Page:A Voyage of Discovery and Research in the Southern and Antarctic Regions Vol 2.djvu/213

VII.] The strength of the gale gave way about 1, when the barometer, at 28.7 inches, began to rise, the wind at the same time veering to the eastward, brought with it clearer weather, and we had the satisfaction to find the pack much more open, with larger holes of water than we had before seen; the westerly swell had also risen to a considerable height, and our ships received many severe blows by falling against the heavy pieces of ice to which they were attached, or striking against others equally heavy. We were fortunate during the fog and snow, in having drifted clear of the numerous bergs which we now saw in all directions around us. As the swell from the westward continued to increase, the shocks became more frequent and violent, so that immediately after the performance of our usual Sunday service, under these anxious circumstances, we cast off, and made sail, with the view to push the ships to the westward to meet the swell, under the impression that clear water could not be far distant in that direction. During the remainder of the day, and the whole of the night, we made tolerable progress, boring through the patches that separated the pack, and, with unceasing labour and fatigue, using every means of warping and heaving through those which were too close to penetrate without these additional aids. But the wind failed us early in the forenoon of the following day, and left us quite unmanageable, owing to the westerly swell which was running so high, that, although