162 
made in high southern latitudes, it became doubly 
important to ascertain whether the same laws were 
followed in high northern latitudes. Experience 
has completely proved that they are; and, in fact, 
it is some years since I ascertained that the course 
down the English Channel, just taking the ship 
clear of headlands, the opposite one up Channel 
would run the ship on the French coast. 
“ In order to render the result of my observa¬ 
tions on this subject as clear as possible, I have se¬ 
lected a few, and inserted them in the order they 
were taken. The correctness of them may be re¬ 
lied on, being all calculated by two persons, exa¬ 
mined by a third, and the whole taken by my¬ 
self. 
“ I boarded a good many Greenland ships when 
in the North, whose masters all agreed in maintain¬ 
ing, that they experienced strong south-east currents 
on their return home, and were often confounded 
at making the coast of Norway when they expected 
to make that of Shetland. Now, I have no hesita¬ 
tion in saying, that if the same difference in the va¬ 
riation is to be found on board of a Greenland ship, 
that was found to exist in the Sybyll and Princess 
Carolina, the idea of a strong easterly current is un¬ 
founded, and is merely resorted to, to account for 
the error in their dead reckoning, arising from their 
not allowing a sufficiency of westerly variation in 
running from the ice to the south-west. A degree of 
longitude is soon lost in those high latitudes, and 
the error must increase in running to the south¬ 
west, if proper allowance be not made; for I am 
