outlet to the east. Beyond the east bank was a wide 
 plateau covered with stones, and about four miles 
 from the sea. After taking a good survey of the 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 239 
 
 country, they turned back toward the camp. Brain- 
 ard and Frederick joined them some time afterward, 
 and reported that they had cut one hundred and 
 fifty-two steps in the side of the glacier to get up, and 
 found that the branch extended a short distance be- 
 yond, but that a vertical ledge of ice some twelve feet 
 high presented itself afterward, and that, on getting 
 beyond this, they found themselves on a plateau cov- 
 ered with bare stones. Brainard thought the route 
 utterly impracticable, and went no farther. He after- 
 ward said that they might be able to get round to 
 Best Gorge in two weeks, with the sledges and loads, 
 by taking the sledges to pieces, and carrying them 
 and the loads piecemeal over these obstructions. The 
 young ice seemed to be getting thicker, and they be- 
 gan to think they might get around the cliffs after 
 all. They had some tea and "pap," and began to 
 calculate how many days it would take to reach Cape 
 Bryant. During the afternoon, a way for the sledge 
 was cut through a low place in the ice-wall, a short 
 distance west of the camp, and two days' rations were 
 also deposited in a cache on the hill. A slight wind 
 blew during the day, and by eight o'clock all were in 
 their sleeping-bags again, excepting Jewell, who kept 
 up tidal observations until ten, securing a very satis- 
 factory set, two high tides and the intervening low 
 tide. 
 
 Thermometer during the night —43°. After break- 
 fast, Brainard went down to the tide-gauge, and, com- 
 ing back, reported that the rising tide had widened 
 the crack a little, but that he had fixed it by chop- 
 11 
 
 ', I ,1 
 
240 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 ping snow blocks and throwing them into the water. 
 Being unwilling to risk everything on the young ice, 
 thinking that it might break through, Lockwood put 
 the five sacks of pemmican on the sledge, and leaving 
 the tent, etc., and the supporting sledge-party pack- 
 ing up, he, Brainard, and Frederick started on. They 
 reached the ice with no trouble, and, proceeding out 
 from shore one or two hundred yards, turned to the 
 east and went a short distance when, Frederick seeming 
 to think the ice all right, Lockwood sent Brainard 
 ahead with the axe, while with Frederick, having 
 thrown off the load, he proceeded back for the rest of 
 the stores, so as to take all on together. They had 
 nearly reached the shore, when suddenly Lockwood 
 saw two or three of the dogs in the water, and knew 
 from Frederick's tones that something had happened. 
 The ice was moving out from shore, and they saw no 
 way of getting off. Lockwood called for Jewell, and 
 then leaving Frederick and his team to find a way to 
 shore if possible, started on the run to get within 
 hailing distance of Brainard. He was speedily over- 
 taken by Frederick and the dog-team, the dogs going 
 at a fast gallop, and Frederick laying his whip about 
 them in all directions. Lockwood proceeded to find 
 some place to get ashore, but there was none, except 
 at a little promontory of rubble-ice, in front of the 
 camp, and about two hundred yards from the tide- 
 gauge. Elsewhere up and down, as far as they could 
 see, was a continuous belt of water, every moment get- 
 ting wider. The ice had a motion toward the east, as 
 well as out from the shore, and thus kept in position 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 241 
 
 a small cake of ice by means of which Lockwood got 
 on the promontory, and then directed the movements 
 of the dog-sledge which now came along. On the way 
 back they stopped and threw the pemmican on the 
 sledge again, the ice being perfectly smooth and hard. 
 They first saved the dogs, pulling them up one by one, 
 and then, the little ice-cake seeming to keep its posi- 
 tion, a bridge was made of the sledge, and all the 
 pemmican saved. The ice continued to move out 
 from the shore, until up and down as far as the eye 
 could reach was a wide belt of open water. Before 
 they left, it was in many places between one and two 
 hundred yards wide, and the ice at the same time 
 moving toward the east. They got ashore at eleven 
 o'clock, and by 12.30 the sledge-tracks, which had 
 been opposite the tidal rod, were opposite the camp, 
 a distance of two hundred yards. "While the sledges 
 were being packed, a seal made his appearance and 
 eyed the party curiously. The guns were not con- 
 venient, and he was not disturbed. Many water- 
 clouds were seen to the north at this time, and the 
 whole polar pack seemed to be on the move. They 
 were all grateful for getting out of the trap so well. 
 Keferring to their living on the moving floe, Fred- 
 erick made signs to suggest their eating the dog- 
 pemmican ; certainly this would have lasted a long 
 time had they not frozen to death in the mean while, 
 which they would have done very soon, as they were 
 without sleeping-bags or alcohol. 
 
 There seemed nothing to do but turn about and go 
 home, and yet Lockwood was extremely averse to the 
 
 \ H I 
 
242 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 idea. The overland route looked well-nigh impossi- 
 ble, or something at least that could not be accom- 
 plished in time to allow them to reach the farthest of 
 1882. Lockwood 's orders directed his return in case 
 this contingency should arise, as well as in case of any 
 "signs of the disintegration of the polar pack," or 
 in case he became incapacitated for rapid travel. He 
 walked up and down and thought of it for some time, 
 both Brainard and Jewell haying declared that there 
 was nothing else to do but return. At 12.30, the 
 teams being all ready, they turned toward the west. 
 As they came near the slopes of Drift Point a very 
 disagreeable south wind with drifting snow was met, 
 which continuing to get worse, their cheeks and noses 
 began to suffer, and therefore, at about two o'clock, 
 they halted and pitched the tents, driving the pins 
 first, and raising the tents afterward. By this time 
 it was blowing almost a gale, and, the thermometer 
 being very low, the tent was tied up, and they pre- 
 pared to weather it out, Lockwood having a severe 
 headache, which added to his tribulations. 
 
 The whole of April 5th was passed in the sleeping- 
 bags, giving all hands an opportunity to meditate on 
 the delights of an Arctic sledge-journey. The time 
 was spent in sleep, or in trying to keep warm and 
 sleep at the same time. During the day Lockwood 
 counted up the exact number of rations remaining, 
 and, still bent on his dream of the eighty-fourth de- 
 gree, calculated that, if they could get around over- 
 land to Eest Gorge in five days, they could yet go 
 to the farthest of 1882 and a few days beyond, pro- 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 243 
 
 vided the traveling was not worse than the previ- 
 ous year. He announced his intention accordingly. 
 Brainard and Jewell were not hopeful, but willing to 
 do their best in attempting it. One great obstacle 
 was the lame and crippled condition of both Jewell 
 and Ellis. The signs of disintegration in the polar 
 pack, Lockwood proposed to disregard. 
 
 The wind continuing to blow, it was noon before 
 they started off toward the east to reconnoitre ; but, 
 prior to this, Lockwood went up on the high ground 
 back of the tents and saw a great deal of open water. 
 Some time after starting, he stopped the sledges and 
 went up on another elevation to reconnoitre, feeling 
 that, if he went on and anything happened, his re- 
 sponsibility would be heavy, from his disobedience of 
 orders. From this point could be seen a belt of open 
 water running along shore, in both directions, for 
 miles. In no place was it less than two hundred yards 
 wide, and from that it increased to four and five hun- 
 dred. Westward from the vicinity of Eepulse Harbor, 
 it extended in a lead, growing wider and wider, all the 
 way across the straits, apparently to the vicinity of 
 Lincoln Bay, where it seemed to swing round to the 
 north. This lead was upward of five miles wide in the 
 middle. Whether there were other leads south of it, 
 between Newman Bay and Beechy, could not be de- 
 termined. In the polar pack to the north were sev- 
 eral small leads and a great many dark water-clouds. 
 The ice was again noticed moving rapidly to the 
 northeast. Beyond Cape Bryant, he supposed the ice 
 to be intact, as in 1882, but around the cape, north 
 
244 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 of Britannia, they had then traveled on new ice, and, 
 going out on the polar pack at Cape Dodge, just this 
 side of the farthest, had traveled on it for several 
 miles. The condition of this route now could not be 
 known, of course, but what they had seen made the 
 prospect very unfavorable. The signs of disintegra- 
 tion were unmistakable, and Lockwood therefore de- 
 termined to turn back once again. Near this spot he 
 remarked a very curious stratified floeberg. It was 
 about forty feet high, and a dozen or more horizontal 
 lines were very plain. The weather had now cleared 
 up beautifully, and they were soon at Kepulse Har- 
 bor. Here they left a short notice of their defeat in 
 an English cairn, and, taking Beaumont's sextant, 
 the English flag, etc., on the sledge, continued on 
 their way to the mouth of Gap Valley, where they 
 went into camp, and remained long enough to take a 
 set of tidal observations. 
 
 The observations here were very satisfactory, and 
 were kept up by Jewell for more than twelve hours. 
 Brainard, with Ellis and the two teams and drivers, 
 advanced the heaviest part of the loads en route nine 
 miles to the shore of Newman Bay. Lockwood and 
 Jewell remained in camp, and the former found it 
 extremely monotonous, having nothing to do but to 
 prepare supper. The only way to keep warm was by 
 constantly moving about, and, as a cold wind was 
 blowing, this in itself was not comfortable. The ob- 
 servations were very trying to Jewell, continued as 
 they were long after the rest were in their bags. 
 
 On the 8th of April, they suffered more than usual 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 245 
 
 with cold. The sleeping-bags, frozen stiff, were a 
 long time in thawing out after they got into them. 
 Dark water-clouds were seen along the northern hori- 
 zon, although elsewhere the sky was bright and clear. 
 One, particularly noticeable, to the northeast and near 
 shore, looked like a huge cliff in a fog. They also 
 noticed a movement in an ice-hillock some distance 
 off the coast. It changed its angle to the east dur- 
 ing their stay, and suggested open water across their 
 route before reaching Cape Beechy. They left camp 
 at ten, and found the traveling very good — rather im- 
 proved by the late storm. Jewell and Ellis began to 
 suffer again, and the latter was carried on the sledge 
 several miles, the loads being very light. They soon 
 reached the middle of the divide, and then the loads 
 left on the shore of Newman Bay, making very fast 
 time through the gorge, though the sledges had to be 
 let down the snow-slopes and drifts by ropes. After 
 stopping some time to take on everything, they pro- 
 ceeded slowly and reached the Boat Camp, and soon 
 after Cape Sumner, where they stopped to make tidal 
 observations, Lockwood and Brainard remarking what 
 a particularly dreary and dismal place it was, and won- 
 dering if they should ever see it again. It brought 
 to mind the trials and tribulations of the previous 
 spring. Yet, in spite of those trials, the novelty of 
 everything, and the imperfect equipment, that expe- 
 dition was a success ; and this one, notwithstanding 
 their experience and the completeness of their ar- 
 rangements, a failure. " Oft expectation fails where 
 most it promises." Lockwood felt thankful that they 
 
246 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 had escaped from the ice-pack, and from passing the 
 forty-eight hours of the recent storm upon it, living 
 on the pemmican until finally frozen to death ; but 
 the sense of defeat was predominant. They passed a 
 tedious, cold afternoon, but enjoyed a good dinner, 
 haying now an abundance of rations of all kinds. It 
 warmed them up and put new life in all. Jewell saw, 
 during his observations, a white owl flying overhead 
 toward the east. 
 
 The morning of the 10th was bright, clear, and 
 calm. They noticed a stratum of misty clouds, sup- 
 posed to be water-clouds, hanging along the foot of 
 the cliffs on the Grinnell Land shore, and extending 
 from above Cape Beechy northward indefinitely. After 
 passing through several bands of rubble-ice with great 
 labor, and yet without having to double up, they 
 found the tracks made on the outward journey, and 
 followed them continuously. This saved a great deal 
 of time in chopping and picking out a road. About 
 noon they suddenly encountered a very cold south 
 wind. It seemed to come out of Devil's Gap, Polaris 
 Promontory, and as usual carried along a lot of fine 
 drifted snow, continuing during the day. Their heavy 
 loads made the dogs travel at a slow walk, otherwise, 
 no doubt, both Jewell and Ellis must have been left 
 behind or carried on the sledges. They went into 
 camp on a hard snow-drift. 
 
 After an uncomfortable night, with the mercury 
 at 45° below zero, they left camp and followed the old 
 trail, as on the previous day, jolting along with little 
 difficulty in the rubble-ice, the dogs doing admirably, 
 
RESUMING A DESPERATE STRUGGLE. 247 
 
 bracing themselves to the effort at bad places, like so 
 many men. 
 
 They reached Depot B at 2.50 p. m., and pitched 
 the tents, this making the tenth time that Lockwood 
 had crossed the straits above Fort Conger. 
 
 The traveling was tedious and slow, but they 
 reached Depot A at noon, stopping only half an hour, 
 and arrived at Fort Conger in the afternoon. Ev- 
 erything there was quiet as the grave. "General 
 Grant " was the only one, man or beast, that knew of 
 their approach and came out to meet them. Even 
 when they passed the windows and reached the door, 
 no one saw or heard them, and Lockwood walked in 
 on Lieutenant Greely like a ghost, and simply said : 
 "Well, Fm back again; open water at Black Horn 
 Cliffs." Some of his further reflections were to this 
 effect : 
 
 " Do I take up my pen to write the humiliating 
 word failed ? I do, and bitter is the dose, although 
 it is now a week since first I tasted it. My return 
 here, the inaction after two and a half weeks of ac- 
 tivity, and the monotony, not to mention the dis- 
 appointment of Lieutenant Greely, make it fresh as 
 when first mixed. I tried yesterday and to-day to 
 induce Lieutenant Greely to let me go out again, but 
 he says this is our last year here, that I still have 
 last year's work to fall back on, and, above all, that 
 it is not prudent. I have a scheme by which I could 
 travel four days beyond the farthest of '82, and get 
 back here in forty-four days, leaving April 21st and 
 returning June 3d— that is, provided an overland 
 
 - ■' 
 
248 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 route around the Black Horn Cliffs can be found, and 
 provided the conditions beyond are no worse than last 
 year. My proposal was to take the two teams, the two 
 Esquimaux and Brainard, five sacks of pemmican, 
 one tent, two sleeping-bags, etc., and forty-four days' 
 rations for the party. The five sacks would last the 
 dogs twenty- three days, after which about eight dogs 
 of the twenty would be killed one by one, and thus 
 the remainder fed on the return. We should have to 
 make long marches, it is true. Perhaps the refusal is 
 for the best, and I still have the country southwest of 
 the head of Archer Fiord to operate in ; but I am re- 
 luctant to give up this scheme for passing 83° 24'." 
 Everything at the station was very quiet, and much 
 as when they left, except that a party had been sent 
 for the boat at Thank-God Harbor. 
 
XV. 
 
 ACROSS GKIOTELL LAND. 
 
 While the disappointment which attended the 
 late expedition was very great, it did not make Lien- 
 tenant Lockwood unhappy or morose. He was only 
 convinced, perhaps, that when the ice and snow and 
 storms, minions of the North Pole, undertake to play 
 the game of April fool, they do it yery effectually. 
 The absence of so many of his companions from the 
 station had a depressing effect upon his spirits, but 
 as usual he prepared the report of his last journey, 
 and duly submitted it to Lieutenant Greely, all the 
 while suffering from the severe rheumatic pains 
 which invariably followed his exposure to severe cold. 
 Many of the men were complaining, and the weather 
 outlook was not encouraging, and yet, after consulting 
 with Lieutenant Greely, Lockwood fixed his mind 
 upon an exploration up and beyond the Archer Fiord. 
 His idea was to go west, at least as far as the English 
 had gone along the northern shore of Grinnell Land, 
 feeling that he could hardly fail of finding something 
 of interest, and would perhaps make important dis- 
 coveries. Indeed, he might be able to determine the 
 coast-line on the west. As usual, he wanted the com- 
 pany of Sergeant Brainard and Esquimaux Frederick, 
 
 Li 
 
250 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 and would be content with one dog-team and supplies 
 for thirty days, with a proper supporting party for 
 two days. 
 
 His spirits now became better than they had been, 
 caused chiefly, as he confessed, by the glorious sun ; 
 and yet he could not refrain from thinking of home, 
 and again resorting for comfort to his old family let- 
 ters, which he had so frequently read before. 
 
 His late failure had been a disappointment to him- 
 self as well as to Lieutenant Greely and the men. 
 Some of them seemed down in the mouth and gloomy, 
 and, by way of cheering them, Lieutenant Greely in- 
 formed them that he intended to leave Fort Conger 
 on the 5th of August, or as soon thereafter as the ice 
 would permit. The personal relations of Dr. Pavy 
 and Lieutenant Kislingbury with Lieutenant Greely 
 and himself were not what they should have been, 
 and, instead of getting better, these relations seemed 
 to grow worse. Could he not have gone abroad on 
 these fatiguing journeys to escape such companion- 
 ship, he would have felt utterly desperate. He cer- 
 tainly would cheerfully take any risks during the 
 summer than longer endure the existing personal 
 troubles. Lieutenant Kislingbury's only thought 
 seemed to be that a sledge-party should be sent down 
 to Littleton Island to have the ship leave her sup- 
 plies at Cape Sabine, therein merely reflecting the 
 latest opinion of the doctor. 
 
