rodon, Toxodon, Mylodon, and other fossils ; its beautiful specimens
of the Chlamydophorns retusus (a mole-like armadillo), the
leathery turtle {Sphargis coriáceo), the epiodon, etc. The Professor
pointed with great pride to a recent specimen of armadillo,
with the young one attached to its hind-quarters in a peculiar
manner.
On the same day we inspected the Anthropological Museum,
which is in a large building in the Plaza Victoria, opposite the
old market, where we saw a fine collection of Tehuelche and
Araucanian skulls, recently made by Señor Moreno in his travels
through Patagonia. Among others was the skull of “ Sam Slick,'’
a son of the celebrated Casimiro, the Patagonian cacique, so well
known for many years in the vicinity of Magellan Straits. We
also saw a mummified specimen of a Patagonian, recently found
in a cave at Punta Walichii, near the head waters of the Santa
Cruz river.
In the course of the day we called upon Mr. Mulhall, the
enterprising and courteous editor of the Buenos Ayrean Standard,
and from him we acquired much valuable information as to the
condition of the country. On taking up the Standard next
morning, we found ourselves treated to an editorial notice chronicling
our visit to the Argentine capital, and referring to the
past and present services of H.M.S. Alert.
Coming fresh from so neat and trim a town as Monte Video,
Buenos Ayres was not to be expected to impress one very
favourably. It seemed, indeed, to be a great straggling town that,
having arrived at a certain degree of civilization, had now for
some years back considered itself entitled to rest on its laurels,
and gradually fall into decay. Streets, plazas, and tramways were
in a wretched state of neglect; and such were the great ruts which
time and traffic had made in the streets, that baggage-carts
might be seen brought to a dead lock, even in the principal
thoroughfares. Buenos Ayres can boast of several fine old
public buildings, among which the cathedral, with its classic
front, stands pre-eminent ; and although there are some fine
pieces of modern architecture, such as the Bolsa, or Exchange, the
latter are so stowed away among lofty houses in narrow streets,
that they require to be specially looked for to be noticed at
all. I must qualify the above observations by mentioning that
these are the impressions of only two days’ sojourn in Buenos
Ayres.
Some days later. His Excellency the Governor of the Falkland
Islands (Mr. Callaghan) and his wife arrived at Monte Video, en
route for his seat of government ; and as the sailing schooner, which
was the only regular means of communication between Monte
Video and the Falklands, was then crowded with passengers, the
Governor gladly accepted Sir George Nares’s kind invitation to
take him as his guest on board the Alert.
We left Montevideo on the 14th of December, and on the
26th, amid a furious storm of wind and hail, anchored in Stanley
Harbour, Falkland Islands. Here we found that the great topic of
conversation was a landslip of peat, which had occurred about a
month previous to our arrival, laying waste a portion of the little
settlement. On the summit of a hill above the east end of the
town, a circular patch of turf, about two hundred yards in diameter,
had collapsed ; and at the same time a broad stream, four feet
high, of semi-fluid peat, flowed down the hillside to the sea, in
its course sweeping away walls and gardens, and partly burying
the houses. This phenomenon, occurring at night, caused great
consternation among the inhabitants of such an uneventful little
place ; but after the people had shaken themselves together
somewhat, and recovered from their surprise, they found that
after all no great damage had been done. The appearance of the
peat avalanche, as seen from the ship, was very peculiar, and in
many respects the whole occurrence resembled a lava flow.
On the evening of our arrival, we were most hospitably entertained
at Government House, where we had also the pleasure of
meeting all the rank and fashion of this part of the colony. 1;
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