CHAPTER VII.

Polar Bears.

Health of the Natives.—Their Diseases.—Captain N. prescribes a Remedy.—Their superstitious Notions.—Mr. Osborn prescribes for the Sick.—A fatal Case.—They surround Mr. O. with threatening Gestures.—Native Remedy for Nose Bleeding and Sore Eyes.—Burial Ceremony.—Marriages.—General Appearance of the Natives.—Their Character.—Their Habits of Industry.—Property.—Language.—Icebergs.—Their Formation.—The Distance to which Icebergs float.—Their Magnitude.—Field Ice.—The sudden Disappearance of Ice.—How accounted for.—Icy Vapor.—Poisoning.

So far as we could learn, they had the usual share of health with other communities. A good proportion of them reached an advanced age in life; and some, we should judge from their appearance, were much older than the oldest among our own countrymen.

One of the most common diseases among the natives appeared to be that of worms—originating, probably, from the character of their diet. Their medicinal preparations were but few and simple.

Captain Norton had in his possession a package of wormwood, which he picked up on the shore near the wreck. Though it had been saturated with salt water, yet, from time to time, he administered a strong drink of it for the above disease, with complete success. As proof of their appreciation of his services, they would put a dried crow's head upon his arm. His success went so far, that he had as many crows' heads as could be strung from his wrist to his elbow.

Captain Norton, however, was wisely cautious in one respect, and that was, he would not prescribe in any given case of sickness, unless he was well convinced there was no immediate danger to the patient, or that he could afford some temporary relief.

Their superstitious notions were such that, if any prescription should fail, and the patient should not recover, they would suppose at once that the proposed remedy was the cause of death. It required great prudence, therefore, to manage, not only the sick, but also those who were well.

A case occurred of a very trifling character at first, but finally it proved fatal. The face of a person, a woman, was somewhat swelled; the cause of it, so far as we could ascertain, originated in a defective tooth.

Mr. Osborn acted the part of a physician atthis time. He applied a poultice of sea bread, in order to reduce the inflammation, which he supposed it would shortly do.

The woman, however, did not get immediately better; and her friends took the poultice off, and in the place of it they tied a string very tight round her chin, in order, as they believed, to prevent the disease or swelling from going downwards. The string rather increased the inflammation; and then it was taken off, and placed still lower down, until the swelling had very much increased, and had reached her breast. The string was now tied tighter than ever, until it became embedded in the flesh.

Since Mr. Osborn's remedy had failed to benefit her, the natives, from their appearance and gestures, supposed that the poultice was an injury, instead of an advantage, to the woman. They therefore gathered round Mr. Osborn in the most threatening attitude, and he greatly feared they were about to injure or kill him. At any rate, he learned one important lesson—to be more cautious, in future, in prescribing remedies to the sick among the natives. They were superstitious, and therefore unreasonable.

The natives were subject to nose bleeding; the excessively cold weather was doubtless the chief cause of it. The remedy which they employed,and in use among them, was the application of a frosty stone, or piece of ice to the back of the neck.

Sore eyes were quite prevalent among them, more so in some seasons of the year than in others. This disease is caused by the reflection of sunlight upon an almost boundless surface of snow and ice. The simple remedy, in ordinary cases among them, was in making a slight incision with a thorn or some sharp instrument in the flesh, directly between the eyes, so as to draw several drops of blood. The effect of this treatment was to reduce the inflammation, and thus carry off the soreness from the eyes.

In some instances, however, the eyes of the natives had wholly run out.

This, in many respects, was very peculiar, and quite different from the great majority of semi-barbarous or half-civilized tribes and nations. When one dies, a wife, for example,—as this instance did occur in one of the huts,—the following ceremonies were observed to takeplace:—

Immediately on the death of the person, or just before death took place, the relatives and friends gathered in the hut, and commenced amost bitter and vociferous wailing or mourning.

