Henry G, Bryant. 
15 
This was the greatest misfortune that could have befallen the 
party, and not only destroyed their hopes of exploring Elles- 
mere Land, but endangered their chances of returning to the 
Danish Colonies. The most obvious course for them to have 
pursued was to have embarked in their small boat for Cape 
Parry, twenty-five miles to the eastward, and to have made the 
most of what remained of the summer in retreating south. On 
the Greenland coast they would possibly have been picked up by 
the “Kite,” the vessel which passed Cape Parry on August 24th, 
having Lieutenant Peary on board, who was returning home 
from his first expedition. In any event, had winter caught them 
unprepared, they would have been assured of kind treatment at 
the hands of the Whale Sound Eskimos. Instead, however, of 
taking measures to escape, Bjorling, after wasting valuable time 
in a northern boat journey, conceived the desperate project of 
undertaking a voyage in an open boat to Clarence Head, on the 
western side of Baffin Bay. In his letter he stated that he 
would endeavor to return to Cary Islands by July ist, 1893, in 
hopes of meeting a whaler, and closed by appealing as follows to 
any whaling captain that might receive his message: “I shall be 
very much obliged to you if you will go to Clarence Head (50 
miles off), where I shall leave in a cairn information relative to 
our fate during the winter. Our provisions, if I cannot find Es- 
kimos, will not last beyond January ist. We are now five men, 
one of whom is dying.” This last letter was dated October 
1 2th, 1892. 
The “Aurora” was headed for Clarence Head, but owing to 
the ice which constantly hangs along this coast, she was unable 
to get within twenty miles of shore. No further intelligence was 
received and this was the state of affairs when Dr. Ohlin joined 
our party as the accredited representative of Professor Norden- 
skiold and the friends of the lost travelers. 
Let me ask you to accompany me, when, on July 24th, 1894, 
in carrying out our mission to look for traces of the gallant 
young Swedes, we landed on Southeast Cary Island. It was late 
in the afternoon of an ideal Arctic day that the “Falcon” reached 
this bleak and desolate island, which a wealth of bright sunshine 
