along the coast of Spitsbergen, and ranging between
the land and the ice several days, at half past four, in the afternoon
of the 7th of July, the ice setting very close, they ran between two
pieces, and were suddenly stopped. The ice, indeed, now set so fast
down, that they were soon fixed; and obliged to heave through, for two
hours, with ice-anchors from each quarter, nor were they quite out of
the ice till midnight.

On the 25th, the Carcass being becalmed very near Moffen Island, Captain
Lutwidge took the opportunity of obtaining its exact extent, which he
communicated to Captain Phipps. The master had been on shore for the
purpose of this survey; and with him, doubtless, our young adventurer.
They found the island to be nearly of a round form, about two miles in
diameter; with a lake or large pond of water in the middle, all frozen
over, except thirty or forty yards round the edge of it, which was
water, with loose pieces of broken ice, and so shallow, that they walked
through it, and went over on the solid ice. The ground between the sea
and the pond was from half a cable's length to a quarter of a mile
broad, and the whole island appeared covered with gravel and small
stones, without the smallest verdure or vegetation of any kind. They met
with only one piece of drift wood, about three fathom long, with a root
on it, and as thick as the Carcass's mizen mast; which had been thrown
up over the high part of the land, and lay on the declivity towards the
pond. They saw three bears; and a number of wild ducks, geese, and
other sea fowls, with birds-nests all over the island.

Off this island, the survey of which must have afforded a high treat to
Horatio, one of the Carcass's boats were attacked by a herd of
sea-horses, as they are corruptly called by the sailors, from the
Russian name of morses, which were with difficulty driven away. These
marine animals are the Trichecus Rosmarus of Linnaeus, and the Arctic
Walrus of Pennant and most other naturalists.

On another occasion, two officers, in a boat belonging to the Racehorse,
having fired at and wounded one of these animals, it immediately dived,
and brought up a number of others; which all joined in an attack on the
boat, wresting an oar from one of the men, and were with difficulty
prevented from staving or oversetting the boat: but a boat from the
Carcass, guided by the intrepid young coxswain, soon arrived, and
effectually dispersed them.

This was on the 2