ANTARCTIC CRUISE. 313 



remarkable berg that had. been the last entered on the chart, and which 

 would be a guide to my course out. I therefore stood for its position. 

 The weather was so thick, that it was necessary to run close to it, to 

 be quite sure of recognising it, for on this seemed to depend our safety. 

 About the estimated time we would take to pass over the distance, an 

 iceberg was made (we were within one thousand feet of it) which, at 

 first view, I felt confident was the one sought, but was not altogether 

 satisfied afterwards. I therefore again consulted my chart, and 

 became more doubtful of it. Just at that moment I was called on deck 

 by an officer, w r ho informed me that there were icebergs a short dis- 

 tance ahead ! Such proved to be the case ; our path was beset with 

 them, and it was evident we could not regain our route. To return 

 was worse, so havinabut little choice left, I determined to keep on. To 

 encounter these icebergs so soon after seeing the other, w r as in some 

 respects satisfactory, for it removed all doubts, and showed me that 

 we were not near the track by which we entered. Nothing, therefore, 

 was to be done but to keep a good look-out, and the ship under suffi- 

 cient way to steer well. My safest plan was to keep as near our former 

 track as possible, believing it to be most free of these masses. 



At 8 p. m. it began to blow very hard, with a violent snow-storm, 

 circumscribing our view, and rendering it impossible to see more than 

 two ship's-lengths ahead. The cold was severe, and every spray that 

 touched the ship was immediately converted into ice. At 9 p.m,, the 

 barometer still falling and the gale increasing, we reduced' sail to 

 close-reefed fore and main-topsails, reefed foresail and trysails, under 

 which we passed numerous icebergs, some to windward, and some to 

 leeward of us. At 10 h 30 m , we found ourselves thickly beset with 

 them, and had many narrow escapes ; the excitement became intense ; 

 it required a constant change of helm to avoid those close aboard ; 

 and we were compelled to press the ship with canvass in order to 

 escape them, by keeping her to windward. We thus passed close 

 along their weather sides, and distinctly heard the roar of the surf 

 dashing against them. We had, from time to time, glimpses of their 

 obscure outline, appearing as though immediately above us. After 

 many escapes, I found the ship so covered with ice, and the watch so 

 powerless in managing her, that a little after midnight, on the 29th, 

 I had all hands called. Scarcely had they been reported on deck, 

 when it was made known to me that the gunner, Mr. Williamson, had 

 failen, broken his ribs, and otherwise injured himself, on the icy deck. 



The gale at this moment was awful. We found we were passing 

 large masses of drift-ice, and ice-islands became more numerous. At 

 a little after one o'clock it was terrific, and the sea was now so heavy, 



VOL. II. 2B 40 



