A book of golden deeds of all times and all lands / gathered and narrated by the author of "The heir of Redclyffe" ; illustrated by L. Frölich.

  • Yonge, Charlotte M. (Charlotte Mary), 1823-1901.
Date:
1870
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A book of golden deeds of all times and all lands / gathered and narrated by the author of "The heir of Redclyffe" ; illustrated by L. Frölich. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by King’s College London. The original may be consulted at King’s College London.

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    THE RESCUE PARTY. 1853. The Arctic seas have been the scene of some of the most noted instances of daring and patience shown by mari- ners. Ever since the reign of Edward VI., when the 1 brave Sir Hugh Willoughby and his crew all perished | frozen at their posts among the rocks of Spitzbergen, the ■ relentless ice, and soft though fatal snows of those dreary realms, have formed the grave of many a gallant sailor. Many a life has been lost in the attempt to discover the North-west passage, between Davis’s and Behring’s Straits, I and to trace the outline of the northern coast of America. I Whether those lives were wasted, or whether their brave I example was not worth more to the world than a few U years more of continuance, is not the question here to be I asked. The later Arctic voyagers had a nobler purpose 1 than that of completing the survey of the barren coast, n namely, the search for Sir John Franklin, who, in 1845, |; had gone forth with two tried vessels, the Erebus and Terror, on his second polar expedition, and had been seen li and heard of no more. Voyage after voyage was undertaken, in the hope at first of relieving and rescuing the lost ships’ companies, and then of ascertaining their fate, until the Admiralty decided that to send forth more exploring parties was a ■ vain risking of valuable lives, and it was only the earnest perseverance of Sir John Franklin’s wife and the chival- rous adventure of individuals that carried on the search, F f 2