OF THE ANTARCTIC VOYAGE. 315 
enabled to pick up a piece of sea-weed, which the surgeon of 
that ship gave to the botanist on board the “ Erebus,” by 
whom it was ascertained to be a singular new Sargassum, 
analogous to, but distinct from, a species previously found 
on Lord Auckland's Island; and he thus describes it:— 
* Frond pinnatifid, its segments 11 inch long entire round, 
vesicles axillary solitary, and the diameter of a small grape, 
receptacles crowded together, shortly pedicellate axillary. 
Colour chocolate brown. Length 3 feet, sparingly branched. 
Dissections of the receptacles are made from the recent plant, 
and will be sent home." This sea-weed is probably allied to 
the Fucus decurrens, of Turner’s Historia Fucorum, and is 
mentioned by Webster in the Appendix to Forster's Voyage,* 
under the head of Deception Island, one of the South Shet- 
land group. 
Two days were spent in endeavouring to get down to the 
south-eastward, but snow-storms and heavy Pack-ice ren- 
dered this hope fruitless, so that on the 30th, the “ Erebus” 
bent her best bower cable, and bore up for the land again, 
which was approached somewhat to the south of where they 
had neared it, four days previously. The mountains were 
here of greater elevation, with several peaks, which were cal- 
culated at about 3,000 feet high, and all apparently of volca- 
nic origin, though not active at the present day. Enormous 
glaciers might be seen, running along some parts of the 
. Coast for many miles, terminating towards the sea in icy 
precipices. On the little islands near the land, the snow 
Was often melted; and though low, many of them pre- 
sented remarkable craters, with numerous and very large 
icebergs floating round them. Several gulls, terns, cormorants 
and other sea-fowl were noticed here. 
The last day of 1842 was fine and clear, enabling the voy- 
* * The Fuci, or Sea-weeds, were few and unimportant; the most common 
was found floating. It was of a pale chocolate colour, stem and branches 
flat, &c. The tnode of reproduction appeared to be from a cluster of buds, 
appended to the terminal branches." —Forster's Voyage, vol, ii, Appendix, 
P. 301. 
