36 CRUISE OF THE NEPTUNE 
steamed across to Cape Kendall, and then followed the west 
coast of Southampton southward. The southwest point of the 
island was passed before midnight. This point lies well to the 
northward of its position on the chart, or in about 63 
N. latitude. 
The low southern shore of Southampton was followed during 
the night, and only a few stringers of ice were met with. At 
four o'clock in the morning the island was lost to sight, and by 
noon we were steaming along the equally low shores of Coats 
island, with the small but prominent Walrus island in sight to 
the northward. Ice to the northward gradually forced the ship 
closer to the shores of Coats, where, after passing a wide 
bay, partly filled with large, low islands, we coasted within two 
miles of a prominent headland about four hundred feet high, 
which forms the northeast cape of Coats, and which was named 
Cape prefontaine in honour of the Honourable the Minister of 
Marine and Fisheries. These highlands appear to traverse the 
island diagonally in a southwest direction, coming out at a 
lower altitude on the south side of the island several miles west 
of Cape Pembroke. This ridge is due to a band of crystalline 
rocks, which rises from beneath the low flat limestones forming 
the remainder of the island. A large whale was seen while 
passing through Fisher strait. 
Beyond Cape prefontaine the ice became more plentiful, 
and many large pans were met with. The ice had the appear- 
ance of being lately broken up, and owing to its smooth unrafted 
condition we judged it came from Fisher strait, rather than 
from Fox channel to the northward. During the night this ice 
forced the ship southward into the channel between Coats and 
Mansfield, so that the western shore of the latter was reached 
some twenty-five miles to the south of its northern end. 
Open leads in the ice were found from three to five miles 
from that island, and no difficulty was experienced in gaining 
