104 THE SIEGE OF THE NORTH POLE 



18th April a seal was shot by Joe and was eaten raw. 

 Next day a sea struck the floe on which they were camped 

 and washed away the tent, skins, and most of the bed- 

 clothing. It was with the utmost difficulty that the men 

 prevented the boat from being lost. They held on to 

 the boat from 9 p.m. till 7 next morning. During this 

 time many of them were frequently struck by blocks of 

 ice and severely bruised. On the 22nd April they were 

 saved from starvation by the capture of a bear. 



At 4-30 p.m. on the 28th April a steamer hove in 

 sight, but failed to see them. Next day another steamer 

 was seen, but after the party believed they were observed, 

 it changed its course and disappeared. On the 30th April, 

 on some fog clearing away, they were overjoyed to see a 

 steamer close at hand. Shots and shouting soon attracted 

 attention;, and in a few minutes it was alongside. The 

 vessel was the sealer Tigress, Captain Bartlett of New- 

 foundland. The party were picked up in latitude 53° 35', 

 off Grady Harbour, Labrador. 



The return to civilised life and its food and comforts 

 was attended with swollen legs and feet, diarrhoea, and 

 severe headache. The Tigress landed the party at St. 

 John's on 12th May. 



The voyage of the Polaris extended considerably our 

 knowledge of the Smith Sound route towards the Pole. 

 It also did much to explode the theory of an open Polar 

 Sea. The Polaris was carried to a more northern point 

 than a vessel had ever before reached, and it prepared the 

 way for the British Expedition of 1875. 



One might naturally suppose that the Arctic regions 

 would offer no further attractions to those who suffered 

 the terrible experience on the drifting ice, but it will be 

 afterwards seen that, at least one of the party played a 

 noble role in another American Expedition which met 

 with disaster. 



