THE FRIENDLY ARCTIC 507 



cated, as the journey from Sverdrup's winter quarters to the 

 Cape and back again is so short that Isachsen's pocket chronometer 

 could scarcely be supposed to have gone wrong in that distance. 

 I have since learned by reading the account of Isachsen's journey 

 that no observations were taken at Cape Isachsen and the place 

 was laid down on the map by dead reckoning. Our watches were 

 probably right after all, and Isachsen had made an error in his 

 reckoning. 



It took two days to get everything ready for sending Castel 

 back. This time was needed mainly for talking over plans and 

 writing letters of instructions to govern his journey south and oth- 

 ers to supplement directions already sent to Storkerson and Gon- 

 zales. Both Castel and Emiu now experienced something of a 

 change of heart with regard to potatoes and sardines and asked 

 me not to send them back to the Bear, professing eagerness to 

 spend the summer in Melville Island and willingness to try to 

 accustom themselves to a meat diet. Without agreeing at the 

 time, I wrote Storkerson that he should have a talk with them 

 when they arrived and decide whether to keep them with him in 

 Melville Island on meat or send them to Banks Island to the 

 Bear and the groceries. 



In planning Castel's journey southward, I made the assumption 

 that the Admiralty chart Number 2118 which we carried was sub- 

 stantially right in laying down King Christian Island as a land 

 at least eighty or ninety miles in diameter, lying south of the 

 Ringnes Islands. We thought King Christian Island was probably 

 even bigger than that, and was indeed the east end of our new land. 

 I accordingly instructed Castel to head for the northwest coast of 

 King Christian Island as charted, and try to determine whether 

 it was a separate land or one with Borden Island. If it were a 

 separate land, he was to follow the west coast down to where 

 Sherard Osborn had laid down Findlay Land, then strike for the 

 vicinity of Cape Richards. He would proceed south through 

 Hecla Bay, across into Liddon Gulf, deliver my letters to Storker- 

 son, and then continue according to Storkerson's decision. 



Before Castel left I was done with my irritation on the score 

 of sardines and potatoes but there still appeared a good reason 

 for sending him back, both to explore King Christian Land and to 

 get Natkusiak over to Cape Murray. Castel and Emiu would also 

 be useful in Melville Island, provided they volunteered to stay and 

 were prepared to reconcile themselves to local conditions. The ten- 



