Chapter 5 Chapter 5 Full Tide Seawater

With the capricious tailwinds blowing wildly in April, the March sprinted across the sea, her propellers running wildly, meeting no obstacles in her advance.About three o'clock it came upon a ship, which was going between Liverpool and the Isle of Men, carrying three sidings from Sicily divided into drum sections.The captain on his ship trumpeted it with his hands in a circle, and it was the last farewell sound the crew aboard the Gord heard. At five o'clock, the navigator again handed over the command of the ship to Richard.Shandon, back in his dhow, turned around at the nearest point, and soon disappeared to the south-west.

Towards evening, the boat rounded the headland of the island at the southernmost tip of Isle of Men.After nightfall, the sea was rough.Unharmed, the Forward left Cape Eyre behind to the northwest and headed for the North Canal. Johnson had a point, and on the surface, the mariner's marine instincts prevailed.As soon as they saw how good the conditions were on board, they forgot how unusual the situation was, and life on board became orderly. The doctor sucked the sea breeze fascinatedly; he walked vigorously in the strong wind, and as a scholar, it was not easy for him to walk as usual on a shaking boat.

The sea is a fine thing, he said to Mr. Johnson, as he went on deck after lunch, I'm a little late to know about it, but I'll catch up. You are right, Mr. Crawburn; I would give all the land in the world for this one ocean.It is said that sailors soon tire of their profession; I have been at sea for forty years, and I am as happy as I was on the first day. It's a treat to have a good boat at your feet, and if I'm not mistaken, the Forward is going merry. You are right, Doctor, replied Shandon, who also joined the two men in their conversation, that it is a good ship, and I confess that there is no better equipped and crewed ship for sailing the poles.This reminds me of James 30 years ago.Captain Ross Seeking the Northwest Route

He was on the Victory, said the doctor excitedly. This ship was about the same tonnage as ours, and it also had a steam engine. how!you know this Think about it, the doctor went on to say, when the steam engine technology was still in its infancy, the steam engine on the Victory made his ship run slowly, causing bad results; James.Captain Ross repaired parts one by one, but to no avail, and finally had to dismantle the steam engine and throw it away during the first winter layoff. hell!Sandon said, You know it all, I can see it! What do you think?The doctor went on to say, through reading, I read Barry.Ross, Franklin's works, Mark.Kluer, Kennedy.Kane, Mark.Clintock's report left a little impression.I also know this Mark.Clintock reached his destination more easily and directly than all the pioneers, in the screw-ship Fox, which was similar to ours.

This is absolutely true, Sandon replied, this Mark.Clintock is a gallant sailor; I read it; and you know, like him, we crossed Davis Strait in April, and if we ever manage to cross the ice, our voyage will be farther. At least, the doctor said, we will not be like the Fox, which was blocked by ice floes in the northern Baffin Sea from the first year in 1857 and overwintered in ice packs. We hope we have better luck, Mr. Sandon, replied Johnson, and if you can't go wherever you want with a ship like the Advance, don't use it at all. Besides, the doctor went on, the captain knew better than we what to do if he was on board, precisely because we knew nothing of it; and because his letters were so strangely simple, we could not guess the object of the journey.

That's quite rich, said Sandon with great emotion, to know which way to go, and now, in just another month, I think, we'll have to ignore the stranger's supernatural interference and his instructions.Besides, you know what I think of him. cough!cough!Said the doctor, I believe as much as you do that this man will let you command the ship, and never come to it, but but?Sandon retorted with some annoyance. But since his second letter, my opinion on this has changed. Why is that, doctor? For, since this letter tells you which way to go, it does not tell you where the Forward is going; but you must know exactly where you are going.What I want to ask you is how to get this third letter into your hands, we are in the endless sea!In Greenland, the postal service needs to be improved.Come to think of it, Shandon, I think the fellow is waiting for us in one of the boats in Horsteinberg or Nipernavik; he must have finished his sealskins there, bought a sled and Dogs, in a word, are equipped with everything needed to sail the polar seas.I wouldn't be surprised if I saw him step out of his cabin on a fine morning and command the ship in the least supernatural way in the world.

Possibly, replied Shandon in a dry voice, but the wind picked up in the meantime, and it would not be prudent to risk the topmast in such weather. Shandon left the doctor and gave the order that the upper sails be furled. He insists on it. Yes, replied the latter, it is very annoying, for you have a good point, Mr. Crawburn. Towards evening on Saturday, the Vanguard rounded Cape Galloway, with the lighthouse towering to the northeast, leaving Cape Canthal to the north at night and Cape Fair on the Irish coast to the east, at three o'clock in the morning , half starboard sailing along Rathlin Island, the northern canal out of the ocean.

The day was Sunday, April 8; a day strictly observed by the English, especially by sailors; and the reading of the Bible, which the doctor had voluntarily undertaken, took up part of the morning. The wind turned into a hurricane, and had a tendency to blow the boat towards the coast of Ireland; the waves were rough, and the boat rocked badly, which the doctor was reluctant to do if he wasn't seasick, because nothing could be easier.At noon Cape Marinehead disappeared into the south; it was the last piece of European land these brave sailors could see, and more than one gazed long, doubtless never to be seen again.

The observed latitude was fifty-five degrees fifty-seven minutes, and according to the chronometer, the longitude was seven degrees and forty minutes. At nine o'clock in the evening, the hurricane subsided, and the good sailing ship, the Admiral, headed northwest.One can judge the ship's seaworthiness by the day's sailing; Liverpool connoisseurs consider it a sailing vessel first and foremost. In the days that followed, the Vanguard galloped northwest, with the wind blowing south and rough seas; the ship set sail.Several petrels and shearwaters circled over the poop; the doctor shot a shearwater with great tact, which happened to land on board.

