50 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ASSOCIATION OF 



he had seen, into sharp pinnacles and acicular ridges, by the action 

 of the atmosphere and rain. 



The next observed by Mr. C, was on the return passage, in Sep- 

 tember of the same year. It was aground on the eastern edge of 

 the great Bank of Newfoundland, in 43° 48' N. lat, 48° 30' W. long. 

 Sounding three miles inside of it, the depth was found to be one 

 hundred and five fathoms, and as the water deepens rapidly toward 

 the edge of the bank, the berg must have been in at least one hun- 

 dred and twenty or one hundred and thirty fathoms. There was a 

 heavy sea running at the time, causing it to rock and oscillate hori- 

 zontally, to and fro, with a heavy grinding noise, distinctly audible to 

 all on board. A fresh Avind from the east was continually forcing 

 it further up on the bank, but in the event of a contraiy gale spring- 

 ing up, it would doubtless have been driven off again into deep water, 

 to pursue its course to a milder clime, loaded with materials ground 

 into its base while stranded. 



Between this period and the summer of 1627, several icebergs 

 were seen by Mr. C, but not being able at present to lay hand on 

 his journals of that interval, he could enter into no particulars, further 

 than to state that as, with a few exceptions, his voyages were be- 

 tween the United States or West Indies and Great Britain or the 

 Mediterranean, it was probable that they were cliiefly met between 

 the 3C)th and 42d parallels of north latitude. He remembered how- 

 ever, having encountered in November, 1825, off the entrance to the 

 Rio de la Plata, in latitude 35° south, longitude 49° west, or there- 

 abouts, a number of icebergs, some of which were of large magnitude; 

 a reference to the chart would, he observed, show to what a vast 

 distance from their birth-place these floating masses had been driven 

 by wind and current. 



In the month of August, 1827, while crossing the Grand Banks, in 

 latitude 46° 30' north, longitude 48° west, Mr-. C. passed within less 

 than a mile of a large berg which was stranded in between eighty 

 and ninety fathoms water. The wind was light, but a heavy swell 

 was running from the westward, and the huge pile could be dis- 

 tinctly seen to rock and shake violently as it ground heavily doA\ai 

 into its bed With every surge. Owing to its longest diameter facing 

 the swell, the mass had an oscillatory or semi-rotary back and for- 

 ward motion upon its vertical axis, according as the sea broke upon 

 one or the other extremity, which it did with so much force at times 

 as to turn the berg apparently fully half round : in this situation it 

 would remain till another heavy surge striking the opposite end 

 would force it back and round in the other direction. The vessel 

 was sufiiciently near for Mr. G. to perceive distinctly, large fragments 

 of rock and quantities of earthy matter imbedded in the sides of the 

 iceberg, and to see from the fore yard, that the water for at least a 

 quarter of a mile round it, was full of mud, stirred up from the bot- 

 tom by the violent rolling and crushing of the mass. This movement 

 was accompanied by a harsh grating noise, with occasional cracking 



