﻿SOUTH 
  GEORGIA, 
  AN 
  OUTPOST 
  OF 
  THE 
  ANTARCTIC 
  

  

  413 
  

  

  ililltis 
  

  

  the: 
  brig 
  daisy 
  in 
  the: 
  anchorage: 
  of 
  teie: 
  quest 
  

  

  This 
  was 
  the 
  staunch 
  little 
  vessel 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  author 
  made 
  his 
  voyage 
  to 
  South 
  Georgia 
  

   (see 
  text, 
  page 
  418). 
  Mt. 
  Paget, 
  in 
  the 
  background, 
  rises 
  to 
  a 
  height 
  of 
  8,383 
  feet. 
  

  

  Not 
  a 
  tree 
  was 
  to 
  be 
  seen, 
  nor 
  a 
  shrub 
  

   even 
  big' 
  enough 
  to 
  make 
  a 
  toothpick. 
  

   The 
  only 
  vegetation 
  ... 
  was 
  a 
  coarse 
  

   strong-bladed 
  grass 
  growing 
  in 
  tufts, 
  

   wild 
  burnet, 
  and 
  a 
  plant 
  like 
  moss 
  which 
  

   sprung 
  from 
  the 
  rocks." 
  

  

  Referring 
  to 
  his 
  blighted 
  hope 
  of 
  a 
  fair 
  

   Antarctic 
  land, 
  he 
  added: 
  "To 
  judge 
  of 
  

   the 
  bulk 
  by 
  the 
  sample, 
  it 
  would 
  not 
  be 
  

   worth 
  the 
  discovery. 
  . 
  . 
  . 
  Who 
  would 
  

   have 
  thought 
  that 
  an 
  island 
  of 
  no 
  greater 
  

   extent 
  than 
  this, 
  situated 
  between 
  the 
  

   latitude 
  of 
  54 
  and 
  55 
  °, 
  should, 
  in 
  the 
  

   very 
  height 
  of 
  summer, 
  be 
  in 
  a 
  manner 
  

   wholly 
  covered, 
  many 
  fathoms 
  deep, 
  with 
  

   frozen 
  snow?" 
  

  

  Cook 
  took 
  possession 
  of 
  the 
  country 
  

   for 
  England 
  and 
  named 
  it 
  the 
  Isle 
  of 
  

   Georgia 
  ; 
  and, 
  after 
  charting 
  the 
  coast, 
  he 
  

   proceeded 
  on 
  his 
  famous 
  circumnaviga- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  world. 
  

  

  "SE:A-BE;ARS" 
  ADDE;D 
  TO 
  POPULARITY 
  OF" 
  

   SOUTH 
  GEORGIA 
  TAL^S 
  

  

  Captain 
  Cook's 
  observations 
  on 
  the 
  Isle 
  

   of 
  Georgia 
  were 
  characteristically 
  thor- 
  

   ough. 
  He 
  recorded 
  the 
  depths 
  of 
  some 
  

  

  of 
  the 
  inlets 
  and 
  the 
  extent 
  of 
  the 
  tidal 
  

   rise. 
  He 
  referred 
  to 
  the 
  abundance 
  of 
  

   seals 
  or 
  "sea-bears," 
  sea-elephants, 
  and 
  

   penguins. 
  He 
  noted 
  the 
  albatrosses, 
  gulls, 
  

   "Port 
  Egmont 
  hens," 
  terns, 
  shags, 
  divers, 
  

   and 
  "blue 
  peterels," 
  which 
  circled 
  over 
  

   the 
  seas, 
  and 
  the 
  small 
  titlarks 
  of 
  the 
  land. 
  

   He 
  mentioned 
  that 
  the 
  rocks 
  seemed 
  to 
  

   be 
  rich 
  in 
  iron. 
  But, 
  most 
  of 
  all, 
  he 
  was 
  

   impressed 
  with 
  the 
  worthlessness 
  of 
  his 
  

   landfall 
  and 
  the 
  futility 
  of 
  his 
  search. 
  

  

  South 
  Georgia, 
  as 
  the 
  island 
  came 
  to 
  

   be 
  called, 
  was 
  destined 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  forgot- 
  

   ten, 
  for 
  the 
  brave 
  tales 
  of 
  Captain 
  Cook 
  

   were 
  popular 
  reading 
  during 
  the 
  early 
  

   years 
  of 
  American 
  independence. 
  It 
  niav 
  

   be 
  that 
  his 
  word 
  "sea-bears" 
  was 
  the 
  lure 
  

   that 
  started 
  the 
  first 
  follower 
  in 
  the 
  wake 
  

   of 
  the 
  Resolution. 
  Certain 
  it 
  is 
  that 
  be- 
  

   fore 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  eighteenth 
  century 
  

   bold 
  Yankee 
  mariners 
  from 
  New 
  London, 
  

   Stonington, 
  and 
  other 
  Long 
  Island 
  Sound 
  

   ports 
  had 
  begun 
  to 
  reap 
  the 
  harvest 
  of 
  

   fur-seal 
  skins 
  at 
  South 
  Georgia. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  season 
  of 
  1 
  800-1 
  801 
  the 
  crews 
  

   of 
  the 
  fleet 
  killed 
  not 
  less 
  than 
  112,000 
  

   fur-seals. 
  For 
  20 
  years 
  the 
  slaughter 
  

  

  