to“
! I k
M
m e n tio n e d as illu s tra tiv e o f th e mild n e ss o f th e c lim a te , n o tw ith s
tan d in g th e low n e ss o f th e tem p e ra tu re . O n e is th e com p a ra tiv e
w a rm th o f th e sea n e a r its su rfa c e, b e tw e e n w h ic h a n d th e a ir, I
h a v e in th e m o n th o f J u n e , th e m id d le o f th e w in te r season,
o bserved a difference o f 30°, u p o n w h ic h occasion th e sea was
co v e red w ith a c lo u d o f steam. T h e o th e r is, th a t p a rro ts a n d
h um m in g -b ird s , g e n e ra lly th e in h a b ita n ts o f w a rm re g io n s , a re
v e ry n um e ro u s in th e so u th e rn a n d w e s te rn p a rts o f th e S tr a it—
th e fo rm e r fe ed in g u p o n th e seeds o f th e W in te r ’s b a rk , a n d th e
la tte r h a v in g b e en seen b y u s c h irp in g a n d s ip p in g th e sweets o f
tb e F u c h s ia a n d o th e r flowers, a fte r tw o o r th re e d ay s o f cons
ta n t ra in , snow, a n d sleet, d u r in g rvhich th e th e rm om e te r h a d
b e e n a t fr e e z in g p o in t. W e saw th em also in th e m o n th o f M ay
u p o n th e w in g , d u r in g a snow sh ow e r : a n d th e y a re fo u n d in all
p a r ts o f th e s o u th -w e s t a n d w e st coasts as f a r as Valparaiso. I
h a v e since b e e n in fo rm e d th a t th is species is also a n in h a b ita n t o f
P e r u ; so th a t i t h a s a ra n g e o f m o re th a n 4 1 ° o f la titu d e , th e
s o u th e rn lim it b e in g 53 J ° so u th .*
T ie r r a d e l F u e g o is d iv id e d b y several c h a n n e ls ; a p rin c ip a l
one o f w h ic h is o p p o s ite to C ap e F row a rd , a n d an o th e r fro n ts
P o r t G a llan t. T h e e a ste rnm o st, c alled M a g d a le n , tre n d s in a d u e
s o u th d ire c tio n fo r n in e te en miles, a n d sep a ra te s th e c lay slate
from th e m o re c ry s ta llin e ro ck s, w h ic h seem to p re d om in a te in
C la ren ce Is la n d , a n d a re chiefly o f g r e e n s to n e ; th o u g h , a t th e
e a s te rn en d , th e r e is m u c h m ic a slate. A t th e b o ttom o f M a g d
a len S o u n d th e c h an n e l tm-ns sh a rp ly to th e w e s tw a rd ; a n d
a fte r a co u rse o f a b o u t fo r ty miles, meets th e B a rb a r a Channel!
w h ic h , as ab o v e-m en tio n ed , com m u n ic ates w ith th e S tr a it o p p o site
to P o r t G a llan t, a n d b o th fa ll in to th e sea to g e th e r. M ag d a le n
S o u n d a n d its c o n tin u a tio n , C o c k b u rn C h an n e l, a re a lm o s t fre e
from islan d s a n d r o c k s ; b u t th e B a rb a r a C h an n e l, w h ic h sep a ra te s
• This bird, although not rare in several English collections had never
been noticed until I forwarded it to England in the early p a rt o f the
year 1827, when my friend ,Mr. Vigors described it in the Zoological
Journa l for the month o f November 1827 (vol. iii. p. 432), under the
name of Mellisuga Kingii. Shortly afterwards, M. Lesson published it
in his Manuel d’Ornithologie (vol. ii. p. 80), as Ornismya sephaniodes, as
a discovery belonging to the Coquille’s voyage, in the illustrations of
which it is figured a t plate 3 ].
th e g ra n ite from th e g re e n s to n e a n d m ica slate d is tric ts , is tln o u g h -
o u t th ic k ly s trew e d w ith is lan d s, w h ic h r e d u c e th e c h an n e l m
some p a r ts to a m ile , a n d , in one p la c e, to n o t m o re th a n h tty
y a rd s in w id th . H e r e , o f course, th e tid e sets w ith g re a t s tre n g th .
