THE ARCTIC SEAS. H7 



coast is generally lofty and precipitous, and is visible 

 in clear weather at a great distance, presenting the 

 peculiar features of Arctic scenery in great perfec- 

 tion. The rocks rise in bold and naked grandeur, 

 their summits shooting into innumerable peaks and 

 ridges, and needles, of fantastic forms, reminding 

 the beholder of the domes and spires of a vast city. 

 Most of these are of dark colours, standing out in 

 bold relief against the sky ; but their appearance is 

 rendered highly picturesque by the vivid contrasts 

 continually presented by the broad patches of un- 

 sullied snow capping their summits, or resting on 

 the ledges and terraces into which their surface is 

 broken, as well as by the glistening accumulations 

 of ice, which fill the valleys nearly to the level of 

 the mountain tops. In approaching the coast in 

 summer, the view is often concealed by the dense 

 fogs so prevalent in that season : suddenly the mist 

 disperses, and these broad contrasts, shown out in 

 startling distinctness beneath a cloudless sun, seem 

 like the sudden creation of a magician's wand. The 

 well-defined outline, and sharp edge of the hues 

 of the picturesque scenery, render it perfectly dis- 

 tinct at a distance at which, in a more southern 

 clime, land would present but a dim and shadowy 

 haze. The objects described may often be clearly 

 seen and well distinguished at the distance of forty 

 miles ; and if, after sailing towards the land for four 

 or five hours before a smart breeze, the atmosphere 

 should become slightly charged with mist, the scene 

 might be apparently even more distant than at first. 

 Thus a phenomenon, reported by one of the earlier 



