592 
LAST VOYAGE OF CAPT. ROSS. 
180 degrees. When we were east or west, our variation was 90 
degrees.” 
•‘Did that increase by degrees, or all at once ?”—“ By de¬ 
grees, as we proceeded round it; our instruments were con¬ 
structed for the purpose, delicately hung on hairs. I had one 
instrument constructed by Dollond, for the express purpose of 
observing the diurnal variation/* 
“ Although Capt. Parry never arrived at the point of the 
magnetic pole, is it not the case, that he had ascertained its 
situation, by experiments, that he had made ?”—“ Certainly not. 
Capt. Parry is as much on the one side, as Capt. Franklin was 
on the other ; and it is an extraordinary fact, the mean between 
the two, comes within a short distance of the actual spot.” 
“Does Capt. Parry state, in any part of his despatches to the 
Admiralty, or his book, that he discovered the magnetic 
pole ’ ’—“ No/’ 
“ He lays no claim to it?”—“No, he only stated the sup¬ 
posed situation of it, which turned out to be 100 miles erroneous.” 
“ Within what area do you conceive you have reduced the 
situation of it? —“ One mile.” 
“ Will you state to the committee, how near to the actual 
position of the magnetic pole, in the expedition under your com¬ 
mand, you, or any observer attached to that expedition, ap¬ 
proached the position, taken by estimate, and not by observa¬ 
tion?”—“ The position was taken by observation, by Commander 
Ross, who reported to me, that he had reached the exact spot: 
this accorded with my own observations at the ship, and at 
several other places, at a short distance from the position he 
laid it down.” 
“ Are the committee to understand, that at several different 
spots, that particular position of the magnetic needle, that dip 
took place, which authorizes you to assert, such spot or spots 
to be the true position of the magnetic pole ; in other words, 
did the needle dip perpendicularly at more than one spot, and if 
at more than one, what was the distance between any one 
and any other ?” 
