Letters from high latitudes : being some account of a voyage, in 1856, in the schooner yacht "Foam", to Iceland, Jan Mayen, and Spitzbergen . of getting to the eastward. It now grew colder than ever,—the distant land wasalmost hid with fog,—tattered dingy clouds came crowdingover the heavens,—while Wilson moved uneasily about thedeck, with the air of Cassandra at the conflagration of was Sunday, the 14th of July, and I had a momentaryfancy that I could hear the sweet church bells in Englandpealing across the cold white flats which surrounded us. Atlast, about five oclock , the wind
Letters from high latitudes : being some account of a voyage, in 1856, in the schooner yacht "Foam", to Iceland, Jan Mayen, and Spitzbergen . of getting to the eastward. It now grew colder than ever,—the distant land wasalmost hid with fog,—tattered dingy clouds came crowdingover the heavens,—while Wilson moved uneasily about thedeck, with the air of Cassandra at the conflagration of was Sunday, the 14th of July, and I had a momentaryfancy that I could hear the sweet church bells in Englandpealing across the cold white flats which surrounded us. Atlast, about five oclock , the wind shifted a point or two,then flew round into the south-east. Not long after, just asI had expected, the ice evidently began to loosen,—a pro-mising opening was reported from the mast-head a mile orso away on the port-bow, and by nine oclock we werespanking along, at the rate of eight knots an hour under adouble-reefed mainsail and staysail—down a continuallywidening channel, between two wave-lashed ridges of driftice. Before midnight, we had regained the open sea, andwere standing away to NoiToway,To Norroway, over the 148 LETTERS FROM HIGH LATITUDES. [VIII. In the forenoon I had been too busy to have our usualSunday church; but as soon as we were pretty clear of theice I managed to have a short service in the cabin. Of our run to Hammerfest I have nothing particular tosay. The distance is eight hundred miles, and we did it ineight days. On the whole, the weather was pretty fair,though cold, and often foggy. One day indeed was perfectlylovely,—the one before we made the coast of Lapland,—without a cloud to be seen for the space of twenty-four hours ;giving me an opportunity of watching the sun performing hiscomplete circle overhead, and taking a meridian altitude atmidnight. We were then in 70° 25 North latitude ; /. as far north as the North Cape; yet the thermometerhad been up to 80° during the afternoon. Shortly afterwards the fog came on agai
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