The usual means to expel the disease, whatever it might be, had been employed in vain. Several skins, stretched over hoops varying in size, had been broken by furious beating, accompanied with fantastic gesticulations and almost unearthly sounds, if possible, to cure the patient. But all to no purpose. They now found that death was approaching; and since every effort of theirs had not benefited her, they pronounced her incurable, and proceeded at once to terminate her existence. She was not permitted to die wholly from the natural effects of the disease; but a small cord was placed round her neck, and gradually drawn closer and closer by those who stood on each side of her, until life became extinct. During the last scene, she gave various presents to her relatives and friends. She died with singular indifference, and without a groan.

Whether all the sick, who, they supposed, would not recover, were thus put to death, as in the foregoing instance, may be a question. Yet, in so far as could be ascertained from observation and from conversation with the natives, it is the opinion of those who lived with them for several months that this was generally the case.

Soon after, all the remaining property which she possessed—her clothing, needles, combs, beads, &c., besides some tobacco—was sewed up with her in the dress she usually wore, or in which she died. A new sled was then made for the deceased, and two of the best dogs in the family were selected to bear away the corpse. Instead of carrying the body out of the ordinary doorway, an opening was made through the side of the hut sufficiently large for the body to pass and those accompanying it. The relatives and friends followed the remains to the place of the dead, two or three miles distant, upon some hill side. There it remained untouched for five days. The face only of the deceased was exposed. On the return of the family connections to the hut, one of the dogs was killed. During the five days which intervened, the husband forsook the hut altogether, and all other huts, and wandered about from place to place, living in temporary exile from all connection with his former home, or family and friends. And during this time, also, food was carried to the dead body, and also placed outside the hut, on the supposition that she would need it.

On the sixth day, the deceased was visited again by the relatives for the purpose of disposing of what was left of her remains. The crowsand beasts of prey had nearly or quite completed the work of destroying every vestige of the body. Thus, in a very short time, nothing remained but here and there a bone mingled indiscriminately with others in the place of the dead.

The company then returned to the hut, and another scene of wailing and mourning ensued. During this last act, the hut was surrounded by the relatives of the deceased; and all at once, at a given signal, the whole company rose up, and pulled the hut down, and removed it to another place. Before it was erected again, however, the second dog was killed, and its blood sprinkled over the newly-selected spot.

With the change in the locality of the hut a new order of things took place. The husband assumed his former relations to the family, and ceremonies were at an end respecting the deceased.

From what could be learned from the natives, they supposed that, in leaving the face of the deceased uncovered, the crows would pick out her eyes, and then she would be unable to find her way back to the hut. The opening made in the side of the hut, through which to carry the corpse, was another superstitious idea. They believed she would not enter the hut again, if she was not carried out by the door. The removalof the hut to a new place was in accordance with their notions that she would be unable to find it again.

They have a general belief of an existence after death; yet so crude, ill-defined, and dark was this belief, that it stands allied with the grossest forms of paganism and idolatry. The glorious gospel of Christ, "which brings life and immortality to light," finds no place in their hopes for the future, nor does it afford any consolation to them on their pilgrimage to the tomb. They are living, as the apostle said the heathen did in his day, "having no hope, and without God in the world."

They are polygamists. They have as many wives as they see fit to take, or as they can support. They have a custom among them of temporarily exchanging their wives with each other. The evils of polygamy were obvious among the natives, in the jealousy, contention, wrath, and fighting observable between the different wives.

From their appearance, we should judge they belonged to the race of Esquimaux. In stature, they are rather below medium height, thick set,strongly built, muscles fully developed, and capable of great endurance; and in complexion, copper color. Their countenances are far from being prepossessing; high cheek bones, flat noses, and large mouths.

A stranger, upon first sight, would be led to infer from their general appearance that they were fierce, cruel, and prepared for any act of barbarity. What they would become, if injured or abused, we had no opportunity of knowing. Nor did we discover in them any unfriendly feelings towards other settlements or tribes, whether near or more remote, or that of late years there had been any contention, or fighting, or war between the different tribes in that region. They had instruments of war, such as bows and arrows, lances, clubs, &c.; but they probably needed them in destroying the savage beasts, and especially bears, that infest the country.

We found them kind and hospitable to us, or otherwise we all must have perished. They treated us, we believe, according to their knowledge and circumstances, with more than ordinary attention.

They exhibited love and sympathy towards the members of their respective families, and were particularly affectionate to their children.

