trary. I know the currents are strong, and plenty of wind must change the ice rapidly, as I then witnessed; I could not afford the time to be frozen up, as my other duties were paramount to passing the nine months in such a torpid state. You are differently situated, and I should advise you by all means to try to penetrate between 35° and 50° west longitude; if you get nothing more, we shall have a chart of the ice, which I should think worth the trouble. Two of the vessels went to 105° west, and met the barrier solid in 70°. It was my intention that they should have gone east from that longitude to Biscoe's Range; they explored several degrees, and had wretched weather, gales attended with very thick fogs and snow. I should very much like to have met you, for I am well aware one can give more information in a few minutes, than an hour's writing will communicate. I hope you intend to circumnavigate the antarctic circle: I made 70 degrees of it, and if my time would have permitted, I should have joined on to Enderby's Land; it is extremely probable that land will be discovered to the eastward of 165° east, and I have no doubt it extends all round, with the exception of 30 or 40 degrees east of 50 west: where there is no land there will be no icy barrier, and little drift ice will be met with; although there will always be found plenty of ice islands, there is plenty of space for them and a ship too. Wishing you all success,
"To Capt. James C. Ross,
H.B.M. Ship Erebus."
