OLD WHALING DAYS. 177 



On our way thither, we had several gales, and eventually 

 fell in with the first ice in latitude 69 north, and longitude 

 3 west. We sailed among streams and patches of pancake 

 ice for many miles, until we came into the latitude of Jan 

 Mayen's Island. There we met with heavier ice, and cruised 

 about to find the track of seals. Several vessels belonging 

 to Norway and some from Scotland now j6ined us. 



One evening a Norwegian sailing ship, called the Eleisa 

 (Captain Foyne, a most fortunate, religious, good old man, 

 respected and beloved by all who knew him), arrived. We 

 were at the edge of the pack, when he manned a boat and 

 came on board. Our captain and he were very old friends, 

 and both had seen many rough days in the Arctic seas. 

 The object of his visit was to hold a consultation, they 

 being the oldest masters in the trade. Captain Foyne 

 stated that he had searched for the seals from lat. 74 N. 

 to lat. 69 N., but no trace of them could be found. By 

 the position of the ice, it was their opinion that the body of 

 seals could not be far away. While he was on board a 

 strong wind began to blow from the eastward, and we were 

 close on the lee ice. Captain Foyne at once took his depar- 

 ture, and the ships worked to windward to gain an offing. 

 The snow fell heavily during the night, but the wind 

 moderated. 



At daylight the snow had ceased, but the Eleisa was not 

 in sight. We thought he had run into the pack whilst it was 

 slack, before the sea rose. This proved to be the case, and 

 he at once fell in with the seals and got full. This we 

 heard some months afterwards. We were afraid of getting 

 beset, unless we were sure of doing well, as our orders were, 

 if not successful at the sealing, to proceed to Davis's Straits. 

 It would have been very unfortunate if we had got beset 

 here, and lost the whole Davis's Straits east side whaling. 



We sailed sometimes well into the pack, but did not see 

 anything to give us the least encouragement, so we squared 



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