28 ARRIVE AT Simon's bay. 



(hence the name), and communicates to the animal a 

 slow rotatory movement while drifting before the 

 wind. Two kinds of Janthince {J. gloiosa and J. 

 exigua,) molluscs with a fragile, snail-like shell, and 

 a vesicular float, were drifting about, and, together 

 with a very active, silvery-blue Idotea, half an inch 

 long, preyed upon the Velellee. At another time, 

 among many other pelagic Crustacea, we obtained 

 three kinds of Erichthus, a genus remarkable for 

 the glassy transparency of its species, also Hyakea 

 injlexa and H. tridentata, curious pteropodous mol- 

 luscs which swim near the surface. 



On March 8th, we anchored in Simon's Bay ; our 

 passage from Rio de Janeiro, contrar}^ to expecta- 

 tion, had thus occupied upwards of five weeks, 

 owing to the prevalence of light easterly winds 

 (from N. E. to S. E.) instead of the westerly breezes 

 to be looked for to the southward of lat. 35° S. 

 We were fortunate, however, in having fine weather 

 during the greater part of that time. 



The period of our stay at the Cape of Good Hope 

 was devoted to the construction of a chart of Simon's 

 Bay and its neighbourhood, which has since been 

 incorporated with the previous survey of Capt. Sir 

 Edward Belcher in H. M. S. " Samarang," and 

 published without acknowledgment. The requisite 

 shore observations were made by Capt. Stanley and 

 Mr. Obree, while Lieuts. Dayman and Simpson con- 

 ducted the sounding. Our detention was lengthened 

 b}- a succession of S.E. gales, and the state of the 



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