148 TRAVEL, ADVENTURE, AND SPORT. 



"\Ve found the coal-hulk lying off Little Tamso, an 

 island well up Porsanger Fiord, and filled up our 

 bunkers from her, besides putting forty tons into the 

 hold of the Martha and taking a load on our own 

 decks, and finally left Xorway on our search for the 

 Eira on July llth, encountering a strong gale from 

 the south-east the same night, which lasted two days, 

 and drifted the Hope, with the Martha in tow, far 

 north into the Arctic Ocean. July 14th turned out 

 sunny and fine, with the remains of the gale blowing 

 cold from the south-east so cold, indeed, that ice 

 was divined to be in that direction, and so probably 

 to the northward as well. And this turned out to be 

 the case ; for a look-out man having been sent to the 

 crow's nest, reported ice on the northern horizon in 

 detached hummocks, and we ran into it about mid- 

 day, finding it to be in loose streams lying north-west 

 and south-east, the direction of the wind. Dodging 

 the floes as we steamed on our course for Xova 

 Zemla, we got clear of the ice again about 5 P.M., 

 having evidently passed through the tail of the pack, 

 which would probably be found compact twenty 

 miles or so further north. 



We now maintained a general easterly course across 

 the Barents Sea, experiencing southerly winds, which, 

 when they drew to the south-east, became extremely 

 cold, which was afterwards found to be caused by the 

 presence of large masses of ice in the sea to the 

 south-west of Xova Zemla. Heavy mists were now 



