1 04 Variations in the Seasons. 



perfectly flat, and then thrown violently on their 

 broadsides, and the " Commerce " (brig) was lifted 

 bodily on the ice with a twisted stern post, and 

 sank directly the pack loosened. The " Baffin," 

 " Achilles," " Ville de Dieppe," and " Rattler,'' 

 were crushed to pieces, and the " Progress," of 

 Hull, was totally destroyed by an iceberg. The 

 other vessels were destroyed in various strange 

 ways. 



Since steam has been introduced into the whaling" 

 trade, the dangers of Melville Bay have been much 

 reduced, and vessels have of late years been enabled 

 to navigate those waters in comparative safety. I 

 make use of the expression " comparative safety " 

 advisedly, for of course there are instances in which 

 even steam vessels have been lost ; but these are 

 happily very rare. 



Some seasons are more severe than others, and 

 again some are more open. Cases occur in which 

 vessels, though possessing the power and advan- 

 tage of steam, have been unable to effect a passage 

 through the bay, and have been compelled to return. 

 The little " Fox," in 1858, under the command of 

 that most experienced of Arctic navigators, Sir 

 Leopold McClintock, was not able to reach the 

 North Water, 1 and was forced to pass a dreary 



1 By the " North Water " is meant the open water into 

 which the vessels emerge after passing through the ice in 

 .Melville Bay. 