 The start for the western trip was made on the 
 25th of April, 1883, with two sledges, each drawn by 
 ten dogs and carrying about one thousand pounds of 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 251 
 
 rations for thirty days. They moved along the south 
 side of the harbor oyer very soft and deep snow, 
 through which the dogs labored, yet made their way 
 with full loads. On getting near "Sun Land/' how- 
 ever, the snow became abominable, and the trayeliDg 
 was as bad as they had ever experienced. After try- 
 ing for some time to go ahead, but sticking incessant- 
 ly, they turned short off to the left, and after a great 
 deal of work reached the shore, Brainard en route 
 falling down a crack, and Lockwood feeling convinced 
 that his feet were frozen, as all sensation had left 
 them. 
 
 Beaching Black Knob Point, where there was a 
 tent, they found it blown down. After some delay in 
 repitching it, they started overland toward Sun Bay, 
 through soft and deep snow, and soon afterward 
 reached Stony Cape, where they encamped, all the 
 party being very much fatigued. 
 
 Kesuming their march, they found the snow not 
 particularly deep, but with a light crust, not quite hard 
 enough to bear, which made the traveling fatiguing. 
 They stopped to rest every hour, the weather being 
 really too warm for comfort, so that Lockwood act- 
 ually longed for the cold and hard work he had ex- 
 perienced in north Greenland. They reached Kep- 
 pel Head in three hours, and found that Mr. Keppel 
 had a very stony face, and not a handsome head by 
 any means, being a lofty promontory and precipitous 
 mass of rocks, very grand and imposing. In two 
 hours more they reached Hillock Depot, and stopped 
 to get some corned beef left there by Lockwood in 
 
252 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 June of the preceding year, the English rations left 
 there having all been eaten by foxes. 
 
 On reaching Depot Point, they transferred every- 
 thing from the supporting sledge and sent it back to 
 the station, afterward getting along with the whole 
 load very well. The high, steep cliffs on their right 
 threw their shadows almost across the fiord, and kept 
 them out of the glare of the sun moving along the 
 northern horizon. Fox-tracks constantly appeared. 
 These tracks were found everywhere, and yet it was 
 but seldom that the animals themselves were seen ; 
 and in thinking of their habits, Lockwood wondered 
 if they laid up in store their surplus food against the 
 days of want. A tame fox kept at the station would 
 always take what was offered ; but, when the ice-wall 
 was pulled down, a large supply was found which Mr. 
 Eeuben had abandoned on regaining his liberty. 
 
 Greatly enjoying the pleasant weather, after find- 
 ing some Esquimaux relics, and making a vain effort 
 to surmount a glacier, they finally reached the head 
 of Ella Bay, where, after some delay in finding fresh- 
 water ice, and snow hard and deep enough to pitch 
 the tent, they went into camp. Lockwood and Fred- 
 erick then took the team and empty sledge, and pro- 
 ceeded up a little water-course a few miles. Found 
 less ice and more stones than they expected, but, hav- 
 ing ascertained that they could advance up the valley 
 with some extra labor, returned. Numerous fox, 
 ptarmigan, hare, and musk-ox tracks were seen, but 
 no game. Brainard became permanent cook, as the 
 difficult business of making observations devolved 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 253 
 
 entirely on Lockwood. The cliffs about here were 
 grand, at least three thousand feet high. 
 
 Lockwood was disappointed in getting equal alti- 
 tudes of the sun for longitude (time), the lofty 
 cliffs shutting out the orb of light on each side of the 
 meridian ; and yet he had camped away out, a mile or 
 two from the cliffs, in order to avoid this difficulty. 
 This was one of the annoyances he had frequently 
 experienced. After lying awake for hours, or taking 
 his sleep by short cat-naps with one eye open, and 
 running out in order to catch the sun at the right 
 time, and all this after a tiresome march, it was very 
 provoking to have " some miserable cliff" lift its ugly 
 head right in his way. To get the local time well, it 
 was necessary to take the sun's altitude some hours 
 before noon, and then catch the precise instant of the 
 same altitude in the afternoon, the sun being nearly 
 on the meridian at a time midway between the times 
 of the two observations. This middle time needed 
 certain corrections, and then, the watch or chronome- 
 ter being regulated to Greenwich or Washington time, 
 the difference of time, or longitude, was known. The 
 little streams occupying the valleys (or canons, as they 
 should be called) of this Arctic country are utterly in- 
 significant compared with the depressions themselves. 
 A great, ditch-like break in the country, from two 
 to five miles wide and ten to thirty miles long, the 
 sides of which are vertical walls rising thousands of 
 feet, may be the bed of a little brook that in sum- 
 mer-time can be readily waded, and at other times of 
 the year can hardly be seen under the universal man- 
 
254: FARTEEST NORTH. 
 
 tie of snow. It was one of these that they followed 
 in its windings. Here and there they would encoun- 
 ter yery deep snow, and the sledge-runners would 
 stick on the beds of stone, requiring all their efforts 
 to get under way again. In about an hour they 
 came to a long, level area, indicating Lake Kather- 
 ine, which Lockwood had previously discovered and 
 named when up near here in the launch, and then 
 the view up the valley was unbroken as far as the 
 glacier. Its terminal face could be clearly seen, look- 
 ing like a little wall of ice three or four feet high, 
 upon which one could readily step. Back of this the 
 surface gently ascended until lost in the snow-cov- 
 ered mountain-side far beyond. The whole thing 
 looked like a mass of barber's lather, flowing slowly 
 down a deep ditch. For some hours, Lockwood and 
 Brainard both thought there would be no trouble in 
 getting sledge and dogs up the little face to the un- 
 dulating and gradually ascending surface beyond. 
 After proceeding some distance on the lake, Lock- 
 wood stopped the sledge, and with Brainard went off 
 to the right, ascending a low ridge that ran parallel 
 with the lake and between it and the high cliffs on 
 the north side of the valley. They found the top 
 to be four hundred feet high, and beyond was a wide 
 ravine running down to the bay. There they saw the 
 tracks of three musk-oxen that had evidently passed 
 along on their way toward the fiord ; also many tracks 
 of foxes, ptarmigan, lemming, and hare. Probably, 
 the chief reason for seeing so few animals, though so 
 many tracks, was that the birds and animals (except- 
 
ACROSS GMNNELL LAND. 255 
 
 ing the musk-ox) are all pure white in color for three 
 fourths of the year. One might look at a hare or 
 ptarmigan a few yards away and yet not see it. The 
 lake called Katherine was found to be three or four 
 miles long. At its farther end, the ground was quite 
 bare of snow in places, and everywhere the snow was 
 hard and thin, so that they went along very rapidly. 
 Every half-hour, they thought, would bring them to 
 the glacier, but the longer they traveled, the farther 
 the glacier seemed to move away. When only a short 
 walk from the glacier, as Lockwood thought, he stop- 
 ped the sledge, and with Brain ard went on ahead. 
 The face seemed much higher than they had sup- 
 posed it, but it was only after walking a mile that 
 they realized what it was — a wall of ice, straight up 
 and down, stretching a mile across the valley from 
 side to side, and nearly two hundred feet high. 
 
 After surveying this wonderful object, they re- 
 turned to the sledge and pitched the tent, seeing no 
 way of proceeding farther ; and there they remained 
 a day or two to get a good look at the surroundings 
 before deciding upon the proper course to pursue. A 
 decided fall in the temperature was quite noticeable, 
 due, doubtless, to the proximity of the glacier. They 
 got to sleep after a while, and during the day took a 
 good rest, getting up in the afternoon. The twain 
 went again to reconnoitre, leaving Frederick to hunt, 
 or amuse himself in any other way he chose. They 
 went to the glacier-wall again, and followed along its 
 foot to the south side of the valley. This wall was 
 beautiful and imposing. From the top, one third 
 
256 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 of the way downward, the ice was of a charming 
 green color, and looked like glass ; below this came a 
 white surface, in which small stones were numerous 
 imbedded in the ice, with here and there streaks of a 
 brownish color, like chocolate ice-cream mixed with 
 yanilla. A close approach showed that it was earth. 
 At the foot of the wall, probably concealing a "termi- 
 nal moraine," was an undulating bank of snow, and 
 oyer the upper edge of the wall hung wreaths of 
 drifted snow that looked like the icing of cake. The 
 ground for some distance out was strewed with blocks 
 of ice and stone of all imaginable shapes and sizes. 
 On reaching the corner of the glacier, a similar wall 
 was seen extending up along its flank, abutting against 
 an inclined plain of immense bowlders and masses of 
 rock, the debris from the cliffs above. The angle 
 thus formed was full of large blocks of ice, many 
 recently detached from the wall of ice. Traveling 
 along the flank proved so difficult that they took to 
 the incline and scrambled for some time over immense 
 masses of rock and snow, often across deep cracks 
 and openings concealed by the snow covering them. 
 After gaining an altitude of several hundred feet, they 
 reached something like a terrace formation, from 
 which they overlooked all the lower part of the gla- 
 cier. It presented an undulating and gradually ris- 
 ing surface, extending up the valley fifteen or twenty 
 miles, or more. Just opposite to them, a branch 
 glacier came in from the north through a gap in the 
 mighty cliffs. The slope of this branch in places 
 was very precipitous, showing great rents and fis- 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 257 
 
 sures. The surface of the glacier was free from 
 snow, except, here and there, in what seemed little 
 depressions in the ice. There was no way of climb- 
 ing npon the glacier, much less of getting the sledge 
 and dogs up. It would simply have been ascending 
 a precipice of ice two hundred feet high. To get up- 
 on it had been their original intention, although Fred- 
 erick went through a pantomime at the time, which 
 they did not exactly understand, expressing how a 
 sledge would go faster and faster, and finally shoot 
 over the edge like a waterfall. Whether he ever had 
 had such an experience in Greenland he did not say, 
 but he would never have had it more than once. See- 
 ing no way of getting on or along the glacier, except 
 with the greatest labor, Lockwood proposed to Brain- 
 ard that they should ascend the cliffs and get an out- 
 look from the top. It did not seem very far to the 
 crest, and accordingly they started, but a more severe 
 climb they had never had, and hoped never to have 
 again. It was a very steep incline of rocks and snow 
 all the way up. When the barometer showed an ele- 
 vation of twenty-five hundred feet, Lockwood found 
 himself on a ledge of rocks from which he could get 
 neither up nor down for some time. Beneath him 
 was a steep surface of frozen snow, falling on which 
 he would have gone down-hill like an avalanche. 
 Brainard had inclined more to the left, and, by fol- 
 lowing the side of a steep gully full of ice, had got 
 ahead of him and out of sight. 
 
 Finally, Lockwood reached what had long seemed 
 the summit, and stopped to rest. Presently Brainard 
 
258 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 came in sight, and said the top was about a mile off, 
 They then started together, walked oyer a gradually 
 ascending surface like the top of a vast dome, covered 
 with hard frozen snow and ice, and very smooth and 
 slippery, giving them frequent falls, and at 4 A. m. 
 reached the summit and viewed the country around for 
 many miles. Being cold, they did not stay long — only 
 long enough to take bearings by compass of several 
 distant mountains to the south, snow and ice-clad 
 peaks with many glaciers between. To the west the 
 country was less broken, and seemingly was a lofty 
 surface of snow and ice. They traced the glacier near 
 their camp about twenty miles toward the west-south- 
 west, when it, and the valley containing it, came to 
 an end in a high mountain-ridge. This wonderful 
 feature of nature possessed great interest for Lock- 
 wood. The face of the barometer gave an elevation 
 of the mountain or cliff on which they stood of 5,050 
 feet above the sea-level. As their tent was only three 
 hundred feet above tide-water, their climb had not 
 been a small one. They descended the mountain 
 readily, although they had to use hands as well as 
 feet all the way down, in some places carrying with 
 them a land-slide of earth and stones. 
 
 They were constantly deceived as to distances and 
 heights. A headland on the fiord looked but a half- 
 hour's travel away, yet it took two or three hours to 
 reach it. So these cliffs, which looked from below 
 like an easy climb, proved the highest and steepest in 
 that benighted region. They got back to the tent 
 after thirteen hours of as hard work as they had yet 
 
ACROSS GRIXNELL LAND. 259 
 
 experienced, and completely tired out. They took 
 meridian observation for latitude, and then enjoyed 
 a hearty meal of ptarmigan killed by Frederick dur- 
 ing their absence. 
 
 On the 2d of May, they left their beds and had 
 breakfast at about midnight. Found it snowing and 
 unpleasant. Saw little else to do than retrace their 
 steps to Ella Bay, and thence proceed around to Bea- 
 trix Bay and try to get inland from that place ; spent 
 the day, however, in further reconnoitring, as Lock- 
 wood did not wish to leave before night. Brainard 
 went over to the northeast corner of the glacier, but 
 found no way of proceeding in that direction, and, 
 after carefully studying the surroundings, Lockwood 
 could see no means of getting on even with packs. 
 Spent most of the day in taking observations, etc. 
 Occasionally they heard a noise like thunder, caused 
 by the falling in of sections of the great wall before 
 them, more formidable than any to be seen in China. 
 The ground at the foot of the wall was only the bed 
 of a stream with blocks of ice, and here and there 
 a big bowlder. Everything being packed up and 
 ready, they started down the stream again, examin- 
 ing several deep breaks in the cliffs to see if there 
 was any prospect of flanking the glacier by means of 
 one of them, but without success. There was no way 
 of getting up even a short distance, except by leaving 
 dogs and sledge behind and taking to the knapsacks, 
 which was not then to be thought of. 
 
 They got along without event and reached their 
 old camp after midnight, pitching the tent farther 
 
260 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 toward the north side, in order to see the sun when 
 ready to take observations. Shortly after getting in, 
 Frederick laid his whip down for an instant, and the 
 promising dog Barker gobbled up all except about six 
 inches of the butt-end in much less time than it takes 
 to mention the fact. The praises of Barker had been 
 sung ever since his birth, and this was only one of 
 many of the tricks by which he proved his proficiency. 
 Frederick quickly made a new lash, however, and 
 gave it to Barker on the next march. 
 
 On the 3d of May, as they pushed their way on- 
 ward, they took a series of angles and paced distances 
 to get at the height of the tremendous cliffs near at 
 hand. The result gave an altitude of forty-one hun- 
 dred feet, which was almost vertical, the debris ex- 
 tending a third of the way up, and not being quite so 
 steep. They then followed the north shore to Eecord 
 Point, and thence took a straight course for the head 
 of Beatrix Bay. The cliffs were so grand that Lock- 
 wood never tired of gazing at them, wondering how 
 they were first formed, and thinking what tremen- 
 dous force of nature had scooped out the awful chasm 
 that comprised the fiord. These walls, high as they 
 were, were only one half or one third of the height of 
 the great snow-covered elevations back of and beyond 
 them. 
 
 The appreciation of the grand in this region was 
 frequently marred by fatigue and hunger, and so it 
 was on the present occasion, Lockwood being glad 
 enough when, at half -past one, they reached the head 
 of Beatrix Bay. In the valley which they now en- 
 
ACROSS GRINNBLL LAND. 261 
 
 tered, they concluded to spend another day. This 
 one, like nearly all the valleys in this region, was 
 simply a canon, a narrow, ditch-like formation, walled 
 in by steep, high cliffs. It was occupied as usual by a 
 very insignificant stream, the successor of some mighty 
 mass of water or ice which had originally hollowed 
 out the great gorge. This, and the head of Ella Bay, 
 were the farthest reached by Lieutenant Archer, E. 
 N., who explored the fiord named for him to find out 
 whether it was simply a fiord, or a strait or channel, 
 as the Polaris people had asserted it to be. His Mount 
 Neville, thirty-eight hundred feet high, Lockwood 
 looked for in vain as a regular head to the valley, and 
 finally fixed it as one of the cliffs which, a little way 
 back, rose slightly higher, to a dome. Archer was 
 a day making the ascent. Lockwood and Brainard 
 walked about four miles up the valley, and saw its ter- 
 mination nearly six miles beyond, when they retraced 
 their course to camp, greatly disappointed in seeing no 
 game, except two or three ptarmigans. The valley 
 seemed practicable for the sledge, and so, after consid- 
 ering one or two narrow and rocky gorges which came 
 in from the west, they determined to follow it to its 
 head (north-northwest), and then seek farther a route 
 in the direction desired, which was west or southwest. 
 As they proceeded, the weather became bright and 
 clear, and the mercury was only 2° below zero. They 
 passed up the valley, leaving in cache for return two 
 days' rations. The dogs were in excellent condition, 
 and, in spite of stones, went along very well. There 
 was some ice in the stream-bed, and of snow quite an 
 
262 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 abundance. Above the farthest reached the day be- 
 fore, a small lake was discovered — a level expanse of 
 snow with ice beneath. The lower part of the valley 
 had two distinct elevations, the stream-bed, a very 
 easy grade, forming one, while along the stream ex- 
 tended broken terraces, termed shoulders, which from 
 the cliffs projected out on either side, sometimes be- 
 yond the middle of the valley, which was from one to 
 three miles wide. The breadth decreased as they as- 
 cended, and after several miles it was but a few hun- 
 dred yards wide. At this point, they suddenly came to 
 a place where the valley seemed to run out, the whole 
 breadth being a mass of rocks. Good traveling was 
 seen beyond, however, and, after working an hour 
 doubling up (taking half -load at a time), they got 
 over, and shortly afterward the real end of the valley 
 was reached. They then turned short off to the north, 
 and, going up a steep, rocky ravine, about midnight 
 pitched the tent for further survey of the scene on 
 the morrow. 
 
