VOL. III TO. 3 THE ARCnC CIRCLLIJl 30
around the shallow lakes and ponds which characterize the ION in erier of the island. A few dwarf willO\is occur in the t·,tter drained sites. The dry J grav'?lly ridges and tht:. d1.51nt ~ated 1 imestone surface of the northern part of the slan~ re lar ely barren, but do suprart scattered colani a of 'the erotic poppy acd the purple saxi:I ;-e. Air ForCE Islan~ ~rovides nno r.er hati~5t round th~ low, rocks ~1119 e.t -""p northern und ,..;here the arctic white heather and the nount""in sorrel are ('ommon. The list of species from the slands is relatively small and, as would be expected, is typic;,;.l of theso low island habitats.
FIEY~OUS . istory: On:3 Septembt:.r 1932 Captain 'o{.A. Poolc, C.';.S. OCt;8 ED.t-le, Jepartme:.:lt of Railwayg and Canals, ... l:cboTI";",, 4 n:ilcs froc. la;'ld in lati ude 67 47 1 28 N. T~€ coas:. .~. TisibL... for 15 n:.iles both tc he l:lG !ind to 'the ":.>...Hl. 'I'hc lar.d did no ~xtend sou'th to latitude 67018 r. in lor.Cl.t UQt. '7e °20 ',/. '1'::is dis cov-ery HaS recorded in the lee of t;i€. OCt,;.an Eap1el and in II report submitted to otts.\~a in Septem\.er 1932, with a map showinG tho known and probable ertent of the now land. The island was named Poold Island (Dcpart~ent of MarinE, 1933, p.8). This island is clearly t~c s~mc ~s that photoeraphed by the R.C ..F. in IS48 and offici...... lljo' narr.~d Prince:. Cl1ar les IsIE:nd by thE Car:adian Boar d on G€ogrc:r=:icCi.l !ju::l.t.5 on 7 l..prl1 1949. Tr.1,,; no.me Feole Isle-nd
C1d r.o DT",viously been submitted to the; Boc.rd j und on 6 A Iil 950 the Board ap~rov~d naming h~ ~os ves srIy point of prine C~ar~ds Island Poole Point after Captain Foolc. In F€.brlIDIY 19J9 the British C.:lnudian-Arctic Expedition saw the hills of the northern part of the south eust islcnd (Air Force Islnnd), but mistook them for two znall ':'£,1' nds. Durin; thb Sa.l!lC Clonth, tht:Y saw tho.:, no:!'th~r'1 pa=t 01 t.h:.- north lsl~nd (FolGY Island l \'.':tich :;a5 n:..:J!1.ed AnQ.crsor: IsIE....'1d for Dr. R.L. Ar:.dt;.rson, of the. !·ation.:::.l ~uscum of C:m- d:..., wi t-" tr t approvel of he l:t:r. G c£r~pt.~c _oc.r 6. of C"",nt:.c., in 19L1. A map end dc.scrip'2ion s.~c\lir.. "c :a.o·,:n r,t;~!'t 0'" t.r.cst.:- islc.nds was rt.;.blishcd. T:tcy v:cr also c.::J tEd
I l'lhlvipution condit tons in Hudson Bay u.nd Str&it durine the Soason of NElviz&tion 19J2"1 D6paltment of Ear inc I 19JJ 1 p. 3f • 2 l:~!"'.rdn- J T.R. J Geogrc:chicc.l JournE.l, Vol. 101 (1743) p~. 22 G-25".
------VOL. :n i'O. 3 Trw i,RCTIC CIRCl1L.Af 31
on the Notional Topocraphic Series 8 mile map of Foxe Basin. The names Air Force Ish.. nd and Foley Island were officially adopted by the Bo~rd on Geographicul Nam~s on 1 September 19L9 nd the hi h ground OC Folcy Island, pre viously off ic lally n&....\:> .>Jlderson :~l£.r.jJ ~.:'l':; ~e.rr.ed An.aerson Bluff on 6 :.pri .... 1950. Fol~:· :slund wes n::'I:f.d t.f' E.::- he navigator of t e R.C.A.:'. pLn ,;',loh sight~d t.e isknds and \.no was later kllled in :!. pl_;1 c::-ash nc .... r Ottc.wo.
The mt;.ffi::>t!rs of tL€: 1949 expedition to the islands in Foxe E~sin were:
\'1.1<.\1. EuldHin, botanist C.~. Buyns, g~o:oGist D E. Coc~b~, gbcgr~pher end geodesist ..... ! . '":."oh rsen ceoy. <:..rrd :.ssist::nt zoolo~ist T.::. t.~:::..r.r inc- I 2-toc.der, g€:ogr.:.pher, r.r d vertebrate ZQolo..;.i['t C. :;;rrill, Becr... he:- c.nd ~ngint:er Po.l,:. P~ckt.r: gcogr-:.ph--.:r
StZ.I vtll, ion nct:.r Tiline; I Foxe Bo.3 inIN.W. T.
Durin~ the samm~r of 1946 ~n old Eskimo, Ootogoochoo (_dd.... L. ic!:t':or. ~TO. ::::-569), cacht.d SOl'k. d~6r D. ft.\'! mile~ ',/es'" f Filir.~. IL t.t; 1'_11 h rmde c;:u:p \Ii"th another Esk·.oo~ }:Y!ik~·.Jc..k (E5-_59), c.t 7.~-sr.ook=-~J e.bout rblf WC,;.'j' tc~~~e~ ?~:ir- ~~d St~cs~' Inl~t. ~&r~y in Dececb~r r~~k.u~~ dccid~d to move to Ig ooju~k on St6~nsby Inlet. He left a nunber of seul~ ~t thL CG~p for Ootogoochoo, Who continued to liVt t!lcrc until tll;y Here finished, wh~n he d~cid,.;d to move to riling tl"'l liv. off his dber cache.
OotoPOOC.100 Hud ;/ith him his young wife, har tHO sar.s bJ t. rrt:.vio·J<:' mnrric. 1.., on\.< six ... nd thE. othf;.r four years o_d, ena Q ~~vt;I.t6en-ye(lr-old ::dopt~d d3ueh~~r. O~ a~=:,~: at ?il~- ~~ looK\. ------VCL. III .0. 3 T"riI: ,..l Ic1oojuak, but they were too weak to stand and returned to the ieloo. "'"bout tt:is time they started to use the bodies for food. ?~eamlhile lack of ne\lS from Piling was causing eoneel'n at Ielooiuak. Two Eskimo, 0 agooehoo (E5-399) and K""pc (~5-45e), ;et out to look for the party but return€ d wit. out findiL- thE~ owing to bad weather. On February 2~ a s cond seareh party of Otagooch00 J Y.yak juak f an d ?..yoochuk (E5- L ), found tte igloo. The two women were still aliv~ but in a deploracle condition. They were unrecognizabL~J tht~ byes sternad to be startin- out of their heads una t,'jcn they tried c speak tteir' voic~s CQuid not be heard. In addition to the ycun[ boy, part of the older boy had been ec.t n lout not tnt;; old man. It set-med nlikely th5.'t t~c your. I \/oman could livl;.;J but with cm'l,;;ful attention both rapidly e~ined strcrsth and hevc now recovered completely from tr.€':r ordeal. During a visit in the spring to the site of the tr£~edy Y$akjuck found the cache, containing the meat from thirteen deer, \'lithin 600 yards from the igloo. This episode par~llels in rrLny ,mys e si011&1' OCCtl.. rence in thE Igloolik art-a solte forty or fifty yael's a~o \lhlch vIas reported in dEotail by Knud RE:l.smussen1 • It ust also hav~ teken pl~ce within a few miles of the star v tion E:..t Ipluting in ~bout 1835 of three boat cre".ls of :skiQO from Cumbcrlund Sound mcntion~d Qy Boas2 . Exorcise Swoetbriar and. Exercise Sun Ow I During F0bruary of 1950 two nrmy exercises wero c... rri~d c t in the Cun:idicn North. Th~ larger, Exercise S\'1eettr ic.r, Has r. combin... d CD-nedion and Unit.ed States CXGr-C1SG which took pIece along the YUkon-AlE.ska boundary. "The ~l1ain object of the. exercise \'n:.~ to d(jv,,;lop doctrine. ...nd proccdurl3.s tor the ~n:ploymtr_t of co~t inl.d CnnadiE.:.n und U.S. forces opcr.:.tir-e; in tht. 3ubu~ctic) and to tl.st in the; field the 1 R::..sr:ussEn, Krlud, "Tile Irtcllcctunl Culture of the Igloolik 331~i.:.o". Repc~t of t!':c Fifth Thull,;. EXjX.dition, Vol.?, No.1) pp. 29-32. 2 Boas, Franz, "The CentrE"..l Eskimo". Ann. Rtap. Bureau of J.Ir.or iean 3tr.nol""r, Vol.e (1884-5) p. 432. VOL. III NO. 3 THE ARCTIC CIRCUUR 33 latest developments in clothing, food, aircraft, vehicles, weapons, and oth~r e uipment and material. It also provided a ost icportant opportunity for gaining experiEnce in joint and combined planning and in truly inte rated Canada-United States &nd Army-Air Force command. ,,1 To those interested 1n tho effects of arctic con ditions on men and equipmGnt Exercise Sun Dog I, which was carried out by an infantry company group of the Canadian .A.:rmy in tho Fort Churchill area, \t6S the more important as the force was entirely solf-contulncd and operated on the edge of the barrens for one month under severo conditions. Exeroise ~Icetbriar lasted for eloven days, from February 1) to 23. Over 5000 personnel of the Uni ed States and Canadian armies and air forces took part, nearly half being Cam:dian. "The tactical assumption was thet en rossscr force he.d captured thE airfiEld at Northway in Alaska, and hed forced down the Northwest Highwcy, elmost the whol£ t~rec hundred and fifty miles to .fuitehorse. The task of the Allied Force w~s to drive the hggressor back and recapture .orthway •••• Same idea of the size and complexity of the operation is given by the fact that more than 978 motor vehicles and 100 air- craft took part in it." The whole of the exercise took placa south of the troes under sub~rctic conditions. Temperatures on the whole were disappointing and were not 8S low cs hed boon expo cted. "Food, clothing und personal equipment, such as sleeping bags and tents, were, in general, qUite satisfactory, though n good many suggestions wore made for minor improve ment s ••• tiThe weapons and equipment of the Army proved generally sat isfactory , but the Bxercis e did dis clas e ways in which they could be improved. There was a very enarel feeling that the mobility of the ground forces must be increased. This could be done y providing more and better over-snow' vehicles thc.t would be cap&ble of operating off roads 1 All quotations in this note are taken from the text of e speech given to the Empire Club of Toronto on Uereh 30 by Dr. O.M. Sal~dt, Chairman af the DefEnce Research Board. ------~- - -- - VOL. III 1'0. J Th"E "RCTIC CmCUIJJl Jl. and c very much l&rger pr0portion of bulldozers to pUll sleds and to make roc ds for '.Ihcelcd veh 1e 1£ 9. The C£.nadi:::n sna/mocil~, or PEnguin, seemed to be the best of the oVvr snm, vehicles for h~ conditions encountered during thE exer eise ... "The Ion er r::..dio links between units on thE ground werE no very satisfactory. This wes not so much due to ect~l defects in signal equipment cs it was to the effects of screening by mountains and the exist~nce of unfamiliar prop:l.€c.tion conditions .