44 VOYAGE TO SPITZBERGEN. 



these islands, to make observations during the win- 

 ter. The wretched fate that generally attended 

 these adventurers, at last induced the States-Gene- 

 ral totally to relinquish the attempt.. 



Hera we fell in with some streams of ice, which 

 we went through in search of seals ; but of these we 

 saw very few, and got none. Spoke a brig from 

 Bergen. 15th, One sail in sight. 



On the 16th we were encountered by a violent 

 storm from the north ; and after running, as near 

 as we could calculate, about fifty leagues in a 

 south-westerly direction, we were met by a great 

 number of birds ; this clearly showed us to be at 

 no great distance from land, and had we continued 



o J 



under the same course, we perhaps would soon have 

 fallen in with Iceland ; here however, we lay-to 

 under close reefed top-sails, till the weather mode- 

 rated, and on the 17th we sailed in a north-east di- 

 rection. The weather at this time was so hazy that 

 we could not take an observation ; and after a gale, 

 and lying-to, not much reliance can be placed on 

 the reckoning by account. 



I may here remark that top-sails are now gene- 

 jally reckoned the best sails for a ship to ly-to un- 

 der. They are not exposed to accidents from be- 

 calming in a heavy sea ; and, from their height, 

 they have more power to steady the ship than a sail 



