39 



Boatswain Thomas Noland reported aboard for a conference bringing 

 the current chart just completed. At 1421, Mr. Soule and Chief 

 Boatswain Noland returned to the General Greene and that vessel 

 departed for Saint John's, Newfoundland. 



The current chart delivered to the patrol vessel by Oceanographer 

 F. M. Soule, showed conditions to be such that it was improbable that 

 any more bergs would drift south of latitude 45° N. this year and that 

 the ice menace in the North Atlantic was definitely over for the season. 

 The current chart showed a very slow moving and erratic current flow- 

 ing southward just outside the 100-fathom curve. This current is alsc 

 very narrow, being only 12 miles wide at latitude 47° N., and only 8 

 miles wide at latitude 45° N., at which place it also runs upon the 

 shoal. There are many branchings off of this current to the eastward 

 as it moves south from latitude 48° N., and this action combined with 

 its narrowness, tendency to run into shoal water, and very low ve- 

 locity, less than one-half knot, brings the chances of a berg making 

 the journey of over 300 miles to the Tail of the Banks, down to an 

 irreducible minimum. It only remained for the patrol vessel to scout 

 northward in this current to determme whether conditions warranted 

 a discontinuance of the Ice Patrol at this time. Upon the departure 

 of the General Greene the Mendota steamed eastward toward the east- 

 ern edge of the Banks in latitude 45° N., in order to be m a position 

 to commence this search when the dense fog which had persisted since 

 the afternoon of June 4, over the entire area, should clear up. The 

 Mendota arrived on the eastern slope of the Banks June 8, and drifted 

 in dense fog that day and the next. 



On June 10, with the visibility fair at times, the Mendota moved 

 up the cold current to latitude 46° N., the extreme possible southward 

 drift of any known ice on the eastern edge of the Banks. On June 11, 

 the Mendota with good visibility the whole day, searched out the cold 

 current from latitude 45°50' N., to latitude 49° N., and sighted only 

 one small berg in latitude 48°22' N., longitude 48°44' W. At 1900, 

 plus 3 time, June 11, 1937, therefor, in accordance with Commander 

 International Ice Patrol Force dispatch 6011-1910, Ice Patrol was 

 discontinued for season of 1937. AH shipping was so advised by radio 

 at the regular broadcast times as long as the Mendota remained in the 

 Ice Patrol area. 



At 1949, June 11, the Alendota headed for St. John's, Newfoundland, 

 to transfer Lt. G. Van A. Graves to the General Greene for the post- 

 season oceanographic cruise, and arrived there the morning of June 

 12. Motor boat from General Greene alongside at 0937 and at 0955 

 Lt. Van A. Graves departed in the General Greene motor boat for trans- 

 fer to the General Greene. At 1005 the Mendota headed for Norfolk, 

 Va., arriving there at 1554, June 16. 