•. "The experiencEs of the hir Force produced no nEW or unexpected problems. This \les "he fil'st time that jet fighters had been operated in the Subarctic in large numbers on e.n exercise of this kind. Experience confirmed the vi€\/ that tt6 jet engir.e ~s particularly suited to arctic operatior.. It .is sin:.ple, relatively easy 'to start and easily protected against the effects of cold. Even now, it is fairly easy to mair.tain and it is certain that future jet engines will require even less attention in the field. The overall record of 80 per cent serviceability of all aircraft enga ad in the exercise is, in itself, ·sufficient testimony to the success of air operations ... "In the .nXctic and SUbarctic, the Air Force will play an important part in nearly all operations and in many it will be the dominant factor. ";'ircraft can operate success fully in all parts of the hrctic and Subarctic though there is considerable room for improvement in navigational aids, methods of detection and control of aircraft, and in ground servicing, where windchill is high." Exercise SWeebriar was llpr imarily a test of the present state of training ~nd equipment for subarctic conditions. It involved little novel equipment and no new weapons, and the weather oonditions were not the worst that can be found in ~he Arctic ...Probably the most important single lesson of the exercise was the renewed demonstration of the ease with which Canadians and J"m::rioans can Vlork together in har:nony. " The exercise forCE on SUn Dog I "oonsisted of a Compar.y of the Royal Canadie.n Regiment, with supporting detcch~ents from the Signal, ~edicsl end Electric 1 and .'c;ch.:..niccl Engineering Corps, totalling in all, 240 !!len. This force was entirely self-oontained and fully mobile. It lived on the edge of the barrens, south end east of Churohill J . ~-~------VOL.III 1-0. 3 THE ARCTIC CIRCULiJl 35 for u month. D~ing this period it moved across country about 250 miles, carried cut car6fully planned experiments with rations and equipment, and tried new tQctics against an ilrnGinary enemy. It cncountE;.re:d as severe westhE.r con ditions as con ordinc..rily be found t:. ven in thE oorrt;.!1s. On the \lor st day, the tLIDp€roturt. rar. od from 25 to 32 degret;s bela.' zero, wi th E. gllSty wind of 25 mile s an hour. tt The Second Bishop of the r~ctic On 30 ~:ay 1950 tht Ven. i..rchdeacon D.B. Harsh J D.O., was c ns~cratcd rlngl~can Bishop of the nXctic follaving 3ishon FleLill 's rc:ii.... r.ation on 19 3 ... pt€I:.OLT 1949 (.!Jette Circular Vo1.2(1949) pp. 88-9). Bishop ~;arsh has spent over twenty years in the Canadiar. bretie. In 1922 he came out from England to prepare :!'or missioncry work et Enr.anue1 C011eB€ and \1E..S ord!:.incd in 1929. Ho wes first sent to Eski.l::lo Point wb.erc he tui1t ~is own mission house and spent seventeen yt;.:lrS working on the west coast of Hudson Bey. In 1933 I wbll£ en furlough in Englc.:.nd J ht.. ca.rri.;d and brought his wife back to Eski..l::::.o Point. ":1'5. t.:ar~hls paintings of Eskko ar~ costuncs end erctic scenery well known to northern6Is J end Ott~wc m~mbers of the Circle will r~call the exhibition of her work at th.,; natione.l ~.IUS6um during the summer of ISLe:. In 1939 Donald ~:~rsh was appointed Archdoecon and in 1943 he \'len to ,Jclavik nnd later to Toronto. J\Xchdeacon Hersh wt!.s consE:crnte:d SCicond Bishop of tho hretic by the l.rchbishop of Ruportsland assisted by the Bishops of Cal ary, K('8wetin, and Brandon. The cer.0111ony took place El t St. John's Ca.the dral J Winn ipeg, and he was later enthroned in 01 saints Pro-Cathedral, J..klavik, by the Rev. Canon Montgomery on June 18. Bishop Marsh has just returned on the ne," e£.stcrn .lJ'ctic Patrol ship, C.D. Howe, from a visi to his Diocese. CherteIlng of ships to load tiJ::iber in SibErie On July 13 the Timas reported thet sorm. t'1Gr.ty ship J ~ostly British, ~ad been chartered in En land by Russic.n author ities to load timber from Siterie. for the Uni:'€d i:in~dom. These ships ht..vo ooon taken by the Russ~ns on time charter, with delivery ~t United Kingdom and C?n~ln ental port3, v.ht:rees those used to load timber in the tll11.te S.:a are c:mrt<:.red on Eritish account for the voyage. The VOL. III 110. 3 THE ,JlCTIC CIRCULJl 36 ships will load ut E.. speci~l st!..gc. built at Igarkn J t.he rivE.r part on the YEniscl, and will be cwcy some two to thrEE months. It wes cnnounced that. ttey would l£c,ve in three groups, tte last or. ....ugust 20, e.r.d \.ould be ulded from Murmansk to thE Yenis6i River. sam Ford The death of S&m Ford in en accident near Fort Chima on 5 ·~ueust 1950 mean for 1OO.ny Canedians thE. loss of n loyal and lifelong fr ie:ld. Tne forth J to which he devoted the rE:;c.t r pert of his days I hes lost a valued and faithful acr V:':tt • Th is ml.n:r:er S!ll!l Ford went north for the D.;partment of Resources and Developreent uS interpreter for the Ecsttrn i1Tc"'ic Ff.trol 1.dminis1:rt.tivt. Offic&r trav.:.lling on the C.. Howe. The accident occurr~d t the mOll h of the Koksec~ RIver ~n€n a helicopter, in whlct he w&s a passenger, was HOlm from !'c dcck of the C.D. Howe. Dr.medic.te1y a~ter akc -eff the. aircrcft - crc.she d into the see und sank. The pilot, C~crlLS Fsrkin,nnd G. Johns on, Department of Resources nnd Dcv~loprr.cnt offic~Ll, v~r~ scved through prompt action by tht s~cond matt of thE C.O. Howe. 8em Ford was lost; his cody hc.s not been found et the time of writing. Sam Ford, who was born in 1880 at Northwest River, LcbradoT, had a long and eventful career with the Hudsonts Bay Compuny in the Eastern iJctlc. His grandparents had como from Devonshire in England and had settled at paul Island., Labrador, where the family, the only wh ito people 1n thG area at first, engaged in trade with the Eskimo. In 1876, Sam's father, John Ford, joined the Hudson's Bay Company at Northwest River and subsequently was moved to var ious posts, lncludin Fort Chime tind Geor e River. Sam Ford was ed"..i.cated at Twillingate, Newfoundland. On leaving school he went to Port Burwell as a clerk for Jot Erot:-,("rs of S. John's, :Jewfound.lond, where he stayed tor tn:ee "Ie rs. ~t the age of twenty-five he rejoined :'1s father ct George River, entering the Hudson's Bay Company as ~ost servant. Rere te stayed only eight months and was then rro~oted to post m&na~er's assistant at Greet Whcle River wht;:re he remained for two years, durin which period he mrried Unry Ed..iLor:.ds, dc.ugh'ter of ~.:r. John Edmonds, t;he post manager there. I~s. Ford died in 1938; their three boys and four Girls have settled in various parts of CLnUQu. ------VOL.III NO.3 THE hRCTIC CmCULAR 37 In 19J6 &.!:i Ford Vias trc.ns fErre-d to Far t cr. i.c.o ....5 ~ttr~rEtEr ~nd g~n~r~l ~ssistant to ttc E.B.C. post ~a~ €or, !!:r. ;:. CottE.r. .I...t this tir:E thEre wes keen cocpetit on betw en t~c Hudson I s B::.y Company and Rt vi lIon Frcr£..s I E.nC from 1909 until 1911. ht:. Wti.S t:.mploycd by thE. h;.tter comJ'~ny as interprotE.ir. Follmvinr tbis F~r:odJ Su: Ford and his family livcn aut __ dt. for 'TO yl.c.rs, ... t St. John's, N~w1'oundlc...r:d. He .3C'on fct:. tb.c. h .... did no~ C'lr\,. for 01 y lifE end rejoir.cd th Hui.c~IS Bey Ccc~ny in 1917 uS i~twrpr€t(.r and c.sslst~ to l~r. JoLn Nichols, th _ post mE.m:.gcr at Wolstcnholm:.. In 191}' h(,.. 'iUS movt.-d to cocts Isle..nd where he remained until 1924 \'ihen ht. vms sLnt to Southo.mpton Island to cst ... Llish 0. no,,; : cst. In 1937, after _ brie.f furloug.~, h£. Vias trc.nsf",rrod to Clyde Rivt.r \lhc.r .... he. '1 s post ~m:. t;;.r until 194. Utc.r r.e took ever th C:-:rc Soi h pOS't. J..t the tioe of his rt:.tirc ocn frcr:. ectiv ... sc.Tvic€ ','lith the Hudson's Bay CC!:lp~.r in 19L5, SE.l:l Ford w;:.s in cr.t..r i:. of the pes at Povungr.ituk:. 3.e then \!E:nt to St. John's, I Gwfoundl:..nd, where: he lived witt: 1.1s sister, ,:rs. Elizc.bt:.th '.latson. Swn Ford \IC.S rc co nizc.d e.s Canade' s most outstcnd ing 3skino linguist nnd his knowledge. in this fiEld \/i11 te v ... ry diffIcult to r€pl~c~. H~ ted undertaken e n~ber of co~issicns for' the ::J€PfJ !:I.cn"t of R ... SOUI ces ~nd De~lopment, the. !!:o.:rt not'" ..... 1.. bEing his trc.nsl_tion of ''I'hb book: of \'tisdoe:. for 2skuo'. All those who knew Scm Ford well, und purticulc~ly his many Eskimo friends, will be dE:eply mov~d by the nCHS of his dc:..th. Explorers, udministrators, and scientists, r:ll of r. am vr..lucd hjs intimt..tE knOWledge of thE. nart'. J "1'111 T€cull ','Ii th i'.!'~t.:.tudc. his constL.nt !'U:,lp !:!!d kindne.s. es. Ir. :!.s L-1" £r dt.ys !:~ of .: n ,-xpr-c SSl,;.d tr~;: wist~ to I:lE'.kE ttc .~ctic :l:s 1 ~t rEsting plc.ctO.. S.:. Bailer Corroction to the February-I\.~£l.rch number Th€ Editor l't-grtts thct 1n th Fe.bruc.ry-Ucrch r.uoL.... 0:' tt;c. Circ\.;.lcr r:r. T.::. Hc.nninp; l s nune wes o"ittcd ~O~ tt.c nct( t~ F.~d writt~n on "The V~yinc ~~in- Lr. :c.rt.!. \~ _tj' in Ot.tc.\ " (pp. 20-21). , --~- VOL. III O. 3 THE .-RCTIC CIRCULnR 38 ;;ditor 1<.1 at c. Th~ Zditer wculd welcome contributions from those W.10 _! L. .... t preSGn t in tr:c ..ret i c or he. V(. infor rr.c. t ion £. bout ~ork in the ~ctic. ~ll m£tcri~l for thL Circul~r should bE sent to: ~:rs. G::"'h:.m RO\vl~y, Editor nrctic Circ~l~rJ l.11 ;;c~a Drive, Ott:.wc.. Autharized es Second Class Me!l, Post Office Department I Ottcwc ------THE A Po C TIC CIRCU L A il ·vOl. III XO.4 Fubliohed by Th" Arctic Circle OCT. 1950 Ottawa, Ontario T\Jenty-second ~ vEtil¥: of th ."lrette Circ .... e Tt£. t;.enty-second mE-sting of th~ .Mretic Circle \~as held in he 1st. Corps Troops R.C.A.3.C ..,Ie-ss, 278 Sparks Street, on Thursday Octobur 12. The Presid~nt. ~r. ?