One of the main objects that Mr Banks and Dr Solander had in view in
going with Captain Cook on this voyage was to collect specimens of
plants and insects in the new countries they were about to visit. The
country near Cape Horn was at that time almost unknown: indeed, it is
not much known even at the present day. The two naturalists of the
expedition were therefore anxious to land and explore the shore.
Accordingly, early one fine morning a party went ashore to ascend one of
the mountains. It consisted of Mr Banks and Dr Solander with their
servants, two of whom were negroes; Mr Buchan, the draughtsman; Mr
Monkhouse, the surgeon of the ship; and Mr Green, the astronomer.
These set off to push as far as they could into the country, intending
to return before night. They were accompanied by two seamen, who
carried their baggage.
The hills, when viewed from a distance, seemed to be partly wooded;
above the wood there was a plain, and beyond that bare rocks. Mr Banks
hoped to get through the woods, and made no doubt that beyond it he
would find new sorts of plants which no botanists had ever yet heard of.
They entered the wood full of hope, and with much of the excitement
that men cannot but feel when exploring a country that has never been
trodden by the foot of a civilised man since the world began.
It took them, however, much longer to get through the pathless wood than
they had expected. It was afternoon before they reached what they had
taken for a plain, but which, to their great disappointment, they found
to be a swamp covered with low bushes, which were so stubborn that they
could not break through them, and were therefore compelled to step over
them, while at every step they sank up to the ankles in mud--a mode of
progress so fatiguing that they were all very soon exhausted. To make
matters worse, the weather became gloomy and cold, with sudden blasts of
piercing wind accompanied by snow.
They pushed on vigorously notwithstanding, and had well-nigh crossed the
swamp when Mr Buchan was suddenly seized with a fit. This compelled a
halt. As he could not go further, a fire was kindled, and those who
were most fatigued were left behind to take care of him, while the rest
continued to advance. At last they reached the summit of the mountain,
and were rewarded for their toil by the botanical specimens discovered
there. It was late in the day by that time, and as it was impossible to
get back to the ship that night, they were obliged to make up their
minds to bivouac on the mountain, a necessity which caused them no
little uneasiness, for it had now become bitterly cold. Sharp blasts of
wind became so frequent, however, that they could not remain on the
exposed mountain-side, and were obliged to make for the shelter of the
woods in the nearest valley.
Mr Buchan having recovered, and the whole party having reassembled,
they set out to recross the swamp, intending, when they should get into
the woods, to build a hut of leaves and branches, kindle a fire, and
pass the night there as well as they could. But an overpowering torpor
had now begun to seize hold upon some of the party, and it was with the
greatest difficulty the others could prevent the drowsy ones from lying
down to sleep in the snow. This almost irresistible tendency to sleep
is common in cold countries. It is one of the effects of extreme cold
upon exhausted men, and is a very dangerous condition, because those who
fall into it cannot resist giving way to it, even though they know that
if they do so they will certainly die.
Dr Solander, who had formerly travelled on the snow-topped mountains of
Norway, was aware of the danger of giving way to this feeling, and
strove to prevent his companions from falling into the fatal rest.
"Whoever sits down," said he, "will sleep, and whoever sleeps will awake
no more."
Strange to say, Dr Solander was the first to disregard his own warning.
While they were still pushing across the naked side of the mountain,
the cold became suddenly so intense that it increased the effect they
dreaded so much. The doctor found the desire to rest so irresistible
that he insisted on being suffered to lie down. Mr Banks tried to
prevent him, but in vain. Down he lay upon the ground, covered though
it was with snow, and all that his friends could do was to keep shaking
him, and so prevent him from falling into the fatal sleep. At the same
time one of the negro servants became affected in a similar manner. Mr
Banks, therefore, sent forward five of the company with orders to get a
fire ready at the first convenient place they could find, while himself
with four others remained with the doctor and the negro, whom partly by
entreaty and partly by force, they roused up and brought on for some
little distance. But when they had got through the greatest part of the
swamp they both declared they could go no further. Again Mr Banks
tried to reason with the two unfortunate men, pointing out their extreme
danger, and beseeching them to make an effort to advance. But all he
could say had no effect.
When the negro was told that if he would not go on he must, in a short
time, be frozen to death, he answered that he desired nothing but to be
allowed to lie down and die. Dr Solander, on being told the same
thing, replied that he was willing to go on but that he must "_first
take some sleep_," forgetting apparently that he had before told his
comrades that to sleep was to perish.
As Mr Banks and his companions could not carry them, there was no help
for it--they were suffered to sit down, being partly supported by the
bushes. In a few minutes they were both sound asleep. Providentially,
just at that time, some of the people who had been sent forward returned
with the welcome news that a fire had been lighted not more than a
quarter of a mile off. Renewed attempts were therefore made to rouse
the sleepers. But the negro was past help. Every effort failed to
awaken him. With Dr Solander they were more successful, yet, though he
had not slept five minutes he had almost lost the use of his limbs, and
the muscles were so shrunken that the shoes fell off his feet.
Staggering and stumbling among the slush and snow, more dead than alive,
he was half carried, half dragged by his comrades to the fire.
Meanwhile the other negro and a seaman were left in charge of the
unfortunate black servant, with directions to stay by him and do what
they could for him until help should be sent. The moment Dr Solander
was got to the fire, two of the strongest of the party who had been
refreshed were sent back to bring in the negro. In half an hour,
however, they had the mortification to see these two men return alone.
