326 Voyage of Capt. Sir James C. Ross to the Antarctic. 



The commanders of the ships with some of their officers, 

 coasted along the shores defended by projecting ice, on which a 

 heavy surf was breaking. With no small peril they landed on 

 an island, to which they gave the name of Possession Island, and 

 found themselves on a beach of large loose stones and stranded 

 ice. In the name of their sovereign they took possession of the 

 country with the usual ceremonies, and no one will ever dispute 

 the right to this region of eternal winter ; honor alone is concern- 

 ed. Possession Island is in 71° 76' S., long. 171° 7' E. It is 

 composed entirely of igneous rocks, and is accessible only on 

 its western side. There was no vegetation, but innumerable 



penguins completely and densely covered the en- 



tire surface of the island. With their beaks they vigorously at- 

 tacked the intruders as they waded through their ranks. An 

 insupportable stench arose from the deep bed of guano which had 

 been forming for ages, and which, could it be safely approached, 

 may hereafter be valuable to Australian agriculture. With dif- 

 ficulty they regained their ships ; a dense fog, in a few min- 

 utes, cut off their view and a gale supervened which obliged the 

 ships to stand off to the open sea. Several days of heavy winds 

 followed, and great numbers of whales weie sporting about un- 

 molested, and devouring the molluscous and other marine animals 

 which abound in these seas. In these regions the whales dive 

 under the ice and then come up in the openings to blow. 



January 15. — Magnificent views of the mountains were enjoy- 

 e& with great enthusiasm ; the weather was fine and the sharply 

 pointed snow- 

 certained to be twelve to fourteen thousand feet high. A heavy 



, as- 



swell tumbled in upon this ice bound coast, the ship sometimes 

 pitching her bowsprit under water. Whales and penguins still at- 

 tended them in great numbers. 



One of the icebergs turned completely over and brought up a 



pects * 



so resembled an island, that only landing upon it could convince 



one to the contrary. No harbor could be found for making mag- 



bbservations. 



unitary 16.— They were in lat. 72° 12' S., and as they pro- 

 ceeded southward, new portions of land came into view ; the 

 mountains, seen at a distance of ninety miles, reflected from their 

 icy mirrors, every tone and modification of light. 



January 18 —They were in lat. 72° 57' S., long. 176° 6' E., 

 and obtained soundings in 230 fathoms ; in their nearer approach 

 to the shore they had been found in from sixty to ninety fath- 

 oms; as they proceeded, they became 184, 191 and 180 fathoms. 



January 19. — In a calm of two hours they dredged at the 

 depth of 270 fathoms and brought up a block of grey granite, of 

 which the usual constituents, quartz, feldspar and mica were 







