SPITZBERGEX AND GRKENLAMD. 41 



the sea, and covered it as if it was sprinkled all over Avitli 

 dust. These small needles increased more and more, and lay 

 as they fell, cross one over the other, and look'd very like a 

 cobweb ; they are formed by the cold of the air, and increase 

 to that degree that the sea seemed covered by them as with 

 a skin, or a tender ice, which had the taste of fresh water ; 

 as also the sea water that is taken up into the high air is 

 changed, and falleth down again in sweet or fresh rain. 



This hapneth in clear sunshine and intense cold weather, 

 and it falleth down as the dew doth with us, at night, invi- 

 sibly, in dull weather ; when the sun doth not shine, you 

 cannot see this, but you see it plainly if you look when the 

 sun shines towards a shady place, for then it sparkles as 

 bright as diamonds, shows like the atoms in sunshine ; all 

 day long it flilleth in so small particles that nothing sticks or 

 hangs on your cloaths of it to make them wet. At noon, 

 Avheu the sun shines very warm, these small needles melt in 

 the air and fall down insensibly, like dew. 



Sometimes we see, in our country, something a little like 

 these small needles, which is what we call rime, and falleth 

 from the trees in atoms, like dust. This is small snow, and 

 may be seen as well in the shade as in the sun. These needles 

 are not the exhalation or vapour that uses in cold weather 

 to stick to the hair of men and beasts. I must not forget 

 that we see in these falling needles a bow, like a rainbow, of 

 two colours, white and a pale yellow, like the sun reflected 

 by dark shadows of the clouds. 



After this, I proceed to the description of another bow, 

 which I call a sea-bow. This is seen when the sun shines 

 clear and bright, not in the great waves, but in the atmosphere 

 of the sea-water, which the wind blows up, and which looks 

 like a fog. Commonly we see this before the ship, and some- 

 times also behind, to the lee-ward (so they call that side of 

 the ship toward the sea), over against the sun, where the 

 shadow of the sail falleth. It is not the shadow of the sail, 



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