TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION E. 1135 
year (1837) the 160 miles to the west—which Franklin could not reach—were 
traced. In the two following years, partly on foot, but chiefly in boats down the 
Coppermine, they went east, even beyond Back’s survey of the mouth of the Fish 
River, thus accomplishing a boat voyage of more than 1,400 geographical miles, 
the longest ever made in boats on the Arctic coast, on which they remained until 
September 16, a dangerously late period. Dease and Simpson's tracing of new 
ground amounted to 667 geographical miles, but to do this 800 miles of previous 
survey had to be gone over. Simpson was awarded the Royal Geographical 
Society’s Gold Medal when less than half his Arctic work was accomplished, 
Raz, 1846-47, 1850-51, anp 1853-54. 
The first and last of these expeditions were equipped in 1846 and 1853 at York 
Factory, and wintered at Repulse Bay on the Arctic circle ; the first in a stone house, 
the last in a snow-hut, which proved by far the more comfortable of the two, 
although they had no fire to give warmth in the one, nor a ‘ fire-lamp,’ such as the 
Eskimos use, in the other. In the stone house the temperature fell 15° or 20° during 
the cooking of our two meals—frequently only one—per day, as the door had to be 
kept open to allow the smoke to escape which would not go up the chimney. The 
first party consisted of Rae, ten men and two Eskimos; the last of eight persons. 
On each occasion venison and fish sufficient for eleyen or twelve months were 
obtained, nearly half the deer for winter use being shot by Rae. In 1847 the first 
long sledge journeys ever made on the Arctic shores of America were performed, 
more than 1,200 miles in distance, uniting Ross’s discoveries on Boothia with those 
of Parry on Melville peninsula, all but a few miles.!’ The cost of this expediticn 
was less than 1,400. 
In 1854 a sledge journey of about 1,100 miles, at the rate of nearly 20 miles a 
day, was made, uniting the surveys of Dease and Simpson to those of Ross, west 
of Boothia, and proving King William’s Land to be an island. The work done by 
these two expeditions was the tracing 933 miles of new land, the obtaining of the 
first information (in 1854) of the fate of the Franklin Expedition, and the making 
four voyages of 900 miles each in open boats along a dangerous coast, all at a cost 
of less than 3,000. for both. 
In 1850 Rae, whilst in charge of McKenzie River District, was asked by the 
Admiralty to go in search of the missing expedition, and to take any route he 
thought best. There was only one route open, that by Great Bear Lake and the 
Coppermine River, which could not be utilised until 1851, as small boats had to be 
built suitable for hauling overland. It was confidently stated that no wood fit 
for boatbuilding could be obtained on the east side of Great Bear Lake, yet this 
difficulty was overcome, and Indians as hunters were searched for and found. 
Two nice little boats were built by the carpenter, who, although a good workman, 
did not know the form of boat required, so Rae’s experience of many years before 
in the Orkney Islands became useful, as he not only drafted the boats to scale in 
every plank, but cut out and roped the sails, and fitted and spliced the rigging and 
other gear. 
Gt Trlede journey of more than 1,000 miles was made by Rae, two men, and 
three half-starved dogs, to the coast and along Wollaston Land, at the rate of 24 
miles a day, all the party hauling or carrying loads the whole way. The boat 
voyage to the eastward of the Coppermine was 1,350 miles, partly along the coast 
of Victoria Land, and up Victoria Strait to a higher latitude than that where 
Franklin’s ships were abandoned in 1848, near King William’s Island, on the east 
side of the strait, which was filled with immense heaps of rough ice in 1851. On 
returning to the Great Bear Lake an effort was made to get south before the closing 
of the river navigation, but the boat was frozen up in Athabasca River. From 
this place the party travelled on snowshoes 1,300 miles (at the rate of 27 miles 
aday) to Red River* where all the men were paid off except two, who accompanied 
Rae to the United States 450 miles in ten days, being aided by dogs. 
? A slight error in the chart, which was relied upon as correct, gave to Parry’s 
Survey a few more miles than was correct. 
? Gold medal of R. G. 8, awarded in 1852. 
