THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 275 



raoft efforts have not been able to carry him beyond 71*; »779. 

 where, moreover, the continents diverge nearly Eaft and ■■ "/' _r 

 Weft, and where there is no land yet known to exift near the 

 pole. For the farther fatisfaction of the reader on this 

 point, I fhall beg leave to refer him to Obfer nations made, 

 during a voyage round the world, by Dr. Forfler, where he 

 will find the queftion of the formation of ice, fully and fa- 

 tisfactorily difcuffed, and the probability of open polar feas 

 difproved by a variety of powerful arguments. 



I fhall conclude thefe remarks with a fliort comparative 

 view of the progrefs we made to the Northward, at the two 

 different feafons we were engaged in that purfuic, together 

 with a few general obfervations relative to the fea, and the 

 coaft of the two continents, which lie to the North of Beer- 

 ing's Straits. 



It may be obferved, that in the year 1778, we did not 

 meet with the ice, till we advanced to the latitude of 70 , 

 on Auguft 17th; and that then we found it in compact 

 bodies, extending as far as the eye could reach, and of 

 which a part or the whole was moveable, fince, by its drift- 

 ing down upon us, we narrowly efcaped being hemmed in 

 between it and the land. After experiencing both how 

 fruitlefs and dangerous it would be to attempt to penetrate 

 farther North, between the ice and the land, we flood over 

 toward the Afiatic fide, between the latitude 69 and 70°, fre- 

 quently encountering, in this tract, large and extenfive fields 

 of ice ; and though, by reafon of the fogs, and thicknefs of 

 the weather, we were not able abfolutely and entirely to 

 trace a connected line of it acrofs, yec we were fure to meet 

 with it before we reached the latitude of 70 , whenever wr 

 attempted to ftand to the Northward. On the 26th of Au- 



N n 2 guft. 



