"Good Success Bay is an excellent anchorage for vessels of any size to stop in for wood or water; but it would not answer if a vessel required to lie steady for repair, as a swell frequently rolls in. It is quite safe, yet, in the winter season, when easterly gales are common, no vessel should anchor so near the head of the bay as she might in summer; for heavy rollers at times (though rarely) set in. Fish we did not try to get, not having spare time, and only a few birds were shot.
"On the 8th, a very fine day with but little wind, we were off the flat-topped hill, called the Table of Orozco; and, from the mast-head, I had an extensive view of the adjacent country. About Success Bay and Bell Mount the land is high, but north of Success Bay it slopes away towards Cape San Diego, which is a long, low, projecting point. Thence, as far as I could see, the N.E. coast extended, low, excepting a few hills here and there, and unbroken by inlets; the country near it being a pleasant looking hill and dale land, well wooded and quite free from snow. I could distinguish a snow-covered chain of mountains which must have lain near Admiralty Sound, the country on this side of them appearing to be a continued succession of hill and valley, with only a few of the hills capped with snow, although this was the depth of winter.
Smoke was seen at but one place, about two miles inland. In the evening we got a breeze off shore, and stood along the coast, the moon shining brightly and the weather being fine. I kept rather close to the land, during the night, in order to be near the entrance of the supposed St. Sebastian Channel in the morning.
"At midnight Cape Santa Inez was distant from us three or four miles, but thence we saw very little of the land, till three, near Cape Peñas, after which the weather became thick, and the wind drew round to the N.E., which made me keep more off shore until daylight (9th), when we bore up and stood for the land. Having found Cape Santa Inez and Cape Peñas correctly laid down on the chart we used, I thought Cape St. Sebastian would not be far wrong, and we had taken several observations during the early part of the night to correct our reckoning. Standing towards the shore, we quickly shoaled our water, and found a ground swell increasing. Having made what I supposed to be Cape Sebastian, and seeing from the mast-head a large opening to the northward of it similar to that laid down in the chart, with low distant land yet farther northward corresponding to the shores of 'Bahia de Nombre de Jesus,' I stood on confidently, thinking how well the chart of this coast had been laid down, and regardless of the soundings decreasing as we went on. Seeing, however, from the mast-head, what seemed to be a tide-ripple, two or three miles distant, I called the boatswain, who had been much among the tide-races on this coast, to ask his opinion of it: but before he could get up aloft to me, I saw that it was very low land, almost level with the sea, and what I thought the ripple, was the surf on the beach. Standing on a little farther we had but seven fathoms water over a bottom of dark muddy sand, with bits of black slate. At this time, the weather had cleared enough to see the land fifteen or twenty miles on each side, but nothing like an opening appearing, on the contrary, a plain extending to the westward, as horizontal as the sea, I hauled to the wind and stood alongshore to the S.E., to look for an inlet, fancying
I had overshot the proper place; especially as the land continued flat, and unbroken, for many miles to the N.W., while to the S.E. it seemed hilly and irregular.
"Having ranged along shore several miles, yet still seeing from the mast-head a continuation of the same kind of coast-line, as far as an eye could trace the surf on the beach, without any opening, we wore ship and stood to the northward, satisfied that the St. Sebastian channel did not exist within many miles of the position laid down in the chart.
"In the afternoon the weather became very thick, with rain, a fresh wind blowing right on shore, and the glasses falling; so we carried sail to get off the land and out of the shoal water, in which there was a heavy ground swell. At midnight we had obtained a good offing.
"On the 10th, a fresh breeze from the N.E., a low glass, and thick weather, with constant rain, would have prevented my nearing the land again if I had been disposed to do so. Though reluctant to leave any part of the coast of Tierra del Fuego unexplored, while I had so effective a vessel, and all with me in good health, I was bound to remember our distance from the appointed rendezvous; the state of our provisions, of which we had only three weeks left on board; and that I was ordered to be at Rio de Janeiro on the 20th of this month. I therefore decided to hasten to Port Desire, for the sake of the chronometer measurements; and from thence proceed to Monte Video and Rio de Janeiro. I had previously made up my mind to carry the Fuegians, whom we had with us, to England; trusting that the ultimate benefits arising from their acquaintance with our habits and language, would make up for the temporary separation from their own country. But this decision was not contemplated when I first took them on board; I then only thought of detaining them while we were on their coasts; yet afterwards finding that they were happy and in good health, I began to think of the various advantages which might result to them and their countrymen, as well as to us, by taking them to England, educating them there as far as might be practicable, and then
bringing them back to Tierra del Fuego. These ideas were confirmed by finding that the tribes of Fuegians, eastward of Christmas Sound, were hostile to York Minster's tribe, and that therefore we could not, in common humanity, land them in Nassau Bay or near the Strait of Le Maire. Neither could I put the boy ashore again, when once to the eastward of Nassau Bay, without risking his life; hence I had only the alternative of beating to the westward, to land them in their own districts, which circumstances rendered impracticable, or that of taking them to England. In adopting the latter course I incurred a deep responsibility, but was fully aware of what I was undertaking.
"The Fuegians were much slower in learning English than I expected from their quickness in mimickry, but they understood clearly when we left the coast that they would return to their country at a future time, with iron, tools, clothes, and knowledge which they might spread among their countrymen. They helped the crew whenever required; were extremely tractable and good-humoured, even taking pains to walk properly, and get over the crouching posture of their countrymen.