not be made without the rabble of small words about it. The meaning must be identical in both, and a New Zealand pilot on being asked how he would take a ship into Wangari Harbour, might answer in something like the following terms.

To enter Wangari from northwd.

Bring Bream Hd mountain to bear N.b.W.mile: steer W.b.S. 2 m.: then Sugar loaf will bear W.N.W. N. and West Sandy Pt be just open of it:-but Sugar loaf will not seem detached from Busby Hd till these marks are on.

Now steer W.N.W. W. a small mile from abreast Sugar loaf (2 cabl off): then steer N.N.W. W. mile to abreast Home Pt, for left extr of high islet on N. shore of Calliope Bay.

If for first anchorage, round Home Pt closely-run eastwd mile, then anchor in 4 fms, 1 cable off shore, safe out of tide.

If for second anchorage (best for large vessels): From Home Pt (2 cables off) steer 1 mile N.W.b.N., or a point left of high islet: then Sand hill on Westn Sandy entrance pt will bear W.S. W. W., and High islet N. W.: steer then W.b.N, passing 1 cable southd of Channel I. and anchor in 5 fms with islet S.E.b.E., 4 cables: mile off shore; Snake Bk or Middle Grnd the same distance.

By these directions a 4 fms patch is crossed E.S.E. 1 mile from Busby Hd: thence to abreast Sugar loaf ship is in 6 to 9 fms midchannel; from Sugar loaf to Sandy Pt in 10, 12, and 14 fms; thence to Channel Islet in 8, 9, and 13, shoaling to anchorage in 7 and 5 fms sand and mud.

The banks being steep, shoaling to 4 fms on either side is too close.

Now, had the Wangari pilot answered in the foregoing words, he would have saved both time and space, and thereby have accomplished his purpose by short sailing directions.

THE STRAIT OF GIBRALTAR: Its Winds, Tides, and Navigatiou. (Continued from page 63.)

Tides and Currents.

Tidal Streams.-Independently of the current which is always running through the Strait of Gibraltar from West to East, others are experienced arising from the flowing and ebbing of the tide. Various observations have been made at various places in the Strait, with the view of finding the tidal establishment or precise time of high water on full and change days; but they have only been successful in the bays of Algeciras and Gibraltar, Ceuta and Tangier, and another or two, without enabling us to determine the same for the different

points of the coasts which form the Strait. Of these establishments as no different data have been obtained from the observations so assiduously carried on, we shall transcribe the principal accounts we have received from the most experienced pilot of the Strait, Sen. Don V. J. Urquero. In an account he gave in 1825, he says,—

"The pilots agree that at spring tides a vessel of any size can pass the Strait from East to West, if she be a good sailer, by availing herself of the tide when the wind is from the westward. I can assert that I have seen the American ship Franklin, of 74 guns, do this, and I have no doubt that any other vessel which sails as well would do it at spring tides, availing herself of the flood to get to the westward of the meridian of Tarifa, for from thence to the westward the strength of the easterly current is much lessened.

"The Coast of

stream of flood to the westward begins on the first day of the moon at 5h. in the morning, the westerly set being then evident in a belt of water which extends out to the following distances from the shore:

Off Cape Trafalgar...

Off the low point of Cape de Plata

Off Point Paloma and Point Pena, inside the shoals.

Off the southernmost point of Isle Tarifa

Off Point de Canales

Off Point Guadalmesi

Off Point Acebuche..

Off Point Fraile and its Tower..

Off Point Europa ...

Off these points runs a line which we shall call the line of the shore

counter-current.

"On the same first day of the moon the following phenomena always occur outside of the above line.

"From the meridian of Cape Trafalgar to Pena Tower the commencement may be observed of a cessation in the easterly current an hour after the beginning of the flood tide running to the westward, that is, at 6h. in the morning; and half an hour after, the water generally, as far as the middle of the Strait, runs westward.

"From the meridian of Pena tower as far as Point Camorro the suspension of the easterly current begins at three hours of the flood tide running westward, or rather about 8h. a.m.; the stream remaining, as termed by the pilots of the coast, checked or suspended during the whole tide. Bat during the three hours the shore counter-current widens to about one mile from the outermost or most projecting points. "From the meridian of Point Camorro to the eastward the waters run constantly East in the fairway of the Strait. But at three hours of the flood running westward the above shore counter-current widens so as to form a decided belt of waters running past the following points to the westward.

"Outer Line of Shore Counter-Current.-This is only observed between the meridians of Point Camorro and Point Europa.

It must be remembered that all these phenomena are only observed in days of spring tides, as in ordinary tides only a single counter-current is observed, which extends to a short distance from the coast, following its sinuosities, and passing inside the Cabezos; and even in this same counter-current the stream runs very weak to the westward, not being sufficient for large vessels to work westward in, excepting in some special case, at the cost of much labour even to small vessels when the wind is from N.W. to S.W.

African Coast.-The flood to the westward begins on the day of full moon at 6h. a.m., an hour later than on the coast of Spain, and the line of counter-current extends off the shore to the distances inarked against the following principal points of the coast:—

One hour after the flood commences, or at 6h. a.m., on the first day of the moon, from Point Alcazar to the westward a suspension of the waters in their usual easterly course is observed, and at an hour and a half of the flood they change their direction and run to the westward throughout the breadth of the Strait, differences being observed which form a second line of counter-current, as on the Spanish coast, only from this meridian to the eastward in the following manner.

At three hours after the commencement of the flood to the westward, or at 9h. a m., the counter-current separates, extending itself in the offing, as above observed, from Point Alcazar to the eastward as follows:

These differences are only observed, as already noted off the Spanish coast, at spring tides; for in ordinary tides the counter-current only extends to the lesser distance wbich we have mentioned for the line of counter-current for the same coast.