As to their moral character, we could not discoverthat they had any idea of the one God, the Maker and Upholder of all things and beings, nor of Providence, nor of accountability, nor of moral right and moral wrong.

They believed, however, as all heathen idolaters and pagans do, that there were superior divinities. They seemed to fear evil spirits, if they had no reverence for good ones. They had an idea that somewhere, in some remote mountain in the interior, their god lived, and that the dead would in some way or other go thither; though they never gave us their views particularly upon this subject. They had no idols nor household gods. They paid profound homage to the crow, and regarded it in some sort as sacred. They wore crows' heads as amulets upon their persons. With the exception of the kindness they manifested towards us, and natural affection towards their children and to one another, in their social habits, intellectual ignorance, and moral darkness, they must be classed among the most degraded of the human race.

Their habits of industry correspond with the general features of their character. Thus fishing, hunting, making sleds, training dogs in their teams, running races, occasional traffic with tribes in the interior, &c., constitute the principal routine of their employments and amusements. Theirmanner of life presented no inducement for them to labor beyond their present necessities. By the way, the females had a large part of the necessary work to perform.

Their property consisted chiefly in dogs and huts. He who owned the best dog teams, and had possession in huts, was considered the most wealthy man. The head man of the settlement was supposed not only to possess the greatest amount of property, but he excelled in bodily strength. With these qualifications, he commanded the greatest influence, and was acknowledged as the head and leader of the settlement.

We found some among the natives who were considered rich,—rich in dogs and dog teams, &c.,—and others that were poor.

It is quite probable that all, or nearly all, the tribes or settlements on the shores of the Arctic, both on the Asiatic and American sides, have a common language, though differing, as we found, in some words, and also in pronunciation. The language is that of the Esquimaux race.

Those with whom we lived, and other settlements or tribes on the Asiatic coast with whomwe have had any acquaintance, from East Cape to the north as far as our wreck, have no written language. We could not learn from them that any one had ever attempted to instruct them, or reduce their language to some system, or that any teacher in religion had ever visited them. Without a written language, or books, or teachers, or oral instruction in some form, the certain results must invariably be, that from age to age, they will continue in the same condition of mental ignorance, moral blindness, and physical degradation.

It was the opinion of Mr. Abram Osborn, Jr., who became a proficient in the language of the natives, and could converse with them with ease and fluency, that it was simple, and he believed could be readily reduced to some systematic form. The method he resorted to, in order to acquire the language, was simply this: when he heard a native word, he would write it, according to its sound, upon a piece of copper, and place opposite to it its English definition. He made inquiries of the natives as to the meaning of their words, and what they called certain things. In this manner he became very familiar with all the terms and phrases which they used.

The following are a few specimens of native language. English words are placed in thefirst column, and the Esquimaux in the second.

Some of the most remarkable phenomena seen in the Northern Ocean, and the manner of their formation, are icebergs. They are greatly feared by seamen, and a contact with them would be equivalent to striking a rock. They are formed far up in the polar region during the intense and protracted cold of winter; and in the change of the season in summer, though ice is always accumulating in high latitudes, they drift with the currents into lower latitudes, where they melt, and finally disappear. They are of varied dimensions, indicating by these facts somewhat the sources whence they come, and wearing every conceivable exterior form.

They are formed by the falling of snow over steep and high cliffs on the borders of the sea; "little by little the incrustations on the shore and cliffs increase to the size of mountains, andthen, being torn away from their fastenings, either by the winds, or by their own weight, or by the action of the sea beating against their bases or undermining them, are swept into the ocean, where they continue to accumulate by the falling of snow and frozen water, and finally resemble great islands."

Large masses of ice, which take the form of bergs, are formed along the rocky-bound coast of the Arctic.

On the fall of the tide, after the ocean has been frozen over, the localities of the rocks and ledges are clearly observable. When the tide rises, the superincumbent mass is lifted up, and a new layer is formed underneath. This process goes on with the rise and fall of the tides and the accumulation of ice, until vast ridges, broken and dislocated, assuming every variety of appearance, are thus pressed up to a great height.

We observed the gradual rise of one of these immense piles of ice not far from our winter quarters. It appeared to be more than twenty-five feet above the ordinary ice around it.

