re
our's fell exceedingly short.

These animals afforded us a few excellent meals of fresh meat. The flesh
had, indeed, a strong filthy taste, but was, in every respect infinitely
superior to that of the sea-horse; which nevertheless our people were again
persuaded, without much difficulty, to prefer to their salted provisions.

At six in the morning of the 20th, a thick fog coming on, we lost sight of
the ice for two hours; but the weather clearing, we saw the main body again
to the S.S.E., when we hauled our wind, which was easterly, toward it, in
the expectation of making the American coast to the S.E., and which we
effected at half past ten. At noon, the latitude, by account, was 69 deg. 33',
and longitude 194 deg. 53', and the depth of water nineteen fathoms. The land
extended from S. by E. to S.S.W. 1/2 W., distant eight or ten leagues,
being the same we had seen last year; but it was now much more covered with
snow than at that time, and to all appearance the ice adhered to the shore.
We continued in the afternoon sailing through a sea of loose ice, and
standing toward the land, as near as the wind, which was E.S.E., would
admit. At eight the wind lessening, there came on a thick fog, and on
perceiving a rippling in the water, we tried the current, which we found to
set to the E.N.E., at the rate of a mile an hour, and therefore determined
to steer during the night before the wind, in order to stem it, and to
oppose the large fragments of loose ice that were setting us on toward the
land. The depth of the water at midnight was twenty fathoms.

At eight in the morning of the 21st, the wind freshening, and the fog
clearing away, we saw the American coast to the S.E., at the distance of
eight or ten leagues, and hauled in for it; but were stopped again by the
ice, and obliged to bear away to the westward, along the edge of it. At
noon, the latitude, by account, was 69 deg. 34', and longitude 193 deg., and the
depth of water twenty-four fathoms.

Thus a connected solid field of ice, rendering every effort we could make
to a nearer approach to the land fruitless, and joining as we judged to it,
we took a last farewell of a N.E passage to Old England. I shall beg leave
to give, in Captain Clerke's own words, the reasons of this his final
determination, as well as of his future plans; and this the rather, as it
is the last transaction his health permitted him to write down.

"It is now impossible to proceed the least