284 SIEGE OF THE SOUTH POLE 
for venturing so near. McCormick’s strictures on the 
captain, however, do not always bear critical examina- 
tion. 
The farthest east reached had been 167° W., on Feb- 
ruary 5th, and, although the ships struggled for another 
week to explore the edge of the barrier farther in that 
direction, they did not get so far again and Ross was 
at length obliged very reluctantly to give up the attempt 
for the season. On February 14th, the expedition turned 
back toward the magnetic pole in order to seek a harbour 
in which they might lie safely for the winter. Franklin 
Island was sighted next day, for the wind had been 
favourable and the sea open. On the 16th, Mount Ere- 
bus was in sight in magnificent eruption, and it was then 
that the island on which it is situated appeared to form 
part of the continent. The deep bight to the southwest 
was named McMurdo Bay, but instead of examining it 
closely, Ross turned northwards in order to make one 
more attempt to land in the latitude of the magnetic 
pole. The pack lay thick along the coast of Victoria 
Land, and it was impossible to get nearer the shore than 
15 or 16 miles, so after consultation with Crozier, Ross 
decided to give up the attempt, and as he could see no 
place in which it seemed practicable to winter he resolved 
to return to Hobart as speedily as possible. 
This decision was not an agreeable one to arrive at 
He says : 
“ It was, nevertheless, painfully vexatious to behold 
at an easily accessible distance under other circumstances 
the range of mountains in which the pole is placed, and 
to feel how nearly that chief object of our undertaking 
had been accomplished; and but few can understand the 
deep feelings of regret with which I felt myself corn- 
