276 



THE AUSTRALIAN MUSEUM MAGAZINE. 



The Sulphur Island, 



By L. H. Morrisby. 



DISTANT about 200 miles due 

 east from the southern end of 

 New Caledonia, and not far off 

 the passenger route from Sydney to 

 Suva lies Hunter Island. Although it 

 is marked on the map accompanying 

 the latest hand-book of the Pacific 

 Islands, that Avork contains no des- 

 cription of the island. There seems no 

 doubt that the island has never been 

 visited by scientists, since no infor- 

 mation is available, at all events in 

 Sydney, as to its formation, fauna, or 

 flora. And, indeed, it is most ]>robable 

 that no white man had ever landed there 

 before November of last year, when 

 my brother and I made it our business 

 to land, while on our way from Norfolk 

 Island to Fiji in the ketch " Tasman." 

 But as to the certainty of that, I am 

 open to correction. 



It was at night when the " Tasman " 

 reached Hunter Island, but, as we were 

 unable to anchor, Ave hoA^e to till the 

 folloAving morning, and then ratched 

 up under ])OAver to a poor shelter mider 

 its lee, Avhere Ave anchored in t\Aenty 

 fathoms. Taking Avith us in the dinghy 

 our camera, tools, and specimen bag, 

 we tried to land in a small bay on the 

 N. by E. end, in which there is a large 

 rock Avith a passage betAveen it and the 

 island, forming a bay, Avith a foreshore 

 of boulders. The sea here has a trick 

 of breaking suddenly and treacherously, 

 and a huge breaker, dashing u]) Avithout 

 any Avarning, combined Avith a tierce 

 undertow to upset the dinghy Avith all 

 its contents, to staA'^e in tAvo of its planks 

 and throw us against the rocks. We 

 Avere badly bruised, while oars, camera, 

 tools, and a tAventy fathom rope all 

 disappeared. The rope and camera 

 I managed to rescue, but nothing else. 



At the base of a cliff, immediately 

 in front of where the boat capsized, is a 

 sulphiir spring from Avhich strong 

 fumes arise, as from a bucket of burning 

 sulphur. All the rocks nearby are hot. 

 Inside a forty-foot radius Avere lying 



a number of dead birds, and, on the 

 rocks, some crabs of a yelloAvish-green 

 colour. The surf as it fell here on the 

 month of the blow and on the hot rocks, 

 Avas turned instantly into hissing and 

 groAvling steam. The birds and crabs 

 had undoubtedly been OA-ercome by the 

 noxious fumes. Further along, at the 

 base there are hot A^apour-jets, some of 

 Avhich haA^e a Avhite, lime -like, stalactite 

 formation in their bore ; others are of 

 a cream colour, others a sulphur. 

 These stalactites crumble into poAvder 

 Avhen one tries to remove them ; their 

 fumes cut the breath and make the 

 eyes tingle. 



The cliffs themseh^es are of a rocky 

 composition unknoAvn to me, but basalt 

 is in plenty. Some of the rock Avhen 

 broken disclosed A^arious tints. 



From the boulder shore a slight in- 

 cline, up Avhich AA'e climbed, leads to 

 the top of the island. There AA^ere 

 signs hereabouts of a huge landslide. 

 In places Avhere tons of rock and earth 

 had fallen and rolled to the sea, the 

 ground Avas barren of herbage. In other 

 places the cliffs had split asunder, and 

 big boulders Avere lying about, some 

 needing but a touch to dislodge them. 

 The climb to the first level Avas about 

 700 feet, over a floor of plentiful, coar.- e, 

 short grass, pigs face and Avhite con- 

 volvulus. We noticed some creepers, 

 one of Avhich has a fruit or pod like the 

 passion-fruit ; also a grass like the 

 pampas-grass, knee-deep, and carrying 

 a beastly burr, Avhich clings to your 

 clothes, Avoollen or cotton, and makes 

 walking a horror. No vicious Aus- 

 tralian burr can be comj)ared to it. 

 It works up your trousers and down 

 your socks and draAvs blood. The first 

 flat Avas coA'ered Avith this curse, and 

 with a few acres of bush resembling a 

 Moreton Bay Fig, Ijut only eight to ten 

 feet high, Avith a spreading top upon 

 Avhich hundreds of sea-birds had their 

 nests ; the ground here Avas knee- 

 deep Avith droppings. 