The cliffs upon whose sides we have seen icebergs form rise to the enormous height of two to four hundred feet. And the shore was so bold, and the depth of water so great at their bases, that a ship would probably strike her yardsagainst their precipitous sides before she would ground. A vessel, therefore, being dashed against those adamantine walls in a gale of wind, would instantly fly to pieces, and not a seaman would be saved.

"The distance to which icebergs float from the polar regions on the opposite sides of the line is, as may be supposed, very different. Their extreme limit in the northern hemisphere is judged to be about lat. 40°, though they are occasionally seen in lat. 42° N., near the termination of the great bank of Newfoundland, and at the Azores, lat. 42° N., to which they have sometimes drifted from Baffin's Bay.

"But in the other hemisphere, they have been seen, within the last few years, at different points off the Cape of Good Hope, between lat. 36° and 39°. One of these was two miles in circumference and one hundred and fifty feet high, appearing like chalk when the sun was obscured, and having the lustre of refined sugar when the sun was shining upon it. Others rose from two hundred and fifty to three hundred feet above the level of the water, and were therefore of great volume below; since it is ascertained by experiments on the buoyancy of ice floating in sea water, that for every cubic foot seen above, there must at least be eight cubic feet below water."

Captain Sir John Ross saw several icebergs in Baffin's Bay aground in water fifteen hundred feet deep! Many of them are driven down into Hudson's Bay, and, accumulating there, diffuse excessive cold over the entire continent; so that Captain Franklin reports that, at the mouth of Haye's River, which lies in the same latitude as the north of Prussia or the south of Scotland, ice is found every where, in digging wells, in summer, at the depth of four feet. "It is a well-known fact that, every four or five years, a large number of icebergs floating from Greenland double Cape Langaness, and are stranded on the west coast of Iceland. The inhabitants are then aware that their crops of hay will fail in consequence of fogs, which are generated almost incessantly; and the dearth of food is not confined to the land, for the temperature of the water is so changed that the fish entirely desert the coast."

As to the relative thickness of common field ice where it remained unbroken through the winter, we found it varied from ten to twenty-five feet in thickness. We had an opportunity of judging, from the fact that we examined several openings which the natives had made in the ice off East Cape for the purpose of taking seal.

The sudden disappearance of large and extendedtracts of ice in the northern seas, in addition to its being carried away by the force of currents towards the south, is attributed by many to its sinking. How ice should sink, when its specific gravity is lighter than water, is a question for the speculative to discuss—unless there be some other preponderating element mingled with it, such as fragments of rock, sand, or gravel.

Whalemen have frequently affirmed that they have not only been surrounded by fields or large tracts of ice at night, but in the morning it had wholly disappeared from the surface of the water. Therefore many have arrived at the conclusion, that in certain states of the ice, in the process of breaking up and thawing, it actually sinks below the surface of the water, if not to the bottom.

There was another phenomenon which we observed. During the coldest season of the year, and in certain states of the atmosphere, the air deposits its moisture in the form of frozen fog. It has the appearance of a fine gossamer netting or icicles, and these are dispersed through the atmosphere, and so extremely minute that they seem to pierce and excoriate the skin; and, especially when the wind blew, it was impossible to face this storm of icy vapor. We have seena deposition of this frost from four to six inches during the space of twelve hours.

We observed that the natives ate all parts of the bear except the liver. Experience had probably taught them that it was not proper to eat, or, it may be, they had seen the fatal effects of eating it among themselves.

A bear, during the early part of winter, was brought into the settlement, which the natives had killed. Some of our company concluded to make a mess out of the liver, and invite others to partake of the dainty. It was eaten, and the consequences were nearly fatal to all of us who partook of it. It produced distress in our stomachs and diarrhœa.

We find the following in Dr. Kane's "Arctic Explorations:" "When I was out in the Advance, with Captain De Haven, I satisfied myself that it was a vulgar prejudice to regard the liver of the bear as poisonous. I ate of it freely myself, and succeeded in making it a favorite dish with the mess. But I find to my cost that it may be more savory than safe. The cub's liver was my supper last night; and to-day I have the symptoms of poison in full measure—vertigo, diarrhœa, and their concomitants."

