292 THE VOYAGE OF THE 'DISCOVERY' [Mar. 



is under sail alone with our small spare rudder. There is 

 nothing for it but to turn homeward, and even as it is 

 we shall have to rely on favouring winds to reach our 

 rendezvous. 



' It is a curious fact that although we have sighted no land 

 we are still on the edge of a continental plateau, and in com- 

 paratively shallow water. This morning we got 250 fathoms, 

 and this afternoon 254 fathoms ; the continental shelf \vould 

 seem to extend as far as the Balleny Islands. This afternoon 

 w^e put over a trawl and got a haul which delighted the heart 

 of our biologist with quite a number of new species.' 



''March 5. — During the night we passed close to the 

 supposed position of Cape Hudson — except for a few bergs, 

 in a perfectly clear sea. We had a full moon which, although 

 usually hidden by clouds, gave a good light by which objects 

 — and certainly land — could have been seen at a great distance. 

 This morning there is not a sign of land, and remarkably few 

 bergs. At 3.30 we got soundings in 245 fathoms, and at eight 

 in 260 fathoms. The continental plateau must be extensive, 

 and Wilkes certainly had the chance of being misled by his 

 soundings. At noon to-day we were in latitude 66.23 S., 

 longitude 154.7 E., and so we have crossed the Antarctic 

 Circle again after an interval of two years and sixty two days. 



' This morning the breeze sprang up from the north-west, 

 and we made sail, standing close-hauled to the N.N.E. 

 Throughout the day the wind has freshened and hauled round 

 to the west, so that we are now standing almost due north. I 

 hoped to sound again to-night, but it is blowing too hard ; I 

 think we are in for a gale.' 



On March 5, 1904, therefore, our exploring work came to 

 an end, and we found ourselves entering once more that 

 storm-swept area of the 'Westerlies ' which separated us from 

 civilisation. The programme with which I had hoped to close 

 the season had been much hampered by our lack of coal, but 

 if we had been unable to carry out our cherished plan of 

 rounding Cape North, we had at least cleared up some 

 geographical misconceptions in a more northerly latitude. 



