The Three Voyages of William Barents to the Arctic Regions (1594, 1595, and 1596)Veer, Gerrit de
History
The Three Voyages of William Barents to the Arctic Regions (1594, 1595, and 1596)
Veer, Gerrit de
Barentsz, Willem, approximately 1550-1597; Northeast Passage
The 15 of July it was misty weather; that morning the wind was
south-east, but the sunne being west it began to raine, and the wind
turned west and west south-west.
The 16 of July there came a beare from the firme land that came very
neere vnto vs, by reason that it was as white as snow, whereby at first
we could not discerne it to be a beare, because it shewed so like the
snow; but by her stirring at last wee perceiued her, and as she came
neere vnto vs we shot at her and hit her, but she ran away. That
morning the wind was west, and after that againe east north-east, with
close [1350] weather.
The 17 of July, about the south south-east sunne, 5 of our men went
againe to the nearest island to see if there appeared any open water,
for our long staying there was no small griefe vnto vs, perceiuing not
how we should get from thence; who being halfe way thither, they found
a beare lying behind a peece of ice, which the day before had beene
shot by vs, but she hearing vs went away; but one of our men following
her with a boate-hooke, thrust her into the skinne, [1351] wherewith
the beare rose vp vpon her hinder feet, and as the man thrust at her
againe, she stroke the iron of the boat-hooke in peeces, wherewith the
man fell downe vpon his buttocks. Which our other two men seeing, two
of them shot the beare into the body, and with that she ran away, but
the other man went after her with his broken staffe, and stroke the
beare vpon the backe, wherewith the beare turned about against the man
three times one after the other; and then the other two came to her,
and shot her into the body againe, wherewith she sat downe vpon her
buttocks, and could scant [1352] runne any further; and then they shot
once againe, wherewith she fell downe, and they smot [1353] her teeth
out of her head. All that day the wind was north-east and east
north-east.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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