188 PUT TO SEA. 



the last time, steered to the northward, to exa- 

 mine the state of the ice. No alteration appeared 

 to have taken place in its position since the 30th 

 July, and it was still the compact and, to us, im- 

 penetrable body it had ever been. 



It was not Captain Buchan's intention to 

 attempt any thing more to the northward ; his 

 vessel was too much shattered to encounter even 

 sailing ice, but he thought he might still be able 

 to trace the margin to the westward towards 

 Greenland, and perhaps obtain a sight of the 

 eastern shore of that country. 



We accordingly bore away to the westward, 

 and carefully kept along the ice, as far as 11° 30' 

 W., in the parallel of 74° N., without finding any 

 opening to the northward. As we were at this 

 time within ten or twelve leagues of the coast 

 of Greenland, as laid down by Mr. Scoresby, in 

 1817, we anxiously looked out for the land, but 

 none was seen. The weather soon after became 

 foggy, and several streams of ice appeared to 

 windward, which induced Captain Buchan to 

 postpone his endeavour to proceed further. The 

 next day there was every appearance of bad 

 weather, and of the continuance of the fog, and 

 as the Dorothea was not at all in a condition to 

 encounter the ice in any form, and scarcely 

 better able to outlive a gale of wind, and as by 



