324 ANTARCTIC CRUISE. 



p. m., when the solid barrier prevented our farther progress. Land was 

 now distinctly seen, from eighteen to twenty miles distant, bearing 

 from south-southeast to southwest, — a lofty mountain range, covered 

 with snow, though showing many ridges and indentations. I laid the 

 ship to for three hours, in hopes of discovering some opening or move- 

 ment in the ice, but none was experienced. I tried the current, and 

 found none. The water was of a dirty dark green. We sounded with 

 the wire-line in two hundred and fifty fathoms, and found no bottom. 

 The temperature at that depth was 30£°, of the air 31°. The barrier 

 had in places the appearance of being broken up, and we had decreased, 

 our longitude to 112° 16' 12" E., while our latitude was 64° 57' S. 

 This puts the land in about 65° 20' S., and its trending nearly east and 

 west. The line of the icy barrier was generally uniform, although it 

 was occasionally pierced with deep bays. We saw some icebergs 

 with decided spots of earth on them, which gave me hopes of yet 

 obtaining the object of my wishes. The water was remarkably 

 smooth during this day, and the weather clear, enabling us to see a 

 great distance. Two hours after we bore away, we left the floe-ice, 

 and entered a clear sea to the westward, where we lost sight of the 

 barrier for a time ; but in hauling up to the southwest, it was, by 

 8 p. m., within three miles of us, when we again kept off parallel to its 

 trending. The appearance of land still continued. Shortly after, I 

 hove-to, for the purpose of awaiting the daylight to continue our 

 observations of the land, with little prospect or probability of reach- 

 ing it, from the immense quantity of ice which continued to form an 

 impenetrable barrier. 



13th. At 2 a. m. we made sail to the southwest, in order to close 

 with the barrier, which we found retreated in that direction, and gave 

 Us every prospect of getting nearer to it. Our course, for the most 

 part, was through icebergs of tabular form. In the afternoon we had 

 the land ahead, and stood in for it with a light breeze until 6J p. m., 

 when I judged it to be ten or twelve miles distant. It was very 

 distinct, and extended from west-southwest to south-southeast. We 

 were now in longitude 106° 40' E., and latitude 65° 57' S. ; the varia- 

 tion was 54° 30' westerly. The water was very green. We sounded 

 in three hundred fathoms, and found no bottom. The weather having 

 an unsettled appearance, we stood off to seek a clearer space for the 

 night. The land left was high, rounded, and covered with snow, 

 resembling that first discovered, and had the appearance of being 

 bound by perpendicular icy cliffs. 



14th. At daylight we again made sail for the land, beating in for it 



