A GENERAL HISTORY AND COLLECTION OF VOYAGES AND TRAVELS, ARRANGED IN
SYSTEMATIC ORDER:
FORMING A COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF NAVIGATION,
DISCOVERY, AND COMMERCE, BY SEA AND LAND, FROM THE EARLIEST AGES TO THE
PRESENT TIME.
* * * * *
BY
ROBERT KERR, F.R.S. & F.A.S. EDIN.
* * * * *
ILLUSTRATED BY MAPS AND CHARTS.
VOL. XII.
WILLIAM BLACKWOOD, EDINBURGH: AND T. CADELL, LONDON.
MDCCCXXIV.
CONTENTS OF VOL. XII.
* * * * *
PART III.
_General Voyages and Travels of Discovery, &c._
BOOK I. An Account of the Voyages undertaken by order of his Majesty,
George III, for making Discoveries in the Southern Hemisphere; and
successively performed, by Commodore Byron, Captains Wallis and
Carteret, and Lieutenant Cook.
General Introduction.
CHAP I. An Account of Commodore Byron's Voyage, in 1764, 5, and 6 in His
Majesty's ship the Dolphin.
SECT. I. The Passage from the Downs to Rio de Janeiro.
II. Passage from Rio de Janeiro to Port Desire; with some Description of
that Place.
III. Course from Port Desire, in search of Pepy's Island, and afterwards
to the Coast of Patagonia, with a Description of the Inhabitants.
IV. Passage up the Streight of Magellan, to Port Famine; with some
Account of that Harbour, and the adjacent Coast.
V. The Course back from Port Famine to Falkland's Islands, with some
Account of the Country.
VI. The Passage through the Strait of Magellan as far as Cape Monday,
with a Description of several Bays and Harbours, formed by the Coast on
each Side.
VII. The Passage from Cape Monday, in the Strait of Magellan, into the
South Seas; with some general Remarks on the Navigation of that Strait.
SECT. VIII. The Run from the Western Entrance of the Strait of Magellan
to the Islands of Disappointment.
IX. The Discovery of King George's Islands, with a Description of them,
and an Account of several Incidents that happened there.
X. The Run from King George's Islands to the Islands of Saypan, Tinian,
and Aguigan; with an Account of several Islands that were discovered in
that Track.
XI. The Arrival of the Dolphin and Tamar at Tinian, a Description of the
present Condition of that Island, and an Account of the Transactions
there.
XII. The Run from Tinian to Pulo Timoan, with some Account of that
Island, its Inhabitants and Productions, and thence to Batavia.
XIII. Transactions at Batavia, and Departure from that Place.
XIV. The Passage from Batavia to the Cape of Good Hope, and from thence
to England.
CHAP. II. An Account of Captain Wallis's Voyage in 1766, 7, and 8, in
his Majesty's ship the Dolphin.
SECT. I. The Passage to the Coast of Patagonia, with some Account of the
Natives.
II. The Passage through the Strait of Magellan, with some further
Account of the Patagonian's, and a Description of the Coast on each
Side, and its Inhabitants.
III. A particular Account of the Places in which we anchored during our
Passage through the Strait, and of the Shoals and Rocks that lie near
them.
IV. The Passage from the Strait of Magellan, to King George the Third's
Island, called Otaheite, in the South Sea, with an Account of the
Discovery; of several other Islands, and a Description of their
Inhabitants.
V. An Account of the Discovery of King George the Third's Island, or
Otaheite, and of several Incidents which happened both on board the Ship
and on Shore.
SECT. VI. The Sick sent on Shore, and a regular Trade established with
the Natives; some Account of their Character and Manners, of their
Visits on board the Ship, and a Variety of Incidents that happened
during this Intercourse.
VII. An Account of an Expedition to discover the Inland Part of the
Country, and our other Transactions, till we quitted the Island to
continue our Voyage.
VIII. A more particular Account of the Inhabitants of Otaheite, and of
their domestic life, Manners, and Arts.
IX. Passage from Otaheite to Tinian, with some Account of several other
Islands that were discovered in the South Seas.