~&nk Davies, w~a in tt£. Chair and introduc~d thE sp~ekerJ S/L A. Copland. wto jeEcribe~ his fur-trading tXp6ri~nce in the Arctic. S/l Copland explained tt£t hE had been brought up at Pe. t£:rheed ne.Gr .H 'oel deun. This 1 i t tIe seaport had 61'fays bt.:en a \,•.f~t:ling centro E.nd he had as a toy spc;nt many a clay on the \1helers, spokt:n to somEl of the old whalcrmen and S6(.r. his irst Jskimo t~vr{.. This atmosphere made it a favour! recruiting cround for the Hudson's Bay Company, and at the aCe of twenty he signed a contract with the company agent for five years' service beginning at ~20.00 a month, ~ll found. In the summer of 1926 he sailed from Cardiff in the S.S. N£lscopie. After a call at t:ontreel, the Nascouie steamed up the Labrado~ coast and into Hud30n Bay; where 3/L Copland was given ais first job as clerk at the post et Chesterfield Inlet. Hare he mat Peter Freuchen of Knud Rasmussen's faMOUS Fift~ Thule Expedition. His first. five y ers in t.r:.e nor th 'here spent in Hudson BflY. From. Chesterfiel.:i he ".,'ent to I:e.lp in the estE-hl ishmcnt of the Southamptofi Island post ~nd was ttfn appointed post m3n~~er at REpulse nay, ~skioo Point, and Southampton Island in turn. ~ft€r 5 yesr's leave he returned to the north as menage!' of the 30uth Baffin Island Section, \.hich consisted of the four posts. Capa 001· set, .Amed juak:, Lake IIEsbour J and ------. VOL.III NO.4 THE ARCTIC CIRCULAR 40 ;';1 th the small supply schooner Hanook. His stay h6.re \"I8S cut short aftar two years by his having to turn to civilization for an oper~tion for appendicitis. s r.ext assignmer.t was as manager or the Ungava Say Section tt. t~e seven posts I Fort Chima, Fort ~eckenzie) Fayne 3ay, af hiver, illale River, George River, and Fort Burwell. ~ter two years in Ungava, he bechme 85s1stant ffianoger and ·her. ncnE.:er of the hhole Ungeva District \'.1 th headquarters .n ',innipeg, spen..:.ing 6. s~cr during this period as purser r tte :~e3copie. He 'was then sent dO\,n the 1~5ckenzie to 't3ke rfe of the .~stern Arctic District, which stretched from rctic Red River to King .;illiarr:. Island. .tit the time of' lning the ~.C.~.F. he was in Jlnnipeg in the headquerLers ~~ the Fur Trade Depa!"t~ent of "the Hudson' 5 Bay Compe ny. s/L Copland described the life led by the fur trader .D thr. days "'hen he first wen in to the country, and the hanres brought about by the radio bnd Lircreft. he stres3ed • £. importance of trensports"'ion in the developnent of the - rth and illustrated from ~is o~n expEriences "the ct~rac er:stics of the various tribes, both ~s~lmo and Indifin, with hom ~e hod traded . • dson Bay Ice Rcconnaissance 1949-50. By !'argaret r:ontgomery ContinUing the 1948 and 1949 ice reconnaissance over daon Bay, four flights were made during the winter of 1949-50. rrhese sorties were arranged by the Defence Research loard \lhh the R.C,J,.F. who vary kindly made available Lan caster aircraft menned by crews from 408 Squadron, 22 Photo nng at Rockcliffe. F/L Keith Greenaway was chief observer end was Elccompanied on the flights by observers from the partmcnt of Transport (hleteorological Division), the ~fence Rtsearch Board, and McGill University. The dates and routes of the flights were as follows: <2 !lovemeer 1949 (see "rctic Circular Vol.;3 (1950) p. 22) Ottawa - ~oosonee - Belcher Islands - Port Harrison - Chur ch ill - .iinnipeg. 14 - 15 December 1949 It. December: attawa - ~:oosonee - Belcher Islands - Port Earrlson Chesterfield Inlet - Churchill. ------~ VOL. III NO.4 THE ARCTIC CIRCULnR 41 15 December: Churchill - : ansel Islsnd Nottin~~am Islbnd - 3ugluk Cepe Smith - Cepe Eenriett6 f..!er ie - Ott61JB. 5 and 11 Jonuary 1950 5 Jc.nu ry: Ottawa - Maosonee - 5S0t'., 80°36.... Chestarfiald Inlet - Churchill. 11 ;anu£ry: Churchill - Mansel Island £ Otta~a Islands - Belcher Islands - a 0 changing course to 52oN. J 79 Z0W. Dorval. 2 - 3 I;orch 1950 2l' sreh: Ottawa - Charlton Island - Long Island Gilmour Island - Sugluk - Digges Islands Cape Kendall - Churchill. 3 l:arcc.: Churchill - along south coast of Hudson Bay to Cape Henriatta r:aria - Eanna Bay Ottawa. On the December flight mail was dropped at Nottingham :slend but, owing to local conditions on arrival, similar rops scheduled for Sugluk, Ivugivik, and Cape Smith coula at be carried out. On the ~Brch flight, m~il and medical ~ pplies were dropped at 3u luk. The purpose of these reconnEissance flights wos to ~servo the dates of freeze-up in various parts of the Bay rmd to note the characteristics of the\dnter ice cover over 'he arecs as a whole. The foIIO\'~ing account is a sum:-i.E.ry of nditions ob~Erved in the m~in arees. ·A11:S B... Y On November 22, although most of the rivers flowing the b£.r \!JerE partly frozen over, the bay itself ,J&S al- st (;ntireljT free of ice. By mid-Decembc.r the rivers \ier ..... mpletely frozer. except for small patches of open water at heir mou t~s, end E.long t.lle coe st of the bay a shelf of fast ee, var~'ing in width from helf-a-cile to a mile-and-a-half, xtendej as fer e.s could be seen. Beyond this, large, unbrokEn fiS of ice, irregular and jagged in outline, Gave e cover ,rying fro~ about 4/10 in the south 0 about 7/10 in the rth. T:Ie open -,,'ater between these pens appeared to be vered .lith sludge or patches of brash ice. Sea smoke ~-~ s ris_os over all r.,re8S where open \.eter wes present. ------42 In early January the ice cover './e5 9/10 complete d ope~ \'outer ',iSS li.:rited to smell p.. tches near river utt.S 01 to tte shore lead end to the €ast-i-iest leads, hich ct"ossed the entire bay and which became noticeably ew r euout 40 J!liles north of J:00500ee. The fast ice now ;pc:Jrco. to be CE wee!"" 2 :::00 3 mil~s wi e. hround Akia:.iski :sler.:i :ef;t";'s cnd ....iitc!'-es or open water "isre in the process r rCfrbE.zing and "Jere covere:.d by sludge and brash ice. en "he r€t~~ flight of Janu~ry :1 a s30re lead, :0 15 ~iles wide, ext€nd~d alor.g the entire eastern coast ~t was freezing over rapidly. It had possibly resulted fram '~Ej ::;trcng easterly \'iinds of the preceding days. Over the cle reg!.O:l the ice ·... ::;.5 nore rugged thar. at the t:z:.e of the ','E:uJ::C! n ie;ht end ccnsi:lerably more SnO\i covereo the aree. Br early Herch .Tames BajT had ~ 10/10 ice cover kE~ c::1I:" br tho widely spaced east-\'test leads ..... hich 9. peer .. ce .. ;: racteri:tic o~ the area. Snow cover hed increased t ..nt drifts could be clearly seen around the pressure idGes. Except for scattered patches of ice, this erea as far nort~ as Port :!arriso::1 at the t~e of e '::;v rob r flight. :'ro::n t.ere northwards the ice appeared be c~~llnuous and from its colour and thin snow cover s jU'jl"ed to heve tOl'Med very recently. By mid-December the 3elcher Island~ them~elve~ were ebol,.;,na (-ut, as fer as co Id be scen throurh the haze and a srr.olt£, open woter, covered probably with slUdge and sst ..... : l~" to tt.e ·... est end po~sitly to the eBst. FroI:l u~ 5"":". :~e ic'" cover increased to 7/10 witn scattered ipti c~: JI;. tches of open water and north-south leads be en tn~ .,now-covered islands. 0 3 ' eeI]:" Jar.ue.ry t:;,e ice cover northwards from Jemes e.J:pe~l·(j cOtlpl ete with the pas sible exception of some rge patc;-(,s of open ·.... ater south and west of the Belcher e~ds. ~rctic sea ~oke in ttis area limited visibility ~ ...... tra:tc::J t.te preser.. ce of open \'oBter. On the return trip January 11 broken ice and open '.Jater patches were seen m a dis·ance in this vicinity, while a stretch of loose I' ice e't''Jut 4"" tliles across extended south end east of tr.6 cher :S~~!ld~, craduelly narro\ling in the east until it 1r.ed th st.ore lead along the ~uebec coast, /;:tnd in the ';JCst tending i:1 the direction of Cape Henrietta Maria. -- ..- VOL. III '0.4 THE hRCTIC CIPCULrlR 43 ~his apreers to mark the boundary zone between the ict of J6ces .:30:'- and that of Hudson Bey I and al thou,;h no ',':ide leE.d ,~(,s evident on J'arch 2 the. aree ,Jes crossed by a series of narIO~ eest-hest leads witt 10n6 pressure ridges tet\~eenJ orier-ted in the sane dirc;ction. On the flight o! .:~rch 3, the shOTe lead cf~ Ca!'e Henrie.tta !'~e.ria \/85 seen curv ng off i~ ttis jirection, thus tending to confirm the Imrr~ssion tcat a leed or at cast 8 belt of broken, dis turbod ice is e c~erdcter~stic featurE separating the ice s!"..eets of the t;,'O bays. On the.'arch 2 fl.ight B lerge lead in process of refreezing, curved nor:h{..Bst to',:ards tr.e coast from an araB of opcr. '.Jater i..m..c::cdiately ncrt~ of thf:: 3elcher 1516nd5. -12-c\.€<;r. thE: islands tt:e~st.1ves the leeds ran north end sout-h, \I~ilc. ",hOS6 '1E:8rer to th.... coast appc.ared to run normal to t:,c S.10r €:1 inc. From the vicinity of the Otta\~a I51an 5, a wide lccrd continuing the arc of the Eest coast iElends, curved north ..a.rd t'J\isrds Cap .... 