NAVIGATION 285 
might be carried on with the natives frequenting the shores of 
the bay. This trade from its nature never required a large fleet 
of ships in its carrying trade, but since 1668 the company have 
sent annually one or more ships to supply its posts, and to bring 
back the valuable furs obtained from the inhabitants; and it is 
remarkable that with the imperfect charts of its waters so few 
ships have been lost in the last two hundred and fifty years; 
of these only a small number have met with disaster from 
contact with the ice in the bay or strait. From the time of the 
Treaty of Utrecht to the transfer of the lands of the Hudson's 
Bay Company to the Dominion, the bay and strait were a closed 
sea belonging exclusively to the Company, and other ships 
entered these waters unlawfully, and navigation by outsiders 
was practically prohibited there. The American Whalers visited 
the northern portions of the bay as early as 1860, and within 
a few years their number had increased to fourteen ships win- 
tering in its northern waters. As these vessels did not directly 
interfere with the fur trade they were left undisturbed, and are 
only mentioned here to show that other ships besides those of 
the Hudson's Bay Company have for a considerable period been 
navigating the bay, but being intent upon a paying enterprise 
did not herald their achievements to the public. 
The Dominion Government, in 1885-86, sent out steamers 
under Commander Gordon to test the period of navigation of 
Hudson strait, and at the same time established observation 
stations along the length of the strait, where the action of the 
ice was studied during these two years. Commander Gordon 
reported that the strait was open for three or four months for 
navigation by specially constructed ships. In 1897 a second 
expedition was sent out under the charge of Commander 
Wakeham, who was accompanied by Mr. Fisher, a representa- 
tive of the Manitoba government. Both reported on the naviga- 
tion of the strait and bay, and practically upheld all the 
statements of Commander Gordon. 
