A Voyage of Discovery and Research in the Southern and Antarctic Regions/Volume 1/Chapter 8
Cape Crozier and Mount Terror. Page 219
CHAPTER VIII.
CHAPTER VIII.
Again a southerly breeze came on at 4 a.m.; 1841.
Jan. 22we continued beating to windward under all sail, and thus regained some of the lost ground; but at noon we were still four miles to the northward of our yesterday's latitude. As the breeze freshened and the motion of the ship increased, the compasses became very uncertain in their indications; but the weather was beautifully clear, the sun shining in great splendour; and although the barometer was already above the mean pressure of the atmosphere of these latitudes, it continued to rise (the second instance of the kind we have observed) as the wind increased to a moderate gale about midnight, which prevailed the whole of the next day, accompanied by sharp squalls and continuous showers of snow. By our reckoning we made some southing, being at noon in lat. 74° 20′ S.; and by 7 p.m., having good grounds for believing that we had reached a higher southern latitude than that attained by our enterprising countryman, the late Captain James Weddell, and therefore beyond all our predecessors, an extra allowance of grog was issued to our very deserving crews; and, being Saturday night, the seaman's favourite toast of "Sweethearts and wives" was not forgotten in the general rejoicing on the occasion.
The gale, which rather freshened during the night, Jan. 23.gradually veered more to the eastward; we therefore wore round and stood towards the land on the port tack; but, owing to the continuance of thick and snowy weather during the whole of Sunday, we did not get sight of it until 7 p.m., when it was indistinctly seen ahead of the ship. Jan. 24.At midnight we were in lat. 74° 29′ by observation. We carried all sail, and both wind and sea abating, we approached the land rapidly; the barometer which had been rising throughout the gale, reached the unusual Jan. 25.height of 29.33 at 4 a.m. the next morning; the line of coast was at this time distinctly seen, but at a great distance: a heavy pack extended at least forty or fifty miles from the shore, into which we stood amongst the loose ice as far as we could without getting beset; this I did not think proper to hazard, as it would assuredly have occasioned considerable loss of time without any equivalent advantage, and every hour at this period of the season was of much importance to us. I have no doubt that, had it been our object, we might have penetrated it several miles further, for although heavy-looking ice, it was not very densely packed, nor any thing like the solid land-ice we had seen further to the northward, and we should certainly have made the attempt, had not the land imposed an insuperable barrier to our reaching the Pole, which we still hoped to accomplish by a more circuitous route; and we were not then in a condition to be content with any thing short of complete success. Observations at noon placed us in lat. 74° 44′, long. 169 ° 30′, dip 87° 54′ S., var. 67° 13′, from which we deduced the place of the magnetic pole to be distant two hundred and forty-nine miles. We had penetrated the pack as far as the ice admitted to the westward by half-past eight in the evening, when we tacked and obtained observations by which we found we had approached so much nearer the Pole that the dip had increased to 88° 10′. We tried for soundings with three hundred fathoms line, but it did not reach the bottom. Mount Melbourne and Mount Monteagle were here seen to great advantage; the immense crater of the former, and the more pointed summit of the latter, rose high above the contiguous mountains; and they form two of the more remarkable objects of this most wonderful and magnificent mass of volcanic land.
Whilst struggling to get through the pack, we found it drifting, under the influence of the wind and current, rapidly to the northward, which seemed to encourage a hope, that, if defeated in our attempt to pass round its southern extremity, we might be able, at a later period of the season when more of the land-ice should have drifted away, to penetrate to the shore, and find some place wherein to secure the ships for the winter. For several days past we had seen very few whales, which was the more remarkable on account of the very great numbers we met with not more than sixty or seventy miles to the northward. There must be doubtless some cause for their absence from this spot, which perhaps future observation may supply; for it is desirable to know where they are not to be found as well as where they are, that valuable time may not be thrown away by those who go in pursuit of them.
Jan. 26.On reaching the clear water, we found a short irregular sea, in which the ships pitched heavily under the easiest sail we could prevail on ourselves to carry, which seemed to indicate a change of tide to windward. As we pursued our way along the pack edge to the southward, we saw a great many of the beautiful snowy petrel, and some penguins. The temperature of the air varied only one degree during the twenty-four hours, from 25° to 26°, which was sufficiently low to freeze into ice the sprays that fell on board the ship, and soon accumulated such a load about our bows as to keep the watch continually at work clearing it away, and beating it off the running ropes. At noon we had increased the dip to 88° 33′, so that the magnetic pole was now only one hundred and seventy-four miles from us in a W. by S. (true) bearing. Mount Melbourne bore W. by N. eighty miles.
In the afternoon, as we got further from the pack, the uneasy irregular sea subsided, and the wind becoming more westerly enabled us to stand direct for the east extreme of the "land blink," which bore S.W. by S. (true) from us; and at this time some strong indications of land appeared, which we all hoped would prove a "Cape Flyaway," as many others had done before. As we increased our distance from the pack, the temperature of the sea at its surface gradually rose from 28° to 31°, at about twelve miles off, although the air was at the time at 25°.5.
Light baffling winds, which prevailed for two or Jan 27.three hours, were succeeded by a moderate breeze from the eastward; all sail that the ships could spread was immediately set; and although the fog and rain came on so thick as to prevent our seeing more than half a mile before us, we continued to run with studding-sails on both sides set to the south-westward until nearly eight o'clock, when we were suddenly taken aback by the wind shifting to that quarter, and on the fog clearing away, we found that we had been steering into a deep bight of the main ice, which we now saw stretching across from the extreme point of the main land to an island bearing (true) south of us, and thus preventing our proceeding any further to the westward in this part; after closely examining the pack, in which no opening was to be seen, we stood away to the southward to endeavour to land on the island.
At noon we were in lat. 75° 48′, S. long. 168° 33′ E., dip 88° 24′, variation 80° 50′ E. At 3 p.m. we sounded in 200 fathoms, on fine black sand and small black stones, about twelve miles north of the island. At five o'clock when we were within two or three miles of it, I left the ship, accompanied by several officers, and soon afterwards followed by Commander Crozier, and a party from the Terror, we pulled towards the shore. A high southerly swell broke so heavily against the cliffs, and on the only piece of beach we could see as we rowed from one end of the island to the other, as almost to forbid our landing; a mortification not to be endured if possible to be avoided: the Terror's whale boat being more fit for encountering such a surf than the heavy cutter of the Erebus, I got into her, and by the great skill and management of the officers and crew I succeeded, by watching the opportunity when the boat was on the crest of the breakers, in jumping on to the rocks. By means of a rope, some of the officers landed with more facility, but not without getting thoroughly wetted; and one having nearly lost his life in this difficult affair, I was obliged to forbid any more attempting to land, to their very great disappointment. The thermometer being at 22°, every part of the rocks which were washed by the waves was covered with a coating of ice, so that in jumping from the boat, he slipped from them into the water, between her stern and the almost perpendicular rock on which we had landed, and but for the promptitude of those in the boat, in instantly pulling off, he must have been crushed between it and the rocks. It was most mercifully ordered otherwise, and he was taken into the boat without having suffered any other injury than being benumbed with the cold. We proceeded at once therefore to take possession of the island in due form; and to the great satisfaction of every individual in the expedition, I named it "Franklin Island;" in compliment to His Excellency Captain Sir John Franklin of the Royal Navy, to whom, and his amiable lady, I have already had occasion to express the gratitude we all felt for the great kindness we received at their hands, and the deep interest they manifested in all the objects of the expedition. Having procured numerous specimens of the rocks of the island, we hastened our departure, in consequence of the perishing condition of our unlucky companion, and succeeded in embarking without any further accident; we gained the ships before nine o'clock, all of us thoroughly drenched to the skin, and painfully cold.
Franklin Island is situate in lat. 76° 8′ S., long. 168° 12′ E. It is about twelve miles long and six broad, and is composed wholly of igneous rocks; the northern side presents a line of dark precipitous cliffs, between five and six hundred feet high, exposing several longitudinal broad white, probably aluminous, bands of several feet thickness; two or three of them were of a red ochre colour, and gave a most strange appearance to the cliffs. We could not perceive the smallest trace of vegetation, not even a lichen or piece of sea-weed growing on the rocks; and I have no doubt from the total absence of it at both the places we have landed, that the vegetable kingdom has no representative in antarctic lands. We observed that the white petrel had its nests on the ledges of the cliffs, as had also the rapacious skua gull; several seals were seen, and it is by no means improbable that the beach on which we in vain attempted to land may, at the proper season, be one of their places of resort, or "rookeries" as they are termed by the seal fishers.
At between two and three miles distance from the land, the soundings were regular, in thirty-eight to forty-one fathoms, on a bed of fine sand and black stones, and probably good anchorage might be found near the shore with southerly winds. A high cliff of ice projects into the sea from the south and south-west sides, rendering it there quite inacessible, and a dangerous reef of rocks extends from its southern cape at least four or five miles, with apparently a deep water passage between them and the cape; several icebergs of moderate size were aground on the banks to the northward and westward of the island. At midnight the bearings of eight separate islands are given in the log of the Erebus; but as these afterwards proved to be the summits of mountains, at a great distance, belonging to the mainland, they do not appear upon the chart as islands. With a favourable breeze, and very clear weather, we stood to the southward, close to some land which had been in sight since the preceding noon, and which we then called the "High Island;" it proved to be a mountain twelve thousand four hundred feet of elevation above the level of the sea, emitting flame and smoke in great profusion; at first the smoke appeared like snow drift, but as we drew nearer, its true character became manifest.
