I directed Lieutenants Liddon and Beechey
to proceed with all possible despatch in the equipment of the
ships for sea, having them ready to sail by the end of June, in
order that we might be able to take advantage of any favourable
alteration in the state of the ice at an earlier period than
present appearances allowed us to anticipate.
The party selected to accompany me, out of the numerous volunteers
on this occasion, consisted of Captain Sabine, Messrs. Fisher,
Nias, Reid, and Sergeant McMahon, of the marines, Sergeant Martin,
of the artillery, and three seamen and two marines belonging to
both ships, making a total of twelve, including myself. We were
supplied with provisions for three weeks, according to the daily
proportion of one pound of biscuit, two thirds of a pound of
preserved meat, one ounce of salep powder, one ounce of sugar, and
half a pint of spirits for each man. Two tents, of the kind called
in the army horsemen's tents, were made of blankets, with two
boarding-pikes fixed across at each end, and a ridge-rope along
the top, which, with stones laid upon the foot of the blankets,
made a very comfortable and portable shelter. These tents, with
the whole of the provisions, together with a _conjuror_ or cooking
apparatus, and a small quantity of wood for fuel, amounting on the
whole to eight hundred pounds, were carried upon a strong but
light cart constructed for the purpose: this method having been
decided on as the most convenient for the country in which we were
about to travel.
Pages:
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138