After the wars were over, Franklin began the study of science. But land life was dull for him, and he longed for the dangers and excitement of the sea. When word came that he had been chosen by the government to go in search of the North Pole, he was unspeakably happy. Soon two strong vessels were ready for the voyage. The command of the Dorothea was given to Captain Buchan, while Franklin, with the rank of lieutenant, was put in command of the Trent. Their orders were to proceed northward between the islands of Spitzbergen and Greenland, and if they found the sea free from ice, to push ahead directly for the North Pole. Should they succeed in finding the pole, they were, if possible, to return by way of Bering strait, and thus prove the existence of a northwest passage.
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Glacier, English Bay, Spitzbergen.
The ships sailed out of the Thames river April 25, 1818. On May 10 they crossed the Arctic circle, and Franklin
