THE COMMANDER OF THE EXPEDITION. 17 



"At ten A. M. Sunday, August 3d, the fog having lifted to 

 some extent, we got under way and steamed away to the north- 

 ward, passing in between Brown Island and the mainland, work- 

 ing our way among icebergs and keeping close in to the main- 

 land to keep in smooth water, and to be ready to slip in and 

 anchor, should a fog overtake us. At four p. M. had passed Cone 

 Island and Wedge Island to the westward, and sighted Cape 

 Shackelton and the Horse's Head, a prominent island off this 

 cape, right ahead. Passed to the eastwaixl, of the island, and 

 at eight P. M., having Cape Shackelton close aboard, determine 

 the position of the boat to be in lat. 73° 42' N., long. 57° W. 



" I had calculated before leaving the ship that we should be 

 enabled with an expenditure of five hundred pounds of coal per 

 day to make an average speed of four knots per hour under a 

 steam pressure of twenty pounds ; and with a view to keeping 

 the feed water for the boiler as fresh as possible, a steam-pipe 

 had been carried from the boiler to the water-tank, for the 

 purpose of melting fresh-water ice, which we should pick up 

 on the way, and put in the tank. We found upon trial thus 

 far that the expenditure of steam to melt the ice was too great 

 to keep up our proposed speed, and I concluded to supply the 

 boiler with salt-water, which of course we had to dip up from 

 the water outside. Running with salt-water increased our 

 expenditure of fuel, and I now feared that, instead of coal 

 for fifteen days as originally calculated, we would have only 

 enough for eight days. With our sails we may be able to do 

 better, should we be favored witli fair winds. This day we 

 had light northerly winds, smooth sea ; average temperature 

 of the air 45°, of the water 41°. 



"At four A. M. Monday, August 4th, passed inside of the 

 Duck Islands, Baffin Islands bearing true N. E., weather thick, 

 breeze coming up fresh from N. and W. and cloudy, with in- 

 dications of coming fog. This state of affairs continuing at 

 three P. M. I kept the boat away to the eastward, made sail, 

 and stood in for a headland, which, from its position and my 

 calculation of the boat's run, I assume to be Wilcox Head, in 

 about lat. 74° 40' N. In getting under this headland, the fog 

 continuing, we made the boat fast to an iceberg, and waited 

 2 



