THE LAST EXPEDITION OF CHARLES FRANCIS HALL. 763 



to the north about seventy miles, thus making the land we discovered as far as 

 latitude 83° 5' N. There is the appearance of land further north, and extending 

 more easterly, but a peculiarly dark nimbus cloud prevents my making a full deter- 

 mination. Up to the time I and my party left the ship all have been well, and con- 

 tinue with high hopes of accomplishing our great mission. We find this a much warmer 

 country than we expected. The mountains on either side of Kennedy Channel and 

 Robeson Strait were found entirely bare of snow and ice, with the exception of a gla- 

 cier that we saw commencing in about latitude 80° 30' N. on the east side of the 

 Strait, and extending in an easterly direction as far as can be seen from the mountains 

 near Polaris Bay. We have found that the country abounds with live seals, game, 

 geese, ducks, musk cattle, rabbits, wolves, foxes, bears, partridges, lemmings, etc., etc. 

 Our long Arctic night commenced October 13, having seen only the upper limb of 

 the sun above the glacier at meridian, October 13. This dispatch I finish at this mo- 

 ment, twenty-three minutes past eight P. M., having written it with ink in our snow 

 hut. Thermometer outside, 7°; yesterday all day, 20O-23o." 



There is a postscript dated next morning: "A copy of this dispatch was placed, 

 October 21, 1871, in a pillar at Brevoort Cape" (the northern headland of the bay 

 on which this encampment was situated). This dispatch, found in Hall's writing desk, 

 and first read in Washington in June, 1873, is a voice from beyond the grave certify- 

 ing to the fact that up to this time nothing had occurred on the expedition to diminish 

 the confident expectation which he entertained of complete success, and in connection 

 with the former one is abundant refutation of the newspaper charges that there was 

 anything lacking in the equipment of the Polaris. 



The return journey was naturally more rapid than the advance had been, and on 

 the fourth day Hall and his companions regained the Polaris. He was to all appear- 

 ances in his usual robust health, and certainly in his usual buoyant spirits. His great 

 laugh, which all who knew him knew so well, rang out in the darkness of the Arctic 

 night, and he thanked the men for having behaved so well while he had been absent. 

 The change from a breezy temperature of 15 or 20 degrees below zero, to one of 60 

 or 70 above, in the close cabin, probably somewhat aflfected him, and he declined any 

 refreshments except a cup of coflfee. He took a hot sponge bath, and retired to rest. 

 In the morning he was seriously unwell, the chief symptoms being a burning in the 

 throat and vomiting. For a week the disease made progress, and from all the evi- 

 dence was accompanied by partial paralysis and delirium. From this he partially re- 

 covered, made some attempt to resume his work, and it was supposed that he would 

 be well in a few days. On the night of the 8th of November he had a fresh attack, 

 and Tyson, going into his cabin, found him lying in his berth, breathing heavily, and 

 insensible. He died during that night, and was buried three days after in a shallow 

 grave dug with difficulty in the frozen ground. 



If the doctor was correctly understood, he pronounced the death to have been occa- 

 sioned by apoplexy. Hall himself undoubtedly believed that he had been poisoned 

 in the cup of cofiee which he drank, and after his partial recovery was continually 

 looking over medical books to find out the poison which would produce the symptoms 

 which he experienced. Once he called the faithful Ebierbing, and pointing to some word 

 in one of the books, said that this was what was making him sick. In his delirium 

 he fancied that every one was trying to kill him. But the commission report: 



