KANE AND HAYES. 



373 



early in April, 1861, Dr. Hayes left the schooner, to plunge into the icy wilder- 

 ness. Having previously ascertained that an advance along the Greenland 

 shore was utterly impossible, he resolved to cross the sound, and to try his 

 fortunes along the coast of Grinnell Land. Of the difficulties which he had to 

 encounter his own words will give the best idea. 



" By winding to the right and left, and by occasionally retracing our steps 

 when we had selected an impracticable route, we managed to get over the first 

 few miles without much embarrassment, but farther on the tract was rough past 

 description. I can compare it to nothing but a promiscuous accumulation of 

 rocks closely packed together and piled up over a vast plain in great heaps and 

 endless ridges, leaving scarcely a foot of level surface. The interstices between 

 these closely accumulated ice-masses are filled up, to some extent, with 

 drifted snow. The reader will readily imagine the rest. He will see the 

 sledges winding through the tangled wilderness of broken ice-tables, the 

 men and dogs pulling and pushing up their respective loads. He will see 

 them clambering over the very summit of lofty ridges, through which there is 

 no opening, and again descending on the other side, the sledge often plunging 

 over a precipice, sometimes capsizing and frequently breaking. Again he will see 

 the party baffled in their attempt to cross or find a pass, breaking a track with 

 shovel and handspike, or again, unable even with these appliances to accom- 

 plish their end, they retreat to seek a better track ; and they may be lucky 

 enough to find a sort of gap or gateway, upon the winding and uneven surface 

 of which they will make a mile or so with comparative ease. The snow-drifts 

 are sometimes a help, and sometimes a hinderance. Their surface is uniformly 

 hard, but not always firm to the foot. The crust frequently gives way, and in a 

 most tiresome and provoking manner. It will not quite bear the weight, and 

 the foot sinks at the very moment when the other is lifted. But, worse than 

 this, the chasms between the hummocks are frequently bridged over with snow 

 in such a manner as to leave a considerable space at the bottom quite unfilled ; 

 and at the very moment when all looks promising, down sinks one man to his mid- 

 dle, another to the neck, another is buried out of sight ; the sledge gives way, 

 and to extricate the whole from this unhappy predicament is probably the labor 

 of hours. It would be difficult to imagine any kind of labor more disheartening, 

 or which would sooner sap the energies of both men and animals. The strength 

 gave way gradually ; and when, as often happened after a long and hard day's 

 work, we could look back from our eminence and almost fire a rifle-baU into our 

 last snow-hut, it was truly discouraging." 



No wonder that after thus toiling on for twenty-five days they had not yet 

 reached half-way across the sound, and that they were all broken down. But 

 their bold leader was fully determined not to abandon his enterprise while still 

 the faintest hope of success remained, and, sending the main party back to the 

 schooner, he continued to plunge into the hummocks with three picked compan- 

 ions — Jensen, M'Donald, Knorr — and fourteen dogs. After fourteen days of al- 

 most superhuman exertion the sound was at length crossed, and now began a 

 scarcely less harassing journey along the coast. On the fifth day Jensen, the 

 strongest man of the party, completely broke down, and leaving him to the 



