NORTH-WEST PASSAGE. 19 



wliicli communicates with the frozen ocean on the 

 north-west. Just within the entrance of Hudson's 

 Strait, at Cary-Swan's-Nest, the tide was found by 

 Captain Fox to rise hut six feet ; whereas, on the 

 west side of the bay, where, from the great expan- 

 sion of the waters, the tide, according to theory, 

 ought to Jiave been scarcely perceptible, it rises in 

 different places ten, thirteen and seventeen feet. The 

 flood-tide on the west side of Hudson's Eay flov.s 

 towards the south ; and the time of high-water is 

 soonest the farthest towards the north ; both of 

 which circumstances, supposing Hudson's ^ay to 

 be an inland sea, with only one entrance from the 

 cast, should, Ellis conceives, according to the doc- 

 trines of tides, have been just the contrary. And, 

 lastly, the highest tides on both sides of Hudson's 

 Bay, are produced by north and north-west winds; 

 whereas, were it an inland sea, it is clear, that east 

 or south-east winds, blowing directly through the 

 strait, or in the direction of the flood-tide without, 

 would produce the highest tides. Hence he con- 

 cludes, that the tide of flood flows into Hudson's 

 Bay, through some other entrance than that called 

 Hudson's Strait ; not from Baffin's Bay either, be- 

 cause the tide is there inconsiderable ; but from the 

 north-west, or from the icy sea*, by which conclu- 



B 2 



* It is not at all reasonable to suppose, that the consider-^ 

 (Me tides oliserved in Hudson's Bay should be occasioned by 



