362 APPENDIX. No. II. 



distinguished himself by pushing farther to the north in 

 search of Franklin than any other individual, and to 

 whom the Koyal Geographical Society has recently 

 awarded its Founders' Gold Medal, thus speaks (in a 

 letter to the benevolent Mr. GrinneU) : — " I am really 

 in doubt as to the preservation of human life. I weU 

 know how glad I would have been, had my duty to 

 others permitted me, to have taken refuge among the 

 Esquimaux of Smith Strait and Etah Bay. Strange as 

 it may seem to you, we regarded the coarse life of these 

 people with eyes of envy, and did not doubt but that 

 we could have lived in comfort upon their resources. 

 It required all my powers, moral and physical, to 

 prevent my men from deserting to the Walrus Settle- 

 ments, and it was my final intention to have taken to 

 Esquimaux life had Providence not carried us tlarough 

 in our hazardous escape." 



But passing from speculation, and confining ourselves 

 alone to the question of finding the missing ships or 

 their records, we would observe that no land Expedition 

 down the Back River, like that which, with great diffi- 

 culty, recently reached Montreal Island, can satis- 

 factorily accomplish the end we have in view. The 

 frail birch-bark canoes in which Mr, Anderson conducted 

 his search with so much ability, the dangers of the river, 

 the sterile nature of the tract near its embouchure, and 

 the necessary failure of provisions, prevented the com- 

 mencement, even, of such a search as can alone be 

 satisfactorily and thoroughly accomplished by the crew 

 of a man-of-war, — to say nothing of the moral influence 

 of a strong armed party remaining in the vicinity of the 

 spot until the confidence of the natives be obtained. 



Many Arctic explorers, independent of those whose 

 names are appended, and who are absent on service, 

 have expressed their belief that there ar& several routes 

 by which a screw-vessel could so closely approach the 

 area in question as to clear up all doubt. 



