pool, covered with seaweed and drift-wood driven into it by the great Atlantic currents.

CURRENTS. The chief currents of the Atlantic are :

(1) The Equatorial Current. (See General Description

(2) The Gulf Stream.

of the Ocean.)

(3) The Guiana Current, connecting the Equatorial Current with the Gulf Stream. It is a continuation of the Equatorial Current through the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, as already explained.

(4) The Brazil Current, which detaches itself from the Equatorial Current off Cape St. Roque, and flows along the coast of South America towards Cape Horn. (See General Description of the Ocean.)

(5) The Guinea Current, a branch of the Gulf Stream, which separates itself from the latter near the Azores, and flows southeast round the coast of Africa into the Gulf of Guinea.

(6) Rennell's Current, probably connected with the extreme northern portion of the Gulf Stream. It flows to the south-east across the Atlantic opposite to the openings of the Irish Sea and English Channel, passes round the coasts of France and Spain in the Bay of Biscay, and after proceeding on its course some distance to the west bends to the south-east, and falls into its original current. The portion which flows in the Bay of Biscay thus forms a kind of circle.

(7) The Arctic Current, flowing from the north polar regions along the coast of Greenland, across the openings of Baffin's Bay and Hudson's Bay, round the island of Newfoundland, and then between the Gulf Stream and the coast of North America. (See Gulf Stream.) During part of its course it is called the Hudson's Bay Current.

SEAS and OPENINGS. As already remarked, the Atlantic is distinguished for the number and size of the inland seas connected with it. The following are the principal ::

I. ON THE EAST.

(1) The North Sea, between Great Britain on the west and

Norway and Denmark on the east. It is sometimes called the German Ocean. It is connected with the English Channel by the Straits of Dover, and with the Baltic by the Skager Rack, the Cattegat, etc. Its length is about 600 miles; breadth, from 100 to 400 miles; area, about 200,000 square miles. Its greatest depth is about 600 feet. Its navigation is dangerous, on account of the strong tides, the variable winds, and the numerous sandbanks which it contains. Among these may be mentioned the Dogger Bank, stretching across the sea from west to east, and the Goodwin Sands, off the coast of Kent. The latter have been particularly fatal to ships. Extensive fisheries are carried on, especially near the coasts. This sea has been famous in modern history for the exploits of the maritime races inhabiting the surrounding countries. The Scandinavian sea-kings, or Vikings, of Norway and Sweden, the Angles, of Denmark, the Saxons, of North Germany, the Jutes, of Jutland, the Normans, of Normandy, are all famous in English history. The chief ports connected with the North Sea are :-London, Yarmouth, Hull, Sunderland, Newcastle (in England); Leith, Dundee, Aberdeen (in Scotland); Ostend, Antwerp (in Belgium); Rotterdam, Amsterdam (in Holland); Bremen, Hamburg (in Germany); Christiansand, Bergen (in Norway). The North Sea is singularly destitute of islands. The principal are Heligoland and the small islands off the coast of Holland and Schleswig.

(2) The Baltic Sea, or East Sea, between Sweden on the west and Russia on the east. The northern portion is called the Gulf of Bothnia. Two large openings on the east are called the Gulfs of Finland and Riga. It is connected with the North Sea by the Skager Rack, the Sound, and the Cattegat. Its length is about 900 miles; breadth, from 40 to 200 miles; area, about 90,000 square miles. It is very shallow, its depth being only about from 200 to 300 feet. Many rivers flow into it, causing its water to be less salt than that of the ocean. Owing to its great distance from the Atlantic, the tides are less powerful in the Baltic than in the North Sea. It contains numerous islands. The chief ports connected with the Baltic

are:-Petersburg, Riga (in Russia); Königsberg, Dantzic (in Prussia); Lubeck (in Germany); Copenhagen (in Denmark); Carlscrona, Stockholm (in Sweden).

(3) The Mediterranean Sea, between Europe on the north and Africa on the south, the most famous sea in the world. Most of the great empires of the ancient world were situated on its shores. It receives its name from its inland position (Lat. medius, middle; terra, the earth). It is connected with the Atlantic Ocean by the Straits of Gibraltar, which are about II miles in width. Its length is about 2,500 miles; greatest breadth, about 800 miles; area, about 730,000 square miles. The eastern portion of this sea is called the Levant. It contains numerous openings into the land, of which the principal are :— Gulf of Lyons, Gulf of Genoa, Gulf of Venice, Archipelago, Gulf of Sidra. Its greatest depth is about 6,000 feet. A current sets into it from the Atlantic, which is counterbalanced by an undercurrent from the Mediterranean. The tides rise only two or three feet. Several important rivers flow into it from the countries of Europe and Africa. It contains numerous islands,

