“MARITIME OBSERVATIONS. 95 
Obfervations on a voyage from Halifax towards New-York. 
1790. July 21. - Sailed this morning from Halifax. ‘The water at the harbour’s mouth and juft within Che- 
22. 
Eat. 40. $77 
Long. 65. ol. 
July 25,:Noon. 
Lat. 41. 53. 
Long. 65. 33. 
26th. 
ath, 
july 27- 
July 30. 
Lat. 40. 25. 
Long, 70. 30- 
bucta head, was at 53. but without it was at 52.—In landlocked places I have generally 
found the water warmer than in even greater depths, on the borders of the ocean. 
When we loft fight of land the water was at about 56 but at 6 this morning it having cooled 
to 50 Ifuppofe we are paling over Rofeway bank. 
At noon the heat of water had rifento 53 which mdkes me fuppofe we are overthe ground 
between Rofeway and the other bank called in fome charts Brown’s bank, and at 4 the water 
cooling again to 50 Liuppofe we are on this laft mentioned bank. 
The water at noon yelterday growing as warm as 56 I fuppofe we are onthe S. E. edge 
of Brown’s bank. As we afterwards hauled up more to the weltward, and as the water at 8 this 
morning cooled te 50 again, I fuppofed we had returned more on the bank. But at noon 
the thermometer rofe to 58. Asit was calm, andthe fun hot,I made fome allowance for that 
caufe, but fuppofed we had got off foundings, and as at 6 (the air being 6° cooler than at 
noon) it was at 57 I was confirmed in this.—It being ftill calm, and there appearing fome 
gulph weed, we hoifted out the boat to try the current which we found to fet N. E. nearly 
knot. This puzzled me, I could not conceive ourfelves to be in the gulph ftream, becaufe 
the water was not hot enough for that fuppofition, andas thé iron pot by which we anchored 
the boat, was not at bottom though 80 fathoms of line were out, Ithought the heat 57 fully ac~ 
counted for by the depth of water; but about 7 when we had made alittle way through the 
water, it became again calm, and we then faw and heard the ripple ofa current as evidently 
aswe could have expected over a fhoal. I could not account for this any otherways than by 
fuppofing it to be the gulph dlream, yet it appeared impollible that it fhould come {fo near the 
bank. Our Captain refolved to try again if there was a current here at a-diftance from this 
ripple andinacalm. He accordingly hoifted out the boat again.and the current was found 
tofet S. E. by S. about ¢ knot. Theevidence of this various current info fhort a fpace, the 
heat of the water not being raifed to the heat of the ftream, and our fituation to the Nerthward 
made me conclude this te be the whirlpools of the eddy of the gulph ftream juft on the northern 
edge of it. 
The water ftillcontinuing till noon nearly at the fame temperature, and our courfe being tothe 
Weft Southerly I concluded that our fituation with refped to the ftream was nearly thefame as laft 
remarked, this was confirmed by the paflage of immenfe quantities of gulph weed, a deal of 
fcum and mucus with a Whale two or three Sharks and a {chool of Porpoifes in the courfe of 
the merning; but in the afternoon we fell off further to the Northward, and at6P. M. the 
water was from 55to 53. no gulph weed to be feen, and in foundings of 42 fathoms. We tacked 
and ftood fouth at § P. M. and I was aftonifhed to find at midnight thatthe water was heated to 
60, though the foundings were only 32 fathoms. Here again I could account for this only b 
the influence of the guiph ftream, which the Capt. feemed to think probable, and tacked to the 
Northward, the wind being ftillat about W. and by 3 A.M the thermometer fell to 53 with 
the fame foundings, when we again tacked and ftood to the fouthward. 1 then tried the 
heat ofthe water bythe thermometer, regularlyevery hour, andby 5 P. M.it wasup to 62. The 
foundings then were 464athoms:—we tacked and ftood North, and at midnight it was again 
down'to 55, at 3A. M.to54 the foundings them about 35 fathoms we then ftoodfouth when it 
returned to 60. Vhus upon three fucceflive tacks each way we cooled or warmed the water as 
we were ftanding either Northward or Southward'from 6 to 9 degrees.——I could only ac- 
count for this (the foundings varying but very little). by fuppofing that when we ftood fouth- 
ward we gotinto the warm influence of the guiph ftream, and as we ftood Northward we got 
out of it. Ido not think we got into the ftream itfelf, becaufe I fhould in that cafe have ex- 
pected the water to have been much warmer, but probably we have been very near, perhaps 
upon the edge of it : and perhaps we have had a benefit inftead of a difadvantage, by an eddy 
wefterly current: that we have been nearit, feems pretty clear, for when we warmed the water 
we faw plenty of gulph weed, and the weather was clear, when we cooled the water we faw no 
gulph weed and the weather was foggy. 
Perhaps we may be farther to the weftward than we think : time anda good look out will 
difcover, 
Since the laft obfervation relative to the ftream and foundings I have kept the thermometer: 
going almoft every hour except when we were {tending off the fhore, and by exanmning the 
foundings according to thofe marked inMr. Des Barres chartjl have regularly traced them and 
if we were to fuppofe that a current was fetting us about t knot per hour tothe weftward, the 
foundings would agree very well, When in about lat. 40. 25. we were ftanding off fhore, wae 
Walmed 
