Cape Horn

the southern point of the most southerly island of South America. Latitude, 55 degree 59' S.; longitude, 69 degree 16' W. It is a precipitous rock over 500 feet high. Currents from the Pacific and the Atlantic meet here, and fierce storms make the passage one much dreaded by sailors. It was named in 1616 by Dutch navigators from the town of Hoorn, Holland. English people have dropped an 0 out of the name. Sailors avoid rounding the Horn by taking a short cut to the northward through the Straits of Magellan. A floating cask is used as a postoffice. Passing ships send off a boat to leave and take mail. See Magellan