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I do not wonder the success which attended the Politico-Religious object of the settlement at Port Famine, for the principal agents and more especially Padre Domingo seemed to have been well selected for the purpose. The latter appears to be a remarkably amiable, beneficent and self denying man, not only making himself all things to all men, but also knowing how to relax the rigour of his creed and discipline so as to retain the licentious people with whom he had to do within the bounds of a Christian profession, and in apparent subserviency to his spiritual authority; what he was not obliged to see he winked at, and when one of his people took some liberties, that he was obliged to witness, with the wife of a Patagonian, he merely said in a half serious, half comic manner, O John! O John! All men spoke well of him. When Captain Gardiner was in Chile, Padre Domingo was Superior of the College of Castro in Chiloe. Thus he verified the assertion of Macaulay: "Rome has also a force disposable at a moment's notice for foreign service, however dangerous or disagreeable. If it is thought at headquarters that a certain priest has talent and character to qualify him for a distant Mission, the necessary order is instantly given and instantly obeyed. Immediately the faithful servant of the Church is preaching, catechising, and confessing in another and distant part of the world. The whole Church is still sending forth to the farthest ends of the earth missionaries as zealous as those who landed in Kent with Augustine... Her acquisitions in the New World have more than compensated her for what she has lost in the old. Her spiritual ascendancy extends over the vast countries which lie between the plains of the Missouri and Cape Horn". (1840)

While getting up this morning, Captain Gardiner told me that he now thought the best plan would be to buy a boat and put a deck upon her, so that she would contain our provisions and serve as a place of refuge in a case of necessity and enable us to procure provisions from Port Famine, where we might also get a strong house made, to be erected upon Dawson Island, which is opposite Port Famine. To this I replied in substance that I had yesterday given a hearty assent to the plan he had then mentioned, as the only practicable one but this appeared to be so different in several of the details, that I could not venture an opinion without mature consideration; my present impression was that, if it was not impracticable, it was nearly useless.

His reply was that there was no alteration in the plan except the substitution of a small vessel for a larger, that would require too great an outlay. I then reminded him that Port Famine was a Government Settlement, therefore they could not sell us provisions at least without an order from the government of Chile, which certainly would not be given to forward a Protestant Mission on an Island that they claimed. I was equally certain that they would not give us provisions to enable us to prosecute an object to which their Government was strongly opposed; they had only to tell us (what the deserter said was a fact) they were short of provisions for themselves, and then they would feel themselves justified in starving us from the place.

But supposing the plan practicable, would it not be nearly useless? For in Dawson Island there were few, if any, inhabitants and the Port Famine colony wished to keep them farther off, according to the Chilean's account; and they had increased the number of their soldiers fourfold, to secure themselves against the marauding habits of these Indians and the Patagonian Lagoon Indians. Moreover the inhabitants of the vicinity of Dawson Island are, according to Captain King and others, few and very barbarous and their language different to that of the mass of the Fuegians. The aspect, climate etc. of the little island were also greatly inferior to that of the north-eastern parts of Tierra del Fuego; and as soon as the barbarians knew that we possessed a little boat filled with provisions, we might expect them to assemble in their canoes and attack us, when our only chance of escape in the narrow Straits that surround this little island, would be to shoot some of them; which, supposing the circumstances justified us in so doing, would at once put an end to the Mission in that quarter; and if we allowed the provisions to be stolen and escaped with our lives, we should equally be obliged to quit the station. Such considerations as these led me to think that the funds could not be well spent in an attempt upon Dawson Island, especially as the north-eastern part of Tierra del Fuego appeared to be preferable in every respect.

Captain Gardiner then said that he had not determined upon making the attempt upon Dawson Island, neither had he intended to try the north-eastern part of Tierra del Fuego: for there we could not procure provisions, as the little boat could not safely navigate the Magellan Straits. The determination to go to Port Famine was retained and consequently the construction of the wall and every other improvement at the Station was discontinued.

Towards noon the vessel from Port Famine made its appearance and we hastened down to the shore, wishing to communicate with them before they spoke to the natives, who were all in a state of great excitement; even those who had gone to hunt, after having feasted at the expense of the Mission, were hastening back from every quarter; the vessel soon sent off a boat but they seemed very reluctant to touch the shore till they heard our English voices directing them to the east landing place. In the boat were Mr Dunn, the Secretary of the Colony at Port Famine or San Felipe, as they called it. Mr Dunn's parents were both English. The sailing master was an American, late Mate of the Express wrecked near the Straits, and among the boat's crew was a man whom Captain Gardiner had known at Falkland Islands; each of these three spoke English.

We were immediately invited to go aboard the Government Schooner, Ancud; Ruperto Gatica, Lieut. Commander. We accepted the Invitation and on our way they put as many leading questions as enabled them to ascertain who we were, what we were about and upon what terms we were with the natives etc. This led to their being informed of our wish that they would give us a passage to San Felipe, to which Mr Dunn replied that he had no doubt that this point could be arranged. Among other things, they asked how we had contrived to be so well acquainted with the state of San Felipe, and this led to Captain Gardiner's mentioning the two deserters, upon which Mr Dunn said, in a rather peculiar manner, that one object of their coming was to catch them.

