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A NATURALIST’S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD
A NATURALIST’S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD
First Edition May 1860 Second Edition May 1870 Third Edition February 1872 Fourth Edition July 1874 Fifth Edition March 1876 Sixth Edition January 1879 Seventh Edition May 1882 Eighth Edition February 1884 Ninth Edition August 1886 Tenth Edition January 1888 Eleventh Edition January 1890 Reprinted June 1913 H.M.S. BEAGLE IN STRAITS OF MAGELLAN. MT SARMIENTO IN THE DISTANCE....
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under the command of Captain Fitz Roy, R.N.
under the command of Captain Fitz Roy, R.N.
AUTHOR OF ‘ORIGIN OF SPECIES,’ ETC. A new edition with illustrations by R. T. Pritchett of places visited and objects described. LONDON JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET 1913. TO CHARLES LYELL, ESQ., F.R.S. This second edition is dedicated with grateful pleasure, as an acknowledgment that the chief part of whatever scientific merit this journal and the other works of the author may possess, has been derived from studying the well-known and admirable PRINCIPLES OF GEOLOGY. PREFATORY NOTICE TO THE ILL
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AUTHOR’S PREFACE.
AUTHOR’S PREFACE.
I have stated in the preface to the first Edition of this work, and in the Zoology of the Voyage of the Beagle , that it was in consequence of a wish expressed by Captain Fitz Roy, of having some scientific person on board, accompanied by an offer from him of giving up part of his own accommodations, that I volunteered my services, which received, through the kindness of the hydrographer, Captain Beaufort, the sanction of the Lords of the Admiralty. As I feel that the opportunities which I enjoy
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JOURNAL
JOURNAL
Porto Praya—Ribeira Grande—Atmospheric Dust with Infusoria—Habits of a Sea-slug and Cuttle-fish—St. Paul’s Rocks, non-volcanic—Singular Incrustations—Insects the first Colonists of Islands—Fernando Noronha—Bahia—Burnished Rocks—Habits of a Diodon—Pelagic Confervæ and Infusoria—Causes of discoloured Sea. After having been twice driven back by heavy south-western gales, Her Majesty’s ship Beagle , a ten-gun brig, under the command of Captain Fitz Roy, R.N. , sailed from Devonport on the 27th of De
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ST. JAGO—CAPE DE VERD ISLANDS
ST. JAGO—CAPE DE VERD ISLANDS
Near Fuentes we saw a large flock of guinea-fowl—probably fifty or sixty in number. They were extremely wary, and could not be approached. They avoided us, like partridges on a rainy day in September, running with their heads cocked up; and if pursued, they readily took to the wing. The scenery of St. Domingo possesses a beauty totally unexpected, from the prevalent gloomy character of the rest of the island. The village is situated at the bottom of a valley, bounded by lofty and jagged walls of
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RIO DE JANEIRO.
RIO DE JANEIRO.
[2] Annales des Sciences Naturelles for 1833. Leaving the coast for a time, we again entered the forest. The trees were very lofty, and remarkable, compared with those of Europe, from the whiteness of their trunks. I see by my notebook, “wonderful and beautiful flowering parasites,” invariably struck me as the most novel object in these grand scenes. Travelling onwards we passed through tracts of pasturage, much injured by the enormous conical ants’ nests, which were nearly twelve feet high. The
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MALDONADO
MALDONADO
On the first night we slept at a retired little country-house; and there I soon found out that I possessed two or three articles, especially a pocket compass, which created unbounded astonishment. In every house I was asked to show the compass, and by its aid, together with a map, to point out the direction of various places. It excited the liveliest admiration that I, a perfect stranger, should know the road (for direction and road are synonymous in this open country) to places where I had neve
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RIO NEGRO TO BAHIA BLANCA.
RIO NEGRO TO BAHIA BLANCA.
The town is indifferently called El Carmen or Patagones. It is built on the face of a cliff which fronts the river, and many of the houses are excavated even in the sandstone. The river is about two or three hundred yards wide, and is deep and rapid. The many islands, with their willow-trees, and the flat headlands, seen one behind the other on the northern boundary of the broad green valley, form, by the aid of a bright sun, a view almost picturesque. The number of inhabitants does not exceed a
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BAHIA BLANCA.
BAHIA BLANCA.
