230 



CALIFORNIA ACADEMY OF SCIENCES [Pkoc. 4ra Ser. 



"Sept. 7. — Another hard day's work. Got up at 4:45 a. m. 

 and started to heave up anchor. Sailed over to Duncan Island. 

 Had breakfast at 6 :30, and went ashore soon after, starting 

 immediately up to the crater, with poles, ropes, etc., to get the 

 tortoises out. Managed to recover our tortoises of last Sunday, 

 some of which had got away. Found one dead, a rock having 

 fallen on his neck during his struggles and shut off his wind. 

 Found one more, making a total of eight. The work of 

 making them fast lasted till about 2 o'clock, when we started 

 for the shore with a tortoise strung on a pole between each 

 two men, one of the sailors and myself taking one. It was 

 very hard getting them up the side of the crater, walking 

 being so rough and thorns so plentiful. But this was nothing 

 to be compared with going down on the other side, which was 

 very steep and terrible walking. The sailor had on a pair of 

 wooden clogs, which soon began to chafe his feet. After a 

 long time spent in tumbling over lava blocks, tearing through 

 thorn bushes and other such pleasantries, we reached a point 

 as near the shore as we could, tied the creatures up securely, 

 and left them. Now came a long walk before we could get 

 to the skiff. We were all so tired, having had nothing to eat 

 since breakfast, that the distance seemed terribly long. It was 

 a rough road, up and down, over broken lava and through 

 thorns. Reached the skiff about 6 p. m.^ every one being well 

 tired out. A good drink of wine and water was served with 

 the lunch that was in the boat. We got aboard the schooner 

 a little later. This was the hardest day's work thus far, with 

 the possible exception of last Sunday's. The trip was very 

 hard on the tortoise also, and they acted as if 'played out.' 

 Two of them being set down close together got their poles 

 somewhat tangled up, and by the way they opened their 

 mouths at each other it looked as if they were going to have a 

 fight. 



"Sept. 8. — We went ashore quite early, and started immedi- 

 ately for the crater, after looking in vain for more tortoises 

 for a short time. The mate took a small one on his back. 

 Harris and myself, Hull and Beck carried one swung on a 

 pole between us, and we started for the boat by a much easier 

 route than yesterday, and got two of them right aboard the 

 skiff. The other one and the three brought down yesterday 