Apart from the theories of some philosophers and geologists, who assert the existence of a counter-current in the Strait of Gibraltar more or less deep from the surface to meet the doubts and opinions against it with the view of accounting for the huge mass of water which the ocean is continually giving to the Mediterranean, we shall confine ourselves to treating on the current which is evident and known to all navigators, commonly called the general current. This always runs from West to East, with the exoeption of those narrow

strips of the sea close to the coasts, the surfaces of which set to the westward during the flood tide. Of these counter-currents or reverse streams of tide we have already made full mention.

According to Major Rennel there is a tendency in the waters of the ocean between the parallels of 30° and 45° of North latitude and from 100 to 130 leagues from the coasts of Europe and Africa, to run into the Mediterranean through the Strait of Gibraltar. Even when this action is not sufficiently proved to be the case, it is nevertheless beyond a doubt that the waters of the bend of the coast comprehended between Cape St. Vincent on the Portuguese coast and Cantin on the African coast run as if by a funnel through the Strait with a velocity of ten to twenty miles in the twenty-four hours, with greater velocity near the Capes of Trafalgar and Espartel, more rapidly in the middle, than on either coast, and with increasing strength in proportion as they advance into the channel;-acquiring their greatest strength in the meridians of Tarifa and Point Cires, and continue their rapid course until losing themselves in the Mediterranean, where they take different directions as they approach either shore.

On the coast of Spain inside the Strait the waters of the general current incline to the S.E., whilst on that of Africa they take the direction of N.E., those in the middle following an East course. From the neighbourhood of Tarifa, where the current attains its greatest velocity, the waters advance E.S.E., as if they would keep the direction which they had acquired on the coast of Spain, while those of the opposite coast incline to E.N.E., these two currents combined producing a current of greater strength on the African coast than on that of Spain. They continue in this last direction until dividing in the bays of Algeciras and Ceuta and entering the Mediterranean, where they incline to the N.E. on the Spanish coast and to the S.E. towards that of Africa. When to this general current is added the ebb of spring tides, its strength is considerably increased, attaining the velocity of five miles an hour in the narrow of Tarifa and Cires.

The general current only remains checked with spring tides and the duration of easterly winds; but it preserves its easterly direction always with more or less strength in the middle of the channel comprised between the meridians of Tarifa and Europa. And if at any time it has been seen stopped in the middle, or inverted, it has been momentary, and when a great equinoctial spring tide has been combined with the force of the wind, or from some physical cause that the waters of the ocean have suffered some considerable but momentary depression.

Velocity of the General Current. With the exception of these very rare cases the current runs into the Mediterranean with a velocity which as yet has not been exactly determined, nor would it be easy to do so considering the impossibility of anchoring a vessel mid-channel in it, from the increased depth found there (455 fathoms in the narrow off Tarifa and 100 between Gibraltar and Ceuta). Nevertheless, from various observations made at different times, it has been found that the general current in the strait of Tarifa in the middle of the channel is two to three miles per hour in its normal condition, or

rather with fine weather and no tide, reducing it to a little more than one in the vicinity of Tarifa and two on the African coast.

At a cable's length from Tarifa and when the ebb to the eastward at spring tides is running with the general current, it attains a velocity of more than four miles an hour in a S.E. direction, and reaching five and a half and four miles North of Point Alcazar, where they run from West to East.

Inside of the above distance from Tarifa, the flood acquires a velocity of two to three miles at springs, which becomes little more than one at neaps. Outside of the limit a (cable's length), the course of the general current is from West to East.

At springs the stream of tide near the coast and in the bays runs at the rate of one and a half to two miles per hour, there being places where it is nearly ceased at neaps. These currents always run much faster on the ebb than on the flood, thus showing the effect of the general current.

Streams of Current.-The streams of current which are so frequent and numerous in the Strait of Gibraltar generally occur in the vicinity of the outermost points of both coasts and near their offlying banks. They are formed instantaneously and without any previous symptoms, even when the sea is in its most quiet condition. An ebullition suddenly appears in the water and a ripple is formed which is repeatedly breaking. If to this phenomenon is added the force of the wind and that of the sea produced by it, the streams of current then become very formidable, not only for small boats but even for larger craft. Sometimes they acquire an eddying movement, which deprives vessels of the power of steering, and obliges them to make a detour unless there be wind sufficient to enable them to stem the stream. The case of a vessel may be quoted when steering with a light wind aft from the westward and a heavy sea running against her, which was caught by one of these streams of current off Point Leona. Losing her steering, she drifted to seaward and became dismasted. Instances also are frequent of small craft, fishermen and feluccas, having been capsized in these

streams.

No rules can be given for avoiding so insidious an enemy, for sometimes it is formed by the vessel's side, and after accompanying her for some distance then leaves her.

The strongest streams are those which are formed off the sharpest points, and those with which the coast suddenly changes its direction. They mostly attain their greatest strength at half tide, when the current of flood and ebb is strongest. They are common on the West of Spain, and it may be said they take their rise at Cape Trafalgar, the Cabezos Rocks, Isle Tarifa, Point Fraile, the Pearl Rock, and Europa Point. On the opposite coast they are Cape Spartel, Points Malabata, Altares, Al-Boussa, Cires, Leona, and Point Santa Catalina in Almina de Ceuta. They are also met more commonly East of the meridian of Europa Point and well into the Mediterranean, although there they may not be so considerable.

Stream off Cape Trafalgar.-The most violent are experienced off