16 



MAEION" EXPEDITION TO DAVIS STRAIT AND BAFFIN BAY 



]ess than 1 mile away. From this last station, some 10 miles south- 

 west of Cape Biirnil, the Marion, headed northwest and then north 

 across Great Hellefiske Bank, bound for the region about Disko Bay. 

 The Aveather grew worse as the 5th progressed. The ship was 

 noted to be making very little progress into the wind, and so she 

 was anchored at 4.40 p. m. in 24 fathoms of water, just a few miles 

 north of the Arctic Circle in 66° 39' N., 54° 20' W. Fishing with 

 handlines was tried here but without success. A moderate gale from 

 the north blew throughout the niirht. 



OCEANOGRAPHIC OBSERVATIONS 



Figure 11. — This gives a general idea of a part of the upper deck arrangement on the 

 Marion. The man in the right foreground is operating the winch which contains about 

 a mile of stranded steel wire. The water bottles, on the rack to the left, are clamped 

 at successive intervals to the wire as it is lowered away. The bottles contain the 

 deep-sea thermometers that record the temperature and also a chamber which holds 

 about a quart of sea water taken from the depth to which the bottle is lowered. 



At 11 a. m. on August 6 the MaVion got under w^aj^ and proceeded 

 northward. The wind moderated rapidly during the afternoon, 

 which fact permitted the ship to make good progress along her 

 course. Thousands of gulls and ducks were seen from time to time. 

 An eider duck that w^as shot from the bridge on this day was pre- 

 pared and eaten for supper by the officers with much relish. 



By 4 a. m. on the 7th the Marlon had run off the northern end of 

 Great Hellefiske Bank and was over deep water. Several large bergs 

 were sighted at this time, but no more were seen along a 40-mile 

 line of stations that w^as taken to the eastward to a position 10 miles 

 south of the Western Islands in the southern entrance to Disko Bay. 

 The weather was foggy most of the 7th from 9 a. m. on, and once 



