﻿18 45. LAST LETTERS. 5 



reached Whalefisli Islands, near Disco, on the 

 Greenland coast of Davis's Straits, where, having 

 found a convenient port, the transport which ac- 

 companied it was cleared and sent home to 

 Eno'land, brinfrino- the last letters that have been 

 received from the officers or crew. The following 

 extract of a letter, from Lieutenant Fairholme, of 

 the " Erebus," will serve to show the cheerful 

 anticipation of success which prevailed throughout 

 the party, and the happy terms on which they 

 were with each other : — 



"We have anchored in a narrow channel be- 

 tween two of the islands, protected on all sides by 

 land, and in as convenient a place for our purpose 

 as could possibly be found. Here we are with the 

 transport lashed alongside, transferring most ac- 

 tively all her stores to the two ships. I hope that 

 this operation will be completed by to-morrow 

 night, in which case Wednesday will be devoted to 

 swinging the ships for local attraction, and I sup- 

 pose Thursday will see us under way with our 

 heads to the northward. We have had the obser- 

 vatory up here, on a small rock on which Parry 

 formerly observed, and have got a very satis- 

 factory set of magnetic and other observations. 

 Of our prospects we know little more than v/hen 

 we left England, but look forward with anxiety to 

 our reaching 72°, where it seems we are likely to 



B 3 