A Ship after a Gale.

Provisions of the Natives getting low.—New Calamity threatened.—Health and Strength failing.—Necessity of seeking other Quarters.—The only alternative.—Report of a Wreck.—Parties leave.—Dreadful Traveling and Exposures.—Report by the Natives that our Men were frozen to Death.—An Instance of Treachery.—The Captain and his Party leave.—The Weather.—Traveling.—Thoughts of Home.—Preservation.—One of the Party unable to walk.—Left behind.—Found by the Natives.—The Fate before us.—Division of the Biscuit.—Another fails, sits down, and is frozen to Death.—Reflections.—Captain Norton encourages his only remaining Companion.—Singular Appearance upon the Ice.—Dog Teams.—Part of Mr. Fisher's Company.—Encouragement to our Minds.—Natives unwilling to help us.—The Danger of Riding.—Last Effort.—The Music of Barking Dogs.—Our Manner of Traveling.—Dreadful Condition of our Feet.—Captain Norton falls exhausted.—Native Kindness.

In February, it became apparent to all of us, that the provisions of the natives were getting low; we saw it in our daily fare—diminished in quantity, if not poorer in quality.

A new and unexpected calamity now threatened us. One misfortune after another had followed us since the wreck of the ship; deliverance had failed us when it was just within our reach; disappointment and untold deprivation had taken its place; but now, as if our pasttrials were only preparatory for another,—one more frightful than any we had contemplated or looked upon,—the question was presented to us in its most distressing form, whether we should remain among the natives, and, from present appearances,starveto death, or whether, while any strength remained, we should make one more, and perhaps the last effort to reach some other settlement, where we might get provisions enough to live upon. Our prospects never looked more gloomy than at this time.

We were well assured there were huts down along upon the coast, but how far we could not tell; and therefore it was a most hazardous journey, and altogether uncertain whether any one of us would live to reach them.

We were at this time very much reduced in flesh and strength in consequence of short allowance, and therefore greatly incapacitated to endure the labor and fatigue of traveling through the snow, or to withstand for any considerable season the intense cold which then prevailed. And still further, we were aware there would be no protection for us during the long night we should be out; or, it may be, a number of days and nights we should find no shelter. How many fearful odds were against us! Of this fact we were certain: to remain where we were,we should all perish by degrees with starvation; we came therefore to the conclusion, we could but die if we should venture to travel to the next settlement.

The haggard and emaciated countenances of our companions told but too plainly that a change must take place in our living, or soon we should "go the way of all the earth." If our friends at home could have looked in upon us in this time of our last extremity, they would neither have known us, nor would they have supposed, from our appearance, that we could long survive our misfortunes. It is well that we do not always know either the condition or the sufferings of our fellow-men.

It was about this time, while we were anxiously considering our state—what should be done, in what direction to seek for life—a report reached us by means of the natives, that a ship had been cast away on the coast, from seventy to one hundred miles distant, as near as we could judge.

A singlehamwas brought to the settlement by the natives, which confirmed the truth of the wreck.

This circumstance greatly encouraged us, and determined the first party, consisting of only two, to leave one morning, and to travel in the directionof East Cape. In the afternoon of the same day another party of three left, Mr. Fisher and two others, taking the same course as those did in the morning.

The last party soon came up with the first one, and found the two men nearly exhausted, and overcome by the difficulties of traveling, and by the intenseness of the cold; but by encouragement and hope held out to them, that another day they might find a native settlement, they struggled on through that night. The next day, they pressed on the best they could, making, however, but very slow progress, and seeing but little before them to animate their minds, or to raise up their spirits. They had gone as far as strength, or hope, or the love of life could carry them. They became bewildered, chilled, frost-bitten, and blinded by the flying snow; and as their last resort before they should lie down in death, having given up all prospect of getting any farther, they traveled round and round in a circle; and they were found in this condition when discovered by several natives, who immediately led them to their huts, which were only a mile or two distant.

How these men were kept alive during the time they were exposed to the intense cold of the day, and especially of the cheerless arctic night,seeking the best track they could through an unknown region of valleys, cliffs, ice, snow banks, &c.,—how these men were kept alive, is a matter of profound surprise, and certainly one of those instances of special providence in behalf of the needy and suffering sons of men.

