nin jAMES^i* Voyage into Hudfon’s 
av 
j 
been obfervant from the Top of the Hills, and defcried 
' the great Pieces of Ice two or three Leagues from the 
Shore, drive to and againft the Flood and Ebb indifferent- 
ly : Hence I collefted that affuredly no Current fets in 
here, but that it is a mere Tide. Near the Shore the 
Eddies whirl in twenty Manners when the Ebb is made, 
which is becaufe it comes out of the broken Ground 
amongft the Ice, that is, a Ground near the Shore; be- 
fides which Reafon there are divers Rocks lying under 
Water, on which you fhall have thirty, then twelve, and 
anon but eight, and then twenty Fathoms *, and thofe Un-^ 
certainties occafion fuch Diftraftions, I would therefore 
advife no one to come near thofe dangerous Shores, for 
fear he lofe his Ship. 
This Morning, being the 24th, there fprung up a frefh 
Gale of Wind at Eaft ; and after Prayer we unfaftened 
our Ship, and came to fail fleering betwixt great Pieces of 
Ice that were a-ground* in forty Fathoms, and twice as 
high as our Top-maft-head. Vve failed out of this Cove 
upon the Flood,' and had none of thefe Whirlings of the 
Waters as we had at our going into it. We endeavoured 
to gain the North Shore, keot ourfelves within a League 
of the Shore of the Hand of Refohition.^ where we had 
fome clear W ater to fail through. In the OfEng it was all 
, as thick wedged together as poifible. By twelve o’Clock 
we were faft inclofed, and notwithftanding it blew very 
hard at Eaft, yet we could make no Way through it, but 
the Ice grated us with that Violence that I verily thought 
it would have wrenched the Planks from the Ship’s Sides. 
Thus we continued in Terror till the 26th Day, driving 
to and fro in the Ice, not being able to fee an Acre of Sea 
from Top-maft-head. The 26th was calm funftiiny 
Weather, and v/e took the Latitude and Variation, and 
had Ground, at a hundred and forty Fathom., fmall white 
Sand. I earned the Men to lay out fome Fiflaing-Lines, 
but to no Purpofe, for I could not perceive the Bait had 
been lb much as touched. The Nights are very cold, fo 
that our Rigging freezes, and frefh Ponds of Water ftand 
upon the Ice about half an Inch thick. 
On the 2 yth there fprung up a little Gale at South-eaft, 
and the Ice did fomething open. Hereupon we let fall 
our Fore-fail, and forced the Ship through the Ice. In 
the Evening the Wind came contrary, at Weft-north- weft, 
and blew hard-, which caufed us to fallen to a great Piece, 
to which we remained moored till the 29th. I am fatif- 
fied here is no Current by many Experiments I have made 
fuch as thefe, by making Marks on the Land, and noting 
our Drift to and again, with Ebb and Flood, for many 
.Days together, as well in calm Weather as other wife. By 
all thefe ExpAiments I found that the Tide was no 
ftronger there than that hctwrxx. England France. This 
Morning there fprung up a fine Gale at Eaft, and the Ice 
opened fomething, fo that we forced the Ship through it 
with her Fore-fail. By twelve o’ Clock we v/ere got into 
fome open Water, with a fine Gale of Wind at Eaft, and 
fo clear Weather that, we could fee the Eland Rejolution, 
the Eaft End bears Eaft-north-eaft, fome twelve Leagues 
off. 
5. From the 29th to the 5th of we failed continual- 
ly through the Ice, with variable Vf inds and Fogs, and 
fometimes calm. The 5th at Noon we had a good Ob- 
fervation, and were in Latitude 63 Degrees 15 Minutes, 
and then we faw Salijhury IJla?td bearing W"eft-by-north, 
fome feven. Leagues off, with imuch Ice betwixt it and us, 
to weather which we were driven to ftand to the north- 
ward. Soon after v/e law Prince Charleses Cape, and Mill- 
Ifland', and to North-north- weft (and indeed round about 
us) the Sea moft infinitely pefter’d and cumber’d with 
Ice. This grieved me very much •, for as I had deter- 
mined to profecute the Difeovery to the North-weftward, 
I faw it was not poifible this Year. We were driven 
back again with contrary Winds, ftill clofed and peftered 
with Ice, and with all the Perils and Dangers incident to 
fuch Adventurers, fo that we thought a thoufand times 
the Ship had been beaten to Pieces. By the 15th of July' 
we were got betwixt Bigg’s IJland and Nottingham’ s IJland, 
not being able to get more Northward. There, for an 
iflour or two, we had fome open Water. 
