88 DRIFTING TOWARDS LAND. 



It was now the 7th of September, and, with so 

 premature a winter, I could not fail to be more 

 than ordinarily anxious about our situation. I 

 was aware that Sir E. Parry had been within a 

 few miles of the same spot on the 17th of the 

 same month on his return to England ; but at that 

 time the temperature — the season — in short, every 

 thing was different; whereas we were lying power- 

 less as a log, and nothing was left to my choice 

 but to sail through the first favourable opening 

 that offered. So much snow had fallen, that the 

 better part of the forenoon was taken up in 

 clearing it from the decks. At noon, the wind 

 had veered to N. E. by E., which was dead on 

 the land. Soundings were found with one 

 hundred and fifty-five fathoms. Temperature 

 29° + . Soon after, there was a perceptible move- 

 ment in the ice near us. At first, I thought it 

 was the re-action produced by the intensity of 

 the pressure ; but the blocks and pieces thrown 

 up on the surface of resisting masses, and against 

 the ship's sides, proved that some agent was 

 at work, and not long after a five-inch warp, 

 which held us to the floe, suddenly broke. At 

 4 h p. m. we were evidently drifting much nearer 

 to the land, though no such indication was given 

 by the soundings, which were one hundred and 

 fifty fathoms, with a bottom of green mud. 



