Phillips. — On the Volcanoes of the Pacific. 515 



taking soundings good anchorage was found on the north side 

 of the island. The longitude is 175° 20' W., and the latitude 

 20° 20' S. The island is situated forty-eight miles north- 

 north-west of Nukualofa. The impression conveyed by its 

 appearance was that the bed of the ocean had been uplifted 

 out of the water.' " 



The island had therefore lost l>^Oft. in height between its 

 upheaval in October, 1885, and Mr. Whitcombe's visit in De- 

 cember, 1891. There is nothing very remarkable in this, as 

 volcanic islands have been thrown up and subsided in Euro- 

 pean seas. The lavas, scoria, ash, or tufa of which they are 

 composed are particularly subject to the wear-and-tear of 

 rain, wind, and tide, and more especially of tidal wave, or, 

 rather, earthquake wave, which is awfully destructive. The 

 above data, however, are interesting. 



I also give an extract from our Wellington shipping news 

 of 1895 concerning H.M.S. "Penguin's" cruise and survey: 

 " H.M.S. 'Penguin,' which came into port yesterday after- 

 noon, has been engaged since July last in surveying from 

 Auckland to Tonga, thence to Samoa, and back to Tonga, in 

 addition to surveying at the Falcon Islands. Her officers 

 claim that they have the record for deep-sea soundings, and 

 certainly some very extraordinary depths were obtained. The 

 warship left Nukualofa, Tonga, on the 21st December, and on 

 the 26th soundings to the extent of 4,940 fathoms were ob- 

 tained, but the wire which was being used parted and was 

 lost. Later in the day, however, 5,022 fathoms was reached, 

 in latitude 23° 39' S., longitude 175° 4' W. On the 80th De- 

 cember a depth of 5,147 fathoms was reached, in latitude 

 28° 44' S., and longitude 176° 4' W. On the 31st Decem- 

 ber, however, the still greater depth of 5,155 fathoms was 

 reached, in latitude 30° 27' S , and longitude 176° 39' W. 

 Eed clay was brought up from the greatest depth. The 

 ' Penguin ' takes in a supply of coal here, and sails on Satur- 

 day for the Bluff, and thence to Hobart, taking soundings as 

 she goes." 



Upon the above, Eear- Admiral Wharton, writing to the 

 Times, remarks: "It may interest some of your readers to 

 know that some spots have recently been found in the South 

 Pacific Ocean where the water is deeper than anywhere 

 hitherto known. Her Majesty's surveying ship ' Penguin,' 

 while returning from the Tonga Group to New Zealand, has 

 sounded in three places where the depth exceeds 5,000 

 fathoms. Up to the present the deepest water found was to 

 the north-eastward of Japan, where in 1874 the United States 

 steamer ' Tuscarora ' obtained a cast of 4,655 fathoms. The 

 ' Penguin's ' soundings are 5,027, 5,147, and 5,155 fathoms. 

 The increase is therefore 500 fathoms, or 3,000 ft. These 



