MARTIN FROBISHER a,d. 



1578. 

 brought us more timely thither now then we looked for. 

 Which blowing from the sea directly upon the place of 

 our Streites, hath kept in the yce, and not suffered them 

 to be caried out by the ebbe to the maine sea, where 

 they would in more short time have bene dissolved. 

 And all these fleeting yce are not only so dangerous in 

 that they wind and gather so neere together, that a man 

 may passe sometimes tenne or twelve miles as it were 

 upon one firme Island of yce : but also for that they open 

 and shut together againe in such sort with the tides 

 and sea-gate, that whilest one ship followeth the other 

 with full sayles, the yce which was open unto the fore- 

 most will joyne and close together before the latter can 

 come to follow the first, whereby many times our shippes 

 were brought into great danger, as being not able so 

 sodainely to take in our sayles, or stay the swift way of 

 our ships. 



We were forced many times to stemme and strike 

 great rockes of yce, and so as it were make way through 

 mighty mountaines. By which meanes some of the 

 fleete, where they found the yce to open, entred in, and 

 passed so farre within the danger thereof, with continuall 

 desire to recover their port, that it was the greatest 

 wonder of the world that they ever escaped safe, or were 

 ever heard of againe. For even at this present we missed 

 two of the fleete, that is, the Judith, wherein was the 

 Lieutenant generall Captaine Fenton ; and the Michael, 

 whom both we supposed had bene utterly lost, having 

 not heard any tidings of them in moe then 20 dayes 

 before. 



And one of our fleete named the Barke Dennis, being Barke Dennis 

 of an hundreth tunne burden, seeking way in amongst sun e ' 

 these yce, received such a blow with a rocke of yce that she 

 sunke downe therewith in the sight of the whole fleete. 

 Howbeit having signified her danger by shooting off a 

 peece of great Ordinance, new succour of other ships 

 came so readily unto them, that the men were all saved 

 with boats. 



3 2 9 



