196 PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY OF THE SEA, AND ITS METEOROLOGY. 



by the " bravo west winds " of those regions. Hence the icebergs 

 that are so often seen to the south of the Cape of Good Hope. 

 They set oif for the Atlantic, but are driven to the eastward by 

 the west winds of these latitudes. The Gulf Stream seldom 

 permits icebergs from Arctic waters to reach the i^arallel of 40° 

 in the North Atlantic ; but I have known the ice-bearing current 

 Mdiich passes east of Cape PTom into the South Atlantic to conve}' 

 its bergs as far as the parallel of 37° south latitude. This is the 

 nearest approach of icebergs to the equator. These currents 

 which run out from the intertropical basin of that immense sea- 

 Indian Ocean — convey along immense volumes of water contain- 

 ing vast quantities of salt, and we know that sea water enough to 

 convey back equal quantities of salt, and salt to keep up supplies 

 for the outgoing currents, must flow into the intertropical regions 

 of the same sea ; therefore, if observations were silent upon the 

 subject, reason would teach us to look for currents here that 

 keep in motion immense volumes of water. 



395. The currents of the Pacific — diift-ivood. — The contrast has 

 been drawn (§391) between the Japan or "Black Stream "of 

 the North Pacific, and the Gulf Stream of the Noith Atlantic. 

 The course of the former has never been satisfactorily traced out. 

 There is (Plate IX.), along the coast of California and Mexico, a 

 southwardl}^ movement of waters, as there is along the west 

 cx)ast of Africa towards the Cape de Verd Islands. In the open 

 space west of this southwardly set along the African coast there 

 is the famous Sargasso Sea (Plate IX.), which is the general 

 receptacle of the drift-wood and sea-weed of the Atlantic. So, 

 in like manner, to the west from California of this other south- 

 wardly set, lies the pool into which the drift-wood and sea-weed 

 of the North Pacific are generally gathered, but in small quanti- 

 ties. The shores of Johnston's Islands (17° N., 1G9° 30' W.), 

 which are near the edge of this pool, are lined with drift-wood 

 from the Columbia, and the red cedar of California. The 

 immense trees that have been cast up on these guano islands 

 were probably drifted down with the cool California current into 

 the north-east trades, and by them wafted along to the west, thus 

 showing that the cuiTents of the North Pacific flow in a soii; of 

 circle, on the outer edge of Avhich lie the Japanese and Aleutian 

 Islands, and the noi-th-west coast of America. 



395. Tlie Blade Current of ilie Pacific, liJce the Gulf Stream, Salter 

 than the adjacent waters. — The natives of the Aleutian Islands, 