 From this camp a low-looking " hog-back" was 
 seen to close in the head of the valley. They deter- 
 mined to ascend this and get a look at the country, it 
 seeming certain that the Mg sledge could go no far- 
 ther. After making some coffee as strong as it could 
 be made, and drinking about a quart each, to bolster 
 up their spirits, the twain again started out, leaving 
 Frederick to crawl into his sleeping-bag or keep warm 
 as best he might. They proceeded north up a rocky 
 ravine about a mile, and then came to a level plain 
 stretching northward, some half a dozen miles far- 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 263 
 
 ther, to a line of cliffs running across which seemed 
 to indicate another valley or lake. To the right were 
 two or three high, dome-shaped elevations, and to the 
 left was Mount Easy, so called, afterward, on ac- 
 count of the ease with which they ascended it, and in 
 contradistinction to Mount Difficult, the last they 
 had ascended. They soon came to a pretty little 
 lake — Lake Carolyn — only a few miles long. This 
 they crossed, and, in places where the snow had been 
 blown off, they could see down through the beauti- 
 ful transparent ice, seven feet in thickness, even to 
 the stones on the bottom of the lake near the shore. 
 This lake had an elevation of eleven hundred feet 
 above the sea. In three hours from camp, they 
 reached the top of the mountain, an elevation of 
 2,720 feet, and had a good view. To the south the 
 country was very high, and several glacier- walls came 
 into view, probably connections of the glacier above 
 Ella Bay. The Henrietta Nesmith glacier, the Gar- 
 field range, and the United States Mountains, were 
 plainly seen, and also the depression in which lay 
 Lake Hazen. Snow and ice in every direction. The 
 cliffs to the north of the camp were very conspicuous, 
 but whether along a valley or lake they could not 
 make out. They stayed on top two hours, and then 
 descended the south side of the mountain through 
 a deep ravine filled in places with snow-drifts, and 
 lower down with stones and bowlders. However, 
 they went down very rapidly, and got to camp in two 
 hours. The cliffs to the north seeming to extend to 
 the west, Lock wood decided to visit them and take 
 12 
 
264 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 that route. The only other feasible route was by way 
 of the ravine they had descended from the mountain- 
 top. 
 
 Shortly after midnight of the 7th, Frederick had 
 the dogs and little sledge ready, and, with nothing 
 upon it but the shot-gun, hatchet, and telescope, they 
 all started. The dogs were irrepressible, and took 
 the little sledge over the rocks in a way calculated to 
 cripple all hands, for they had to run alongside and 
 hold on to the upstanders to keep up. Occasionally 
 a runner of the sledge would catch under a bowlder 
 and bring the sledge to a sudden stand-still, the im- 
 mense strain of the strong dogs threatening to break 
 it. On reaching the lake, all three of the men man- 
 aged to crowd upon the sledge, and the dogs went 
 at a rapid trot oyer its smooth, leyel surface. Be- 
 yond Lake Carolyn was a ravine leading toward the 
 riyer, and there the dogs took to a gallop, and in an 
 hour they reached a rocky height overlooking a long, 
 wide valley walled in on the north side by high, pre- 
 cipitous cliffs, and on the south by heights of even 
 greater elevation, but not so steep. There seemed no 
 way, however, to get down. The water-course from 
 the lake here became a narrow gorge blocked with 
 large bowlders, the spaces between which were full of 
 soft snow. It was not inviting, but they tried it, and 
 in an hour reached the river-bed, the descent being 
 most laborious. Here they found themselves only 
 four hundred feet above the sea-level, and, turning 
 to the right, went down-stream in a northeastern di- 
 rection, the barometer constantly showing that they 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 265 
 
 were going downstream. En route they passed oyer 
 several small lakes formed by expansions of the 
 stream. In many places the ice was yery thick and 
 beautifully transparent. Seven miles from Eocky 
 Gorge, where they entered the river, they suddenly 
 saw four musk-oxen. Frederick being very anxious 
 for slaughter was allowed to go after them, while 
 Brainard remained to watch the sledge and dogs, and 
 Lockwood went off to the right to take some com- 
 pass-bearings. After a while he heard a shot from 
 Frederick, and saw one of the animals fall. The oth- 
 ers did not seem at all frightened, but stood by their 
 dead comrade until Frederick drove them away by 
 throwing stones at them. The dogs became greatly 
 excited, and, going to where the dead game lay — a 
 second ox having been killed — they gorged themselves 
 with the entrails until there was danger of ruining 
 their own. 
 
 Having returned to the camp, Lockwood now pro- 
 jected a special trip westward of twelve days, and pre- 
 pared his outfit as follows : Shelter-tent, sleeping-bags, 
 axe, sextant, etc., telescope, shot-gun and ammunition, 
 medicine, cook's bag, rubber blankets, small lamp, 
 knapsacks, snow-shoes, rations for three at forty-five 
 ounces each per day, and one sack of pemmican for 
 dogs ; total, 328J- pounds. The large tent was left 
 standing with the big sledge alongside and the Ameri- 
 can flag flying from the upstander. They got off at 
 an early hour on the 8th with the dogs in excellent 
 condition. Much work was required to get over the 
 rocks, but after that they proceeded satisfactorily un- 
 
266 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 til near the valley. This was found to be quite wide for 
 a region where everything of the kind was more like a 
 cafion than a valley in the ordinary sense. Its width 
 was two or three miles, or perhaps in some places four, 
 and the general gradients of the stream-bed (Dodge 
 Eiver) were very slight, perhaps thirty feet to the 
 mile. Narrow, deep cuts in the cliffs and high ground 
 around indicated tributary streams. 
 
 Frederick having shot a hare, and gathered up the 
 other food, they proceeded on their way, traveling 
 now over thick, clear ice and hard snow, with now and 
 then patches of stones. The valley seemed to come 
 to an end some fifteen miles up-stream, a range of high 
 hills running directly across it. 
 
 After various tribulations in exploring a side gorge, 
 at midnight on the 10th of May the party resumed 
 travel up the valley. The condition of the sledge- 
 runners rendered it necessary to reduce the weight to 
 the least amount possible. This doubtless pleased 
 the dogs, for the driver had to restrain their ardor. 
 Leaving the sledge to pursue its way along the base 
 of the hills, Lockwood ascended a considerable ele- 
 vation and obtained a good outlook over the country. 
 He was very agreeably surprised to find at the farther 
 end of a gap up stream an apparent prolongation of 
 the valley in the same general direction. On either 
 side of this prolongation was a range of low heights, 
 while the intermediate surface looked very level — so 
 level that he took it for a long lake. To the left, 
 just outside the heights on that side of the valley, he 
 could see at intervals a glacier- wall, the north bound- 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 267 
 
 ary of a great mer de glace. About twenty miles dis- 
 tant, the yalley seemed again to be shut in by a range 
 of hills, but over the tops of them, and at a great 
 elevation on the distant horizon, he saw what seemed 
 to be a snow-bank. This he made his objective point. 
 Passing onward through the gap, they came to a long 
 and picturesque lake which was named Lake Nan af- 
 ter an interesting niece ; and coming to a place near 
 the end of the valley, a break in the low heights to 
 the left revealed the glacier they had before seen. Its 
 surface was very distinct. Extending to the south 
 a few miles, it soon reached an elevation that formed 
 the horizon in that direction. It seemed a vast un- 
 dulating surface, and, as was afterward discovered, is 
 the backbone of Grinnell Land. The wall of the gla- 
 cier near which they camped presented a vertical face 
 of solid ice 140 feet high. At intervals they heard 
 the sound of falling ice — small fragments which be- 
 came detached and dropped to the base. The alti- 
 tude of this camp above the sea-level was found to 
 be 1,240 feet, and of Lake Nan 920 feet ; that of their 
 last camp was 685 feet, and of the first camp in the 
 valley, 420 feet. 
 
 Passing onward, they crossed several small lakes 
 close along the wall, with brooks emptying into them 
 from the north. In a few hours they were on the 
 divide, the surface to the north having more slope 
 than that on the other side. The summit gave an 
 elevation by barometer of 2,610 feet, about 400 feet 
 higher than where they left the wall. They had an 
 extensive view to the east, and could see Dodge River 
 
268 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 as far as they had explored it, also Mount Easy and 
 the country adjacent. To the southeast, south, and 
 southwest, was seen the glacier, which was named 
 after A^assiz. It formed the horizon for half a dozen 
 miles in these directions. All the ice-capped coun- 
 try and glaciers seen from the former camps were 
 found to be connected with, and to form a part of 
 this one glacier. Toward the north, the country had 
 comparatively little snow. Presently they came in 
 yiew of a mountain-peak toward the northwest, not 
 many miles distant, which was recognized as Mount 
 Arthur, the farthest point reached by Lieutenant 
 Greely during the previous year. Away beyond it 
 were seen very distinctly the United States and Gar- 
 field Mountains. Just to the west of Mount Arthur, 
 they discovered a large lake, which Lockwood named 
 Lake Fletcher. They were now on a surface rapidly 
 sloping to the west. Some miles distant in this direc- 
 tion appeared a broken range of cliffs and mountains, 
 and between their stand-point and these mountains 
 was a wide valley, connected by a stream with Lake 
 Fletcher, and a small lake, close to the Chinese Wall, 
 which they called Lake Harry, the latter having an 
 elevation of 1,320 feet. They crossed Lake Harry, and 
 beyond it came to another called Lake Bessie, having 
 an elevation of 1,630 feet, and covered with deep snow. 
 Reaching the cliffs to the west, they found the de- 
 scent exceedingly precipitous and rugged. No other 
 passage offered than that through a gorge which was 
 filled with ice and hard snow, whose surface was al- 
 most perpendicular. As this was the only passage, 
 
ACROSS GMNNELL LAND. 269 
 
 they went into camp to devise ways and means. Next 
 morning, Lockwood attached all the ropes he had, in- 
 cluding dog-traces, to the sledge, and while he rode 
 to guide caused the others to ease down the sledge. 
 Unfortunately, the rope was too short, and those at 
 the top let go. Gravity carried the sledge and rider 
 down the foot of the slope, now somewhat reduced, 
 with fearful rapidity, till they brought up against 
 rocks covered with snow, fortunately without serious 
 damage. The other men and dogs got down as best 
 they could, the former digging footholds as they pro- 
 gressed. 
 
 Further descending the canon, they came to an- 
 other glacier stretching entirely across their way, and, 
 as it seemed impossible to surmount it or the walls 
 on either side, they came to a halt and enjoyed a 
 night of rest. The next day they pushed on, though 
 troubled with snow-blindness, and, overcoming the 
 obstacle of the previous day, crossed a lake and en- 
 camped on its farther end. On the following day, 
 after passing through a gorge, the outlet of the lake, 
 between high cliffs, they were surprised to see a num- 
 ber of floebergs similar in every respect to the floe- 
 bergs of the east Grinnell coast. At the same time 
 they found the water to be salt, and saw the fresh 
 tracks of a bear. These facts convinced Lockwood 
 that they were near the western sea, probably at the 
 head of a fiord. This soon became still more ap- 
 parent. Here they also saw another glacier com- 
 ing in some miles west of the last. They crossed a 
 crack of open water, formed by the tide, and found 
 
270 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 themselves on well-recognized floe-ice, quite level but 
 covered in places with deep snow. Ahead of them, 
 twenty miles distant, on the opposite side of the fiord, 
 was a bold headland, and toward this they now direct- 
 ed their course. This fiord, which Lockwood named 
 after Lieutenant Greely, separated at its head into 
 two bays. These he called, after G-reely's daughters, 
 Adola and Antoinette. The latter bay they were now 
 crossing, while they bore away to the north. It had 
 become very foggy, and was snowing and blowing 
 hard. When some miles out they crossed other bear- 
 tracks, and finally reached the cape for which they had 
 been striving. Here the south shore of the fiord bent 
 off toward the west-southwest being very wide and 
 walled in on all sides by steep cliffs broken in a few 
 places by branch fiords or bays. They encamped at 
 the cape on the 13th, had supper, and soon turned in 
 to sleep and fast as long as possible, or until the storm 
 abated, as the party was now reduced to what they 
 called a starvation allowance. There was nothing to 
 do but to make observations when the sun appeared. 
 
 The mouth of the fiord at the north side was 
 found to be about forty miles off, but the snow was 
 deep and soft, and they could not attempt it without 
 rations, all of which was extremely provoking. The 
 snn became dimly visible through a snow-storm, look- 
 ing like a grease-spot in the sky ; but, notwithstand- 
 ing, observations were attempted for latitude and lon- 
 gitude, and many compass-bearings were taken. At 
 times everything was shut out of sight excepting the 
 nearest cliff. Brainard feared they would have a 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 271 
 
 very hard time in getting back, and Frederick evident- 
 ly thought he was a long distance from Fort Conger, 
 seeming rather "down in the mouth." 
 
 Soon after breakfast on the 15th, Lockwood and 
 Brainard started to ascend the cliffs near by, the 
 weather having partially cleared. They did so by 
 means of a ravine opposite the camp, and had hardly 
 reached the top before the snow began to fall again, 
 and the wind to blow from the east ; but, notwith- 
 standing, they saw a large glacier to the south twenty 
 or thirty miles away, and another to the northwest 
 at about the same distance. The first was apparently 
 an offshoot of the great " Chinese Wall " already men- 
 tioned. They saw also a lofty range of mountains 
 far to the north, running generally parallel with the 
 fiord. The cliffs to the west shut out the mouth of 
 the fiord, and, before they could get far enough in that 
 direction to see over them, the coming storm obscured 
 almost everything. These cliffs were 2,140 feet high 
 by the barometer, and almost vertical. The driving 
 snow now became very uncomfortable, and, after going 
 three miles westward, they concluded to return. En 
 route, they found a number of fossils of what seemed 
 to be trees, snakes, or fishes, Brainard being the first 
 to notice them. They also saw a ptarmigan, an owl, 
 and some snow-buntings, these being the only living 
 objects observed. Eeached the tent after six hours' 
 absence, and found Frederick tramping around in the 
 snow, not knowing what to do with himself. After 
 supper, all three of the party with the sledge and 
 dogs went an hour's journey toward the opposite shore 
 
272 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 of the fiord, ten miles away. The sky was partially 
 clear, and they got a yery good view down the fiord, 
 the telescope bringing into view another cape (Cape 
 Lockwood). Between that and the cape on the north 
 side (Cape Brainard), they failed to see any land, 
 though they examined long and carefully with the 
 telescope. The fiord between those two capes was 
 very wide. Several branch fiords, or what appeared 
 to be such, were noticed. Cape Lockwood seemed to 
 be on the farther side of one of these, or on an island. 
 The country on both sides of the fiord was very ele- 
 vated, that on the north side much broken, and that 
 on the south, away from the fiord, apparently an ice- 
 clad surface rising into immense, dome-like undula- 
 tions against the horizon. 
 
 After a meager breakfast, they started on their 
 return, finding the snow very deep and soft. The 
 effect of short rations on the dogs was noticed. They 
 saw two seals lying on the ice, which Frederick tried 
 hard to shoot, but in vain. Lockwood was especially 
 anxious to get a seal, for it looked as if they would 
 have to kill one dog to save the remainder. After 
 much trouble for want of food, they resumed their 
 journey on the 17th, verifying at various points the 
 observations that had been previously made in regard 
 to the great ice-wall and the lake over which they 
 had already passed. 
 
 On reaching the end of the lake, they began the 
 ascent of the ravine. The snow at the head of the 
 ravine was very soft and deep, and they had hard 
 work to get through it. Arriving at the big snow-drift 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 273 
 
 which they had descended with so much difficulty and 
 danger, it became a question how to ascend, but they 
 managed it by first cutting some steps and getting 
 the dogs up, and then, attaching them by long lines 
 to the sledge below, men and dogs together pulled 
 the load up the almost vertical face. The party 
 went into camp at the old place, and decided to kill 
 one of the dogs, yet very reluctantly, Frederick op- 
 posing it. Brainard had suggested White Cooney, 
 but Frederick named Button, a young dog. Button 
 had eaten up his harness that morning, and this de- 
 cided his fate. He was shot by Frederick, and soon 
 the carcass was skinned and presented to his brethren. 
 Old Howler at once seized a hind-quarter, but the 
 others did nothing more than smell the meat. They 
 walked around it in a reflective mood, debating 
 whether to yield to their hunger or to their repug- 
 nance. When the party awoke next morning, noth- 
 ing remained of poor Button but some of the larger 
 bones. 
 
