The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1820-11-10 00:00:00

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10, 1820.

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makes its eppeirraisce, the days increase very
rapidly. . . • .
23. Q. What difference does the shunt-e of the
moon oceepiou ? Are the stirs in general brilliant ?
Can you see to read when the moon is under the ho-
rizon ?—A. From the apperunce of the moon in her
s.comi quesirr to her dechoe in the last, the snights
are very luminous, said the eters extraordinary light
both day and night. In the gloom of winter the
people keep time from the position of certain star:
%Vise° the moon is belts* the horizon, it is impossii.
isle to rend.
24. Q. Is the Amore Ltoreehs very brilliant ;
and in what part of the horizon is it seen ?-1. Its
the dark time of winter the Aunira Borealis iscion-
mostly seen most stro'hg in the Dearth, cud appears
very red and fiery.
23. Q. Does it spinet possible to cross the ice
in winter to the Nor Pole Pole ? If it does not, what
are the obstacle. ? . The likelihood of a purge
.to the North Pole set mob iirebehle to 'Pm
dalorrtbeit, as they have not had en opportnialy to
attempt it ; and. from their observations, think all
passage impossible, as the mountains of lee appear
monstrously large and lofty. Soule of the ice is
continually drilling 'donut ; so that sit meaty places
Water is discerned. Those who have been on she
most elevated parts of the Nordoster island; de-
clare, that as far as it is visible, open water is Only
seen; but to what distance it may continue obi it
iii impossible fur thew to escertotiss„ us ass atteitlid
for the discovery has 'sever been made; but grew-
Ucly it is practicable to bring the fuel and provi.
shores in vessels to the Nordoster Island.

the bulk of manktrul specemts owl 000000 s for moon-
testable truths, 'which bring' propagated by their
itiseiples through le 11)114 Pellet Or tla % captivated
the minds of men, and therrhy deprived them of
that great instrument of ietener, the spirit c
inquiry.
•In sureeetlitig ages a new inpreiliment ammo., from
the setting up profit as the ul l 000 ate object of 1.-
covery; and then, as might well be expected. Its •
()referring the private and particular gain of ceriaiit
individuals to the general interest. of the ciimmi-
nity; as well as to the ititerest of the %bole wrielr.,
in the extrusion of slience. Chia it Was that
dared the. States General, at the instance of their
East India Company, .to dircomage all attempts
for a north-east possige, and to stifle such
accounts na tendril to sliewthat it was practicable.
We may add to lIIPPC, the sourfiess of disappoint-
ed navigators, who endeavoured to reorder their own
miscarriages proof. of the iinpracticaliility • of mil:
like attempts. This welt Um ease of Capful..
WOlO, 110 was shiplitecici,ri hpait Totowa 'Legible:omA
who declared that till entlealiours on Obit Side law-,
and would be f though Barentx, who
died there in a like expedition, affirmed with Ins
last breath, that in his oii • such a pas4.lge
might be found.
That the earth was spherical in its firm was an
opinion very early eiltertaitied. soul amongst the
learned generally admitted. It seenneil to be
ptain deduction from theio:e, that a right line.
pilling through the globe, would terminate in trio
points diametrically °manioc. Plaio is thought to
be the first who spoke of tree inhabitants (if such
there were) dwelling at or near thme points, by the
name of Antipodes. This doctrine oceastonet dos
pules among philosophers for many ages; Some
maim:Lined, some denied, mid some 'reeled It PS
absurd, ridienlouts, awl impossible. Whoever will
examine ion's:Wildly the )entintents of oficae great
men, weigh the Contrariety of their iipiniont, snot
copsider the singularity of their re*sonishigs, well see
and be convinced bow umistisfaciory their not
were, and discover from ihente how insoffirieiit the
subtle speculations of the Mona° understanding
are towards settling points like these, When totally
unassisted by the lights of observation and actual
experience.

26. Q. If the passage should be deemed prise•
ticable, in what snootier should it be attempted ;
and what means of 4:avenue fuel and prov Mons
appear to be the best I—A. As the fishermen think
all passage impractirable, it is not in their 'rower to
give any answer to this demand.
27. Q. Might not three different hut., construct-
ed like those in which the people of Spitzbergen
live, together with a sufficient quaintly, of provi-
sions in each for half a dozen of people, be con-
veyed on sledges. and be left at the different dis-
tances of two hundred, of four hundred, of mix
blenched miles, north of Spitzbergen, as placer of
deposit for the assistance of those who shall under-
take the journey t—A. Such huts might be built,
and placed on shore, as said in the tenth article, at
a convenient distance from their vessels; but as for
conveying them ready built to the dist4inces propos-
ed, appears to the people an impitaribilitv.
28. Q. What number of persons and rein deer,
or of dogs, would he requisite for conveying the
huts ?—A, From the mountains of ice slid great
falls of snow, neither dogs nor rein deer would he
able to draw loads 1 for the fisherman themselves,
to be as light as possible, go on snow skaits.
29. Q. At what price per man, for each tby's
jourssep. would the people -Spitzbergen, if they
think the adventure practicable, be likely to ender.
take the conchtet of the sledges I—A. As in the
last reply, the fishermen chew it is not convenient
there to draw with dogs or rein deer, thetefure no
price ran be said.

