n August 20, the Inuit
man whom they had engaged as pilot was taken ashore in the ship's
boat to get his kayak.
The five sailors manning the boat were
instructed to set him ashore in sight of the ship, but they rowed
around a point of land to the Inuit village. Neither they nor the
ship's boat were seen again by the English.
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"After great curtesie, and manye meetings, our Mariners,
contrarie to their Captaines dyrection, began more easily to
trust them, and fiue of our men going a shoare, were by them
intercepted with their boate, and were neuer since hearde of
to this day againe."
(George Best's account of the 1576 voyage)
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Frobisher anchored and sailed nearby for two days, firing cannons
and blowing trumpets to recall the men. Unsuccessful in this, he
tried another tactic. After luring an Inuit man close to the ship,
Frobisher picked him and his kayak from the water and held him
hostage for the return of his men. The kidnapping did not have
the success that Frobisher hoped.
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The First Hostage
By Francis Back
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"But these foolish men, being five of them in all in the bote,
having set on land this stranger at the place appointed: the
capitayn being in the ship saw them quietly put of their bote,
and immediately contrary to his commandment and charge geven they
rowed furder beyond that poynt of the land owt of his sight, and
there landed iij of them, and the other twayn rested in the bote a
little from the land so as he saw them agayn, to whom owt of the
ship they made signes and noyse as well as they could to call them
to the ship.
And immediately these two men with the bote rowed into the land
agayn to their fellowes owt of his sight, and after that hower
he never saw them, nor could hear anything of them. And thus
the capitayn having lost his bote and five of his best men, to
his great discomfort he still remayned with the ship there at
anker all that day and next night hoping to here of them agayn.
But he could not here or know anything of them: and thereby he
iudged they were taken and kept by force."
(Michael Lok's account of the 1576 voyage)
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