VALUE OF ARCTIC EXPLORATIONS. 249 



general economy of terrestrial Nature, and upon the well- 

 being of man throughout the world ; there, he says 



"the icebergs are framed and glaciers launched; there the 

 tides have their cradle, the whales their nursery; there the 

 winds complete their circuit; and the currents of the sea 

 their round in the wonderful system of oceanic circulation; 

 there the Aurora is lighted up, and the trembling needle 

 brought to rest; and there too, in the mazes of that mystic 

 circle, terrestrial forces of occult powers, and of vast influence 

 upon the well-being of man, are continually at work. It is 

 a circle of the mysteries; and the desire to enter it, to ex- 

 plore its untrodden wastes and secret chambers, and to study 

 its physical aspects, has grown into a longing. Noble daring 

 has made arctic ice, and snow-clad seas, classic ground."* 



In addition to all these things, important questions 

 respecting the magnetic pole, the mariner's compass, 

 and other nautical matters, may be included in the 

 list of objects for which arctic exploration is expected 

 to furnish valuable results. In Natural History too, a 

 vast field of observation is sure to be opened up 

 these barren grounds being the breeding places of 

 countless myriads of birds, which from the furthest 

 regions of the earth resort there during their annual 

 migrations. To the naturalist therefore, a visit to these 

 regions must be regarded as of supreme importance, 

 as affording opportunities which could not possibly be 

 obtained elsewhere, for observing the habits of birds, 

 many of them of rare varieties, which here congregate 

 during the summer months. Many birds, there can 

 be no doubt, penetrate vast distances to the north- 

 ward wherever in fact patches of open water can 



' * The Physical Geographv of the Sea, by Lieut. Maury, U.S.N., 

 i6th Edit., 1877, p. 207. 



