296 WOLF — DEEK — DOGS. Oct. Nov. 



quarter of a mile further south, the stream being there " broad 

 and rapid," with two fathoms water when the tide was out ; but 

 beset, to seaward, by sandbanks, which shift with every south- 

 east gale. Quantities of drift-wood, a kind of willow (sauci), 

 lay about every where, indicating that the river sometimes 

 overflowed its banks to a great distance, and brought down 

 these trees from the interior country, as none grow within 

 three leagues of the mouth. The river hereabouts is divided 

 into many streams, forming a great number of small islands, 

 which are nearly all of clay covered with rushes. From one of 

 these streams or channels, the Canada, there are creeks commu- 

 nicating at high- water with Union Bay. Here Lieut. Wick- 

 ham's party saw a wolf. 



On the 27th they met a whale-boat (at Creek Island in Ane- 

 gada Bay) from the River Negro, in search of sea-elephants. 

 Next day they reached a snug creek in San Bias Bay, v;here 

 they heard that the Indians had lately driven off all the cattle 

 from the San Bias Estancia, had destroyed the houses, dis- 

 mounted the guns, and broken the carriages. They were 

 accompanied by a number of desperate criminals who had 

 fled from justice at Buenos Ayres, and idle gauchos, who 

 preferred robbery to work, and were unquestionably the most 

 savage of the troop. On the 29th the Liebre was hauled ashore, 

 to exti-act a piece of sauci wood that had run through her bot- 

 tom : and a party was afterwards employed in erecting a conspi- 

 cuous mark upon Hog Island; a very difficult task, because the 

 loose sand, of which that island wholly consists, flies in clouds 

 at every gust, and nowhere affords a solid foundation. By the 

 help of casks filled with it, and spare anchors, they at length suc- 

 ceeded in securing an old spar upright, which was large enough 

 to be seen ten miles round, in that low half-drowned country. 



Deer were very numerous on Javali Island ; but on the place 

 called Deer Island, there was not one, though they were so 

 plentiful there a few years before. Some dogs had been left 

 there by a whale-ship, which liave increased very much in 

 numbers and are very savage : these dogs have exterminated 

 the deer. 



