On the 10th of October we gammoned the barque Rodman, of New Bedford, twelve months out, with twelve hundred barrels of oil. She was by far the most successful ship we encountered. Much of her oil was taken off Desolation; and her crew, like that of the Stephania, represented that whaling-ground as a perfect purgatory. They said that the weather was so intensely cold, that it was necessary to envelop the person in three or four thicknesses of warm woolen clothing when going in the boats. This practice cost one of their crew his life; for the boat in which he was being stoven, from the heaviness of his clothing when saturated he was unable to swim, though he knew how, and he perished--his boatmates having as much as they could do to save themselves. They had also been into Shark’s Bay, in pursuit of humpbacks, and lost an anchor there; the captain had also there rigged a bomb-gun, so as to discharge a harpoon, but on putting it into operation shattered his hand. Doing nothing in the Bight, and being assured of the scarcity of sperm whales on its grounds, we took our departure for the westward. We had counted largely on this season’s operations--forgetting the old maxim of not reckoning chickens before they are hatched. We saw sperm whales but once during the season, and then failed to make a capture. We were, without palliation, skunked: our whole additions being a porpoise and cowfish. The latter fish is of the same species as the porpoise, only differing from it in size, it being considerably larger; its flesh is coarser and not so good eating. During our cruise we were continually in sight of some one or more islands of the Récherché Archipelago. These islands are uninhabited and almost barren--the only green appearance being a stunted brushwood. Around these islands the seal is found in great numbers, and small craft resort to them for the purpose of capturing these sea-dogs. Several of the ships lowered their boats, which went in, and stated that they caught numbers of fine fish.