196 WHALING AND FISHING. 



assume, he answered, no ; that there was not 

 enough oil to be gotten out of a rat to make sacft 

 a business pay. 



Desolation, or Kerguelen's Land, by which last 

 name it is most generally known, is an island in 

 the Indian ocean, in about latitude 49 30' south, 

 and longitude 70 10 X east. It is a sterile, dreary 

 spot, uninhabited, save by seals, sea-lions, and 

 penguins. It lies entirely out of the track of 

 merchant vessels, and is little visited even by 

 whaleships, the ship in which Teddy had made a 

 voyage thither being one of but two or three that 

 had at that time made it their exclusive headquar- 

 ters for a year or two at a time. 



From Teddy's yarns, I gathered that all the 

 various species of seals abound there at certain 

 seasons of the year, and that right whales had 

 found here likewise a retreat in which they were 

 comparatively little disturbed. 



It appears that on her arrival at the island, the 

 vessel was securely anchored in a snug harbor on its 

 leeward side. All the empty casks, and a great 

 proportion of the stores, were now landed, and 

 placed in huts constructed for the purpose. Try 

 works were also set up 011 shore, and all the ope- 

 rations of killing, skinning and trying-out were 

 rendered thus as little laborious as possible. The 

 sea -lions at regular intervals during the day 

 ascended the crags and steeps with which the 

 bore was lined for miles around, and were on 



