36 CKUISE 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 throiigh 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 unraf ted 

 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 gaming 



