76 PERON'S RETURN TO FRANCE. 



nothing of it for fifteen days. Peron did not for an 

 instant lose his self-possession, but patiently prose- 

 cuted his researches, and, during his stay on this 

 island, he, without shelter, and in despite of the 

 violence of the tempests, collected more than 180 

 species of mollusca and zoophytes, and studied, 

 besides, the history of those gigantic seals the 

 Proboscidse, which assemble in thousands upon 

 these coasts. 



At length, after an absence of three years and 

 a half, he returned to France in April 1804, and im- 

 mediately proceeded to Paris. He was there engaged 

 for several months in arranging his specimens and 

 preparing the catalogue, after which they were all 

 deposited in the Museum. The whole collection 

 was found on examination to contain more than 

 100,000 different animals, among which were many 

 new genera ; and the Commission reported that the 

 number of new species was more than 2500, and 

 that Peron and Lesueur alone had made us ac- 

 quainted with more animals than the whole of the 

 travelling naturalists of modern times. In due 

 time the first volume of his " Voyage aux Aus- 

 trales" appeared, and an opportunity was then 

 afforded of judging of his merits. 



Peron did not live to complete the second 

 volume. His health was broken by prolonged 

 suffering and privation, and he sank speedily under 



