330 North Polar Exploration. 



add to the sum of human knowledge, that it will lead to 

 valuable scientific results, and that there is no chance of the men 

 who compose it being overtaken by a catastrophe such as that 

 which befel Sir John Franklin's people, and it ought to receive 

 cordial support from public opinion. The collateral advantages 

 that are derived from such expeditions in times of peace are 

 so great that they will be felt by every thinking man. All 

 men may not fully appreciate the value of scientific researches, 

 but no true Englishman can under-estimate the importance of 

 fostering the spirit of enterprise in his countrymen, or fail 

 to desire that the race of men, from Cabot to M'Clintock, 

 which has been formed by expeditions of discovery, should be 

 continued. 



What would the glorious reign of Elizabeth be if the 

 stories of Raleigh and Drake, of Frobisher and Fenton, of 

 Richard Hawkins and Grenville, and Gilbert were blotted out ? 

 The very name of James I. would fill us with shame, if those of 

 Hudson, Davis, and Baffin were not written in the same page 

 of history. Even the disgrace of having been ruled by his 

 grandsons is slightly mitigated when we find them sending 

 Captain Wood to seek for the North Pole. The readiness 

 with which the statesmen of the last century complied with 

 the suggestions of the Royal Society to send out exploring 

 expeditions wipes away a multitude of sins, and we may 

 condone many acts of misgovernment in consideration of the 

 voyages of Carteret, Byron, Cook, Phipps, and Yancouver. 

 It must never be forgotten that Nelson received no unim- 

 portant part of his naval education in the Arctic regions ; and 

 that, in the present century, the surveyors and explorers of our 

 navy have been among its brightest ornaments. 



The naval enterprise of Great Britain has assuredly been 

 one of the chief sources of her greatness, and it is for the 

 advantage of the country that the spirit which gives rise to it 

 should be fostered and encouraged. Never has this spirit been 

 so systematically ignored, in any period of our history, as at 

 the present moment. Not only is there no exploring expedi- 

 tion engaged in any part of the world, but the most 

 necessary surveys have been starved and neglected. The 

 important proposal to explore the North Polar region, which 

 has recently been made by Captain Sherard Osborn, therefore, 

 comes before us at the very time when its discussion is likely 

 to produce much good, and it certainly deserves most serious 

 and attentive consideration. 



I propose, after giving a very brief sketch of the history 

 of the subject, to examine the question whether Captain 

 Osborn's proposal combines those conditions which would 

 justify its favourable consideration by the Government-— 