2..'Ili th where it sEil.:med to loose i tSt;>lf in th~ network of leads running parallel to thE coast, of ~hich t:IC \.idest \jas 1 to 2 miles across. Ioor visibility made it impossible to dbt€rmin~ how far north this series of Itads extended, but it seems probablo that it merged into the wide zone of broken ice, open wat~r, and irrLgular leads obs~rvod later on t € same rlight b~twoQn th~ Ungava coast and th~ tip of 30uthampton Island. centre and North: On November 22 the B&y appeared to be ice bound north of a line -drawn approxlmotclr from Port Harrison to Churchill. By mid-Dcc6rnbtr, the ~ntire Bay was covtred by a continuous ice sheet except for the east coast section already mentionEd. Th8 central part WB5 he~vily criss-crossed by pressure ridees which l,.. ere estimatE::d to riSE anywhere from a few f,oet to twenty-five feet in height. DCGp snowdrifts WtJT6 pockod along their Gastern slopes and the long narrow l0sds, ,:hich tended to have a north-south direction to\'Jsrds tho centro of ttr Bay, bccamG fower on leaving th~ vicinity of ho shore lead. By Jenunry the opon water west of the Belchers .. 8S frOZe!].. This condition of continuous and rough 1co cover in _he central arca opparcn ly p&rsist€d until break-up. On the December fl i£ht i ·.. 05 oboerved that ;,est v.erd fror:. Coats Island ttl; 1<'6:ds c.~ng d froc their or":'tine.l nortt-south dirLctio~ to perellcl the coa=t of Southampton Island i!" an cast-7/GS orientation. It ,JES elsa ncted that in ... ~t' arE.B bct\,66n Coats, ..~anscl, and Uottinghe.::l islands ------VOL.III.O.4 TH: ARCTIC CIRCULAR 44 and th~ Ungave COast, th~ solid icc of the central ar~a gavo \;ay to a zone. of irr""gular l.:ads, r(.;.ctanguler patches of op... n ",.atf;;r J end fleeting pans of jagged ice. Similar otscrvations on "the Jt:nuery cnd I'srch fli hts showed that this condi~ion persists tpxoughou"t th6 winter and apparently exte!lds along E\,.;.:),500 3tral . On t~e ~':erc:h rlig~t J 8 •• ide eas -\.est lead ext-ended fro~ the ~outheast tip of 30uthampt.on Islund as :ar as : .... s:!s 3t.r5it, w.tLere it det.eriorate into a series of' narro;.} cads ~~rallel to t~e shoreline. ~ro~ t~is m~in lead smeller lee s ran r.ort~ to t~e fast ice, wtich at this ime OOD- letely covered Sou"t:~ Bay and the 3ay of Cod t 5 l:erc;·. Fart!1er ',est; a wide ~ead ... as again evident, beir.g about 2 to 3 r:!.iles ~crC2S off Cape Kendall, where it joined th~ tongue of open ''Io.ter leadi"fi€, u Rce's jelCOr:te Scund. This v,ide 'tongue wes ~een to pe~ctr8te northwards at least ~5 to 3G miles up the 50\,;.n\', and froI: Cape Kendall ran soutt;',;ard towards Chesterfield I~let. ?he line of flight teing dirEct from cape Kendell to Cl'.urc •. ill did ::lot !;;er!l1it an" observations of the southern limit of tis Iead~ ','eot CQcst: Churchill 'f/8.S the &T'proxL"1ate southern limit of ice cover in the =a~ on November 22 &nd rs this was the des tine:ior. of the reconrraissence fli ht no observ6tions were r05siblc rEgarding the existence or non-6xistence of a shore l~ed to the north at th~t time. The D~c6mber flight show~d that a l~ad,varying in \/idth bct',leen 2000 yards end 3 milos, ran parallel to the coast north and south of Ch~storfield Inl~t as far as could be seen. It 'Has separated from the shore by the shelf of landfast ice "\·ihich at Churchill Gxtendod seaward betw~en 4 and 5 miles. By Januery this fast iCG varied in extent from 8 few yards off the steeper promontories to 5 to 10 miles in the area between Chesterfield and Churchill. On January 5 thb shore lead beyond the fest ice was 5 to 10 mil6s across and narrow l~ads either parallel or normal to it Extended 60 milos 0 tho ~ast. Sea smoke \:a5 risinc over the entire area, being most dense over the main leo~ ;~ere it rose i~ clouds 96 if from a grass fire ~o QJout 1= C feet. ath the li£tt west wind ~hich ~revailed at t!".€ time this sea snoke ",/85 carried 50 to 55 miles east ,,:ard across the ice-covered Bay and could b6 clearly seen froD the shore at Churchill. T~e lead was follo~ed as fer as Churchill and appeared 0 be covered by a great deal of ~ludG~ a~d brash icc elong its v8sttrn edge. VOL.III m.4 THE ARCTIC CIRCUlAR 45 On the return flight on J£onuery 11 the ~8in shore Ieed hQd been reduced by the aBEt 'J1nds of the previous days to a series of r.arrcw leeds par~llel to the coast. Beyond this stretched the continuous iCE; cover of the centrel area in ~/l::ic!:. ::early all leeds had been closed by new ice. Or~ tee ~-€.!'c::.: fli~:!".t I.~e route from 30uthampton leland Ie:" too :er to t::e east for observation o~ t!::le coas 81 lea ~tself. ~O':5ver along t:te route of :light the ice \'.as broken b:- le.ads run::ling apprcxms.tely parallel t.o :.he line of ~li~~~ ,:t~ occasional e8st-~est leads appearin; o~f tte vicinity 0: Ctester~ield scj T~7snl. orr Churchill many ::l6W fr',zen lesjs ;.e-re ev,:,c.ent. J"Jutr.: Ttis elsa -..55 oc:erved on thE. rEturn ~light in larch ~na ~oor visitili~y again li~ited observ~tions ~n SOws pl~ces, ~cIticul~rlJ Bround Churchill. ~roc ~rouna the ~outh of thE ~re~son 2iver a nl:::!.ber of ns:' 0\'1 loads, 15 to 20 yards wide, ran _ rallcl to ~~6 COust and "ere ~olncd at riget angles :~. s~.orter l~ads froI!l tte cer-trel ice s~cet. This condi tion ?~rsi5:ed as far as Cepe Te~nam. FroI!l h~re to C~P6 ~enrietta !.:..rie., although al:'" leads \J(;rG closed S5 e re:sul<:. of the \ ind Yirection, there ~as a broa zo~v of cor~used ice witt long ~r~s~urc ridges und newly frozen leads running parallel to Lh~ shore. This dppeered to mark the limits between the ~oavy ice of the Bay and the broad belt of landfast ice which along this coast was as much as 20 to 30 miles wide. In this zone of confused ice, ~ lead about 5 miles "ido develop€;d off Cape Henrietta ~'.Dri& and after CUl ving southward about 20 miles into James fay n6rrowed and s\Jung north~ast in the direction of long I;land. Along its north~rn edgB-it was joined by & number of narrow leads oric.ntud NNE - 33'.1. Summery Th~ pEttern of Hudson 3ay ieL LS seun from the rcconnais5~~ce 61reedy compl t~d shows that by latE DecGmbcr or £;:::1'ly JU1ucry the r(.g1on is covcr<,.;d by a continuous sh£et of icc, of ",;Ide:: the are:.8 south end w<,.;st of the Belcher Islands is the last to freczo. This is soparated from the la.nd flat. along t!"-.c shore. by a zone. of ope.n V1E.tcr or con fused iCE ",hich deteriorates in hlJ se.ctiQn between Ungava ond. Southe.npton Island i!lto a \lide bLlt of broken ice, ope!! wat~r, and ~ort irreGUlar lee s. A stoller area acrOS3 t.e ~outh of ~~es Eay separ&teE the icc. th~rc from hat of EUdson a:' i solf. , ~-~---- VOL. III NO. ~ Tl-':I. nRCTIC CIHCLTJ. •.,R ~c ~he smaller leads tend to run at right an[les either to the sho=e or to thE main leej End in Jo~es 2ey h~ve a regular eest-;est di=ection. Tr.6 s::J.ore :Esd E.p:;,eers to be .,idest along the south cOc~t o~ the 3a~ e~d ~r. ~he eIod arees uch BE the Be~ of God's l'erc~-. :.;:t is =:s_ro'ftest cff the Ircreontories in the nortt\'ocst. 3UD}lv iES on to thE n::-r:t.ern ".eether .:.:e':'"1cr..s Tris s~er ~he ~nr.ual m:~ :on to t~e :o:nt Cenacian/ l.inited '3:" tes .-t.thEI st6tions in the ~t:mdi:.r;. r.l"ctic :!le!logO::Q to react ~ee of tta stetions. Resolute en Corn~ell~s I_~and end =lreke end n~ert on Elles~ere 151 ~d 7efe supplied, ~d t_.e stores for I~act.E'er:. er.d ~'ou~d 3al ere landEd a~ Resolu e. 'i"::is is t ..e rift.}: year t~l:.t this .off: ~e5 beer. cerr:'€.d au!. ty .C ".:;. ~Isvy. (For accounts of' previous :nissions see ... ret.ic cir'ul.r Vol. I (~9~e) pp. < and 9C; .01. II (19~9) pp. ~o-ll. Tt.e sup~ly Itissior. .. urill[ th su..,...... er of 19L9 hed succeeded in l'Eaching only t... station at ReSOlute, v:nere the stores for all stations ~ere len edj this was largely tocause there was or.ly one ic~breaker. This year the ~ast~ind ias egain in commissIon, after the fire Ylhich severely ama 63 her on 19 January 1949. The ships ~upplying Resolute found Lancaster Sound completel;y frte of ice E.nd encount£red only a few 5mall fields of scatter~d ice in Barro~ Strait. hS ~/BS £xpected very heavy ice was me on the way to hlert J and at times the icebreakers passed throucr. p ... cY.: ice up to 30 foet In thickntss. The weather was excellent except for fog durinr the four clays the ships Wd'G onchorr,d off REsolute. Tte 1950 supply mission left Boston on July 12 .nd returned on Sept~mber 5. It was co~ncnded by Captain a.E. reter:::on, L .s.r. J ann consisted of four ships: the i.: .S.S. ~disto and the C.S.C.G.C. -n:est:Jlnd, both icebreakers; and the U.S.3 ..J:J.itle·· end the U ...... 3. LST-5~;,)J serving as cargo vessels. ....;xcep"t for the ..'hitle;r all hree ShIpS have been used on ~arlier su::rr1:· missions 0 the Ctlnadian .t1orctic. The Edi;;,to hcs -:een on ell missions since 1947, the East\lind In 1948, 8:ld tt.e l::;1T-5J3 °'85 used for the first tin:e in 194". Lo~g-reDge ice reconnaissence was provided by R.C.n.l. alrcraf from 405 Souadron, bssed at GreemJood, t1 .3., L~c:ri ....::le 3roup, nelifax, cO~6nded by hir Co~~odore R.C. Gordon. : c three helicopte=s carr:ed ith the clssion were used exten p slv :' for short-re.nge ice reconnaissance . . ---- VOL. III 1:0.4 TEE ARCTIC CIRCULAR 47 During the firEt part of the supply 015510n Captain G.E. i-eterson ':E.S embarked in the Edisto, and during the latter part 1n the 3E.st\;ind. The second in cO!!!.liJEcnd and COI!ll~bnder 3u~~~y Unit \"IEE Csptair. '. Ven lietre J U.S.;;. The eui!:to '.'SS cOnL:snc.ed by COm;IJE.c.der ,J.F. :~orrison, u.3.~-.; the =#st~lnd by C~pt3:n O.