R.S. Brown 1768 Journal (1) McKean Island 14 Oct. Landed at 0500. Spent the whole day casting gear into island inc. all the Scripps gear + equipment. Got Camp fairly well squared away. But To do hard work at 2000. Surf quite bad. I had a feed Close calls bringing gear in. Dr. Windsor brought the large ship in once; nearly killed himself and That was the last I saw of the ship. I noted that many left of Grass have burned spikes (only the short ground-level spikes showing) along the west side of island. Entire island is much greener than in July, but somewhat along the line a fire swept at least a portion of the island. Burn marks are not present elsewhere as along the walls etc. while dried grass + sides show no evidence of burning, will look more carefully tomorrow. Largest Sooty Tern colony I have ever seen on McKean Island along the entire W side. Most birds with 1/3 - 1/2 green chicks, but also many or eggs. 24 Oct. Spent night of 23 (+24) at Shard ship with a bleeding sleeper. Dr. wanted I stay on board. Finally get back ashore only today 0830 24. Very hard rain last night - this is the third God Rain we have had on the island + things are really greening up R.S. Brown 1768 Journal (2) McKean Island 25 Oct. Vicer still has me pretty weak and there is a very limited amount of food for which the old Sea will let me eat, so things are not too good. But I get around and just work at a slow rate then I did. I am convinced now that it is in the Sooty Terns which have got me in this state. From the first day on the island I found it impossible to walk through the colony at night with thousands upon thousands of screaming birds flying into my headlamp without stomping a bit of them. Since they completely surround the camp, each moment on camp is under the sky of all the screaming terns. I definitely was not sleeping the first night before eleven Terns sitting by. Then every trip at night in any direction (and return to 3 morn) is a trip through that screaming swarm of Terns. There is no escaping them since they are nesting for hundreds of birds. I go in each direction from camp along the west shore. I finally reached a point (possibly before I even came back to rubbber this trip) where Sooty terns and I met about like flame + jumpers. The not too good setting conditions here on the island, absolutely no shade (tent is like an oven from 0830 till 1800) and being in that insufferable sun all day long, plus laying out all day Rogers wind jogged the New Fiddler All contributed to fully getting me down. Christ, will I ever learn my limits? Probably not - just a good thing I have a single thing like a holding place to calm me - could be worth it as a last resort!