416 TRANSACTIONS OF SECTION D. 
journeys, important as they are, must be supplemented by the investigation of 
the coast line if we are to progress towards the completion of an outline map 
of Antarctica. The Antarctic Coast line has been estimated by Professor 
David at 15,000 miles, only 4,000 of which have been explored; it is high time 
that a complete circumnavigation of the Continent was undertaken and its out- 
lines correctly laid down upon our maps. 
The Australasian Antarctic Expedition under Sir Douglas Mawson may be 
said to have begun this work of circumnavigation. Sixty degrees of longitude 
in the Australian Quadrant were investigated by this expedition. When heavy 
pack made a near approach to the coast impossible, the aid of the sounding 
machine was invoked, and supplied evidence as to the probable distance of 
the land. Asa result of the voyages of the ‘ Aurora,’ a complete section of the 
sea-floor between Hobart and the Antarctic is available. This section shows the 
big rise 200 miles south of Hobart, where the water shoaled over 1,000 fathoms 
in 50 miles. This rise was traced for a considerable distance on a southerly 
course (about 125 miles). The least depth found on this ridge was 545 fathoms. 
Compared with soundings taken in adjacent waters to the east and west, which 
ranged from 2,700 to 1,670 fathoms, it may be conjectured that the ridge rises 
at least 10,000 feet above the general level of the sea-floor in the neighbourhood. 
The bottom for the most part is hard and rocky, but no specimens of the rock 
were obtained. Further south another smaller rise was indicated—investigation 
in this locality will probably disclose others. Improved methods, and the ex- 
perience gained by recent expeditions should enable future explorers to return 
not only with a map of the lands they have seen, but also with a knowledge 
of the floor of the ocean over which they have sailed. 
The work of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition ended at Gaussberg. 
From this point another 90° of longitude stretch westward known as the African 
Quadrant, the most promising field for exploration remaining in the Antarctic. 
An interesting feature of the work of the Australasian Antarctic Expedition 
was that close to the position assigned by Wilkes to Termination Land a huge 
ice-formation (of the same type as the Ross Barrier) extending over 160 miles 
from the mainland was discovered. The seaward end of this formation was 
named by us Termination Barrier Tongue, its position is one of considerable 
interest in view of the unsuccessful attempts of the ‘Challenger’ and the 
‘Gauss’ to locate Termination Land further west. 
Lieut. Wilkes, in his narrative of the voyage of the ‘ Vincennes’ wrote as 
follows :—‘On February 17 (1840) about 10 a.m. we discovered the barrier 
extending in a line ahead and running north and south as far as the eye could 
reach [this evidently refers to a line of pack-ice]. Appearances of land were also 
seen to the south-west, and its trending seemed to be to the northward. We 
were thus cut off from any further progress to the westward, and obliged to 
retrace our steps . . . we were now in longitude 97° 37’ E. and latitude 
60° O1’ S.? The appearance of land referred to was placed on the published 
charts of the expedition nearly fifty miles from the position given above and 
named Termination Land. Allowance being made for the difficulty of obtaining 
precise longitude in those days, everything points to the fact that Wilkes did 
sight the great ice-tongue we afterwards rediscovered. 
The configuration of the great inlet in the pack-ice as shown on Wilkes’s 
chart, and named Repulse Bay, made it evident to us that some obstruction 
(either land- or barrier-ice) interfered with the free passage of the pack-ice 
to the west; our subsequent discovery confirmed this belief, and provided the 
confirmation given as to the accuracy of the work of this courageous pioneer in 
the locality. 
Professor R. N. Rupmost Brown: Professor Penck has referred to the 
importance of the structure of Antarctica. That, to my mind, is the chief 
geographical problem to be solved in the Antarctic. There has been speculation 
as to whether Antarctica is one land mass, or two with a strait between them. 
It seems to me there is no room for that strait across Antarctica, because of 
the discoveries by Shackleton and Amundsen of the land bounding the Ross 
Sea. On the Weddell Sea side discovery has left a gap in the coast line, where 
there is certainly room for the strait, and yet probabilities are against it. 
