-

288 JOURNEY THROUGH THE INTERIOR OF THE CRIMEA,

phorus, properly fo called, the paflage is only four verfts, andis fafer; but, as there is no village in that neighbourhood, inwhich travellers can be fupplied with horfes, it is ufual tocrofs the Gulf of Taman, or Tamanfkoi-Saliv tranfverfely,near the point of the Severnaya-Kofla, to the city of Taman.This paflage, being eighteen verfts, is rendered equally dan-gerous by fudden gufts of wind, as well as by the numerousfhoals, and the continual agitation of the eddy, even in calmweather.

The Bofphorus has generally a fuperficial current runningoutwards, when it is not impeded by the wind. In makingthis paflage directly to the Severnaya-Kofla, during calmweather, there is a fmooth line diftinctly perceptible in thenarrow Channel beyond the ferry, where the yellowifh ftreamof the fea of Azof meets the dark falt water of the Black Sea.The foundings are from ten to feventeen feet; and the greateftdepth is along the European coaft, at rather more than a verftfrom the land: at this part, when pafling Yenikale, it pro-greflively increafes from fourteen to feventeen, nineteen, andtwenty-two feet; but, in the fea of Azof, it again diminilhesto fixteen and fourteen feet. The directum of the NarrowCanal, properly fo termed, is South-weft and North-eaft, beingonly four verfts in length. The breadth of the Bofphorus isthence enlarged by the inlet near Kertfh, and by the oppofiteGulf of Taman: it now becomes contracted to about threeverfts, both by the Youfhnaya-Kofla, which is only four verftsfrom the Severnaya-Kofla, and by the iflands which form acontinuation of its point. Thus it ferves as the moft con-venient ford for cattle and horfes, on account of the numerous

fhoals