130 LETTERS FROM HIGH LATITUDES. [VIII. 



leagues off, bearing West by North, while between us and 

 the land stretched a continuous breadth of floating ice. 

 The hummocks, however, seemed to be pretty loose with 

 openings here and there, so that with careful sailing I thought 

 we might pass through, and perhaps on the farther side of 

 the island come into a freer sea. Alas ! after having with 

 some difficulty wound along until we were almost abreast 

 of the cape, we were stopped dead short by a solid rampart 

 of fixed ice, which in one direction leant upon the land, 

 and in the other ran away as far as the eye could reach into 

 the dusky North. Thus hopelessly cut off from all access 

 to the western and better anchorage, it only remained to 

 put about, and — running down along the land — attempt to 

 reach a kind of open roadstead on the eastern side, a little 

 to the south of the volcano described by Dr. Scoresby : 

 but in this endeavour also we were doomed to be disap- 

 pointed ; for after sailing some considerable distance through 

 a field of ice, which kept getting more closely packed as 

 we pushed further into it, we came upon another barrier 

 equally impenetrable, that stretched away from the island 

 toward the Southward and Eastward. Under these cir- 

 cumstances, the only thing to be done was to get back to 

 where the ice was looser, and attempt a landing wherever 

 a favourable opening presented itself. But even to extricate 

 ourselves from our present position, was now no longer of 

 such easy performance. Within the last hour the wind had 

 shifted into the North- West ; that is to say, it was now blow- 

 ing right down the path along which we had picked our 

 way; in order to return, therefore, it would be necessary 

 to work the ship to windward through a sea as thickly 

 crammed with ice as a lady's boudoir is with furniture. 

 Moreover, it had become evident, from the obvious closing 

 of the open spaces, that some considerable pressure was 

 acting upon the outside of the field ; but whether originating 

 in a current or the change of wind, or another field being 

 driven down upon it, I could not tell. Be that as it might, 

 out we must get, — unless we wanted to be cracked like a 



