After dinner, I landed with a strong party, leaving the vessel in charge of Mr. Boneto. I took the horses and mules on shore, with provisions for a week, intending to march to the highest land we could find, to gain at once an extensive view of the coast and country. We landed on the south side of the bay, and shaped our course for a moderately elevated spot, which appeared to be the highest land, due south about ten miles distant. We found the shore much like that of the Falkland Islands, the only difference being that this was much more level, and had greater extent of tussoc. After passing through a border of tussoc about three miles wide, we reached an open prairie country, with grass about four inches high. We were three hours in gaining the elevated spot, from which we were enabled to see the coast for a great distance on our left, and the sea along its border, studded with islands. On the right, we could see nothing but boundless prairie, with here and there a ridge like the one we were upon. To the south, in the horizon, appeared something like a hill, and to that I determined to go. Having taken some refreshments, we took up the line of march. Slim, who was with me, as I did not think it prudent to leave him on board, had been very docile until now: on finding me determined to push into the interior so great a distance, he became evidently uneasy. He dared not express his fears to me, but took care that I should overhear him say to one of the men, "I hope the captain won't waste so much time in exploring this desert, that we shall be obliged to go away without a full cargo of skins, or run the risk of being obliged to winter here, so near the pole, where we should certainly all freeze to death, in spite of every thing we could do." As this was a reasonable apprehension in the mind of an ignorant man, I endeavoured to remove his fears by calling his attention to the tussoc grass and other plants, and asked him how they survived the winter, if the cold was so intense as he supposed? and advanced the opinion that wherever plants can sustain the cold of winter, and retain their vitality, man can exist, with the aid of good clothing and artificial heat.