 On the 18th, Lockwood and Brainard ascended a 
 neighboring mountain and got a look at the country. 
 The ascent was easy and they gained the top in a 
 short time; altitude, 2,008 feet. From this point 
 they could see the " Chinese Wall " stretching off to 
 the southwest forty miles, over hills and dales, as far 
 as the glacier south of Fossil Mountain, although 
 Lockwood could not recognize that particular glacier. 
 The glaciers at the two ends of the lake, near Greely 
 Fiord, were readily seen to be offshoots of the greater 
 one, whose surface toward the south could be seen for 
 
274 " - FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 several miles. In that direction, Lockwood took the 
 bearings of several ice-capped mountains, one, as he 
 thought, identical with a very high mountain seen to 
 the south from Antoinette Bay. The "Chinese 
 Wall" had the same general aspect everywhere — a 
 vertical face of pure white or green ice upward of 
 two hundred feet high, and extending across the 
 country in a fashion he could liken to nothing else. 
 
 From here Lockwood made a short excursion by 
 himself to Lake Harry, discovered a number of other 
 small lakes, and obtained the altitude of several locali- 
 ties. He returned to camp only to find the dogs in a 
 bad way for food, and a scarcity for himself and men. 
 Kesuming their course the next morning, after the 
 dog Howler had performed the remarkable feat of 
 stealing a piece of meat when it was cooking on the 
 alcohol-stove, they passed many of the localities they 
 had seen before, but in some cases hardly recognized 
 them on account of the flying snow. Making two 
 marches in twenty-four hours, they reached their first 
 camp, and found the tent blown down, but the big 
 sledge in its position, with the American flag flying 
 over it as gayly as if in a pleasant and genial clime. 
 The dogs were gratified with a good feast of pemmi- 
 can, and the men themselves found it delightful, once 
 more to have a full supply of food. 
 
 Their next move was for Archer Fiord, by way 
 of Beatrix Bay and Eecord Point. They crossed 
 another lake, where, as once before, they could see 
 the bottom through ice that was seven feet in thick- 
 ness, having revisited the north side of Musk-ox 
 
ACROSS GRLNNELL LAND. 275 
 
 Valley, which was separated from the lake by a yery 
 low and narrow divide. Dodge Eiyer was seen bend- 
 ing off to the northeast toward Howgate Fiord. The 
 surroundings were yery picturesque, but barren and 
 desolate in the extreme. They saw no signs of game, 
 and eyen the poor, stunted vegetation of the region 
 was wanting. Kocks and snow, with stretches of bare 
 ground, composed the prospect. 
 
 The lake alluded to above was about twelve miles 
 long — a considerable sheet of water — and, no doubt, 
 in summer would be an interesting place to visit, as 
 places go in the Arctic regions. 
 
 After camping they proceeded along to the east of 
 Murray Island, the weather cloudy and calm. Depot 
 Point was revisited, to look for the English rations, 
 but nothing found. 
 
 Having killed a seal, they took the meat and blub- 
 ber along, and camped about ten miles from Bulley's 
 Lump, where they had a good feast of meat and liver. 
 The latter was greatly relished, Brainard making it 
 into many dishes. 
 
 On the 24th, they enjoyed their breakfast at mid- 
 night, Lockwood calling it a real midnight mass, as it 
 was a black mass of seal-liver, English meat, corned 
 beef, potatoes, and hard bread, all cooked together in 
 one stew which was very good, notwithstanding its 
 miscellaneous character. 
 
 The comments of Lockwood, in regard to the ex- 
 pedition, and how matters were at the station, were as 
 follow : 
 
 "No such word as i failed' to write this time, I 
 
276 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 am thankful to say, but the hap}3y reflection is mine 
 that I accomplished more than any one expected, and 
 more than I myself dared hope — the discovery of 
 the western sea, and hence the western coast-line of 
 Grinnell Land. I have now the rather ponderous 
 task of preparing a report, making a map, and writ- 
 ing out this journal from my notes. Tidal observa- 
 tions have been taken at Capes Baird, Distant, and 
 Beechy, simultaneously, showing that the tides arrive 
 at these places in the order named. This is very 
 singular, as the previous expeditions into these parts 
 established (?) the tides as coming from the north. 
 This agrees, however, with the order of their arrival 
 at Cape Sumner, Gap Valley, and Black Horn Cliffs, 
 where I took observations in April. No more musk- 
 ox meat left ; it ran out on the 20th inst., and hunt- 
 ing-parties sent out April 25th saw nothing. I sur- 
 mised as much, from the absence of game on my trip, 
 though Brainard did not agree with me. Two seals 
 have been shot, but only one secured. 
 
 " I find the social relations of our room not im- 
 proved — rather worse than better. Dr. P., though 
 he shook hands and asked me several questions as 
 to my trip, relapsed into silence, which he seldom 
 breaks. Lieutenant K. had but one question to ask. 
 I often contrast ours with the pleasant relations of the 
 English officers when here, and think how much hap- 
 pier we should be in following their example. As it 
 is, I soon relapse into ennui and apathy. A sledge- 
 journey, with all its trials, is preferable to this. I view 
 those ahead of us with indifference, as it will rid me 
 
ACROSS GRINNELL LAND. 277 
 
 of this forced association. Another winter would 
 render me a maniac, or put me under a cairn. 
 
 " The spirits of the men seem good. The sun has 
 revived them. Merry groups may be seen at any 
 time on the sunny sides of the house. 
 
 " How often do I think of home, which now seems 
 to me like a series of pictures or objects long since 
 seen ! how often of my dear father, whom may a kind 
 Providence spare for many, many years ! 
 
 " Both Brainard and I lost a score of pounds 
 weight on our late trip ; but we are rapidly regain- 
 ing our avoirdupois. My appetite is frightful, and 
 nothing comes amiss. I want to eat every three or 
 four hours. Fortunately, we have a supply of musk- 
 ox beef on hand, having killed three recently aggre- 
 gating four hundred pounds, to which are added many 
 water and other fowl daily brought in. There was 
 felt at one time some apprehension that our resource 
 in this respect had disappeared, and fears were enter- 
 tained of scurvy. The men seem to have fared so 
 well that their appetites have become dainty. One 
 would suppose that pork and beans were not staples at 
 our army posts. 
 
 " Israel makes my farthest of the last trip, latitude 
 80° 4T, longitude 88° 29'. Hence my explorations ex- 
 tend over 2£° of latitude and 38° of longitude. Have 
 plotted my western journey, and find that my farthest 
 carries me far off the English map. I took latitude 
 and longitude observations at every camp, and also 
 frequent compass-bearings ; to reconcile all these is 
 a task. 
 
278 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 " Eice has taken a photograph of my corner, where 
 I do all my work and also sleep. 
 
 "Have been reading the authorities on glaciers, 
 and regret I did not inform myself better before going 
 out. But perhaps that Chinese Wall will make up 
 for my short-comings. 
 
 " Those rheumatic pains I had a year ago have re- 
 turned and trouble me much. I must be moving 
 again soon. 
 
 " Several of the dogs, becoming mangy, have been 
 shot. Poor old e Howler,' whom we left on the ice- 
 floe, hoping he would recover and follow us, was 
 found dead near the same place. Oh! the hours of 
 misery I have spent in sleeping-bags, kept awake by 
 that howling brute — howling, perhaps, just because 
 another dog looked at him ! But, for all his howlings 
 and stealings, the ex-king was a good worker and did his 
 duty, and that should be all required of any one, man 
 or dog. May he rest in peace in the happy hunting- 
 grounds of the canine race ! Frederick, I presume, 
 will put on crape for him." 
 
XVI. 
 
 PREPARING FOR HOME. 
 
 Hardly had Lieutenant Lockwood reoccupied 
 his corner long enough to get thoroughly rested and 
 warm, before we find him hard at work again and 
 ready for any emergency. At the request of Lieuten- 
 ant Greely, he undertook a task in which he himself 
 feared that he manifested more zeal than discretion. 
 Dr. Pavy, the natural history custodian of the expe- 
 dition, haying failed to render reports of the collec- 
 tions, or properly care for them, was relieved soon after 
 Lockwood's return from the west, and the department 
 was transferred to Lockwood. With yery little aid 
 from the doctor, he made lists and secured the speci- 
 mens from further injury, the men haying shown 
 much industry and zeal in adding to the collection. 
 In the mean time, Fredericks, who was a saddler by 
 trade, rendered good service by making for Lockwood 
 and the men seal-skin boots, which were of great use ; 
 and he also made himself useful by overhauling the 
 sleeping-bags and making new ones for the contem- 
 plated boat-voyage to Littleton Island at a later day. 
 Snyder had also made some wearing gear for use on 
 board the relief-ship. 
 
 "What a change for us all," wrote Lockwood on 
 
280 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 the 3d of June, "if we ever return home ! And how 
 much to talk about, and how much to hear ! Just 
 two years ago, I left Baltimore on the Nova Scotia, to 
 join the Proteus at St. John's. Open water is re- 
 ported in the straits near Cape Baird. How eagerly 
 we watch for any change that may effect our release ! " 
 
 On the 22d of June, a party was sent up the 
 Bellows for game and returned successful, haying 
 killed eight musk-oxen, one seal, and a few geese, all 
 of which were duly brought in. Many waterfowl and 
 ptarmigans were brought from other points ; and then 
 followed a grand dinner in honor of Dr. Pavy's birth- 
 day. To show the social relations of the officers, Lock- 
 wood says, "The only remark at dinner was a very 
 sage one by myself, viz., that the sun was now on his 
 way south, to which Lieutenant Greely assented. 
 
 "The men all busy and all cheerful. Lieutenant 
 Greely remarked that it did not look as if the ' gloom 
 which their coming fate cast over the spirits of the 
 men' was quite as deep as Lieutenant Kislingbury 
 thought it to be. Another day gone," wrote Lock- 
 wood — " another day nearer the end of our stay here ! 
 A miserable, gloomy day it is too. Snow, or snow 
 mixed with rain, all day, and last night it blew a gale 
 from the right direction to clear away the ice — north- 
 east. I think myself now in excellent condition for a 
 hermit's life, having had two years' experience of a 
 life not very dissimilar." 
 
 On the 3d of June, Lockwood made the ascent of 
 an immense "hog-back" north of the station. Hog- 
 back was the term used by the English to designate 
 
PREPARING FOR HOME. 281 
 
 the oval-shaped elevations so common in this region, 
 being neither mountain nor table-land, but immense 
 undulations which, with more or less slope, rise three, 
 four, or eyen five thousand feet above the sea-level. 
 He was the first to ascend this one, and did so to view 
 the country northwest of it, which he desired to ex- 
 plore. It was the highest of a series of ridges, half 
 a mile or so apart, each just high enough to suggest 
 the idea of its being the genuine top, but showing 
 another beyond still higher. He pressed on, fre- 
 quently resting, and finally did reach the top, and 
 saw, beyond, the United States Mountains in the dis- 
 tance. The view from this elevation, more than half 
 a mile above the sea-level, was superb. The straits 
 seemed one solid mass of ice. The Greenland shore 
 and Archer's Fiord were in full view. The whole 
 land was made up of mountains. 
 
 The 4th of July was celebrated by a game of base- 
 ball, in which Lieutenant Greely took part ; also the 
 Esquimaux, but they confined themselves to running 
 after the ball. A good dinner followed, to which 
 Lieutenant Greely contributed four bottles of Sau- 
 terne ; but the doctor declined the wine, and made a 
 hasty meal. They also had a rifle-match. Several 
 of the men donned white shirts and other "store- 
 clothes," metamorphosing themselves completely, flan- 
 nel shirts, with trousers in boots, being the usual cos- 
 tume. 
 
 On the same day Lieutenant Greely issued an 
 order directing Dr. Pavy to turn over to Lieutenant 
 Lockwood all the medical stores, journals, and col- 
 
282 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 lections, the former haying declined to renew his en- 
 gagement, which had expired. On the 11th of July, 
 Lockwood started with Brainard on an exploration to- 
 ward the northwest with a view of reaching, if pos- 
 sible, the United States range of mountains. They 
 carried an outfit weighing one hundred pounds, or 
 twenty-fiye pounds for each man at the start, as 
 Henry and Biederbick were to help them with the 
 impedimenta for one day and then return. They 
 went without sledge or tent, and carried only blanket, 
 sleeping-bags, a small lamp, and a few pounds of 
 food, with instruments, snow-shoes, etc. They soon 
 reached the top of the hog-back beyond "Sugar- 
 Loaf," and afterward the true hog-back Lockwood 
 had yisited before, finding it 2,700 feet high. 
 Thence they kept a north-northwest course toward 
 a prominent glacier in the United States Eange, mov- 
 ing about parallel to North Valley Creek, which emp- 
 ties into St. Patrick's Bay. After traveling fourteen 
 miles they camped — that is, selected as smooth and 
 sheltered a spot as could be found, made some tea, 
 spread out the sleeping-bags, and crawled in. 
 
 Henry and Biederbick left the next morning evi- 
 dently well satisfied to forego the pleasures of this 
 trip. Their departure rendered it necessary to reduce 
 the load somewhat, which was done by leaving behind 
 the snow-shoes and rubber spread, trusting to luck to 
 find a bare spot for their sleeping-bag. After tramp- 
 ing through much wet snow alternating with mud 
 and stones, and getting their feet soaking wet, they 
 came to two deep gorges close together, each occupied 
 
PREPARING FOR HOME. 283 
 
 by a considerable stream of water. They crossed 
 these and ascended a dome beyond, three thousand 
 feet high, and thence came to a still larger stream 
 whose gorge was one thousand feet deep. Here they 
 stopped for the night after a tramp of twelve miles. 
 The next morning the sky was overcast, with baromet- 
 ric indications of a storm ; but they continued their 
 way with reduced loads, haying only one day's food 
 left. Following the stream northwest a few miles, 
 they crossed it and ascended a high eleyation, from 
 which the United States range could be very distinct- 
 ly viewed, and then came to the conclusion that they 
 had gone far enough. 
 
 With the telescope they could see distinctly, about 
 twenty miles away, the walls of the great glacier, and 
 its face ten miles wide. In fact, the whole range was 
 full of glaciers. The country intervening between 
 them and the glaciers seemed comparatively level. At 
 noon they started back, and did not stop until the 
 camping-place of the night before was reached. 
 Thence, after a drink of tea and something to eat, 
 abandoning their sleeping-bags, they made for their 
 first camp, where had been left the rubber spread and 
 one extra bag. The traveling was execrable, but 
 they reached Fort Conger on the 14th, hungry, tired, 
 and decidedly used up. 
 
 On the 24th, preparations began for the proposed 
 boat-journey toward the south on which they would 
 start when the ice would permit. Lockwood, in obe- 
 dience to a general order, prepared to take no cloth- 
 ing except what he wore, and the few pounds of his 
 
284 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 baggage would consist of his journal and other pa- 
 pers. He felt depressed and low-spirited, and totally 
 indifferent as to the risks they were to encounter. 
 
 The straits were reported clear of ice below Cape 
 Lieber on the 26th, but the bay near by was still full, 
 though with many leads. Every preparation was 
 made to leaye on the 1st of August, if possible, or 
 as soon after as the ice would allow. The men fid- 
 dled and sang, and seemed in joyous spirits ; and the 
 hilarity was kept up by the dogs Eitenbank and Ask- 
 him having a terrible fight, resulting in victory to the 
 latter. The probable consequence was that Ask-him 
 would now be king. Eitenbank went about with his 
 head down and tail between his legs, a dethroned and 
 friendless monarch. The usurper's reign, however, 
 was likely to be a short one, as, on the party's leaving, 
 the dogs would either be shot or left to starve to death. 
 
 The 5th of August arrived, and the ship was the 
 only thing talked about. Some of the men reported 
 smoke down the straits, but it was soon found to be 
 only water-clouds or fog. In the midst of these ex- 
 citements, Lockwood gave expression to the following 
 feelings : "As the time for moving approaches, I feel 
 a singular apathy. If we had plenty of fresh meat and 
 more good books, I could stand another winter here." 
 
 Soon after, heavy winds from the south making 
 great changes in the condition of the ice, active 
 preparations were made for leaving. 
 
 Lockwood writes : " I don't feel as though I was 
 going away, much less toward the south. Have felt 
 more stirred up on beginning a sledge-journey." 
 
PREPARING FOR HOME. 
 
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XVII. 
 HOMEWAKD BOUND. 
 