Mr. Fisher said, all he had with him to eat by the way, when he left the settlement, was "some burnt coffee in his pocket." The others with him were no better off. It is wonderful that they lived amid so much destitution and exposure. What will not necessity compel men to do! Mr. Fisher, with the rest, asked the natives for something to eat; and he obtained a small piece of frozen whale's blubber. In less than two hours they were brought to the huts, and to their great joy found provisions more abundant. The whole distance they had traveled exceeded twenty miles.

A few days after the departure of Mr. Fisher's company, and the one that preceded his, word was brought to the settlement by some of the traveling natives, that the whole party were frozen to death.

This was sad intelligence indeed, and yet it was what we greatly feared. We, however, had our doubts as to the truth of the report. We had some very strong reasons for suspecting thenatives of lying—a habit we perceived identified with another, viz., that of stealing. And yet the report could not fail to produce in all our minds intense solicitude respecting the fate of our companions.

They ventured forth, risking their own lives, in order to find better accommodations for the company. As soon as they should find better quarters, and the prospect of preserving us from starvation, the agreement was, to send us immediate word; and then small companies would follow them from time to time, so as not to discommode a small settlement of only a few huts with our whole number coming into it at once.

The reluctance of the natives in our settlement to assist us in finding new quarters, when they knew their provisions were getting wretchedly low, and when they knew, too, that we had not more than one third of our ordinary fare, and that we were becoming weaker and more emaciated day after day, their reluctance to assist us, or to direct us to the nearest settlement, can be accounted for only on the principle that if we died, they wanted us to die with them; or that they did not desire we should go to any other settlement. What their particular motive was in this respect, we could not satisfactorily ascertain.

During this time of uncertainty concerning the fate of Mr. Fisher and those with him, Captain Norton called the company together, and proposed that another party should go out and look for their companions, and ascertain, if possible, whether they were living or not. Eight or ten days had thus passed away, and nothing was heard from the first party, nor could we learn any thing definitely about them from the natives, though we had reason to believe they knew more about them than we did.

On the supposition, however, that Mr. Fisher and his party had perished by the way, as reported by the natives, and lest those who might follow should meet with the same calamity, and thus party after party be lost in those trackless wastes of the arctic, it was thought advisable, if possible, before any more of us followed, to send word by the traveling natives to all the settlements, both near and more remote, whether five seamen had arrived at any one of them, or whether they had been discovered frozen to death.

Word was sent to Mr. Fisher from Captain Norton by means of pieces of copper written upon with lead, and forwarded by the natives. Mr. Fisher also sent word to Captain Norton in the same manner after his arrival at the settlement; but neither heard from the other, andtherefore both parties were left in painful suspense, and especially those who were left behind.

In this instance we discovered another treachery of the natives towards us, and which we found it impossible to account for, considering their kindness towards us in many other respects.

Since nothing had been heard from Mr. Fisher for many days, the captain stated to his men, that he had made up his mind to leave the settlement, and ascertain if possible the fate of Mr. Fisher, and find better quarters. One thing was certain; he assured them he could not live there; that was out of the question. He was greatly debilitated, had scarcely any thing to eat, and for three days past had not eaten a piece of blubber larger than his three fingers.

Accordingly, on the last day of February, the captain left with a company of three besides himself.

We took our departure at sundown, or late in the afternoon, in order to avoid the effect of sunlight upon our eyes. We learned from the experience of the natives to avoid, if possible, this evil; and hence we took the latter part of the day to commence our perilous journey, and chose darkness rather than light.

Our intentions were to travel until we should find more comfortable quarters, or perish in theattempt. We were sensible that from the severity of the cold, we must travel all the time, night and day; there could be no rest or respite for us, with safety, out of doors. If we should stop for any length of time, or sit down, death would be inevitable.

It was intensely cold when we left—such an air as is felt only in the arctic. The northern lights shone very brightly that night; wind quite high; occasionally the snow flying in dense masses around us; and besides, slumping into the snow from six inches to two feet at almost every step.