Jan. 28.The discovery of an active volcano in so high a southern latitude cannot but be esteemed a circumstance of high geological importance and interest, and contribute to throw some further light on the physical construction of our globe. I named it "Mount Erebus," and an extinct volcano to the eastward, little inferior in height, being by measurement ten thousand nine hundred feet high, was called "Mount Terror."
A small high round island, which had been in sight all the morning, was named "Beaufort Island," in compliment to Captain Francis Beaufort, of the Royal Navy, Hydrographer to the Admiralty, who was not only mainly instrumental in promoting the sending forth our expedition, but afforded me much assistance, during its equipment, by his opinion and advice: and it is very gratifying to me to pay this tribute of respect and gratitude to him for the many acts of kindness and personal friendship I have received at his hands. At 4 p.m. we were in lat. 76° 6′ S., long. 168° 11′ E. The magnetic dip 88° 27′ S., and the variation 95° 31′ E.: we were therefore considerably to the southward of the magnetic pole, without any appearance of being able to approach it on account of the land-ice, at a short distance to the westward, uniting with the western point of the "High Island," which, however, afterwards proved to be part of the main land, and of which Mount Erebus forms the most conspicuous object. As we approached the land under all studding-sails, we perceived a low white line extending from its eastern extreme point as far as the eye could discern to the eastward. It presented an extraordinary appearance, gradually increasing in height, as we got nearer to it, and proving at length to be a perpendicular cliff of ice, between one hundred and fifty and two hundred feet above the level of the sea, perfectly flat and level at the top, and without any fissures or promontories on its even seaward face. What was beyond it we could not imagine; for being much higher than our mast-head, we could not see any thing except the summit of a lofty range of mountains extending to the southward as far as the seventy-ninth degree of latitude. These mountains, being the southernmost land hitherto discovered, I felt great satisfaction in naming after Captain Sir William Edward Parry, R.N., in grateful remembrance of the honour he conferred on me, by calling the northernmost known land on the globe by my name[1]; and more especially for the encouragement, assistance, and friendship which he bestowed on me during the many years I had the honour and happiness to serve under his distinguished command, on four successive voyages to the arctic seas; and to which I mainly attribute the opportunity now afforded me of thus expressing how deeply I feel myself indebted to his assistance and example. Whether "Parry Mountains" again take an easterly trending, and form the base to which this extraordinary mass of ice is attached, must be left for future navigators to determine. If there be land to the southward, it must be very remote, or of much less elevation than any other part of the coast we have seen, or it would have appeared above the barrier. Meeting with such an obstruction was a great disappointment to us all, for we had already, in expectation, passed far beyond the eightieth degree, and had even appointed a rendezvous there, in case of the ships accidentally separating. It was, however, an obstruction of such a character as to leave no doubt upon my mind as to our future proceedings, for we might with equal chance of success try to sail through the Cliffs of Dover, as penetrate such a mass. When within three or four miles of this most remarkable object, we altered our course to the eastward, for the purpose of determining its extent, and not without the hope that it might still lead us much further to the southward. The whole coast here from the western extreme point, now presented a similar vertical cliff of ice, about two or three hundred feet high. The eastern cape at the foot of Mount Terror was named after my friend and colleague Commander Francis Rawdon Moira Crozier, of the Terror, to whose zeal and cordial co-operation is mainly to be ascribed, under God's blessing, the happiness as well as success of the expedition: under the circumstances we were placed in, it is impossible for others fully to understand the value of having so tried a friend, of now more than twenty years' standing, as commander of the second ship, upon whom the harmony and right feeling between the two vessels so greatly depends. I considered myself equally fortunate in having for the senior lieutenant of the Erebus, one whose worth was so well known to me, and who, as well as Commander Crozier, had ever shown so much firmness and prudence during the arduous voyages to the arctic regions, in which we sailed together as messmates, under the most successful arctic navigator; in compliment to him, I named the western promontory at the foot of Mount Erebus, "Cape Bird." These two points form the only conspicuous headlands of the coast, the bay between them being of inconsiderable depth. At 4 p.m. Mount Erebus was observed to emit smoke and flame in unusual quantities, producing a most grand spectacle. A volume of dense smoke was projected at each successive jet with great force, in a vertical column, to the height of between fifteen hundred and two thousand feet above the mouth of the crater, when condensing first at its upper part, it descended in mist or snow, and gradually dispersed, to be succeeded by another splendid exhibition of the same kind in about half an hour afterwards, although the intervals between the eruptions were by no means regular. The diameter of the columns of smoke was between two and three hundred feet, as near as we could measure it; whenever the smoke cleared away, the bright red flame that filled the mouth of the crater was clearly perceptible; and some of the officers believed they could see streams of lava pouring down its sides until lost beneath the snow which descended from a few hundred feet below the crater, and projected its perpendicular icy cliff several miles into the ocean. Mount Terror was much more free from snow, especially on its eastern side, where were numerous little conical crater-like hillocks, each of which had probably been, at some period, an active volcano; two very conspicuous hills of this kind were observed close to Cape Crozier. The land upon which Mount Erebus and Terror stand comprised between Cape Crozier and Cape Bird, had the appearance of an island from our present position; but the fixed ice, not admitting of our getting to the westward of Cape Bird, prevented our ascertaining whether it was so or not at this time.
The day was remarkably fine; and favoured by a fresh north-westerly breeze, we made good progress to the E.S.E., close along the lofty perpendicular cliffs of the icy barrier. It is impossible to conceive a more solid-looking mass of ice; not the smallest appearance of any rent or fissure could we discover throughout its whole extent, and the intensely bright sky beyond it but too plainly indicated the great distance to which it reached to the southward. Many small fragments lay at the foot of the cliffs, broken away by the force of the waves, which dashed their spray high up the face of them.
Having sailed along this curious wall of ice in Jan. 29.perfectly clear water a distance of upwards of one hundred miles, by noon we found it still stretching to an indefinite extent in an E.S.E. direction. We were at this time in lat. 77° 47′ S., long. 176° 43′ E. The magnetic dip had diminished to 87° 22′ S., and the variation amounted to 104° 25′ E. The wind fell light shortly before noon, but we fortunately had time to increase our distance from the barrier before it fell calm; for the northerly swell, though by no means of any great height, drifted us gradually towards it without our being able to make any effort to avoid the serious consequences that must have resulted had we been carried against it. We had gained a distance of twelve or fourteen miles from it, and as the Terror was getting short of water, I made the signal to Commander Crozier to collect some of the numerous fragments of the barrier that were about us; whilst in the Erebus we were engaged making observations on the depth and temperature of the sea. We sounded in four hundred and ten fathoms, the leads having sunk fully two feet into a soft green mud, of which a considerable quantity still adhered to them. The temperature of three hundred fathoms was 34° 2′, and at one hundred and fifty fathoms, 33°; that of the surface being 31°, and the air 28°.[2] So great a depth of water seemed to remove the supposition that had been suggested, of this great mass of ice being formed upon a ledge of rock, and to show that its outer edge at any rate could not be resting on the ground.
We had closed it several miles during the calm, but all our anxiety on that account was removed on a breeze springing up from the south-east. I went on board the Terror for a short time, this afternoon, to consult with Commander Crozier, and compare our chronometers and barometers[3], and on my return at half-past four, we made all sail on the starboard tack to the eastward; but not being able to fetch along the barrier, and the weather becoming thick with snow, we lost sight of it before nine o'clock in the evening. Several gigantic petrel were seen, and one that was badly wounded by Mr. Abernethy falling at too great a distance for us to send a boat after it, was immediately attacked by two others of the same kind, and torn to pieces. Many white petrel, stormy petrel, small penguins, and some of the Skua gull were also seen. The breeze freshened very much, and drew more round to the eastward. The barrier was occasionally seen between the frequent snow-showers; and as we made but slow progress along it, we could quite clearly determine its continuity. At midnight we had gained the lat. of 78° S., in 180° of E. long. At this time the wind was blowing fresh from E.S.E., bringing a considerable swell along the face of the barrier, to which our ships pitched heavily, and greatly retarded our progress; but it was a gratifying evidence to us that there was still much clear water in that direction.
