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"April 7th. Arose early, and, to my great joy, at length beheld what
there could be no hesitation in supposing the northern Pole itself. It
was there, beyond a doubt, and immediately beneath my feet; but, alas! I
had now ascended to so vast a distance, that nothing could with accuracy
be discerned. Indeed, to judge from the progression of the numbers
indicating my various altitudes, respectively, at different periods,
between six A.M. on the second of April, and twenty minutes before nine
A.M. of the same day (at which time the barometer ran down), it might be
fairly inferred that the balloon had now, at four o'clock in the morning
of April the seventh, reached a height of not less, certainly, than
7
,254 miles above the surface of the sea. This elevation may appear
immense, but the estimate upon which it is calculated gave a result in
all probability far inferior to the truth. At all events I undoubtedly
beheld the whole of the earth's major diameter; the entire northern
hemisphere lay beneath me like a chart orthographically projected: and
the great circle of the equator itself formed the boundary line of
my horizon. Your Excellencies may, however, readily imagine that the
confined regions hitherto unexplored within the limits of the Arctic
circle, although situated directly beneath me, and therefore seen
without any appearance of being foreshortened, were still, in
themselves, comparatively too diminutive, and at too great a distance
from the point of sight, to admit of any very accurate examination.
Nevertheless, what could be seen was of a nature singular and exciting.
Northwardly from that huge rim before mentioned, and which, with slight
qualification, may be called the limit of human discovery in these
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