 The time having arrived, the final orders were 
 given for the Arctic exiles to make ready for the first 
 stage of travel leading to their far-distant home. They 
 were now to leave the station at Fort Conger, and, 
 as best they conld, find their way to Littleton Island, 
 where they hoped to meet a vessel that wonld take 
 them back to Newfoundland. They were to depart in 
 boats, viz., the steam-launch Lady Greely, a whale- 
 boat, an English boat of which they had come into 
 possession, and a still smaller affair, that might prove 
 serviceable for special purposes. 
 
 The journal kept by Lieutenant Lockwood after 
 his departure from Fort Conger was written in short- 
 hand, as always while in the field, and is a very com- 
 plete record. In the following pages, only a brief 
 summary of purely personal incidents will be at- 
 tempted, without presuming to give the phraseology 
 of the youthful explorer. 
 
 On the 9 th of August, the little fleet pushed off 
 from shore, laden with the twenty-five adventurers 
 and a comfortable supply of provisions. They 
 reached Bellot Island without much trouble, but 
 afterward encountered a good deal of ice, and, while 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. 287 
 
 working very hard to get through, Rice accidentally 
 fell overboard, which was for him a poor beginning. 
 The ice continued to be troublesome until the close of 
 the next day, when the boats were so severely nipped 
 that they had to be drawn up on the floe. Afterward, 
 open water appearing all the way across the fiord, the 
 launch and the other boats made a successful crossing 
 nearly opposite Sun Bay. They reached the depot 
 near Cape Baird, at about 2 p. m., up to which hour, 
 from the time of leaving Fort Conger, they had not 
 been able to secure any sleep, nor anything to drink 
 but cold water. Reaching Cape Lieber on the 11th 
 in a snow-storm, they landed on a bluff about a mile 
 from the cape, where they waited for the ice to move, 
 so that they might continue on their route toward the 
 south along the western shore of the strait. The only 
 animals seen in that vicinity were two narwhals, fight- 
 ing near the shore. The fog now became so very 
 dense that no headway could be made, and this gave 
 them an opportunity to obtain some needed rest. 
 Their next advance was in the midst of a severe storm 
 of wind and snow, in spite of which they reached Carl 
 Ritter Bay on the morning of the 12th. The next 
 morning, while they had open water near the shore, 
 they discovered ice-barriers extending to the south as 
 far as they could see. At this point a young seal was 
 killed, which was greatly enjoyed by all of the party ; 
 but this luxury, in the case of Lockwood, was coun- 
 terbalanced by the discomfort of sleeping on shore 
 without any protection excepting that of his bag. 
 He also spent several nights on a floe-berg, where, 
 13 
 
288 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 by laying his sleeping-bag on a sheep-skin, he slept 
 more comfortably. From the 13th until the 20th, 
 when the party reached Kawlings's Bay, it was a con- 
 tinual conflict with floating ice, snow-storms, and 
 fog, the monotony of the struggle having been broken 
 by an accident to the launch, and also one to Lieuten- 
 ant Greely, who had a fall into the water, from which 
 he was rescued without harm. At all the places where 
 they encamped, they had great difficulty in securing a 
 safe harbor for the launch. Haying passed across 
 Eichardson Bay in safety and reached Cape Collinson, 
 they found about one hundred and twenty, out of two 
 hundred and forty, English rations which had been de- 
 posited there, the missing portion having been eaten 
 by the foxes. On the 22d they reached Scoresby Bay, 
 where observations of the strait showed it to be full 
 of floating ice ; and in this vicinity they were brought 
 to a halt by the ice-pack near the shore at Cape John 
 Barrow. Here the boats were pulled up on the floe, 
 and, as the thick sludge-ice was all around, no open 
 water in sight, and the supply of coal getting very 
 low, the prospect was gloomy in the extreme. When 
 able to continue on their course, the travelers were 
 still greatly troubled by heavy fogs, and while pass- 
 ing over a space of open water, abounding in floe-bergs 
 which could not be seen, they were in constant danger 
 of being lost. Notwithstanding all these obstacles, 
 they pushed their way onward, and in due time 
 reached Cape Louis Napoleon, Cape Hawks, and Prin- 
 cess Marie Bay, when they were again stopped by the 
 floating ice, and detained by the newly formed ice. 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. 289 
 
 In his desire to comply with the order as to weight 
 of baggage, Lockwood had left his seal-skin coat at 
 Fort Conger, but this step he afterward regretted, as 
 the weather continued stormy, and he was greatly ex- 
 posed to the cold. To this was added the misfor- 
 tune of haying a badly fitting seal-skin boot which 
 gave him great pain, so that he had to resort to a pair 
 of moccasins. When the boats were caught in floes 
 and detained for days, the only exercise available was 
 that of walking over the level floes. Some of the 
 men were wont to march around, under the light of 
 the moon, singing aloud their wild and uncouth 
 songs. When tired of walking, Lockwood would 
 creep into a cozy corner of the launch, and pore over 
 a pocket copy of Shakespeare which he had fortunate- 
 ly brought along ; and then, after getting into his 
 sleeping-bag, his thoughts would wander far away 
 and find expression in such words as these : " What 
 are they doing at home ? How often I think of the 
 dear ones there ! The dangers and uncertainties 
 ahead of us are only aggravated by the thoughts 
 of the concern felt by them on my account, Most 
 of us have given up the idea of getting home this 
 fall." 
 
 On the 3d of September, while in the floe below 
 Cape Hawks, Lieutenant Greely held a consultation 
 with Lockwood, Kislingbury, Pavy, and Brainard, 
 expressing the opinion that their situation was criti- 
 cal, and that they were really working for their 
 lives. One of the suggestions was that the launch 
 should be abandoned, and further progress made in 
 
290 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 the smaller boats along the western shore of the 
 strait ; but to this, Greely and the majority ob- 
 jected, still hoping that they might yet be able to 
 reach Littleton Island through a lead or over the 
 young ice. On the 6th the hunter Jans killed his 
 fourth seal, and was rewarded by a drink of rum. 
 After five more days of travel, and while approaching 
 Cocked-Hat Island, there was a great excitement caused 
 by the report that one of the men had heard the 
 barking of dogs, whereupon guns were fired and a 
 flag displayed ; but all the commotion ended in noth- 
 ing. The tides were contrary, the small boat was 
 abandoned, and the outlook was very gloomy. The 
 faithful Esquimaux, Frederick, who had latterly been 
 somewhat unlucky as a hunter, now came to the 
 front by killing a seal that weighed six hundred 
 pounds, receiving the usual drink of rum. On this 
 occasion Lockwood mentioned that he swallowed 
 a cupful of the seal's blood, and found it somewhat 
 tasteless. On the 5th of September, the party 
 after great labor came abreast of Victoria Head and 
 Cape Albert, and while drifting along on the floe the 
 American flag was hoisted over the launch, and the 
 fire under the engine was put out to save coal, Lock- 
 wood enjoying a little needed sleep. On the 7th 
 they came in sight of the coast extending from Alex- 
 ander Harbor to Cape Sabine, and the impossibility of 
 proceeding in the launch becoming apparent, it was 
 decided to resort to sledge-travel, two of the sledges to 
 carry a boat each, and both of them to be drawn by 
 the men. When they were fully prepared for moving, 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. 291 
 
 it was found that one of them weighed 1,700 pounds 
 and the other 2,100 pounds. Owing to the various 
 difficulties which soon beset the travelers, they were 
 obliged to abandon one of the boats, whereby it be- 
 came necessary to retrace several sections of the 
 journey for the purpose of bringing on the extra 
 supplies, thus adding greatly to the fatigue of the 
 men. Lockwood now expressed his doubts as to 
 whether he would live to write out his notes, and 
 also his fears that the floe upon which the party 
 then were, might take them down into Baffin's Bay. 
 Not only were they at the mercy of the floe, but the 
 currents were contrary, sludge-ice abundant, and their 
 supply of food reduced to seal-blubber, bread, and tea. 
 At one time, strange to say, their position in the straits 
 was directly north of Littleton Island, and nearer 
 the Greenland coast than that of Grinnell Land. It 
 now seemed to Lockwood that there was nothing 
 ahead of them but starvation and death, and yet the 
 men kept up their spirits in a manner that greatly sur- 
 prised him. One of the floes upon which they had 
 drifted for many days, when found to be cracking in 
 one or two places, caused the party to move upon 
 another nearer the shore, and in a short time the 
 floe previously occupied was entirely broken up. On 
 the 29th of September, the floe on which they were 
 floating, finally touched another toward the west, 
 and that another connected with the shore, by which 
 means they were enabled to reach the land, very 
 thankful to be in a place of security once more. The 
 locality was really a rock forming a promontory be- 
 
292 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 tween two glaciers, and thought to be about thirteen 
 miles directly south of Cape Sabine. To that place a 
 reconnoitring party was at once sent, but the cape 
 could not be reached on account of open water near 
 it, and the party was compelled to return. In the 
 mean time, arrangements were made for building out 
 of stones and ice the necessary huts for protection 
 during the coming winter, should it be their fate to 
 remain there. While this work was progressing, it 
 was decided that the daily rations would have to be 
 reduced. Lockwood expressed the opinion that they 
 had only three chances for their lives : first, the chance 
 of finding an American cache at Cape Sabine ; secondly, 
 a chance of crossing the straits, here thirty-five miles 
 wide, when their provisions were gone ; thirdly, the 
 chance of being able to kill enough game for their 
 support during the winter. A second effort was 
 made by Rice and a party to reach Cape Sabine, which 
 was successful. They not only brought news about 
 the wreck of the Proteus, but also a copy of the 
 Army Register for 1883, in which appeared Lock- 
 wood's name as a first lieutenant. Rice also succeed- 
 ed in discovering the English cache with two hundred 
 and forty rations, the cache left by the Neptune in 
 1882, and the stores brought from the wreck of the 
 Proteus in 1883, all of which information was hailed 
 with delight by the party. Among the stores left 
 by the Proteus, a newspaper slip was picked up, from 
 which was gathered the news that President Garfield 
 had died ; that the Jeannette had been lost ; and that 
 serious apprehensions were felt in the United States 
 
HOMEWARD BOUND. 293 
 
 about the fate of the Gfreely Expedition. This latter 
 intelligence gave Lockwood great pain, seeming al- 
 most prophetic, except in the remark "lying down 
 under the great stars to die ! " and induced him to 
 make this record : " This article gives me great pain, 
 because of the alarm and sorrow which must be felt by 
 my dear father and mother and sisters on my behalf. 
 Should my ambitious hopes be disappointed, and these 
 lines only, meet the eyes of those so dear, may they 
 not in thought add to my many faults and failings 
 that of ingratitude or want of affection in not record- 
 ing more frequently my thoughts regarding them ! " 
 
 One of the results of the trip made by Eice to 
 Cape Sabine was the selection of a spot, between the 
 cape and Cocked-Hat Island, for a home during the 
 approaching winter. Here, officers and • men alike 
 laboring, a new hut was built, which was forthwith 
 occupied by the party, all the supplies being at once 
 brought from the camp south of Cape Sabine. The 
 place where they now found themselves established, 
 Lieutenant Greely called Camp Clay, in honor of 
 one of the party — a grandson of Henry Clay — who 
 had been attached to the expedition until it reached 
 Lady Franklin Bay, whence he returned home on ac- 
 count of his health. As soon as the new hut was 
 occupied, the announcement was made that six of 
 the party were on the sick list ; but shortly afterward, 
 and notwithstanding the deplorable condition of af- 
 fairs, Lockwood recorded the following in his jour- 
 nal : "We are all now in comparatively high spir- 
 its, and look forward to getting back to the United 
 
294 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 States with a great deal of certainty. We shall have 
 to liye on half-rations or less until April, and there 
 will be shortness of fuel. Many hardships are ob- 
 vious, but we all feel sound again." 
 
 On the 23d of October, twelve of the party went 
 from Camp Clay upon a visit to Csupe Sabine, and, 
 while some of them opened the English cache at the 
 south side of Payer Harbor, Lockwood built a cairn 
 there and deposited under it, among other things, the 
 records of the expedition, with a note in lead-pencil to 
 the following effect : 
 
 " October 23, 1883.— This cairn contains the origi- 
 nal records of the Lady Franklin Bay Expedition, the 
 private journal of Lieutenant Lockwood, and a set of 
 photographic negatives. The party is permanently 
 encamped at a point midway between Cape Sabine and 
 Cocked-Hat Island. All well. 
 
 "J. B. Lockwood, 
 "First Lieutenant Ticenty-third Infantry ." 
 
 On their way back to Camp Clay, Dr. Pavy met 
 with an accident to one of his feet, and, while most 
 of the party went on, Lockwood and Ellison remained 
 behind to look after him. When night came on, they 
 lost their way, stumbling and floundering over the 
 rubble-ice until overcome by fatigue and hunger ; but 
 were revived by a limited mutton stew on their ar- 
 rival at the camp. One of the results to Lockwood 
 of his Samaritan conduct was an accident to one of 
 his knees, which gave him trouble for several days, 
 and prevented his being as useful as he desired in 
 
HOMEWAKD BOUND. 295 
 
 contributing to the comfort of the party. It was 
 about this time that Lieutenant Greely declared his 
 intention of reducing the rations, all assenting, so 
 that they might last until the 1st of March; and 
 this fact, added to the discovery that some of their 
 meat was far more bony than it should have been, 
 caused some consternation. Cold, dampness, dark- 
 ness, and hunger continued to be their hourly and 
 daily portion, the allowance of food being only about 
 one fourth of what they actually needed. 
 
XVIII. 
 THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 
 
 While the following pages will contain necessarily 
 brief notices of the life of the party during an entire 
 winter, they must conclude with the record of the 
 great calamity which befell the band of heroes. Short- 
 ly after they found themselves settled for a campaign 
 of idleness, as they expected it to be, Lockwood was 
 again confined to his sleeping-bag on account of an 
 injury to his feet which had not been properly pro- 
 tected ; his discomforts being aggravated by the re- 
 flection that both provisions and fuel were beginning 
 to reach a low-tide level. The constant hunger which 
 was experienced by all hands went far to make their 
 circumstances dismal and depressing ; while the only 
 entertainment that could be provided was the reading 
 aloud, by one of the men, of a story and some newspa- 
 per scraps which Rice had picked up at Cape Sabine. 
 A little excitement was afforded by a lottery for the 
 distribution of some clothing and two mattresses which 
 had been brought ashore from the Proteus, one of 
 the latter falling to the lot of Lockwood. And now 
 came a proposition for a sledge expedition, not to dis- 
 cover islands, glaciers, fiords, and prominent capes, 
 but to go after the abandoned whale-boat which had 
 
THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 297 
 
 floated down with the floe. This must be broken up 
 and used for fuel. Then followed another expedi- 
 tion, occupying not less than eight days, to Cape Isa- 
 bella, to obtain one hundred pounds of preserved 
 meat left there by the English. Feeling the want of 
 exercise, Lockwood occasionally took a long walk, and 
 on one occasion was so hungry when he returned, 
 that he could not wait for the regular evening meal, 
 but fastened upon a lot of moldy potatoes which had 
 been abandoned, and with these filled his stomach, 
 almost expecting that the feast would cause his death. 
 Some of the men went still further, for, when a blue 
 or a white fox was killed, even the entrails of the ani- 
 mal were devoured. Food was the constant subject 
 of conversation with all of the party — what they 
 would be able to get, what they had enjoyed in former 
 years at their distant homes, and what they expected 
 to enjoy after their return from the North. Not only 
 were their supplies getting lower day by day, but the 
 only warm thing they could now afford was a cup of 
 tea, excepting on Sunday, when they had a little rum 
 with a bit of lemon. 
 
 On the 25th of November, the sun disappeared from 
 view, not to be seen again until the following Febru- 
 ary, and now the gloom of the time and place was 
 greatly increased. On that day Lockwood recorded 
 in his journal the following : "I have intended writ- 
 ing a letter home recounting my experiences since leav- 
 ing Fort Conger, but so far the discomforts of this life 
 have prevented me. It is difficult to get the blubber- 
 lamp for more than a few minutes during the day, and 
 
298 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 sometimes it can not be had at all. The lamp is 
 blown out every evening when we are ready to retire, 
 which is generally about eight o'clock." 
 
 Nor were their troubles in any way alleviated by 
 the discovery that one of the men had been seen, or 
 was suspected of, visiting the store-room to fill himself 
 with food — especially despicable thieving. The ex- 
 pedition to Cape Isabella resulted in finding the food 
 which, however, was abandoned in returning, as one of 
 the men, Ellison, became very sick, and had his hands, 
 feet, and nose frozen. He was brought home by a relief 
 party in a helpless condition, Lockwood and the other 
 men of the party having completely worn themselves 
 out by exposure to the cold and hard work. As it 
 was feared that the men would become insane if they 
 did not stop talking about food, Lieutenant Greely 
 began to deliver some lectures on the geography of the 
 United States and their natural productions ; and this 
 was followed by miscellaneous discussions in regard 
 to places for business. Whistler, for example, praised 
 the city of Independence, in Kansas, as a splendid 
 place ; Long said he was going to set up a restaurant 
 at Ann Arbor in Michigan ; Fredericks would follow 
 suit at Minneapolis in Minnesota ; while Jewell 
 counted upon a grocery-store in Kansas. 
 