of which the most important are :—Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica, the Balearic Islands, Candia, Cyprus, the islands of the Archipelago. The principal ports connected with it are :-Malaga, Valencia, Barcelona (in Spain); Marseilles (in France); Genoa, Leghorn, Civita Vecchia, Naples, Brindisi, Venice (in Italy); Palermo (in Sicily); Trieste (in Austria); Salonika (in European Turkey); Smyrna (in Asiatic Turkey); Port Said, Damietta, Alexandria (in Egypt); Tripoli, Tunis, Algiers (in North Africa).

(4) The Black Sea, connected with the Mediterranean by the Dardanelles, the Sea of Marmora, and the Bosphorus. This sea has the form of a great sunk basin, situated between Russia and Turkey in Asia. Its length is about 450 miles; greatest breadth, 230 miles; area (including the Sea of Azof), about 180,000 square miles. Its greatest depth is said to be about 3,000 feet. Its water is less salt than that of the ocean, on account of the great rivers which flow into it. On the north is the Sea of Azof, connected with it by the Straits of Yenikale.

of the Crimean war.

It has no islands. The peninsula to the north was the scene Some of the largest rivers in Europe flow into the Black Sea. Among these are the Don, Dneiper, Dneister, Danube. The principal ports connected with the Black Sea are:-Odessa (in Russia); Constantinople (in European Turkey); Trebizond (in Asiatic Turkey); Batoum (in Asiatic Russia).

(5) The Gulf of Guinea, formed by the great bend in the west coast of Africa.

II. ON THE West.

(1) Baffin's Bay, between Greenland and the islands in the northern part of America. It is named after an English navigator, William Baffin, who explored the neighbouring seas in the early part of the 17th century. The entrance to Baffin's Bay from the Atlantic is named Davis' Strait, after John Davis, an English navigator, who attempted to discover the north-west passage in the latter part of the 16th century. Most of the English north-polar expeditions have sailed up Baffin's Bay. The whole of the neighbouring seas are blocked with ice during a considerable part of the year. They abound with whales. The larger portion of this great inlet is within the Arctic Circle.

(2) Hudson's Bay, an immense land-locked sea, almost entirely surrounded by the British North American territories. It is named after the famous English navigator Henry Hudson, who explored these seas in the beginning of the 17th century. The area of this bay is nearly 300,000 square miles. It is blocked up with ice during a great part of the year. The southern portion is named James Bay after Thomas English navigator of the reign of Charles I.

James, an

(3) Gulf of St. Lawrence, at the mouth of the River St. Lawrence. Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, and Cape Breton Island are washed by its waters.

These form one

(4) Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea. vast gulf, enclosed between the West India Islands, the peninsula of Florida, and the narrow portion of the continent of North America. The Gulf of Mexico receives the waters of the

great river Mississippi. The Gulf Stream issues from the Gulf of Mexico. The Caribbean Sea is separated from it by the peninsula of Yucatan and the island of Cuba.

ISLANDS. The islands of the Atlantic have mostly been described in connection with the countries to which they belong, or the continents to which they are adjacent. The following is a list of the most important :

Iceland. (See Denmark.)
British Islands.

Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton Island. (See British Colonies.)

Bermudas. (See British Colonies.)

West Indies. (See British Colonies and America.)

Azores, or Western Islands, belonging to Portugal. They form a group of nine islands, situated between 36° and 40° north latitude and 25° and 31° west longitude. The north-western group consists of Flores and Cobo; the central group, Fayal, Pico, St. George, Graciosa, and Terceira; the south-eastern group, St. Michael (the largest) and St. Mary. They are rocky, rise abruptly from the sea, and appear to be of volcanic origin. They contain many elevations of a conical shape, the highest of which is the peak of Pico, which rises to a height of 7,000 feet. The climate is humid, but temperate and healthy. The islands are subject to earthquakes, some of which have done much damage to life and property. The soil is very fertile, but agriculture is in a low condition. The population is about 200,000, chiefly of Portuguese descent. The chief exports are wine, brandy, lemons, oranges, and other fruits. St. Michael oranges are well known. The imports are manufactured goods from England, spirits and tropical produce from America, tea, coffee, and other colonial produce. The capital is Terceira, but the chief town and port is Ponte Delgada, in St. Michael, having a population of about 16,000. These islands are said to have been known to Europeans as early as the 14th century. Madeira Islands. (See Africa.)

Canary Islands. (See Africa.)