Oct. 1 8, 1877] 



NA TURE 



527 



tinguish a huge glacier, hanging on the steep rocW, and 

 bathing its foot in the sea. In order to ascertain the 

 distance from the shore we fired a gun, and the observa- 

 tion of the echo gave the distance a httle less than one 

 nautical mile. 15y-and-by the fog lifted higher, and we 

 could see the two terminating points of the eastern side 

 of the base of the great Beerenberg. In the afternoon we 

 started anew in order to round the island and find shelter 

 on the west side, the wind and sea coming from the 

 north-east. But as soon as we were on a northerly course, 

 abreast of the north point of Jan Mayen, the fog again 

 grew so thick that we could only see a couple of ships' 

 lengths ahead. We steered then first northwards, then | 



westwards, southwards, and south-east, the temperature 

 of the sea surface being taken every quarter-of-an-hour 

 to keep us informed of the proximity of the ice. The 

 surface temperature went down to 2'''3 once, but kept 

 generally at 3°-5, or more. At last when we were 

 approaching the west coast and had commenced sound- 

 ing to find a suitable anchorage, the fog lifted so that we 

 could see the shore and allowed us to choose our berth. 

 At midnight we dropped the anchor in the northernmost 

 of the three large bays of the west side, about half-a-mile 

 from the nearest shore. 



The next day was wonderfully calm, but the fog 

 covered the higher parts of Jan Mayen. We went on 



shore, the sea being so calm that we could step on shore 

 without any inconvenience. The shore consisted of vol- 

 canic sand, quite black, and was, higher up, covered by 

 driftwood thickly strewn on a level surface. To the left 

 was a steep cliff wonderfully rich in colour, the abode of 

 thousands of sea-birds, whose inner slope, consisting of 

 ash and scoria;, showed it to be a part of a former 

 crater. The scientific party spread in different direc- 

 tions and made the best of the time in surveying, col- 

 lecting specimens of plants and rocks, and drawing ; one 

 polar fo.x was killed. The plants found belong to very 

 few species, the vivid green we had seen from the ship 

 being only a cover of moss. The flowers had just come 



out, and all the lower part of the island, up to about 

 2,500 feet, was generally free from snow, the snow lying 

 only in patches in the lower regions where a larger mass 

 was gathered in ravines. The rocks were all volcanic, 

 and the peaks seemed all to be built of loose stones 

 thrown out from craters, while solid lava and tufa were 

 found in the lower parts. In the afternoon I went on 

 shore again, happily, because this was the last time we 

 were able to do so, the sea being on the following 

 days too high, and Jan Mayen does not present any bay 

 giving shelter for a boat. I directed my course north- 

 wards, found a lagoon filled with fresh water, and shut off 

 from the sea by a low wall some 300 feet in breadth. 



