350 
LAST VOYAGE OF CAPT. ROSS. 
tude; the builders however determined not to be particular in 
either case, for in the first place, it would have puzzled Sir 
Geoffrey Wyattville, (who being himself the projector of many 
monuments of folly, must naturally be supposed to be an excel¬ 
lent judge of all erections of that kind), to have determined the 
exact shape, for it was neither a square nor a circle, nor a 
parallelogram, nor an octagon, nor a hexagon, but it was a 
confusion of every figure huddled upon each other, forming alto¬ 
gether as rude a mass as ever was reared by human hands. 
In regard to the magnitude, no complaint could be made on 
that head : it was indeed not exactly so high as the tower of 
Babel, nor so broad as the walls of Babylon, but it was quite 
as high as any monument ought to be, which is to perpetuate 
the folly of a human being. 
Whilst the monumental party were trying the experiment of 
the utmost degree of cold which they could endure, without 
being benumbed or frostbitten, the remainder of the crew on 
board, were employed in more useful occupations, and to the 
result of which Capt. Ross looked forward with profit and 
advantage. With eyes by no means devoid of satisfaction, he 
observed his stock of seal skins increasing, and he was antici¬ 
pating the hour when he should appear in the exchange of 
London, as a merchant of the first eminence on that particular 
branch of trade. Scarcely a day passed without the natives 
arriving with seals, but their method of flaying the animals 
being different to that pursued by the natives of other parts of 
America, and which was in some instances calculated to destroy 
the integrity of the skins, Capt. Ross undertook to instruct some of 
his crew in the art of properly and skilfully flaying a seal, and 
they gradually attained to a proficiency, perfectly satisfactory 
to their employer. The 19th of March was one of the flaying 
days, under the immediate superintendence of Capt. Ross 
himself, some of the skins however which were obtained this 
day were not destined to augment the hoard of the Commander, 
but to be cut up in stripes, preparatory to their being made into 
harness for the dogs; the sailors had not yet attained the art of 
making the dog-whips from the intestines of the seals, but 
