Hauing till this day stayd for the time and opportunity, in hope to get our ship loose, and now are cleane out of hope thereof,[624] for that it lyeth fast shut vp and inclosed in the ice, and in the last[625] of March and the first[626] of April the ice did so mightily gather together in great hils, that we could not deuise[627] how to get our scute and boate into the water and[628] where to find a conuenient place for it. And for that it seemed almost impossible to get the ship out of the ice, therefore I and William Barents our pilot,[629] and other the officers and company of sailors thereunto belonging, considering with our selues which would be the best course for vs to saue our owne liues and some wares belonging to the marchants, we could find no better meanes then to mend our boate and scute, and to prouide our selues as well as we could of all things necessarie, that being ready we might not loose or ouerslip any fit time and opportunity that God should [[192]]send vs; for that it stood us vpon[630] to take the fittest time, otherwise we should surely haue perished with hunger and cold, which as yet is to be feared will goe hard inough with vs, for that there are three or foure of vs that are not able to stirre to doe any thinge,[631] and the best and strongest of us are so weake with the great cold and diseases that we haue so long time endured, that we haue but halfe a mans strength; and it is to be feared that it will rather be worse then better, in regard of the long voiage that we haue in hand, and our bread wil not last vs longer then to the end of the mounth of August, and it may easily fal out, that the voiage being contrary and crosse vnto vs, that before that time we shall not be able to get to any land, where we may procure any victuals or other prouisions for our selues, as we haue hitherto done our best;[632] therefore we thought it our best course not to stay any longer here, for by nature we are bound to seeke our owne good and securities. And so we determined hereupon, and haue vnder written this present letter with our owne hands,[633] vpon the first of June 1597. And while vpon the same day we were ready and had a west wind [with an easy breeze] and an indifferent open sea, we did in Gods name prepare our selues and entred into our voiage, the ship lying as fast as euer it did inclosed in the ice, notwithstanding that while we were making ready to be gon, we had great wind out of the west, north, and north-west, and yet find no alteration nor bettering in the weather, and therefore in the last extremity we left it.[634] [Dated] vpon the 13 of June [and signed by] Jacob Hemskerke, Peter Peterson Vos, [[193]]Mr. Hans Vos,[635] Laurence Willinsō, Peter Cornelison, Iohn Remarson, William Barēts, Gerrat de Veer, Leonard Hendrickson, Iacob Ionson Scheadam, Iacob Ionsō Sterrenburg.[636] [[194]]
The 14 of June in the morning, the sunne easterly [½ p. 4 A.M.], we [by God’s mercy] put of from the land of Noua Zembla and the fast ice therevnto adioyning, with our boate and our scute,[637] hauing a west wind, and sailed east north-east all that day to the Ilands Point,[638] which was fiue [20] miles; but our first beginning was not very good, for we entered fast into the ice againe, which there laie very hard and fast, which put vs into no smal feare and trouble; and being there, foure of us went on land, to know the scituation thereof, and there we tooke many[639] birds, which we kild with stones vpon the cliftes.[640]
The 15 of June the ice began to goe away; then we put to saile againe with a south wind, and past along by the Head Point[641] and the Flushingers Point,[642] streaching most north-east, and after that north, to the Point of Desire,[643] which is about 13 [52] miles, and there we laie till the 16 of June.
The 16 of June we set saile againe, and got to the Island of Orange[644] with a south wind, which is 8 [32] miles distant from the Point of Desire; there we went one land with two small barrels and a kettle, to melt snow and to put ye water into ye barrels, as also to seeke for birds and egges to make meate for our sicke men; and being there we made fire with such wood as wee found there, and melted the snowe, but found no birds; but three of our men went ouer the ice to the other island, and got three birds, and as we came backe againe, our maister (which was one of the three) fell into the ice, where he was in great danger of his life, for in that place there ran a great streame;[645] but by Gods helpe he got out againe and came to vs, and there dryed himselfe by the fire that we had made, at which fire we drest the [[195]]birds, and carried them to the scute to our sicke men, and filled our two runlets with water that held about eight gallons[646] a peece; which done, we put to the sea againe with a south-east wind and drowsie miseling weather,[647] whereby we were al dankish[648] and wet, for we had no shelter in our open scutes, and sailed west and west and by south to [opposite] the Ice Point.[649] And being there, both our scutes lying hard by each other, the maister[650] called to William Barents to know how he did, and William Barents made answeare and said, Well, God be thanked, and I hope before we get to Warehouse to be able to goe.[651] Then he spake to me and said, Gerrit, are we about the Ice Point? If we be, then I pray you lift me vp, for I must veiw it once againe;[652] at which time we had sailed from the Island of Orange to the Ice Points about fiue [20] miles; and then the wind was[653] westerly, and we made our scuts fast to a great peece of ice[654] and there eate somewhat; but the weather was still fouler and fouler, so that we were once againe inclosed with ice and forced to stay there.