Thus we traveled, or rather, as it seemed to us, crawled along during that night, keeping our course by the sea shore as much as we could. We found no well-beaten road, or path, but we had to make one for ourselves; no plain before us, but a rugged and broken surface, both upon the frozen ocean and upon the land; immense piles of snow, wrought into a great variety of forms by the circling winds; indeed the whole scene before us was one of the wildest, grandest, and most terrific, that winter could present to mortal eyes, and such as can be seen only where Winter asserts his undisputed supremacy.

And what a night was that for human beings to be out and exposed, with no covering above us but the bright stars, and the brighter coruscations,as they would flash up from the pole and overspread the northern sky! Then we thought of home,—far distant home,—and friends, and the contrast, the strange contrast between their condition and ours! But words are poor vehicles to convey to the reader the emotions of our minds as we felt the loneliness of our condition, and the dreariness of our prospects on that dreadful night. It will never be effaced from the tablet of our memories, and in our hearts may we ever record, as long as life shall continue, the goodness of God in preserving us, and causing our eyes to behold the light of another day.

About ten o'clock on the following day, one of our number began to exhibit more than ordinary weariness, languor, and stupidity. We found he began to lag behind, and was unable to keep up with us, though we were much exhausted, and only by the greatest possible exertion were we able to keep on our feet. We had not stopped, except for a moment, since we left the settlement.

Tired and overtasked nature, however, could not always endure. We all traveled slowly; but one of our number was really making little or no progress at all. We, who were ahead, would slacken our pace, or return to meet him, assist him, and encourage him to hold out and press on.This we did many times, but we found it absolutely impossible for him to keep up with us. We had no strength to carry him; this was out of the question; and to attempt to help him along for any considerable time, or to wait for him or stay by him, it was certain we should never get any where, and all die together.

The only alternative, therefore, to which, from necessity, we were brought, was to leave him behind. Sad as was our decision in this instance, yet it was distressingly true that, if we had tarried by the way or sat down, we never should have risen again.

We pressed on for our lives. We soon lost sight of our companion in the distance, either resting or making ineffectual efforts to get along. In leaving him in those wintry wilds, we left him, as we supposed, to die. We saw no chance for his escape.

About eight days from this time, we learned that, a few hours after we left him, he was found by some natives in a perfectly helpless state, and carried by them to a settlement several miles distant, where he was taken care of, and finally joined the company at East Cape.

In regard to those of us who were still able to proceed through the drifted snow, how slight the hope that we should long continue our perilousjourney, and how probable that each one of us in turn would lag behind, and finally lie down to rise up no more!

We saw in our companion an example of what our own fate might shortly be. Whatever of heart or hope there was left, the captain encouraged those with him to put forth all their strength and energies, as every thing they held dear on earth—even life itself—was now at stake. If they faltered, death was certain; if they pressed on, there might be some remote chance of safety and of life.

When Captain Norton left the settlement, he took with him as his only supply of food, both for himself and his three companions, three sea biscuits, which he hid away the first of the winter as a last resort, not knowing what necessity the future might bring along with it.

The last and final emergency had now arrived. He therefore took one of the biscuits, and divided it into three parts, retained one for himself, and gave the other two to his companions.

Soon after the division of the biscuit, we found a temporary shelter under the lee of a precipitous and broken line of hills, which extended some distance, and which protected us from the cold and piercing north wind.

Captain Norton never allowed himself to sitdown, because he was convinced, so weak as he was, and nearly worn out, if he should yield to the promptings of his almost exhausted body, and sit down, he would never rise up again; and therefore he continued on his feet, and moving about from place to place. He warned his companions again and again, if they valued life, not to think of finding rest by sitting down, or seeking repose in any manner; if they should, death would shortly ensue. There was "but a step between us and death."

Yet, notwithstanding the entreaties, persuasions, and warnings of Captain Norton, another one was observed to falter and disposed to sit down. Being but a short distance from him, we perceived he made no effort to eat his biscuit, and also exhibited that singular dulness and stupidity which are the silent and stealthy precursors of the sleep of death. He was then sitting down in an easy and natural posture. The captain spoke to him several times; but he gave no answer, nor made any movement of any kind. He went to him immediately, though he was not twelve feet distant, to ascertain the cause, and found what we greatly feared; alas! the poor fellow's eyes were set, his limbs were rigid, the piece of biscuit was still in his hand. He wasfrozen to death; his mortal life had fled; his spirit had gone to God, who gave it!