[1] Since this was written, M. Alcide d’Orbigny has examined these shells, and pronounces them all to be recent. [2] M. Aug. Bravard has described, in a Spanish work ( Observaciones Geologicas , 1857), this district, and he believes that the bones of the extinct mammals were washed out of the underlying Pampean deposit, and subsequently became embedded with the still existing shells; but I am not convinced by his remarks. M. Bravard believes that the whole enormous Pampean deposit is a sub-aeria
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BAHIA BLANCA TO BUENOS AYRES.
BAHIA BLANCA TO BUENOS AYRES.
I have already said the mountain is composed of white quartz rock, and with it a little glossy clay-slate is associated. At the height of a few hundred feet above the plain, patches of conglomerate adhered in several places to the solid rock. They resembled in hardness, and in the nature of the cement, the masses which may be seen daily forming on some coasts. I do not doubt these pebbles were in a similar manner aggregated, at a period when the great calcareous formation was depositing beneath
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BUENOS AYRES TO ST. FÉ.
BUENOS AYRES TO ST. FÉ.
The little owl (Athene cunicularia), which has been so often mentioned, on the plains of Buenos Ayres exclusively inhabits the holes of the bizcacha; but in Banda Oriental it is its own workman. During the open day, but more especially in the evening, these birds may be seen in every direction standing frequently by pairs on the hillock near their burrows. If disturbed they either enter the hole, or, uttering a shrill harsh cry, move with a remarkably undulatory flight to a short distance, and t
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BANDA ORIENTAL AND PATAGONIA.
BANDA ORIENTAL AND PATAGONIA.
18 th. —Rode with my host to his estancia, at the Arroyo de San Juan. In the evening we took a ride round the estate: it contained two square leagues and a half, and was situated in what is called a rincon; that is, one side was fronted by the Plata, and the two others guarded by impassable brooks. There was an excellent port for little vessels, and an abundance of small wood, which is valuable as supplying fuel to Buenos Ayres. I was curious to know the value of so complete an estancia. Of catt
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SANTA CRUZ, PATAGONIA, AND THE FALKLAND ISLANDS.
SANTA CRUZ, PATAGONIA, AND THE FALKLAND ISLANDS.
April 22 nd. —The country remained the same, and was extremely uninteresting. The complete similarity of the productions throughout Patagonia is one of its most striking characters. The level plains of arid shingle support the same stunted and dwarf plants; and in the valleys the same thorn-bearing bushes grow. Everywhere we see the same birds and insects. Even the very banks of the river and of the clear streamlets which entered it, were scarcely enlivened by a brighter tint of green. The curse
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TIERRA DEL FUEGO.
TIERRA DEL FUEGO.
When a song was struck up by our party, I thought the Fuegians would have fallen down with astonishment. With equal surprise they viewed our dancing; but one of the young men, when asked, had no objection to a little waltzing. Little accustomed to Europeans as they appeared to be, yet they knew and dreaded our firearms; nothing would tempt them to take a gun in their hands. They begged for knives, calling them by the Spanish word “cuchilla.” They explained also what they wanted, by acting as if
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STRAIT OF MAGELLAN.—CLIMATE OF THE SOUTHERN COASTS.
STRAIT OF MAGELLAN.—CLIMATE OF THE SOUTHERN COASTS.
