One man is incapacitated from work by having his back sprained in lifting; another is rendered useless by having his ancle sprained in falling; the freezing of the fingers and toes of others renders them almost helpless; and the vital energies of the whole party are so lowered by exposure to the cold that they are barely capable of attending to their own immediate necessities, without harboring a thought of exerting themselves to complete a journey to which they can see no termination, and in the very outset of which they feel that their lives are being sacrificed. [Sidenote: THE CONCLUSION.] It is, therefore, in consideration of the condition of my men, that I have been forced to the conclusion that the attempt to cross the Sound with sledges has resulted in failure; and that my only hope to accomplish that object now rests in the schooner. Having the whole of the season before me, I think that I can, even without steam, get over to Cape Isabella, and work thence up the west shore; and, even should I not be able to get as far up the Sound as I once hoped, yet I can, no doubt, secure a harbor for next winter in some eligible position. Coming to this conclusion, I have determined to send back the men, and I have given McCormick full directions what to do, in order that the vessel may be prepared when the ice breaks up and liberates her. He is to cradle the schooner in the ice by digging around her sides; repair the damage done last autumn, and mend the broken spars, and patch the sails. For myself, I stay to fight away at the battle as best I can, with my dogs. The men have given me twenty-five days of good service, and have aided me nearly half way across the Sound with about eight hundred pounds of food; and this is all that they can do. Their work is ended. [Sidenote: ONE MORE EFFORT.]