BEHRING STRAITS— COOK'S VOYAGE. 107 



inlets as may appear to be of considerable extent, ami pointing 

 towards Hudson or Baffin Bays." 



" In case you sball be satisfied that there is no passage through 

 to the above-mentioned bays sufficient for the purpose of naviga- 

 tion, you are at the proper season of the year to repair to the port 

 of St. Peter and St. Paul, in Kamschatka, or wherever else you 

 shall judge more proper, in order to refresh your people and pass 

 the winter; and in the spring of the ensuing year, 1778, to proceed 

 from thence to the northward, as far as in your prudence you may 

 think proper, in search of a north-east or north-west passage from 

 the Pacific into the Atlantic Ocean or North Sea." 



In accordance with these instructions, the Resolution and Discovery 

 sailed from Oonalashka on July 2nd, 1778, and upon the 9th of 

 August reached Cape Prince of Wales, which was then pronounced 

 by Captain Cook (as it eventually has been proven to be) the 

 western extremity of all America hitherto known. The ships then 

 proceeded to the north, and reached the edge of the ice in lat. 

 70° 41' on August 17th, naming the farthest point on the American 

 shore Icy Cape. They then visited the Asiatic side of the Straits 

 and discovered Cape North. The ships bore up on August 29th, 

 and after making farther explorations on the American shore south 

 of Cape Prince of Wales, returned to Oonolashka on October 2nd. 

 The following are Captain Cook's remarks after visiting the pack 

 in a boat : — " I found it consisting of loose pieces of various extent, 

 and so close together that I could hardly enter the outer edge 

 with the boat, and it was as impossible for the ships to enter it as 

 if it had been so many rocks. I took particular notice that it was 

 all pure transparent ice, except the upper surface, which was a little 

 porous. It appeared to be entirely composed of frozen snow, and to 



have been all formed at sea The pieces of ice that formed the 



outer edge of the field were from 40 to 50 yards in extent to 4 or 5, 

 and I judged the latter pieces reached 30 feet or more under the 

 surface of the water." 



The following year the ships left the harbour of St. Peter and 

 St. Paul on June 13th. At noon on the 6th of July, in lat. 07°, 

 large masses of ice were fallen in with ; on the 8th, in lat. 69° 21', 

 they were close to what appeared from tho deck solid ice. On 

 the 18th of July they reached 70° 26' N., and were close to a firm 

 united field of ice. By stretching over towards the American 

 Continent they reached 70° 33', the farthest northern point attained 

 this season, when, finding it impracticable to got any farther, 

 Captain Gierke determined to expend the remainder of tho season 

 in endeavouring to find an opening on the Asiatic coast. In doing 



