Narrative of the surveying voyages of his majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle (vol.2): between the years 1826 and 1836 : describing their examination of the southern shores of South America, and the Beagles's circumnavigation of the globe

286 ENGLISH BANK — SAN BLAS BANKS. July rain ; and if ragged, or streaky, of wind also. Light foggy clouds, rising early, often called the ' pride of the morning,' are certain forerunners of a fine day. On the 8th of July the Beagle sailed from Maldonado, and anchored off Monte Video for a few days, waiting for the arrival of a packet from England. Directly the letters were received she returned to Maldonado. On the 18th, my survey work being finished, and our help no longer required at Gorriti, we sailed to sound eastward in the latitude of the English Bank, and then returned to make a few arrangements with Lieutenant Wickham, and obtain ob- servations for the chronometers, previous to making an excur- sion towards the south. On the 24th we sailed to Cape San Antonio, and thence along the coast, close by Cape Corrientes, and skirting the San Bias banks, till we anchored off the river Negro. There we found the Paz and Liebre just returned from their exami- nation of those intricacies which surround the ports between Blanco Bay and San Bias. The Liebre came out to meet us with a satisfactory report of pi'ogress, as well as health ; and, at her return, Mr. Darwin took the opportunity of going into the river, with the view of crossing overland to Buenos Ayres, by way of Argentina : after which, he proposed to make a long excursion from Buenos Ayres into the interior, while the Beagle would be employed in surveying operations along sea- coasts uninteresting to him. We then got under sail and began our next employment, which was sounding about the outer banks off San Bias and Union Bays, and examining those parts of Ports San Antonio and San Jose which the Paz and Liebre had been prevented doing by wind and sea ; besides which, I wished to see them myself, for many reasons, more closely than hitherto. The accumulation of banks about San Bias, and near, though southward of the river Colorado, is an object of interest when viewed in connection with the present position of the mouth of that long, though not large, river, which tra- verses the continent from near Mendoza, and which may have contributed to their formation ; at least, so think geologists.