Whale Gunner Simpson picked it up and handed it to its owner. An ugly prey, Mr Crawburn.He said. Instead, it makes for a great meal, my friend! What!You want to eat this? You must try too, my honest sir.the doctor said with a smile. Pooh!Simpson retorted, but it was greasy like all seabirds, and had a stinky smell. all right!The doctor objected. I have my own way to cook this prey. If you believe it is a seabird, I promise I will never kill another one in my life. Are you a culinary expert, Mr. Croubney?Johnson asked. A scholar should know a little bit about everything. Well, stop being so obstinate, Simpson, replied the bosun, that the doctor is a wise man, and he can make the best partridge out of this owl.

As a matter of fact, the doctor was completely justified on the bird problem. He removed the fat very skillfully. The fat was all under the skin, mainly distributed in the hip, so that the smell and fishy smell were gone. People had every reason to complain about seabirds.After this treatment, the water-cutter was well received, and even Simpson nodded in approval. During the last hurricane, Richard.Shandon recognized the outstanding qualities of his crew; he analyzed his men one by one as any commander who wanted to avoid future danger would do, and he knew what to rely on. James.Wall, the second mate who is completely devoted to Richard, is empathetic and quick, but he may lack dynamism; Johnson, tried and tested in wrestling with the seas, the ancient way-guides of the northern seas, had nothing to learn in coolness and bravery. Whale gunner Simpson and carpenter Bell are trustworthy men who are at their beck and call about responsibility and discipline.Foucault, the ice floe pilot, was an experienced sailor, educated at Johnson's school, and expected to bear the weight of his duties. Of the other sailors, Gary and Bourdain seemed the best: Bourdain was witty and talkative; Gary, a lad of twenty-five, had a resolute face, but a little pale and sad. The three sailors, Clifton, Gripper, and Payne, seemed less enthusiastic, less determined; they preferred to whisper.Gripper even wanted to break the contract when the March sailed; he stayed on board out of a sense of shame.If things go well, if there is no danger, no labor, these three can be counted on; but they need a lot of food, and they are big eaters.No matter what had been prescribed beforehand, it was difficult for them to get used to abstaining from alcohol, and at mealtimes they missed brandy or gin terribly; they made up for it in coffee and tea, which were plentiful on board. As for Brenton and Prover, the mechanics and Warren the fireman, they were content to have so far been idle. Sandon knew what to expect from everyone. On April 14, the Admiral broke the swell of the Gulf Stream, which first followed the east coast of America to the beaches of the New World, then turned northeast and sailed along the coast of Norway.The latitude of the ship was fifty-one thirty-seven minutes, and the longitude was twenty-two degrees fifty-eight minutes, two hundred nautical miles from the Cape of Greenland.The weather turned cold, and the temperature on the thermometer dropped to 0 degrees Celsius, which is the freezing point. Doctors did not yet wear arctic winter suits, but nautical suits like sailors and officers.He jumped down in a heap in high boots, and in a wide oilskin cap, a pair of trousers and a frock coat of the same fabric, and it was amusing to look at; Sometimes the doctor looks like a sea animal.Such a comparison would not arouse his pride. For two full days, conditions at sea were rather rough; the wind turned to the northwest, blocking the advance voyage.From the fourteenth to the sixteenth of April the waves were rough; but on Monday there was a shower of rain, and the sea calmed down almost immediately.Sandon called the doctor's attention to this peculiar phenomenon. Yes, replied the latter, it was in keeping with the spectacle observed by the whaler Scoresby.He was a member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, of which I had the honor of being a correspondent.You see, the waves don't move when it's raining, even when it's windy.On the contrary, in dry weather, as long as there is a slight breeze, the sea will rise and fall. But how to explain this phenomenon, doctor? It's very simple, just don't explain it. At this moment, the ice floe pilot, who was on duty at the tiller of the third tier, called attention to a pack of ice floe passing to starboard fifteen knots leeward. There is an iceberg in the nearby sea!cried the doctor. Shandon pointed the telescope at the designated direction and confirmed the pilot's words. This is really strange!The doctor said. Does this surprise you?The commander smiled and said, what!We're excited to see what else makes you wonder? This surprises me, but it's not surprising.The doctor replied with a smile, because the Underpool from Greenspond was surrounded by a real ice field at latitude 40°4' north in 1813. Captain Delment counted hundreds of icebergs Woolen cloth! good!Sandon said, what else can you tell us in this regard? oh!Nothing, good-natured Croubney replied humbly, if icebergs had not been found in lower latitudes. You didn't tell me about this, my dear doctor; for I was a midshipman on the Fly In 1818, the doctor went on to say, at the end of March, some say April, you passed two large floating ice islands, at a latitude of 48°2'. ah!Simply amazing!cried Shandon. But it's true, and nothing I'd make a fuss about, since we hit an iceberg two degrees to the north near the Forward. You are a well, doctor, replied the Commander, and for you it is only a bucket of water. all right!You can't imagine how quickly I do it; now, if we can observe this strange phenomenon nearby, Shandon, I should be the happiest doctor. That's right, Johnson, said Sandon, addressing the bosun, and I see the wind tending to pick up. Yes, Commander, replied Johnson, we are going very slowly, and the tide in Davis Strait will soon be felt. You are right, Mr. Johnson, if we want to see the Cape of Good Hope on April 20, we must use the steam engine, or we will be thrown off the coast of Labrador.Mr. Wall, give your order to light the fire. The commander's order was carried out; an hour later, the steam had gained sufficient pressure; the sails were furled, and the blades of the propellers beat the current, pushing the Vampire hard against the northwest wind.