Jan. 30.The wind and sea had increased so much that our dull-sailing ships could no longer gain any ground by beating to windward; making two points of leeway, they could only sail again and again over the same space upon each successive tack. I thought it therefore advisable to make a long board under all sail to the north-east, so as to pass over as great an extent of unknown space as possible during the continuance of the adverse wind, and resume the examination of the barrier from the point we had last seen whenever the circumstances of wind and weather became favourable for doing so. The whole aspect of the sky indicated a very unsettled state of the atmosphere, whilst heavy clouds of snow drifting frequently over us obscured every thing from our sight, I therefore considered it desirable at any rate to get a greater distance from the barrier, in case of a change of wind making it a lee shore to us of the most dangerous character. The intervals of clear weather between the showers afforded us opportunities of seeing sufficiently far ahead to prevent our running into any very serious difficulty, so that we could venture to proceed with confidence. Several heavy pieces of ice were passed, evidently the fragments of the barrier or broken-up bergs, of which it was very remarkable we had not seen one during a run of one hundred and sixty miles along the barrier; from which, no doubt, some must occasionally break away. But a little reflection soon furnished an explanation: in summer the temperature of the atmosphere and of the ocean seldom differ more than three or four degrees, the air being generally the colder, but never more than eight or ten degrees: it is therefore probably of rare occurrence that any great disruption should occur at that season of the year, the whole mass being then of so uniform a temperature. But in the winter, when the air is probably forty or fifty degrees below zero, and the sea from twenty-eight to thirty degrees above, the unequal expansion of those parts of the mass exposed to so great a difference of temperature could not fail to produce the separation of large portions. These, impelled by the prevailing southerly winds, drift to the north as soon as the winter breaks up, and are met with abundantly in the lower latitudes, where they rapidly melt away and break in pieces. We have often in the arctic regions witnessed the astonishing effects of a sudden change of temperature during the winter season, causing great rents and fissures of many miles extent; especially on the fresh-water lakes of those regions, where the ice being perfectly transparent, affords better means of observing the effects produced: a fall of thirty or forty degrees of the thermometer immediately occasions large cracks, traversing the whole extent of the lake in every variety of direction, and attended with frequent, loud explosions; some of the cracks opening in places several inches by the contraction of the upper surface in ABSTRACT OF THE METEOROLOGICAL JOURNAL KEPT ON BOARD HER MAJESTY'S SHIP EREBUS.—JANUARY, 1841.
| Day. | Position at Noon. | Temperature of the Air in Shade. | Mean Temperature of Sea at Surface. |
Temp. at 9 a.m. | ||||
| Lat. S. | Long. E. | Max. | Min. | Mean. | Air. | Dew point. | ||
| ° | ° | ° | ° | |||||
| 1 | 66.32 | 169.45 | 31 | 27 | 28.9 | 28.8 | 28 | * |
| 2 | 66.28 | 170.14 | 32 | 26 | 29.7 | 29.1 | 31 | 31 |
| 3 | 65.39 | 170.48 | 30.5 | 29.5 | 30.0 | 30.0 | 31 | 31 |
| 4 | 65.22 | 172.40 | 32 | 30 | 31.2 | 30.6 | 32 | 32 |
| 5 | 66.55 | 174.31 | 32 | 29 | 30.3 | 29.3 | 31 | 28 |
| 6 | 68.17 | 175.21 | 30.5 | 24.5 | 28.2 | 28.7 | 32 | 24 |
| 7 | 68.31 | 175.37 | 32 | 24.5 | 27.8 | 27.4 | 28 | 24 |
| 8 | 68.28 | 176.31 | 41.5 | 29.5 | 34.2 | 29.8 | 36 | 33 |
| 9 | 69.15 | 176.14 | 30.5 | 28.5 | 29.6 | 28.8 | 30 | * |
| 10 | 70.23 | 174.48 | 31 | 28 | 29.5 | 28.8 | 30 | 30 |
| 11 | 71.15 | 171.15 | 40.5 | 29.5 | 32.4 | 30.5 | 31 | 29 |
| 12 | 71.49 | 170.52 | 31.5 | 29 | 30.2 | 30.0 | 32 | 30 |
| 13 | 72.07 | 172.19 | 30.5 | 29 | 29.2 | 29.6 | 30 | 29 |
| 14 | 71.51 | 172.40 | 30.5 | 28.2 | 29.6 | 29.6 | 30 | 30 |
| 15 | 71.56 | 171.51 | 31 | 28.5 | 29.6 | 29.5 | 32 | 29 |
| 16 | 72.12 | 172.13 | 29.5 | 27 | 27.5 | 27.9 | 28 | 27 |
| 17 | 72.09 | 173.35 | 31.5 | 26.5 | 28.9 | 28.3 | 29 | 29 |
| 18 | 72.56 | 176.06 | 31 | 28.5 | 29.7 | 28.6 | 30 | 25 |
| 19 | 72.31 | 173.39 | 39.5 | 28.5 | 31.8 | 29.3 | 30 | 23 |
| 20 | 73.47 | 171.50 | 31.5 | 27.5 | 28.8 | 29.4 | 31 | 29 |
| 21 | 74.00 | 170.43 | 34.2 | 28 | 29.9 | 27.7 | 29 | 28 |
| 22 | 73.55 | 172.20 | 35 | 28.5 | 31.4 | 29.9 | 32 | 23 |
| 23 | 74.23 | 173.35 | 31 | 27.5 | 29.8 | 29.7 | 31 | 31 |
| 24 | 74.35 | 173.01 | 29.5 | 26.5 | 27.6 | 27.9 | 28 | * |
| 25 | 74.44 | 169.43 | 29 | 25.5 | 27.6 | 27.3 | 29 | 22 |
| 26 | 75.03 | 169.04 | 26.5 | 25 | 25.7 | 29.3 | 27 | 23 |
| 27 | 75.47 | 168.59 | 30 | 24 | 26.2 | 29.9 | 26 | 23 |
| 28 | 76.57 | 169.25 | 33 | 23 | 27.9 | 29.9 | 30 | 18 |
| 29 | 77.47 | 176.43 | 31 | 22.5 | 26.4 | 29.4 | 30 | 22 |
| 30 | 77.35 | 181.20 | 29 | 26 | 27.5 | 30.4 | 29 | * |
| 31 | 77.06 | 189.06 | 26 | 19.5 | 22.7 | 29.3 | 25 | 24 |
| 41.5 | 19.5 | 29.02 | 29.18 | |||||
* Snow falling.
ABSTRACT OF THE METEOROLOGICAL JOURNAL KEPT ON BOARD HER MAJESTY'S SHIP EREBUS.—JANUARY, 1841.
| Day. | Barometer. | Winds. | Weather. | |||||||
| Max. | Min. | Mean. | Direction. | Force. | ||||||
| 1 | 29.079 | 28.886 | 29.017 | W.N.W. | 2 | 0 p.s.* | ||||
| 2 | .057 | .453 | 28.747 | N. Easterly | 3 | a.m. 5 b.c. p.m. 0 m.s. | ||||
| 3 | 28.551 | .422 | .468 | West | 4 | 0 m.s. | ||||
| 4 | 29.181 | .563 | .886 | Southerly | 3 | a.m. 0 p.s. p.m. 5 b.c. | ||||
| 5 | .180 | .814 | .999 | W.S.W. | 4 | 4 b.c. | ||||
| 6 | 28.922 | .789 | .869 | W.S.W. | 3 | 5 b.c.v. | ||||
| 7 | 29.073 | .905 | .958 | Southerly | 2 | 0 g. | ||||
| 8 | .179 | 29.075 | 29.134 | S.S.W. | 1 | 0 g. | ||||
| 9 | .045 | 28.446 | 28.664 | E.N.E. | 5 | 0 q.s. | ||||
| 10 | .349 | .553 | .982 | Easterly | a.m. 6 p.m. 3 |
0 q.s. 0 g. | ||||
| 11 | .386 | 29.183 | 29.286 | W.S.W. | 3 | 7 b.c.v. | ||||
| 12 | .372 | .138 | .273 | W.N.W. | 2 | 0 g.m. | ||||
| 13 | .110 | 28.688 | 28.890 | S.E. | 6 | 0 g.q.p.s. | ||||
| 14 | 28.990 | .699 | .850 | S.E. | 6 | a.m. 0 g.q.s. p.m. 1 b.c.g.p.s. | ||||
| 15 | 29.148 | 29.003 | 29.094 | S. Easterly | 4 | 5 b.c. | ||||
| 16 | .126 | .010 | .065 | S.E. | 6 | a.m. 0 q. p.m. 2 b.c.q.p.s. | ||||
| 17 | .167 | .030 | .103 | South | a.m. 6 p.m. 3 |
0 q.s. 5 b.c. | ||||
| 18 | .259 | .157 | .188 | South | 3 | 4 b.c. | ||||
| 19 | .310 | .154 | .255 | a.m. S.S.E. p.m. N.N.W. |
2 | 5 b.c. | ||||
| 20 | .132 | 28.937 | .005 | a.m. N.N.E. p.m. S.E. |
3 | 0 g.m. | ||||
| 21 | .098 | .959 | .036 | E.S.E. | 2 | 1 b.c.o.g. | ||||
| 22 | .085 | 29.041 | .062 | S.E. | 3 | 6 b.c.v. | ||||
| 23 | .043 | 28.935 | 28.987 | S.S.E. | 5 | 0 g.q.s. | ||||
| 24 | .339 | 29.022 | 29.164 | E. by S. | 5 | 0 q. s. | ||||
| 25 | .352 | .165 | .201 | S.S.E. | 3 | 5 b.c. | ||||
| 26 | .146 | .015 | .086 | Southerly | 3 | 2 b.c. | ||||
| 27 | .020 | 28.902 | 28.950 | S.S.W. | 2 | a.m. 2 b.c.p.s. p.m. 4 b.c. | ||||
| 28 | 28.959 | .841 | .873 | S.W. by W. | 4 | 5 b.c.v. | ||||
| 29 | 29.093 | .951 | 29.049 | Easterly | 3 | a.m. 3 b.c.g. p.m. 0 g.p.s. | ||||
| 30 | .004 | .950 | 28.966 | N.E. | 4 | 0 q.g.s. | ||||
| 31 | .006 | .911 | .943 | E. by S. | 3 | 3 b.c.g. | ||||
| 29.386 | 28.422 | 29.061 | 3.48 | |||||||
* For the explanation of these symbols, see Appendix.
contact with the extreme cold of the atmosphere. In those regions we have also witnessed the almost magical power of the sea in breaking up land-ice or extensive floes of from twenty to thirty feet thick, which have in a few minutes after the swell reached them, been broken up into small fragments by the power of the waves.
