6 Taylor, A Scientist in the Antarctic. [voilxxxvi. 



on which to lay the skins and carve off the thick layer of blubber 

 which lies just beneath. The hides were rubbed with salt 

 and rolled up for transport. The skeletons, I beUeve, were 

 roughly cleaned, then dried, and carried quite satisfactorily 

 until they reached the museums. 



Nelson and LilUe were busy getting deep sea temperatures 

 by a very ingenious reversing cylinder. This was sunk at the 

 end of miles of piano-wire, and samples of the bottom were also 

 obtained on these lines. Forams and volcanic lava thus 

 obtained were of interest to the geologist ; but our queerest 

 collection was a set of specimens from the gizzard of an Adelie 

 Penguin. There were three rock-types represented in this 

 collector's gallery, and only ten years or so before they would 

 have doubled our knowledge of Antarctic petrology ! 



Microscopic life swarms in these Polar seas. It is stated 

 that there is almost as much protoplasm per acre of ocean as 

 there is in a well-cultivated land crop. Most of this occurs 

 as diatoms and infusoria, forams, and copepods ; indeed, almost 

 every floe in its lower layers is stained yellow from the presence 

 of millions of small diatoms allied to Corethron. 



Early in the new year of 191 1 we cruised along the slopes of 

 Mount Erebus. On shore we could see the rookery of the 

 Emperor Penguins, where Wilson's party nearly lost their lives in 

 midwinter, 1911. It was now nearly empty — for this misguided 

 bird lays its eggs in the middle of the long night. A little to 

 the west was one of the largest Adelie Penguin rookeries. Here 

 the rocks were brown with guano, while the seas teemed with 

 shrimps {Euphausia), which formed the food of the innumerable 

 Penguins. Along the edge of their territory prowled the 

 killer whales ifirca gladiator). I should think the latter animal 

 is as dominant in the southern seas as man is on the land ; and 

 when (as happened on three occasions) there was a tussle 

 between men and Orcas on the floating ice, it was the Orcas 

 who gained a strategic victory ! 



In the South Polar Times this biological cycle was de- 

 scribed in verse — which should appeal to naturaUsts, whatever 

 the poets may think of it ! 



LIFE'S ROUND IN THE ANTARCTIC. 



" Big floes have little floes all around about them, 



And all the yellow diatoms couldn't do without them ; 



Forty million shrimplets feed upon the latter, 



And the shrimps make the Penguins and the Weddel Seals much fatter. 



Along comes the Orca and kills these down below, 



While up above the scientist attacks them on the floe. 



A bold explorer tumbles down and staves the mushy pack in ; 



He's crumpled up between the floes — and so they get their whack in. 



And there's no doubt he soon becomes a patent fertilizer, 



Invigorating diatoms — although they're none the wiser. 



So the protoplasm passes on its never-ceasing round. 



Like a huge recurring decimal — to which no end is found." 



