THE LAST EXPEDITION OF CHARLES FRANCIS HALL. 771 



act on the 7th. We shot the dogs last winter for stealing our provisions. If I had 

 my way, with the consent of all hands, I would call out and shoot down that two- 

 legged dog who has since been at them. We have but few days' provisions left, and 

 came down on them this morning. Weakening work, but it must be done to save 

 life as long as we can, which cannot be long unless something good comes along, 

 which I hope may soon happen. The only thing that troubles me is the thought of 

 cannibalism. It is a fearful thought, but may as well be looked boldly in the face. 

 If such things are to happen, we must submit. May God save us. 18^^. — Joe saw 

 a small hole in the water half a mile off. He took his gun and ventured over the 

 loose ice. No sooner had he gotten there than he shot a seal, and sang out for the 

 kyack, as the water was making rapidly. It took an hour to get the kyack there, 

 and another to get it back. It is a nice-sized seal, and will give us three meals, raw, 

 and save us from starvation for some days. We returned thanks to God for his mercy, 

 for we have only a few pounds of bread and sufficient pemmican for to-night. We 

 divided the seal very nicely, losing nothing but the gall. We divided it into sixteen 

 parts. One man then turned his back and called out the names, each man stepping 

 up and taking his share of meat, blubber and skin. The inside — heart, kidneys, liver, 

 lights and stomach — were divided between the Esquimaux and us. We then gave 

 some blubber and rags each, so that we got a fire under way and cooked some good 

 soup from what at other times I would call offal. Cut up fine in a quart of soup, 

 with a little blood, the mess was highly relished. 20th. — Blowing a gale somewhere. 

 The swell is very heavy. The first warning we had, a sea struck us, washing over 

 us, and carried away everything that was loose. This happened at 9 o'clock last 

 night. We shipped sea after sea, five or ten minutes after each other, carrying away 

 everything we had in our tent, skins, and most of our bed-clothes, leaving us desti- 

 tute, with only the few things we could get into the boat. There we stood from 9 in 

 the evening to 7 the next morning, enduring, I should say, what man never stood 

 before. The few things we saved and the children were placed in the boat. The sea 

 broke over us during that night and morning. Every fifteen or twenty minutes a sea 

 would come, lift the boat and us with it, carry us along the ice, and lose its strength 

 near the edge, and sometimes on it. Then it would take us the next fifteen minutes 

 to get back to a safe place, ready for the next roller. So we stood that long hour, 

 not a word spoken but the commands to * Hold on, my hearties ; bear down on her ; 

 put on all your weight ; ' and so we did, bearing down and holding on like grim 

 death. Cold, hungry, wet, and little prospect ahead. At seven o'clock there came 

 close to us a small piece of ice, which rode dry, and we determined to launch the 

 boat, and reach it or perish. The cook went overboard, but was saved. All well. 

 Tired and sleepy." 



There were to be but ten more days of this weary imprisonment ; but into them 

 were crowded as much of peril and endurance, as into any other period of equal 

 length. An observation showed that they were in latitude 53° bl'. They had thus 

 drifted through about twenty-seven degrees of latitude, a distance in a straight line 

 from north to south of about 1875 miles. The entries for some days tell a uniform 

 story : " All hands wet ; hunger troubles us most ; cannot get the boat through the 

 ice, and must wait for a change ; sometimes in sight of land, and then driven off ; 

 no birds and no seals." Here is one episode in the monotony ; 



