92 CRUISE OF THE NEPTUNE 



tion of the Arctic coasts of America in much happier circum- 

 stances. The rival fur companies had now amalgamated, 

 forming one powerful company, with full control over the 

 natives, and capable of rendering valuable assistance to an 

 exploring party in the far north. Franklin, profiting by his 

 former sad experience, had a large supply of pemmican pre- 

 pared in advance, and stored at Fort Chipewyan. The journey 

 from England was made by way of Montreal and the great 

 lakes. After passing a winter at Great Bear lake, Franklin 

 descended the Mackenzie to its mouth, and then surveyed the 

 coast westward to Return reef, passing the northern end of the 

 Rocky mountains, leaving only 160 miles of unsurveyed coast 

 between his farthest point and Point Barrow, reached the same 

 year by Captain Beechey in boats from Bering straits. 



While Franklin was thus engaged with one-half of his party, 

 the other half, under the command of Dr. Richardson and Lieu- 

 tenant Kendall, were exploring the coast between the mouths of 

 the Mackenzie and Coppermine rivers. These surveys carried 

 the exploration from Bering strait to Coronation gulf, with 

 only a break of 160 miles between Return reef and Point Bar- 

 row, or through sixty degrees of longitude. The eastern end of 

 these surveys was overlapped six degrees in longitude by the 

 discoveries of Parry to the northward, and only a channel 

 running north and south was required to connect them, and so 

 complete the long sought northwest passage. 



Captain John Ross, being anxious to remove the reproach of 

 his former failure, and having been provided by Sir Felix Booth 

 with a well-fitted ship, the Victory, of 150 tons, sailed, in 1829, 

 with the intention of seeking a passage through Regent inlet. 

 The ship was set fast in the ice, and finally abandoned in Vic- 

 toria harbour, on the west side of Regent inlet, nearly opposite 

 Fury and Hecla strait. The expedition was remarkable for 

 the number of winters spent within the Arctic circle, three of 

 them on the Victory and the fourth at Fury beach, where the 