In the winding sheet of drifting snow we let him remain. What a scene that was to us! We were struggling for life amid elements of destruction such as but few of our countrymen ever witnessed, and, we trust, never will.

Only two of us were now left to pursue our sad, and in some respects almost hopeless, journey. It seems quite incredible that we should have had any courage to make another effort in struggling forward, after what we had just witnessed, and that, at once, we should not have surrendered ourselves to the fate which appeared to follow and surround us.

The captain said to Cox, his only remaining companion, "The best foot forward now, or we shall be left out here; and to be out one more night, we are gone."

Having traveled two or three miles, as we should judge, from the place where our shipmate died, we discovered something in the distance, from one to two miles, skimming along apparently on the ice, which at first had the appearance of a flock of crows. Cox said to the captain, "The crows have come for us already." But upon further inspection, and the object approaching nearer, it turned out to be four or fivedog teams, with three of Mr. Fisher's party and a number of natives, bound back to the settlement to let their companions know that they had found good quarters, and also to bring some of them away with them.

This was cheering news indeed—cheering because Mr. Fisher and his party were alive, cheering because it revived our desponding spirits, and infused new hope into our minds that permanent help was not far off.

Those who accompanied the natives with the dog teams saw at once how nearly exhausted the captain and Cox were, but yet the natives were unwilling to take them to the nearest settlement. And, besides, there would have been as great danger, and perhaps even greater, for us to have ridden on the supposition that the natives had been disposed to carry us, than for us to have walked. We should have been chilled to death, if we had remained still or quiet, in a very short time.

The direction to the nearest settlement on the coast was pointed out to us; and we were put upon the track made by the dog teams, and told that the distance to it was six or eight miles.

The captain told Cox, "We must reach the place before dark; the last effort must now be put forth—the best foot forward." It was nowabout twelve o'clock, M. We started in the direction of the huts, and traveled on as fast as we could, though at the best very slow. The snow was deep, and hard to travel.

All the mental and physical energy which we possessed was called into requisition to aid us in reaching a resting place before night. It was our last exertion. It was indeed a merciful providence that we happened to meet our friends and the natives, otherwise, beyond a reasonable doubt, we should have perished; but meeting them, however, we received great encouragement to our minds, and, furthermore, knew for a certainty the direction and about the distance of the huts. Without such a stimulus as this, and just the one we needed,—for our lives were suspended upon it,—our last resting place on earth would have been made amid the drifting snows of the arctic.

With severe labor and painful exertion, we finally reached the settlement just at night. Before we saw the huts, which were concealed from our view by banks of snow, we were heralded by the barking of the dogs. We knew, therefore, that we were near the abode of human beings. The sound fell on our ears ten thousand times more sweetly than the music of an Æolian harp.

But we hardly knew how we were carriedthrough the last part of our journey. Strength was given to us by the great Father of all. It was of the Lord's mercies that we did not yield to final despondency, and utterly despair of ever beholding the countenances of our friends again. Hope and heart were in the ascendant; if they had once fallen, all would have been over with us.

Sometimes we crawled along on our hands and knees; at other times we would fall down, both upon the right hand and upon the left, and it seemed to us that we could not rise; and then, again, we would get up and struggle on. In this manner we traveled miles, and especially the last part of the way. Indeed, our feet had become dreadfully inflamed, and large blisters had formed on the sides of them, which made the labor of walking exceedingly and distressingly difficult.

Captain Norton was so completely overcome and exhausted when he reached the hut, that he fell prostrate upon the floor, unable to advance one step farther, and lay almost senseless.

Not only were our feet inflamed and blistered in the most shocking manner, but our clothes were stiff with frost in consequence of perspiration, by our extraordinary efforts to reach the settlement before night. We were treated with great kindness by the natives; our stiff andfrosty clothes were soon exchanged for dry ones. After a season of rest, a good supper was prepared for us, consisting of walrus blubber, deer meat, and "ice cream" made of the fat of the deer mixed with snow.

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