The 17 of June in the morning, when we had broken our fastes, the ice came so fast[655] vpon vs that it made our haires stare[656] vpright vpon our heades, it was so fearefull to behold; [[196]]by which meanes we could not make fast[657] our scutes, so that we thought verily that it was a foreshewing of our last end; for we draue away so hard with the ice, and were so sore prest between a flake of ice, that we thought verily the scutes would burst in a hundredth peeces, which made vs looke pittifully one upon the other, for no counsell nor aduise was to be found,[658] but euery minute of an houre[659] we saw death before our eies. At last, being in this discomfort and extreeme necessity, ye master said[660] if we could take hold with a rope vpon the fast ice,[661] we might therewith drawe ye scute vp, and so get it out of the great drift of ice. But as this counsell was good, yet it was so full of daunger, that it was the hazard of his life that should take vpon him to doe it; and without doing it, was it most certaine yt it would cost us all our liues. This counsell (as I said) was good, but no man (like to the tale of ye mise) durst hang the bell about ye cats necke, fearing to be drowned; yet necessity required to haue it done, and the most danger made vs chuse the least. So that being in that perplexity [and as a drowned calf may safely be risked],[662] I being the lightest of all our company tooke on me to fasten[663] a rope vpon the fast ice; and so creeping from one peece of driuing ice to another, by Gods help got to the fast ice, where I made a rope fast to a high howell,[664] and they that were in the scute drew it thereby vnto [[197]]the said fast ice, and then one man alone could drawe more than all of them could have done before. And when we had gotten thither, in all haste we tooke our sicke men out and layd them vpon the ice, laying clothes and other things vnder them [for them to rest on], and then tooke all our goods out of the scutes, and so drew them vpon the ice, whereby for that time we were deliuered from that great danger, making account that we had escaped out of death’s clawes,[665] as it was most true.
How we were nearly wrecked, and with great danger had to betake ourselves to the ice.
The 18 of June we repaired and amended our scutes againe, being much bruised and crushed with the racking of the ice, and were forced to driue all the nailes fast againe, and to peece many things about them,[666] God sending vs wood wherewith we moult our pitch, and did all other things that belonged thereunto. That done, some of vs went vpon the land[667] to seeke for egges, which the sick men longed for, but we could find none, but we found foure birds, not without great danger of our liues betweene the ice and the firme land, wherein we often fell, and were in no small danger.
The 19 of June it was indifferent weather, the wind north-west, and [during the day west and] west south-west, but we were still shut vp in the ice and saw no opening, which made us thinke that there would be our last aboade, and that we should neuer get from thence; but on the other side we comforted our selves againe, that seeing God had helped vs oftentimes unexpectedly in many perils, and that his arme as yet was not shortened, but that he could [still] helpe vs[668] at his good will and pleasure, it made vs somewhat comfortable, and caused vs to speake cheerfully one unto the other.
The 20 of June it was indifferent weather, the wind west, [[198]]and when the sunne was south-east [½ p. 7 A.M.] Claes Adrianson[669] began to be extreme sicke, whereby we perceiued that he would not liue long, and the boateson[670] came into our scute[671] and told vs in what case he was, and that he could not long continue aliue; whereupon William Barents spake and said, I thinke I shal not liue long after him;[672] and yet we did not ivdge William Barents to be so sicke, for we sat talking one with the other, and spake of many things, and William Barents read in my card which I had made touching our voiage,[673] [and we had some discussion about it]; at last he laid away the card and spake vnto me, saying, Gerrit, give me some drinke;[674] and he had no sooner drunke but he was taken with so sodain a qualme, that he turned his eies in his head and died presently, and we had no time to call the maister out of the [other] scute to speake vnto him; and so he died before Claes Adrianson [who died shortly after him]. The death of William Barents put vs in no small discomfort, as being the chiefe guide and onely pilot on whom we reposed our selues next vnder God;[675] but we could not striue against God, and therefore we must of force be content.