46 TRANSACTIONS. 1906-7. 



The report by the whalers of the ice conditions of the summer 

 of 1905 is of interest to Arctic navigators. They say that the ice 

 that drove into Behring's sea from the north-east and prevented 

 their exit left that part of the ocean almost free of ice, a very 

 unusual thing; and one of the captains is reported to have said 

 that he was strongly tempted to set sail for the pole, as in his ex- 

 perience of twenty or twenty-five years he had never seen what 

 seemed so good an opportunity of winning fame by such a venture. 

 But he said his commission was to capture whales and not the pole. 

 That these reports are correct is borne out by the fact that^aptain 

 Amunsden who was exploring along the north-east coast finding 

 open water to the west set sail in that direction, "and to [his surprise 

 soon found himself in the company of these whalers near the 

 mouth of the Mackenzie. He was compelled to go into winter' 

 quarters and laid up with them at Herschel island till this summer 

 when he succeeded in getting out through Behring's strait, being 

 the first to make the entire North-west passage. During last 

 winter he made an overland journey out to the Yukon and returned 

 again to his ship the Gjoa. 



The Wrigiey remained at McPherson only long enough to 

 unload the supplies for this post and to put aboard the furs that 

 had been secured during the year and then left on her long journey 

 up stream. She makes but the one trip to this point each year 

 and is the only steamer that goes so far north. 



At 12 o'clock at night she blew the whistle and soon left the 

 village to resume its usual life for another year. As I walked 

 across the sand-bar and climbed the bank, the northern sky was 

 aglow with the midnight sun only a few degrees below the horizon. 



The Indian boys were playing football, while the older mem- 

 bers of the community went back to their homes and talked over 

 the news so recently received. Standing on the high bank of the 

 river with the outline of the steamer receding from view, I could 

 not but reflect on the great expanse of country between here and 

 the settled parts of Canada. Away across two thousand miles of 

 forest, lake and prairie, I could see in imagination all the settle- 

 ments we have yet made along the southern border; a mere fringe 

 of our vast possessions. 



But the question that the practical man will ask is, '' Will it 

 ever be worth anything?" In answer to this it might be said that 

 it is already worth something for the furs it produces. 



I have not statistics at hand, but when we look at any assem- 



