ch. xxviii] The Search for Franklin, II. 267 
temperature was -24 0 Fahr. ; the number of positions fixed 
was 22. This journey was by far the greatest Arctic effort 
with sledges that has ever been made by men alone. 
Mecham did splendid work to the eastward. Nares 1 
commanded the depot sledge, and Mecham's sledge cap- 
tain was James Tullett, a capital sailor, who was in 
the Assistance. Travelling over the south-west part of 
Melville Island Mecham crossed a strait, and discovered 
an island which received the name of Eglinton, where 
Nares left the depot and returned. Another journey 
across a strait brought Mecham to the south-west point 
of Prince Patrick Island. He then explored its southern 
and western coasts until he reached a point within 
16 miles of M'Clintock's furthest, coming from the 
north. Mecham's principal discovery was the remains of 
trees. At Cape Manning, on the south coast, there were 
a considerable number of stems of trees with the bark 
on, 90 feet above the sea. Returning, Mecham crossed 
the land during the three last days of May and found, 
in a ravine, a tree protruding 8 feet, and several others 
with a circumference of 4 feet. 
The young explorer then connected his work with that 
of M'Clintock on the east side of Prince Patrick Island, 
thus making these vast discoveries complete. He got 
plenty of fresh food for his people, killing four musk oxen, 
seven reindeer, sixteen hares, forty ptarmigan, twelve 
ducks and geese, and two plover. He was absent 91 days, 
and went over 1006 geographical or 1173 statute miles, 
thus averaging I2| miles a day. His discoveries amounted 
to 785 miles of new country. 
Vesey Hamilton explored the northern extremity of 
Melville Island, called the Sabine Peninsula, starting on 
the 27th April with a seven-man sledge and a satellite 
sledge. The captain of his sledge was Ice-Quartermaster 
George Murray, who had served in both the expeditions 
of Ross and Austin. He was a seaman of long experience 
and great ability, with literary talent of no mean order, 
as his contributions to the Aurora Borealis show. Having 
explored the whole eastern side of Melville Island, 
Hamilton crossed the channel with his satellite and two 
1 Mate in the Resolute, then aged 22, afterwards Sir George Nares, K.C.B., 
died January, 1915. 
