8 U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 239 



Return of the expedition. — The squadron finally arrived in 

 New York in June 1842 after a voyage of three years and ten months 

 and after having sailed 87,780 miles. The same confusion and poor 

 publicity which surrounded the sailing of the expedition continued 

 afterward, until 1872, when the final report was published. 



At home, Wilkes did not find the glory or recognition that he had 

 expected. He had left under a Democratic administration and 

 returned to find the Whigs in power. At best, he found official 

 indifference to his accomplishments. Charges and countercharges 

 were made. Wilkes had antagonized so many of his subordinates 

 with his severe and sometimes arbitrary discipline that he was forced 

 to stand court-martial proceedings for tyranny and fraud. Some of 

 his disgruntled subordinates specifically accused him of having 

 falsified his claim that the expedition sighted Antarctica on January 

 19, 1840. He, in turn, launched countercharges of insubordination 

 against some of the officers. At length the charges against Wilkes 

 were dropped. With this unpleasant background, the task of pre- 

 paring the results of the expedition for the press was commenced. 



Joseph pitty couthouy. — Apparently Gould was interested in 

 accompanying the expedition as there is a note in his handwriting 

 in the Boston Society of Natural History, dated October 1836, listing 

 his qualifications. It is on a copy of a letter of recommendation for 

 Gould by T. W. Harris, distinguished author of "Insecta of Massa- 

 chusetts Injurious to Vegetation," to Dr. Charles Pickering. Despite 

 such a reference for Gould, however, Joseph Pitty Couthouy had been 

 chosen to go on the voyage. In 1837 Couthouy was 29 years old 

 and Gould, 31. Both were active members of the then flourishing 

 Boston Society of Natural History but, at this time, neither had pub- 

 lished very much. It is not known who else was considered for the 

 post of conchologist; in any event, Couthouy 's desire to accompany 

 the expedition was so strong that he presented himself in person before 

 President Andrew Jackson to obtain a position on the scientific staff. 

 President Jackson stated that he could not seriously entertain the 

 application since the list of officers was complete. To this, Couthouy, 

 a mariner by profession, replied, "Well, General, I'll be hanged if I 

 don't go, if I have to go before the mast [i.e., as a common sailor]." 

 This pleased "Old Hickory," who told him, "Go back to Boston and 

 I will see if anything can be done for you." There, a few days after 

 his return, he received his commission as Conchologist of the Scientific 

 Corps (Dall, 1888, p. 109). 



Before sailing on the expedition, Couthouy presented his shell col- 

 lection to the Boston Society of Natural History on August 1, 1838 

 (Society's original catalogue of shells, nos. 3001-3876), with the pro- 

 viso that it could be reclaimed four years from that date. It is 