~. F~terson, ~.s.e.G.; the ~~itley .y Cf>.;t ..dn .2.L. Garcia, t.T.3.n.; and the lST-533 by Lieuten.. r.t COI:U:i.c.nder J.Z. Vautrot, U.S.!~. The senior C:.nadian representativa iSS l:r. J. ",". Bur t:.n of t~E ~rctic Di7~s:on of the Deportment of Resources and Den. o. en"t. t'r. C•.!. :fubb£.rd, Chief of Arctic Proj~cts, U.1.1tcc. '3tetes ;sathe!' Bureau, 'Was t::'e senior U.3. 1.3. 0:":1018.1 ~ntl1 ~is de3th in c~ ~ircraft acc dent at Aler oc 31 ~cly 95C, \ hI,.,:: ~:r. J. Glen .Jr_r l.as assigned to this p05i tion. Tj-e (occice.G.t at .k.lf;rt :'9 descri b(;d in a further nct€". in this ssue. Colonel Rotert Sykes has r~cently ce~~ e~poi~ted to succeed Color.el Hubc&rd cs Chief of Arctic Projects, united tet-:.s .;e.E.ther 511.I6UU. nircreft accident at Alert On 31 ':ul:+ :950 an n.C.J...F. L(,.ncester e.ircIeft r85tc~ et the 'iec.ther station Alert, nc .... r C£.pe Sheriden, north ~llc~~ere Island, killing Colonel C.J. Eubberd of tte Ur.ited St:..tes ';eather Bureau, Dr. D.H. Kirk of the Gso- I r phicol Brench, Department of r ines snd Technical Surveys I a:1Ci the seven members of the crew. The crew were: .Ilc D. l'lench; "'10 T,:>. !'artin; F/L L.1. Ileclean; Flo J.R. Dube; I'lL J. F. 3\/1 nton; 3'10 J.E. McCutcheon; and LAC R.L. Sprange, The lancaster wes one of two, based at Greenwood, ~.3., used for lon(.-rt:I1[E ice reconnaissance by the joint supr1y mission to -~he northE:rn weather stetionEl. The aircraft was droppin£ Duppli€s to tte weather st£.tion Hhen 6 parachute CBu(ht in the tuil assembly c&u~ing the aircraft to crash. il.ll th occupants "''Jere :{illcd immediately and 'Jere buried et _16Tt. It had been intended th~t thoir bodies should bE" t.roll,1.t out, but & CC.nso -.ihieh ~~a5 sent r.orth for this t 51: hit Gome ice off th€> station Bnd ",-iCS damaGe.d; the Cl e',1 :-Jo;,l.# vc.r e.scaped safely. Colcr.el C.J. ::ubbard W<:t5 chief of ",Il,;tic Projects 1._ t~.e nited 3tates ,eather aur au, end t he tim€. of his ae:oth "'s t.c"ting e.s sc.:lior lJ.5 ..1.B. official on tte sup;ly .lssion. ?e had had considerable northern experiE.nce on the labrt.ojor ec~ c.uri!1.f. the ;.ar in the developu.ent of 3viLtior. f~cili~iea ir. tts F.udson Bey eres. He playeC e maJor rart in t~e setL:ng up end malnteinlng of the ~oint - . -~------lei. III :10.4 THE "RCTIC CIRCULAR 48 Cl,.;,m"c16n/United States \leather stations in the far north end t.ad teen on the 19LB expedition :,.j:ich chose the site !or .hIert. TI::.is station is tte cost northerl· permanent \.e~tl:e.r stotion in the world. It. as nBmed after Captain nares t are~ ship, the nlcrt J which wintered in the CGpe Sheridan in 1875. The stetion "oS established in npril of 1950 b)' airlift from Thule in GreEnland. Some stores Gnd equipment l".ad teen landed et the. 51te b:" the sU~fl:' mission in 1948, 3nd it h&d been hoped that the 1949 ~issicn ~ift.t 3ave succeeded in putting :n the st£tion. The CEn£dian Officer in Ct.arge is lOr. J.L. Lafrenchise end tte Uni'ted St.6t.es ~xecutive Officer is ··r. C.J. Clifton. .LJe6th of Joshua During the ",.tntor of 1950 Joshue Kimukjuak (Identi flection :::i50 :"0. E5-62 ) was lost \mile hunting \lBlrus ne&r Jens 1 un!:: Island. !·r. R. PlougJ-JlIlsn, post Ir..anager at Igloolik, ~s Escribed the inciaent in a letter to Mr. G.\!. Ro..,ley. loshue En~ sever£l other natives were hunting at the floe edGe \'then they shot a walrus on a lZlrge pan of ice. The p~n then moved out with the tide ta~ing the natives Bnd 'Lhc::ir aog-teams -/jith them. Fortunbtely there was a seVbre fros. stortly efte.T\;6rds and the gap bet.feen the pan ;..nd tLe floc. c.dee froze ovtr. Th€. ice \las very thin but all C:C6:-t Joshua decided to risk th€. crossing. "They were - _.lnr - chance I but mbnc.ged 6.1'tcr some miraculous escapes 0: f~lling through to r~ach the main ieu, but apparently Joshua, realizing the OBlIgor, decided to weit until the ice rot a bit thicker, but unfortunately thu "lind freshene.d and the new icE. broke up leeving no anchorage for tLE. pan. \1 '0 truce ~£s found of Joshua but onG or his dogs was later found aliVE in ttc vicinity of Kangmat (probably tha same pIece (.1$ .....uarman). Readers of the Circular will recall a similar hunting accident in Foxe B&sin 'f,hen rIve men and one boy ~.-ere ;I!srooned on the , . ------VOL.III NO.4 THb hRCTIC CIRCUL>.R 49 l:r. Flou€,r.man writes thbt the winter of 1949-50 bt Igloolik -.';us e:r.ceptionally 5evere J End thE.t it '.&5 the. c lcest ~~ had eVEr cncc~nt~rcd 1n t~e north country. u~ to L.t ciddle of August he ·,iE6.thbr !:: .... d con~inued bed b:1d ::.::. • :!.:. thc.re ",eye anI:' fOUT Dod dllj·S. Cor.d~~~on of th~ fish inland from ?ort e, erge lOr. T.R. ::a:u:inc sp ... r.t th 'Jo!1.ths of .June to 3cpte.;nbc.r studring thc; birds of t;as:~rn J!k.CS Ba~·. ,,'hile. he 'V55 st Fort George J :lr. 1horbur~I t~c ::udson t s Bar Compeny f s rost ~cnag(rJ told him thlt ttc Indians who tr~,ped a ~~ndrcd raill;.s or .r.::or£ inl5.:1d hed conplain~d L. t tr.E lake trout "(Ierl'::: e,rbduully decree. lnr: i:1 ell thl. L .. kcs. ~·r. l:anning intervi€.\/ed some of th£;se Indians tt..rQugh an interpreter J and leerncd that there hed been c cr5duol decreese in the fish of this inland ~e€ion over the ~£st ~en yEars. The re~orted hee~ily ~nfected lnciens -hE- risL J by internal ferasites, were freque~tlr found dead lon~ the edge of the lakes, .. nd thbt others cau ht in their net;s, \.ere also heavily infected and so - Bsted oS to be useless for food. These Indians supply a high percentage of the Fort George fur, enJ owing to the failure of the fishing ere findin~ it incr€.EJsingly di~ficult to maintain themselves inland near tt'.eir trtiplines. Hares are very scarce and in the winter ptarmigan is t~e only fooa '.lhich can be obtained besides fish. The Indians are therefore concentr[;.tine; on ptarmigan :luntiI1€. bnd this mey eventually cause ti reduction of these birds. 1. r. Thorburn hbs made arrangements to obtain some of the infected fish during the wint.er end to send them out by air in frozen stete for eXLmination. :::":'itorial r:ote i'he .r.ditor '.. ould ',;elcome contributions from thos.e who £re at present in the Arctic or hnv~ information about \/ork in tOoe Arctic. All materiol for tl.e Circular should be sent to: lrs. Greh~ Ro ..2..ey, Editor hrctic Circular, 411 I.e ho Dri ve, Ot ta\~e .,uthorize.:i as 3ecor.:} Class r Es11. ~os." C.1fice ::Jepartne:1t, etta·...e . --. THE A !< C TIC CIRCUL A R VOL.III NO.5 Published by The Arctic Circle NOV. 1950 Ottawa, Ontario Twenty-third h:eetin" of the !.rctic Circle The twenty-third meeting of the Arctic Circle was held in the 1st. Corps Troops R.C.i..S.C. Mess, 278 Sparks Street, on Thursday November 9. Because of unforeseen circumstances the lecture by Major J .ro.:. Berry on "R.C ...... S.C. tractor train to Ennadai Lake ff had to be postponed until later in the season. The Pres ident, ~.jr. Frank T. Davies) gave a short talk on the Canadien Polar Year Expedition of 1932-3 at Chesterfield, N.W.T., of which be was the leader. Mr. Davies illustrated his telk by slides which showed aspects of the geophysical work of the expedition at Chesterfield, Baker Lake, and Marble Island. These in cluded meteorological balloon and kite-meteorograph flights, magnetic and electrical observations, and auroral studies using a spectrograph and tHo-station photographic techniques for measuring the height of aurora. Several members of the Arctic Circle, present in the audience, appeared in the pictures as they were eighteen years ago. Zskioo Education. By H.T. L&rmour The education of 3skimo children in the arctic regions of Canada is the responsibility of the Northern Administration and Lands Br&nch, Department of Resources end Development, and comes under the jurisdiction of the Comrr1issioner of the North west Territories. On matters of policy the Administration is advised by a committee engaged in the study and planning of a distinctive system of education for the ~orth. - ---~.. VOL.III 1.0.5 THE ;,RCTIC CIRCULnR 51 This system must take into consideration the noma dic charbcter of the ~sklmo who move about in a pattern determined by the wildlife on which they depend. Eskimo children cannot follow a fixed school term as white children do and cannot observe strict school hours. They cannot em bark on a standardized course of studies leading up to and ending in the university, unless they abandon the Eskimo way of life, and this is not desired by anyone, least of all by the 3sk~10 themselves. Yet it is felt that they must, in their own interest and for their Q\'m protection, be taught to ,rrite, read, and speak Znglish; to do simple arithmetic; how to keep healthy; to appreciate the need for conservation of their wildlife resources, and to understand the nature of the social \/orld in "hich they will take their place. Six Eskimo schools are nm1 functioning in the Canadian ~ctic under the direction of the Northern hdministretion. These are at Coppermine, Cape Dorset, Fort Chima, Coral Harbour, Port Harrison, and Tuktoyaktuk. Sooe ~skimo chil dren also attend the Government school at Aklavik. The wives of teachers at Coppermine, Cape Dorset, Fort Chimo, and Coral Harbour operate health centres under the direction of the Oepertment of National Health and \ielfare and are, therefore, able to help their husbands in many