Thus, therefore, all things being put in a readiness, we departed from Dartmouth the 7th of June towards the discovery of the aforesaid North-West Passage with two barques, the one being of fifty tons, named the Sunshine, of London, and the other being thirty-five tons, named the Moonshine, of Dartmouth.In the Sunshine we had twenty-three persons, whose names are these following: Master John Davis, captain; William Eston, master;Richard Pope, master's mate; John Jane, merchant; Henry Davie, gunner; William Crosse, boatswain; John Bagge, Walter Arthur, Luke Adams, Robert Coxworthie, John Ellis, John Kelly, Edward Helman, William Dicke, Andrew Maddocke, Thomas Hill, Robert Wats, carpenter, William Russell, Christopher Gorney, boy; James Cole, Francis Ridley, John Russel, Robert Cornish, musicians.
The Moonshine had nineteen persons, William Bruton, captain; John Ellis, master; the rest mariners.
The 7th of June the captain and the master drew out a proportion for the continuance of our victuals.
The 8th day, the wind being at south-west and west-south-west, we put in for Falmouth, where we remained until the 13th.
The 13th the wind blew at north, and being fair weather we departed.
The 14th, with contrary wind, we were forced to put into Scilly.
The 15th we departed thence, having the wind north and by east, moderate and fair weather.
The 16th we were driven back again, and were constrained to arrive at New Grimsby, at Scilly; here the wind remained contrary twelve days, and in that space the captain, the master, and I went about all the islands, and the captain did plan out and describe the situation of all the islands, rocks, and harbours to the exact use of navigation, with lines and scale thereunto convenient.
The 28th, in God's name, we departed, the wind being easterly, but calm.
The 29th very foggy.
The 30th foggy.
The 1st of July we saw great store of porpoises, the master called for a harping-iron, and shot twice or thrice; sometimes he missed, and at last shot one and struck him in the side, and wound him into the ship; when we had him aboard, the master said it was a darley head.
The 2nd we had some of the fish boiled, and it did eat as sweet as any mutton.
The 3rd we had more in sight, and the master went to shoot at them, but they were so great, that they burst our irons, and we lost both fish, irons, pastime, and all; yet, nevertheless, the master shot at them with a pike, and had well-nigh gotten one, but he was so strong, that he burst off the bars of the pike and went away.Then he took the boat-hook, and hit one with that; but all would not prevail, so at length we let them alone.
The 6th we saw a very great whale, and every day after we saw whales continually.
The 16th, 17th, and 18th we saw great store of whales.
The 19th of July we fell into a great whirling and brustling of a tide, setting to the northward; and sailing about half a league we came into a very calm sea, which bent to the south-south-west.Here we heard a mighty great roaring of the sea, as if it had been the breach of some shore, the air being so foggy and full of thick mist, that we could not see the one ship from the other, being a very small distance asunder; so the captain and the master, being in distrust how the tide might set them, caused the Moonshine to hoist out her boat and to sound, but they could not find ground in three hundred fathoms and better.Then the captain, master, and I went towards the breach to see what it should be, giving charge to our gunners that at every blast they should shoot off a musket shot, to the intent we might keep ourselves from losing them; then coming near to the breach, we met many islands of ice floating, which had quickly compassed us about.Then we went upon some of them, and did perceive that all the roaring which we heard was caused only by the rolling of this ice together.Our company seeing us not to return according to our appointment, left off shooting muskets and began to shoot falconets, for they feared some mishap had befallen us; but before night we came aboard again, with our boat laden with ice, which made very good fresh water.Then we bent our course toward the north, hoping by that means to double the land.
The 20th, as we sailed along the coast, the fog brake up, and we discovered the land, which was the most deformed, rocky, and mountainous land that ever we saw, the first sight whereof did show as if it had been in form of a sugar loaf, standing to our sight above the clouds, for that it did show over the fog like a white liste in the sky, the tops altogether covered with snow, and the shore beset with ice a league off into the sea, making such irksome noise as that it seemed to be the true pattern of desolation, and after the same our captain named it the land of desolation.
The 21st the wind came northerly and overblew, so that we were constrained to bend our course south again, for we perceived that we were run into a very deep bay, where we were almost compassed with ice, for we saw very much towards the north-north-east, west, and south-west; and this day and this night we cleared ourselves of the ice, running south-south-west along the shore.
