th the second mate, who was steering the foremost boat, which I was
in, cried out, 'Fast ice ahead.' Now 'fast ice' is a belt of ice which
is attached firmly to the land, not yet having been broken up or
dissolved by the warmth of the summer. This announcement created great
joy to everybody in the boats, as we knew that land must be near, and we
all supposed that we would be ordered to make a line fast to the ice,
that we might hold on there until the fog cleared up and the wind came
again. But instead of this we were ordered by the mate to pull away from
it. And then, after having got the vessel, as was supposed, into a good,
clear, open space of water,--at least, there was not a particle of ice
in sight,--we were all ordered, very imprudently, as it appeared to
every one of us, to come on board to breakfast.

"We had just finished our breakfast, and were preparing to go on deck,
and then into the boats again, when there was a loud cry raised. 'Ice
close aboard! Hurry up! Man the boats!' were the orders which I heard
among a great many other confusing sounds; and when I got on deck, I
saw, standing away up in the fog, its top completely obscured in the
thick cloud, an enormous iceberg. The side nearest to us hung over from
a perpendicular, as the projecting tongue on which I had before seen the
man's face. It was very evident that we were slowly drifting upon this
frightful object,--directly under this overhanging tongue. It was a
fearful sight to behold, for it looked as if it was just ready to
crumble to pieces; and indeed, at every instant, small fragments were
breaking off from it, with loud reports, and falling into the sea.

"We were but a moment getting into the boats. The boat which I was in
had something the start of the other two. Just as we were pulling away,
the master of the ship came on deck, and ordered us to do what, had the
red-faced mate done an hour before, would have made it impossible that
this danger should have come upon us. 'Carry your line out to the fast
ice,' was the order we received from the master; and every one of us,
realizing the great danger, pulled as hard as he could. The 'fast ice'
was dimly in sight when we started, for we had drifted while at
breakfast towards it, as well as towards the berg. Only a few minutes
were needed to reach it. We jumped out and dug a hole, and planted the
ice-anchor. The ship was out of sight, buried in the fog. A faint voice
came from the ship. It was, '