496 
LAST VOYAGE OF CAPT. ROSS. 
were chiefly steamed ; but, in another particular, they differed 
most widely, for Capt. Ross had his fish the first, whereas the 
devil had his fish the last. 
Deep, however, were the murmurings of the crew, at the 
great difference, which was observable between the fare of the 
cabin, and that which was doled out to them in their respective 
berths. The distinction was too great, not, in some degree, to 
warrant the murmurs, that were raised: but as to any benefit 
resulting from their complaints, either in the way of addition 
to the quantity, or improvement in the quality of their viands, 
they knew it was equal to the extraction of heat from ice, or 
malleability from the granite of the rocks, with which they were 
surrounded. For a time, however, they lost the sense of their 
unworthy treatment, in the singing of their national songs: 
three of which “ The Army and Navy,” “ The King, God bless 
him,” and “ God save the King,” were sung by Mr. Light, the 
steward; and it is reported, that the chorusses equalled in 
noise and loudness, but not exactly in harmony, those, which are 
bellowed from the mouths of our professionals on the stage, 
when it is their particular desire to tickle the ears of royalty. 
The remaining ,part of this month was employed in building 
observatories, erecting snow walls, fetching snow to melt for 
water; the men, in their turns, attending on Commander Ross, 
at the observatory, to which he repaired almost every morning, 
and not returning until 1 or 2 o’clock; in fact, it was a very 
rare thing to find him unemployed; and indeed the same might 
be said of Capt. Ross, but it was generally with nothing else, 
but his own thoughts. 
The year 1830 closed with an extraordinary degree of cold, 
the thermometer being 45 below zero, or 77 below the freezing 
point. 
