THE FIB ST ANTABCTIO ICEBERG . 
133 
All those prearranged plans were, however, frus- 
trated, for during the night the barometer fell, and 
the weather put on a very threatening appearance. 
The anxious circumstances now under which we 
were placed on this inhospitable coast caused a 
move to be made at a very early hour the following 
morning, at which time it was snowing very heavily 
as we proceeded to sea. Before well clear of the 
land (for we had endeavoured to make a rough 
running survey), the expected gale burst upon us ; 
still it was a fair wind, and the ship ran on pleasantly 
towards the Antarctic ice until the middle of the 
night, when the sea and wind increased to such an 
extent that we had to heave-to. But it was not of 
long duration, and as daylight came, the weather 
moderated, and under a bright sun and clear sky, 
with a favourable breeze, we sped on at a rate of 9 
or 10 knots an hour to the southward, causing us to 
forget the few miserable days spent at and near the 
Heard Islands. During the next three days, we 
pushed on under sail, the weather continuing very 
squally, with rain and frequent snow-storms, the 
temperature of the air being down to 33°. 
Feb. 1 \tli . — This morning at an early hour we en- 
countered the first Antarctic iceberg, bearing E.S.E. 
to our course. On passing within a few miles, it was 
from observation considered to be three-fourths of a 
mile long and 200 feet in height. We are now 
in latitude 60° 52' south, longitude 80° 20' west, 
