I Must Now Mention That Many Concurrent Circumstances Had Caused Me
During The Few Last Days To Meditate On The Approach Of This Painful
Necessity.
The strong breezes we had encountered for some days led me to
fear that the season was breaking up and severe weather would soon ensue
which we could not sustain in a country destitute of fuel.
Our stock of
provision was now reduced to a quantity of pemmican only sufficient for
three days' consumption and the prospect of increasing it was not
encouraging for, though reindeer were seen, they could not be easily
approached on the level shores we were now coasting, besides it was to be
apprehended they would soon migrate to the south. It was evident that the
time spent in exploring the Arctic and Melville Sounds and Bathurst's
Inlet had precluded the hope of reaching Repulse Bay, which at the outset
of the voyage we had fondly cherished, and it was equally obvious that,
as our distance from any of the trading establishments would increase as
we proceeded, the hazardous traverse across the barren grounds which we
should have to make if compelled to abandon the canoes upon any part of
the coast would become greater.
I this evening communicated to the officers my sentiments on these points
as well as respecting our return and was happy to find that their
opinions coincided with my own. We were all convinced of the necessity of
putting a speedy termination to our advance as our hope of meeting the
Esquimaux and procuring provision from them could now scarcely be
retained, but yet we were desirous of proceeding until the land should be
seen trending again to the eastward, that we might be satisfied of its
separation from what we had conceived, in passing from Cape Barrow to
Bathurst's Inlet, to be a great chain of islands.
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