The next morning a large party went on shore, to barter for skins and ostrich-feathers; fire-arms being refused, tobacco was in greatest request, far more so than axes or tools. The whole population of the toldos, men, women, and children, were arranged on a bank. It was an amusing scene, and it was impossible not to like the so-called giants, they were so thoroughly good-humoured and unsuspecting: they asked us to come again. They seem to like to have Europeans to live with them; and old Maria,
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CENTRAL CHILE
CENTRAL CHILE
Chile, as may be seen in the maps, is a narrow strip of land between the Cordillera and the Pacific; and this strip is itself traversed by several mountain-lines, which in this part run parallel to the great range. Between these outer lines and the main Cordillera, a succession of level basins, generally opening into each other by narrow passages, extend far to the southward: in these, the principal towns are situated, as San Felipe, Santiago, San Fernando. These basins or plains, together with
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CHILOE AND CHONOS ISLANDS
CHILOE AND CHONOS ISLANDS
25 th. —Torrents of rain: we managed, however, to run down the coast as far as Huapi-lenou. The whole of this eastern side of Chiloe has one aspect; it is a plain, broken by valleys and divided into little islands, and the whole thickly covered with one impervious blackish-green forest. On the margins there are some cleared spaces, surrounding the high-roofed cottages. 26 th. —The day rose splendidly clear. The volcano of Orsono was spouting out volumes of smoke. This most beautiful mountain, fo
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CHILOE AND CONCEPCION: GREAT EARTHQUAKE
CHILOE AND CONCEPCION: GREAT EARTHQUAKE
Captain Fitz Roy being anxious that some bearings should be taken on the outer coast of Chiloe, it was planned that Mr. King and myself should ride to Castro, and thence across the island to the Capella de Cucao, situated on the west coast. Having hired horses and a guide, we set out on the morning of the 22nd. We had not proceeded far, before we were joined by a woman and two boys, who were bent on the same journey. Every one on this road acts on a “hail-fellow-well-met” fashion; and one may he
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PASSAGE OF THE CORDILLERA
PASSAGE OF THE CORDILLERA
March 19 th. —We rode during this day to the last, and therefore most elevated, house in the valley. The number of inhabitants became scanty; but wherever water could be brought on the land, it was very fertile. All the main valleys in the Cordillera are characterised by having, on both sides, a fringe or terrace of shingle and sand, rudely stratified, and generally of considerable thickness. These fringes evidently once extended across the valleys and were united; and the bottoms of the valleys
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NORTHERN CHILE AND PERU.
NORTHERN CHILE AND PERU.
The dress of the Chilian miner is peculiar and rather picturesque. He wears a very long shirt of some dark-coloured baize, with a leathern apron; the whole being fastened round his waist by a bright-coloured sash. His trousers are very broad, and his small cap of scarlet cloth is made to fit the head closely. We met a party of these miners in full costume, carrying the body of one of their companions to be buried. They marched at a very quick trot, four men supporting the corpse. One set having
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Chapter XVII GALAPAGOS ARCHIPELAGO
Chapter XVII GALAPAGOS ARCHIPELAGO
23 rd. —The Beagle proceeded to Charles Island. This archipelago has long been frequented, first by the Bucaniers, and latterly by whalers, but it is only within the last six years that a small colony has been established here. The inhabitants are between two and three hundred in number; they are nearly all people of colour, who have been banished for political crimes from the Republic of the Equator, of which Quito is the capital. The settlement is placed about four and a half miles inland, and
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Chapter XVIII TAHITI AND NEW ZEALAND
Chapter XVIII TAHITI AND NEW ZEALAND
17 th. —This day is reckoned in the log-book as Tuesday the 17th, instead of Monday the 16th, owing to our, so far, successful chase of the sun. Before breakfast the ship was hemmed in by a flotilla of canoes; and when the natives were allowed to come on board, I suppose there could not have been less than two hundred. It was the opinion of every one that it would have been difficult to have picked out an equal number from any other nation, who would have given so little trouble. Everybody broug
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Chapter XIX AUSTRALIA
Chapter XIX AUSTRALIA
The number of aborigines is rapidly decreasing. In my whole ride, with the exception of some boys brought up by Englishmen, I saw only one other party. This decrease, no doubt, must be partly owing to the introduction of spirits, to European diseases (even the milder ones of which, such as the measles, [1] prove very destructive), and to the gradual extinction of the wild animals. It is said that numbers of their children invariably perish in very early infancy from the effects of their wanderin
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Chapter XX KEELING ISLAND:—CORAL FORMATIONS
Chapter XX KEELING ISLAND:—CORAL FORMATIONS
In Holman’s [2] Travels an account is given, on the authority of Mr. A. S. Keating, who resided twelve months on these islands, of the various seeds and other bodies which have been known to have been washed on shore. “Seeds and plants from Sumatra and Java have been driven up by the surf on the windward side of the islands. Among them have been found the Kimiri, native of Sumatra and the peninsula of Malacca; the cocoa-nut of Balci, known by its shape and size; the Dadass, which is planted by t
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Chapter XXI MAURITIUS TO ENGLAND
Chapter XXI MAURITIUS TO ENGLAND
5 th. —Captain Lloyd took us to the Rivière Noire, which is several miles to the southward, that I might examine some rocks of elevated coral. We passed through pleasant gardens, and fine fields of sugar-cane growing amidst huge blocks of lava. The roads were bordered by hedges of Mimosa, and near many of the houses there were avenues of the mango. Some of the views where the peaked hills and the cultivated farms were seen together, were exceedingly picturesque; and we were constantly tempted to
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