Nearer and nearer the Independencia approached the gap in the almost encircling walls of ice—a channel less than a quarter of a mile in width, and flanked by lofty, overhanging precipices. It seemed from a distance that the gap was even less than it actually was, so high were the glacial cliffs on either hand.
Suddenly the cruiser struck; not violently, but sufficient to make the fact known to all on board. Her forward part, drawing 7 ft. of water more than her normal draught owing to the flooding of her fore compartments, had struck a ridge of submerged ice.
This time there was hardly any panic amongst the polyglot crew. The men were almost too apathetic to care for anything short of sudden, real danger. The engines were reversed, and almost without an effort the Independencia glided stern foremost off the reef. Soundings were taken, revealing a depth of only eight fathoms. Then the truth became apparent.
The Independencia was barely floating in a vast depression in the ice-field. The Bergs were really part of one extensive sheet of ice, twenty, thirty, or perhaps even more miles in length, and less than a dozen feet under her keel was a bed of ice possibly a thousand feet thick between her and the floor of the ocean.
It was indeed a strange freak of fortune that had guided the cruiser betwixt those icy portals in the fog. Now came the question: Had the bed of the glacial lagoon risen and decreased the depth, and did a barrier of shallow water lie between her and the open sea?
Three times the cruiser essayed to pass the shoal, each time bumping slightly. The fourth time, by keeping 300 yds. to starboard of the point where the vessel had touched the first time, Cervillo contrived to clear the danger, only to be confronted by another; for so close was the Independencia to the berg that one tremendous mass of ice fell within a hundred yards of her starboard side.
It was touch and go. On the one hand the risk of grounding badly on the shoal of ice, on the other the danger of being smashed by the sudden fall of the overhanging face of the glistening mass of congealed water. But Cervillo kept his head, and standing by the quartermaster compelled him to steer as close to the cliffs as possible, and after a quarter of an hour's suspense the Independencia gained the open sea.
The ship was in a bad state, for she was leaking badly, the inrush being barely kept under control by the powerful centrifugal pumps. She was down by the head; her fuel was running short, and the provisions, except those stored aft, were sufficient only for another ten days. No wonder, then, that the pirate captain was anxious to recover the booty, and save himself as best he might.