X. Some Account of the present State of the Island of Tinian, and our
Employment there; with what happened in the Run from thence to Batavia.
XI. Transactions at Batavia, and an Account of the Passage from thence
to the Cape of Good Hope.
XII. An Account of our Transactions at the Cape of Good Hope, and of the
Return of the Dolphin to England.
A Table of the Latitudes and Longitudes West of London, with the
Variation of the Needle at several Ports, and Situations at Sea, from
Observations made on board his Majesty's Ship the Dolphin; also her
Nautical Beckoning during the Voyage.
CHAP. III. An Account of Captain Carteret's Voyage, in 1766, 7, 8, and
9, in his Majesty's Sloop the Swallow.
SECT. I. The Run from Plymouth to Madeira, and from thence through the
Strait of Magellan.
II. The passage from Cape Pillar, at the Western entrance of the Strait
of Magellan, to Masafuero; with some Account of that Island.
III. The Passage from Masafuero to Queen Charlotte's Islands; several
Mistakes corrected concerning Davis's Land, and an Account of some small
Islands, supposed to be the same that were seen by Quiros.
SECT. IV. An Account of the Discovery of Queen Charlotte's Islands,
with a Description of them and their Inhabitants, and of what happened
at Egmont Island.
V. Departure from Egmont Island, and Passage to Nova Britannia; with a
Description of several other Islands, and their Inhabitants.
VI. Discovery of a Strait dividing the Land called Nova Britannia into
two Islands, with a Description of several small Islands that lie in the
Passage, and the Land on each side, with the Inhabitants.
VII. The Passage from Saint George's Channel to the Island of Mindanao,
with an Account of many Islands that were seen, and Incidents that
happened by the Way.
VIII. Some Account of the Coast of Mindanao, and the Islands near it, in
which several Mistakes of Dampier are corrected.
IX. The Passage from Mindanao, to the Island of Celebes, with a
particular Account of the Strait of Macassar, in which many Errors are
corrected.
X. Transactions off Macassar, and the Passage thence to Bonthain
XI. Transactions at Bonthain, while the vessel was waiting for a Wind to
carry her to Batavia, with some Account of the Place, the Town of
Macassar, and the adjacent Country.
XII. Passage from Bonthain Bay, in the Island of Celebes, to Batavia.
Transactions there, and the Voyage round the Cape of Good Hope to
England.
A Table of the Variation of the Compass as observed on board of the
Swallow.
CHAP. IV. An Account of Lieutenant Cook's Voyage, in 1768, 1769, and
1770, in his Majesty's Bark the Endeavour.
SECT. I. The Passage from Plymouth to Madeira, with some Account of that
Island.
II. The Passage from Madeira to Rio de Janeiro, with some Account of the
Country, and the Incidents that happened there.
SECT. III. The Passage from Rio de Janeiro to the Entrance of the
Strait of Le Maire, with a Description of some of the Inhabitants of
Terra del Fuego.
IV. An Account of what happened in ascending a Mountain to search for
Plants.
V. The Passage through the Strait of Le Maire, and a farther Description
of the Inhabitants of Terra del Fuego, and its Productions.
VI. A general Description of the south-east part of Terra del Fuego, and
the Strait of Le Maire; with some Remarks on Lord Anson's Account of
them, and Directions for the Passage Westward, round this Part of
America, into the South Seas.
VII. The Sequel of the Passage from Cape Horn to the newly discovered
Islands in the South Seas, with a Description of their Figure, and
Appearance; some Account of the Inhabitants, and several Incidents that
happened during the Course, and at the Ship's Arrival among them.
VIII. The Arrival of the Endeavour at Otaheite, called by Captain
Wallis, King George the III.'s Island. Rules established for Traffic
with the Natives, and an Account of several Incidents which happened in
a Visit to Tootahah and Toubourai Tamaide, two Chiefs.
IX. A Place fixed upon for an Observatory and Fort: an Excursion into
the Woods, and its Consequences. The Fort erected; a Visit from several
Chiefs on Board and at the Fort, with some Account of the Music of the
Natives, and the Manner in which they dispose of their Dead.
