138 
CRUISE OF E.M.S. CHALLENGER. 
67° east. In 1839 Captain Balleny reported land in 
latitude 66° 44', longitude 163° east. D’Urville, with 
his vessels of the French expedition, discovered (?) 
Adelia Land and the Claria Coast (?) about the 
same time. And in 1840, Captain Wilkes, in com- 
mand of the United States exploring expedition, 
gave forth to the world his discovery of the Ant- 
arctic Continent, which he describes as follows : — 
“ In latitude 64° 31' south, longitude 93° east, we 
made what was believed to be land to the south and 
west, at least so far as 4 terra firma 9 can be distin- 
guished when everything is covered with snow. 
Soundings were obtained in 320 fathoms, which con- 
firmed all our previous doubts, for on later observa- 
tion a dark object, resembling a mountain in the 
distance, was seen, and many other indications pre- 
sented themselves confirming it. Advancing to the 
westward, the indications of the approach to land 
were becoming too plain to admit of a doubt. The 
constant and increasing noise of the penguins and 
seals, the dark and discoloured aspect of the ocean, 
strongly impressed us with the belief that a positive 
result would arise in the event of a possibility to 
advance a few miles farther to the southward.” * 
This, to a certain extent, they thought conclusive, 
and fully believed that an extensive continent existed 
within the icy barrier, extending perhaps for nearly 
1000 miles near the Antarctic Circle, between the 
* ‘ United States Exploring Expedition/ 
