THE WORLD'S WONDERS. 701 



Capt. Ross, in his first voyage, mentions one of these wrecked 

 bergs, which was found to be 4,169 yards long, 3,(>.SO yards 

 broad, and 51 feet high above the level of the sen. It was 

 aground in 61 fathoms, and its weight was estimated by;ni officer 

 of the Alexander at 1,292,397,673 tons. On ascending the flat 

 top of this iceberg, it was found occupied by a huge white bear, 

 who justly deeming " discretion the best part of valor," sprang 

 into the sea before he could be fired at. 



The vast dimensions ot the icebergs appear less astonishing 

 when we consider that many of the glaciers or ice-rivers from 

 which they are dislodged are equal in size or volume to the largest 

 streams of continental Europe. 



In a high sea the waves beat against an iceberg as against a 

 rock ; and in calm weather where there is a swell, the noise made 

 by their rising and falling is tremendous. Their usual form is 

 that of a high vertical wall, gradually sloping down to the oppo- 

 site side, which is very low ; but frequently they exhibit the most 

 fantastic shapes, particularly after they have been a long time 

 exposed to the corroding power of the waves, or of warm rains 

 pelting them from above. 



A number of icebergs floating in the sea is one of the most 

 magnificent spectacles of nature, but the wonderful beauty of 

 these crystal cliffs never appears to greater advantage than when 

 clothed by the midnight sun with all the splendid colors of twi- 

 light. 



"The bergs," says Dr. Hayes, describing one of these en- 

 chanting sights, "had wholly lost their chilly aspect, and glit- 

 terino 1 in the blaze of the brilliant heavens, seemed in the distance 



O 



like masses of burnished metal or solid flame. Nearer at hand 

 they were huge blocks of Parian marble inlaid with mammoth 

 gems of pearl and opal. One in particular exhibited the perfec- 

 tion of the grand. Its form was not unlike that of the Colos- 

 seum, and it lay so far away that half its height was buried be- 

 neath the line of blood-red waters. The sun, slowly rolling along 

 the horizon, passed behind it, and it seemed as if the old Roman 

 ruins had suddenly taken fire. In the shadow of the bergs the 



