HAIRBREADTH ESCAPES 301 
differ so remarkably from another, and there was nothing 
for it but to struggle on, trying to make way toward 
the southwest where there was some appearance of the 
existence of open sea. The situation was difficult, and 
to add to the troubles of the Terror an alarm of fire was 
raised and two feet of water had to be pumped into her 
hold before it was extinguished, but fortunately no harm 
resulted, as the smoke had been caused by the roasting 
of some wood which had been stowed inside the pipes 
of the hot air stove and forgotten until the fire had been 
lit. 
On February ist the appearance of water-sky grew 
clearer, and just at dark — for the brief days of the mid- 
night sun in those latitudes had passed — the edge of the 
pack was descried with the heavy swell of the ocean 
beating against the close masses of floating ice and form- 
ing a line of fearful breakers. Either a storm or a calm 
at this juncture might have been fatal. The commander 
felt that at all hazards he must get his ships through the 
breakers into the open sea while the breeze held and the 
weather was good, for any delay in that zone of turmoil 
would mean severe damage and perhaps destruction. The 
wind was rising and it was necessary to shorten sail, but 
at midnight the Erebus reached the belt of broken water 
at the edge of the pack, and after two hours of terrific 
thumping and straining the two ships gained the open 
sea southwest of the pack in 67° 29' S. and 159 0 W. The 
object now was to advance southward and at the same 
time keep as far to the east as possible so as to strike the 
great Southern Barrier beyond the point to which it had 
been followed the previous year. The edge of the pack, 
however, was found to run south and east, and as the 
season was now far advanced it was hopeless to think 