 After commenting upon the terrible weather, 
 Lockwood gave expression to the following : " These 
 short rations make me feel the cold dreadfully. It is 
 a constant effort to keep one's hands and feet comfort- 
 able, or even comparatively so. I find my spirits first 
 up and then down. Sometimes, when I think of the 
 
THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 299 
 
 months before us of this life of misery and suffering, 
 I do not see how we can possibly pull through. At 
 other times I feel much more hopeful ; but this is a 
 life of inexpressible misery." 
 
 For several days before the arrival of Thanksgiving- 
 day, a great feast was anticipated and on that day en- 
 joyed, including a favorite dish called by them " son- 
 of-a-gun" composed of bread, raisins, milk, and a lit- 
 tle blubber ; nor did the exiles omit the reading of a 
 few chapters from the Bible. In the evening Lock- 
 wood entertained the party with his experiences as a 
 farmer at Annapolis, all being interested, and he wound 
 up by inviting the whole of the company to assem- 
 ble there and enjoy a dinner with him on the next 
 Thanksgiving-day, the said dinner to be composed in 
 part of a roast turkey stuffed with oysters and eaten 
 with cranberries. In return for this compliment, 
 each one of the audience invited Lockwood to partake 
 with him of a feast after their return home, and ex- 
 patiated with great gusto on the dishes that he pro- 
 posed to have served. The promise made by Lynn 
 was a roasted turkey ; Ealston, hot hoe-cake ; Ellis, 
 spare-rib ; Long, pork-chops ; Biederbick, old regi- 
 ment dish called buffers ; Connell, Irish stew ; Ben- 
 der, a roasted pig ; Snyder, tenderloin -steak ; Brain- 
 ard, peaches and cream ; Fredericks, black cake and 
 preserves ; Saler, veal cutlets ; Whistler, flapjacks 
 and molasses ; Jewell, roasted oysters on toast ; Rice, 
 clam-chowder ; Israel, hashed liver ; Gardiner, Vir- 
 ginia pone ; Ellison, Vienna sausage ; Pavy, pdte-de- 
 fois-gras j Henry, Hamburg steak ; Kislingbury, 
 
300 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 hashed turkey, chicken, and yeal; Greely, Parker 
 House rolls, coffee, cheese, omelette, rice, and chicken 
 curry. It was after this jolly discussion of imaginary 
 good things that the party sat down to a stew of seal- 
 blubber and nothing more. The next day Lockwood 
 partook of his first dish of seal-skin which he found 
 as hard to digest as it was difficult to swallow. 
 
 On one occasion, when nearly all were asleep, a 
 scratching noise was heard upon the roof, and it was 
 ascertained that a blue fox was trying to make an 
 entrance. The same night the ears of the sleepers 
 were saluted by a loud roar, caused by the ice mov- 
 ing down the straits, a sound most terrible to human 
 nerves. At one time, after Lockwood had expressed 
 his gratitude for enjoying warm feet for a whole 
 night, he resumed the subject of food, and then 
 penned the following: "My mind dwells constantly 
 on the dishes of my childhood at home. my dear 
 home, and the dear ones there ! Can it be possi- 
 ble I shall some day see them again, and that these 
 days of misery will pass away ? My dear father, is he 
 still alive ? My dear mother and sisters, Harry, and 
 my nieces and brothers-in-law, how often do I think of 
 them ! Only three days more to the top of the hill ! " 
 (alluding to the longest night, or winter solstice). 
 
 " As to my bread, I always eat it regretfully. If 
 I eat it before tea, I regret that I did not keep it ; and 
 if I wait until tea comes and then eat it, I drink my 
 tea rather hastily and do not get the satisfaction 
 out of the cold meat and bread I otherwise would. 
 What a miserable life, where a few crumbs of bread 
 
THE FINAL CATASTKOPHE. 301 
 
 weigh so heavily on one's mind ! It seems to be so 
 with all the rest. All sorts of expedients are tried to 
 cheat one's stomach, but with about the same result. 
 By way of securing the idea of a warm piece of 
 meat, I sometimes pour upon it a bit of my hot tea, 
 but the effort proves futile." 
 
 On the 21st of December, the day which Lock- 
 wood had long been anticipating with pleasure, he ex- 
 pressed his gratification in these words : " The top of 
 the hill ! the most glorious day of this dreary journey 
 through the valley of cold and hunger has at last 
 come, and is now nearly gone. Thank God, the glo- 
 rious sun commences to return, and every day gets 
 lighter and brings him nearer ! It is an augury that 
 we shall yet pull through all right." In view of his 
 ultimate fate, how unutterably to aching are these 
 hopeful words ! 
 
 Before the close of that day, however, he made 
 another record in his journal, which forcibly illus- 
 trates their deplorable condition, as follows : 
 
 " Had a good fox-stew this evening. By a great 
 effort I was able to save one ounce of my bread and 
 about two ounces of butter, for Christmas. I shall 
 make a vigorous effort to abstain from eating it before 
 then. Put it in charge of Biederbick as an addi- 
 tional safeguard." 
 
 Among the entertainments enjoyed by the party 
 were lectures by Lieutenant Greely on the several 
 States of the Union. After one of them, on Louisi- 
 ana, had been delivered, Lockwood added to it an 
 account of his trip from Baltimore to Texas, and 
 
302 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 that from New Orleans to Cincinnati, all of which 
 narrative was well received. 
 
 For several days before Christmas, all were eagerly 
 looking forward to the grand forthcoming dinner and 
 talking abont it, a number of them, like Lockwood, 
 saving np a part of their scanty daily allowance for 
 the occasion. Lockwood mentioned that when he 
 proposed to exchange the promise of a fine Christ- 
 mas-dinner on their return home for a piece of dog- 
 biscuit delivered at once, he found no one ready 
 to accept his liberal offer. The Christmas-dinner 
 was similar to that on Thanksgiving-day ; various 
 songs were sung, and, at the close of the feast, hearty 
 cheers were given for Lieutenant G-reely, Corporal 
 Ellison, Kice the photographer, and the two cooks. 
 
 On Christmas-night all the party enjoyed a re- 
 freshing sleep, and the next day there was much talk 
 about the distant homes and friends. Lockwood was 
 greatly pleased to learn that his comrades had formed 
 a high opinion of his father from what Greely and he 
 had occasionally told them ; and, while describing the 
 family reunions in "Washington, he was affected to 
 tears for the first time during his Northern campaign, 
 excepting when Eice had come from Esquimaux 
 Point with the Garlington records, when his tears 
 were the result of gratitude. 
 
 In a region where eating had become pre-eminently 
 the chief end of man, it is not strange that the busi- 
 ness of marketing should have become popular. How 
 it was managed may be gathered from the following 
 paragraph : " To-day has been a market-day, every- 
 
THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 303 
 
 body trading rations — bread for butter, meat for 
 bread, bread for soup, etc. A great deal of talking 
 done, but not many solid trades made, I traded 
 about half of my to-morrow's son-of-a-gun for about 
 eight ounces of bread ; then I gave Brainard one 
 ounce and a half of butter for two dog-biscuits, but 
 my trading did not prove profitable." 
 
 As for New-Year's-day, it came and departed with- 
 out any special demonstrations : the son-of-a-gun was 
 enjoyed by all parties ; many of the ice-bound hearts 
 were warmed by memories of home ; and Greely and 
 Lockwood had a long talk about the condition of af- 
 fairs, and the prospects for the future. 
 
 The business of trading among the explorers be- 
 ing discouraged, did not long continue, but was suc- 
 ceeded by some other importations from civilization, 
 viz., the taking of property of other people without 
 leave or license. A report was made to Lieutenant 
 Greely that some one had taken a quarter of a pound 
 of bacon, left in the stearin by the cook ; also that a 
 barrel of bread had been broken open and two pounds 
 taken away. This proved that the bears and the 
 foxes were not the only thieves to be found in the 
 Arctic regions. The man suspected of the deed was 
 closely watched and had a narrow escape from being 
 properly punished. 
 
 On the 10th of January, the case of poor Corporal 
 Ellison was again brought up for discussion and 
 prompt action. It had been hoped that his frosted 
 feet would be restored to their normal condition, but 
 this was not to be, for they were both amputated by 
 
304: FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Nature, and two of his fingers "besides. Strange to say, 
 this was accomplished without his being aware of what 
 was taking place, so little vitality remained in these 
 parts. When we recall the sufferings of this man, in 
 connection with his surroundings and his distance 
 from the comforts of home, we must conclude that 
 the stories of fiction can not eclipse the wonders of 
 actual life and experience. What a combination there 
 of cold and hunger, bodily pain and mental anguish, 
 darkness and perpetual storms ! 
 
 As we pass oyer the daily records made by Lock- 
 wood in his journal at this particular time, we find 
 food and the dangers of starvation to be the absorb- 
 ing themes. It seems strange that, in a land of ice 
 and snow, there should have been any apprehensions 
 about a sufficient supply of drinking-water ; but this 
 was the case, and the fact came home to the exiles when 
 they found that their supply of tea had to be reduced 
 to half a cup per man. Good water was not only 
 scarce, but could not be obtained from the neighbor- 
 ing lake, their sole dependence, without great toil in 
 chopping away the ice. They had the ice, of course, 
 but there was not sufficient fuel to reduce it to a 
 liquid. 
 
 As they could keep warm only by remaining in 
 their sleeping-bags, the manner of visiting each other 
 was simply to exchange sleeping-bags ; and thus, when 
 Lockwood wanted to have a talk with Greely, one 
 of the companions of the latter would exchange bags 
 with the visitor. 
 
 On the 18th of January, another cloud was thrown 
 
THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 305 
 
 upon the party by the death of Cross. He died of a 
 kind of heart-disease, induced, it was supposed, by 
 intemperance in drinking. For several hours before 
 his death he uttered low moans which seemed a kind 
 of echo from the grinding of the far-off ice-fields. His 
 remains were enveloped in coffee-sacks and an Ameri- 
 can flag, and deposited in a stony grave near the neigh- 
 boring lake, the only funeral remarks having been 
 made by Lieutenant Lockwood. 
 
 On the 21st, Lockwood had a talk with Greely 
 about his own health ; said he was very weak, and had 
 been so for two weeks, but had not mentioned it for 
 fear of depressing the men ; he could not account for 
 it, and concluded by saying that if he should not be 
 well or better when the time came to make the con- 
 templated passage of the straits, he desired to be left 
 behind with his share of the rations, and then be sent 
 for from Littleton Island. To this Greely replied 
 that he would never harbor such an idea for a sin- 
 gle moment ; that he would never abandon a living 
 soul. 
 
 On the 2d of February, Rice and Jans started to 
 test the passage of the straits, hoping to reach Little- 
 ton Island, where they expected to find some provis- 
 ions or a relief-ship. But, alas ! they were stopped 
 by open water, and not successful, though fchey trav- 
 eled about fifty miles up and down the floes, and were 
 absent four days. Owing to the bad weather, they 
 did not even get a glimpse of the coast of Greenland. 
 All were greatly disappointed, and some felt that 
 death from starvation was staring them in the face ; 
 
306 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 and yet they found some relief in the increased light 
 preceding the reappearance of the snn. Lockwood, 
 who now became despondent and apathetic, endeav- 
 ored to peer into the future, and wondered whether 
 his bones were really to be left in the Arctic regions. 
 He mourned oyer the fact that he had not been as 
 good a son and as kind a brother as he might have 
 been, and hoped that the dear ones at home would 
 remember him as he wished to be, and not as he had 
 been. As to the end, he hoped it would come soon, 
 whatever it might be ; and he declared himself pos- 
 sessed by a feeling of indifference to hunger, cold, 
 and gloom, "all of them enemies of existence." 
 After mourning over the approaching fate of Ellison, 
 he recorded these touching words: "How often I 
 think of the dear ones at home, the Sunday evening 
 reunions, and all the bright and happy pictures that 
 present themselves ! My dear, good old father ! may 
 he look with charity on my many short-comings ! My 
 dear mother and sisters and Harry, brothers-in-law, 
 and nieces ! I trust that they are well and happy, 
 and, if I do not pull through this, will learn to look 
 on my memory kindly ! " An allusion that he now 
 made to his companions in suffering was to this ef- 
 fect : " The party presents a bold front, and is not 
 wanting in spirit. If our fate is the worst, I do not 
 think we shall disgrace the name of Americans and of 
 soldiers." The attempt of Eice to cross the straits to 
 Littleton Island was heroic in the extreme, and his 
 pluck was further exemplified by a proposition that he 
 submitted to Greely to make a second effort to cross 
 
THE FItfAL CATASTROPHE. 307 
 
 the straits, and that, too, unattended by any com- 
 panion ; but the idea was not sanctioned. 
 
 On the 22d of February, strange to say, a raven 
 made its appearance in the vicinity of the Arctic 
 camp, but was not killed, although it might have 
 been enjoyed at the forthcoming dinner. It must 
 have been a great relief to some of the party that it 
 disappeared without uttering its dreadful cry, "Never- 
 more I " as translated by the poet, Poe. 
 
 On the 27th, not knowing what might happen to 
 him, Lockwood wrote the following in his journal : 
 " The chronometer in my pocket is the one used on 
 the trip to 83° 24' and on all my trips in this region. 
 My intention is to buy it, but, in case I do not get 
 back, I would have it purchased and kept in the fam- 
 ily." 
 
 When the sun first made its appearance above the 
 horizon, as it carried his mind away to his far-distant 
 home, he gave expression to this emotion : "0 God ! 
 how many years of my life would I give to be there ! " 
 
 Every day, observations were made from neighbor- 
 ing elevations to ascertain the condition of the straits 
 separating them from the Greenland coast which was 
 distinctly visible in clear weather, hoping without 
 hope to see it frozen over from shore to shore ; but the 
 lateness of the season precluded all reasonable expecta- 
 tion of such a result, and the daily reports of open 
 water were depressing in the extreme. On the 13th 
 of March, the announcement was made that the sup- 
 plies of coffee, chocolate, and canned vegetables were 
 all exhausted, and that henceforth they would have 
 
308 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 to depend almost entirely on pemmican, bacon, bread, 
 and tea, all of which, though given in one-third ra- 
 tions only, would not last for more than a month, thus 
 leaving them without supplies to cross the straits in 
 the event of a satisfactory freeze. In view of all these 
 circumstances, it is impossible to imagine how they 
 could quietly continue their preparations for a journey 
 to the supposed goal at Littleton Island. Surely the 
 hope which inspired the sufferers was eternal and su- 
 preme in its strength and pathos. " The straits/' said 
 Lockwood, "are open, and I see no prospect of their 
 freezing so that we can get across. Of course, I hope 
 to the contrary ; for this means death, if we can 
 find no game here." On a subsequent day he writes 
 as follows : " We look to the end with equanimity, 
 and the spirits of the party, in spite of the prospect 
 of a miserable death, are certainly wonderful. I am 
 glad as each day comes to an end. It brings us nearer 
 the end of this life, whatever that end is to be." 
 
 On the 23d of March, the last of the regular fuel 
 was exhausted, and the food was so nearly gone 
 that the men actually began to collect their seal-skin 
 clothing and foot-gear for any emergency that might 
 happen. Game was not only scarce, but the men were 
 getting almost too weak to endure a hunt. To avoid 
 long tramps, which were sure to be unsuccessful, they 
 turned their attention to shrimp-fishing, but, as one 
 man could only get three pounds in one day, the 
 prospect in this direction was not hopeful. 
 
 During the month of March and the early part of 
 April, there was nothing done by the able-bodied mem- 
 
THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 309 
 
 bers of the party but to try to secure some game, the 
 only incidents occurring to interrupt the monotony 
 being the deaths of the Esquimaux Frederick Chris- 
 tiansen, and Sergeant Lynn. The former had been 
 complaining for a week or more, but nobody thought 
 him in danger, and he died unexpectedly. Lock- 
 wood's tribute to him was to this effect : " He was a 
 good man, and I felt a great affection for him. He 
 constantly worked hard in my service, and never 
 spared himself on our sledge-trips. His death makes 
 me feel very sorrowful." He was buried by the side 
 of Cross, near the lake. The death of Lynn was also 
 unexpected. He fully appreciated his condition, and 
 gave some directions regarding his last wishes. He 
 was much liked, and highly spoken of by all. After 
 the burial service had been read at the house by Lieu- 
 tenant Greely, his remains were also placed by the 
 lake-side with those of Cross and the Esquimaux. 
 
