time asserts that the day and night were each of six months' continuance,
there is a palpable contradiction: and when he adds, that millet was
cultivated in the north of this country, and wheat in the south, and that
honey abounded, he mentions productions utterly incompatible with his
description of the climate and latitude.

As, however, this voyage forms an important epoch in the history of
discovery, it may be proper to endeavour to ascertain what country the
Thule of Pytheas really was. We have already observed, that the day's sail
of an ancient vessel was 500 stadia, or 50 miles; supposing the largest
stadia of 666-2/3 equal to one degree of the equator, if the vessel sailed
during the night as well as day, the course run was, on an average, 1000
stadia, or 100 miles. Now, as the voyage from the extremity of Britain to
Thule was of course not a coasting voyage, and as the nights in that
latitude, at the season of the year when the voyage was made, were very
short, (Pytheas says the night was reduced to two or three hours) we must
suppose that he sailed night as well as day; and consequently, that in six
days he had sailed 600 miles, either directly north or to east or west of
the north, for his exact course cannot well be made out.

What country lies 600 miles to the north or the north-east of the extremity
of Britain? None exactly in this direction: if, however, we suppose that
Pytheas could not fix exactly the point of the compass which he steered, (a
supposition by no means improbable, considering the ignorance of the
ancients,) and that his course tended to the west of the north, 600 miles
would bring him nearly to Greenland. There were, however, other stadia
besides those by which we computed the day's sail of the ancients; and
though the stadia we have taken are more generally alluded to by the
ancients, yet it may be proper to ascertain what results will be produced
if the other stadia are supposed to have been used in this instance. The