THE VOYAGE OF THE HURON AND THE HUNTRESS 



anything more pasing between us and was soon out of sight behind the 

 Land to the N.E. I should juge she was about 40 tons, had one fish Boat 

 on deck & Long Boat and Eight men. Whether she was an American or 

 (not) I Could not determine as she sot no CouUas, but I should judg the 

 former By the Bilt of the vessel. So Ends." 



This was, indeed, an unusual incident. Although sealers were the most 

 mysterious of mariners — as "secrecy was what they deemed their capital" — 

 when two vessels from the same country met in such remote corners of the 

 world the masters and crews were always anxious for a "gam." The mys- 

 terious action of the stranger piqued the Nantucketer's natural curiosity. The 

 following morning at 8 :00 o'clock, Captain Burdick took a whaleboat and 

 crew and went around the island, inside which he was anchored, and surveyed 

 the shore line. 



"... I Landed on a Large Island to the Southward of me, [wrote Cap- 

 tain Burdick] and went to a Mountain to see what I could. But the 

 Clouds on the mountain hindered me from seing. Returned to the vessel 

 at 6 P.M. without Being much wizer." 



But there was a sequel to the visit of the mysterious schooner, one which 

 brought about a decision which changed the entire course of the Huntress' 

 subsequent voyage and the careers of her master and crew. That there were 

 other vessels in the vicinity was not surprising to the Nantucketers. But the 

 fact that their strange visitor had not "hove-to" had aroused their curiosity. 

 Captain Burdick decided to search for the other schooner. 



Three days later, Saturday, November 11, 1820, with her re-rigging com- 

 pleted, a number of casks of water taken aboard and the men refreshed, the 

 Huntress was taken out on a cruise along which he sailed through "several 

 passages no more than 1/4 mile wide," and five hours later came to the west 

 end of the main island. While running up to West Point Island, Captain 

 Burdick made out to starboard a wide channel leading between the high cliffs 

 of West Point and the shore of the main island.^® He entered the passage and 

 soon came out into a commodious anchorage basin known as Hope Harbor. 

 Here was the answer to his question. Lying at their anchors were two ships 

 and their tenders and shallops. Captain Burdick reported it thus: 



". . . anchored in Hope harbor in West BlufJ where I found two Ships 

 and there Shallops, one from New Haven, Bound to the East'd, and the 

 other from Salem had been lying hear two years past and with a part 

 of a load of oil and a few skins. The former left New Haven last March, 

 was the Huron, Capt. Davis."^® 



And so, it may be said, that the two vessels which were to help make history 

 in the South Shetlands literally searched each other out, and that this chance 

 meeting in the Falklands was like a fateful twist — the prologue to a greater 

 drama which was to take place in the remote regions of the South Shetlands. 



With the customary laconic recording of most seafaring men of his time, 



[23] 