But this extraordinary barrier of ice, of probably more than a thousand feet in thickness, crushes the undulations of the waves, and disregards their violence: it is a mighty and wonderful object, far beyond any thing we could have thought or conceived.
Thick squally weather, with constant snow prevailing, we stood away to the E.N.E. all day, without meeting either land or ice until 8 p.m., when, the snow clearing off, we could discover the strong iceblink of the barrier to the southward, and soon afterwards several icebergs were seen ahead of us: they were chiefly of the tabular form, perfectly flat on the top, precipitous in every part, and from 150 to 200 feet high: they had evidently at one time formed a part of the barrier, and I felt convinced, from finding them at this season so near the point of their formation, that they were resting on the ground. Jan. 31.The lines were immediately prepared, and when we got amongst them at 3 a.m. the next morning we hove to, and obtained soundings in two hundred and sixty fathoms, on a bottom of stiff green mud, leaving no doubt on our minds that all the bergs about us, after having broken away from the barrier, had grounded on this curious bank, which being two hundred miles from Cape Crozier, the nearest known land, and about sixty from the edge of the barrier, was of itself a discovery of considerable interest.
We continued our course to the eastward, sailing amongst many large bergs and much loose ice. Whales were again seen during the day, but in no great numbers; white petrels were very numerous, and a king penguin of unusual size was seen on a piece of ice. At noon we were in lat. 77° 6′, long. 189° 6′. The dip had diminished to 86° 23′; and although the compasses again began to act with more precision, we here observed an unaccountable decrease of variation from 96 E. to 77 E., and then again an increase of sixteen degrees. The observations were numerous and very satisfactory, so that I have no doubt we had passed one of those extraordinary magnetic points first observed during Sir Edward Parry's second voyage[4] to the Arctic Seas, near the eastern entrance of the Hecla and Fury Straits, but either of much less power or at a greater distance. These observations should not be employed in determining the position of the magnetic pole, as they would tend to throw it very considerably to the southward of the truth. At 1 p.m. we sounded in three hundred fathoms; but here there were no bergs in sight even from the mast-head. A strong ice-blink to the eastward led us to expect to find the barrier in that direction, but it proved to be occasioned by a heavy loose pack, which we entered at half-past four o'clock, and penetrated about twelve or thirteen miles, when it became too close for us to venture further. We were at this time in 192° east longitude, when we tacked to get back into the open water; this, however, we found more difficult, for the ice had closed so much since we entered the pack that it was not without receiving many severe blows, and losing some of our copper, as we bored through the heavier streams, that we regained a more open space. A boat was sent after a small seal that was seen asleep on the ice, and brought it on board; it was of the common kind, and very prettily marked with dark spots: its stomach was full of small red shrimps. Several whales were also seen at the edge of the pack: young ice was observed to be forming in every sheltered situation under the lee of the larger pieces of ice, the temperature of the air being 19°. The wind continued too strong from the southward for us to make any way by beating to windward: we therefore stood back to the westward during the night upon nearly the same line as we had sailed during the day, but in the opposite direction.
Feb. 1.A calm of three hours' duration was followed at 9 a. m. by a gentle breeze from the north-westward, which again enabled us to stand towards the barrier. At noon, in lat. 77° 5′ S., long. 188° 27′ E., we obtained soundings in two hundred and fifty fathoms, on soft green mud and small stones. We also found the temperature of the sea at that depth 33° 2′, and at one hundred and fifty fathoms 33°, the surface being 32°; the current was setting to the northward at the rate of three quarters of a mile per hour, its strength being greater no doubt over the shallow bank than in the deeper water. In the evening, whilst running with all studding sails set, the wind suddenly shifted to the southeastward, and the Terror being between two and three miles astern, we shortened sail to wait for her.
During a snow shower of four or five hours' continuance, Feb. 2.and variable winds and squalls, we kept company by firing muskets every quarter of an hour, the ships not being more than an eighth of a mile from each other, but perfectly concealed by fog and snow. These cleared off at 5 a.m., but the whole morning was lost to us by alternate calms and light baffling winds. At noon, in lat. 77° 46′ S., long. 187° E., we got soundings with two hundred and eighty fathoms, greenish mud and clay. The top of the barrier at the time was distinctly visible from the deck, just rising above the horizon. We now made all sail to a light breeze from the north-east directly towards it; the loose ice became closer as we proceeded to the southward, and at a quarter past nine stopped our further progress. We were about ten or twelve miles from the barrier, but the whole of the intervening space was filled with packed heavy ice; we therefore wore round, hove to, and sounded in two hundred and sixty fathoms. I made the signal for Captain Crozier to come on board, who concurring in opinion with me of the utter impracticability of penetrating the dense pack between us and the barrier, I determined to devote a few more days to tracing its extent to the eastward; for although we could not hope to be able to get much further to the southward so late in the season, yet we knew the land-ice must still be clearing away from the shores at the most probable place of our being able to approach most nearly to the magnetic pole. Our dead reckoning since noon placed us in latitude 78° 3′, the Terror's 78° 5′; we therefore assumed 78° 4′ as the true latitude, which proved to be the highest attained this season; the face of the barrier at this part was therefore in 78¼° S.; it was about one hundred and sixty feet high, and extended as far to the east and west as the eye could discern, continuing in one unbroken line from Cape Crozier, a distance of two hundred and fifty miles.
At 10 p.m. we made sail to the northwest, to get clear of the pack, and by midnight were again in open water. I obtained an observation of the sun at 28 minutes after midnight, which gave the latitude 77° 56′ S., agreeing with the reckoning of the preceding and subsequent noon in placing our point of furthest south in latitude 78° 4′; at the same time an observation was made in the Terror, which, also, when reduced back to 
our position at 9.15 p.m., agreed exactly with the former determination.
With a moderate breeze from the north-eastward, Feb. 3.we stood to the N.N.W. to gain an offing, as we were prevented by the pack making any way to the eastward, and the barometer falling gradually seemed to indicate the approach of unfavourable weather. But the wind veering to the southeast in the afternoon, and late in the evening to south, the weather, contrary to our expectations, continued clear, and the breeze freshening we made way to the eastward, having got to the northward of the pack, and having the barrier still in sight to the southward. We passed through several streams of loose ice, and saw a great many whales of small size; several of them marked with large white patches. In the evening a cask was put overboard in lat. 77° S. and long. 187° 24′ E., containing a brief account of our proceedings, and with a request that whoever might find it would forward the paper to the Secretary of the Admiralty. It was my practice to throw a bottle over almost every day containing a paper with our latitude and longitude marked on it, for the purpose of gaining information respecting the joint effects of the prevailing winds and currents in these parts; but amongst ice, and in so turbulent an ocean, I fear but few of them will ever be found to subserve the intended purpose.
The next day we had a strong breeze from the Feb. 4.southward, and pushed our way through loose ice and amongst numerous bergs to the eastward; at noon we were in lat. 77° S., and long. 192° 15′ E., when the ice appearing more open, with smooth water, we began to beat up to the southward to endeavour to close the barrier: many seals and penguins were seen on the ice. At 8 p.m. we had reached lat. 77° 18′ and long. 193°, where we found the ice so close in every direction that we were unable to proceed any further, and were obliged to dodge about in a hole of water two or three miles in diameter to wait for a favourable change. We obtained soundings in two hundred and seventy fathoms, muddy bottom, at four o'clock the next Feb. 5.morning. The ice was so closely packed to the eastward and southward that we could make no way in either direction, so we continued beating about in the small hole of water in which we were shut up by the closing of the ice. We saw several of the large penguins, and three were brought on board: they were very powerful birds, and we had some difficulty in killing them: each of the two larger weighed sixty-six pounds, and the smallest fifty-seven pounds: their flesh is very dark, and of a rank fishy flavour. In the evening we made fast with warps to a heavy floe piece, and employed all hands in collecting ice to replenish our water, which was now getting rather short. Two seals were also captured to furnish us with oil for the winter. We cast off again at 10 p.m., having taken on board a sufficient quantity of ice, and stood out through a narrow opening we had watched forming to the westward. We passed through much closely packed ice to gain the clear water, which was seen from the mast-head early in the morning, and which Feb. 6.we succeeded in accomplishing by noon, in lat. 77° 1′ S., long. 188° 26′ E.; the remainder of the day was spent in beating to the south-west to get away from the pack edge, on which the wind was blowing, and threatening to drive us down upon it.
It moderated during the next morning, and Feb. 7.the wind getting to the westward enabled us to steer a more southerly course amongst loose ice, passing only a few bergs, and occasionally through a sheet of newly-formed ice: it fell calm at midnight, and continued so for several hours.
At 1 a.m. sounded in two hundred and eighty-eight Feb. 8.fathoms, muddy bottom. We passed a berg which had a large rock upon it. At 8 a.m. a steady breeze sprung up from the northward, when we made all sail before it, running along the pack edge in clear water: at noon we were in lat. 77° 39′, and long. 187° 5′ E. After passing through several streams of young ice the barrier was seen right ahead of us at 5 p.m. The main pack now trending more to the south-eastward, we hauled up along its edge, to run between it and the barrier, the whole of the surface of the sea being covered with "pancake" ice. At midnight, when about seven miles from the barrier, we obtained soundings in two hundred and seventy-five fathoms.