different ways. This recent employment of married couples has proved to be a very happy arrangement for all concerned. The schools at Port Harrison and Tuktoyaktuk are blso run in conjunction vlith government health centres. In charge of the school and health centre at Copper mine are Mr. and N~s. D.B. Lord; at Cape Dorset, Mr. and Hrs. A.F. ~pplewhite; at Fort Chimo, Nx. and Mrs. K. Emondj and at Coral Harbour, r:r. and Mrs. \1.H. Copeland. The teachers at ?ort Harrison and Tuktoyaktuk are Miss 3 ••;. Hinds and 1.. iss D.L. Robinson respectively. Teachers employed in schools operated by the Department of Resources and Development are now, by the terms of a recent Order in Council, civil servants. They are classified as welfare teachers and their salaries are set according to their experience and qualifications. In addition to their salaries they receive the same northern living allov/Bnce as other employees of the Government in the north, that is ~900 a year for a sinele teachar and $1,500 for a married teacher or one with dependents living with him. The teachers are provided ~ith comfortable living quarters for \ihleh they are required to pay a small rent. --~------VOL. III NO.5 THE JJlCTICCIRCU LJ.R 52 In 1947 the first Government school for 3skimo was opened at Tuktoyaktuk in the hllgl1can Lission School bUilding, Imich had been acquired by Northern hdministration. The classroom 1s large, about LO feet by 18 feet. It con tains two space heaters and four low tables, each eight feet long, with benches on both sides. There 1s ample blackboard space all around the room, and, as there are two doors, this one room could be used as tHO classrooms if t.his \lere required. The room 1s bright and clean. There are no desks; the children of each gr~de sit around their own table and this creates a pleasant, Inrormal atmosphere. Attendance, however, is not dependable. AS ~iss Robinson observed in a recent report to the hrctic Division: " attendance 1s not compulsozy it 1s difficult to do much with parents \lho are not willing to listen to persuasion. In most cases it is not that the parent doas not wish the child to go to school, but that they are reluctant to force the child. If the child wishas to stay up all night and sleep all day, it is allowed to do so. ~lhile most of the parents are \:illing to co-operate, and the older children will themselves listen to reason, there are always the exceptions ..• 11 The school at Fort Chimo, a prefabricated building, was erected in October 1949. The "alls are of panel wood and the roof is of sheet aluminum. There is a small domes tic science room and one large classroom which can seat about fifty pupils. The school workshop is busy both night and day, and a number of koroatiks have been made for local Eskimo. The building is hea.ted by two spa.ce heaters, chemical toilets are supplied, and water is ob tained from spring-fed streams one and a half miles away in winter and a quarter of a mile aV/ay in summer. Power is supplied by Department of Transport equipment. At Coral Harbour the school \'las set up, prefabricated, in 1949. and the teacher was established there in 1950. The buildings are in a good location near a small lake and there are good playground facilities. The school is well equipped, and has four \.ash sinks, tV/O each for f'irls and boys, and washrooms \11th arctic chemical toilets. These toilets are built in and are cleaned and e~ptied from the outside of the building. There is electric wiring \/ith fluorescent fixtures for daylight lighting. The interior colour scheme was supplied by a child psychologist, and the paint is fire resistant. The building liaS designed to be heated by one or t\IO oil space heaters. . ----- VOL.III NO.5 THE ;,RCTIC cmCULAR 53 At Copper~lneJ e. ne\J school and health centre, com bined \.ith living quarters for the staff r \.as coa.pleted in 1950. The Esk~o in this region are al~ost en~lrely Do~adicJ and it is thought that, if this scbool is to be completely successful, it will eventually be necessary to provide accoc:lr.1odation at Copperrr.ine \Jhere children may stay \{hen it is not essential for then: to be ... ith their parents to learn the netive way of life. The prefabricated school bUilding erected Bnd opened at Cape Dorset in 1950 is on the same plan as the other pre fabricated school buildings. There are probably more ~skimo children \lithin reach of P0rt Harrison than at any other point in 3skimo territory, and it is expected that a school building will be rut up there next year. In the meant.ime, Liss Hinds has been operating from the health centre of the Department of National Eealth and .ielfare. She reports that after tbe ter~ had officially ended on Friday, June 30, the children all ret1ll'ned to the school the following Konday, say iug they did not wan holidays. "So J of course J I let them ir;.Il J she writes: "and I have been holding school ever since \lith a mIlch better attendance than there was in June!" To make education ~ttractive to the Eskimo, many different techniques are being employed, and of these probebly the most effective is the film strip used as the background for a lecture. Film strips and films have been used for some time, but it was only recently that a set of strips was cl'eated specially for Eskimo schools. A series of four films has now been produced: ltThe Eskimos and their tl FellO\I Canadians", f1Conservation of the Caribou , "Food for Esldmcs", and "Dogsu. These films are now being distributed to th~ welfare teachers at the six Eskimo schools. Of these, liThe Eskimos and their Fellow Canadians" is the principal film strip. It shol'ls tbe Eskimo what sort of people his fello~ Canadians are, some of their professions, and the orjgin of the materials and goods which the Eskimo receives in kind for Family r~lowances. If the experiment proves as a~ valuable officers of the Administration expect J the ~~~:e~ will be enlarged. The idea of using the film strip for the Eskimo was approved by the sub-comnittee on education which advises the North\.'est Territories Council on such probler:.s. The Council comoissioned Dr. Carter Storr of Otta\la to go north in 1949 to find out \mether visual education ~ould appeal to the Eskimo. The Eskimo responded readily. They entered into the spirit of the experiment, watched the artist while he sketched and \Jere eager to act as models and crttics. VOL. III NO.5 THE ARCTIC CIRCULAR 54 ~roc the prel~inary sketches the strips were later worked out in consultation with officers of the hdministra tion, the Cunadian :Iildlife Service, and the R.C.K.P. The drawings ,.ere c.esigned to supplement the third edition of the "Bock 0:' \lisdom f'Jr Eskimos" no\'~ being prepared by the Admlnlsti'8tion. Older Ssk~o do not show any great desire to learn ~nglish, but the children must be encouraged to use this language as we~l as their mother tongue in their daily living. This u~ll be a long and difficult task. The con tact with uhites is sa infrequent that the children, uhen they return to ~he c~p ~ro~ the school, easily forget their English a~d for fear 0f ridicule may be reluctant to use the speech of the wnite ~~. Their own language, both spoken and written, cerA serve thom \-:e11 enough for their mode of life today, hut it is mas,\; ce:r-tainly Dot always going to be su1'ficient. AS well as teaching his classes, a welfare teacher oust also organize activities \~hlch encourage a sense of communi~7 2.i:1'e. His -.lelfere work will take him from the classroom to the native homes in the settlements and in the campa \l~ere he li1unt attempt to encourage healthy living, handicraft work, recreational sports, and adult education. Port Harrison has been the centre of breat activity in the Administration's new experiment in handicraft among the EskiI'O. Althoue;h ~he motive for this experiment \las largely oconomic, it has obvious educational value. The Eskimo have always made certain articles for daily use, bowls, knives, and the like, and carved dolls and kayaks anQ animals for the amusement of their children. .ilian these were taken outside they became curiosities, sometimes objects of art. Eskimo skill in carving in ivory and soapstone had long been recognized and the Hudson I s Bay Company posts were always willing to put on sale any carvings that were broL'ght ~n to them. It remained for the Admini stra~ion end the Canadian Handicrafts Guild to encourage and advise thp- Eskimo end to foster an outside market. hSsisted by a substantial grant from the Government, the Guild sent ~. J8lJles A. Houston into the field. He visited the Fort Harrison, Fovungnituk, and Cape Smith areas duri the ~&rly part or 1950, end boUCht over 11,000 pieces. More than 53~enty-rive per ce t of the adult population took part in producing Hark and although not all of this 'was art, or even he ndicre.ft, some of the pieces revealed a strong creative spirit not ~itcout a sense of humour. This msterial --- VOL. III NO.; THE ARCTIC CIRCULAR 55 has been He:.1 received by the pUblic throug.