354 MM. C. Borgen and R. Copeland's Short Account of the 



and Kennedy's Channel as far as 81° N. lat., and discovered the 

 enormous Humboldt glacier, which extends more than a degree 

 in width. He was obliged to remain in Rensselaer Bay, in 78° 37' 

 N. lat. and 70° W. long., where he passed one winter, which 

 threw many of his companions and himself upon a sick bed. 

 Nearly all had scurvy; and the fatiguing sledge-journeys were 

 by no means adapted to improve the health of the expedition. 

 Upon one of these journeys, made by some of the crew in order 

 to establish a depot of provisions, they were beset by the ice, 

 and would have been destroyed if Kane had not relieved them ; 

 he could not, however, prevent two of them from dying in con- 

 sequence of the fearful hardships. Hunting did not furnish any 

 very considerable results ; and feeling certain that they would be 

 set free in the following summer so as to return home, they were 

 not so economical in the use of what was procured by the chase 

 as they might perhaps have been. But the summer brought 

 them no release, and they were compelled to hunt for their pro- 

 visions until the next winter, but, unfortunately, with small 

 results. In one of their very distant hunting expeditions, which 

 was led by Morton and the Greenlander Hans, they reached in 

 81° N. lat. a coast which was washed by a sea perfectly free from 

 ice and with long regular dunes. 



Dr. Hayes, who was making his first arctic voyage, discovered 

 Grinnell Land, and, besides fulfilling his medical duties, which 

 were in themselves great and heavy enough, made many journeys 

 for the purpose of hunting and exploring, in which he was assisted 

 by the astronomer, August Sonntag. 



The second winter was long and severe, and brought with it 

 many hardships and much suffering; diseases, especially scurvy, 

 combined with cold and hunger to put the courage and steadi- 

 ness of the explorers to the hardest test. As the second spring 

 again failed to set them free, they were forced to adopt the de- 

 sperate expedient of seeking inhabited regions in small open 

 boats. After infinite exertions, which cost one of them his life, 

 they reached Upernavik, and were afterwards taken up in God- 

 havn by the expedition under Hartstein, which had been sent to 

 seek for them. 



Notwithstanding the many difficulties and hardships with 

 which this expedition had to contend, its scientific results are 

 by no means inconsiderable. Observations of temperature, to 

 which Kane attached great importance, were made hourly during 

 the voyage, but showed at the same time how careful it is ne- 

 cessary to be in such cases in order to avoid the influence of the 

 warm ship, which is observable at a distance of several hundred 

 paces. They showed further the untrust worthiness of the spirit- 

 thermometer at low temperatures; the eleven thermometers 



