THE STKAIT OF MAGELLAN. 477 



board, and this it drank with great satisfaction, licking the 

 last drops off my fingers with its rough tongue. 



The 20th was chiefly marked by the arrival, at four A.M., 

 of one of the Pacific Steam Navigation Company's vessels on 

 her way to England. She brought us a supply of letters and 

 papers from Valparaiso, and afforded us an opportunity of 

 despatching a mail. We got under way for the westward at 

 four P.M. on the following day, and proceeded onwards all 

 night. The following evening we anchored at Port Angosto ; 

 and at noon on the 23d we reached Port Churruca, where 

 we remained for the day to make a plan of the anchorage. 

 The afternoon being fine. Dr. Campbell and I borrowed the 

 dingy and spent some hours pulling about, landing here and 

 there. A specimen of large black petrel, not uncommon in 

 the western part of the Strait, but of which I never succeeded 

 in obtaining a specimen, was sailing about the harbour, and 

 several kelp-geese, steamer-ducks, and cormorants of two 

 species, were seen. One of the latter, which was shot, 

 disgorged about haff-a-dozen small fish in a partially digested 

 condition. As was my general custom, I made a collection 

 of the plants of the port, but, with the exception of the 

 Viola tridentata and a species of Uncinia, observed hardly 

 any species with which I was not abeady familiar. Under 

 some stones I found a few specimens of an Oniscoid Isopod, 

 which were afterwards unfortunately lost. The morning of 

 the 24th was bright, but very cold. Snow had fallen during 

 the night on the lower mountains, adding to the wintry 

 effect produced by the large masses of perpetual snow on the 

 more elevated peaks beyond. We left Port Churruca early 

 in the afternoon, and crossed to the opposite shore of the 

 Strait, anchoring in Port Tamar, in the south-western corner 

 of King William lY/s Land, soon after five p.m. 



