HALL'S ARCTIC JOURNAL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume VII, Issue 1873, 17 January 1870, Page 6

HALL'S ARCTIC JOURNAL.

THE LAST OF SIR JOHN" FEANKUN'S EXPEDITION. DISCOVERY OP RELICS MUTINY A SHAMAN SHOT. Captaijt C. F. ITai.l, an eminent Arctic explorer, who returned lo .New Bedford on Sunday last, from a five years' search for the remains of Sir John Franklin's companions, lias written an interesting letter, which appears below, to Mr. Henry Grinuell, giving the details of his cruise, together with the unmistakable evidences of the fate of Sir John ami his party. Although the evidences found are conclusive as to the fate of the party, Ciip'ain Hall is confident that if a large and veil organised expedition should spend one summer on King William's I and, where records " beyond doubt," are buried, the complete history of the late of Franklin's expedition would be found. These manuscripts are supposed to bo buried in a vault a little inland or eastward of Cape Victory, the captain ut one time being within seventy-five miles ot there ; but a stampede of the natives accompanying him as an. escort forci'd him to retrace his steps. From tho imperfect description given by the Esquimaux of the condition of Crozier's party of 105 men, the Captain is satisfied that they ■were suffering fro i> the scurvy, as nothing but sickness would have kept so experienced an Arctic traveller as Crozier from the game which was in abundance within serenfy-nYe miles of where he and his party perished. The relics brought back number about 150, an'l were us many as could be conveniently carried. It is not at present the intention of Captain Hall to prosecute further the search lor tho remains of Sir John iYaiiklin. His great desire is to reach the North Pole, and to accomplish this end an effort -will probably be made to obtain Government aid in fitting out ind manning an expedition to start next summer. The magnitude of the undertaking almost precludes the possibility of obtaining aid from private individuals, and no society could bear ths expense of it.

" SKELETONS OF FRANKLIN'S CREW. ' : Tiic result of my sledge journey to King William's Land may bo summed up thus :. None of Sir John Franklin's companions ever reached or died on -Montreal Island. It \ra3 late in July, 1813, thut Crozier and his pirty, . of about forty or fo;-!y-five, passed down the west const of' Kin* William's Land in the vicinity of Cape Herschell. The party wae dragging two sledges on tin sea-ice, which was nearly in its last state of dissolution— one, a large sledge laden with an awning-, covered boat, and the other, a small one, laden with provisions and camp material. Tust before Crozier aud party arrived at Cape Hersche'l, they were met by four families of natives, and both parties "wt nt into camp near each other. Two Esquimaux men, who were of the nativs party, gave me inuch sad but deeply interesting information. Some of it stirred my heart with sadness, intermingled with rage, for ifc was a confession that they with their companions did secretly and hastily abandon Crozier and his party to suffer nnd die lor need of fresh provisions, when, in truth, it was in the power of the natives to save every man alive. The nest trace of Crozier and bis party is to be found in the skeleton which McClintock discovered a little below, to the southward and eastward of Cape Herschell; this was never found by the natiTee. The next trace is a camping place on the seashore of King William's Land, about 3 miles eastward of PfefFer River_, where two men died and received Christian burial. The nest trace of this party occurs some fire or six miles eastward on a long, low point of King William's Land, where one man died and was buried. Then about S.S.E., two and a half mites further, the next trace occurs o£ Todd's Islet, where the remains of five men lie. The next certain trace of this party is on the west side of the inlet west of Point Richardson, on some low land that is an island or part oE the main land as the tide may be. Here the awning covered boat and the remains of about thirty or thirty-five of Crozier's party were found by the native Poo-yet-ta, of whom Sir John Ross has given a description in thn account of his voyage in the Victory, 1829-34.

" In the spring of 1549, a large tent was found by some of the natives whom I saw, the floor of "which was completely covered with the remains of white men. Close by were twe graves. This tent was a little way inland from the head of Terror Bav.

