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We had a magnificent sunset on the 23rd, and 45
icebergs were sighted at once, besides any amount of Penguins &
Whales jumping about all round us. On the 24th we sounded at 1300
faths. & hove the dredge, when some good specimens were obtained.
As soon as the dredge came up, it came on to blow, & all hands
were called to make sail for Melbourne. The ship was steamed close
under the lee of a large iceberg to allow the topsails to be reefed,
and some undercurrent drifted her right on to the berg, the engines
were turned full speed astern, but to no purpose & she drifted
right on to it; but fortunately struck it very gently, though with
sufficient force to carry away the Jib boom, dolphin striker, and
other head gear. As soon as the ship got free, the wreck was cleared
away, & the Carpenters set to work to make fresh spars, which
took them 2 days, & delayed us about 300 miles. The wind
increased to a gale, & it was the coldest day we have
had, snowing & freezing all the time; the Thermometer stood
at 24°, & the wind was fearfully cutting. The Lat. was 64°15'
S & Long. 95°E. The wind kept increasing, & the ship
lay to under bare poles, the fog came on so thickly that nothng
could be seen 50 yards ahead, & the snow was blinding.
At 3PM, a large iceberg was discvered drifting
right on to us; the hands were called to make sail, but by the time
they got on deck, the berg was only about 20 yards from us, &
rose right above the ship's masts. The confusion was something fearful,
nearly everyone was on deck, it was snowing & blowing hard all
the time; one officer was yelling out one order, & another something
else. The engines were steaming full speed astern, & by hoisting
the topsail, the ship shot past it in safety. A seaman fell from
the trysail while they were hoisting it, & was much hurt. The
gale still increased, & the fog was still thick, 3 men were
kept on the lookout all day & night. During that night the ship
was put about 9 times to keep her clear of the icebergs. On the
25th there was 1/2 an inch of ice all over the outside of the ship,&
while she was forcing her way through a large field of floating
ice, the Artist sketched her from a Boat. It came on to blow again
that night, & most of the sails had to be furled as there were
such numbers of icebergs about. While furling a boy fell from the
lower rigging overboard; the Life Boat was manned, but was not required
as he had caught a stray rope & was hauled on board unhurt,
but half frozen.
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