"At half-past six," says Captain Ross, relating to his first voyage of
discovery, in the Isabella, to the arctic regions, with Captain Parry,
in the Alexander, "the ice began to move, and, the wind increasing to a
gale, the only chance left for us was to endeavor to force the ship
through it to the north, where it partially opened; but the channel was
so much obstructed by heavy fragments, that our utmost efforts were
ineffectual; the ice closed in upon us, and at noon we felt its pressure
most severely. A large floe, which lay on one side of the Isabella,
appeared to be fixed; while, on the other side, another of considerable
bulk was passing along with a rapid motion, assuming a somewhat circular
direction, in consequence of one side having struck on the fixed field.
The pressure continuing to increase, it became doubtful whether the ship
would be able to sustain it; every support threatened to give way, the
beams in the hold began to bend, and the iron tanks settled together.
"At this critical moment, when it seemed impossible for us to bear the
accumulating pressure much longer, the hull rose several feet; while the
ice, which was more than six feet thick, broke against the sides,
curling back on itself.
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