98 



Soiif/icni Cross. 



wan not imprit\»'«l liy the tli'ifs, wlio twici' jumped out of the l)()at, .s(» tli;it 

 \vf hail t<. witfh them again. I got some relief to my anger by thrashing 

 them souihIIv. I saw a numhvvoi Pw/odroma -axuX i-,omc Metjulestris. This 

 rtfterncHin Fougner and I went out on the ice to tish, with " pilk," and 

 I had the pleasure of catching the tirst six fishes taken here by our 

 Norwegian method. The largest were from six to eight inches long. 

 There were two diftei"ent .species, one grey and one brown, both bottom 

 sjM'cies. very nmch like the Wolf-ti.sh {Anarricliax), but with large scales 

 and not such strong teeth. 



April 1 (■)///. -These last days the weatlier has been beautiful and 

 invigorating. Wind calm, with the temperature down to 0^ Fahr. ; but 

 we do not feel the, cold when there is no wind. Every day I have been 

 on the ice, lisliing. 1 am generally accom})anied by Fougner and the two 

 Finns when T indulge in this sport. All in all, we have caught fifty fish 

 <»f the same s])ecies as before. To-day Fougner caught fourteen, of which 

 one was a foot long. While we were on the ice to-clay, the dogs found a 

 Seal which they had nearly half eaten before Ole killed it. It was a 

 female without an eml)ryo. The Finns killed to-day a large Seal 

 (L>'j>ti>iiii('holcn). No birds seen to-day. Yesterday I saw some 3Je_7rtZes/r/«. 



April iXfh. — The zoological results of this trip were two fishes and an 

 embryo, 18 inches lojig, which they took out of an old LeptonijcJiotes, 

 which they killed for food for their dogs. They brought also the head 

 of the Seal with them. On examination I found the teeth entirely worn 

 out, .so it must have been an uncommonly old animal. Yesterday and 

 to-day I have been very busy preparing the fishes we have caught till 

 now and photoi^raphing some of them. This forenoon Fougner was out 

 fishing and brought back to me four small white fishes. Is this perhaps 

 a new species? 



April 20/h. — It has been rather cold to-day. The temperature was 

 this forenoon down to —10" Fahr., but to-night it has risen to —2^. 

 To-day I took observations of the dei>th of the sea and the temperature 

 and currents round the point. I was assisted by Fougner and Ole, and 

 worked for .some time on the north side of the Cape out towards the 

 lH)int, but the swerving of the ice tlrove us soon on shore again. It was 

 only small floes of ice we had to walk on, and for the most part they 

 were so small that they could barely carry us. It is not over pleasant to 

 l^> rlabbling in the water in a temperature such as we had to-day, and 

 we were not stiri-y to be driven on shore. Saw some Payodrovui while 

 Wf were out. No Metjalestris and no Seals have been seen these last 

 • lays Kvidently the Seals do not like the motion there has been 

 in the ice. 



April 21«/. — Evans, Ole and I were out taking observations of the 

 temperature of the sea t(»-day ; at 300 and 400 yards from the land we 

 found the highest temperature + 28-S'" Fahr., lowest 4- 27-5^" Fahr. On 

 til.- south side all our observations were below + 28' Fahr. 



.{jiri/ 24//j.~ A gale is blowing. Of zoological interest I can note 

 tli.u I sjiw a great nund)er of the Brown-backed Petrel {Tliahissoeca 

 nntarrtica), and the Ice Petrel {Paijidroma nivca), which fished in the 

 ma.shed up ice. We saw .some Seals in the ice, white and grey, and on 

 the beach I found washed up a brown thing, veiy nuuh like a Hag 

 {^Mijxine), about a f.Hit long, without fius. 



