18 
of latitude, and gives considerable coun¬ 
tenance to the opinion of Thule being 
the same with Iceland. 
The narration of Pliny, who is not 
celebrated for geographical accuracy, is 
alike irreconcileable with either hypo¬ 
thesis, and belongs only to the Pole itself. 
These (with the exception of IJnst,) 
are all the Islands belonging to Shetland 
that are worth notice, though they are 
nearly forty in number. About seven¬ 
teen of these are inhabited ; the rest be¬ 
ing inconsiderable, are called Holms, and 
used only for pasture. 
On our arrival in Bressay Sound, there 
were anchored twenty-six ships from 
London, Hull, and Whitby, each of which, 
in turn, gave us three cheers, which we 
as often returned. All these ships were 
waiting for men, it being the place where 
most of the ships bound to the Green¬ 
land fishery call at to make up their 
complement. 
