t out for Lusitania Bay on
April 28 to make a short reconnoitring trip. It was thought advisable to
spend a few days down there, to improve the hut and generally speaking
to have a look-round. Both men had already visited the place and depoted
some provisions there. At 8 A.M. they started off, carrying their
blankets, sleeping-bags and a few other articles. Their proposal was
to go along the coast as far as Sandy Bay and from thence along the
hill-tops for the remaining ten miles.

Hail and snow-squalls succeeded each other at frequent intervals, and
by the time they reached Sandy Bay, all hope of proceeding along the
hill-tops was dissipated. They therefore kept near the coast. The going
was frightfully rough and the weather was very bad, so on making Green
Valley they camped in a small cave for the night. The floor was covered
with tussock, and, by searching amongst the rocks, enough pieces of
wreckage were found to keep the fire going. On the whole they passed a
fairly comfortable night. Mac proved a bit troublesome by persisting in
her attempts to curl up on or between the sleeping-bags, and by finally
eating the jam which had been saved for breakfast. The weather was quite
as bad next morning, but, after a meal of dry biscuit and cocoa, they
pushed on, taking four and a half hours to do the six miles. The next
day was spent making the hut weather-proof and fixing up a couple of
bunks. The provisions which had been cached were in good order and
abundance of firewood lay around, in the shape of old barrel-staves.
Just close to the living-hut was a works-hut containing boilers and
digestors which years ago had been used for procuring penguin oil, while
there was a rookery a few yards away from which the victims had come.

This rookery was the resort of King penguins, the largest of the four
species which are to be found on the island. They are magnificently
coloured birds, being bluish-grey on the back while the head is
greenish-black and on each side of the neck there is a brilliant yellow
band, shading to a greenish-yellow on the upper part of the breast, and
gradually merging into the glossy white of the lower part of the body.
They attain to a height of about three feet and weigh thirty pounds
approximately. The site of their rookery is a stony flat about a hundred
yards from the water, and here are collected between five and six
thousand--all that remain on the island.

They make no nest, the single egg laid be