The low temperature of the air and the smoothness of the water combined to favour the rapid formation of young ice, which greatly retarded us, and rendered the attainment of our purpose of more than ordinary difficulty; although the heavy pack to the north of us was fast closing the barrier, it was still fourteen or fifteen miles distant, and favoured with a commanding breeze, we stood on between the pack and barrier towards a remarkable looking bay, the only indentation we had perceived throughout its whole extent; and as clear water was observed even to the foot of the barrier, I could not permit myself to relinquish so favourable an opportunity of getting quite close to it, although I must confess the hazard was greater than a due degree of prudence would have ventured to encounter. At 5 40 a.m., being within a quarter of a mile of its Icy Cliffs, we tacked and sounded in three hundred and thirty fathoms, green muddy bottom. We had now a better opportunity of measuring the elevation of this perpendicular barrier, which, far overtopping our mast-heads, of course limited our view to the cliffs themselves, and these we considered to be much lower than at other points of it which we had previously approached: our angles gave them an elevation of one hundred and fifty feet. The bay we had entered was formed by a projecting peninsula of ice, terminated by a cape one hundred and seventy feet high; but at the narrow isthmus which connected it to the great barrier it was not more than fifty feet high, affording us the only opportunity we had of seeing its upper surface from our mast-heads: it appeared to be quite smooth, and conveyed to the mind the idea of an immense plain of frosted silver. Gigantic icicles depended from every projecting point of its perpendicular cliffs, proving that it sometimes thaws, which otherwise we could not have believed; for at a season of the year equivalent to August in England we had the thermometer at 12°, and at noon not rising above 14°; this severity of temperature is remarkable also when compared with our former experience in the northern seas, where from every iceberg you meet with, streams of water are constantly pouring off during the summer.
Young ice formed so quickly in this sheltered position, and the whole space between the barrier and the main pack which was driving down upon us being occupied by pancake ice, we found ourselves in a situation of much difficulty, the ice becoming so thick from being pressed fold over fold, as to render it for some hours a question of doubt whether we should be able to force our way through it to the open water which we could not at this time see from the mast-head; but fortunately for us the breeze maintained sufficient strength to enable us, with the assistance of great exertions of the crews in breaking up the ice before the ships, to regain a clearer space; and then, when we required its aid no longer, the wind came directly against us from the westward, so that had we lingered longer near the barrier, or had the wind shifted half an hour sooner, we should certainly have been frozen up in a most dangerous situation between the barrier and the pack; and had we eventually escaped without more serious consequences, we should at any rate have lost some of the few remaining days of the navigable season. A thick fog which prevailed for several hours added to the embarrassment of our situation, and rendered it the more difficult to keep the ships together, by obliging us to carry more moderate sail whilst amongst so much heavy ice and so many bergs.
At noon we were in lat. 77° 56′ S., long. 190° 15′ E. At 4 p.m. the fog cleared away, and we were again enabled to press all sail on the ships, running to the westward close along the edge of the main pack; the wind freshening from the northward drove it quickly down upon the barrier; and soon the channel by which we had escaped was filled by heavy ice closely pressed together, so that not the smallest hole of water could be seen amongst it. I was most anxious to examine as great an extent of the barrier to the eastward as possible, in order to leave less to be accomplished the following year; but the season was now fast drawing to a close, and the present state of the pack rendered any attempt to penetrate it quite hopeless. I determined, however, to devote two or three days to seeking a passage through it further to the northward, and accordingly the whole of the tenth and eleventh was passed examining the pack edge, but without our being able to get so far to the eastward as we had been on the fourth and fifth by seventy or eighty miles.
Feb. 11.At noon we were in lat. 76° 11′ S., long. 187° 53′ E., and were very much hampered by the newly formed ice, which was so thick, and extended so far from the main pack, as to render our efforts to examine it quite fruitless, and the fatigue and labour excessive. We continued, however, to coast along its western edge seeking for an opening; but the severe cold of the last few days had completely cemented it together, and the thick covering of snow that had fallen had united it, to appearance, into a solid unbroken mass: although we knew quite well that it consisted entirely of loose pieces, through which only a few days before we had sailed upwards of fifty miles, yet we could find no part of it now in which we could have forced the ships their own length.
We had further evidence of the approach of winter in the very great thickness of young ice we had to pass through as we ran along the pack edge, in many places between three and four inches thick, and entirely covering the surface of the sea for many miles around us: had we not been favoured with a strong breeze of very precarious duration, which enabled us to force our ships through it, we should certainly have been frozen in; and I could not but feel that the object we were pursuing was by no means of sufficient importance to justify the hazard of thus sacrificing the accomplishment of far more important purposes.
In the afternoon, whilst running before this favouring breeze, the main pack was reported in every direction of us except directly to windward; and we soon found that during the thick weather we had run down into a deep bight of it. The ships were instantly hauled to the wind, and it was with the greatest difficulty they were extricated from their dangerous situation before the wind increased to a violent gale that reduced us before midnight to a close-reefed main-topsail and storm stay-sails, under which we barely weathered a great number of very large bergs clustered together under our lee, and most probably aground; but we could not venture to try for soundings, being uncertain whether we might not be driven down amongst them: it was no doubt this chain of bergs that had arrested the main pack in its northerly course and spread it out so far to the westward. One of the bergs was nearly four miles long, though not more than one hundred and fifty feet high. For some hours we were in a state of considerable anxiety, not knowing how far to the westward the chain of bergs might extend, the thick falling snow preventing our seeing to any distance before us; the waves, as they broke over the ships, froze as they fell on the decks and rigging, and covered our clothes with a thick coating of ice, so that our people suffered severely during the continuance of the gale. We passed many bergs and loose pieces of ice during the early part of the next day, and were frequently obliged to Feb. 13.bear away to clear them. In the afternoon the storm began to abate, and on the weather clearing up for a short time, we found ourselves in a more open space.
I now became convinced of the necessity of at once relinquishing any attempt to penetrate to the eastward, and of deferring the further examination of the barrier to the following season; and the wind having shifted to the eastward, we bore away before it for the purpose of making another attempt to reach the magnetic pole, and of seeking a harbour in its vicinity in which we might pass the winter.
Thick fog and constant snow, which prevailed during the remainder of this and greater part of the following day, obliged us to run under moderate sail, to prevent the ships separating, and to be in readiness to avoid any danger that might suddenly arise; we, however, were in a perfectly clear Feb. 14sea, not a single piece of ice to be seen during the whole time, and the temperature of the air had risen to the freezing point.
At noon we were in lat. 76° 22′ S., long. 178° 16′ E.; the dip had again increased to 87° as we approached the pole, now distant from us about three hundred and sixty miles, and the variation being 91°, showed us we were very nearly in its latitude: we continued, therefore, to steer direct south by compass. The mildness of the day, notwithstanding the constant snow, was much enjoyed by us, as it allowed us to open the hatches, which had been closely battened down during the late gale of three days' continuance. The condensation of vapour between decks had been so great as to run down the ship's sides in small streams. I therefore directed the warm-air stove to be put into operation, which speedily and effectually removed every appearance of damp, driving the vapours up the hatchways, and circulating in its place a dry, pure air. The admirable performance of this most invaluable invention of Mr. Sylvester cannot be mentioned in adequate terms of praise.
Towards evening the swell had greatly subsided, but there was still a strong wind blowing, and the snow falling so thick, that we could seldom see a mile before us: running down upon a lee shore under such circumstances was a measure of some anxiety, but the barometer was rising fast from its very low state, and promised an improvement of the weather.
We were still a hundred miles from Franklin Island, for which we were steering, and I was unwilling to lose the advantage of the favourable breeze, even at some degree of hazard; for I felt we had but a few days to do much that we still hoped to accomplish.
On the 27th of January we had not been able to approach the pole nearer than about eighty leagues, but during the time we had spent in examining the barrier, a period of nearly three weeks, we could not but hope that so much more of the land ice would have broken away as to admit of our getting very close to, perhaps even complete the attainment of the pole.
The wind veered to the southward, and the snow ceased; several pieces of ice with rock on them were passed, and at 11 a.m. Franklin Island was Feb. 15.seen at a distance of seven leagues ahead of us. We ran to leeward of it at 3 p.m., and when five miles N.N.W. from it we sounded in fifty fathoms, rocky bottom. Some streams of ice appearing soon afterwards, we hauled more to the southward to avoid them; and as we closed the main land we got in amongst a great quantity of brash ice of a brownish yellow colour; some of it was collected and placed under a powerful microscope, but we were unable to ascertain the true nature of the colouring matter[5]; by most of us it was believed to be the fine ashes from Mount Erebus, not more than eighty miles south of us.
At 11 p.m., being nearly calm, we sounded in three hundred and eighty fathoms, greenish-coloured mud and clay: Beaufort Island at the time bearing true south.
The wind was so light and variable, and the sludge and pancake ice so thick, we could scarcely get the ships through it. Mount Erebus was seen at 2 30 a.m., and the weather becoming very clear, Feb. 16.we had a splendid view of the whole line of coast, to all appearance connecting it with the main land, which we had not before suspected to be the case. A very deep bight was observed to extend far to the south-west from Cape Bird, in which a line of low land might be seen; but its determination was too uncertain to be left unexplored; and as the wind, blowing feebly from the west, prevented our making any way in that direction through the young ice that now covered the surface of the ocean in every part, as far as we could see from the mast-head, I determined to steer towards the bight, to give it a closer examination, and to learn with more certainty its continuity or otherwise. At noon we were in lat. 76° 32′ S., long. 166° 12′ E., dip 88° 24′, and variation 107° 18′ E.
