>779- -polite continent, we continued, during the afternoon o f the 21 ft
»... — < o f July, to fleer to the Weft North Weft, through much loofe
Wednef. **' ice. At ten at night, difcovering the main b o d y o f it through
the fo g , right ahead, and almoft clofe to us, and being u nw illin
g to take a Southerly courfe, fo long as we could poflibly
avoid it, we hauled our wind, w hich was Eafterly, and flood
to the .N o rthw a rd ; but, in an hour after, the weather clearin
g up, and finding ourfelves furrounded by a compacSt field
o f ice, on every fide, except to the South South Weft, we
tacked, and flood on in that diredion, in order to get clear
o f it.
Thurfdayzz-. . .At noon o f the 2zd, our latitude, b y .obfervation, was
6 / 30', and longitude 18-7° 30'. In the afternoon, we again
came up with the ice, w hich extended to the North Weft and
South Weft, and obliged us to continue our courfe to the
Southward, in order to weather it.
It m a y b e remarked, that fince the 8th o f this month, we
had twice traverfed this fea, in lines nearly parallel w ith the
run we had juft now m a d e ; that in the firft o f thofe tra-
-verfes, w e were not able to penetrate fo far North, by eight
or ten leagues, as in the fecond ; and that in the laft we had
a g jin found an united body o f ice, gen erally about five
leagues to the Southward o f its pofition in the preceding
run. As this proves that the large, com p ad fields o f ice,
w hich we faw were moveable, or diminiihing 5 at the
fame time, it does not leave any well-founded expectation
o f advancing much farther in the moil favourable
fea fons...
At feven in the evening, the weather being h a zy , and no
ice in fight, we bore away to the Weftward; but, at h a lf
p a ll eight, the fo g difperling, we found ourfelves in the
midft
midft o f loofe ice, and clofe in w ith the main b o d y ; w e y^9;
therefore Hood upon a wind, w h ich was Hill Eafterly, and c.— y—
kept beating to windward during the n ight, in hopes o f
wea th ering the loofe pieces, w h ich the frelhnefs o f the
w in d k ept drivin g down upon us in fuch quantities, that
w e were in' manifeft danger o f b eing blocked up b y them.
In the morning o f the 23d, the clear water, in w hich we **
continued to Hand to and fro, did not exceed a mile and a
h a lf, and was every inftant leflening. At length, after
u fin g our utmoft endeavours to clear the loofe ice, we were
driven to the neceffity o f forcing a paffage to the Southward,
Which, at h a lf paft feven, we accomplilhed, but not w ith ou
t fubjeiiling the ihip to fome ve ry fevere ihocks. The
Difcovery was lefs fuecefsful. For, at eleven, when they
had n igh got clear,,out, ihe became fo entangled by feveral
la rge pieces, that her w a y was Hopped, and immediately
dropping bodily to leeward, ihe fell, broadfide foremoft, on
the edge o f a confiderable body o f i c e ; and having, at the
fame time, an open fea to windward, the fu r f caufed her to
ilrik e violently upon it. T h is mafs at length either fo far
broke, or moved, as to fet them at liberty to make another
trial to efcape ; but, unfortunately, before the ihip gathered
w a y enough to be under command, ihe again fe ll to leeward
on another fra gm e n t ; and the fwell makin g it unfafe
to lie to windward, and finding no chance o f ge tting clear,
they puihed into a fmall opening, furled their fails, and
made fa ll with ice-hooks.
In this dangerous fituation we faw them at noon, about;
three miles from us, bearing North Weft, a fie ill gale from
the South Eaft driving more ice to the North Weft, and in-
creafing the body that la y between us. Our latitude, b y
V o l . III. L I account,