"In the spring of 1861, when the snow -was nearly all gone, an Esquimaux party, conducted by a native well Known throughout the Northern regions, found two boats, with many skeletons in and about them. Ono of these boats had been previously foundby M'Clmtock, the other was found lying from one quarter to one half mile distant, and must have been completely entombed in snow at the time M'Clintock's parties were there, or they most assuredl}- would have seen it. " THK 2COBTH-WEST PASSAGE. " The same year the Erebus and -Terror were abandoned, one of thsin consummated the great !Jforth-Wi?rt. Passage, haviug five men aboard. =he evidence of the exact nti Tiber is circumstantial. .Everything about this North-West Passage ship of Sir John Franklin's expedition was in complete order; fourboats were hanging high up at the ship's sides, and one was on the quarter deck; the vessel was in its winter housing of sail or tent cloth. This vessel was found by the Oolvjoo-lik natives near O'Reilly Island, latitude 6S degrees 30 minutes N., longitude 99 degrees 8 minutes W., early in the spring of 1849, it being frozen in, in the midst of a smooth and unbroken floe of ice of only one winter's formation. From certain evidence 1 have sained both at Ig-100-lik and King William's Land, there must have been a> dog of the greyhound species belonging to one or the other of the two ships. I only know this through native testimouy. It is quite likely that some one in England can tell whether there was a dog on board either of tho ships when Sir John Franklin left iu 1845.

"To complete the history of Sir John Franklin's Inst expedition, one must spend a summer on King William's Land with a considerable parly, "whqse only bnsineee should be to make searches for records which beyond doubt lie buried on that island. " WHAT UE3EAIXS TO BE MSCOTEBBD. Knowing, as I now do, the character of the Esquimaux in that part of the country in which ICin« William's Laml is situated, I cannot wonder at nor blame the Repulse Bay natives for their refusal to remain there as I desired. It is quite probable that, had we remained as I wished, no one of vis would hare got out, of the country alive. Could I and my parly, with reasonable safety, have remained to 'make a summer search on King William's Land, it is not only probable that we sliould have recovered the logs and journals of Sir John Franklin's expedition, but have leathered up and entombed the remains of nearlv 100 of his companions] for they lie about (he- places where the three boats lure been foiling and in the largo c:imp : ng place at the head of Terror .Hay. and the three other places that I have already mentioned. Wherever the Esquimaux taive found the gravss of Franklin's companions they have dug them open unci robbed the dead, leaving t. em exposed to the ravages of wihl beasts On Todd's Island the remains of five men were- not burieJ, but, after the savages had r.ibbcil them of every article that could be turned t& any account foi" their use, their dogs were allowed to finish the disgusting work. "Wherever I found tlut Sir John Franklin's companions hail died. I erected monuments, then fired s-tfutes, and waved the star spauglsd banner oviv them in memory and respect of the great and true discoverers of the Northwest Passage.

" KF.LIC-; O.' IRANKLIK. <; I could have giSltcrcd great qua l(iti;s— •> very great variety—of relics of Sir Jche.

Franklin's expedition, for they are now possessed by natives all over the Arctic regions that I visited or heard of —from Pond's Bay to McKenzie Kiver. As it was I had to bo satisfied with taking upon our sledges about 125 pounds total weight of relics from natives about King William's Land. Some of those I will enumerate:— Ist. A portion of one side (several planks and ribs fast together) of a boat clinker built and copper fastened. This part of a boat is of the one found near the boat found by M'Clintock's party. 2nd. A small oak slodgo runnor, reduced from the sledge on which the boat rosted. 3rd. Part of the mast of the North. West Passage ship. 4th. Chronometer box, with its number, name of maker , and the Queen's broad arrow engraved upon it. sth. Two long heavy sheets of copper, three and four inches wide, with counter sunk holes for screw nail?. On these sheets, OS well as on most everything* else that came from the North-We3t Passage ship, are nume- J rous stamps of the Queen's broad arrow. Mahogany writing desk, elaborately finished and bound in brass. 6th. Many pieces silver plate—forks and spoons—bearing crests and initials of the owner. 9th. Parts of watches. Bth. Knives, and very many other things, all of which you, Mr. G-rinnell, and others interested in the fate of the Franklin Expedition, will have a sad interest in inspecting on their arrival in the States. "MUTINY—A SEAMAN SIIOT. None of the men except noble Frank Lailer, ever accompanied me on any of my great sledge journeys. In tho Fall in 1868, during the mutinous attack made upon me, when my faithful man was absent, about seven miles distant, on business, I was compellod, in selfdefence, to call into requisition a revolver. Coleman the leader, fell, and died in fifteen days. At once the rebellion ended, and one of tho band came and liks a man acknowleged freely and truly that he and his companions wore altogether the guilty ones, and hoped that I would forgive him, which I did on tho instant. I feel that, had I not taken this last 'dread alternative,' my fate would have been quite as sorrowful as that of Henry Hudson. " C. F. Ham,."