repairs required by the ship. For our part, having erected a tent near
the springs, we passed the time while they were taking in water, in
coursing over the isles: we had a boat for our accommodation, and killed
every day a great many wild geese and ducks. These birds differ in
plumage from those which are seen in Canada. We also killed a great
many seals. These animals ordinarily keep upon the rocks. We also saw
several foxes of the species called _Virginia_ fox: they were shy and
yet fierce, barking like dogs and then flying precipitately. Penguins
are also numerous on the Falkland Isles. These birds have a fine
plumage, and resemble the loon: but they do not fly, having only little
stumps of wings which they use to help themselves in waddling along. The
rocks were covered with them. It being their sitting season we found
them on their nests, from which they would not stir. They are not wild
or timid: far from flying at our approach, they attacked us with their
bill, which is very sharp, and with their short wings. The flesh of the
penguin is black and leathery, with a strong fishy taste, and one must
be very hungry to make up one's mind to eat it. We got a great quantity
of eggs by dislodging them from their nests.

As the French and English had both attempted to form establishments on
these rocks, we endeavored to find some vestige of them; the tracks
which we met everywhere made us hope to find goats also: but all our
researches were vain: all that we discovered was an old fishing cabin,
constructed of whale bone, and some seal-skin moccasins; for these rocks
offer not a single tree to the view, and are frequented solely by the
vessels which pursue the whale fishery in the southern seas. We found,
however, two head-boards with inscriptions in English, marking the spot
where two men had been interred: as the letters were nearly obliterated,
we carved new ones on fresh pieces of board procured from the ship. This
pious attention to two dead men nearly proved fatal to a greater number