The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1907-05-03

western very dark, but covered with
snowy band. Sailing along the west
ern side within a mile it presented the
appearance of a sharp rock trending
north and south The southern part
being exposed TO freezing winds is at
that time Of the year covered with
snow; but the winds on the northwest
point being more temperate and moist,
the land is visible" The vessel stood
off the land for the night, and next
morning another island was seen. The
position was set down respectively as
latitude ffty-tbree degrees fifteen min
utes twenty-five seconds south, longi-
tude fortyseyen degrees ffty-seven
minutes fifteen seconds west, and lati-
tude forty-seven degrees ffty-seven
twenty seconds south, longitude forty
seven degrees ffty-fve minutes ff-
teen seconds west. On the 9th a third
island was sighted, which need not be
referred to-
The discrepancies in the various ac-
counts are very great, without taking
into account the variations in the pre-
sumed positions, which in longitude
amounts to one degree eleven minutes
which in those regions is equivalent
to forty-two miles One suggestion is
that the two peaked islands seen by the
Atreyida must have been the Shag
Rocks, which lie almost in the same
latitude, but with a difference Of six
degrees Of longitude-too large an err
ror to be considered, if it were not that
such errors have often occurred from
assuming different meridians.
In order to verify these accounts and
ascertain the exact position of the Au-
roras in the interests Of navigation.
Captain Weddell, in 1920, made care
full search, and for five or six days
sailed to and fro in the region in
which they were supposed to lie, but
in vain-not trace of the islands
could be discovered; and although in
1856 the Helen Baird reported that in
latitude fifty-two degrees forty minutes
south, longitude forty-eight degrees
twenty minutes west large and small
island were seen about eighteen miles
away, and subsequently two others to
the northward, the authorities have
definitely concluded that there is not
sufficient satisfactory evidence for re-
tanning the name of the Aurora ISL
ands on the charts Of the South At
lantic.
The illustration next reproduced
shows a position of a chart, dated 1880,
bearing the last reference to them be-
fore their official erasure. The Adj
miralty note reads: Aurora Islands,
from Spanish charts (Have no exist
ence)." Captain Weddell suggested
that ice drifting from the southwark
may have packed about the base Of the
Shag Rocks, leaving only their peaks
showing above the snow and ice on
the south side, and so altering their
appearance that they could not be rec
ognized and identified. Another theory
is that an extensive bank of irregular
soundings exists at a point where a
large kelp bed has been more than once
reported, and that immense icebergs,
grounding here, have been mistaken
for land,
These bergs, it should be explained,
are frequently loaded with blocks of
stone, gravel, sand and mud, and have
at times been taken for islands by the
most practised Arctic and Antarctic
voyagers, who have not been convinced
of their true character until they had
approached very close, or have act
ually landed on them. If this hypoth-
esis is true it would account for the
discrepancies noticeable in the descrip-
tioS of the shape, size and even the
number of the Aurora Islands. On the
other hand, Captain D. H. Hatfield, of
Liverpool, points out that at the sea
soa Ct the year when Captain Weddell's
ship reached these ATTITUDES the real is
lands would have been covered with
ice and snow, and so, if sighted, would
have been taken for icebergs by the
/ latter, as bergs are frequently met in
these seas at that time of the year.
and sometimes very much later, as will
appear in due course. Captain Hat
fields own account of his glimpse Of
the Aurora Enthusiastically declared
to have no eXistence-is so explicit
and detailed that it raises the whole
question anew But let me tell his
strange story as !.a told it to me.
1t was during the last days Of May,
1892, when the Bristol barque Gladys,