30' E.The night before last I had bright hopes that this Christmas Day would see us in open water.

The scene is altogether too Christmassy.

Ice surrounds us, low nimbus clouds intermittently discharging light snow flakes obscure the sky, here and there small pools of open water throw shafts of black shadow on to the cloud--this black predominates in the direction from whence we have come, elsewhere the white haze of ice blink is pervading.
We are captured.

We do practically nothing under sail to push through, and could do little under steam, and at each step forward the possibility of advance seems to lessen.
The wind which has persisted from the west for so long fell light last night, and to-day comes from the N.E.by N., a steady breeze from 2 to 3 in force.

Since one must have hope, ours is pinned to the possible effect of a continuance of easterly wind.