~ various outlets of the Guild \-.hleh is C!u:rketing it on a non-profit basis in order th~t the gre&test benefits may be gQined by the J:skimo. Ttis handicrb.f't experiment illustrates the more practical si~e of ~skimo education. One of the attractions at Goverfllj.ent schools in the r~c~ic is the servine of a noonday lunch. This veries according to the supplies available, and may consist of only cocca. and biscuits. A pattern \~as set by Nurse hIldrews when she organized a Breakfast Club at Fort Harrison in 1949. The breakfast consisted of approximately three-quarters of a pint of hot rolled oats porridge, a pint of rich milk, cod liver oil, a vitamin pill, and one of the special hard-tack biscait.J ~;hich are su?plied for the 3skimo by the n.d.'!'lini stra.f;iO:l. 'II-ere \Jere 23 children, the youngest being 3, the oldest just under 16 years of age. SUbsequently, when an influenza epidemic hit that area, the children uho 'Nere attena:i:lg the Breakfast Club escaped except for a few who had I:!lil1"r symptoms. The ~ski.mo parents who survived \iere impresssd. In fltdition to the schools operated directly by the Norther:1 J.dmlnistration, there are also a munber of mission day schools in the J~ctic, operated by the Church of England, the Roa~n Cat~olic Church, end, in one case, by the Northern Canada =-,"<:.D£e1ica1 ~·.ission. The Federal Gove:cnment assists these s~~Gols by annual grants. lJ.1be Nortbern Iasect 3urvey for 1950. Ey T.N. Freemen This survey is a joint project of the Defence Research Board ane the Division of ~ntomoloGY of the Department of Jl.gric.ll~!... ~c. The main objectives involve the stud:' of the distribution, relative abundance, and systematics 0:" biting flies an0. ot..:_er insects indigenous to arctic and subarctic Canac.9.. Since the inauguration of the Northern Inse~~ durvey in 19L..7, a tot-al of 27 localities have been investigated. In lS50: pE.rties \Tere established at the follo\ling places: Fort Sim,son, Fort Smith, Cambridge Bay, Iiepulse Eay, Chester:'ield: Padlei, and Ssl\imo Point in the Northwest Territories, Bnd Gillum in Manitoba . .....pproximetely 125:000 insects \leI'S added to the Canadia'l :!etiontil Collection of Insects in 1950. These specimens represent many distribu~ional extensions and species ne~ to science. hlthough vast gaps still exist, ------VOL. III NO • 5 THE JJlCTIC cmCULnR 56 it is now practicable to prepare distributional maps for northern wosquitoes, tabanids J and black flies. Relative abundance maps for biting flies throughout ~ost of the north are oml available. The taxonomy of cosquitoes has been sUfficiently developed so that most of the species caD be accurately identified from either larvae or adults. Consequently the laborious and time-consuming task of in dividual re~ring is no longer necessary and it is possible to carry out more adequate sampling of the larval and adult populations of any northern locality. The general collections have added considerably to our knowledge of the insects, and some important principles of insect distribution have become apparent. No exceptions have been found to the hypothesis that all phytophagous insects (except minor intrusions) indigenous to the barrens are specifically distinct from those indigenous to the coni ferous tree zone to the south. Furtheroore, the collections provide considerable evidence that the barren land species invaded that area mainly frore a Pleistocene refugium that !!lust have existed \lest of the .ackenzie River delta in northern Alaska and Siberia. npproxlmately 50 per cent of all barren land species appear to ex~end into Siberia. Some of these species extend south\/ard in the Cordilleran mountain system to alpine regions of Colorado; and in the east, isolated populations extend south to similar regions in the Presidential Range of !lew Hampshire. JU1 invasion from the northwest of a fa\; species of the coniferous forests took place after the Pleistocene glaciation. ~1ithin the coniferous zone there are further distributional subdivisions. These principles may be applied to all in sect groups and are fundamental to an appraisal and the solution of the biting-fly problem in northern Canada. Films of the Zastern Arctic to be produced by the National Film Board Over the past few years many thousands of feet of uovie film have been exposed in the Canadian 3astern hTctic, the greater part during the s~er months. ~.ost all of it has been shot by axateurs, \mo have cone north to do specific jobs and hav9 taken movies in their spare moments. Some of the footage obtained has been excellent, a good deal fair, and so~e very bad. Throughout all the footaee there is a lack of continuity. The only complete regional or seasonal films shot have been made for the OepartQent of National Defence, or made by professional cameramen of the silent movie era. VOL.III NO.5 TfE iJlCTIC CIRCULAR 57 \l'ith the increased activity and interest in the hl'ctlc it is important that ther"3 should be an accurate and complete record of the country and of the 3skimo. In order to ffiake a coordinated series of films during the arctic year, the National Film board has sent a crew of three to spend the period July 1950 to September 1951 in the Cam::.dian 3astern ...... retio. Script outlines have been prepared for the follmling list of films, which it is hoped will be shot in the course of the year: The Eskimo The EskiLO Child The Netural Economy of the hrctic hrctic I,'eather Station Birds in the nxctic Arctic Settlement The entire film coverage will be on 16 rom. Koda chrome stock. 16 mo. rather than the usual 35 mm. film was chosen because of the difference in bulk and weight of the stock and equipment. Providing it is shot ~ith good 16 ~. C8.Lleras and lenses, Kodachrome can be blmm up to 35 rom. quite satisfactorily. The production unit, consisting of ~.:.r. D. \dlkinson, director j LT. Jean Roy, camerman; and holrs. O. ,; ilkinson, cook-business manager, left Montreal for Chesterfield Inlet on July 6 aboard the Regina Polaris. jd'ter setting up their beadquarters in an abandoned house at Chesterfield thei!" plan, which is very flexible, calls for a trip to Baker L'ke in August to photograph the inland caribou hunt. In September the walrus hunt by Peterhead boat to the north of Chesterfield should provide a good sequence. October and November are to be spent at Chesterfield where coverage can be ro&de of the freeze-up period and, as soon as travelling improves, interior scenes can be shot in nearby camps for the film ""S5kimo Child". It is possible that a trip to Churchill may be desirable in February for consultation with the Film Board. Larch will again be spent \Iith the Caribou Eskimo, completing interior and exterior shots of \dnter activities inland from Eskimo Foint. In april the pa,ty hopes to fly to Pond Inlet, and to spend the next two months in Navy Board Inlet gathering coverage on seal hunting. June and July will be devoted to photographing the flora and fauna, and in n.ugust the break-up period !:J.nd the natives congregating at the post for shiptime will be filmed. The party plans to return in the C.D. ErnIe from Pond Inlet, some time in September. VOL.III NO.5 TH3 hRCTIC CIRCuL<~ 58 Pribilof Fur Sealing Orerations, 1950 In the e~rly sumcer of ISSO two serious fires ham pered prer~ratlons for fur sealing operations on the Pribilof Islunds. On June 3 a fire occurred on the tender ienauin 'hila the vessel ,.as moored at 3eattle preparing for a sC:ledulec dej..srture for tta islands on June 13. No one \'.as aLoard the vessel at the time rI8JLes \/ere detected and the fire had geined considerable head,rey before fire-fighting eq,uipnent could be brought into operution. I~ost of the s~~erstructure :ms burned autl resulti g in damage esti- ':. .. t.ed at bet\/een *.>50,000 Bnd 'ir'75,OOO • ... ortunately J the U.S. Fish end ,dldlife Service \teS ~ble to obtuin a suitLble surplus vessel from the ~.S. ~my very snort not.ice. On June 12, the replacen:er.t vessel, Lt f:,,·"..... or.d Zussman J "-ias Itade available and departed for the is_Bnds on June 17 with essen~ia1 personnel and supplies fOI the seasonts sealing operations. The ~ussman is a sorr.euhat larger vessel of 540 gross ~ons as compared with the ~94-c.on Pew;::uin. It is planned that the Zussn:.an viill bp. reconditioned durir.g the ,;inter to serve &5 ~he permanent supply ~ender for the Fribilof Islands. The Pen~uin had served as supply tender for the Pribilof Islands since 1930, and ,"as a farr.iliar sight to residen~s of the Territory, par t 1c ultlrl:' l::1long the ....laska Peninsula and the hleutian Chain. The second fire occurred on St. George Island early on the morning or June 8, and resulted in the destruction of all or the buildings used in the curing and barrelling of skins on the island. The automotive equipment garage, !r.e-chine shop, and cement house were destroyed, as well as the sealblcin wash house, blubber shop, salt house and barrulling shop. A supply of barrels, salt, and essential sealing equipment "'las transferred from the neighbouring lsland of ~t. Paul, forty miles away, and a warehouse and other buildinrs \'/ere converted for use in the curing and oarrelling of skins taken this season. Approximately twenty per cent of the annual take of sealskins is obtained on St. Ceorge Island. The take of skins on that island in the past season \Ja3 not materially reduced as a result of the fire J although it \'laS necessary to suspend sealing operations for _vU~ Quys e~rly in the season because of a shortage of salt. The damage by fire on St. George Isl&nd \laS estimated at ~~OJOOO and action is being tuken to replace buildiGgs and e1uipffient before next Silla~er. The causes of ~he t\;O fires hE.. ve not as yet been 4et~r~ined, b~t it seems probable, at least in the case of G~orge da~ \~S the 3t. Isla_d fire J that the e the result d de~ective \,irir,g in one of the buildlc<;s. Fortunately tl:ere \;03:-e no injuries to personnel ir. either fire. VOL. II:!: !b . 