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TO THE NORTH OF EUROPE. 8g
and having quite mangled it, fucked the blood. The reft of the perfons who were on
fhore, to the number of twenty, immediately ran with their firelocks and pikes, and
found the bear devouring the body, which on fecing them ran towards 4hem with in-
credible fury, threw himfelf upon one of them, carried him away, and tore him to
pieces, which fo terrified them that they all fled.
Thofe who remained in the veffel and the vacht feeing them thys flee, and return
towards the fhore, jumped into the boats and rowed with all their force to receive them.
When they had landed and beheld this lamentable fpectacle, they encouraged the others
to return with them to the combat, that altogether might attack this ferocious
animal; but there were fome who could not be induced to it. Gur companions are
dead, faid they, we cannot preferve their lives ; if we couid {till have this hope, we would
go with as much ardour as you to deliver them’: but there is nothing to be afpired at,
but a victory from which will accrue neither honour nor advaniage, and for which we
mutt expofe ourfelves to a frightful danger. We can either kill or take the bear, and
probably this will happen, but it will coft the life of one of us; and the glory of the
capture or death of this animal ought not to be fought at this price.
Notwithftanding thefe reafons three of them advanced a little, while the bear conti-
nued to devour his prey, without difiurbing himfelf at the fight of thirty men together
fo nearhim. ‘Thefe three were Cornelius Jacobs pilot, and Hans Van Ufielen, purfer
of the veffel of Barentfz, and William Gyfen, pilot of the yacht.
The two pilots having fired three times without hitting the animal, the purfer ad-
vanced a little farther and fhot the bear in the head clofe by the eye, which did not
caufe him to quit his prey; but holding the body always by the neck which he was de-
vouring, carried it away as yet quite entire. Neverthelefs they then perceived that he
began himfelf to totter, and the purfer going towards him with a Scotchman, they gave
him feveral fabre wounds, and cut him to pieces, without his abandoning his prey. At
length the pilot Gyfen having given him a violent blow with the butt end of his fire-
lock on the muzzle, which brought him to the ground, the puricr leaped upon him
and cut his throat. The two bodies half devoured were interred in the Ifle of the States,
and the fkin of the bear was carried to Amfterdam. Ag
On the ninth of September they again fet fail, but they met with fo great a quantity
of ice banks, which ftruck againft the veffel, that they were not able to pais, and were
under the neceflity of returning in the evening and anchoring in the fame place from
which they had fet fail. The admiral and the yacht of Rotterdam touched on the
rocks, which however did them no damage. :
On the eleventh of the fame month all the veffels again failed towards the fea of Tar-
tary without being able to advance farther than before, on account of the ice: thus they
returned to the Weigats, and fteered towards the Cape of the Croffes. On the four-
teenth the weather became a litile finer, the wind veered to the N. W. and the currents
fet in with rapidity from the fea of Tariary.
On the fame day they croffed over from the other fide of the Weigats to the main
land, in order to found the channel, and pierced through the extremity of the gulf be-
hind the [fle of the Tail, where they found a little wooden houfe and a large channel.
On the following morning they hauled their anchors on board, and raifed their topmaits,
under the idea of endeavouring a fecond time to continue their voyage ; but the admiral
not being of this opinion remained at anchor.
On the morning of the twenty-fifth they faw the ice enter into the Weigats, on the
eaftern fide, fo that they were conftrained to weigh anchor, and to depart from the ftrait
by the weft, in order to direct their courfe homewards. On the thirtieth the fleet was
VOL. I. N at
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