CH. XXIII] 
Parry and his School 
209 
of the intense cold, and the farces popular in those days 
were performed by the officers, with songs between the 
acts. An operetta entitled the " North-West Passage " 
was also composed by Parry and acted with great applause. 
By these various means, and by giving the closest atten- 
tion to every detail, the first modern Arctic winter was 
a splendid success. The gunner had slight symptoms of 
scurvy which were soon removed, and one man died of 
some other disease, but all the rest emerged from the winter 
in perfect health. 
On the approach of summer Parry resolved to equip 
an expedition to explore the interior of Melville Island. 
The party was to consist of himself as leader, Captain 
Sabine, R.E., Dr Fisher, two midshipmen named Nias 
and Reid, two Serjeants of marines, two privates, and 
two seamen. Tents were taken, consisting of blankets 
passed over a ridge rope, supported by two boarding 
pikes. Provisions were loaded on a cart made of boards 
and the wheels of a field-piece. There were three weeks' 
provisions, and the diet per man per day — which was 
insufficient— was : 1 lb. biscuit, § lb. of preserved meat, 
1 oz. salep powder, 1 oz. sugar, and half a pint of rum. 
Besides dragging the cart with 800 lb. of provisions and 
tents, officers and men carried spare clothing and sleeping- 
bags on their backs as knapsacks, 17 to 20 lb. each. 
Small faggots of firewood were also taken. 
The party reached the northern coast of Melville 
Island, and some land seen to the north-east and supposed 
to be an island was named after Captain Sabine. In 
returning, Parry kept more to the westward, towards 
a range always in sight which the party called the Blue 
Mountains. In an Arctic June the climate is not severe, 
and they travelled at night, sleeping in the comparative 
warmth of the day. As the party approached the 
southern coast, or rather the deep gulf on the south 
side of Melville Island afterwards called Liddon's Gulf, 
they entered a deep ravine. The scenery was grand and 
imposing. In the steepest part the axle-tree of the cart 
split in two. It was impossible to repair it, so it was 
left, the wood of the cart being used to make a good 
fire to cook their ptarmigan. 
Two reindeer were also shot, and musk oxen, hares, 
M. t. 
