274 NOTES ON THE BOTANY 
siderably to the northward of where we made it last year. 
We pursued our way through it very well, till the 23rd, when 
the ice became thick and heavy, and we were unable to get 
on, except a few miles now and then, by boring and shoving 
along with poles. We crossed the Antarctic circle on the 
31st, both ships made fast, at the same time, to one floe. We 
saw the old year out and the new year in, on the ice between 
the vessels ; and on the evening of the 1st, had a ball there, 
and kept up the dancing till three in the morning. So you 
see that, while blocked up by frost on every side, we had 
some fun; but that was the first and the last of it. We cast 
off occasionally, but were obliged to make fast again. 
On the 18th of January, we cast off, and on the 20th, en- 
countered a very heavy gale with a tremendous swell, which 
rendered our situation for thirty-six hours truly perilous; it 
was more like the effect of an earthquake, than being tossed 
about by the sea; the immense blocks of ice threatening, as 
it were, to grind us to powder. Indeed, no ordinarily built 
ship could have stood it for an hour. Soon after the com- 
mencement of the gale, the Erebus had her rudder rendered 
useless, by the head of it being wrung, and ours was com- 
pletely torn from the stern-post, although the fastenings were 
the same size as those used in line-of-battle ships. There we 
were, two shipsin an unknown sea, drifting about at the mercy 
of the winds and, I may say, of the ice, without being in the 
slightest degree able to assist ourselves. Fortunately, the 
gale moderated and the swell went down so rapidly, that the 
next day we were enabled to make fast and repair damages. 
We had a spare rudder, and after great difficulty, succeeded 
in shipping it, although only half so secure as it was before. 
We experienced no other damage of consequence; a great 
deal of copper was stripped off, though some of it was thrice - 
the thickness of that generally used ; also, everything that in 
the least protruded from the sides, was torn away. How- 
ever, in a couple of days, we set all to rights, and were ena- - 
bled to proceed; and to our great delight, on the 2nd of | 
February, got into open water, haying been upwards of six 