The division of the globe by Cones being agree-
able to nature, the aucienta distingbisheil them
very peepedy and accurately into two frigid. the
Arctic and Antarctic Circles; two temperate, lying
between those circles and the tropics; and the
torrid zone within the tropics, equally divided be-
tween the 'gunmetal. Bat jedgisig from their ex-
perience of the nature of the climates at the ex-
•tremites of the zine which they inhabited, they
concluded, that the frigid zones were timely Wl-
inhabitable from cold, and the torrid from intake.
able heat of the sun. Pliny lament, eery patlte4
tically upon this supposition, that the race of mania
kind were pent up iii so small a part of the earth.
The porta, who were also no despicable philoso-
phers, heightened the horrors of these inhospitable
regions by all the colouring of a warm and heated
imagination: bat we now know, with the utmost
certainty, that they were entirely mistaken as b.
both. For within the arctic circle there are coun-
tries inhabited as high nearly as we have discover-
ed; and if we miy confide in the relations of thus.,
who have been nearest the Pole, the heat there is
very considerable. in respect to %%hitch our own mei
vigators and the Dutch pettedly agree.
In regard to the torrid rose. we have new not the
least doubt of its being thoroughly inhabited; and
which is more wonderful, that the climates are very
different there, according to the circumstances of
their situation. In Ethiopia, Arabia, and the Mo-
luccas, exceedingly hot; but in the plains of Peril
(and particularly at Quito) pettedly temperate, so
that the inhabitants siever change their Clothes in
any season of the year. The sentiments of the
ancients therefore in this respect are a proof how
inadequate the faculties of the human mind are
to discussions of this nature, when unassisted by
facts.
The Pythagorean system of the universe. revived
and restored near 250 years ago by the celebrated
Copernicus, met with a very difficult sod slow re-
ception, not only from the bulk of mankind. for
that might have been well expected, but even from
the learned; and sonar very able astronomers at.
tempted to overturn and refute it. Galileo Galitei
wrote sit admirable treatise in its Support, in which
he very fully removed most of the popular objet.
tiont. This. however, exposed hint to the rigour of
the Inquisition, and he was dbliged to abjure the
doctrine of the earth's motion. Our noble philo-
sopher, the deep and acute Lord Venation". mull
not absolutely confide in the truth aml•certaiiity of
the Copernican System ; but seams to think that
its facilitating artronothical cslcuistiem was its prin.
cspal recommendation. as if this had w t hems ales
• very stroll prtsonspiiiin at least, if sat is
prool, of its veracity. It was from Silo considera-
tion that the Church of Rome at !myth thosight
tit so far to relax in her decisions, as topexusii toe
maintaining the earth's tootiou iu ishytical sod re
losophieal disqueiitions. But Sir Ismer Neat
who built upon this basis his experimeatal philo-
eophy; has dispersed all doubts on this subject& mid
*hewn how the ninon sublime discoveries may be
etude by the reciprocal aids of sagacity and Newt.
Tattoo. On these grounds, therefore, all inquiries
of this nature ought to panned, withoot plan an
• implicit subinieeion to the mere specoLtive ammo'
even of the greatest men, but pursuing steadily Use
path of truth, under the direction of the light of
experience.
It may he urged, in excuse of the ancient; and
even of our ancestors in former times. tint, as they
were unanieted by fact., they could only employ
guess and conjecture, and that cons qiiently these
conclusions were from thence LIM,. DIM But so
waive the visible impropriety of d ciding in
points where observation was so obviously necessity
without its direction, let us see whether this
of alleviation may not be controverted its both cases.
War the conclusive oft Mat paw)

30. Q. Are there any persons in Archangel who
have formerly resided in Spitsbergen who would
engage in the business ; and are there any who would
be willing, in company with two Englishmen, to
attempt on this plan a passage to the North Pole ?
—A. As there are not, liar ever were, any natives
of Spitsbergen, none thertfure can he resident in
Archangel ; however, many men may he met with
here, who have wintered there; but as they have
never made an attempt to go to the Pole, they can-
not undertake the conduct of the business. Not-
withstanding, if an Englishman should determine
on the endeavour, some people might be met with
who would, perhaps, with an English ship's com-
pany, engage themselves.
91. Q. In the spring have flights of birds ever
been observed to direct their coarse north of Spitz.
bergen ?—A. It has been always experienced by
those who have been at the most northerly parts of
Spitsbergen, that in the spring a great number of
wild geese, ducks, and other birds, take their
flight further north.
32. Q. What animals and birds have they during
the summer, and what species winter on that island ?
—A. In Spitsbergen they have wild rein deer,
white and blue foxes, and white bear., which re-
main continually on the island ; but the geese,
ducks, Bce. are only there in summer.
93. Q. Those which quit Spitzber„erie on the
approach of winter, in what month do they generally
emigrate, and to what point of the compass ?
A. All the before-mentioned birds on the approach
of winter, that is, in the latter end of September,
fly to the southward, and return again in the latter
end of April. •
N.B.—The 31st and 33d answers do not appa-
rently agree.