Overland Arctic Expedition. 349 



Captain Beechy, the commander of that vessel, to reach the 

 rendezvous ; but Captain FrankUn had already extended his 

 voyage as far as prudence, supported by courage, could war- 

 rant. To have continued it beyond this period, along an un- 

 known coast, in quest of a passage to the appointed place of 

 meeting with Captain Beechy, would have been rashness. It 

 remained therefore only to return by the outward route, of 

 which the dangers were lessened by being known. By the end 

 of August they reached the mouth of the Mackenzie, after having 

 encountered heavy gales of wind on the passage, and arrived at 

 Bear Lake on the 21st of September. — The inhabitants of the 

 coast are numerous, and we understand that, on the voyage out, 

 the boats having grounded on a shoal, upwards of 250 Esqui- 

 maux, arming themselves with large knives, rushed into the wa- 

 ter, attempted to carry off the stores, and even threatened to de- 

 stroy the whole party. The cool bravery evinced by the expedi- 

 tion, deterred them from putting their threat into execution, and 

 the judicious measures of the commanding officer, ably seconded 

 by the courage and conduct of Mr Bach and the boats' crews, 

 ultimately rescued every thing of importance from the hands o£ 

 these freebooters, without any personal injury having been sus- 

 tained on either side. Other meditated attacks, both of Esqui- 

 maux and Mountain Indians, were frustrated with equal good 

 fortune. Previous to the return of the expedition, however, 

 the Esquimaux were drawing towards the mouth of the Mac- 

 kenzie, with the view of assembling a large force there ; and had 

 it been detained by the weather, or any other accident, above 

 two days longer on the coast, it could scarcely have escaped 

 without a conflict. 



The eastern detachment under Dr Richardson and Mr 

 Kendall succeeded in surveying the coast between the Macken- 

 zie and the Coppermine, having, in the prosecution of their 

 voyage, doubled Cape Bathurst in lat. 70° 37 N, long. 126° 52' 

 W, and entered George the Fourth's Coronation Gulf, by a 

 strait, which led them nearly two degrees of longitude to the 

 eastward of the Coppermine. They quitted their boats near the 

 mouth of that river, and, by travelling overland, reached the es- 

 tablishment at Bear Lake on the 1st of September. 



Much credit is due to Captain Franklin for the judicious 



