J 779' THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 233 



CHAP. IV. 



FRUITLESS ATTEMPTS TO PENETRATE THROUGH THE ICE TO 

 THE NORTH-WEST. DANGEROUS SITUATION OF THE DIS- 

 COVERY. SEA-HORSES KILLED. FRESH OBSTRUCTIONS 



FROM THE ICE. REPORT OF DAMAGES RECEIVED BY THE 



DISCOVERY. CAPTAIN CLERKE's DETERMINATION TO PRO- 

 CEED TO THE SOUTHWARD. JOY OF THE SHIPS' CREWS 



ON THAT OCCASION. PASS SERDZE KAMEN. RETURN 



THROUGH BEERING'S STRAITS. INQUIRY INTO THE EX- 

 TENT OF THE NORTH-EAST COAST OF ASIA. REASONS FOR 



REJECTING MULLER's MAP OF THE PROMONTORY OF THE 



TSCHUTSKI. REASONS FOR BELIEVING THE COAST DOES 



NOT REACH A HIGHER LATITUDE THAN 70-5-° NORTH. 



GENERAL OBSERVATIONS ON THE IMPRACTICABILITY OF A 

 NORTH-EAST, OR NORTH-WEST PASSAGE FROM THE ATLANTIC 



INTO THE PACIFIC OCEAN. COMPARATIVE VIEW OF THE 



PROGRESS MADE IN THE YEARS 1778 AND 1779. RE- 

 MARKS ON THE SEA, AND SEA COASTS, NORTH OF BEERING's 



STRAITS. HISTORY OF THE VOYAGE RESUMED. PASS 



THE ISLAND OF SAINT LAURENCE. THE ISLAND OF MED- 



NOI. DEATH OF CAPTAIN CLERKE. SHORT ACCOUNT OF 



HIS SERVICES. 



(captain Clerke having determined, for the rea- 

 sons assigned at the conclusion of the last chapter, to 

 give up all farther attempts on the coast of America, 

 and to make his last efforts in search of a passage on 

 the coast of the opposite continent, we continued, 

 during the afternoon of the 21st of July, to steer to 

 the west north-west, through much loose ice. At ten 

 at night, discovering the main body of it through the 

 fog, right ahead, and almost close to us, and being 

 unwilling to take a southerly course, so long as we 

 could possibly avoid it, we hauled our wind, which 

 was easterly, and stood to the northward; but, in an 

 hour after, the weather clearing up, and finding our- 



