n afterwards entirely hidden by a very dense
fog. The favourable breeze subsided into a perfect calm and left the ship
surrounded by loose ice. At this time the Eddystone was perceived to be
driving with rapidity towards some of the larger masses; the stern-boats
of this ship and of the Wear were despatched to assist in towing her
clear of them. At ten a momentary clearness presented the land distinctly
at the distance of two miles; the ship was quite unmanageable and under
the sole governance of the currents which ran in strong eddies between
the masses of ice. Our consorts were also seen, the Wear being within
hail and the Eddystone at a short distance from us. Two attempts were
ineffectually made to gain soundings, and the extreme density of the fog
precluded us from any other means of ascertaining the direction in which
we were driving until half-past twelve when we had the alarming view of a
barren rugged shore within a few yards towering over the mastheads.
Almost instantly afterwards the ship struck violently on a point of rocks
projecting from the island; and the ship's side was brought so near to
the shore that poles were prepared to push her off. This blow displaced
the rudder and raised it several inches but it fortunately had been
previously confined by tackles. A gentle swell freed the ship from this
perilous situation but the current hurried us along in contact with the
rocky shore and the prospect was most alarming. On the outward bow was
perceived a rugged and precipitous cliff whose summit was hid in the fog,
and the vessel's head was pointed towards the bottom of a small bay into
which we were rapidly driving. There now seemed to be no probability of
escaping shipwreck, being without wind and having the rudder in its
present useless state; the only assistance was that of a boat employed in
towing which had been placed in the water between the ship and the shore
at the imminent risk of its being crushed. The ship again struck in
passing over a ledge of rocks and happily the blow replaced the rudder,
which enabled us to take advantage of a light breeze and to direct the
ship's head without the projecting cliff. But the breeze was only
momentary and the ship was a third time driven on shore on the rocky
termination of the cliff. Here we remained stationery for some seconds
and with little prospect of being removed from this perilous situation;
but we were once more extricated by the swell from this ledge als