During the afternoon we were nearly becalmed, and witnessed some magnificent eruptions of Mount Erebus, the flame and smoke being projected to a great height; but we could not, as on a former occasion, discover any lava issuing from the crater; although the exhibitions of to-day were upon a much grander scale.
A great number of whales of two different kinds were seen, the larger kind having an extremely long, erect back-fin, whilst that of the smaller species was scarcely discernible. The Skua gull, white petrel, penguins, and seals were also about us in considerable numbers.
Feb. 17.At 10 p.m. we sounded in three hundred and sixty fathoms, green mud. Soon after midnight a breeze sprang up from the eastward, and we made all sail to the southward until 4 a.m., although we had an hour before distinctly traced the land entirely round the bay connecting Mount Erebus with the main land. I named it McMurdo Bay, after the senior Lieutenant of the Terror, a compliment that his zeal and skill well merited. The wind having shifted to the southward enabled us to resume our endeavours to approach the magnetic pole, and we accordingly stood away to the northwest, sailing through quantities of tough newly formed ice perfectly covered with the colouring matter I have before noticed. When the melted ice was filtered through bibulous paper, it left a very thin sediment, which on being dried became an impalpable powder, seeming to confirm our belief of its volcanic origin.
At 2 p.m. we had penetrated the pack so far as to have got within ten or twelve miles of the low coast line, when our further progress was stopped by heavy closely packed ice. To the north-westward we observed a low point of land with a small islet off it, which we hoped might afford us a place of refuge during the winter, and accordingly endeavoured to struggle through the ice towards it, until 4 p.m., when the utter hopelessness of being able to approach it was manifest to all; the space of fifteen or sixteen miles between it and the ships being now filled by a solid mass of land ice. We therefore wore round and hove to for Commander Crozier to come on board; and as he quite concurred with me in thinking it impossible to get any nearer to the pole, I determined at once to relinquish the attempt, as we could not hope at so late a period of the season that any more of the land ice would break away. The cape with the islet off it was named after Professor Gauss, the great mathematician of Göttingen, who has done more than any other philosopher of the present day to advance the science of terrestrial magnetism.
We were at this time in latitude 76° 12′ S., longitude 164° E.; the magnetic dip 88° 40′, and the variation 109° 24′ E. We were therefore only one hundred and sixty miles from the pole.[6]
Had it been possible to have found a place of security upon any part of this coast where we might have wintered, in sight of the brilliant burning mountain, and at so short a distance from the magnetic pole, both of those interesting spots might easily have been reached by travelling parties in the following spring; but all our efforts to effect that object proved quite unsuccessful; and although our hopes of complete attainment were not realised, yet it was some satisfaction to know that we had approached the pole some hundreds of miles nearer than any of our predecessors; and from the multitude of observations that were made in so many different directions from it, its position may be determined with nearly as much accuracy as if we had actually reached the spot itself.
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 compelled to abandon the perhaps too ambitious hope I had so long cherished of being permitted to plant the flag of my country on both the magnetic poles[7] of our globe; but the obstacles which presented themselves being of so insurmountable a character was some degree of consolation, as it left us no grounds for self-reproach, and as we bowed in humble acquiescence to the will of Him who had so defined the boundary of our researches, with grateful hearts we offered up our thanksgivings for the large measure of success which he had permitted to reward our exertions. Some amongst us even still indulged a feeble hope, that to the westward of the Admiralty Mountains, which we knew trended so suddenly to the westward, we might find the coast there turn to the southward, and by following it we might yet approach the pole more nearly; but we could not conceal from ourselves that from the late period of the season and the early setting in of the winter, we were in this case hoping against hope.
The range of mountains in the extreme west, which, if they be of an equal elevation with Mount Erebus, were not less than fifty leagues distant, and therefore undoubtedly the seat of the southern magnetic pole, was distinguished by the name of His Royal Highness Prince Albert, who had been graciously pleased to express a warm interest in the success of our expedition.
The whole of the great southern land we had discovered, and whose continuity we had traced from the seventieth to the seventy-ninth degree of latitude, received the name of our Most Gracious Sovereign Queen Victoria, as being the earliest and most remote southern discovery since Her Majesty's accession to the throne.
As soon as we had completed all the necessary observations at this interesting spot, we commenced the laborious work of retracing our way through the pack to the eastward; but the young ice had so greatly increased in thickness, that this was a measure of great difficulty, and for a long time we had great doubts whether it would not prove too strong for us, and that in spite of our utmost exertions we might be frozen fast; for when we got clear of the heavy pack, the whole surface of the sea presented to our view one continuous sheet of ice, through which, when the breeze freshened up, we made some way, but were sometimes more than an hour getting a few yards; the boats were lowered down, and hauled out upon each bow, and breaking up the young ice by rolling them, we found the most effectual means; for although it was sufficiently strong to prevent our ships sailing through it, yet it was not strong enough to bear the weight of a party of men to cut a passage with saws. The whole night was passed in this fatiguing work, and it was not until ten o'clock the next morning that we regained the clear water, and were enabled to bear away to the northward.
Notwithstanding my anxious wish to keep close along the shore, that we might complete the examination of that portion of the land which we had but imperfectly seen on our way to the southward, yet we were obliged to stand off so far to the eastward to prevent getting entangled in the ice, and the weather not proving favourable for our purpose, we found it impossible to distinguish the coast line between Cape Gauss and a fine headland to the south of Mount Melbourne, which I called Cape Washington after my friend and brother officer of that name, for several years the able Secretary of the Royal Geographical Society, and a zealous promoter of geographical research. The continuity of the land and its leading features were however clearly ascertained: it is of less elevation than any other part of Victoria Land, and the mountainous ridges appeared to recede much farther from the coast. An island or a large berg with much earth and rocks upon it, which was passed in the afternoon, is marked on the chart "Doubtful Island," as it was quite impossible to know which it really was. Several stars were observed about midnight, the first we had seen since entering the pack, and warning us of the approach of the winter.
Feb. 19.Mount Erebus was in sight until 3 30 a.m. at a distance of fifty leagues, and would probably have been seen at a greater distance had not some clouds passed over it at that time.
At noon we were in lat. 75° 3′ S. long., 168° 40′ E., Cape Washington and Mount Melbourne bearing (true) N.W. by W. In the afternoon we got much closer to the shore, and observed a deep bay formed between Cape Washington and another fine bold cape, which I named Cape Johnson, after Captain Edward John Johnson of the Royal Navy. The bay between Cape Johnson and Cape Washington was called Wood's Bay, after the third lieutenant of the Erebus, whilst the north extreme cape received that of the second lieutenant, now Commander John Sibbald. Late in the evening we observed the land ice extending from Cape Sibbald to the north extreme of Coulman Island, which obliged us to stand out to the north-east to clear it; at the same time some islets were seen that had not before been noticed, to which I applied the name of Lieutenant Kay, director of the Rossbank observatory at Van Diemen's Land, and third lieutenant of the Terror.
Feb. 20.Soon after midnight the breeze freshened to a gale. As we stood out of the bight to the eastward, we passed through a great quantity of newly formed ice, and amongst heavy pieces of pack ice; and it was not until 9 a.m. we got clear of it, when having rounded Cape Anne, at a few miles' distance, we again bore away before the gale under close-reefed topsails and reefed foresail. At noon we were in lat. 73° 10′ S., and long. 171° 26′ E., and nearly abreast of a high cape, the projecting base of Mount Lubbock, which I named Cape Jones, after my friend Captain William Jones of the Royal Navy. Cape Phillips, at the foot of Mount Brewster, was named after Lieutenant Charles Gerrans Phillips; and I had much satisfaction in now bestowing the names of the other officers of the expedition, by whose exertions these discoveries were made, upon the several capes and inlets we passed in our run close along the land to the northward. Much haze in the afternoon concealed the tops of the mountains, but the line of coast, with whose features we had become so familiar whilst contending against the southern gales we experienced in January, was very plainly in sight. Tucker Inlet was named after the master of the Erebus, as was Cape Cotter after that officer of the Terror; Cape Hallett after the purser of the Erebus, and Moubray Bay after the clerk in charge of the Terror; Cape McCormick, abreast of Possession Island, after the surgeon of the Erebus, and Robertson Bay, between Cape Adare and Cape Wood, after Dr. Robertson of the Terror.
I was desirous of making another attempt to land on the coast near Cape Adare, and with that object in view we stood towards the cape early the next morning, passing through many streams Feb. 21.of loose ice, until we at length came to a solid pack extending eight or nine miles from the shore, and so cemented together by the late severe frosts as to defy every attempt to penetrate it. We therefore steered to the north-west, keeping as close to the shore as the pack and heavy streams that lay off it would permit. Smith Inlet, Cape Oakeley, and Cape Dayman, were named after the three mates of the Erebus: Cape Scott and Cape Moore after those of the Terror: Cape Davis and Yule Bay after the second masters; and Cape Hooker and Lyall Islets after the assistant surgeons. Beyond Cape Davis the northern extreme of land appeared; it was called Cape North. A low point, with three projecting knobs like the tops of mountains, was observed at a great distance beyond Cape North, whence the land trends considerably to the southward of west; but a dense body of ice interposed between us, and prevented our following the coast any further; and as the night was getting very dark, and we were surrounded by numerous icebergs, at 9 p.m. we hauled off to the eastward on the starboard tack, to wait for daylight, to renew our operations: hopeless as they at that time appeared to be, they were not the less necessary.