5 THE ARCTIC CIRCULAR 59 T~e tctal take of sealskins on the Fribilof Islands in .950 :a5 '.0,0')0, me-de up of 48,696 on St. paul Island nd 11, )9/, C:1 St. George Island. This figure is substan t~a:'.y l:"'s~ .ha!i the t.otal of 70 , 991 obtained Inst year. ll'he '1.VC: C c'mu-..J. tflkn for the past ten yee.rs has been ~S,~90 _ il~tins. ArJarently the relatively SKell take of skins ";.~.:.. :/e6.1· can ta at'tributed to norm&l fluctuations in the ro")\,la\":lon of the herd. The stabilization of the annual ttlke :.f . ·~lr.3 at abov;;. 67,000 indicates that the ii.laska fur ~~a_ he... ~ :.;:3 p:-obabl:T reached its C"18xi.r.um size. )eoJ - j ~ertle :s'ands. By Frank T. Davies and i;rahE-~I:;W'_€J ...,., 1. ~annir..."':' in his talk to the JU'ctic Circle on the 19':"9 ex .J( it~cm to tl:~ new islands in Foxe Basin, mentioned ~ ~L,!! ~.tJz:.l~d ~y fin-:_!'.g a b!'8ss rod cemented into the rock 0:1 neair.~n Island. ':'~2.s rod was a marker for a magne~i~ site 1'}.:'('Jp~e.. (J Fran;.. T. Davies in 19JJ, ':"hen he ,...as at C;'es~ }!'fldl.~ during tt.e Canadian Polar Year Expedition. D')E::.d.man and. .1.9.::" ble is:;'ands he va both been connected .lith r::~:':'. ~:' l~""er- a.s \1('J1 as with the magnetic survey of J".:i0::"':' ::" -~ ~ ~t t~..lL.Gs. ;01:e forty mil~s southwest of the entrance to (,hes!.e,,;;'fi:.:':' !n13t ':In 'the north\lest shore of Hudson Bay lieJ ':l'~ "I:.·3.~-::.ile s:..rctch of quartzite, ' :.!erb~e Island is well-known to the Eskimo and is treated by t:tem \;ith respect. Boasl • records the ZSkimo legend tnat I;1n olden tiaas t.:arble Island was a low black rock on .. hl('h the ice used t.o be piled up. One day a \ll'lc\l \/b.3 looking out to sea. .Iben she gazed at the piles of lce, the ice became displeased, and \185 turned into stone. r\ hele which the \/8ter had m~lted through the ice may b~ sp.en in the rock at the present day. rfuen the people go to tt.":'3 islend in \/lnter J they step from their sledges a short distance from the shoretend crs\.'l up on their elbows th~ and knva. .rhen they visit the 151£.:.od in slIlll!!ler J they do the sf'lt:1e, a~"';er landing. II l':nud Rasmussen . spoke to an =~:.~o \;03'60 \;ho had ..:..ived on 1..arble Isle-nd when she was a oirl: "Th\:_-s \iere nar-y people there at ~hat time, and life was very ~~sing. The men often had boxing matches, and ther~ ~ere r~eat song feasts at ~hich all were assembled•••• I re::emt.er -ehs first time \Ie came to that island, we had to crawl up on tc the laT,d, and \lere not allCMed to stand up right u:.til \"Ie I'eeched the tor. That was done then, and it is done to this day, for the Island is a sacred place; magic \,ords r:::lce it, and if \-.e do not sha", respect for it by crawl ing it \'::11 change to ice again, and all the people on it will fall through and drm-m. II "," C:lg the f6\J white visitors to these islands during the past e.ighty years h&ve been three mbgnetic survey ob serv~r~. In 183/. ~.R. Gordon, in 1912 VI. E. ,I. Jackson, and in 1933 Fra:l~-: '1. Davies, made magnetic observb.tions on Deadman Islan1. Llt~l~ change in magnetic values occurred between 1884 a0d 191, but durin" the following twenty-one years the compass d~rection changed five degrees farther to the west and tha l'lCli!1atior. decreased from 87016' in 1912 to 860 )7' in 19;). Tnis ir.dicated that the position of tha North ~agnetic role changed little during the earlier period but moved we.5t and r.or~h during the later period. Rees in 15)1 8'ld Mlundsen in 1905 found the l,:agnatic Pole in mt~~h the s~me ilosition, nebr the \Jest coast of Booth ia ?eJ"linsula. It.G. ; ;adill and his colleagues of the Dominio~ Observ~tory have shown that the position of the f..agnstic. Fo!.~ ir. 1948 ':Jas nearly t\IO hundred miles nortb northwest of its old p)sition. It thus appears that the lOBoes, F. ';The 3ski~0 of Baffin Land and Hudson Bayll. Bull. !"',or : us. Not. Riot. Vol. 15 (1901) p. 151. 2 "RaS::lU3Sen, 1:. ":nte1lectual culture of the Ig1u1ik Es~d_reo311. .{eport of the Fifth Th 1e Expedition 1921-24, Vol. 7, :0. 1, Copanhagac, 1929, pp. 26-7. VOL.III HO.5 THE 1UlCTIC CmCULl North t:agnetic Pole rel!.ained in much the same position through the ~reater p&rt of the nineteenth and at least the 1 irst decade of the twentieth century. SOtte time after 1912 and efore 1933 the drift to the north-northwest began. The .l:.I.B;:netic observatory recently established at rtesolute, on Corm:allis Island, \.ill afford a cheer: on th3 futuxe drift of the ·orth ~gnetic Pole, no~ only soce 150 miles to the southwest. The "Sauna" at _esolute Bav • Lr. ,;alter liei:tldla I '·ho is employed by the r~ational TIesearc~ Council J built a steam bath at Resolute Bay early in the sumner and has sent us the following note describing its construction and use. ~.r. Heikkila is such an enthusiast that he h&5 the birch t,Tigs to which he refers flown in from Ontario. The tlsaunall J or Finnish steam bath, is very cOllU:lon awonF FirulS J each family usually having its own, especially on farms or at summer cottages. JUt.ong most other nationali ties, though, and especially in the Canadian hIctic J it seems to be somewhat of an oddity. The stea_'1 room has to be \Jell built and insulE-ted to l:ccp the heat in. Line is built of 93 packing boxes, each 10 inches x 11 inches x 31 inches, used in the manner of' bricks. The boxes arc filled \lith r;ravel for insulation and weight. The walls are lined hlith tarpl:l.per and then covered \'ith 1 inch boards. Tho roof is Gouble, \'Iith fiber glass for inSUlation, and tarpaper and a tarpaulin for water proofinG. The inside dil'lenslons are 8 1r'Jl'lt x 8 feet :r 6 feet, a bit small as saunhS go. In one cor-ner- there is a "lduas"J or furnace, con sisting of one 45 calIon drum on its side J split open along its top, containlp~ a 5 gallon dru~ 1'i .ed up as a firepot. JUol:nd tJ:is :f ir~pot are pIeced stones bnd odd pieces of iron J held close to the firepot ty the outer drum. In t\/O 01 three hours a \,,::od fire heats tIle rocks to a high ter::.pera ture. ,ater is then thrO\In a!". tl.-s locks J and steBI:! is ireoedia~ely formed. On the o,~ositc side of the rooe is a raised pla~forn \:her~ the ba~her can sit E.nd take the steam. The steam is very hot J and there is So little ~oisture in tIe air that there is no mist or fog. The hottest \Ie have had it is 166°F. It is a YinniaL custom to beet oneself in the salina \. i tn a "vasta"J a bunch of birch tWigs J \lith th~ le~vcs on the~J of a size that can be ~asily grasped in VOL.III HO.5 THE ARCTIC CIRCULJJl 62 one hand. The t\ligs are first softened by putting theiD. on the hot rocks and thrO\dng water on them. They emit a delightful smell. The beating Is done when the te~~er£ture gets high, End it stimulates perspiration. hfter this it is possible to go outside for several minutes Hithout feeling cold at 30 degrees below. The explanation, I believe, Is that there is a layer of "arm air next to the skin. It is also a ellston to roll in the saml, or swim in cold \/6ter, after the bath. You are welcoce to try the sauna any t~e you h~ppen to be around Resolute! Editorial Hote The Sdlter is very pleased to report that she is nO\l being assisted by t:iss t..argaret i.urray. The :!:ditor would \ielcome contributions from those who are at present in the Arctic or have information about work in the hrctic. hll material for the Circular should be sent to: Mrs. Graharu RO\JleYJ Sdltor Arctic Circular, 411 Echo Drive, Ottawa ~uthorized as Second Class Uall. Post Office Department. Ottawa THE "HCTIC CIRCULAR VOL. III HO. 6 Tublished by The ~ctic Circle DEC. 1950 Otta\la, Ont&.rio T\'~enty-fourth ~:~etiM of the JU'ctic Circle The Tl/lenty-fourth 1~:eetinB of the .hI'otic Circle v;as held in the 1st. Corps Troops iLC .rI...:i. C. : ,ass, 27& SpfLrl::s atreet, on Thursday December 14. The President I r,'ir. Frank Davies, "'las in the Chair and made a few introductory remarks before the U.S.N. film I1Silent Land". This film was tE.l:en on Operation l~ighjump, the United States Naval e"pedition to the Anturctic (luring the winter of 1946-47. A sketc~ of road development in the Yu!.:on TerritoryI. By H.S. Bostock2 The cO~:1pletion of the new mlnlng road from \.lhitehorse to ~ayo vms recently announced by the Hon. ~obert H. Winters, 1inister of the Department of Resources and Development. This road, built by the Federal Government, is a great step forHard and calls to mind stories and memories of the roads of fONner days Hhich Vlere in part forerunners of this latest step towards a trunk road to develop the interior of the Yu!~on Territory. Before the discovery of the Dondike gold, I:inter travel in the :u~ron Has \lith dog-teams along the rivers and the route to tho Itoutside" led up the Yulcon River and thence 1 Published by permission of the Director-General of Scientific Services, De,art;-Jent of 1:1neo$ Qnd Technical Surveys, Otta'\lia. Geological Survey of Canada.