160 
VOYAGE FOR THE DISCOVERY 
1820. neighbourhood since the middle of the preceding September; and as the 
freezing process did not stop for more than six weeks after this, the produce 
of the whole winter may, perhaps, be reasonably taken at seven, or seven 
and a half feet. In chopping this ice with an axe, the men found it very 
hard and brittle till they arrived within a foot of the lower surface, where it 
became soft and spongy. 
Sat. 25. ^ noon, on the 25th, two thermometers stood 
in the shade at —25°, and in the sun at +30° 
at 1 P.M. - 
-22°, 
+17° 
2 - - - 
-22°, 
..... +25° 
3 - - - 
-22°, 
+21° 
the thermometer in the sun being placed at a distance from the ship, and the 
weather very calm and fine. The length of the day had now so much increased. 
Sun. 26. that at midnight on the 26th, there was a very sensible twilight in the northern 
quarter of the heavens ; and such was the rapidity with which this part of the 
season appeared to us to have come round, that we could, with difficulty, 
picture to ourselves the total darkness from which we had so lately emerged, 
l ues. 2S. On the 28th, Lieutenant Beechey reported, on his return from a walk over 
the hills to the westward, that he had seen, even more plainly than before, 
that refracted appearance in the southern horizon, which bore a strong 
resemblance to distant land in that direction ; and, what is most worthy of 
notice, still seeming to terminate abruptly about a S.b.E. bearing from Winter 
Harbour. The thermometer was at this time at -20°, and the mercury in the 
barometer standing at 30.22 inches. 
Apnl. Q n 0 ne of the fine days in the early part of March, in taking a longer walk 
than usual on the north side of the harbour, we accidentally met with a small 
flat stone, on which the letter P was plainly engraved. As there seemed 
little doubt that this had been artificially done, and as, since our arrival in 
Winter Harbour, the weather had been too cold to induce any of our people 
to sit down on the ground for the purpose of exercising their talent in this 
way, we were entirely at a loss to conjecture how it came there, and various 
amusing speculations were resorted to, in order to account for it. Since 
that time, the weather had not permitted our sending for it till this day, 
when it was brought on board ; and on inquiry among the men, we found 
that Peter Fisher, a seaman belonging to the Griper, who was one of the 
party under Mr. Fife, respecting whom we had felt so much anxiety in the 
preceding September, had, on that occasion, amused himself by begin- 
