384 PROVISIONS—LOCAL ATTRACTION. Jan. 1830. 
diet, for we shot much wild fowl (geese, shags, and ducks), and 
caught fish in the kelp, which were excellent eating. All that 
could be procured was regularly and equally. distributed to 
the different messes in turn, and an account kept in a ‘ game 
book.” (Appendix.) 
“22d. Mr. Stokes went to examine Fury Harbour, and 
returned late at night. In consequence of his account of the 
remains of the Saxe Cobourg sealing schooner, lost in thathar- 
bour, I sent a boat with the carpenter to collect from it some 
wood and bolts which might be useful to our ship, and remained 
at anchor for a day longer than I had intended. 
* This day all hands were put upon two-thirds’ allowance, but 
as itwas a measure which affected the crew muchand myself notat 
all, I was reluctant to give the necessary order, without first pro- 
posing the measure openly, and giving the following reasons :— 
*“* Having succeeded beyond expectation in the examination 
of the coast thus far, and hoping to be able to continue the 
survey in the same manner, while our provisions lasted, I 
thought it better to shorten the allowance while all hands were 
well and hearty, and could obtain supplies of fish and wild 
fowl, rather than at a later period, when we might be otherwise 
situated. An extent of coast lay before us, and the parts par- 
ticularly pointed out by Captain King, were yet unexamined. 
“‘ 24th. A tolerably fine day ; I tried all the compasses on 
shore, in three different places, placing them in a line to a dis- 
tant mark; because in taking bearmgs, for the variation of 
the compass, during previous days, I had found very wide 
differences between the results of the same, as well as different 
compasses ; and they were also very sluggish ; the light cards 
being more so than the heavy ones. I found it impossible to 
reconcile their results by change of place or position, therefore it 
is probable that all the rock affected the needle; and I sus- 
pect that not only this island and the one on which Mount 
Skyring is situated, but most of the islands near are mag- 
netic: particularly a cluster lying about a mile to seaward 
of the Magill Islands, on which, I believe, Lieutenant Skyring, 
or some of his party, took bearings. A boat was sent to 
