Recent Antarctic Exploration 5 



hands of the public, further discussion of them would be 

 premature. 



Two other expeditions visited the antarctic regions south 

 of South America at or about the same time as that of the 

 " Scotia." One was from Sweden, under the direction of 

 Dr Otto Nordenskjold, and the other from France, under 

 Dr Jean Charcot. Both these expeditions made important 

 additions to our knowledge of the natural history as well as 

 of the physical and meteorological conditions of these regions ; 

 but it is impossible here to do more than mention them. The 

 rest of our article must be devoted to the doings of the 

 " Gauss " and the " Discovery." 



The German expedition was projected as a private venture, 

 but early in 1899 it was taken over by the Government. The 

 ship was built in the naval yard at Kiel, and was named after 

 the great mathematician Gauss. The expedition was under 

 the command of Professor Erich von Drygalski. The 

 "Gauss" left Kiel on Aug. 11, 1901, coaled at St Vincent, 

 and arrived at the Cape on Nov. 23. On Dec. 7 she left the 

 Cape, and> after calling at the Crozet Islands, and spending 

 some time at Kerguelen, she left that island on Jan. 31, 1902. 

 The course was first laid for Heard Island, which lies about 

 250 miles south-east of Kerguelen. The settlement of sealers 

 which was there when the " Challenger " visited the island in 

 1874 had disappeared ; and the sea-elephants which they 

 displaced had reoccupied the beach. 



The first object after leaving Heard Island was to search 

 for Wilkes' Termination Land. In February 1874 the 

 "Challenger" had looked for it without success. It may be 

 of use to quote what is said about it in the report of that 

 expedition (Narrative, i. 405, 407): 



"On the 25th [February], at 3 a.m., the wind having moderated to 

 force 5, and the weather being fairly clear, sail was made towards Ter- 

 mination Land. As the vessel proceeded towards the pack, the berg was 

 passed which had been fouled early on the previous day, the score on its 

 surface made by the jibboom remaining well-defined, notwithstanding the 

 heavy fall of snow.. ..After getting clear of the pack at u a.m., the 

 ship sailed along its edge until noon, being from 10 a.m. until that time 



