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KERGUELEN’S VOYAGE TO THE NORTH. 739
of this mountain, one of the moft confiderable on earth, is known from its frequent, and
fometimes terrible, eruptions: towards the clofe of this journal I fhall {peak of it more
particularly. Between cape Heckla and the Weflterman iflands the land falls in in the
bay, owing to which I underftand there is a good anchorage. Above all, behind the
weftern point of cape Heckla there are excellent moorings, well fheltered : to go up
them requires a fouth or wefterly wind. ‘There are many paflages between the Wel-
terman iflands, but they are little known, being unfrequented, except by Iceland fifher-
men ; neverthelefs fome fifhing fmacks lay off there to fifh, and I faw a dogger from
Dunkirk which had in a week’s time caught feventy tons of cod there. A violent cur-
rent runs between all thefe iflands; they appeared to me to ftretch more to the S. W.
than what they are defcribed in the French and Dutch maps. The diftance 6f the
Wefterman iflands to the weftern point of Heckla is well laid down on the chart of
M. Bellin. he currents run to the W.N. W. from cape Heckla to the ifle of Birds;
but in the midft of thefe iflands they run N. W. with dreadful eddies. At new and full
moon it is high water at eleven o’clock. Between the Wefterman iflands and the point
of Iceland contiguous to the ifle of Birds, there is anchorage under fhelter from the N.
wind ; but if the wind fhould happen to change, it is neceflary to weigh anchor imme-
diately and put out to fea. All this coaft is very healthy, and there isa very fine paf-
fage through the middle of the ifles of Birds:
About twenty leagues to the S. of the weftern point of Iceland there is a heap of
rocks, which form a low and dangerous ifland ; it was not defcribed in our charts, but
is known to the Dutch: it has often been feen. Aninhabitant of Iceland, a man of
great fenfe and learning, who has frequently been to Copenhagen, and who has even
wrote an abridged account of the natural hiftory of Iceland, has often {poke to me of
this dangerous ifland, only defcribed in Dutch charts. Having fent him a large
French chart of Iceland, on which I had marked with pencil the fituation of this heap
of rocks according to the Dutch ; he wrote to thank me in Latin, which was the lan-
guage through-the medium of which I was enabled to enjoy his learned and in{tructive
converfation ; and {peaking of this ifland this was his remark : ‘* Letus video te ipfum
notavifle fcopulos quos ipfe femel vidi tranfeundo.”’ I fee with pleafure that you have
noticed the rocks, which I faw alfo in failing by.
On the twelfth, at fix in the evening, the winds began to blow pretty ftrongly from
the N. E. I fteered N. W. quarter W., with no canvals out, in order that I might not
pals by the ifles of Birds before day-light. ‘The wind drove us nine knots, that is to
fay, three leagues an hour, without a failup. Attwo in the morning, lying N. and 5.
of the moft weftern of the iflands, according to reckoning, I was defirous of carrying
fail to haul the wind ; but as it was too violent, I was obliged to be content with the
main and mizen-fail part reefed.
The thirteenth, by obfervation at noon, I was in lat. 63°15’, and by reckoning in
long. 26° 15’ W. of Paris.
In the night between the thirteenth and fourteenth the wind became furious; I low.
ered the mizen-yard to reef in the fail, and at one in the morning the force of the wind
was fo great that the waves could not rife, and the fea was covered with foam. <A
matter which aftonifhed me was to fee in the height of the gale thoufands of birds co-
vering the furface of the main, unappalled by the approach and motion of the veffel :
the force of the wind had driven them I imagined from the iflands of Birds. This
continual violent weather began to try my frigate, which was an old one; fhe leaked,
and we were obliged every two hours to keep at the pump. ‘The apprehenfion of being
obliged to make a port without being able to complete my miflion began to give me
532 uneafinels ;
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