H.M. SLOOP BEAGLE.

For this service H.M. Sloop Beagle was commissioned at Woolwich, in the
second week of February 1837 by Commander Wickham, who had already twice
accompanied her in her wanderings over the least known and most
boisterous waters of the globe; first, in her sister ship of discovery,
the Adventure, Captain King, and afterwards as first lieutenant of the
sloop now entrusted to his command. Under Captain Wickham some of the
most important objects of the voyage were achieved, but in consequence of
his retirement in March 1841, owing to ill health, the command of the
Beagle was entrusted to the author of the following pages; and as, by a
singular combination of circumstances, no less than three long and
hazardous voyages of discovery have been successfully completed in this
vessel, some account of her here may not be wholly uninteresting. The
reader will be surprised to learn that she belongs to that much-abused
class, the 10-gun brigs--COFFINS, as they are not infrequently designated
in the service; notwithstanding which, she has proved herself, under
every possible variety of trial, in all kinds of weather, an excellent
sea boat. She was built at Woolwich in 1819, and her first exploit was
the novel and unprecedented one of passing through old London bridge (the
first rigged man-of-war that had ever floated so high upon the waters of
the Thames) in order to salute at the coronation of King George the
Fourth.

VOYAGES OF THE BEAGLE.

Towards the close of the year 1825 she was first commissioned by
Commander Pringle Stokes,* as second officer of the expedition which
sailed from Plymouth on the 22nd of May, 1826, under the command of
Captain Phillip Parker King; an account of which voyage, published by