34 TRANSACTIONS iSgQ-'oO 



The chief object of this expedition was to collect "black 

 earth" to be taken home and tested for gold. They anchored in 

 a fair harbor, which they named Anne Warwick's Sound, giving 

 the name also to an island in honour of the Countess of Warwick, 

 who, with her husband the Karl, had enthusiastically promoted 

 the first expedition."* 



After filling up with black earth and making earnest but 

 fruitless efforts to discover the fate of the five men, Frobisher 

 returned to England where he was greeted with great en- 

 thusiasm, the Queen naming the great island from which the 

 "ore"t was chiefly obtained, Mcta Incogmta, and throwing a 

 chain of gold around Frobisher' s neck. 



A larger expedition was planned, and in 1578 Frobisher 

 sailed on his third vo3^age with two of the Queen's ships, one of 

 400 tons and the other of 200 tons burden. Besides these, 

 thirteen vessels of various sizes accompanied him. With him 

 were 120 pioneers and 400 other men, of whom 100 were design- 

 ed for the special task of forming a colony. These were landed 

 in Frobisher Bay, and at the time were considered to be "the 

 first known Christians that we have true notice of that ever set 

 foot on the soil' ' of that part of the Dominion of Canada. 



Things however, did not turn out according to expectation. 

 One of the ships was lost. Ten persons died. The others ap- 

 pear to have resolved not to remain. Stormj^ winds and danger- 

 ous ice frightened them. On one occasion the chronicler says, 

 "Thus continued we all that dismal and lamentable night in this 

 perplexitie looking for instant death." 



October found the joyful survivors with their feet on 

 English soil ; and so ended one of the early efforts of the sturdy 

 English in the line of colonizing, a line in which from natural 

 aptitude, and after long and sometimes bitter experience, th&y 

 have no equal among the nations ; Spain, France and Italy all 

 failing, and Germany as yet giving no great evidence of special 



*Captain Hall in 1860-62 discovered the remains of the stone house which 

 Frobisher built on Countess of Warwick's Island in 1577, as well as «ther 

 relics of the great navig-ator. These latter he sent to England ; a more 

 appropriate resting place for them would be Ottawa, the Federal capital. 



tThe worthlessness of Frobisher's ore resulted in luckless Michael Lok 

 being unable to redeem his suretyship. He was cast into Fleet prison, a, 

 catastrophe which involved himself and his fifteen children in ruin. 



