JOURNAL. 



the entrance of Waygat's Straits, bore South ; the July 

 Northernmofl: land NEbE; the neareft fliore diftant 

 about four miles. In the afternoon the ofEcer from ihe 

 deck came down to tell me, we were very near a fmall 

 rock even with the water's edge ; on going up, I faw it 

 within little more than a {hip's length on the lee bow, 

 and put the helm down : before the fhip got round, we 

 were clofe to it, and perceived it to be a very fmall piece 

 of ice, covered with gravel. In the evening, feeing the 

 Northern part of the illands only over the ice, I was 

 anxious to get round it, in hopes of finding an opening 

 under the land. Being near a low flat ifland oppofite the 

 Waygat's Straits, not higher, but much larger than Moffen 

 Ifland, we had an heavy fwell from the Southward, with 

 little wind, and from ten to twenty fathom : having got 

 paft this ifland, approaching to the high land to the 

 Eafl:ward, we deepened our water very fuddenly to 1 1 7 

 fathom. Having little wind, and the weather very 

 clear, two of the officers went with a boat in purfuit 

 of fome fea-horfes, and afterwards to the low ifland. At 

 midnight we found by obfervation the latitude 80° 27' 3", 

 and the dip 82° 2' i. At four in the morning I found, by 

 Bouguer's log, that the current fet two fathom to the Eaft- 

 ward. At fix in the morning the officers returned from 

 the ifland; in their way back they had fired at, and 

 wounded a fea-horfe, which dived immediately, and 

 brought up with it a number of others. They all joined 

 in an attack upon the boat, wrefl:ed an oar from one of the 



I men, 



57 



