Davis—Intercourse with the Natives—His Reports concerning Whales, &c.—The Merchants Aroused—Opening of the Whaling Trade—Maldonado’s Claim to the Discovery of the North-West Passage CHAPTER XIV. THE VOYAGES OF BARENTS. North-Eastern Voyages of the Dutch—Barents reaches Nova 129 Zembla—Adventures with the Polar Bears—Large Trading Expedition organised—Failure of the Venture—Reward Offered for the Discovery of a North-East Passage—Third Voyage—Dangers of the Ice—Forced to Winter on Nova Zembla—Erection of a House—Intense Cold—Philosophical Dutchmen—Attacks from Bears—Returning Spring—The Vessel Abandoned—Preparations for a Start—The Company Enfeebled and Down-hearted—Voyage of 1,700 miles in Two Small Boats—Death of Barents and Adrianson—Perils of Arctic Navigation—Enclosed in the Ice—Death of a Sailor—Meeting with Russians—Arrival in Lapland—Home once more—Discovery of the Barents Relics by Carlsen—Voyages of Adams, Weymouth, Hall, and Knight CHAPTER XV. VOYAGES OF HUDSON AND HIS SUCCESSORS. Henry Hudson’s Voyages—Projected Passage over the Pole—Second 144 Expedition—A Mermaid Sighted—Third Voyage in the Dutch Service—Discovery of the Hudson River—Last Voyage—Discovery of Hudson’s Bay—Story of an Arctic Tragedy—Abacuk Pricket’s Narrative—Their Winter Stay—Rise of a Mutiny—Hudson and Nine Companions Set Adrift and Left to Die—Retribution—Four of the Mutineers Killed—Sufferings from Starvation—Death of a Ringleader—Arrival in Ireland—Suspicious Circumstances—Baffin’s Voyages—Danish Expeditions to Greenland—Jens Munk and his Unfortunate Companions—Sixty-one Persons Starved to Death—Voyage of Three Survivors across the Atlantic—An unkingly King—Death of Munk—Moxon’s Dutch Beer-house Story—Wood and Flawes—Wreck of Wood’s Vessel—Knight’s Fatal Expedition—Slow Starvation and Death of the whole Company—The Middleton and Dobbs’ Agitation—£20,000 offered for the Discovery of the North-West Passage CHAPTER XVI. EXPEDITIONS IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. Paucity of Arctic Expeditions in the Eighteenth Century—Phipps’ 154 Voyage—Walls of Ice—Ferocious Sea-horses—A Beautiful Glacier—Cook’s Voyage—A Fresh Attempt—Extension of the Government Rewards—Cape Prince of Wales—Among the Tchuktchis—Icy Cape—Baffled by the Ice—Russian Voyages—The two Unconquerable Capes—Peter the Great—Behring’s Voyages—Discovery of the Straits—The Third Voyage—Scurvy and Shipwreck—Death of the Commander—New Siberia—The Ivory Islands CHAPTER XVII. THE EXPEDITIONS OF ROSS AND PARRY. Remarkable Change in the Greenland Ice-Fields—Immense Icebergs 162 found out of their Latitudes—Ross the First’s Expedition—Festivities among the Danes—Interviews with Esquimaux—Crimson Snow—A Mythical Discovery—The Croker Mountains—Buchan’s Expedition—Bursting of Icebergs—Effects of Concussion—The Creation of an Iceberg—Spitzbergen in Summer—Animated Nature—Millions of Birds—Refuge in an Ice-pack—Parry and his Exploits—His Noble Character—First Arctic