182 J.] Capt. Parry's Voyage. 71 



direction, but curving towards each other, so that their legs 

 produced would complete an ellipse; these arches were as 

 quickly dispersed as formed. At one time a part of the arch 

 near the zenith was bent into convolutions, resembling those of 

 a snake in motion, and undulating rapidly ; an appearance 

 which we had not before observed. The end towards the north 

 was also bent like a shepherd's crook, which is not uncommon. 

 It is difficult to compare the light produced by an Aurora with 

 that of the moon, because the shadows are rendered faint and 

 indistinct by reason of the general diffusion of the aurora; but 

 I should think the effect of the one now described scarcely equal 

 to that of the moon when a week old. The usual pale light of 

 the aurora strongly resembles that produced by the combustion 

 of phosphorus ; a very slight tinge of red was noticed on this 

 occasion, when the aurora was most vivid, but no other colours 

 were visible. Soon after we returned on board, the splendid 

 part wholly disappeared, leaving only the ordinary light near the 

 horizon ; in other respects, the night remained unchanged, but 

 on the following day, it blew a fresh gale from the Nand NNYV. 

 This aurora had the appearance of being very near us, and we 

 listened attentively for the sound which is said sometimes to 

 accompany brilliant displays of this phenomenon; but neither on 

 this nor on any other occasion could any be distinguished." 



No effect was produced by the aurora on the electrometer, or 

 the magnetic needle. 



■»■ 



Effects of Cold as observed by Capt. Parry at Melville Island. 



" On Oct. 29, the weather was calm and clear, and we remarked 

 for the first time, that the smoke from the funnels scarcely rose 

 at all, but skimmed nearly horizontally along the housing, the 

 thermometer having got down to — 24°, and the mercury in the 

 barometer standing at 29*70 inches. It now became rather a 

 painful experiment to touch any metallic substance in the open 

 air with the naked hand ; the feeling produced by it exactly 

 resembling that occasioned by the opposite extreme of intense 

 heat, and taking off the skin from the part affected. We found 

 it necessary, therefore, to use great caution in handling our sex- 

 tants and other instruments, particularly the eye pieces of the 

 tekscopes, which, if suffered to touch the face, occasioned an 

 intense burning pain ; but this was easily remedied by covering 

 them over with soft leather. Another effect, with regard to the 

 use of instruments, began to appear about this time. Whenever 

 any instrument which had been some time exposed to the atmo- 

 sphere, so as to be cooled down to the same temperature, was 

 suddenly brought below into the cabins, the vapour was instantly 

 condensed all around it, so as to give the instrument the appear- 

 ance of smoking, and the glasses were covered almost instanta- 

 neously with a thin coating of ice, the removal of which required 

 great caution to prevent the risk of injuring them until it had 



