TO THE ARCTIC REGIONS. Te 
foggy weather, it is a difficult matter to know which 
way we are going. 
Saturday, '7th.—As we happened to be at no great 
distance from the south-east land to-day, it was 
deemed an object of importance to draw close in 
towards it, for the purpose of sending a boat ashore 
to make (magnetic) observations, the compasses being 
as I have already mentioned, in such a state *, that 
we have reason to suppose we are at no great 
distance from the magnetic Pole. t It will be seen 
from the result of the observations made on this 
occasion, that our supposition cannot be far wrong ; 
for the dip, or vertical inclination of the dipping- 
needle, was 86° 28’, and the variation 118° westerly ; 
and Captain Kater’s azimuth compasses, notwith- 
standing their delicate construction, were so sluggish 
in their motions, that they required to be very nicely 
levelled, and frequently tapped before the card tra- 
versed. J'rom these circumstances it may be very 
readily seen how little dependence there is to be 
placed in our compasses on board, which, in addition 
to the disadvantages they labour under from their 
construction, are at the same time so much affected 
by local attraction, that they can no longer be trusted 
as guides —but if successful, the more difficulty 
the greater merit. Besides the Egyptians are said 
to have circumnavigated Africa long before the use 
of the compass was known, and why should not we 
circumnavigate America two thousand years after, 
* I need only mention one circumstance to shew the state in 
which the compasses were in on board, which is, that when the 
ship’s head was west, the variation was 180°, or, in other words, 
the north point of the compass pointed south. 
+ The latitude of the place where these observations were 
made, was 72° 45’ N., and longitude 90° 10’ W. 
