22 Life in the Arctic. 



and almost a century before the Columbian era the Zeni Brothers, 

 Venetians, attempted to reach India by the north-west passage. Early 

 in the sixteenth century England, jealous of the growing dominion of 

 Spain, began to search for a shorter passage to India than the tedious 

 route around the Cape of Good Hope. Sebastian Cabot, witli letters- 

 patent from Henry VIII, attempted the north-west passage with in- 



Hugh Willoughby attempted the north-east passage and met with.a 

 fate in many respects similar to that of De Long. He reached Novaya 

 Zemlya, and was forced back by the ice to the coast of Lapland. His 



men on the Tundra coast. Richard Chancellor, in charge of one of the 



which the Muscovy Company was afteiVarcl founded! 6111 PmilegeS ° 



The fate of Sir Hugh Willoughby was seized upon by the geographi- 

 cal theorists of Engknd, who had pinned their faith on the north- 

 west way, as a conclusive argument against the practicability of the 

 north-east route, and Frobisher, the foremost among the advocates of 

 the way to the north-west, after many years of disappointing endeavor 

 to interest "the mercenary men of "trade" in his scheme, finally ap- 

 pealed to the court and the ministers of Elizabeth. In 1576 he made 

 a voyage, and, while he failed to find the north-west passage, he 

 thought he had discovered what was of greater value. On the shores 

 of Frobisher Inlet he discovered a sort of black ore, and thinking it 

 contained gold he returned to England and announced his discovery. 

 A number of metallurgists in London were either deceived by these 

 samples or were parties to a gross fraud, for they declared the ore to be 

 rich in gold, and the wealth of the frozen north became a great court 

 sensation, as we know from the memoirs of that time. Investigation 

 proved, however, that the ore, as it was called, was worthless black sand. 

 I saw a bottle of it with the ill-fated Captain Hall of the "Polaris." 

 It looked like the fine sand from a gravel pit. 



Notwithstanding Frobisher's failure fo find the passage, and the 

 fraud, or delusion, of the gold mine, English hope still reached out 

 to a north-west passage, and the chivalrous Sir Humphrey Gilbert es- ' 

 saved the work of reaching China to the westward and Davis followed 

 him with no better success. Then Henry Hudson essayed the feat, 

 ami then Dearsly and then Parry and then Franklin. 



The Continental powers, during all the years England was engaged 

 in searching the north-west passage, were as busv searching for the 

 north-east passage. The Dutch, Danes and French sent out expedi- 



