Sea elephants taken. 



Land seen from all the vessels. 



ANTARCTIC CRUISE. 



Field-ice. 



133 



On the 14th, two sea-elephants were seen lying 

 motionless on the ice. On being shot at, the ani- 

 mal would raise its head and look around for an 

 instant, and then resume its former posture. Boats 

 were lowered, when they were captured and brought 

 on board: they proved to be the phoca proboscidse. 

 Dr. Holmes examined their stomachs, and found 

 nothing but well-digested food. Their dimensions 

 were as follows : 



Total length . . . . . . 10 ft. 9 in. 



Length of posterior flipper . . . . 1 " 9 " 



Breadth 2 " 4 " 



Circumference of largest part of body . 6 " 3 " 



This was a young female. The other was taken 

 afterwards ; he measured 



In length 8 ft. 6 in. 



Greatest circumference behind anterior flipper 5 " " 



Length of flippers 1 " 5 " 



Breadth 1 " 5 " 



On the 15th the Peacock and Porpoise were in 

 company : the specimens of sea-elephants were put 

 on board the Peacock; and, after having had com- 

 munication with each other, the vessels again sepa- 

 rated, standing on opposite tacks. 



On the 16th the three vessels were in longitude 

 157 40' E., and all within a short distance of each 

 another. The water was much discoloured, and 

 many albatrosses, Cape pigeons, and petrels were 

 seen about the ships. On board the Vincennes, we 

 sounded with two hundred and thirty fathoms, and 

 found no bottom ; the water had the appearance of 

 an olive-green coloui', as if but forty and fifty 

 fathoms deep. At the surface, its temperature was 

 32, at the depth sounded, 31. I should have 

 tried for a deeper cast, but the line was seen to be 

 stranded, when we were obliged to stop ; we fortu- 

 nately saved our apparatus, with Six's thermo- 

 meters. 



On this day (18th January) appearances believed 

 at the time to be land were visible from all the 

 three vessels, and the comparison of the three 

 observations, when taken in connexion with the 

 more positive proofs of its existence afterwards 

 obtained, has left no doubt that the appearance 

 was not deceptive. From this day, therefore, 

 we date the discovery which is claimed for the 

 squadron. 



On board the Peacock, it appears that Passed 

 Midshipmen Eld and Reynolds both saw the land 

 from the masthead, and reported it to Captain 

 Hudson: he was well satisfied on examination that 

 the appearance was totally distinct from that of 

 ice-islands, and a majority of the officers and men 

 were also satisfied that if land could exist, that 

 was it. 



I mention particularly the names of those two 

 gentlemen, because they have stated the same fact 

 under oath, before the court- martial, after our 

 return. 



On board the Porpoise, Lieutenant-Commandant 

 Ringgold states, that " he went aloft in the after- 

 noon, the weather being clear and fine, the horizon 

 good, and clouds lofty; that he saw over the field- 

 ice an object, large, dark, and rounding, resembling 

 a mountain in the distance ; the icebergs were all 

 light and brilliant, and in great contrast." He 

 goes on to say, in his report, " I watched for an 

 hour to see if the sun in his decline would change 

 the colour of the object : it remained the same, 



with a white cloud above, similar to that hovering 

 over high land. At sunset the appearance re- 

 mained the same. I took the bearings accurately, 

 intending to examine it closely as soon as we got a 

 breeze. I am thoroughly of opinion it is an island 

 surrounded by immense fields of ice The Peacock 

 in sight to the southward and eastward over the 

 ice ; the sun set at a few minutes before ten ; soon 

 after, a light air from the southward, with a fog- 

 bank arising, which quickly shut out the field-ice." j 



In Passed Midshipman Eld's journal, lie asserts 

 that he had been several times to the masthead 

 during the day, to view the barrier; that it was 

 not only a barrier of ice, but one of terra firma. 

 Passed Midshipman Reynolds and himself ex- 

 claimed, with one accord, that it was land. Not 

 trusting to the naked eye, they descended for spy- 

 glasses, which confirmed, beyond a doubt, their 

 first impressions. The mountains could be dis- 

 tinctly seen, over the field-ice and bergs, stretching 

 to the south-west as far as any thing could be dis- 

 cerned. Two peaks, in particular, were very dis- 

 tinct (which I have named after those two officers), 

 rising in a conical form ; and others, the lower 

 parts of which were quite as distinct, but whose 

 summits were lost in light fleecy clouds. Few 

 clouds were to be seen in any other direction, for 

 the weather was remarkably clear. The sun shone 

 brightly on ridge after ridge, whose sides were 

 partially bare ; these connected the eminences I 

 have just spoken of, which must be from one to 

 two thousand feet high. Mr. Eld further states, 

 that on reporting the discovery to Captain Hudson, 

 the latter replied that there was no doubt of it, 

 and that he believed that most of the icebergs then 

 in sight were aground. At this time they were 

 close in with the barrier, and could approach no 

 nearer. On this day, the Peacock got a cast of the 

 deep-sea lead, with Six's thermometer attached, to 

 the depth of eight hundred and fifty fathoms, only 

 a short distance from the barrier: the temperature 

 of the surface was 31, and at the depth sounded, 

 31 ; current one-fourth of a mile, north-by-east. 



The log-book of the Porpoise has also this notice 

 in it : " From six to eight, calm and pleasant, 

 took in studding-sails; at seven set main -topgallant- 

 studding-sail ; discovered what we took to be an 

 island, bearing south -by-east, a great deal of field- 

 ice in sight ; noticed penguins around the brig. 

 (Signed) J. H. North." Dr. Holmes, on the same 

 evening, noted in his journal, a marked appearance 

 of land. 



On board the Vincennes there was on the same 

 day much excitement among the crew. All eagerly 

 ivatched the flight of birds, together with the whales 

 and penguins, and spoke of the proximity of land, 

 which, from the appearance of never-failing signs, 

 could scarcely be doubted. 



The field-ice is composed of a vast number of 

 pieces, varying in size, and separated from one 

 another, the long swell keeping the outer ones 

 always in motion. The smallest pieces are about 

 six feet in diame.ter, while the largest sometimes ex- 

 ceeded five'or'six hundred feet. Their depth below 

 the surface varies still more, and some appear to 

 be soft, whilst others were hard and compact. The 

 depth of these does not probably in any case exceed 

 twenty feet. Most of them, and particularly the 

 larger ones, had a covering of about eighteen inches 

 of snow. The whole at a distance appeared like a I 



