560 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1817. 



leading one to keep a direct course. 

 A chronometer would be an indis- 

 pensable lequisite, as the oppor- 

 tunity for lunar observations could 

 not be expected to occur suffici- 

 ently often. Were the Pole gain- 

 ed, the bearing of the sun at 

 the time of noon, by a chronome- 

 ter adjusted to the meridian of 

 North-west Spitzbergen, would 

 atford a line of direction for the 

 return ; and, the position in re- 

 gard to longitude (were the sun 

 visible) could be corrected, at 

 least twice a-day, as the latitude 

 decreased. The degrees of longi- 

 tude being so contracted, any re- 

 quired position would be pointed 

 out by the watch, with the greatest 

 precision. 



3. (a.) Among the dangers to 

 be apprehended, tlie coldness of 

 the air stands prominent. As, 

 however, the cold is not sensibly 

 different between the latitudes of 

 70° and 80° with a strong north 

 wind, it may be presumed that at 

 the Pole itself, it would be very 

 little more oppressive than at the 

 borders of the main ico, in the 

 81st degree of north latitude, 

 under a hard northerly gale : and 

 since this cold is supportable, that 

 of the Pole may be deemed so 

 likewise. The injurious effects 

 of the severity of the weather, 

 might be avoided by a judicious 

 choice of woollen clothing ; the 

 external air being met by an out- 

 ward garment of varnislied silk, 

 and the face defended by a mask, 

 with eyes of glass. The exterior 

 garment would, at the same time, 

 be water-proof, and thus capable 

 of shielding the body from acci- 

 dental moisture. 



(t.) The white bear is the only 



ferocious animal known to inhabit 

 those regions, and he rarely makes 

 an attack upon man. At any rate, 

 he might be repulsed by any of- 

 fensive weapon. And, as the prey 

 of the bears is scarce in the most 

 northern latitudes, they would not 

 probably occur in any abundance. 



4. Hitherto no insurmountable 

 objection has been presented: a 

 few serious obstacles, should they 

 occur, remain to be considered. 



(fl.) Mountainous land, like 

 mountainous ice, would check the 

 progress of the expedition, in pro- 

 portion to the ruggedness of its 

 surface, and the steepness of its 

 cliffs. Its occurrence would, never- 

 theless, form an interesting dis- 

 covery. 



(b.) From the pretended excur- 

 sions of the Dutch, many have be- 

 lieved that the sea at the Pole is 

 free from ice ; were this really the 

 case, the circumstance would cer- 

 tainly be an extraordinary one ; but 

 I consider it too improbable to 

 render it necessary to hazard any 

 opinion concerning it. 



(c.) From the facts stated in 

 pages 319, 320 of this paper, I 

 think we derive a sanction for cal- 

 culating on clear weather at all 

 times but with southerly storms ; 

 and as these occur but rarely, 

 the progress of the journey would 

 not probably be suspended by an 

 obscure sky, except for short pe- 

 riods and at distant intervals. 



Notwithstanding I have now 

 distinctly considered every obvious 

 objection and difficulty to be sur- 

 moxmted, I am nevertheless sen- 

 sible, that in the realising of any 

 project for discovery, whether at 

 sea or on land, there will occur 

 many adventitious circumstances 



which 