On our going aboard the Ancud we were exceedingly well received and Captain Gatica expressed the utmost readiness to do everything in his power for us, and assured us that the Governor of San Felipe, Major Ribera, would be equally obliging. We were then informed that they had expected that our Station was a settlement of Buenos Ayreans, sent by Rosas, to take possession of the disputed territory. This accounted for their being in no haste to come ashore. I became satisfied that the chief reason for their presence at Cape Gregory was to see what was going on; and I have little doubt that they had some Indian or other spy, in our neighbourhood, to inform them if any hostile Indians or no less inimical Buenos Ayreans happened to appear hereabout. Some of my reasons for this opinion were the following (which have a place here because the facts influenced our determination to return home).

The boundary dispute between Chile and Buenos Aires has been attempted to be settled by the mutual agreement that the Cordilleras shall be the boundary; which arrangement would hardly give so western a point as Port Famine even to the Chilean territory. But Chile affects to believe that the Cordilleras, or a branch of them, runs S.E. towards the mouth of the Santa Cruz river. In this case the whole of the south of Patagonia belongs to Chile and thus they would possess all the straits and all Tierra del Fuego. This claim Chile is determined to support and accordingly they are fortifying and strengthening Port Famine against an expected attack from Rosas. Captain Gatica distinctly allowed that they expected this attack either by land or sea and that they were preparing to resist it. They knew that Rosas was attempting to secure the assistance of the Patagonian tribes and therefore they might expect an attack by land and he affirmed that he knew of the report that Rosas was about to break up their settlement by sending a Man-of-War.

Here then is a reason why common prudence should make them decide upon procuring early information of anything particular happening to the East of them. That they did get this information is probable because when the English vessel Ganges arrived at Cape Gregory this afternoon, her Captain, Mr Gibson told us that he had heard at Port Famine that two Englishmen from the Falkland Islands were here. This report, partly true, partly false might have originated in this manner. We had latterly told all the Indians we saw that we were English, Captain Gardiner's name had become known; these two things being reported at Port Famine and reaching the ears of the man who had known Captain Gardiner at the Falkland Islands and had left them (the islands) to go to Port Famine, while Captain Gardiner was still residing at the Falklands, would naturally give rise to the report that Captain Gibson of the Ganges had heard at Port Famine.

Captain Gatica's doubts of our character and country are explained by the fact of his having left Port Famine several days before the Ganges arrived there. The Lagoon Indians left us and went towards Port Famine ten days ago, and he whom we first saw had made several trips and signals in that direction. This man might have communicated by signals, or through the medium of other Indians in the neighbourhood, the fact of our arrival and setting up houses; and the Lagoon Indians who last left us might have carried the news that only Captain Gardiner and another Englishman had been left ashore.

But still more important facts are: - The Chileans think they hare discovered a good coal mine in the neighbourhood of Sandy Point. From the character of the strata at Cape Gregory I think this very unlikely; but if it be true, it is of great importance to them to take possession of the Straits and employ steam tugs, which would render the navigation safe and facilitate their communication with the East, by superseding the necessity of doubling Cape Horn and perhaps supersede the meditated canal over the Isthmus of Panama. The possession of the Straits is therefore to be contested by Chile and Rosas and already every effort is being made by both parties to secure the co-operation of the Patagonian tribes. It appears that Centurion and Wesail have given in their adherence to Port Famine and the Northern tribes to Rosas. In the midst of this strife we were powerless for good, our object being considered hostile by both parties, each of whom claims, in a moral as well as a physical point of view, the ground we have attempted to occupy, We also find that Tierra del Fuego is within the wind of this connection and this has blasted the hopes we had entertained of doing something in that quarter. According to Captain G's opinion, Chile would not tolerate us and Rosas's persecution would be much more decided. (In this place the remarks which commence this day's entry should have been written.)

Soon after noon the English vessel Ganges, Captain Gibson made her appearance and anchored in the bay. The Ancud immediately sent a boat to her with a request that Captain Gibson would visit them on his way to the shore. This Captain Gibson did. Meanwhile the additional information we had received from Captain Gatica had decided that we should return to England immediately, in order to prevent the Committee from making arrangements to send anyone else out. As soon therefore as Captain Gibson came ashore, Captain Gardiner requested him to take us home. He replied that he had not room nor provisions for us, to which we answered we could occupy part of the half deck and put up with anything he could afford us. The result was he consented to take us for a reasonable sum, with the understanding that we must put up with things as we found them. We therefore requested him to see Captain Gatica as he returned to the Ganges and inform him of our altered plans.

It seems that however willing the Chileans were to take us out of the country to Port Famine, they were still more glad to hear that we were about to return to England. Fearful that the Indians would steal our provisions etc. in the night if they heard immediately of our determination to leave them, we requested that both crews would be silent on the subject and our preparations were begun within doors. Captain Gatica and Mr Dunn were anxious to have as many of our things as they could procure with their slender funds, so Captain Gardiner busied himself with showing them everything that could be disposed of, while I packed up my valuables in my two large boxes, large portmanteau and two other packages: so that before the next morning all my things were ready to go aboard, except a change of linen that was hanging up to dry. This I mention because the necessary haste I made occasioned the loss of nearly the whole in the following way.