They had been unable to find their comrades. This at first seemed
unaccountable, but when it was discovered that the only bottle of rum
belonging to the party was amissing, Mr Banks thought it probable that
it had been in the knapsack of one of the absent men, that by means of
it the sleeping negro had been revived, that they had then tried to
reach the fire without waiting for assistance, and so had lost
themselves.
It was by this time quite dark, another heavy fall of snow had come on,
and continued for two hours, so that all hope of seeing them again alive
was given up, for it must be remembered that the men remaining by the
fire were so thoroughly knocked up that had they gone out to try to save
their comrades they would in all probability have lost their own lives.
Towards midnight, however, a shout was heard at some distance. Mr
Banks, with four others, went out immediately, and found the seaman who
had been left with the two negroes, staggering along with just strength
enough to keep on his legs. He was quickly brought to the fire, and,
having described where the other two were, Mr Banks proceeded in search
of them. They were soon found. The first negro, who had sunk down at
the same time with Dr Solander, was found standing on his legs, but
unable to move. The other negro was lying on the snow as insensible as
a stone.
All hands were now called from the fire, and an attempt was made to
carry them to it, but every man was so weak from cold, hunger, and
fatigue that the united strength of the whole party was not sufficient
for this. The night was extremely dark, the snow was very deep, and
although they were but a short distance from the fire, it was as much as
each man could do to make his way back to it, stumbling and falling as
he went through bogs and bushes.
Thus the poor negroes were left to their sad fate, and some of the
others were so near sharing that fate with them that they began to lose
their sense of feeling. One of Mr Banks's servants became so ill, that
it was feared he would die before he could be got to the fire.
At the fire, however, they did eventually arrive, and beside it passed a
dreadful night of anxiety, grief, and suffering. Of the twelve who had
set out on this unfortunate expedition in health and good spirits two
were dead; a third was so ill that it was doubtful whether he would be
able to go forward in the morning; and a fourth, Mr Buchan, was in
danger of a return of his fits. They were distant from the ship a long
day's journey, while snow lay deep on the ground and still continued to
fall. Moreover, as they had not expected to be out so long, they had no
provisions left, except a vulture which chanced to be shot, and which
was not large enough to afford each of them quarter of a meal.
When morning dawned nothing was to be seen, as far as the eye could
reach, but snow, which seemed to lie as thick upon the trees as on the
ground, and the wind came down in such sudden violent blasts, that they
did not dare to resume their journey. How long this might last they
knew not. Despair crept slowly over them, and they began gloomily to
believe that they were doomed to perish of hunger and cold in that
dreary waste. But the Almighty, who often affords help to man when his
case seems most hopeless and desperate, sent deliverance in a way most
agreeable and unexpected. He caused a soft, mild breeze to blow, under
the influence of which the clouds began to clear away, the intense cold
moderated, and the gladdening sun broke forth, so that with revived
spirits and frames the wanderers were enabled to start on the return
journey to the coast.
Before doing so, they cooked and ate the vulture, and it is probable
that they devoured that meal with fully as much eagerness and
satisfaction as the ravenous bird itself ever devoured its prey. It was
but a light breakfast, however. After being skinned, the bird was
divided into ten portions, and every man cooked his own as he thought
fit, but each did not receive above three mouthfuls. Nevertheless it
strengthened them enough to enable them to return to the ship, where
they were received by their anxious friends with much joy and
thankfulness.
The month of December is the middle of summer in the land at the extreme
south of South America.
That land occupies much about the same position on the southern half of
this world that we occupy on the northern half; so that, when it is
winter with us, it is summer there. The climate is rigorous and stormy
in the extreme, and the description given of the natives shows that they
are a wretched and forlorn race of human beings. Captain Cook visited
one of their villages before leaving the coast. It contained about a
dozen dwellings of the poorest description. They were mere hovels;
nothing more than a few poles set up in a circle and meeting together at
the top, each forming a kind of cone. On the weather side each cone was
covered with a few boughs and a little grass. The other side was left
open to let the light in and the smoke out. Furniture they had none. A
little grass on the floor served for chairs, tables, and beds. The only
articles of manufacture to be seen among the people were a few rude
baskets, and a sort of sack in which they carried the shell-fish which
formed part of their food. They had also bows and arrows, which were
rather neatly made--the arrows with flint heads cleverly fitted on.
The colour of those savages resembled iron-rust mixed with oil; their
hair was long and black. The men were large but clumsy fellows, varying
from five feet eight to five feet ten. The women were much smaller, few
being above five feet. Their costume consisted of skins of wild
animals. The women tied their fur cloaks about the waists with a thong
of leather. One would imagine that among people so poor and miserably
off there was not temptation to vain show, nevertheless they were fond
of making themselves "look fine"! They painted their faces with various
colours; white round the eyes, with stripes of red and black across the
cheeks, but scarcely any two of them were painted alike. Both men and
women wore bracelets of beads made of shells and bones, and, of course,
they were greatly delighted with the beads which their visitors
presented to them. Their language was harsh in sound; they seemed to
have no form of government, and no sort of religion. Altogether they
appeared to be the most destitute, as well as the most stupid, of all
human beings.