386 THE ARCTURUS ADVENTURE 



natus), and a big swimming shrimp {Penaeus braziliensis) from the 

 gangway. 



Feb. 19. Up and ashore in torrents of rain. A lovely town, with 

 winding walled streets, and gates standing ajar on glimpses of gar- 

 dens crowded with flowers and the sea for background, or casual 

 moments in the family life of the black Bermudian. We all suc- 

 cumbed to another spasm of ultimate shopping, thougli there was little 

 enough to buy, and at 10:30 returned to ship with such loot as could 

 be had, one item being a ship's cat, carelessly overlooked in New 

 York. At 11 we steamed out through the hole in the waU, and rolled 

 all day through a grey sea, aiming for 30° North and 60° West, as that 

 is well within the area of the Sargasso as mapped. 



The rain stopped as soon as we got away from the island. Pulpit 

 lowered and two tubfuls of weed caught, but not a single fish. Quan- 

 tities of crabs, mostly Planes minutus, and a single Portunus sayi. 

 Many shrimp, chiefly Leander tenuicornis, and a few Latractes fu- 

 corum. One of the latter had a full-grown parasitic Bopyrus in its 

 left gill. If gathered together, the weed we have passed in the last 

 three or four days would make vast plains, and yet it is all in small 

 heads or strands, and with little life on it. 



Feb. 20th. At dawn Captain blew foghorn to call attention to 

 tropicbird or, as he called it, "marlinspike," flying round ship. Large 

 empty ocean, ship rolling too much for microscopic work, though 

 weed was scooped up, despite the seas. Sounding machine and trawls 

 still to be put in working shape. Small patches of nearly lifeless 

 weed all day. 



Noon position: Lat. 32° 22' N; Long. 64° 39' W. 



Feb. 21st. The foghorn at dawn announced the tropicbird again. 

 About noon it looked as though we had reached the Sargasso fron- 

 tier at last. Comparatively large patches of weed, two or three yards 

 across, strewed the sea at intervals as far as we could see in all di- 

 rections. However, we soon ran out of this area. A school of dolphins 

 stayed with us for a long time, and we began to see flyingfish. Caught 

 a little weed but found it as barren as ever, — no fish or nudibranchs, 

 and only small crabs. Grey weather continues, and a fair amount of 

 roling. 



Noon position; Lat. 29° 43' N; Long. 59° 38' W. 



Feb. 22nd. Tropicbird at dawn again. No Sargasso Sea. Too rough 

 for trawling. Divided day into half-hour watches in bow, but only 

 flyingfish seen. Some of the staff still suffering from constant rolling. 

 Everyone getting nervous for lack of weed and work. 



Noon position: Lat. 27° 49' N; Long. 57° 45' W. 



February 23rd. Two tropicbirds at dawn. Two blasts from fog- 

 horn. Sea quieter but heavy ground swell. Made our first Station. 



