456 DB. Gt. DICKIE OX SOME ALG^ FOUND ly 



Notes on some Algse found ih the North-Atlantic Ocean. 



By G. DickM, M.D., E.L.S. 



[Read April 7, 1870.] 



(With a Woodcut). 



I AM indebted to Captain Thomas Mitchell, commander of an 

 Australian trader belonging to Aberdeen, for tbe materials which 

 form the subject of this communication. 



The specimens were preserved in weak spirit ; and along with 

 them I received the following notes, which deserve to be re- 

 corded. 



" The contents of the bottle were collected in the North At- 

 lantic on the 24th of November, 1867. At 11 a.m. on that day 

 and till 3 p.m., over a distance of fourteen miles, the ocean was 

 closely studded with the green substance* I never saw weed of 

 any description in this part of the world before, although I have 

 passed through nearly the same place more than thirty times. 

 The position of the ship at noon was lat. 12° 0' N., long. 21° 40' W., 

 the true bearings and distances of the following points of nearest 

 land were: — Porto Prayo, Island of St. Jago, Cape-Verds, N.W. 

 by N. i N., 112 mUes; Cape Verd, Africa, N.E. by E., 288 

 miles ; mouth of Eiver Gambia, E. by N. ^ N., 290 miles ; mouth 

 of the Eiver Jeba, inside the Bijouga Islands, 340 miles. 



" I watched carefully during the time we were passing through 

 this strange substance, and found that the breadth from N. to S. 

 was more than twelve miles ; it extended from E. to W. as far as 

 the eye could distinguish. There were strong tide rips, during 

 the time, from S.E. to N.W., following each other at the distance 

 of half a mile. 



position, I concluded that the substance 

 must have come from some part of the American continent or 

 the West Indies wathin the influence of the Gidf-stream. It had 



our 



southern 



estuary 



Canary 



African current to the place where it was found, probably passing 

 between the Cape-Verds and the mainland. I came to this con- 

 clusion from the fact that currents along the west coast of 



round 



300 



drifts 



"# 



* It may be worthy of notice, in reference to this, that the destructive hurri- 



cane in the West Indies occurred about the end of October. 



