318 CAPTAIN CAETWRIGHT'S 



high water, where they are left by the tide, espe- 

 cially if a fire be made on the beach. They are 

 used in Newfoundland for baits to catch codfish, 

 and are excellent for that purpose. I have eaten 

 them, but the taste is not pleasant, being very 

 sweet; perhaps plenty of pepper and salt might 

 make them better, but I had none at the time. 



[On Tuesday, June 14, Cartwright sailed in the 

 shallop Fox for Isthmus Bay, Labrador.] 



Tuesday, July 5, 1785. This morning I had 

 my boat moved nearer to the Lyon, [a British 

 armed brig commanded by Lieutenant Michael 

 Lane, who was employed to survey Newfound- 

 land and the points adjacent] and we spent the 

 day on board that vessel. A boat came in from 

 Funk Island laden with birds, chiefly penguins. 



Funk Island is a small flat island-rock, about 

 twenty leagues east of the island of Fogo, in the 

 latitude of 50° north. Innumerable flocks of sea- 

 fowl breed upon it every summer, which are of 

 great service to the poor inhabitants of Fogo; 

 who make voyages there to load with birds and 

 eggs. When the water is smooth, they make their 

 shallops fast to the shore, lay their gang-boards 

 from the gunwale of the boat to the rocks, and 

 then drive as many penguins on board, as she will 

 hold; for the wings of those birds being remark- 

 ably short, they cannot fly. But it has been cus- 

 tomary of late years, for several crews of men to 

 live all the summer on that island, for the sole 

 purpose of killing birds for the sake of their 

 feathers, the destruction which they have made is 



 



