178 DISCOVERY REPORTS 



while Grindle is formed of the superposed tuffs which are characteristic of all the 

 islands of the group. 



On the main island penguins were seen at one point only — a small rocky headland on 

 the south-western side. They have, however, established themselves in numbers on 

 Freezeland, where the slopes of talus from the higher rocks appear to afford an at- 

 tractive site. No penguins were to be found on Wilson Rock, but they occur on Grindle, 

 where also there are some small but conspicuous patches of bright green vegetation. 

 On all three islets great numbers of Silver-grey petrels were seen. Leopard seal were 

 noticed in the water off the penguin rookeries on Freezeland. 



Larsen reports that he landed some men on Bristol to look for Fur seal, but found 

 none. He does not state where the landing was made. It might be possible to land on 

 Freezeland in exceptionally good weather, but it would be difficult, as the shore is 

 fringed with boulders among which a heavy surf breaks. 



Southern Thule Group 



Cook gave to this group of islands the name of Southern Thule ; he saw the land only 

 from a distance and thought it might be a projecting headland of an Antarctic continent. 

 Bellingshausen, forty-five years later, sailed round the group, and describes it in the 

 following manner: "Thule consists of one high rock and three small islands, of which 

 one is notably smaller than the others. These islands are high and unapproachable, and 

 lie in Lat. 59'^ 26' S, Long. 27° 13' 30" W. The middle one, the largest, is about six 

 miles long; I called it Cook Island, in honour of the great explorer. ... The most 

 westerly island is three miles long and the smallest is two-thirds of a mile in length. 

 Between the two largest islands we found a rock ; all three were covered with snow and 

 ice." On his chart, however, Bellingshausen shows only two islands: the western is 

 named Thule Island and the eastern " Kun Island ", and the rock lies off the south-east 

 corner of the former. 



Since then, for more than a century, practically no additions to our knowledge of the 

 group have been made, though interest was aroused by Morrell's statement in 1832 that 

 there is a good harbour on the north-east side of the westernmost island. In 1928, how- 

 ever, Mr J. E. Hamilton in a catcher belonging to the whaling factory 'Anglo-Norse' 

 reported that he had seen the third island described by Bellingshausen and had steamed 

 through the strait lying between it and the island adjacent to it. In The Antarctic Pilot 

 (1930) Bellingshausen's name has been appropriately used for this third island, and 

 two sketches of it by Mr Hamilton are reproduced. 



Our chart of the other two islands differs considerably from that shown in Bellings- 

 hausen's atlas ; there is, however, a similarity in general outline, and the rock is approxi- 

 mately in the position in which he placed it. Contrary to Morrell's statement there is no 

 harbour in the islands, but a good anchorage exists at the south-east corner of Thule 

 Island. 



Bellingshausen Island is a volcano which still shows signs of activity. Thule and Cook 



