j 
100 A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY 
favour to-day, which enabled us to make consider- 
able progress, for we were at noon in longitude 
102° 30’ W., latitude 75° 03’ N. ; and, as far as present 
appearances go, we have every reason to suppose 
that, if the wind continues, we shall add a few 
more degrees to the number before this time to- 
morrow. No land has been seen to the southward 
for these three days past, but the ice extends in that 
direction as far as we can see, and is about the same 
distance from the islands to the northward that I 
mentioned yesterday. I ought to observe, that as we 
_came along, more islands have been seen to the 
northward ; they are of the same character as those 
I described four days ago, that is, low near the coast 
and rising gradually towards their centre. 
Saturday, 28th. — A boat was sent this forenoon 
to an island to make observations for determining the 
variation of the compass, which, somewhat to our 
surprise, was found to have changed from west to 
east, or, in other words, it exceeded 180°, if the 
usual term of westerly variation was to be continued. 
In consequence of the sluggish manner in which 
the compasses traversed, and the observations being 
made very near noon, when the sun moved slow in 
azimuth, the results of these observations were, as 
might be expected, rather wide of one another, for 
the first set of azimuths I took gave the variation 
167° E.; the next set 168° E.; and the third and 
last set 169° E.: the magnetic dip, or vertical incli- 
nation of the dipping-needle at this place, was 
88° 27’.* The place where these observations were 
* For the magnetic dips given in different parts of this journal, 
I am indebted to Mr. Griffiths (of the Griper), who has been good 
enough to furnish me with these observations. 
