Crater in Deception Island. 



SOUTHERN CRUISE. 



Survey of Wollaston's Island. 

 New island called Baily Island. 



The plan of Pendulum Cove by Lieutenant Ken- 

 dall, of the Chanticleer, with which I fni-nished 

 Lieutenant Johnson, was found accurate. On their 

 landing, the bare ground that was seen was a 

 loose black earth. The beds of the ravines and 

 the beaches were of a black and reddish gravel, 

 much resembling pumice-stone in appearance. Pen- 

 guins were seen in countless numbers, or, as he 

 expresses it, " covering some hundreds of acres on 

 the hill-side." It was then the moulting season, 

 and they were seen busily occupied in picking off 

 each other's feathers. It was an amusing sight to 

 see them associated in pairs, thus employed, and 

 the eagerness with which the sailors attacked them 

 with the oars and boat-hooks. They were not 

 inclined to submit quietly to this intrusion, and in 

 some instances readily gave battle. Their manner 

 in doing it was to seize the aggressor with their 

 bill, and beat him with their flippers. Their 

 bearing was quite courageous, and their retreat 

 dignified, as far as their ridiculous waddle would 

 permit. They were showy-looking birds, with 

 yellow topknots, and are known as the aptenodytes 

 chryscome. 



As an accompaniment to these penguins, a small 

 white pigeon (chironis or sheath-bill) was found 

 here, quite tame. These were easily taken in 

 numbers. They are not web- footed, have red legs 

 and bills, with perfectly white though not fine 

 plumage. They seem to live entirely on the dung 

 of the penguin, and their flesh is black, coarse, and 

 unpalatable. Sailing up the bay, they descried a 

 sea-leopard (the phoca leopardina jam), which 

 Lieutenant Johnson succeeded in taking ; but by 

 an unaccountable mistake, the skull, &c. were 

 thrown overboard. Its dimensions were also 

 omitted to be taken. 



Knowing that Captain Foster, in the Chanticleer, 

 had left here a self-registering thermometer in 

 1829, I directed Lieutenant Johnson to look for it, 

 and note its standing. Immediately on securing 

 the tender he proceeded to search for it, but not- 

 withstanding the particular directions, he did not 

 find it. Since my return home, I have received a 

 letter from William H. Smiley, master of a sealing 

 vessel that touched there in February, 1842, stating 

 that he had found the thermometer, and carefully 

 noted its minimum temperatui'e, which was 5 

 below zero. 



Lieutenant Johnson, in company with Assistant- 

 Surgeon Whittle, visited an old crater, at the head 

 of the bay, where a gentle ascent of about four 

 hundred feet brought them to the edge of an 

 abrupt bank, some twenty feet high, surrounding 

 the crater on the bay side. The crater was about 

 fifteen hundred feet in diameter, from east to west, 

 bounded on the west or further side by lofty hills, 

 with many ravines, which had apparently been 

 much washed by heavy rains. This led to the 

 belief that the water found within the crater would 

 be fresh, but its taste, and the incrustation of salt 

 found on its borders, showed that it was not so. 

 Near the east end of the crater, the water boils in 

 many places, sometimes bubbling out of the side 

 of a bank, at others near the water's edge, with a 

 hissing noise. The surface water was found to be 

 on a level with the waters of the bay, and to be 

 milk-warm. A few inches below, it was perceptibly 

 colder. No thermometric observations were ob- 



tained. The ground near the Boiling Springs was 

 quite hot. In the vicinity were lying quantities of 

 cellular and scoriaceous lava. The only sign of 

 vegetation was a lichen, growing in small tufts, 

 around the mouth of several small craters, of three 

 or four feet in diameter. From these a heated 

 vapour is constantly issuing, accompanied by much 

 noise. Before they returned to the tender, they 

 were overtaken by a violent snow-storm from the 

 north-east, and with difficulty reached the cove 

 without the boat, having been compelled to leave 

 it at the opposite side of the bay, for the force of 

 the wind was such as to render all their efforts to 

 pull against it useless. This weather continued 

 with much snow for three days, when it ceased 

 snowing, but still blew heavy. It was the inten- 

 tion of Lieutenant Johnson to carry over the yawl, 

 for the purpose of sounding in the crater, to ascer- 

 tain its depth, and get its temperature, which it is 

 to be regretted was not done. On the 17th of 

 March they sailed from Deception Island, having 

 left a bottle enclosing reports, tied to a flag-staff. 

 This was afterwards found by Captain Smiley, who 

 mentions in his letter to me, that in February, 

 1842, the whole south side of Deception Island 

 appeared as if on fire. He counted thirteen vol- 

 canoes in action. He is of opinion that the island 

 is undergoing many changes. He likewise reports 

 that Palmer's Land consists of a number of islands, 

 between which he has entered, and that the pas- 

 sages are deep, narrow, and dangerous. 



The Sea-Gull, after a stormy passage, reached 

 Orange Harbour on the 22nd, with all hands much 

 exhausted. She was despatched by Lieutenant 

 Craven the next day, as before stated, in search of 

 the launch, (which had been absent eleven days,) 

 on the route she had been ordered to pursue. 



In passing over from Hermit Island to that of 

 Evout's, during a brisk gale and heavy sea, the 

 launch, in towing, filled, broke adrift, and was 

 lost. The men had all been previously ordered 

 out of her, and most of the articles removed. The 

 Sea-Gull again reached Orange Harbour on the 

 5th. 



On her arrival, finding the launch had not com- 

 pleted the duties pointed out, I again despatched 

 the Sea-Gull tender to finish them, particularly to 

 examine and survey a harbour on the east side of 

 Wollaston's Island. She accordingly sailed the 

 next day, and succeeded in performing the re- 

 quired duty, having surveyed a very safe and con- 

 venient harbour on the east side, and ascertained 

 that the so-called Wollaston Island formed two 

 islands. Leaving to the easternmost the name of 

 Wollaston, I have given to the western the name 

 of Baily, after Francis Baily, Esq., the well-known 

 vice-president of the Royal Society, as a small 

 memento of the obligation the expedition and 

 myself are under to him, for the great interest he 

 took in the equipments, and the kindness shown 

 me while in London when procuring the instru- 

 ments. The harbour that lies between these two 

 islands was named after the Sea-Gull. A chart of 

 it will be found in the Hydrographical Atlas. 

 Lieutenant Johnson was again transferred to the 

 Vincennes. On the 12th, the Flying-Fish arrived, 

 bringing news of the Peacock and their operations, 

 which will be detailed in the following chapter. 



