Stimulated By The Hope Of Obtaining This Large Sum, A Company Was Formed, Who Raised 10,000_L_., In Shares Of 100l., With Which They Fitted Out Two Ships; The Dobbs, Commanded By Captain More; And The California, By Captain Smith.

They sailed from London on the 20th of May, 1746.

When they reached the American coast near Marble Island, they made some observations on the tides, which they found flowed from the north-east, and consequently followed the direction of the coast; they likewise ascertained that the tide rose to the height of ten feet. While they were in their winter quarters at Port Jackson, they received little or no assistance from the servants of the Hudson's Bay Company. On resuming their voyage, and reaching the vicinity of Knight's Island, the needles of their compasses lost their magnetic quality, which they did not recover till they were kept warm. Proceeding northwards, they examined Wager's Strait; but in consequence of a difference of opinion between the commanders, they returned to England. The only points ascertained by this voyage were, that Wager's Strait was a deep bay, or inlet, and that there existed another inlet, which, however, they did not explore to the termination, named by them Chesterfield's Inlet. The fresh buffalo's flesh, which was sold to them by the Esquimaux, was probably the flesh of the musk ox.

After this voyage nothing was done, either by the Hudson's Bay Company, government, or individuals, towards the exploring of a passage in the north, till the year 1762, when the company, coinciding with the opinion that was then prevalent, that Chesterfield's Inlet ought to be examined, as affording a fair prospect of a passage into the Pacific Ocean, sent a vessel to determine this point. The report of the captain, on his return, was, that he had sailed up the inlet in a westerly direction for more than one hundred and fifty miles, till he found the water perfectly fresh; but he acknowledged that he did not go farther, or reach the head of it. As the result of this voyage was deemed unsatisfactory, still leaving the point which it had been its object to determine doubtful, the same captain was again sent out, in company with another ship, with express directions to trace the inlet to its western limits, if practicable. They ascertained that the fresh water, which had been discovered in the former voyage, was that of a river, which was the outlet of a lake, and this lake they explored; it was twenty-four miles long, and six or seven broad; they likewise found a river flowing into the lake from the west, but they were prevented from exploring it to any great distance by falls, that intercepted the progress of their boats. These particulars are detailed in Goldson's Observations on the Passage between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans; the voyages themselves were never published, do not seem to be generally known, and have escaped the notice of Forster, the author of the History of Voyages and Discoveries in the North. Forster is likewise silent respecting an expedition that was equipped and sent out by some gentlemen of Virginia in 1772, to attempt a north-west passage. The captain on his return reported that he reached a large bay in latitude 69 deg. 11', which he supposed hitherto unknown; that from the course of the tides, he thought it probable there might be a passage through it, but that as this bay was seldom free from ice, the passage could seldom if ever be practicable.

In the year 1770 the Hudson's Bay Company, more alive to the prospect of gain than to the interests of discovery and geographical science, having received some information from the Indians that copper might be obtained in great quantity far to the west of Fort Prince of Wales, resolved to dispatch Mr. Hearne, belonging to that fort, in search of it. This gentleman made four different excursions for this purpose, but it was only during the fourth that he reached to any great distance from the fort. In this excursion he penetrated to what he conceived to be the mouth of the Coppermine River, in the Frozen Ocean, about the latitude of 72 deg. north. According to his account, Chesterfield Inlet is not the north-west passage, and the American continent stretches very considerably to the north-west of Hudson's Bay. The whole extent of his journey was about thirteen hundred miles. It was however doubted, whether what he deemed to be the mouth of the Coppermine River was actually such. It is certainly singular, that though he staid there for twenty-four hours, he did not actually ascertain the height to which the tide rose, but judged at that circumstance from the marks on the edge of the ice. There are other points in the printed account, as well as discrepancies between that and his MS., which tended to withhold implicit belief from his assertion, that he had reached the Frozen Ocean.

In the year 1789 the North-west Company having received information from an Indian, that there was at no great distance from Montreal, to the northward, a river which ran into the sea, Mr. M'Kenzie, one of the partners of that company, resolved to ascertain the truth of this report, by going himself on an expedition for that purpose. He set out, attended by a few Indians; and after traversing the desert and inhospitable country in which the posts of the company are established, he reached a river which ran to the north. He followed the course of this river till he arrived at what he conceived to be the Frozen Ocean, were he saw some small whales among the ice, and determined the rise and fall of the tide. This river was called after him, Mackenzie's River, and to the island he gave the name of Whale Island. This island is in latitude 69 deg. 14'.

In 1793 Mr. M'Kenzie again set out on an inland voyage of geographical and commercial discovery, taking with him the requisite astronomical instruments and a chronometer.

Enter page number Go  Previous Next
Page 184 of 268
Words from 187132 to 188153 of 273188