Far away to the northward I perceived a
      thin, white, and exceedingly brilliant line, or streak, on the
      edge of the horizon, and I had no hesitation in supposing it to
      be the southern disk of the ices of the Polar Sea. My curiosity
      was greatly excited, for I had hopes of passing on much farther
      to the north, and might possibly, at some period, find myself
      placed directly above the Pole itself. I now lamented that my
      great elevation would, in this case, prevent my taking as
      accurate a survey as I could wish. Much, however, might be
      ascertained. Nothing else of an extraordinary nature occurred
      during the day. My apparatus all continued in good order, and the
      balloon still ascended without any perceptible vacillation. The
      cold was intense, and obliged me to wrap up closely in an
      overcoat. When darkness came over the earth, I betook myself to
      bed, although it was for many hours afterward broad daylight all
      around my immediate situation. The water-clock was punctual in
      its duty, and I slept until next morning soundly, with the
      exception of the periodical interruption. “April 4th. Arose in good health and spirits, and was astonished
      at the singular change which had taken place in the appearance of
      the sea. It had lost, in a great measure, the deep tint of blue
      it had hitherto worn, being now of a grayish-white, and of a
      lustre dazzling to the eye. The islands were no longer visible;
      whether they had passed down the horizon to the southeast, or
      whether my increasing elevation had left them out of sight, it is
      impossible to say. I was inclined, however, to the latter
      opinion. The rim of ice to the northward was growing more and
      more apparent. Cold by no means so intense. Nothing of importance
      occurred, and I passed the day in reading, having taken care to
      supply myself with books. “April 5th. Beheld the singular phenomenon of the sun rising
      while nearly the whole visible surface of the earth continued to
      be involved in darkness. In time, however, the light spread
      itself over all, and I again saw the line of ice to the
      northward. It was now very distinct, and appeared of a much
      darker hue than the waters of the ocean. I was evidently
      approaching it, and with great rapidity. Fancied I could again
      distinguish a strip of land to the eastward, and one also to the
      westward, but could not be certain. Weather moderate. Nothing of
      any consequence happened during the day. Went early to bed. “April 6th. Was surprised at finding the rim of ice at a very
      moderate distance, and an immense field of the same material
      stretching away off to the horizon in the north. It was evident
      that if the balloon held its present course, it would soon arrive
      above the Frozen Ocean, and I had now little doubt of ultimately
      seeing the Pole. During the whole of the day I continued to near
      the ice. Toward night the limits of my horizon very suddenly and
      materially increased, owing undoubtedly to the earth’s form being
      that of an oblate spheroid, and my arriving above the flattened
      regions in the vicinity of the Arctic circle. When darkness at
      length overtook me, I went to bed in great anxiety, fearing to
      pass over the object of so much curiosity when I should have no
      opportunity of observing it. “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 regions, one unbroken, or
      nearly unbroken, sheet of ice continues to extend. In the first
      few degrees of this its progress, its surface is very sensibly
      flattened, farther on depressed into a plane, and finally,
      becoming not a little concave, it terminates, at the Pole itself,
      in a circular centre, sharply defined, whose apparent diameter
      subtended at the balloon an angle of about sixty-five seconds,
      and whose dusky hue, varying in intensity, was, at all times,
      darker than any other spot upon the visible hemisphere, and
      occasionally deepened into the most absolute and impenetrable
      blackness. Farther than this, little could be ascertained. By
      twelve o’clock the circular centre had materially decreased in
      circumference, and by seven P.M. I lost sight of it entirely; the
      balloon passing over the western limb of the ice, and floating
      away rapidly in the direction of the equator. “April 8th. Found a sensible diminution in the earth’s apparent
      diameter, besides a material alteration in its general color and
      appearance. The whole visible area partook in different degrees
      of a tint of pale yellow, and in some portions had acquired a
      brilliancy even painful to the eye. My view downward was also
      considerably impeded by the dense atmosphere in the vicinity of
      the surface being loaded with clouds, between whose masses I
      could only now and then obtain a glimpse of the earth itself.