CHAPTER XVII. 



Beagle and Adventure sail from Port Famine through Magdalen and 

 Cockburn Channel — Enter Pacific — Death of Mr. Rowlett— Chiloe 

 — Chile — Government — Adventure sold — Consequent changes — Plans 

 — Mr. Low — Chonos — Lieut. Suli van's party — Moraleda — Ladrilleros 

 ■ — De Vea — Sharp — San Andres — Vallenar — Mr. Stokes — San Este- 

 van — Distressed sailors — Anna Pink Bay — Port Low — Potatoes — 

 Indian names — Huafo — Volcano— Chilotes — Aborigines — Militia — 

 Freebooters — Climate — Docks — Tides— Witchcraft — Alerse — Cal- 

 bucanos— Cesares — Search for men— Meteors. 



June 9th. Good equal altitudes having been obtained, after 

 an interval of time sufficient for rating our chronometers^* 

 we sailed from Port Famine, went down the Magdalen Chan- 

 nel, enjoying some fine scenery, among which Sarmiento was 

 pre-eminent, and anchored in a cove under Cape Turn. The 

 following day we beat to windward through the Cockburn 

 Channel, and would have anchored at night had a safe place 

 offered in time, but as the only cove near us at dusk was a 

 very small one, I preferred leaving that unoccupied for the 

 Adventure, and remaining under way in the Beagle. The 

 night was long and very dark, small rain fell nearly all the 

 time, and squalls from the westward were frequent. There 

 were but four square miles in which it was safe to sail to and 

 fro after dark, and for fourteen hours we traversed that area 

 in every direction. It was necessary to keep under a reason- 

 able press of sail part of the timCj to hold our ground against 

 the lee tide ; but with the ebb we had often to bear up and 

 run to leeward, when we got too near the islets westward of 

 us. In a case of this kind a ship is so much more manage- 

 able while going through the water than she is while hove-to, 

 and those on board are in general so much more on the alert 

 than when the vessel herself seems half asleep, that I have 

 always been an advocate for short tacks under manageable sail, 

 so as to keep as much as possible near the same place, in pre- 

 ference to heaving-to and drifting. 



* The Adventure had four chronometers. 



