50 THE OCEAN 



for twelve to fifteen miles — and instances 

 are xecorded of ice being sighted for eighteen 

 or twenty miles in clear, sunny weather. Even 

 at night, in clear weather, bergs may be seen 

 two or three miles away when the moon is 

 shining; for a mile or more when there is 

 no moon and on cloudy nights for fully half a 

 mile. 



Unfortunately the portions of the ocean 

 where bergs are most numerous are also the 

 most stormy, hazy and foggy. Even a very 

 light fog will greatly reduce the distance at 

 which a berg may be seen and it is seldom 

 that one can be sighted over two miles dis- 

 tant if there is any fog whatever, while in a 

 really heavy fog a very large berg may not 

 be visible until within two hundred yards. 

 Mariners travelling through the seas where 

 they are likely to meet bergs are greatly in 

 dread of fogs for this reason and invariably 

 keep a sharp lookout, but quite often the man 

 on watch fails to sight a berg because of too 

 much precaution. This may seem strange at 

 first thought, but it is easily explained. 

 Whereas ordinarily a lookout can see a berg 



