OLD WHALING DAYS. 185 



nest. It was one massive, unbroken floe, north, south, and 

 west. 



It was no use staying here, so we immediately turned the 

 ship round and came into open water again, and steamed 

 southward along the ice edge, which led us close to 

 Brown's Island, one of the group called the Vrow 

 Islands. The late gale had brought the ice down, and it 

 was upheld by numerous bergs that were grounded in the 

 vicinity, so we steamed further inshore. A dense fog set 

 in, which obliged us to make fast to an iceberg close to 

 Wedge Island, so-called from it resembling a wedge. 



Two boats were manned with double crews ; a few stayed 

 in the boats shooting loom and dovekies, but the others 

 landed and gathered fifty dozen eider duck and loom eggs. 

 The loom eggs were obtained from the perpendicular cliffs 

 forming the south end of the island. 



Some Shetland men were lowered over the edge of the 

 cliff with ropes round their waists, and gathered them in 

 buckets, which were soon filled. This is dangerous work, 

 but the men were used to it on their own islands. In this 

 manner we got forty dozen eggs. The island is about a 

 mile long, and half a mile broad. In four hours we returned 

 on board, well-loaded. The master gave the greater part 

 to the crew, reserving a small quantity for the cabin. 

 Another party made an excursion to some rocks in the 

 neighbourhood, which were from twenty to thirty feet above 

 high water- mark, and brought thirty dozen more eider duck 

 eggs and some birds. 



The fog cleared away, and we steamed among the rocks 

 and islands until we came to Sanderson's Hope, and there 

 found open water with nothing but bergs to be seen to the 

 southward. A breeze came from the S.W., when we set 

 sail and stood to the west ice, and plied along it until we 

 were off Black Hook. The ice being slack, we pushed 

 our way through floes and large sconces, and at one time 



