The Sun.
London, England, 1836-10-08 00:00:00

HIS MAJESTY'S SHIP BEAGLE.

His Majesty's surveying sloop Beagle has at last re-
turned from her long employment in South America, and
other parts of the world. She sailed from England in
1831, from which time until 1835 she was surveying the
coasts of South America, the Falkland and the Galapagos
islands. Traversing the Pacific Ocean by the way of
Otaheite (or Tahiti) and New Zealand, she proceeded to
visit Sidney, Hobart Town, King George's Sound, the
Keeling Islands, the Mauritius, the Cape of Good Hope,
St. Hlena, Ascension, Bahia, Pernambuco, the Cape
Verd and the Azores Islands. Meridian distances have
been very carefully measured by a large number of good
chronometers, during the whole voyage. Observations for
latitude, for the variation and dip of the needle, for the in-
tensity of magnetic influence, and upon tides, have been
made at each principal port. This connected chain of good
meridian distances, is the first that has been carried round
the world. From fourteen to twenty chronometers have
been employed, and the results are highly interesting.
Geology and Natural History will receive contributions
from this voyage, as well as Hydrography and Geography.
Mr. Charles Darwin, a zealous unpaid tributary to the
cause of science, has laboured unremittingly. The medi-
cal and other officers have collected, in proportion to their
opportunities and limited means of preserving specimens.
It is gratifying to state that, in consequence of accidents
on board or employment on service, no life has been lost,
nor has any serious injury been sustained by any one indivi-
dual. No boat has ever met with a material accident (ex-
cept one washed away in a gale off Cape Horn) nor has
any man ever fallen overboar. Not a spar has been sprung
(except studding sail booms) not a sail has been split till worn
too long, nor is there a sheet of copper off the vessel's bot-
tom ; yet this little ship, one of the much-abused ten-gun
sloops, sometimes called coffins, has always carried between
seventy and eighty people, seven boats, and an unusual
quantity of stores : besides which, she has often sailed with
more than eight months provisions on board. The Beagle
was so well fitted out at this Dock-yard, and has since been
so timely supplied by direction of the Admiralty, that neither
want nor deficiency has ever occurred. Some of the officers
and men have served more than ten years in the Beagle,
having shared all the disagreeables of a former voyage to
Terra del Fuego, in 1826-30.
The Beagle arrived here on Wednesday, via Falmouth,
and is lying at anchor between the Royal Clarence Baths
and Mount Edgecombe. Captain Fitzroy and his officers
appear in excellent health and spirits, and are visited by nu-
merous persons from the towns, anxious to congratulate
them on the successful termination of their interesting ex-
pedition. We never saw a ship in better condition, or a
Liner set of men as a crew. Captain Fitzroy was promoted
to the rank of Post Captain in December, 1834. She hes
the same officers with the exception of the purser, Mr.
Barlow, who died on the voyage. Our readers will doubt-
less recollect the account we gave of the death of Mr.
Hillyar, the Captain's clerk, who was drowned at the
Falkland islands, while on a shooting excursion.—Devon-
port Independent.