122 



THE OCEAN. 



ice-islands to moor the ship to them in storms, carry- 

 ing an anchor upon the ice, and inserting the fluke 

 in a hole made for the purpose. In the state just 

 alluded to, such is the brittleness of the substance, 

 that one blow with an axe is sometimes sufficient to 

 cause the immense mass to rend asunder with fearful 

 noise, one part falling one way, and another in the 

 opposite, often swallowing up the ill-fated mariner, 

 and crushing the gallant bark. 



Ship beset in Ice. 



Contact with floating icebergs, when a ship is 

 under sail, is highly dangerous. From the coolness 



