noon
No such weather , indeed , had been felt by the sealers since they reached the group ; and the effect on them was highly cheering and enlivening . Before he had breakfasted , Roswell was down in the cove , examining into the condition of his vessel , or what remained of her . A good deal of frozen snow still lay heaped on the mass , and he set the hands at work to shovel it off . Before noon the craft was clear , and most of the snow was melted , it requiring little more than exposure to the air in order to get rid of it . As soon as the hulk was clear , Roswell directed his men to take everything out of it ; the remains of cargo , water-casks , and some frozen provisions , in order that it might float as light as possible . The ice was frozen close to every part of the vessel 's bottom to a depth of several feet , following her mould , a circumstance that would necessarily prevent her settling in the water below her timbers ; but , as there was no telling when this ice might begin to recede by melting , it was deemed prudent to use this precaution . It was found that the experiment succeeded , the hulk actually rising , when relieved from the weight in it , no less than four inches .