The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1893-04-28
THE ISLE OF DESOLATION.

-" N 3E
A New Acqnisition Of the French In the
Antarctic Ooenn.
Announcement coms6 from Paris that Z
French warship has taken possession OF
KsrRuelen's Land, otherwise known a. the
Isle Of Dssolation. situatsd In the Antarctic
ocean. The island il said to contain beds
Of coal. Franco has olsimed il for some
time. though 1t has been included In the
list OF British possessions. The island 10
nm interesting place. though little was
known of il previous to q visit paid to II in
1874 BY three expeditions from Engl an d,
Germany and the United Stat o. 30 observe
tho transit of Venus. observes the 81. Lou IL
Globe Democrat.
II was discovered In 1879 BY a Breton
sailor. Ksreuelen- Tremarsc. who WINS sent
out on q special expedition for Antarctic
discovery. Thero has been q tradition for
a long tim that u continent existed In the
Antarctic ocean. A Norman mariner. Capt.
de Bonneville, left an attractive account Of
land which no visited in 1908 ON his way
to the West Indies. The quality Of this
land was in utter doubt. bro.uss Of the
absence Of the record OF the voyaRe. Inlu-
enced by those vague notions, Kergueion
explored the south Indian oorAn. discover
ing in the carly part of 1879 the island
which has ever since borne his name. He
did not effect a landing upon u. and being
driven off by tempestuous weather. returned
to Mauritius. In 1878 he again came in
sight of the island. but was a second time
driven of by tenpeatuous weather. Iu 1774
another French officer Brought a friRAte
into what is now called Christmas Harbor,
and one of his men effected O landing, tax
ing possession of tho island In the name Of
the king of France.
The island WAS visited by Capt. Cook in
1776. who christened 1t Desolntion island
because it was so sinRularly barred of vege-
table and animal life. From that time IN
lenRer stopped there and made q survey,
and tho visits later in the same year from
the English. American and German astron-
omtcal expeditions, 1t had been almost for
gotten by mariners and was Touched at only
occasionally by whalers and sealers In tho
southern seas.
The islend is in the Antarctic portion of
the Indian ocean. to the southeast of the
cape of Good Hope and southwest of Aus.
tralis. and nearly half way between them.
miles and its extreme brsadth seventy-nine,
but the shores are so irregular, being pene-
trated far inland by bays and fjords, that
no part of the interior 10 more than twelve
miles from the sea. The area 10 only about
1850 square miles.
The island throuahout IL mountainous.
presenting from tho sea In some directions
the appearance OF a series of Jagged peaks.
Thefe are several high m0untains, having
an elevation of 6,120 feet. The nature of
the shore, with its steep and irregular coast
line, has provided the island with a series
of we'll sheltered harbora. The scenery is
generally magnificent and o-.on singularly
picturesque. A district of considerable
extent in the center of the island il occu-
pied by snow fields, whence glaciers de-
scend east and west to the sea.
Tho and 10 undoubtedly OF volcanic
origin. Judging from the abundant fossil
remains Of trees it must ut one time have
been thickly clothed with woods and othor
been denuded. no doubt by volcanic action
and submersion. and possibly by change
of climate. The soil is rich. and 1t was q
matter of great sur prise among the mem
bers of the expedition which visited the
island in 1874 to observe the transit of
Venus that there should be 10 little VOICE.
tation.
The fora Is remarkable In not producing
q single wood-producing plant. not even
the smallest undershrub. There have been
found about twenty Towering plants on the
island. they being of little size, however.
and thoroughly Antarctic. correapondino
generally with the fora Of the Falkland
islands and Patagonia. As the climate il
by no means rigorous even in winter time.
the conclusion must be reached that this
state of things was brought about by some
sudden volcanic upheaval.
There 10 found here but one useful plant.
a sort of wild cabbage. which is the only
known representative of its species. Il
has a long. stout perennial root stock and a
head of leaves very similar to the common
garden cabbage.