 The drama was about to close, the curtain already 
 falling upon the band of heroes : 
 
 " And their hearts, though stout and brave, 
 Still, like muffled drums were beating 
 Funeral marches to the grave." 
 
 The phantom of Starvation, which had long been 
 following them over the ice and snow, and dallying 
 with their hopes and fears as they lay in their com- 
 fortless camps, had now become a terrible reality, 
 determined to assert all his powers. Three of his 
 victims were already under the snow, and were soon 
 followed by several others, including the one who had 
 
310 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 directed them in many of their duties and befriended 
 them in trouble, and whose honored name, attached 
 to a noted island and a famed headland in the Arctic 
 world, will be forever remembered with pride and af- 
 fection by his countrymen. 
 
 The concluding paragraph in Lieutenant Lock- 
 wood's journal was written on the 7th of April, 1884, 
 and alludes to the sickness and death of his two 
 comrades. In the last allusion that he makes to him- 
 self, he speaks of his excessive weakness, and of the 
 fact that he could not rise from his sleeping-bag with- 
 out great difficulty. His death occurred two days 
 afterward. 
 
 Having been permitted to examine an elaborate 
 and interesting journal kept by Sergeant Brainard, a 
 few notices relating to the closing days and the death 
 of Lieutenant Lockwood are reproduced, as follows : 
 
 January 12, 188 J/.. — Lieutenant Lockwood is very 
 weak. He has been saving the greater portion of his 
 bread and meat for several days, and talks to himself 
 about food. He frequently looks intently at the lamp, 
 and requests that it be kept burning all night. 
 
 January 20th. — Lieutenant Lockwood is growing 
 weaker and weaker. He said to me a few days ago, 
 " Brainard, I have lost my grip," meaning that he 
 had lost his last hope of life. 
 
 January 2JftJi. — Lieutenant Lockwood seems to be 
 in better spirits to-day. 
 
 January 28th, — The doctor said to-day that if 
 Lieutenant Lockwood did not brace up, he would 
 never recover. 
 
THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 3H 
 
 January 30th. — Lieutenant Lockwood is growing 
 steadily weaker, and talks but seldom now. I wish 
 he would try to be more cheerful. 
 
 February 15th. — Lieutenant Lockwood is better, 
 but does not improve so rapidly as I would wish. 
 
 April J+th. — The rations of Lieutenant Lockwood 
 and Linn have been increased to one fourth of a dove- 
 kie each per day. 
 
 April 5th. — I am afraid that Lieutenant Lockwood 
 and Linn will soon follow the faithful Esquimaux, 
 who has just died. They can not, or they will not, 
 eat shrimps any more. Although they are both given 
 an extra allowance of dovekie, it is not sufficient to 
 restore them. 
 
 April 7th. — Lieutenant Lockwood and Jewell will 
 soon follow Linn. They are very weak and failing 
 rapidly. 
 
 April 8th. — Lieutenant Lockwood fell in a faint 
 in the alley-way, and much difficulty was experienced 
 in resuscitating him. 
 
 April 9th. — Lieutenant Lockwood became uncon- 
 scious at an early hour this morning, and at 4.20 p. m. 
 he breathed his last. His end was painless and with- 
 out a struggle. This will be a sad and unexpected 
 blow to his family, who evidently idolized him. To 
 me it is also a sorrowful event. He had been my com- 
 panion during long and eventful excursions, and my 
 feelings toward him were akin to those of a brother. 
 Biederbick, who was with him at the last moment, 
 and I straightened his limbs and prepared his re- 
 mains for burial. It is the saddest duty I have ever 
 14 
 
312 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 been called on to perform, and I hope I may never 
 experience the like again. A few days prior to his 
 death he had spoken of writing to his family, but, 
 owing to weakness, had deferred the matter until too 
 late. 
 
 April 10th. — The last sad rites were performed 
 over the remains of our late comrade, and he was in- 
 terred with the others on Cemetery Kidge, Lieutenant 
 G-reely reading the Episcopal service. 
 
 To the above may be added the following remark 
 made by Brainard in regard to his friend Lockwood : 
 "The lieutenant was buried in an officer's blouse. It 
 affected me deeply to pass his grave, as I thought of 
 the leader of our little party which had carried the 
 Stars and Stripes beyond the English Jack ; but this 
 feeling soon wore away, and, as I had so many other 
 horrible things to occupy my mind, I became some- 
 what indifferent." 
 
 But wholly indifferent he could not be, even when 
 he saw two men in one sleeping-bag, one of them a 
 corpse, and the other too weak to assist in pulling 
 the body out for burial. 
 
 Another and most touching reference made by 
 Brainard to the burial-place of his friend Lockwood 
 occurs in his journal under date of May 31, 1884, and 
 is as follows : "In my daily journeys across Cemetery 
 Eidge, it was but natural at first that my reflections 
 should be sad and gloomy. Here lie my departed com- 
 rades, and to their left is the vacant space where, in a 
 few days, my own remains will be deposited if sufficient 
 strength remain to those who may survive me. The 
 
THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 313 
 
 brass buttons on Lieutenant Lockwood's blouse, worn 
 bright by the flying gravel, protruded through the 
 scanty covering of earth which our depleted strength 
 barely enabled us to place oyer him. At first these 
 dazzling buttons would awaken thoughts of those 
 bright days spent at Fort Conger, of the half -forgotten 
 scene of his death, and of the universal sorrow that 
 was felt at his departure. But later my own wretched 
 circumstances served to counteract these feelings, and 
 I would pass and repass this place without emotion, 
 and almost with indifference." 
 
 The supply of food had been almost entirely ex- 
 hausted during the first few days of April, and it was 
 impossible to obtain any game or rations from distant 
 caches. An effort made by Eice to secure certain pro- 
 visions that had been abandoned on a former expedi- 
 tion in order to save the life of Ellison when frozen, 
 resulted in his own death, breathing his last in the 
 arms of Fredericks, his only companion, who buried 
 him in a lonely, ice-made grave. Nor were the hor- 
 rors of the situation lessened by the discovery that the 
 man Henry had been guilty of stealing their food, for 
 which, after ample warning, under orders from Lieu- 
 tenant Greely, he was summarily shot, according to 
 the law of self-preservation. His remains were not 
 deposited in the cemetery, but by themselves in a 
 place near by. 
 
 The total number of deaths out of the twenty-five 
 composing the complete party of explorers was nine- 
 teen, and, while twelve of them were buried at Camp 
 Clay, the remainder, like the lamented Rice, were 
 
314 FARTHEST NORTII. 
 
 buried elsewhere or where they died. Jans was lost in 
 his kyack. During a discussion that occurred, about 
 the final disposition of the dead, Lieutenant G-reely 
 expressed the wish that the remains of his men might 
 be left undisturbed. They had died, he said, beneath 
 Arctic skies. Arctic desolation witnessed their suffer- 
 ings, heard their cries of anguish. They are buried 
 in Arctic soil. Let them lie where they fell. Lock- 
 wood told me that he wanted to rest forever on the 
 field of his work. Why disturb them ? Why not re- 
 spect their wishes ? 
 
 Before closing this chapter it seems proper that an 
 allusion should be made to alleged cannibalism at 
 Camp Clay. The writer of this was informed by Ser- 
 geant Brainard that such might haye been the case, 
 but that not a single one of the survivors had ever 
 known or witnessed anything of the kind. So far as 
 Lieutenant Lockwood was concerned, it was positively 
 established, by unimpeachable testimony, that his re- 
 mains were not mutilated in the least degree. When 
 carefully carried, with all the others, on board the 
 ship that was to bring them to the United States, his 
 remains were perfect in every respect, and of this his 
 father has the assurance of those who saw them. 
 
 In view of the fact that Sergeant David L. Brain- 
 ard accompanied Lieutenant Lockwood in all his ex- 
 plorations, it seems only proper that a notice of his 
 life should appear in this volume. He was born in 
 Norway, Herkimer County, New York, December 21, 
 1856, his parents having come from Massachusetts. 
 His father was of French extraction and his mother 
 
THE FINAL CATASTROPHE. 315 
 
 of English stock. He attended a district school until 
 his eleventh year, when he removed with his family 
 to Freetown, Cortland County, New York, where 
 he attended the State Normal School. On the 18th 
 of September, 1876, he enlisted at New York city 
 in the regular army, being assigned to Company L, 
 Second Cavalry, then stationed at Fort Ellis, in Mon- 
 tana Territory. He joined his troops late that year 
 after an arduous journey of five hundred miles on 
 horseback from Corinne, Utah. In' the following 
 spring he participated in the Indian campaigns under 
 General Miles, along the Yellowstone Eiver and its 
 tributaries, and was wounded in the face while in ac- 
 tion with the Sioux, at Muddy Creek, Montana, May 
 7, 1877. In August of the same year, he was selected 
 as one of four men to act as escort to General Sher- 
 man and party in their tour through the National 
 Park. In October following, he was made a corpo- 
 ral, and in July, 1879, was promoted to be a sergeant. 
 He was frequently in charge of parties in the field on 
 detached service, and was intrusted with important 
 missions by his commanding officers. Lieutenant 
 Doane, Second Cavalry, recommended him for detail 
 on the Howgate Polar Expedition in May, 1880, Brain- 
 ard visiting Washington for that purpose. The enter- 
 prise having been abandoned, he was ordered back 
 to his regiment at Fort Assiniboin, on Milk Eiver. 
 Early in the spring of 1881, Lieutenant Greely re- 
 quested his detail on the Lady Franklin Bay Expedi- 
 tion, and, on his arrival in Washington, appointed him 
 first sergeant of the expedition, which position he 
 
316 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 held during the three years of Arctic seryice. On 
 the 1st of August, 1884, he was transferred, with the 
 rank of sergeant, to the United States Signal Corps, 
 haying always acquitted himself with ability and hon- 
 or as a man, a soldier, and an explorer. 
 
XIX. 
 
 THE WOEFUL RETURN. 
 
 Without stopping to discuss the action of Con- 
 gress or the Government officials in regard to send- 
 ing relief to the Greely Expedition, the writer de- 
 sires to mention that the names of Senator Joseph R. 
 Hawley and Representative E. John Ellis, because 
 of their manly action in Congress in behalf of the 
 suffering explorers, are far more deserving of places 
 on the charts of the North than those of many oth- 
 ers which have thus been honored. In 1882 a vessel 
 called the Neptune, Captain William Sopp, was char- 
 tered at St. John's, Newfoundland, and with a full 
 supply of provisions was dispatched for Lady Frank- 
 lin Bay, but failing in her mission returned to New- 
 foundland without leaving any of her supplies in the 
 North, but bringing them all back to St. John's ! 
 In 1883 the steamer Proteus, Captain Richard Pike, 
 was rechartered at St. John's, and with a full supply 
 of provisions sailed for Discovery Harbor, but was 
 crushed in the ice near Cape Sabine, her crew suc- 
 ceeding in landing in a safe place a small part of 
 her cargo, some of which was subsequently utilized 
 by the Greely party. 
 
 In 1884 a third rescuing expedition was organized 
 
318 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 and dispatched for the relief of the Greely exploring 
 party. That expedition was composed of a squadron 
 of three ships, the Thetis, the Bear, and the Alert, un- 
 der the command of Commander Winfield S. Schley, of 
 the United States Navy. They left St. John's on the 
 12th of May, and, after the usual tribulations along 
 the western coast of Greenland, reached the vicinity 
 of Cape Sabine, and discovered the Greely party at 
 Camp Clay, on Sunday, the 22d of June, seventy- 
 three days after the death of Lieutenant Lockwood. 
 The discovery was then made that, out of the twenty- 
 five men connected with the Greely Expedition only 
 seven were alive, viz., Lieutenant Greely, Brainard, 
 Biederbick, Fredericks, Long, Connell, and Ellison. 
 As soon as the survivors could be relieved and trans- 
 ferred to the ships, the remains of the dead were 
 exhumed with care and taken to the ships for trans- 
 portation to the United States, excepting the remains 
 of Esquimaux Frederick, which were left at Disco. 
 
 As the pictures presented by the survivors lying 
 in their camp, dazed with suffering and surprise and 
 a joy they could not manifest, and the incidents they 
 subsequently narrated of intense suffering, can only 
 prove heart-rending to the reader, they will not now 
 be dwelt upon. The departure of the ships, with 
 their strange list of dead and living passengers, 
 seemed to enhance the gloom which filled the sky and 
 rested upon the sea. Their condition was so deplor- 
 able, that a delay of a very few days would have left 
 none to tell the tale of woe and suffering. At least 
 two could not have lived twenty-four hours. That 
 
THE WOEFUL RETURN. 319 
 
 this time was gained, under the stimulus of the twen- 
 ty-five thousand dollars reward, appears from an arti- 
 cle written by an officer of the Relief Expedition and 
 published in the " Century " of May, 1885, as fol- 
 lows : 
 
 " The reward of twenty-five thousand dollars that 
 Congress had offered for the first information of 
 Greely had incited the whalers to take risks that they 
 otherwise would have shunned. They had expressed 
 a determination to strive for it, and were ever on the 
 alert for a chance to creep northward. The Relief 
 Squadron was determined, on its part, that the whal- 
 ers should not secure the first information, and were 
 equally zealous in pushing northward. It was this 
 rivalry (a friendly one, for our relations with the 
 whaling-captains were of the pleasantest nature) that 
 hurried us across Melville Bay and brought us to- 
 gether within sight of Cape York. It had been 
 thought possible that Greely or an advance party 
 might be there." 
 
 Mr. Ellis proposed in the last session of Congress 
 that, as the reward had not been spent, yet had con- 
 tributed to the rescue, it should be appropriated to 
 building, at Washington, a monument to the dead. 
 
 The temporary halt at Disco Harbor was saddened 
 by the death of Ellison, after prolonged sufferings, 
 as if his noble spirit was determined to join its de- 
 parted comrades in their passage to the skies from 
 that Northern Land of Desolation. 
 
 In the official record of the Relief Expedition, 
 Commander Schley makes an allusion to the impor- 
 
320 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 tant part taken by Lieutenant Lockwood in the Greely 
 Expedition which should be repeated in this place. 
 After submitting certain papers which had been found 
 in a cairn at Breevort Island, he says : "It was a 
 wonderful story. It told how the expedition, during 
 its two years at Lady Franklin Bay, had marked out 
 the interior of Grinnell Land, and how Lockwood 
 had followed the northern shore of Greenland, and 
 had reclaimed for America the honor of 'the far- 
 thest north.'" 
 
 On Thursday, the 17th of July, the Eelief Expedi- 
 tion arrived at St. John's, Newfoundland, where they 
 were kindly welcomed, and the tidings of their arrival 
 promptly telegraphed to the anxious multitudes in the 
 United States. Complete arrangements were made 
 for the continuous voyage of the living and the dead 
 to their several homes. 
 
 In a dispatch which the Secretary of the Navy sent 
 to Commander Schley, on the day of his return, he 
 said, "Preserve tenderly the remains of the heroic 
 dead," and that order was duly obeyed. They were 
 placed in metallic caskets, , and the squadron sailed 
 from St. John's on the 26th of July, arriving at Ports- 
 mouth, New Hampshire, on the 2d of August. As 
 the first duty after a battle is to bury the dead, it is 
 to be regretted that this was not done before the dis- 
 play was made at Portsmouth. It was not thus that 
 England received her victorious fleet from Trafalgar, 
 bearing home the remains of the dead hero Nelson. 
 The mutilated remains of the dead should first have 
 been delivered over to the bleeding hearts that 
 
THE WOEFUL RETURN. 321 
 
 awaited them. While so many uxmrned corpses re- 
 mained in the ships, the celebration was but a ghastly 
 jubilee. Kequiems should have been chanted before 
 paeans were sung. The only casket removed from the 
 ships at Portsmouth was that containing the remains 
 of Sergeant Jewell, who was a native of New Hamp- 
 shire. The squadron now sailed for New York, and 
 on its arrival, the 8th of August, was received with 
 great enthusiasm. Here the remains of the dead 
 were delivered to the custody of the army commander 
 at Governor's Island, by whom the final dispositions 
 were made. The remains of Lieutenant Lockwood 
 were forwarded to Annapolis and placed under a mili- 
 tary guard, in the church of St. Anne, where the 
 young hero had been baptized, confirmed, and received 
 his first communion. The funeral was of a military 
 character, and the attendance was very large, compre- 
 hending all the naval, military, and civil organizations 
 of the city. Eecalling the words of the poet "Whittier, 
 many of the mourners present must have felt their 
 special force, when he says : 
 
 " I know not what the future hath 
 Of marvel or surprise, 
 Assured alone that life and death 
 His mercy underlies." 
 
 The remains of the hero lie in the beautiful ceme- 
 tery of the Naval Academy, overlooking the place of 
 his birth and the scenes of his childhood. An appro- 
 priate tomb was erected over them, bearing this in- 
 scription : 
 
322 FAKTHEST NORTH. 
 
 JAMES BOOTH LOCKWOOD, 
 
 LIEUTENANT UNITED STATES AKMY, 
 BOEN AT ANNAPOLIS, MaEYLAND, 
 
 October 9, 1852, 
 
 Died at Cape Sabine, 
 
 April 9, 1884. 
 
