5840 Notes on a Passage 



Notes of a Naturalist on his Passage towards the Far West, 

 By Thomas Blakiston, Esq., Lieut. R.A. 



Ship ' Prince of Wales,' at sea, 

 July 14, 1857. 



I have now been a month on board ship, and twenty- three days out 

 of the Thames. We have for the most part had fine weather and fair 

 winds until three days ago, when a stormy head-wind sprung up, and 

 we did nothing but knock about for a couple of days, about 300 miles 

 south of Greenland, which position you will readily make out on the 

 map. Yesterday, however, a fair wind sprung up in the afternoon, 

 and we are making fair way, steering for the entrance of Hudson's 

 Straits, about 600 miles distance at noon to-day. Our consort the 

 'Prince Arthur' is in company, but retards our progress considerably, 

 as she does not sail anything like equal to this ship. 



The weather for the last few days has been damp, cloudy and 

 cold ; this latter, however, we must expect, for we are nearing the 

 regions of ice, and are preparing for the same by getting ready "ice 

 anchors," large iron-shod poles, and other contrivances for the diffi- 

 cult navigation amongst the ice. 



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The forms of animal life seen on this northern route across the 

 ocean are but few. We have not seen a whale. Since clearing the 

 coast of Ireland, until we approached Greenland (which we have not 

 seen), the only birds observed were a few storm petrels and a solitary 

 martin. This little wanderer must have been a good 300 miles off 

 the coast. He stayed about the rigging of the ship for the greater 

 part of a day. Since we got well across this side of the Atlantic nu- 

 merous shearwaters have made their appearance, as well as some one 

 or more species of fulmar (Procellarise), and an occasional "boat- 

 swain," with his " marlingspike " looking tail : this I believe to be a 

 species of skua (Lestris). Not a true gull has been seen, but only 

 these "borderers" of the genus, if I may so call them, Laridae of the 

 ocean. What puzzles me is how all these birds come to be away 

 out on the ocean without young : surely this is just the time of year 

 that they should be bringing up their offspring on the coasts. Do 

 they hatch their young ? — or do they simply deposit their eggs, and 

 then away to the sea and there live, in the hope that their eggs will 

 be cared for by an all-wise Providence ? This I offer as a question 

 for naturalists ; and should any be inclined to say that it is but few 



