586 TRANSACTIONS OF THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 



part of an ellipse, they will not both run in the same direction. 

 The elliptical current will, in the northern hemisphere, move 

 north-west, and the local current north-east. If two such currents 

 proceed from the north towards the equator, the elliptical current 

 will run south-east, and the local current south-w^est. In the 

 southern hemisphere the same is true, but the directions are 

 reversed. If two such currents proceed from one of the neutral 

 points in an ellipse, they will both run in the same direction. 

 Any one who doubts the correctness of these principles, has only 

 to apply them to the cases of the actual currents to find that they 

 encounter no exceptions, but that every ocean current known is 

 perfectly accounted for by them. 



I can understand that there might be a semi-elliptical local cur- 

 rent^ under peculiar local circumstances. If, for instance, the warm 

 Norway current that enters the Arctic sea, moving in a north-east 

 direction, could move unobstructed, it would flow out of the Arc- 

 tic again in a south-east direction, thus pursuing a semi-elliptical 

 path. 



Each of the five great oceans contains one elliptical current, 

 besides its local currents. The latter are necessary to give circu- 

 lation to the water which is located between the ellipses, or 

 between the shores and the ellipses. I know of no instance where 

 a local current exists within the boundaries of an elh'pse. Before 

 the continents emerged from the sea, the water above them, not 

 being included within the ellipses, must all have possessed local 

 currents, the operations of which must have somewhat modified 

 the forms of the continents. 



Each of the tropical continents must have had two local counter 

 currents; one on the north side of the equator, which moved 

 north-east; and another on the south side, which moved south- 

 east. The tendency of these two currents was to hoUoAV out the 

 tropical continents on their western sides. Thus one of the hith- 

 erto puzzling problems of physical geography is solved. 



The waters over the rising polar continents must also have 

 possessed local currents before the dry land appeared; and they 

 must have made terrible havoc with the hinds that were about 

 emerging from beneath the sea. I imagine that each of the three 

 great northern ellipses must have sent ofisets, or local currents, 

 into the polar sea. These currents were each analogous to the 

 Norway current that now enters the Arctic. One similar to the 

 Norway current entered through Behring's Strait, Avhen that pas- 



