Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1888-06-12
1THE ALBATROSS."
The Last Trip Of this q. S. Fish Com.
mission Steamer.
Ons OF the Party Tells Incidents Of the
Trip In Pacific Waters.

U
from Bowdoin. who has Just returned from
the last trip male by the U. s. Fish Com
mission Steamer 'sAlbatrOss." Mr.. Cole cor
daily welcomed the scribe into his apart
ments in North Appleton Hall at Bowdoin
ms room, by the way, attracts more visit
from the boys" than any other in the col
iege Just at present. Scattered about ar,
curiosites and mementos of the trip com
prising things all the way from fossilized YER
tebr@ to photographs of some of the
! HANDsoMEsr WOMEN
that ever favored negative. These ladie.
were Inhabitants of Chill and beyond doub
II any Gillian land Spectator should seattle
these pictures abroad the immigration to hi.
country would surpass the scenes of CastI
Garden. A sombrero from Mexico hun.
upon the hat-tree. Shells and specimens were
lastly arranged in convenient places Amonl
the collection of walking sti cks were som.
interesting specimens. One with a polisl
ike mahogany was made from Patagonia
brake. There were four photographers OF
this cruise of the ''Albatross" and the result.
OF their labors, such as were in the possessio.
OF Mr. Cole, are stu1ies in themselves an,
one could hardly spend a more profitabl
half hour than in examining them.
IL suppose many incidents occurred
on the trip that would be of interest t.
the Journal readersI queried the reporter
perhaps. We found enough each day t,
interest us and keep us busy, and occasional.
ly enough to amuse.'
| Where did you commence active work.?
| ''Tbe West Indies was the first place tina
we stopped At for any considerable time. Hei.
we collected about one hundred different
species of fish, doing considerable deep seq
dredging. We then ran down to Bahia, pass
ing our Christmas day in that city The Gel
ebration seemed like our observance of til,
Fourth of July.
The STRAITS OF MAGELLAN
were the scene of our hardest work We
were to call at Rio on our way down, but a.
they had yellow fever there we didn't stop
| Did you get many rare specimens in th
Straits?"
Yes; among them was a large steamer
duck. These, you perhaps know, can't fly
but they can swim faster than a steam launc
going eight knots an hour. They use thei
wings as paddle wheels, revolving them raj
idly like the paddles of side-w heel steamer.
We took some 60 different species of birds
in Gregory Bay. An immense flying fish wa.
captured here 1t was curiosity by reason
of its size, being much longer than the com
mon fish of this kind. We kept quite well
in shore. dredging as we went along. Son e
of us went ashore nearly every day. The
Patagonians were friendly and we experienced
no trouble with them. We halan opportunit,
to study quite closely the habits of tn
Fuegian Indians They could speak but l.
few words of English, but are the creates,
mimics imaginable. Give them to under
stand that you wished them to initiate yoL
and they would do it to perfection. Sing
them sorg and they would r'rent it gu I,
accurately. They live principally i'll H.,
West. I'll straits. Their canoe is their castle
Their food is chiefly shell.fsh While i
the caroe the women steer, one bailiBg ou
the usually lealy boat, h.le the men do tn
rowing In the rort of Churrrca in H.,
limits of Terra del Fucgo, at the farther end
of the harbor we found the remains of Il
work that gives evidences of considerable
skill for savages. 1t was portage from the
| l. i'll l,l nj
was made by Telling trees. This appeareo
to have been built many years ago. Prof
Lee and myself devoted some time to tn,
study of botany along the shores.
HIS SKuSKsuIr.
"One day we all went shore. Prof. and
got separated from the rest of the party whe
we came across a skunk. Having nothing
but n small revolver we found considerable,
difficulty in disposing of his skunkship. By
keeping to the windward we managed t,
safely get within shooting distance. Imagir g
the fall our pride had when we got back to
ship and found that every member had a
skunk for trophy. Foxes were plenty and
tame. There were two species, the com
mon gray fox and one larger much res,m
bling a wolf"
"Dd you find plenty of wild fowl in this
regon?"
Quantities of them. We had all the sport
in duck and geese shooting that we wanted.
Chow long were you in the sfrats?"
1--WE were at anchor there for month.
received my first mail from home at Sandy
Point. | got here Bowdoin Orient, which
was pub .ished ten days after left college
.Did you take much notice of the geolog'-
cal formation along the shores?'
sIn Rio Miuas we found a very interesti' &
formation. There in banks between four
and five hundred feet above the sea level we
found layers of
! OYSTER SHELLS
as large as your two hands belonging to a
prehistoric era. There were three layers
the bank. each layer being about 10 feet
thick. The whole is now solid rock. AT 1.-THE
presept time no oysters are to be found on
that coast. These la, ers are supposed TO be
long to the Tertiary period. Perhaps you
know the name Terra del Fuego, land f
fires. had its origin not from volcanic hr,s
As some have supposed but from the many
fires which the inhabitants keep burning
ON shore and in their canoes. We came into
Erie Sound and up along the coast to Lola.
Chilli. Here we obtained some rare speci'
mons. One was very rare hsh whose
scientific name is CaHorhyne"s. lou
have seen these jacknives with dinereh'
kinds of blades. cork screws, tape measure
au., all the tools required in a carpenter shop'
". II this fish was equipped in similar man
ner. It's impossible to accurately describe
him. In classification he was MIDWAY
between a shark and ray. lie mad
proboscs in shape like an elephants. ne
weighed about five pounds. t ey had the
l.,,or. in Gill and when we reached Panama