226 DISCOVERY REPORTS 



is very liable to become blocked with ice. The only remedy for this is to expose the 

 pipe and melt out the obstruction, and since no tool except a pickaxe will make any 

 impression on the frozen ground, the task may present considerable difficulties. 



Drainage is effected by a 5 in. pipe running down to the beach. 



In addition to the main building of the Biological Station an outside store shed 

 measuring 32 ft. by 13 ft. was erected, the walls being mainly of brick. This is divided 

 into three compartments and was planned principally for the storage of fuel. More 

 recently a larger store shed has been built close to the jetty. 



Owing to the heavy winter snowfall in South Georgia buildings cannot conveniently 

 be constructed except during the summer months. To avoid delay in erection the frame- 

 work of the buildings was cut to measure in England, so that the separate pieces had 

 only to be fitted together in South Georgia. 



The Marine Biological Station possesses two boats, a 30 ft. motor launch and an 

 18 ft. dinghy. The care of boats at South Georgia presents certain points of difficulty 

 owing to the exceptional climatic conditions. Sudden storms with violent gusts com- 

 monly take place and necessitate strong and reliable moorings. The launch was usually 

 moored to a buoy about 30 yards from the jetty. It was found that the only reliable 

 method of attachment was by a length of strong flexible wire rope. Ordinary rope is 

 quickly chafed through by the plunging of the boat in bad weather. The launch was 

 also moored from time to time behind the projecting arm of the jetty. This had the 

 advantage of accessibility, but a tendency for the bottom to silt up at this point resulted 

 in a risk of the keel or stern frame being damaged. The dinghy was usually moored by 

 a stout painter to the end of the arm of the jetty. In winter the boats must be taken 

 out of the water, owing to the ice which is liable to accumulate in the harbour and to 

 the heavy falls of snow. During the first winter the boats were housed at the whaling 

 station, but accommodation for the motor boat is now available in the newly con- 

 structed shed. 



The launch was originally intended as part of the equipment of the ' Discovery '. She 

 is carvel built of teak, with copper fastenings, and has a 28 h.p. Parsons internal com- 

 bustion engine giving a maximum speed of 10^ knots. The engine runs on paraffin, 

 but is started up with petrol. The launch is an open one, decked only at the bow, 

 with a folding hood to shelter the engine and seating space. She has been used 

 partly for scientific work in East Cumberland Bay (for plankton and hydrological in- 

 vestigations and for trawling and dredging), and partly for transport of personnel and 

 stores between the Biological Station, the ships and the whaling station. In this work 

 the launch has given constant and most valuable service, though she is not altogether 

 suited to conditions at South Georgia. A boat with greater beam, to ensure steadiness 

 in choppy water, and fully decked except for a small cockpit, would be more con- 

 venient. 



The dinghy is built of teak and is equipped with a dipping lug sail. The design of 

 the boat was entirely satisfactory, but the sail was not used much as there is rarely a 

 steady moderate wind at South Georgia, 



