When Lieutenant Rawson met them, he found the intrepid Beaumont straining at the sledge, with the two sick men helping him as much as they could, while on the sledge lay the four helpless invalids, made as comfortable as circumstances would permit. No time was lost in removing them to Polaris Bay, where, under medical treatment, all recovered save one. After a brief rest at Polaris Bay the journey back to the _Discovery_ was successfully carried out, and Lieutenant Beaumont had the pleasure of learning that his expedition had added considerably to the geographical knowledge of Northern Greenland. Shortly after the return of the sledge parties the _Alert_ rejoined the _Discovery_, and, towards the end of August, both vessels weighed anchor and started for England, where they arrived on November 2, 1876, having been absent for seventeen months, during which time they had carried the British flag to the "farthest North," and had brought within the knowledge of man localities previously unknown. They had not reached the Pole, and had come to the conclusion, after their experiences, that to do so was beyond the range of human possibility. CHAPTER VI THE GREELY EXPEDITION The Scheme of the Expedition--Fort Conger--Arctic Wolves--Atmospheric Marvels--A Terrific Storm--Influence of the Sun--Lieutenant Lockwood's Expedition--The Second Winter--Preparations for Departure--They leave Fort Conger--A Remarkable Ice Passage--They fail to make Cape Sabine--A New Camp--Rations running Short--Fruitless Efforts to reach Food Depôts--Starvation and Death--A Bitter Blow--The Arrival of the _Thetis_. In 1881 the Government of the United States determined to send out another expedition towards the North Pole, and a vote of $25,000 having been passed by Congress for the purpose, Lieutenant Adolphus Washington Greely was appointed to the command. Lieutenant Greely, who was an officer in the 5th Cavalry regiment, had, as his companions, three officers and twenty-one men selected from the United States army. The scheme of the expedition was to proceed by steamer as far north as Lady Franklin Bay, where they were to form a depôt on Grinnel Land, and, using it as a base, push forward, by means of dog-sledges over the ice, and by steam launch over the open water, as far north as it was possible to get.