Chap. XIII.]
DEEP SOUNDINGS.
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running so high, although there was only little wind, that I could not venture to lower the boats.
At 3 p.m. clouds rose slowly from the eastward, and concealed from our view the blue vault of heaven, excepting only a space of about twenty degrees, in which the sun went down more gorgeously than he arose.
Light baffling winds continued throughout the evening, greatly retarding our progress at a time when every hour was of importance, and it required much reflection upon past mercies to prevent a feeling of impatience at the delay arising in our minds.
The sky had become darkened by dense snow clouds; and the threatening appearance to the N.E. led us to expect that unfavourable weather would follow, but in this we were mistaken. After a gentle air from the S.W., which dispersed the March 3clouds, it fell perfectly calm; and the swell having subsided, the boats were lowered to try for soundings. Owing to our having always struck ground in less than two thousand fathoms in other parts of the Antarctic ocean, we, unfortunately, had only four thousand fathoms of line prepared, the whole of which ran off the reel without reaching the bottom. The temperature at 1050 fathoms was 39°.5; at 900 fathoms, 39°.; at 750 fathoms, 39°.4; at 600 fathoms, 38°.7; at 300 fathoms, 35°.5; at 150 fathoms, 33°.; and at the surface, 30°.8. The specific gravity at 150 and 600 fathoms was 1.0283 at 38°; and of the surface, 1.0278 at 32°.