Page:Polar Exploration - Bruce - 1911.djvu/57

Rh of Coronation Island. Suddenly, there seemed to be a lull in the wind, and the sea became smooth as glass—an ominous sign, for we had assuredly come under the lee of a berg or high land. "Hard-a-port!" was Captain Robertson's swift order, and we swung round, and in doing so there loomed up on the port side the grim icy cliff of a huge berg, which almost grazed our yard-arms. Nothing but the able handling of the ship by my officers and crew, and their long experience of navigating among ice could have saved us from a most deadly collision, if not shipwreck: soon after, as the drift diminished, we sighted another berg to leeward, and a little later, when it cleared, we found we were completely surrounded by bergs.

Having dealt with Antarctic icebergs, let us now turn our attention to the other forms of ice I have mentioned. Apart from icebergs, all other Antarctic and indeed Polar ice is a product of the sea and not the land.