37' 



NA TURE 



[August 15, 189 = 



through the outer edge of the ice-pack, which consisted of large 

 and heav)- hummocky ice. I saw multitudes of tlie Argoimiila 

 .-tiitiirctica everywhere in the jxick, usually swimming in cavities 

 in the ice-floes to escape their enemies the whales. The large- 

 finned whale {Physa/iis .4ustralis) was spouting about in all 

 directions. The white petrels were numerous here, and I 

 secured more of them. The white-ljellied petrel departed at the 

 edge of the jack, leaving the icy regions to its darker, hardier 

 brethren ( Thalassidroma Wihoni'i). We shot several seals, but 

 they were scattered about sparsely, most having scars and 

 scratches in the skin. Sir James Ross noticed similar wounds 

 on the seals, and it has been supposed that they are inflicted by 

 the large tusks in liattle between themselves. My opinion, 

 however, Ls that these scars must be ascribed to the action of a 

 different species. The wounds are not like those inflicted by a 

 tusk, being from two to twenty inches in length, and straight and 

 narrow in shape, and where several are met with on the same 

 animal, they are too far apart to have been produced by the 

 numerous sharp teeth of the seal. Nor do I consider that they 

 are due to the sword-fish, though that is doubtless doing mis- 

 chief there. If my opinion, that these wounds are inflicted by 

 an at present unknown enemy of the seal, proves correct, it may 

 serve to explain the strange scarcity of these animals in regions ' 

 where one would expect to find them almost everj'where. | 



When we entered the ice-pack the temperature of the air was 

 25' K., that of the water 28 F., which latter temperature was 

 maintained all through the jxick. Penguins were aljout in great [ 

 numbers. 



On the 14th we sighted Balleny Island, finding it in 

 lat. 66° 44', long. 164" ; this agreeing with Ross. The ice- 

 floes became gradually larger as we approached land, and it was 

 evident that the ice-pack then around us was in great part dis- 

 charged from the glaciers of Balleny, some of it carrying stone 

 and earth. Although the higher part of the island was lost in 

 mist, we got a good view of its lofty peak, which rises to a 

 height of 12,000 feel at)ove the sea level. The size and shape 

 of the ice alxiut Balleny was a source of considerable danger 

 to our vessel, covered as it is with snow to a depth of several 

 yards, and running out under water in long sharp points. It is 

 not likely that a vessel dcj^nding entirely on sails would long 

 .survive in such ice. The air temperature at Balleny was 

 found to be 34° K., that of the w.-itcr 28° F. 



Finding the pack so impenetrable in this Kx;ality we resolved 

 to work eastwards, in the track which the Erchus and Terror 

 had followed. On Decemlier 22, in lat. 66° 3', long. 167° 37' K., 

 I shot a seal of ordinary size and colour, but with a very thick 

 neck, and no sign of scars, a kind which none of our old sealers 

 on board had ever seen before. 



On Wcdnesilay, the 26th, we crossed the .\nlarctic circle, and 

 on New Year's Kvc were in lat. 66' 47', long. 174 8' F. at twelve 

 o'clock. In lat. 67' 5', long. 175° 45' E., I secured a specimen 

 of ApfiiioHyles Forstcrii — a large penguin. I only secured 

 four of these birds altogether, and never saw it in company with 

 others of its kind. On the 14th, in lat. 69° 55' and 157° 30' IC, 

 we came again into open water, having spent 38 days in work- 

 ing our passage through the ice-pack. A clear open space of 

 water «as now liefore us. We steered straight for Cape .Vdare 

 on Victoria I^nd, and sighted it on the l6th of Januar)'. On 

 the l8th, in lat. 71' 45', long. 1 76° 3' F., the tem])erature of the 

 air was 32'. and of the water 30°. The cape, which is in 

 71* 23' and 169' 56' E., rises to a height of 3779 feet, .and con- 

 .si.sts of a large sijuare l>asaltic rock with perpendicular sides. 

 From there we saw the coast of \ictoria I^nd to the west and 

 south as far a.s the eye could reach, rising from dark bare rocks 

 into peaks of perpetual ice and snow 12,000 feet al)ove the sea 

 level, with Mount Sabine standing out above the rest. I 

 counted a.s many as twenty glaciers in the imme<Iiate vicinity of 

 the boy, one of which seemed covered with lava, while below a 

 layer of snow apiK-ated another layer of lava, resting on the 

 .surface of ihe glacier. A volcanic |wak about 8000 feet in 

 height had undoubtedly Ixren in activity a short time before. 

 On the l8lh we sighlc<l Possession Island, and effected a suc- 

 cessful landing (tn the North Island, itcing Ihe seconfi to set' 

 foot on this island, Sir James Ross having preceded us fifty-four 

 years before. The island consists of vesicular lava, rising m the 

 Houlh w-T into iwr) ixjinted peaks 300 feet high. I scaled the 

 high • , and called it Peak -Vrcher, after A. Archer, 



of I in, ',)uecnsland. To the west the island 



rises gcnny upward, forming a Ixdd and conspicuous cape, 

 to which, not having Ixren christened by Ross, I gave the 

 name of Sir Ferdinand von Mueller, I quite unexpectedly 



NO. 1346, VOL. 52] 



found vegetation on the rocks about 30 feet above the sea level, 

 vegetation having never been discovered in so southerly a lati- 

 tude before. We gave to this island, w hich I judged to be alxtui 

 300 to 350 acres in extent, the name of Sir James Ross Island. 