S e v e ra l vessels, h ow e v e r, h a v e p a ss e d th ro u g h i t u n d e r s a d ; a n d
one ship, a w h a le r b e lo n g in g to M essrs. E n d e rb y , w o rk in g th ro n g
th e S tr a it, a n d fin d in g m u c h difficulty in p a s s in g to th e w e stw a rd ,
b o re u p , an d , th e w in d b e in g fa ir a n d th e d is tan c e to sea only h tty
miles, r a n th ro u g h i t w ith o u t a cc id en t. T h e la n d to th e w e stw a r
o f th e B a rb a ra C h an n e l is h ig h a n d r u g g e d ; a n d a lth o u g h m th e
vallies, rav in e s, an d s h e lte red no o k s, th e r e is no w a n t o f v e g e ta tio
n , y e t, in com p a riso n w ith th e e a s te rn p a r t o f th e S tr a it, i t h a s
a v e ry dismal a n d u n in v itin g a p p ea ran c e. I t was called b y S a rm
ien to , ‘ S an ta In e s I s la n d ’ ;* b u t N a rb o ro u g h c alled it, ‘ S o u th
D e so la tio n ; i t b e in g ,’ as h e says, ‘ so de sola te la n d to b eh o ld , f
C la ren ce Is la n d , w h ic h is fifty -tw o miles lo n g an d tw e n ty -th r e e
b ro a d , a lth o u g h e q u a lly ro c k y , is m u c h m o re v e rd a n t in a p p e a r-
ance. T h e u n ifo rm d ire c tio n o f th e h e ad lan d s o f th e n o r th shore
o f th e is la n d is rem a rk a b le . U p o n ta k in g a set o f an g le s w ith th e
th e o d o lite p la c ed u p o n th e e x trem ity o f th e w e s t e n d o f BeU B ay,
o p p o site to C ap e H o lla n d , th e m o s t p rom in e n t p o in ts to th e s o u th -
east, as fai- as c o u ld b e seen, w e re a ll v isib le in th e field o f th e
te le sco p e a t th e same b e a rin g . T h e same th in g o c c u r re d on th e
o p p o s ite shore o f th e S tra it, w h e re th e p ro je c tio n s o f C ap e G a lla n t,
C a p eH oU a n d , a n d C ap e F row a rd , a re in th e same lin e o fb e a i-in g ;
so th a t a p a ra lle l ru le r p la c e d on th e m a p u p o n th e p ro je c tin g
p o in ts o f th e so u th shore, e x te n d e d across, w ill also to u c h th e
h e ad lan d s o f th e o p p o site coast.
T h e e a s te rn is la n d , w h ic h h a d b e e n p re v io u s ly caUed, a n d of
co u rse re ta in s o n o u r c h a r t th e n am e o f K in g C h a rle s S o u th
L a n d , e x te n d s from tb e e n tra n c e o f th e S tr a it to th e o u tle t o f th e
B a rb a r a a n d C o c k b u rn C h an n e ls , a t C ap e S e liom b e rg . T h e
n o r th e rn p a r t p a rta k e s o f th e g eo lo g ic al c h a ra c te r o f th e e a s te rn
p o rtio n o f th e S tra it. T h e c en tre is a co n tin u a tio n o f th e slate
fo rm a tio n , w h ic h is ev id e n t a t a g lan c e , from th e u n ifo rm ity o f th e
d ire c tio n o f th e shores o f A dm ira lty S o u n d , th e G a b rie l C h an n e l,
a n d a ll th e b a y s an d m o u n ta in ra n g e s o f D awso n Is la n d . T h e
s o u th sh o re , o r seaw a rd coast lin e , is p rin c ip a lly o f g re e n sto n e ,
* Sarmiento, p. 180. + Narborough’s Voyage, p. 78