 " The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be com- 
 pared with the glory that shall be revealed in us." 
 
 On the day that the rector of St. Anne's church, 
 Rev. William S. Southgate, gaye notice of the time 
 of the burial, he made the following remarks : 
 
 " One of the truths of the Bible, taught us by the 
 Church, the most difficult to receive and to hold prac- 
 tically, is that expressed in the words of the Collect 
 for the last week : ' God, whose neyer-failing provi- 
 dence ordereth all things both in heaven and on 
 earth.' 
 
 "The difficulty arises from the fact that in so 
 many cases we can not discover either the justice or 
 the mercy or even the expediency of that ordering. 
 
 "And yet at times we get a glimpse of light that 
 reveals much of the fitness and beauty of this divine 
 ordering of events. Here is an example before us. 
 There is a peculiar appropriateness in the ordering of 
 events that brings James Booth Lockwood here to be 
 buried. Born in this parish, baptized here, confirmed 
 in St. Anne by Bishop Whittingham, April 19, 1868, 
 he received his first communion at this altar on 
 Christmas-day of the same year. The rector of the 
 parish, who presented him for confirmation and ad- 
 
THE WOEFUL RETURN. 323 
 
 ministered to him the holy communion, has just been 
 called suddenly to his rest. In the midst of untiring 
 labors the call found them both at the post of duty, 
 and both were taken away while in the performance 
 of that duty. But there was something peculiarly 
 sad in the circumstances and mode of young Lock- 
 wood's death — circumstances due partly to the nature 
 of the work in which he was engaged, partly to the 
 fault of others. But what matters it how or when he 
 died, if found at Death's call doing the duty assigned 
 to him ? 
 
 " One of the earliest of the adventurers along this 
 coast, then as little known to the world as the Arctic 
 regions are now to us, when his little ship was over- 
 whelmed by the stormy sea, comforted the frightened 
 and trembling helmsman with the assuring words, 
 'My child, heaven is as near to us by sea as by land.' 
 And so what matters it where we die and how we die, 
 so long as we are reconciled to God, and are faithfully 
 fulfilling our calling ? May God give us grace so to 
 live that we may never be afraid to die in any place 
 or in any manner ! " 
 
 That the story and the fate of James B. Lockwood 
 excited a profound sentiment of sorrow and admira- 
 tion throughout the entire country was manifested 
 in many ways, and a notice of some of them will 
 form an appropriate conclusion to this in-memoriam 
 volume. Among the first tributes of honor and affec- 
 tion was the following official order published by the 
 colonel of his regiment, announcing his death to the 
 military associates of the young soldier : 
 
324 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 [Order, No. 46.] 
 
 Headquarters Twenty-third Infantry, ) 
 Fort Wayne, Mich., July 25, 1884' f 
 
 Another name is added to the list of our honored 
 dead. The official announcement is received from the 
 War Department of the death of First-Lieutenant 
 James B. Lockwood, at Camp Clay, near Cape Sabine, 
 Smith's Sound, Arctic regions, April 9, 1884. He 
 was assigned to this regiment as second lieutenant, 
 October 1, 1873, and promoted first lieutenant March 
 15, 1883. He served with distinction throughout 
 Arizona, Nebraska, Kansas, the Indian Territory, and 
 Colorado, always performing with zeal and thorough- 
 ness the various and complex duties that usually fall 
 to the lot of the young officer. In 1881 he turned 
 from the arduous duties and savage warfare of frontier 
 life to face still greater hardship and danger, and 
 finally to lay down his life in those frozen and inhos- 
 pitable regions which have proved the sepulchre of so 
 many heroes before him. 
 
 Lieutenant Lockwood was a young officer of great 
 promise in his profession ; of a noble and exalted char- 
 acter, his fine mind tended constantly to the investi- 
 gation of scientific truths. When the privations, the 
 suffering, and the achievements of the " Lady Frank- 
 lin Bay Expedition " are fully related, higher author- 
 ity will doubtless pay a more fitting tribute to the 
 worth, the fortitude, and the matchless courage of an 
 officer who, in Arctic exploration, has carried the 
 American flag to a point in advance of that of any 
 other nation. 
 
THE WOEFUL RETURN. 325 
 
 His reward is an imperishable fame, which he 
 sought with even greater resolution than leads the 
 soldier to the cannon's month. The pleasant smile 
 and manly form of onr comrade are lost to ns forever, 
 but his name and memory will be always green in our 
 hearts. 
 
 Officers of the regiment will wear the usual badge 
 of mourning for thirty days. 
 
 By order of Colonel Black : 
 
 T. G. M. Smith, 
 First Lieutenant and Adjutant Twenty -third In- 
 fantry. 
 
 When the news of Lockwood's fate was known at 
 Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, arrangements were at once 
 made, by those who had known and loved him there, 
 to erect a tablet to his memory in the handsome post 
 chapel at that place. When completed it was placed 
 in a conspicuous position, and bore the following in- 
 scription : 
 
 In Memoeiam 
 
 JAMES B. LOOKWOOD, 
 
 FIEST LIEUTENANT TWENTT-THTRD EOANTEY, 
 
 a mehbeb of the 
 Geeely Polae Expedition, 
 
 Died at Cape Sabine, Geinnell Land, 
 
 April 9, 1884. 
 
 This tablet was erected chiefly at the expense of 
 Lockwood's old regiment. To one of the officers Gen- 
 eral Lockwood presented a sword that had belonged to 
 
326 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 his son, and, in his acknowedgment, that officer made 
 this remark : "As a friend of your son, I shall take 
 pride and comfort from haying in my possession the 
 sword of a friend, who lived so nobly and died so 
 honorably. Should yon desire it to come back to your 
 family when I have joined your son, I hope you will 
 tell me so, and I will provide accordingly." Among 
 those who earnestly co-operated with this gentleman in 
 erecting the tablet was one who wrote to his fellow- 
 officer as follows : " No two people, outside of Lock- 
 wood's own blood relations, loved him more than you 
 and I. And yet I do not know that I am right in 
 calling his end untimely. He died, as he had ever 
 lived, in the discharge of his duty, and I imagine, 
 when the records of the expedition become more 
 known, it will be seen that his duty was well done 
 to the end. He was a man, and has died like one. 
 God grant that when our time comes it may find us, 
 too, in the discharge of our duty ! " 
 
 During Lieutenant Greely's sojourn in Portsmouth, 
 when on his way home, and while yet too feeble to 
 use the pen, he dictated the following letter to Gen- 
 eral Lockwood : 
 
 Portsmouth, N. H., August 9, I884. 
 
 My dear General Lockwood : Had I not seen 
 Commander Sigsbee, and given to him such informa- 
 tion as he wished, and as I knew would be most im- 
 portant to you in regard to your son, I should have 
 attempted an earlier letter to you. I am still unable 
 to write to you by my own hand. As I told Com- 
 
THE WOEFUL RETURN. 327 
 
 mander Sigsbee, James died from water around the 
 heart, induced by insufficient nutrition. His last 
 days were quiet and painless. He did his whole duty 
 as a soldier and an officer. His loyalty to truth, 
 fidelity, and zeal could always be relied upon by me. 
 His unyarying kindness, his gentleness, his deep in- 
 terest in and toward the men of the expedition indi- 
 cated a nature thoroughly imbued with the essential 
 and fundamental principles of Christianity, and won 
 for him their good-will, confidence, and affection. I 
 feel that you and Mrs. Lockwood may well be proud 
 of such a son. His daily conyersation during the past 
 winter told us how much he loyed his parents, and 
 how deep and close were the bonds of affection which 
 united him to his sisters and brother. He seemed to 
 feel that he had not done full justice to the many and 
 great adyantages that you had giyen him, and hoped 
 to make amends in the future. His innate modesty 
 in this, as in other matters, I think did scant justice 
 to his true merits. I write by Mrs. Greely's hand — 
 she joins me in sympathy and condolence. I feel that 
 this letter insufficiently informs you regarding James. 
 From day to day he intended to write you, but delayed 
 too long. His diary, in short-hand, was kept up, I 
 belieye, to the day preceding his death. 
 Sincerely yours, 
 
 A. W. GREELY. 
 
 Another letter from Portsmouth, written by Ser- 
 geant I). L. Brainard in answer to some inquiries 
 made by General Lockwood, was as follows : 
 
328 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 Portsmouth, N. H., September £, 1884. 
 
 General H. H. Lockwood. 
 
 Deae Sik : Your letter of the 22d ult., request- 
 ing information of the missing effects of your dear 
 son, which had been committed to my care, is just 
 received. . . . The effects in question, excepting the 
 ring and coins, I turned over to Major Greely before 
 leaving this city in August. The two latter articles 
 I afterward found and gave to Mrs. Peck, who, with 
 her husband, called on me at the Parker House, in 
 Boston. The setting of the ring, I am sorry to say, 
 was not found after his death, although diligent search 
 was made. He had spoken of it but a few days before 
 his death, and expressed great concern for its safety. 
 It was supposed to be suspended from his neck in a 
 small parcel, but search revealed nothing. The com- 
 pass was among the effects I transferred to Lieutenant 
 Greely, as were also two pencils, his pipe, spoon, knife, 
 etc. With reference to the inner life of your son, do 
 not feel any concern. Although not an open professor 
 of any particular creed, he followed closely the golden 
 rule during my acquaintance with him. When I 
 reach Washington I shall be glad to call on you. In 
 the mean time I shall willingly answer any question 
 with regard to his life in the frigid zone that you may 
 desire to ask. Place no reliance on any of the adverse 
 newspaper reports that are occasionally seen reflecting 
 on his conduct ; they are not worthy of a moment's 
 thought. Hoping that the articles have reached you 
 in safety ere this, I am, very sincerely yours, 
 
 D. L. Bkaijstaed. 
 
THE WOEFUL RETURN. 329 
 
 Another and a very handsome letter sent to Gen- 
 eral Lockwood by an officer of the army, who had 
 long known the son, was as follows : 
 
 " San Antonio, Fla., July 25, I884. 
 
 "My deae Gekeeal : The newspapers tardily 
 convey to me the news of yonr son's heroic death. I 
 can not express to you how much both my wife and 
 myself were affected by this intelligence. I knew 
 your son from his entry into the Twenty-third Infant- 
 ry in 1873 until I was promoted to the Twenty-sec- 
 ond in 1879, and formed so high an estimate of his 
 sterling soldierly character that it is inexpressibly sad 
 to think of his career being cut short at so early an 
 age. But, though early, he has nevertheless left his 
 mark on the scientific record of the country — a rec- 
 ord which can never perish while the frozen North 
 continues to hold the secrets he has more nearly 
 penetrated than any other explorer of those regions. 
 This must be, my dear general, some consolation to 
 you, though I well know that it can not wholly atone 
 for the loss of your noble son. But, as time passes, 
 this reflection may soften your paternal grief. 
 
 " A life-work need not extend to the allotted 
 threescore years and ten. In the providence of God 
 it often compasses a much smaller period of time ; 
 when it is accomplished, God calls the worker home. 
 
 "Who shall measure the work your son accom- 
 plished in the examples he gave of fidelity to duty, of 
 heroic fortitude ? How many fainting souls in the 
 future, reading of his devotion, will be strengthened 
 
330 FARTHEST NORTH. 
 
 to go forward in the paths marked out for them ! 
 That your grief may be in time assuaged by these re- 
 flections is the prayer devoutly offered by your sin- 
 cere friend." 
 
 Many private letters of condolence and sympathy 
 were written to the parents of the deceased, by per- 
 sonal friends and others, some of which serve to illus- 
 trate the character of the departed. One of these 
 friends wrote as follows : 
 
 " The tender regard and sincere love I had for 
 James prompts me to write to you and express my 
 heart-felt sorrow in losing him. We were dear friends 
 for years, and a more upright and honorable man 
 never lived, and our regiment has lost a member who 
 can never be replaced, and the memory of him who 
 died far away from us can never be forgotten." 
 In another letter a friend wrote as follows : 
 "Dr. B , U. S. A., one of James's most inti- 
 mate and best friends, desires me to say that, of all the 
 men he knew, James was to him far dearer than any 
 other. As for myself, I shall always hold James dear 
 to my heart, and hope some day, when all things pass 
 away, to meet him in that happy land where our loved 
 ones are gone." 
 
 In another letter occurs the following : 
 "Lockwood was among the best young officers of 
 the regiment. Very attentive to duty, and correct in 
 habits, his promise of usefulness was unusually great. 
 I hope that the knowledge of duty well performed, 
 and under the most trying circumstances, may in 
 some degree ameliorate your great grief." 
 
THE WOEFUL RETURN. 331 
 
 Another friend writes : 
 
 "I but echo the feelings of all in the Twenty- 
 third Infantry who knew your son, in saying that 
 your great loss is partly theirs. His kindly and gener- 
 ous impulses, his sterling integrity, and his thorough- 
 ness as an officer and a gentleman, secured and retained 
 for him the substantial good-will and friendship of 
 all. And while we may grieve at the mournful end 
 of his career, yet this feeling is somewhat neutralized 
 in the melancholy satisfaction of knowing that he 
 died on the field of honor." 
 
 In another letter from one who had been in the 
 army and on the staff of General Lockwood at Acco- 
 mac, Va., occurs the following most admirable and 
 appropriate passage : " I do believe, dear general, 
 that all is well with your son. Standing where no 
 human footstep had ever trod before, seeing what no 
 eye had ever before beheld, alone amid the awful si- 
 lence of that frozen deep — alone with God — there 
 must have been communings with the Holy One of 
 more import to James than all else besides. And at 
 the last day you will again see your son in glory, wear- 
 ing the crown of those made perfect through suffer- 
 ing." 
 
 Besides the many letters written by personal 
 friends, there were others from perfect strangers, who 
 had either served under General Lockwood in the 
 army, or been especially interested in the fate of the 
 youthful hero. 
 
 Among the strangers who wrote letters of con- 
 dolence was the Rev. "William E. Griffis, D. D., of 
 
332 FARTHEST. NORTH. 
 
 Schenectady, N. Y., who had preached a sermon on 
 the conquests of peace, and in which he made the 
 following allusion to Lieutenant Lockwood : "The 
 laurels that repose on the memory of Lieutenant 
 Lockwood are better than battle-honors or wreaths 
 after bloody victories." It was his opinion that the 
 Arctic secret would yet be won ; and that Lockwood 
 and his brother heroes were doing the will of God as 
 explorers in the far North. 
 
 On the 20th of July, 1884, the Eev. Dr. John S. 
 Lindsay, of St. John's Church, in Georgetown, deliv- 
 ered a sermon in which he alluded to the return of 
 the Greely Expedition, and especially to Lieutenant 
 Lockwood, who had been one of his parishioners. 
 He said : " Just a few days ago we were plunged 
 into sorrow by the news that among the living of the 
 latest Arctic expedition who had been rescued was 
 not our young townsman, the son of one of the most 
 honored members of this congregation ; the dispatch 
 that brought the glad intelligence that six were saved 
 was soon followed by the sad announcement that he, 
 vigorous as he was, had sunk under the rigors of the 
 climate, worn out by work and want. Has he left 
 no lesson for you and me, for all his fellow-men ? 
 Think of his ceaseless endeavor, of the courage and 
 devotion with which he bore the brunt of the explo- 
 ration, and wore away his own strength in seeking 
 food for his comrades and himself ! See him, with 
 a single companion, penetrating nearer to the north 
 pole than any other man had ever gone, however dar- 
 ing ! When he had done his whole duty, more than 
 

 ' aOQMSaOTST 
 
 01dX3 3H1 DNIMOHS 
 
 iizti xiaano am 
 
THE WOEFUL RETURN. 333 
 
 had ever been done before, be lies down to rest — to 
 die. 
 
 "Most fittingly did bis brother explorers give his 
 name to this spot, the farthest land north trod by 
 Iruman foot. Lockwood Island shall stand, as long as 
 the earth endures, amid the awful wastes and silence 
 of these mysterious regions, as the monument of this 
 brave young soldier. A child of the Church, the sub- 
 ject of ceaseless prayer — of yours, of mine, of his fam- 
 ily — we trust that his spirit, chastened and exalted 
 by the hardships he endured, winged its flight from 
 the inhospitable land that refused sustenance to his 
 body, and now rests and waits in the paradise of God. 
 We mingle our tears with his father's and his mother's, 
 and with those of all who loved him ; but out of the 
 deep we rejoice in the record he has left behind of de- 
 votion to duty even unto death. Surely no life is 
 short in which so much is done, or in vain that gives 
 such instruction and such inspiration to other lives. 
 In conclusion, let us not cast away our faith in God, 
 because of the mysteries and trials and sufferings of 
 life." 
 
 THE EKD.