 Possession Island is situateti in lat. 71' 56', long. 171° 10' F. 



On January 20 we steamed southwards, and on the 21 si 

 sighted Colman Island at midnight. Finding the eastern cape of 

 this island unnamed, we called it Cape Oscar, in honour of his 

 Majesty our King. I noticed great irregidarities in our comjiass 

 at Colman Island, and undoubtedly it contains secrets of scientific 

 value. On tlie 22n(l, being in lat. 74° S., and no whales ap- 

 pearing, it W.-IS decided to head northwards again, although all 

 regretleil that circumstances did not permit of our procee<ling 

 further south. 



On the 23rd we were again at Ca])e -Vdare. Icebergs of large 

 size were every^vhere to be seen, and showed distinctly whether 

 they were broken from tlie big barrier or discharged from the 

 glaciers on \ietoria I-and. W'e landed at Cape .\dare that night, 

 being the first human beings to put foot on the mainland. Our 

 landing-pl.ice was a kind of peninsula or landslip, gently slop- 

 ing down from the stee)) rocks of Cape Adare until it ran into 

 the bay as a long flat ]x;bbly beach. The jieninsula formed a 

 complete breakwater for the inner bay. The penguins were, il 

 possiljle, even more numerous here than on Possession Island, 

 and were found in the cape as far up as 1000 feet. Having col- 

 lected siiecimens of the rocks, and found ihe same cryptoganiic 

 vegetation as on Possession Island, we again pulled on board. 

 We now stood northward, and in lat. 69° 52', long. 169° 6' F. , 

 again ran into the ice-pack. On February I, in lat. 66', 

 long. 179° 31' E., we reached open water, having this time 

 spent only six days in the icepack. On the 17th the Aurora 

 appeared stronger than lever saw the Aurora Horcalis. Il rose 

 from south-west in a bro.ad stream towards the zenith, and down 

 again towards the eastern horizon, being quite difl'erent in ap- 

 pearance from when we last saw it on ( Ictober 20. It iiresented 

 long shining curtains rising and falling in wonderful shapes and 

 shades, sometimes seemingly quite close to our m.isthe.ads, and 

 it evidently exerted considerable influence upon our compass- 

 needle. In lat. 44° 35' and long. 147° 34' we met with a 

 great number of sjierm whales, .\fter struggling for several 

 days with a furious .storm of distinctly cyclonic character, we 

 \ sighted the co,xst of Tasmania on March 4, and entered I'ort 

 Philip on the 12th, five months and a half after our dejiarture 

 from .Melbourne. 

 ^ .\s my reix)rt shows, we had conqxiralively high temperatures 

 during our voyage, higher than .Sir James Ross experienced, and 

 higher than those ob.served last year by the whaling licet south 

 of Cape Horn. The minimum lemper.ature we experienced 

 within the .\ntarclic circle w;\s 25° 1'., the maximum 46 . The 

 average temperature from 200 readings each numth was 3- '5 

 for January, 30' for l-ebroary. The lemiJeralure of the water 

 remained at 28° F. all through the ice-pack, rising i wherever 

 j a larger sheet of water broke the ice-fields. In the large bay in 

 ■South Victoria Land the temperature remained nearly constantly 

 about freezing-point. The question naturally ari.ses- lias ihe 

 average temperature at the shore of Victoria I-ind risen iluring 

 I the Last fifiyfour years, and has vegetation for Ihe first lime 

 developed in those southern latitudes since Ross was there? It 

 does not seem probable that Ihe ajipcarance of vegetation on 

 Possession Island would have escaped Ihe observalion of the 

 naturalists who accompanied that expedition. It is evident that 

 a warm current with a constant direction northwards breaks the 

 ice-fiehls at the very place where .Sir James Ross and we pene- 

 trated to the open Kay of Victoria l,and. Wilhin the .\nlarclic 

 circle the barometer at 29 inches always indicated calm, clear 

 weather, and even at 28 inches il remained fine. This low 

 Ijarometric reading is remarkable considering the dj^yness of the 

 air. The |)rcvailing wind in the bay seemed to be from ihc 

 east, but at Cape .\dare a change a|)|K'ared to take place, ami 

 westerly win<ls are there, to all appearance, predominanl. The 

 direction of the movement of Ihe ice is distinclly norlh-Laslerly, 

 and Ihe scarcity of ice in the bayof Victoria Land is undnuliletlly 

 not alone due to warm currents, but also to llie protection from 

 drift ice aft'orded by the shore from Oipe .\dare down to the 

 volcanoes ICrebusand Terror. 



The rocks on Possession Island seem all lo be of volcanic 

 origin, an<l represent basaltic lava flows which have taken place 

 during late geological epochs. The specimens 1 liroughl from 

 South \icloria Cimlinent <liffer but lillle from those I found on 

 I'ossession Island. One pecidiar rock 1 cnllecled has an indis- 

 tinct granular .structure, and nscinblis uuich the garnet sand- 



