124 



GALES DIEGO RAMIEEZ. 



Jan. 



At sun-set, there was a reddish appearance all over the sky 

 — clouds shot over the summits of the mountains in ragged 

 detached masses — and there was a lurid haze around, which 

 showed a coming storm as surely as a fall of the barometer. 

 The gale increased, and at midnight such furious squalls 

 came down from the heights, that the water was swept up, and 

 clouds of foam were driven along the sea. Although we were 

 close to a weather shore, with our top-gallant masts down and 

 yards braced sharp up, we hardly tliought ourselves in secu- 

 rity with three anchors down and plenty of chain cable out.* 



Dec. 31. Tired and impatient at the delay caused by bad 

 weather, we put to sea again the first day there was a hope of 

 not being driven eastward ; and during a fortnight we tried hard 

 to work our way towards Christmas Sound. My purpose was 

 to land York Minster and Fuegia Basket among their own 

 people, near March Harbour, and return eastward through 

 the Beagle Channel, landing Jemmy Button also with his 

 tribe, the Tekeenica. Part of Whale-boat Sound and the wes- 

 tern arms of the Beagle Channel were to be surveyed : and by 

 this scheme I proposed to combine both objects. 



Jan. 2d. We were rather too near the Diego Ramirez 

 Islands, during a fresh gale of wind, with much sea ; but by 

 carrying a heavy press of sail, our good little ship weathered 

 them cleverly, going from seven and a half to eight knots an 

 hour, under close-reefed topsails and double-reefed courses — 

 the top-gallant-masts being on deck. 



On the 5th, the same islands were again under our lee— a 

 sufficient evidence that we did not make westing. In fact, no 

 sooner did we get a few reefs out, than we began taking them 



* Durinj^ such sudden, and at times tremendous squalls as these, it is 

 absolutely necessary to have a long scope of cable out, althoug-h the ves- 

 sel may be in smooth water, in order that the first fury of the blast may be 

 over before the cable is strained tight ; for otherwise, the chain or anchor 

 might snap. When the violence of the squall is past, the vs^eight of a 

 chain cable sinking down, draws the ship a-head, so far as to admit of her 

 recoiling again at the next williwaw ; thus, a kind of elasticity may be 

 given to a chain, in some degree equivalent to that always possessed by a 

 hemp cable. 



