Journal of a Second Voyage for the Discovery of a North-West Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific

by Parry, William Edward

• ISBN13: 9781108041348
• ISBN10: 1108041345
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-12-20
• Publisher: Cambridge Univ Pr

Summary

After joining the Navy at thirteen, William Edward Parry (1790-1855) spent three years protecting the whale fisheries of Spitzbergen. He was later appointed to several Arctic expeditions. Although his first voyage in search of the North-West Passage ended without success in 1819, it provided valuable scientific data and experience. The expedition of 1821-3 was longer, with two winters spent on the ice, but also ended without success. Parry's account of that second voyage, first published in 1824, provides insights into the early days of Arctic exploration and the character of one of its pioneers, noted for his care for his men, his precision in navigation and scientific observations, and his ability to quickly find solutions to difficult problems. The book also includes descriptions of the 'Esquimaux' encountered by the explorers, and their communities as well as a vocabulary of their language.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Explanation of technical terms

Official instructions

Passage across the Atlantic

Review of the geographical information obtained by the researches of former navigators on the coast of the American continent, in the neighbourhood of Wager River

Return to the eastward through the Frozen Strait

Hoppner's Inlet entered and surveyed by the boats

Further examination in the boats for the purpose of connecting the shores of Lyon Inlet with that of Gore Bay

Precautions for the security of the ships and their stores

Many foxes caught

Charts drawn by the Esquimaux

Increased extent of open water in the offing

Departure from Winter Island

Remarkable instance of local attraction on the magnetic needles

A journey performed along the south shore of Cockburn Island

Preparations for the winter

Various journeys to the Esquimaux stations

Extraordinary disruption of ice in Quilliam Creek

Some further accounts of the Esquimaux of Melville Peninsula and the adjoining islands, and more particularly Winter Island and Igloolik

Vocabulary of Esquimaux words, etc

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