We shall pass out of the Gulf stream in the morning early, for it runs to the north of these islands into the Bay of Biscay. This is only a branch of the real Gulf Stream which breaks off near Bermuda & flows straight across here, the way we have come. The main currents of the famous Gulf Stream runs up past Halifax & as far as the Banks of Newfoundland where it is met by another current of icy water from the North Pole & turned out of its course right across the Atlantic past England, Ireland, North Scotland, Norway, & can be traced as far north as Spitzbergen where its waters get cold again & return to the equator as an undercurrent over 2000 fathoms down.


We found such a current in the tropics at 3000 fathoms deep with a temperature of 34° or only 2° above freezing—while the water in the surface was between 70° & 80°. As this cold undercurrent nears the equator it rises to the surface & the tremendous heat of the sun soon raises its temperature to 70° or 80° by which it loses its equilibrium & starts on this wonderful journey to the north to regain it. First it runs into the Gulf of Mexico, out through the Florida channel, past Bermuda, where this branch gets separated by the Bahama reef, & comes across to the Azores. This stream of tropical water is like a river in the ocean & loses scarcely any heat on its journey, although it raises (in winter) the temperature of England, Ireland & Scotland several degrees. Without the Gulf Stream England would be as cold as Newfoundland which is in the same latitude & Lisbon would be as cold as New York which is in the same latitude again.