X. An Excursion to the Eastward, an Account of several Incidents that
happened both on Board and on Shore, and of the first Interview with
Oberea, the Person, who, when the Dolphin was here, was supposed to be
Queen of the Island, with a Description of the Fort.
SECT. XI. The Observatory set up; the Quadrant stolen, and Consequences
of the Theft: A Visit to Tootahah: Description of a Wrestling match:
European Seeds sown: Names given to our People by the Indians.
XII. Some Ladies visit the fort with very uncommon Ceremonies: The
Indians attend Divine Service, and in the Evening exhibit a most
extraordinary Spectacle: Toubourai Tamaide falls into Temptation.
XIII. Another Visit to Tootabah, with various Adventures: Extraordinary
Amusement of the Indians, with Remarks upon it: Preparations to observe
the Transit of Venus, and what happened in the mean Time at the Fort.
XIV. The Ceremonies of an Indian Funeral particularly described: General
Observations on the Subject: A Character found among the Indians to
which the Ancients paid great Veneration: A Robbery at the Fort, and its
Consequences; with a Specimen of Indian Cookery, and various incidents.
XV. An Account of the Circumnavigation of the island, and various
Incidents that happened during the Expedition; with a Description of a
Burying-place and Place of Worship, called a Morai.
XVI. An Expedition of Mr Banks to trace the River: Marks of
subterraneous Fire: Preparations for leaving the Island: An Account of
Tupia.
A GENERAL HISTORY AND COLLECTION. OF VOYAGES AND TRAVELS.
* * * * *
PART III.
[Illustration]
A GENERAL HISTORY AND COLLECTION OF VOYAGES AND TRAVELS.
* * * * *
PART III. BOOK I.
* * * * *
CHAPTER I.
AN ACCOUNT OF THE VOYAGES UNDERTAKEN BY THE ORDER OF HIS MAJESTY GEORGE
III. FOR MAKING DISCOVERIES IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE; AND SUCCESSIVELY
PERFORMED BY COMMODORE BYRON, CAPTAIN WALLIS, CAPTAIN CARTERET, AND
CAPTAIN COOK, IN THE DOLPHIN, THE SWALLOW, AND THE ENDEAVOUR: DRAWN UP
FROM THE JOURNALS WHICH WERE KEPT BY THE SEVERAL COMMANDERS, AND FROM
THE PAPERS OF SIR JOSEPH BANKS, BART. BY JOHN HAWKESWORTH, LL.D. [TAKEN
FROM THE THIRD EDITION, LONDON 1785, VARIOUSLY MODIFIED TO ANSWER THE
PURPOSES OF THIS COLLECTION, AS ELSEWHERE EXPLAINED.]
GENERAL INTRODUCTION.
His majesty, soon after his accession to the crown, formed a design of
sending out vessels for making discoveries of countries hitherto
unknown; and, in the year 1764, the kingdom being then in a state of
profound peace, he proceeded to put it into execution.[1] The Dolphin
and the Tamar were dispatched under the command of Commodore Byron.
[Illustration: Tracks of ANSON, BYRON, WALLIS & CHARTERET; with COOK'S
in 1769.]
[Footnote 1: In the reign of George II, two voyages of discovery were
performed, viz, by Captain Middleton in 1741, and Captains Smith and
Moore in 1746. They were in search of a north-west passage through
Hudson's Bay. Of these notice will be taken elsewhere.--E.]
The Dolphin was a man-of-war of the sixth rate, mounting twenty-four
guns; her complement was 150 men, with three lieutenants, and
thirty-seven petty officers.
The Tamar was a sloop, mounting sixteen guns; her complement was ninety
men, with three lieutenants, and two-and-twenty petty officers, and the
command of her was given to Captain Mouat.
Commodore Byron returned in the month of May in the year 1766, and in
the month of August following the Dolphin was again sent out, under the
command of Captain Wallis, with the Swallow, commanded by Captain
Carteret. The equipment of the Dolphin was the same as before. The
Swallow was a sloop mounting fourteen guns; her complement was ninety
men, with one lieutenant and twenty-two petty officers.
