320 SLEDGING PARTIES. 



some appearances, that it left suddenly; that probably 

 a great and unexpected disruption of the ice had sum- 

 moned the crews to resume progress in the ships : but 

 this was contested by other officers of equal experience, 

 who contended that there could have been no hurry in 

 removing from Beechey Island, as everything bore the 

 stamp of order and regularity, utterly forbidding the 

 idea that Franklin had been forced away by the ice. 



On the 8th September, 1850, most of the searching 

 vessels got once more free from the ice, and unfurled 

 their sails in open water, along the south side of Corn- 

 wallis Island. They bore boldly away, in the hope of 

 penetrating well to the west, but were soon arrested by 

 a vast floe, which extended from the south-west end of 

 Griffith Island, as far as the eye could reach. They 

 kept close to this, and strove with it, from the 10th till 

 the 13th, and then began again to get forward; yet pro- 

 ceeded only a short distance, amid great embarrassment 

 and severe exertion, when they were compelled to stick 

 fast for the winter. The government ships were locked 

 up in the ice between Cornwallis Island and Griffith 

 Island : and all the others were sufficiently near to 

 admit of easy communication among the whole squad- 

 ron. 



Arrangements were early made for performing explor- 

 atory journeys with sledges in spring. Captain Aus- 

 tin superintended those for the lands and islands along 

 what may be called Parry's Strait, the band of sea 

 westward from Barrow's Strait to Melville Island, and 

 the north end of Banks's Land ; and Captain Penny un- 

 dertook to conduct the search of Wellington Channel. 

 Sledges were sent out, before the severest period of the 

 winter, to place provisions in depot for the use of the 

 explorers in spring ; and exercises of walking and sledge- 

 dragging were afterwards, in all favorable weather, prao 



