424 VOYAGE TO THE 



chaw pl aC es less. The extremity was broader than any 

 v-*vw other part, had several small lakes of water on it, 

 S a the tive which were frozen over, and the village before spoken 

 Barge. Q f j s situated on its eastern shore. The eastern side 

 of this neck trended in a S. S.W. (mag.) direction 

 until it became lost to the eye by being joined with 

 a body of ice that encircled the horizon in the N. E. 

 This union scarcely left us room to hazard an opi- 

 nion which direction it afterwards took ; but from the 

 circumstance of the current setting at the rate of 

 three miles and a half an hour N. E. (true), and the 

 ice all drifting to that quarter, we were induced to 

 conjecture that its continuation led well to the 

 eastward. 



It was our original intention to have remained at 

 the point till noon, landed, and obtained if possible 

 all the necessary observations, besides depositing 

 instructions for Captain Franklin ; but the charac- 

 ter of the natives entirely frustrated our plans, and 

 obliged us, to avoid an open rupture, to quit the 

 anchorage — a circumstance we greatly regretted, 

 as we had anticipated gathering much information 

 respecting the coast to the eastward, and on other 

 points of importance. The nights had hitherto 

 been beautifully clear and fine, and we were very 

 sanguine of obtaining a number of lunar distances 

 with the sun, being the only means we had of ascer- 

 taining correctly our farthest easting, as the patent 

 log, we knew, from the strength of current, could in 

 no way be depended on. At nine we weighed, and, 

 stemming the current, stood in for the low point, off 

 which there was an iceberg aground, on which we 

 resolved to wait till noon for the latitude. On our 

 way thither we passed another extensive iceberg 



