The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1898-04-24

tia CAPTAIN comes aboard with the c4sST-
ance papers ard the latest kilograms frnM
the northern telegraph stations reporting
any news OF seals seen from the shore:
But these kilograms are seldom relied on
and are OF little real vaire.
Now the midday gun has gone. and taa
vessel Is hauled out into the stream; the
last visitor. who came to give the sealerS
toast OF Bloody Decks" has gone ashofa.
now all the iags are flying bravely in the
fresh breeze. Whistles are blowing; 1t Is
nearly o'clock. A mighty cheering, again
ard again renewed. announces that son.a
ones anchors are coming home: and an:
swering cheers from shore tell that soma
vessel Is moving ou..
The Neptune. Of i65 tons register, Is the
largest OF the scaling feet None Is better
known or more respected, than her cap
tain. For six years o sslicr before the
mast; then, for twelve more master OF
various sailing vessels; for twenty-one
years captain OF "a steamer. he well exem-
pliIies the fo'c'sle saying. In at the hawss
pipe, out at the cabin window" wherehy
Is to be understood that he has advanced
himself Capt, Blandford, OF the Nep-
tune. has brought home more seals than
any captain on record, and only once Ia
all his voyages. has he lost a man.
An hours stearning to The north brought
us into heavy ice. coming out of a teer
bay and joining the broad fields OF Arctic
Tee. stretching away 10 sea far beyond the
reach % the eye. Ice is OF various kinds.
arst. We have the heavy Arctic ice Ia
enormous so.id pans. many square miles
IN area. with here and there booming VI,
the weird form OF some huge entansles
iceberg. broken OF from the Greenland
glaciers. or coming from the never melting
fields Sill farther north. Born at sea
this Ice Is rough and jagged, with fresh
water ice on the top, formed from rain OF
melted snow, frozen upon the si,rface
Mixed with this latter are huge pieces
that have been RATED upon II, and have
frozen there till the pinnacIes stand from
fifteen to twenty feat above the sea level
SO that they strike our boats hanging In
the dayits as We go through. There is of
course. seven times as much ice below
water Then there Is the smoother See.
formed along the coast OF Labrador. or
even ia the great bays OF Newfoundland
Level, and rot nearly 50 thick. 1t IS know,
as whipping Ice ard 1t Is usually on THIS
that the old seals g!ve birth to their
young. Then there is dirty ice" bearing
the marks Of mud ana stones where n
touched shs bottom OF the BAY where -
was formed. This has been covered with
snow. detached broken up and driven sea-
ward by o0-Shore winds All this ice is
ever drifting southwark to its own de-
Atlantic geSs beneath n. the huge pans
crack Gp in ever direction. The larger
masses rush against the smaller, crush
ms them 20 crystal fakes, tflf sha whole
sea Is covered with dis{o;ntesi pieces sop,
arated by vide crevasses fun q. urun5s-s
ice ard snow.
IN a sw't the hcrrs 60 roaring and
ereak1ny and heavirg their way through
tle rest AgtES one pan and smashing !.
as they roll one way, depressing ana
lasta.I-g another as they roll back tha
otAer. Growers" they ara called. Ard
'ead eGs01g1a IN al conscience a., trey
grow! and below. 4 gale. acting on ,hs
ro-@is surface OF TIE iee as "a sail con.
ta1a+Ay iiaai'els fresh tee fssssls avasnx.
these monsters. by which they are r,.
IKE saw Tie immense. mass - .ha
saFgs eeloTs water makes them -,ox-. hn,
slowly - ieew&ryi themselves era O. g.
ice sGS1ss oF ~AicSa they have cut /. to,.
wake @ clear water ~ lef. behind -ha~-
taas. IN heavy. drifting ice. the seasa-s
ossea re on 10 an iceberg. ana thrs
siesus1 barnlns no coal. ard wfthor.
ssf$issas tae ship by 'ou,ttnyr .nsy e.
actually Passing through. ana; th,rs s..~e-s-
iss Ice Tor seals At neraar,s tHra k-,rs .-
aoafT. In wAtch otherwise :hsy y,,,,rs - -.s
sso ae&0wAy at al. But even ,Nexa r-x~.,s
and stately nesgs must have an eri -,-sa
Trey tive long enough 20 x,r,sSs .ne 49,.
of mary ceesta lirers Ard csher stesrnvs.
aAa 20 ferrssy pasSe1gers and xasiorp 49,