66 JouDial of Travel and Natural History 



Sandy Point and went on to Port l-'amine, wliere we anchored early in the after- 

 noon. A good many of us landed, and spent some time on shore. The day 

 was very stormy, and made us realize that we were entering the damp region of 

 the Strait. The woods were so thick that we only penetrated a short distance 

 into them, but I got some fine lichens on the trunks of the trees. On the bare 

 ground, Fcstuca Fuegiana was very jilentiful, and a few lingering specimens of 

 Sisyrinchium fi'ifolium were still in (lower. On the beach, a sand-inhabiting 

 bivalve, allied to Mactra, was abundant, and I picked up a portion of a 

 decapodous crustacean, apparently a Muneda. A small party of Fuegians 

 made their appearance on the opposite side of the river, at Port Famine, from 

 where we were — miserable-looking objects, whose only covering was a short 

 guanaco-skin cloak. They attempted to hold communication with us in their 

 language. A seining party was despatched from the ship, and a considerable 

 number of fish belonging to two species was obtained. A beautiful little 

 excessively spiny Lithodes was got in the seine, and brought to me. We 

 weighed on the morning of the lOth, and proceeded to Port Gallant, outside of 

 which we anchored in the afternoon, and next day several of us spent a consider- 

 able time on shore. We landed on a small, thickly-wooded island at the 

 entrance of the Port, which is united to the mainland at low water ; and here I 

 saw the Fuchsia coccinea for the first time, and I think I have seldom seen a 

 more beautiful sight than was presented by the ]ilants, which were from 8 to 12 

 feet high, and thick with flowers. It was interesting to observe that they did 

 not occur in any considerable number, save on the islet. I picked up one or 

 two large dead Fissurellne on the beach, and the dredge yielded quantities of 

 beautiful branching Nullipores, as well as a few minute Terebratulce, Ophiocomas, 

 Annelidiie, &c. I spent some hours most pleasantly wandering about in the 

 woods round the harbour. I was greatly delighted by finding the exquisite 

 Philesia buxifolia in ]irofusion almost everywhere, in some situations forming a 

 low under shrub, and in others climbing up the stems of the trees to a height of 

 8 or 9 feet, and letting its clusters of bright, rosy flowers hang down in the air. 

 The Empetrum occurred abundantly, both with bright red and purplish-black 

 berries, which I thought an interesting circumstance, as you remark in the ' Flora 

 Antarctica,' that the only marked distinction between the Empetrum rubrum and 

 the European Empetrum nigrum exists in the colour of the berries. Pernettya 

 mucronata attained a much larger size than I had before witnessed, and every 

 hollow in the ground (and the whole surface of the ground was a succession of 

 hollows, moss-covered tree-stumps, and prostrate tree-trunks) was lined in the 

 most beautiful manner with mosses, Jungermanniai, and ferns. Two species of 

 Hymenophyllum were very plentiful, as were also the Oleichcnia acutifolia, and 

 another fern that I have not as yet identified. I also obtained specimens of 

 Asplenium Magellanicum, as well as some fine lichens. The Berberis ilicifolia, 

 which was rather common in the woods, had its branches frecjuently covered by 

 a moss that I did not see occurring in any other situation. Altogether, it 

 appeared to be a very fine field for cryptogamic botany, to the working of which, 

 in a future season, it was very satisfactory to look forward. 



"Thuja tetragona occurred rather sparingly, forming trees from 15 to 18 feet 

 high, and I noticed the Winter Park in flower. On a grass, growing close to 

 the water, a form of ergot occurred abundantly. A fine kingfisher was shot ; 

 I have not materials with me for the determination of the species ; but neither 

 King, Fitzroy, or Darwin mention a Strait kingfisher in their volumes. A large 

 dragon-fly was captured, and we saw several specimens of a fine large humble- 

 bee. The scenery around Port Gallant is remarkably fine. The mountains 

 appear to be composed chiefly of metamorphic rocks, which almost always give 

 a bold character to the landscape ; and on gazing gradually up the sides of the 

 hills, the eye first meets with thickly-wooded slojies of the verdant and ever- 

 green beeches, with an admixture of Winter I'ark, then with an infinite succes- 

 sion of grey precipices, then fields of snow, and finally shar[) black-jagged j^eaks, 

 which jiierce the cknuls. 1 felt that short stay at Port Gallant /t'r sc an abun- 

 dant reward for coming all the way to the Strait of Magellan. 



" On the i8th, we pursued our westerly course. The day, tliough showery, was 

 not a bad one, and we had a constant succession of views of the most magnificent 



