ARCTIC EXPLORATIONS. 291 



more valuable, iu a geographical sense, than the connection of McClin- 

 tock's discoveries in Prince Patrick Island with Aldrich's farthest along 

 the north coast of Grinnell Land. 



There are different routes by which exploration in this direction can 

 be carried out. In the first place, it can be undertaken from Discovery 

 Bay (where H. M. S. Discovery wintered in 1875, and which was also the 

 headquarters of the Greely expedition six years later), by proceeding 

 up Archer Fiord until the bouudary of the undiscovered region is 

 reached. Secondly, there is the route northward, using Prince Patrick 

 Island or Melville Island as the base of operations; and, lastly, there 

 is the way by Jones Sound. The latter, I am inclined to think, is the 

 route that will yield the greatest amount of success. 2SIo one has as 

 yet succeeded iu penetrating to any great distance in this direction, 

 but then no serious effort has ever been made to do so. Whalers have 

 occasionally looked in, but, finding it blocked with ice, and therefore 

 inaccessible to whales, have not persevered in pushing on, but have 

 continued their journey to Barrow Strait and Prince Regent Inlet, 

 where whales are known to abound, Sherard Osboru, in the Pioneer, 

 ascended the sound for some distance, until stopped by ice. He reports 

 the scenery on either side as magnificent; long winding glaciers pour- 

 ing down the valleys and projecting into the deep blue waters of the 

 strait. Traces of Eskimo were discovered, but of supposed ancient 

 date, and vegetation, quite as luxuriant as was seen farther to the 

 southward, was found. 



It was only last year that Mr. Bryant, in command of the Peary Aux- 

 iliary Expedition, endeavored to penetrate into Jones Sound while 

 searching for the missing Swedish naturalists, Messrs. Bjorling and 

 Kalstenius; but he had other important duties to carry out, and, unfor- 

 tunately, had not the time at his disposal to persevere in his efforts to 

 push northward. 



A few words relative to those two gallant Swedish gentlemen, who 

 sacrificed their lives in the cause and iu the interest of geographical 

 science, will not, I think, be inappropriate at the present juncture. It 

 will be remembered that they set out in 1892 with the intention of 

 exploring that practically unknown country situated on the northwest 

 side of Baffiu Bay, called by Admiral Inglefield Ellesmere Land. 

 Purchasing a small, and I fear somewhat unseaworthy schooner, named 

 the Ripple, at a comparatively insignificant cost — for their means were 

 limited — and with a crew of only three men, they sailed from St. John's, 

 Newfoundland, on their adventurous voyage. Godhavn was reached 

 in safety, and they left that port on August 3, since which time nothing- 

 has been seen of them, but the wreck of their little craft was found by 

 a whaler the following year on the southeast island of the Cary group. 

 Not far from the wreck was the body of a dead man, buried under a 

 heap of stones. Some letters from Bjorling were also discovered con- 

 cealed in a cairn adjacent. From the contents of these we gather that 