Feb. 22.Early next morning we wore round and stood towards the land, in order to examine more narrowly whether any way might be made along the coast to the westward between it and the pack. I was also very anxious to find a place of security for the ships, where observations on the approaching term-day might be made, and in which we might pass the winter in safety, for although wintering in so low a latitude could be of no advantage to our next season's work, yet the meteorological, magnetical, and other observations in such a situation could not fail to afford much valuable and interesting information. But here, as on the eastern coast of Victoria Land, as far as we had traced it, we found the indentations of the coast completely filled with solid ice of many hundred feet in thickness. Smith Inlet and Yule Bay appeared two more promising places until we got close to them, when we found them equally impracticable as all the other places we had examined. The line of coast here presented perpendicular icy cliffs varying from two to five hundred feet high, and a chain of grounded bergs extended some miles from the cliffs: they were all of the tabular form, and of every size, from one mile to nine or ten in circumference.
Soon after 6 a.m., when within half a mile of this chain of bergs, the weather came so thick, with heavy snow, and the wind failing us, Lieutenant Bird, whom I had left in charge of the conduct of the ship, being myself unable to remain on deck any longer from excessive fatigue, very judiciously recommended that we should stand off again until more favourable weather for our purpose should arrive; fortunately we did so, and had gained an offing of six or seven miles, when it fell perfectly calm, and the ships were left entirely at the mercy of a heavy swell from the S.E.
At noon we were in lat. 70° 27′ S., and long. 167° 32′ E., and about this time the snow cleared off for two hours, so as to give us a view of a fine range of mountains whose summits we had not before seen; the loftiest of the range I called Mount Elliot after Rear Admiral the Honourable George Elliot, C. B., Commander-in-Chief in the Cape of Good Hope station, whose great kindness to us, and warm interest he took in our enterprize I have already had occasion to mention.
A breeze from the north-east at 6 p.m. enabled us to stand out of a deep bight of the pack into which the swell had driven us; and the barometer standing at 28.5 inches, we could not but expect a storm and dirty weather: I was therefore glad to get some distance to the S.E. before it came on. At noon it shifted to the east, and we tacked to the N.N.E. for the night, expecting it would blow hard from the quarter in which the wind seemed now to have settled, which made us the more anxious to get as clear of bergs and as far from the pack as possible; but, contrary to our expectations, after blowing only a strong breeze for a few hours, it again declined to a light air, which after midnight was attended with thick weather and snow showers, rendering our course amongst the bergs and heavy loose ice somewhat difficult and hazardous, and requiring the utmost vigilance of the officers and crew.
Feb. 23.The uncertain state of the weather, the light and variable winds, and thick falling snow defeated my intentions of examination, and compelled us to keep off to the eastward the whole day, although we occasionally got glimpses of the land between the snow showers.
About noon it fell perfectly calm; we were fortunate in being in a space less encumbered by ice than usual. Commander Crozier took advantage of the opportunity of increasing his supply of fresh water by collecting some of the fragments of bergs about us, not without great hazard to their boats, during so much swell, but fortunately without any serious accident. We sounded in one hundred and eighty fathoms, in greenish clay and coral; we inferred from the shallowness of the water that all the bergs in sight were aground, as none of them were less than one hundred and sixty feet high.
Early in the morning a steady breeze blew from Feb. 24.the westward, which increased so much in strength as it veered to the north-west at noon, as to reduce us to treble-reefed topsails, reefed foresail, and staysails: we had been endeavouring all the day to close the land, and at 4 p.m., when preparing to run to leeward of what we considered to be a monstrous iceberg, it became evident to us that it formed a part of a body of ice which we could distinctly trace as a continuous mass descending from near the tops of the mountains several miles into the sea, and terminated by stupendous cliffs; a deep bay was formed in these extraordinary cliffs into which we were standing, and which we could perceive was bounded by cliffs of a similar character; but it came on to blow a gale of wind by the time we had got within a mile of the southeast Cape of the Bay; and as we were quite near enough to see that there could be no place in it that would suit our purpose, we wore round and stood away from this dangerous coast for the night.
We had a very good view of Cape North whilst close in with the icy cliffs, and observed that a high wall of ice, of a similar character to that which extends from Cape Crozier, forming the great barrier of 78° ¼ S., and which prevented our further progress to the southward, stretched away to the westward from the Cape, as far as we could see from the mast-head, and probably formed a coast line of considerable extent; a close, compact, impenetrable body of ice occupied the whole space to the northward and westward.
Our magnetic observations here were of very great interest, showing an extraordinary change in the variation from 114° W. to 40° W., amounting to no less than 74° in a space of about three hundred and sixty miles; the dip had also diminished, as might have been expected, to 86°.
Feb. 25.Still blowing hard from the westward. We wore before daylight, and stood towards the ice, to continue the examination of it; in a few hours we got close up to the pack edge, which filled the whole space between us and the wall of ice projecting to the westward from Cape North, and without the appearance of any water amongst it, so firmly was it packed together: from this position several small islands appeared to the right of Cape North, which will probably prove to be the tops of mountains connected with it, but from their great distance we could not ascertain their continuity, nor could we get any nearer to them owing to the solid intervening pack.
We had in the afternoon a good view of the coast. The whole of the land being perfectly free from cloud or haze, the lofty range of mountains appeared projected upon the clear sky beyond them beautifully defined; and although of a spotless white, without the smallest patch of exposed rock throughout its whole extent to relieve it, yet the irregularities of the surface, the numerous conical protuberances and inferior eminences, and the deeply marked valleys, occasioned many varieties of light and shade that destroyed the monotonous glare of a perfectly white surface, but to which it is so very difficult to give expression either by the pencil or description. It was a most interesting scene to us, as it was truly the best view we had of the northern shore and mountains of Victoria Land, and of which the western extremity was by no means the least remarkable feature.
The prospect now before us, and the but too evident approach of winter, impressed upon my mind the necessity of abandoning any further attempt to penetrate to the westward, and as there was no measure left untried to find a harbour to winter in without success, I determined to make the best of our way to the northward in search of any lands that might lie between Cape North of Victoria Land and Balleny Islands, as it was most important to ascertain whether these were connected, and how far the space between them might be navigable. And although I could not but feel how great was the hazard of detaining the ships any longer in these dangerous regions, and how great must be the anxiety of those upon whom the care of the ships devolved during the long dark nights that prevailed, and the difficulty we might experience in recrossing the pack of two hundred miles in breadth, which we had passed through near the antarctic circle; yet I considered the object to be accomplished of sufficient importance to justify some further degree of risk, and had some hopes that we might find the pack had driven so far to the northward as to leave us a clear passage between it and the easternmost point of the American discoveries.
In pursuance of this determination we made all sail, beating to the N.W., close along the edge of the main pack, until late in the evening, when the wind shifted to the south, and increased so suddenly, that before midnight it blew a violent storm; to prevent passing any land in the night, as well as on account of the great danger of running during the gale, we rounded the ships to on the starboard tack under close-reefed topsails. The gale was, however, of only a few hours' duration, but at daylight the fog and snow were so thick Feb. 26.that we could not see beyond a mile at any time, which, together with the very light and variable winds and occasional calms, effectually prevented our making any progress during the day, which closed in upon us during a perfect calm; the heavy swell, and unceasing heavy snow, rendered the darkness of the night so much more perplexing, and our situation most anxious, as we could not tell one minute what might happen the next. An easterly breeze succeeded, and the snow ceased, so that at daylight the next morning we made sail Feb. 27.to the northward, just able to fetch along the edge of the main pack under our lee: at noon we were lat. 67° 27′ S., long. 167° 49′ E., and here we tried for but did not obtain soundings with two hundred and ten fathoms of line: the light easterly winds, which had prevailed for some hours, was followed by a strong breeze from W.N.W., which freshened up to a gale before dark, and continued to blow with great force throughout the night; these sudden changes of wind, and frequent alternations of gales and calms, occasion the navigation of these regions so late in the season to be a cause of continual anxiety of mind: attended, as they almost invariably are, by thick weather, constant snow showers, and a heavy swell, it is difficult to say whether the gales or the calms are the more embarrassing and dangerous. In the calms it is true you are less likely to meet with dangers, on account of passing over less space during their continuance, but in the event of drifting down upon the pack or a chain of bergs, you are left totally at the mercy of the waves, the high sea generally preventing the use of boats to tow you clear of them, and defeating every effort to take advantage of any feeble air of wind that in smooth water might prove effectual; and it is this constant heavy swell that renders the navigation of the antarctic seas so much more hazardous than that of the arctic ocean.
Feb. 28.At daylight we wore and stood towards the pack; the land was reported at 6 20 a.m., the same abrupt western termination we had before seen, and the pack soon afterwards appeared. We were close in with the edge of it by noon in lat. 69° 57′ S. and long. 167° 5′ E., when it appeared from the northward one unbroken mass of ice with many large bergs amongst it, and so firmly cemented together by the late severe cold, (the thermometer during the night having been down to 14°, and at noon only reached 22°,) that not the smallest hole of water could be perceived amongst it: we therefore wore round and stood to the northward; and as we ran close along the pack edge we passed through several long streams of young ice, which being broken up the heavy swell offered but little obstruction to our progress; whales were seen in great numbers coming out from under the ice to "blow," and then returning under it again to feed or for protection. At six o'clock in the evening we got the last glimpse of Victoria Land; Mount Elliot could be discerned dimly through the mist at a distance of seventy miles; it was blowing a strong gale at the time, but we continued our course until midnight, having seen far enough a-head before dark to ensure not running into danger. At 11 30 p.m. we saw for the first time the Aurora Australis bearing (magnetic) west. It consisted of two segments of a broken arch, at an altitude of 15°, from which bright coruscations shot upwards to the altitude of about 60°; the upper points of these rays were more beautifully attenuated than I ever remember to have seen those of the Aurora Borealis: the vertical beams had much lateral motion, and frequently disappeared and reappeared in a few seconds of time: we could not perceive any exhibitions of colour.
