68 CRUISE OF THE NEPTUNE 



course was changed to south of west to skirt the edge of this 

 great pack, and as it continued unbroken to the westward, the 

 idea of passing through Fisher strait was abandoned, and the 

 course was laid to the southward of Coats island. The passage 

 was encumbered by ice until dark, when the ship lay-to await- 

 ing daylight. The low southern shore of Coats was then 

 followed westward to Cape Southampton, after which we headed 

 away direct for Fullerton. When within a few miles of that 

 place, on the evening of the 15th, we came up with the Scotch 

 whaler Active, now bound homeward from Repulse bay. Cap- 

 tain Murray came on board, seeking the doctor. From him we 

 learned that the Active had passed us, on our way out, on the 

 20th of July, when leaving the eastern entrance to Evans strait. 

 She had come in early in the month, and after landing a number 

 of miners at Lake harbour, on the north side of the strait close 

 to the eastern end of Big island, had taken on board a large 

 number of Eskimos from that place and from the vicinity of 

 Kings cape, at the entrance to Fox channel. Great difficulty 

 had been experienced in the ice while crossing Fox channel. 

 Subsequently, little ice was met with until the ship reached 

 Repulse bay, which was still solidly frozen, so that the Active 

 did not get into the harbour there until the 10th of August. 

 Frozen strait remained full of ice all the season. The Active 

 and the whaling station in connection with it at Repulse bay 

 both had a successful season. The catch of the steamer included 

 thirty-three white whales, thirty-six walrus, and one Right 

 whale affording 1,300 pounds of bone. The returns of the 

 station were twenty-eight musk-ox skins, thirty white whales, 

 and one small Right whale with 500 pounds of bone. In 1903 

 the combined catch included five Right whales with a total of 

 40,000 pounds of bone. 



The Active on her way out would pass through Fisher strait, 

 in order to hunt walrus at Walrus island and on the floating ice 

 on the eastern side of Fox channel. Part of the large crew of 



