192 Inhabitants of the Far North. 



and much animal life. Dr. Bessels saw traces of 

 Esquimaux as far north as 82°, in which parallel he 

 picked up, lying on the beach, a couple of ribs of 

 the walrus which had been used as sledge runners, 

 and a small piece of wood that had formed part of 

 the back of a sledge. An old bone knife-handle was 

 also found, and the remains of a summer encamp- 

 ment, consisting of three circles of stones for keep- 

 ing tents in position, with spaces left for the en- 

 trances. 



As regards the work of previous American expe- 

 ditions in Smith Sound, I was informed that all the 

 coast line laid down by Hayes, and the " open polar 

 sea " of Kane, are quite imaginary. Morton, Kane's 

 steward, who is said to have discovered the wide 

 immeasurable ocean, was on board the " Polaris," 

 as second mate ; we brought him home in the 

 " Arctic." He is an Irishman from Dublin, and a 

 very good man, and he took the mild chaff that was 

 levelled at him about his famous <e open polar sea " 

 very good-humouredly. Cape Constitution of Kane 

 has been determined to be about fifty miles south of 

 the position formerly assigned to it by that explorer, 

 and the entire coast line must be placed consider- 

 ably further to the eastward. Dr. Bessels satisfied 

 himself of the existence of the United States Sound 

 of Hayes, on the west coast of Smith Sound, and is 

 impressed with the belief that a passage may be 

 made through it into the Polar Sea, which would 



