312 



GREENLAND OR POLAR ICfT^ 



Still continued to advance along the land to the 

 southward. 



In the year I803, the Henrietta of Whitby, 

 while prosecuting the whale-fishery, was, by a 

 southerly storm, entangled among the ice in the 

 latitude of 80^ north, and longitude of 6° east ; 

 and afterwards accompanied it in its drift to 

 the south westward, at the daily rate of from ten 

 to fifteen miles. They saw several bears ; and 

 at one time they conceived that the land of IVest 

 Greenland was within sight. The ice pressed 

 dreadfully around them, and accumulated in 

 amazing heaps ; but providentially, the ship al- 

 ways escaped the heaviest crushes. After a state 

 of complete inertion during seven weeks^ the ice 

 began to slack ; when, with vigilant and labo- 

 rious measures, they were enabled to make their 

 escape, in latitude about 7S^° north, and longir- 

 tude 9° west. 



When treating of the pressure of fields, I 

 slightly alluded to a circumstance which occurred 

 within my own observation on my last voyage to 

 Greenland (1814). While it affords a suitable il- 

 lustration of the tremendous effects produced by the 

 collision of those prodigious sheets of ice, it is no 

 less applicable to the subject in hand ; I shall 

 therefore give a sketch of the whole occur- 

 rence. 



In the beginning of May, we entered with 

 the ship Esk of Whitby, a spacious opening of 