ABSTRACT OF THE METEOROLOGICAL JOURNAL KEPT ON BOARD HER MAJESTY'S SHIP EREBUS.—FEBRUARY, 1841.
| Day. | Position at Noon. | Temperature of the Air in Shade. |
Mean Tempera- ture of Sea at Surface. |
Temp. at 9 a.m. | ||||
| Lat. S. | Long. E. | Max. | Min. | Mean. | Air. | Dew point. | ||
| ° | ° | ° | ° | |||||
| 1 | 77.06 | 188.27 | 34 | 19.5 | 27.0 | 30.7 | 28 | 21 |
| 2 | 77.45 | 187.00 | 32 | 24.5 | 28.2 | 30.2 | 31 | 24 |
| 3 | 77.17 | 185.28 | 29 | 23 | 25.4 | 30.2 | 26 | 22 |
| 4 | 77.00 | 192.18 | 23.5 | 15 | 20.7 | 28.7 | 23 | 22 |
| 5 | 77.11 | 192.48 | 16.7 | 13 | 15.1 | 28.7 | 16 | 15 |
| 6 | 77.01 | 188.26 | 23 | 14 | 18.7 | 28.8 | 17 | 15 |
| 7 | 77.01 | 186.35 | 29 | 19 | 24.6 | 29.2 | 27 | 18 |
| 8 | 77.39 | 187.05 | 32 | 23 | 26.4 | 29.2 | 29 | 24 |
| 9 | 77.56 | 190.15 | 28 | 16 | 21.0 | 28.9 | 28 | 22 |
| 10 | 77.32 | 186.38 | 27 | 19.5 | 22.6 | 28.5 | 25 | 20 |
| 11 | 76.11 | 187.53 | 22 | 18 | 19.9 | 28.7 | 20 | 16 |
| 12 | 76.51 | 184.56 | 26 | 20.5 | 23.6 | 29.0 | 24 | 24 |
| 13 | 76.54 | 183.16 | 31 | 26 | 29.6 | 30.5 | 31 | 31 |
| 14 | 76.23 | 178.15 | 33 | 29 | 30.2 | 30.2 | 30 | 30* |
| 15 | 76.03 | 170.15 | 29 | 26 | 27.2 | 28.6 | 28 | 28 |
| 16 | 76.32 | 166.12 | 32 | 26 | 28.0 | 28.8 | 29 | 28 |
| 17 | 76.35 | 165.21 | 29.5 | 25.5 | 27.5 | 28.9 | 29 | 24 |
| 18 | 76.06 | 166.11 | 30 | 21.5 | 26.2 | 28.9 | 28 | 23 |
| 19 | 75.03 | 168.45 | 27 | 21 | 23.9 | 28.9 | 26 | 25 |
| 20 | 73.10 | 171.26 | 24 | 21 | 22.2 | 29.1 | 22 | 19 |
| 21 | 71.05 | 169.58 | 26 | 23 | 24.7 | 29.4 | 25 | 18 |
| 22 | 70.27 | 166.40 | 26 | 22.5 | 24.1 | 29.0 | 24 | 24* |
| 23 | 70.17 | 167.32 | 24.5 | 22 | 23.3 | 28.9 | 23 | 23* |
| 24 | 70.15 | 167.35 | 27.5 | 20.2 | 24.6 | 29.0 | 27 | 27 |
| 25 | 70.06 | 167.27 | 25 | 19 | 21.3 | 28.9 | 22 | 19 |
| 26 | 69.52 | 167.53 | 31 | 23 | 29.0 | 29.4 | 30 | 30* |
| 27 | 69.24 | 167.55 | 29 | 16 | 24.8 | 28.9 | 28 | 28 |
| 28 | 69.57 | 167.05 | 26 | 14 | 20.2 | 28.9 | 21 | 29 |
| 34 | 13 | 24.28 | 29.18 | |||||
* Snow falling.
ABSTRACT OF THE METEOROLOGICAL JOURNAL KEPT ON BOARD HER MAJESTY'S SHIP EREBUS.—FEBRUARY, 1841.
| Day. | Barometer. | Winds. | Weather. | |||||||
| Max. | Min. | Mean. | Deflection | Force. | ||||||
| 1 | 29.088 | 29.025 | 29.069 | S.Westerly | 2 | 5 b.c.g.* | ||||
| 2 | .260 | .095 | .201 | Northerly | 2 | a.m. 2 b.c.p.s. p.m. 3 b.c. | ||||
| 3 | .232 | 28.888 | .059 | a.m. N.W. p.m. N.E. |
3 | 0 g. | ||||
| 4 | 28.900 | .832 | 28.859 | E.S.E. | 4 | a.m. 0 g.p.s. p.m. 4 b.c. | ||||
| 5 | .912 | .869 | .898 | S.E. | 3 | a.m. 3 b.c.m. p.m. 1 b.c.g.p.s. | ||||
| 6 | 29.076 | .879 | .899 | S.E. | 4 | 5 b.c. | ||||
| 7 | .245 | 29.077 | 29.184 | S.S.E. | 3 | 4 b.c.g. | ||||
| 8 | .263 | .232 | .247 | a.m. N.Ely. p.m.N.Wly. |
2 | a.m. 3 b.c.p.s. p.m. 5 b.c. | ||||
| 9 | .293 | .264 | .278 | a.m. Westerly p.m. N.E. |
2 | 3 b.c.m. | ||||
| 10 | .458 | .259 | .340 | N.N.E. | 2 | a.m. 5 b.c.g. p.m. 1 b.c.o.g. | ||||
| 11 | .508 | .146 | .393 | N.N.E. | 5 | a.m. 2 b.c.p.s. p.m. 0 g.q.p.s. | ||||
| 12 | .125 | 28.577 | 28.867 | N.E. | a.m. 7 p.m. 5 |
0 m.q.s. | ||||
| 13 | 28.534 | .284 | .372 | E.N.E. | a.m. 7 p.m. 5 |
0 m.q.s. | ||||
| 14 | .847 | .403 | .636 | N.N.E. | 3 | 0 m.p.s. | ||||
| 15 | 29.171 | .852 | 29.013 | East | a.m. 5 p.m. 3 |
0 g. 0 g.p.s. | ||||
| 16 | .210 | 29.151 | .178 | S.Westerly | 1 | 3 b.c.g. | ||||
| 17 | .172 | .054 | .106 | a.m. Westerly p.m. East |
2 3 |
2 b.c.g. 5 b.c. | ||||
| 18 | .048 | 28.907 | .008 | S. Easterly | 2 | 4 b.c.g. | ||||
| 19 | .014 | .841 | 28.949 | a.m. Southerly p.m. East |
4 | 3 b.c.g. | ||||
| 20 | .051 | .816 | .910 | S.S.E. | 5 | a.m. 1 b.c.g. p.m. 4 b.c.q. | ||||
| 21 | .067 | .670 | .924 | East | 4 | 0 g. | ||||
| 22 | 28.646 | .478 | .531 | a.m. East p.m. North |
2 | 0 g.s. | ||||
| 23 | .753 | .563 | .681 | Northerly | 2 | 0 g.s. | ||||
| 24 | .667 | .558 | .605 | W.S.W. | a.m. 4 p.m. 6 |
0 g. 5 b.c.g. | ||||
| 25 | .777 | .589 | .668 | W. by S. | a.m. 6 p.m. 3 |
4 b.c.q. 2 b.c.g. | ||||
| 26 | .613 | .487 | .552 | N.W. by N. | 2 | 0 m.s. | ||||
| 27 | .819 | .568 | .704 | a.m. E. by N. p.m. W. by S. |
4 | a.m. 0 m.p.s. p.m. 2 b.c.q.g. | ||||
| 28 | .962 | .680 | .820 | S.W. | 6 | 5 b.c.q.v. | ||||
| 29.508 | 28.284 | 28.9268 | 3.39 | |||||||
* For the explanation of these symbols, see the Appendix.
- ↑ Parry's Polar Voyage, p. 121.
- ↑ Current S. by E. twelve miles per diem.
- ↑ After an absence now of nearly three months from Van Diemen's Land, the chronometers of the two ships were found to differ only 4″ of time, equal to a mile of longitude, or in this latitude less than a quarter of a mile of distance; a sufficient proof of the excellence of the instruments with which we were furnished:—the agreement of the barometers was perfect.
- ↑ See p. 297.
- ↑ See M. Ehrenberg's account of the minute forms of organic life of which this substance is composed, in the Appendix.
- ↑ Professor Barlow's formula, tan δ = 2 tan λ, has been employed in this deduction; but as all the magnetic observations made on board both our ships are published in the second part of the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society for 1843, those who desire to use any other mode of computing the place of the pole will there find ample materials.
- ↑ For some remarks relating to the discovery of the north magnetic pole, see the Appendix to the second volume.