484 



SECOND VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY. 



Sept P asse d Button's Isles, from which we took our final departure. Icebergs of 

 \^r^ large dimensions occurred from about the seventy-third degree of longitude 

 downwards to the entrance of the Strait, and we remarked that below the 

 sixty-third degree of latitude the land was still comparatively clear of snow. 



From the time of our quitting the ice we began occasionally to notice 

 flocks of dovekies, and soon afterwards kittiwakes and mallemucks with 

 their young became numerous, especially after leaving Hudson's Strait. In 

 passing Cape Farewell we saw only one or two shearwaters, probably in 

 consequence of our being too far to the southward of that head-land. A 

 very gradual increase took place in the temperature of the sea-water as well 

 as in that of the atmosphere as we advanced to the eastward, which changes 

 will best be shown by reference to the Meteorological Abstract for the month 

 of September. The Aurora Borealis was visible more or less almost every 

 night during our passage across the Atlantic ; it occurred generally in large 

 detached and irregular patches of yellowish light indifferently in all parts 

 of the heavens, and frequently afforded as much light as the moon in her 

 quarters. In a single instance, when the light happened to be confined to 

 one portion of the heavens, it was so vivid as to make the shadows of objects 

 distinctly visible on the deck. On the same night, the phenomenon assumed 

 the form of a brilliant arch extending across the heavens through the zenith 

 from true east to west, It often happened also in cloudy weather, that the 

 Aurora produced the same kind of general light at night as the moon does 

 under similar circumstances ; the compasses were never perceptibly affected 

 by this phenomenon. 



On the 24th of September, in lat. 60° 30' and long. 61° 30', we picked 

 up a piece of yellow pine-tree, ten feet long from the root and a foot in 

 diameter ; it was quite sound, not at all water-logged, and had no appear- 

 ance of being worm-eaten. On the 30th, in lat, 57° 35', long. 39° 30', we 

 October, passed another tree of considerably larger size ; and on the 2d of October, 

 Thur.2. in lat 58 o lmi g 30 o Q£/ ? b S erved a spar from twenty to thirty feet 

 in length. 



We were now generally favoured by strong westerly winds, and nothing 

 Tues. 7. worthy of notice occurred till the 7th, when being in lat. 59° 26', and long. 

 10° 55', a Six's thermometer was sent down to a depth of three hundred 

 and fifty fathoms, and indicated a temperature of 50J°, that of the surface 

 being the same, and of the air 53°. A solan goose Was seen on this and 

 the preceding day, and these birds became more numerous as we'ap- 



