200 RINK ON THE NORTH COAST OF GREENLAND. [April 12, 1858. 
stitution, Lis farthest point, is another 27 miles : that makes 61| miles which 
he travelled in a straight line ; double that (for he came hack), and that makes 
123 miles ; and I think the least we can give him for sinuosities is one-third 
more, which will make 167 miles. That is to say, he travelled 167 miles in 
36 hours ; so I believe we are quite justified in having recourse to his observa- 
tions, and rejecting his reckonings altogether. I believe we shall have 
to bring Cape Constitution, as far as I can understand, 35 to 45 miles 
farther south, and the effect of bringing that cape down, will also have the 
effect of narrowing this channel. I cannot conclude without paying what I 
think to be a just tribute to the man who commanded on this occasion, and ex- 
pressing my opinion, how fortunate it is that such a man was there to command, 
one who could not only persevere in the way he did, but who set himself 
studiously to work to collect every observation that would bear upon geogra- 
phical discovery. However we may analyse his theories, or dispute his con- 
clusions, or doubt his geographical positions, yet, as the British nation, we shall 
never cease to respect with admiration and esteem that noble spirit who went 
forth at the peril of his life without the tie of kindred or nation to succour our 
fellow countrymen. 
Dr. A. Armstrong, r.n., f.r.g.s. — I fully agree with the observations 
which have been made by Captain Collinson. I beg, however, very briefly 
to direct the attention of the Society to a circumstance which has not been 
alluded to in the course of this discussion. It appears to me that nothing 
new has been advanced by Dr. Kane with regard to the existence of water 
where he is supposed to have seen it. If we refer as far back as 1827 
to Parry’s memorable attempt to reach the North Pole, we find that he met 
with water as high as 82°. It is not improbable that water may have been 
seen by Dr. Kane’s party, but not to an extent that would establish the ex- 
istence of a Polar sea. If you look to the chart, you will find that the outlet 
between the eastern coast of Greenland and the western coast of Norway 
affords greater facilities for the escape of ice than any other part of the Polar 
Sea. With the prevailing winds you may find the Polar Sea always clear 
of ice in that part ; during the navigable season therefore it is nothing 
extraordinary to find open water as stated. Off the northern coast of Banks 
Land, we (in the Investigator') saw a space of open water, and we might 
have supposed, on evidence quite as conclusive, that we saw an open sea 
extending from that point right to the Pole, had we not been previously aware 
that Melville Island was in the same meridian. An officer whose observa- 
tions were generally accurate estimated the extent of water seen at 11 miles, 
which I think a very close approximation to the truth. Ice was of course 
beyond it, but owing to the prevalence of the S.W. winds it had been driven 
off the shore. An observer in that direction would have come to the same 
conclusion that Dr. Kane did, that the sea extended to the Pole, had he not 
been aware of the existence of Melville Island. I may also state that in the 
Investigator we found open water extending no less than 90 miles to the 
northward, off the mouth of the Mackenzie River ; but were ultimately 
arrested by an impenetrable ice pack. Had we therefore not sailed through 
this space of open water until our progress was arrested by the ice, we 
might with equal or indeed greater probability have stated our opinion that 
we had discovered the great Polar Basin. , Before I sit down I wish to express 
the admiration that I have always entertained for the zeal and enthusiasm 
with which Dr. Kane pursued that voyage. But I must reserve to myself the 
right to criticise the judgment which he exercised in many respects. I must 
therefore state my conviction that this much talked of Polar Sea or Basin, as 
it is sometimes called, has no existence except in the vivid imagination of 
those who feel disposed to portray it ; and I have almost universally remarked 
that the advocates for its existence are those who are least capable of forming 
