TERRESTRIAL REFRACTION. 



Those who pass a year nortliward of the Arctic Circle, during the spring and 

 autumn, are amazed at the extraordinary appearance of the objects around them, 

 which are often changed in shape so totally different from what they really are, that it is 

 quite impossible to take correct sketches, or make any thing like a true estimate of the 

 distance of the land, which, in the course of a few minutes, is often so much changed 

 as not to have any thing like the natural or true outline. Captain Scoresby 

 gives some extraordinary instances of both land and ships seen at an immense distance, 

 and on our first voyage it is recorded, that Cape Clarence was seen from the deck at 

 the distance of one hundred and twenty miles, the ship being at that time two degrees 

 of latitude south of the cape ; and, indeed, it was only in the spring after our arrival 

 at Felix harbour, that we discovered the land to the east-south-east of us, with many 

 intervening islands. But the most remarkable circumstance which occurred during 

 our observations was the uneven current of refraction raising an intennediate body (an 

 icebero- or island) above the more distant land, which at the time of no refraction was 

 considerably higher. This fact at once shows the fallacy of setting up a mark or board 

 at a distance of a few miles to observe a star setting behind it ; and which could be no 

 proof of the inaccuracy of the table of refractions in the Nautical Almanac, which, 

 indeed, I found by all my observations to be wonderfully correct. I cannot omit to 

 mention an extraordinary instance of unusual refraction, which took place on the 22d of 

 September, 1832, when we were at North End Cape, lat. 73° 53' north, long. 90° west. 

 The weather was very clear, and, in an east-north-east bearing, no land could be seen. 



