1596. WILLIAM BAREXTZ. 149 



The latter vessel, after a long passage, occasioned 

 by bad weather, contrary winds, and nincli floating 

 ice, reached the coast of Nova Zembla on the 17th 

 of July, about Lomsbay. She then stood to the 

 northward as near to the land as the ice would 

 permit, and on the 20th Barentz found, by obser- 

 vation, that thev had reached the lat. 76° 15'. It 

 v/as not before the 6th of August that they suc- 

 ceeded in doubhng point Nassau ; and the wind 

 being from the east they were glad to make fast 

 the ship to a mass of ice thirty-six fathom under 

 water, and sixteen fathom above it; this ice-berg 

 is stated to have suddenly been rent in pieces, 

 " for with one great cracke it burst into foure 

 hundred pieces at the least." Besides this mass, 

 the sea was covered with flake ice and various 

 other ice-bergs, but none quite so large. It was 

 in vain they struggled to get to the eastward ; the 

 wind blew strong from that quarter, bringing with 

 it immense patches of ice. Finding all their 

 attempts ineffectual, they were at length reluc- 

 tantly compelled to return ; the ship, indeed, was 

 generally beset in the ice, and, while drifting with 

 it, the rudder was broken in pieces, the boat crushed 

 flat between the ice, and. they expected every 

 moment that a similar fate would befall the ship. 

 It was now evident that every hope was ciit off, 

 not only from the possibility of proceeding farther 

 to the eastward, but also of reaching Waigatz by 

 the eastern coast of Nova Zembla ; they therefore 



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