L. McCLINTOCK, Capt. R. N.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
The asterisks in the foregoing copy indicate illegible words, the paper
being much torn and soiled by exposure.
We at once set about digging for the record that Captain McClintock
proposed to bury ten feet true north from the centre of the cairn, and
a foot below the surface; but though we dug a deep trench four feet
wide from the centre of the cairn, due north, for a distance of twenty
feet, nothing was found, and the inference is that Captain McClintock
either failed to deposit the record, or that changes in the surface of
the ground have brought it to light, and it has either been stolen by
natives or washed into the sea. Some of the articles found were strewn
along the beach for a long distance on either side of the pile of
clothing and heavy implements, and were covered up with snow when we
first visited the spot. There was a large quantity of cask hoops near
by, but no wood. Even the handles of the shovels and pickaxes had been
sawed off, probably by the natives who first found the place.
This was evidently the spot where the crews landed when they abandoned
the ships, and, as Lieutenant Hobson says, it appears as if they had
selected only what was necessary for their sledge journey.
Pages:
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139