But before I proceed further; it will not be amifs in 
fome manner to deferibe the Streight which begins at the 
IJland of Re [ohiticn, and ends here at Bigg’s IJland. " If yoil 
go down into the Bay, the Streight is about a hundred and 
twenty Leagues long, and trends V/eft-north-weft and 
Eaft-fouth-eaft. Generally in ^ the Entrance it is about 
fifteen Leagues broad, and then on the fouthward Side is 
a great Bay : About the Midft it is likewife about fifteen 
leagues broad, and then the Land opens fomething. 
wider ; fo that betwixt Bigg’s IJland and Cape Charles it -is 
about twenty Leagues broad, betwixt which two ftand 
Salijhury IJland ^nd Nottingham IJland. If it be clear 
W eather, you may fee both the South and the North Shores. 
The Depth in the Middle of the Streight is a hundred and 
twenty Fathoms, white Sand, a certain Tide runs in it, 
and no Current. The North Shore is the ftraiteft and the 
cleareft from Ice. Along this North Shore you. have many 
low fmall Elands, which cannot' be feen far from Land, 
and in many Places the Land appears as if it had fmall 
Sounds into it: The main Land on both Sides is indiffe- 
rent high Land. 
Being now convinced of the Impofiibility of doing, 
any thing to the North-weftward, for the R^eafons afore- 
faid, I gave Orders to the Mafter of my Ship to fteer 
away Weft-fouth-weft, to have a Sight of Mansfield IJland, 
which the next Day by three o’ Clock in the Afternoon we 
had ; having fo much dangerous foul Weather among 
the- Ice, we ftruck more fearful Blows againft it than we 
had ever yet done. This was the firft Day that we went 
to Half-allowance of Bread on Flelli-Days, and I ordered 
Things as fparingly as I could. Two of our Men like- 
wife complained of Sicknefs, but foon recovered. In the 
Evening we came to an Anchor, and fent the Boat afliore' 
to try the Tides : They brought me v/ord whilft the Boat 
was alliore it flowed about three Feet, as we found by the 
Ship and by the Ice. The Water at that Time came 
from the Weft-fouth-weft ; and the higheft Tides, fo 
' far as they could perceive, had not fwelled above two 
Fathoms. They found that the Savages had been upon it 
by certain Fires which they left, and Heaps of Stones, 
Tradts of other Beafts, but Foxes they could not find. 
The Wind was fo contrary, and the Weather fo foggy, 
that we were forced to fpend fome Powder to recover cur 
Boat asain. 
6 . Next Morning being the 17th, the Wind came fa- 
vourable, and we weighed the Shore, being fomething 
clear of Ice, though very thick all to the Ofling. We 
ftood along it South-ancl-by-weft ten Leagues. In the 
Afternoon the Wind came contrary, and we came again 
to an Anchor within a Mile of the Shore, for out to Sea 
was all thick Ice and impaffable. I went afhore myfelf, 
to be well refolved of the Tide, and found whilft I was 
afliore that it flowed tv/oFect, and at that Time the Flood 
came from Sonthweft-and-by-weft. I doubted it was a 
Half-Tide, which afterwards I found to be true. I found 
where the Savages had been upon the Hand, but could 
find little or no Drift-wood on Shore, no Beafts on the 
Eland, or Fiflies in the Sea. It flows on the Change-Day 
about eleven o’Clock. We faw fome Fo’ ;1 on it, one 
of which We killed, and returned on board. This Hand 
is very low Land, little higher than a Sand-bank ; it hath 
Ponds of frefh Water, but no Grafs, and is utterly barren. 
On the 1 8th in the Morning the Wind came favour- 
ble, we weighed and made fail, for the Ice was all come 
about us. 
We endeavoured to proceed to the Weftward, intend- 
ing to fail in with the Weftern Land about the Latitude 
of 63 Degrees ; by twelve o’Clock, having been much 
peftered, we were come to a firm Range of Ice; but it 
pleafed God that the Wind larged, and we ftood away to 
Weft-fouth-weft. At Noon in Latitude 62 Degrees, by 
four in the Evening, having efcaped dangerous Shocks, 
we were come as we thought into an open Sea, and joy- 
fully fteered away Weft and Weft-by-North, though the 
Joy was- foon quell’d, for by ten o’Clock at Night we 
heard the Rut of the Ice, and it grew a thick Fog, and 
very dark with it ; neverthelefs we proceeded, and the 
nearer we came to it the miore hideous Noife it made. 
On the 19th by three in the Morning we were come to it, 
and as it cleared a little we could fee the lee as thick as 
any 
