and over some of these we could not see from the
masthead. Upon the whole, however, the magnitude of the ice became
somewhat less towards the northwest, and within thirty miles of that
margin the masses were comparatively small, and their thickness much
diminished. Bergs were in sight during the whole passage, but they were
more numerous towards the middle of the "pack," and rather the most so
to the southward.

CHAPTER II.

Enter Sir James Lancaster's Sound.--Land at Cape Warrender.--Meet
with young Ice.--Ships beset and carried near the Shore.--Driven
back to Navy-board Inlet.--Run to the Westward, and enter Prince
Regent's Inlet.--Arrival at Port Bowen.

All our past obstacles were in a moment forgotten when we once more saw
an open sea before us; but it must be confessed that it was not so easy
to forget that the middle of September was already near at hand,
without having brought us even to the entrance of Sir James Lancaster's
Sound. That not a moment might be lost, however, in pushing to the
westward, a press of canvass was crowded, and, being happily favoured
with an easterly breeze, on the morning of Sept. 10th we caught a
glimpse of the high bold land on the north side of the magnificent inlet
up which our course was once more to be directed. From the time of our
leaving the main body of ice, we met with none of any kind, and the
entrance to the Sound was, as usual, entirely free from it, except here
and there a berg, floating about in that solitary grandeur, of which
these enormous masses, when occurring in the midst of an extensive sea,
are calculated to convey so sublime an idea.

On the morning of the 12th we were once more favoured with a breeze from
the eastward, but so light and unsteady that our progress was
vexatiously slow; and on the 13th, when within seven leagues of Cape
York, we had the mortification to perceive the sea ahead of us covered
with young ice, the thermometer having, for two days past, ranged only
from 18 deg. to 20 deg.

The next breeze sprung up from the westward, drawing also from the
southward, at times, out of Prince Regent's Inlet, and for three days we
were struggling with the young ice to little or no purpose, now and then
gaining half a mile of ground to windward in a little "hole" of open
water, then losing as much by the necessity of bearing up or wearing
(for the ice was too strong to allow us to tack), sallying from morning
to