GREELY RELIEF EXPEDITION. 33 



hours, wiien the lead w.e had left opened for several miles. Lines 

 were cast off from the ice foot in Tassuisak Harbor; full steam power 

 was raisod, and a rush was made to get through a narrow lead into 

 open water, hut we were a trifle too late. The ice closed on the 

 Thetis and held the ship immovable until the next morning, not- 

 withstanding the use of torpedoes ahead and on both beams to extri- 

 cate her. 



The morning of June 5, the ice appearing slacker, the Thetis began 

 ramming again under high speed and succeeded in breaking through 

 a distance of about three hundred yards into open water, which was 

 followed most of the day amongst icebergs and through floes past 

 Horse Head Island, Cape Shackleton, and Baffin Islands to a posi- 

 tion about six miles south of the Duck Islands in Melville Bay. At 

 this point the ice was found packed and impenetrable, and both ships 

 were secured by ice anchors to the floe ice to await an opening. The 

 three advance whalers, the Arctic, Aurora, and Narwhal, had 

 worked through the ice to this position in advance of the Relief Ex- 

 pedition. 



June 6 we got under way again and followed a lead for about two 

 miles northward, but finding it more difficult and hazardous to ram 

 successfully this heavier ice of Melville Bay, we sought refuge a little 

 north of a large iceberg, around which there had opened a large water 

 space which permitted us to ram a dock in the floe ice for the Thetis 

 and Bear. 



While lying in this improvised dock most of the Scotch whalers 

 came up with us. 



During the afternoon of June 6, observing from the " crow's nest" 

 a large open water space about the Duck Islands, both ship's were got 

 under full headway about 9 p. m. and rammed their way through 

 several floes to gain this desired outpost for advance into the more 

 perilous dangers of Melville Bay. 



At 1 a. m., of June 7, both ships reached the ice foot of the Duck 

 Islands, and were made fast to it in company with all the whalers. 



This point being the outpost from which advance across Melville 

 Bay is always made, it was necessary to examine carefully the ice 

 conditions in order to distinguish the land ice, which rarely moves, 

 from the floe ice which detaches from it further and further in to- 

 wards the land with each month of the short Arctic summer. 



During four anxious days the ships were detained at this anchor- 

 age. Strong winds from north and south, with snow squalls and 

 dense fogs, with fine weather intervals, occurred during this delay. 



Whenever it was clear enough to see trips were made to the top 

 of the islands to examine the outlook across Melville Bay, though 

 very little comfort was derived from these visits. This vast sea of 

 ice lay unbroken before us in the north and west directions. Some- 

 times it seemed that it would never break up. 

 H. Mis. 157 3 



