102 CRUISE OF THE NEPTUNE 



ter sound and in Regent inlet; Captain Austen traced 6,087 

 miles; Sir Edward Belcher and Captain Kellett, 9,432 

 miles; Sir Robert M'Clure, 2,350 miles; Captain Collison in 

 his voyage to Cambridge bay, and Dr. Rae on the same coasts, 

 1,030 miles, making in all, 21,500 miles of coast-line examined, 

 of which 5,780 miles were previously unknown. From this 

 summary the search of the American expeditions is omitted, as 

 well as those of Lady Franklin's private expeditions, all of 

 which would add greatly to the total. Admiral Sir F. L. 

 M'Clintock has estimated the amount of money expended 

 by the British government on Arctic research, including the 

 outfitting of the Erebus and Terror, at 272,000, and on the 

 relief and search expeditions, 675,000 ; to this must be added 

 the money subscribed for private expeditions, amounting to 

 35,000. The expeditions fitted out in the United States, mostly 

 by private subscriptions, cost over $250,000. Admiral M'Clin- 

 tock has further estimated that the number of miles traversed by 

 sled expeditions only, over ice and land, is about 43,000 miles. 

 His views as regards the economic and scientific value of the 

 Arctic explorations are as follows : ' The benefits, doubtless, have 

 been very great ; to whaling commerce it has opened up all to the 

 north and west of Davis strait and Hudson strait; also to the 

 north of Bering strait. The value of these fisheries alone 

 amounts to very many millions sterling into the pockets of Eng- 

 lish and American traders. The scientific results are very 

 varied, and ample in almost every department, and peculiarly so 

 in magnetism, meteorology, the tides, geographical discoveries, 

 geology, botany and zoology, as shown by the general advance in 

 each branch. Upon naval impulse the influence has been truly 

 great ; we could man an expedition with English naval officers.' 

 The exploration of Smith sound, the northern inlet to Baffin 

 bay, was commenced during the search for Franklin. In 1852, 

 Captain Inglefield left England, in the screw schooner Isabel, 

 with the intention of searching the deep northern inlets of Baffin 



