SURVEYING OPERATIONS. 
321 
too far distant to see it; but, as no land of this de¬ 
scription occurred through an extent of 200 or 300 
miles of coast, that we had an opportunity of close¬ 
ly examining, there is reason to believe that the 
northern coasts, which had a similar character and 
general elevation, is also entirely mountainous. 
In the course of this survey, I employed above 
fifty stations *, chiefly determined astronomically, 
and made use of nearly five hundred angles or 
bearings, besides two or three hundred more, for 
ascertaining the variation and deviation of the 
compass. 
The principal instruments employed in this 
business, were azimuth compasses, sextants, and 
a chronometer. The angles and bearings were 
generally derived from observations made with an 
azimuth compass, on Captain Rater’s principle, 
which was found to answer so admirably, that, in 
moderate weather, no other instrument was neces¬ 
sary. All the magnetic observations, whether for 
* In the general chart which accompanies this volume, 
the principal part of these stations are laid down, for the 
purpose of shewing the nature of the opportunity that I had 
for carrying on the survey ; and a distinction is made in the 
shading of the chart, which shews, by inspection, whether 
the position of the land was determined by intersecting 
bearings, by single bearings with estimated distances, or by 
investigations in the boats. 
X 