These vessels proceeded together till they came within sight of the
South Sea, at the western entrance of the Strait of Magellan, and from
thence returned by different routes to England.
In the latter part of the year 1767, it was resolved by the Royal
Society, that it would be proper to send persons into some part of the
South Sea to observe a transit of the planet Venus over the sun's disc,
which, according to astronomical calculation, would happen in the year
1769; and that the islands called Marquesas de Mendoza, or those of
Rotterdam or Amsterdam,[2] were the properest places then known for
making such observation.
[Footnote 2: So called by Tasman, but by the natives Anamooka and
Tongataboo; they belong to that large cluster which Cook named the
Friendly Isles.--E.]
In consequence of these resolutions, it was recommended to his majesty,
in a memorial from the Society, dated February, 1768, that he would be
pleased to order such an observation to be made; upon which his majesty
signified to the lords commissioners of the Admiralty his pleasure that
a ship should be provided to carry such observers as the society should
think fit to the South Seas; and, in the beginning of April following,
the society received a letter from the secretary of the Admiralty,
informing them that a bark of three hundred and seventy tons had been
taken up for that purpose. This vessel was called the Endeavour, and the
command of her given to Lieutenant James Cook,[3] a gentleman of
undoubted abilities in astronomy and navigation, who was soon after, by
the Royal Society, appointed, with Mr Charles Green, a gentleman who had
long been assistant to Dr Bradley at the Royal Observatory at Greenwich,
to observe the transit.[4]
[Footnote 3: The gentleman first proposed for this command was Mr
Alexander Dalrymple, a member of the Royal Society, and author or
publisher of several works in geography. He was anxious for the
undertaking, but apprehending that difficulties might arise during the
voyage from the circumstance of the crew not being subjected to ordinary
naval discipline under him, he made it a condition that he should hold a
brevet commission as captain. Sir Edward Hawke, at that time at the head
of the Admiralty, did not give his consent to this demand, saying, that
his conscience would not permit him to entrust any of his majesty's
ships to a person not educated as a seaman; and declaring, in
consequence, that he would rather have his right hand cut off than sign
any commission to that effect. This brave and spirited man, it is
probable, feared the degradation of his profession by such a measure;
but, besides this, he knew that in a similar case, where a commission
was given to Dr Halley, very serious evils had been occasioned by the
sailors refusing to acknowledge the authority thus communicated. Mr
Dalrymple remaining equally tenacious of his own opinion, it became
necessary either to abandon the undertaking, or to procure another
person to command it. Mr Stephens, Secretary to the Admiralty, made
mention of our great navigator, as well known to him; and very fit for
the office, having been regularly bred in the navy, in which he was that
time a master, and having, as marine surveyor of Newfoundland and
Labradore, and on several occasions, exhibited very singular marks of
good understanding and abilities. Sir Hugh Palliser, applied to by the
Board for his opinion on the matter, most warmly, from his own
knowledge, espoused Mr Stephens's recommendation of Cook, who was
accordingly appointed to the command, and promoted to the rank of
lieutenant in the navy, by a commission bearing date 25th of May, 1768.
Mr Dalrymple, it may be remarked, took his disappointment very badly. He
published a petulant letter to Dr Hawkesworth, complaining, among other
things, of the ill treatment he had received. Dr H. replied in the
second edition of this work, but the controversy betwixt these two
gentlemen is unworthy of the reader's patience.--E.]
[Footnote 4: Joseph Banks, Esq. afterwards Sir Joseph Banks, Bart, and
Dr Solander, accompanied Cook in this voyage.--E.]
While this vessel was getting ready for her expedition, Captain Wallis
returned; and it having been recommended to him by Lord Morton, when he
went out, to fix on a proper place for this astronomical observation,
he, by letter, dated on board the Dolphin the 18th of May, 1768, the day
before he landed at Hastings, mentioned Port Royal harbour, in an island
which he had discovered, then, called George's island, and since
Otaheite: the Royal Society, therefore, by letter, dated the beginning
of June, in answer to an application from the admiralty to be informed
whither they would have their observers sent, made choice of that place.
The Endeavour had been built for the coal trade, and a vessel of that
construction was preferred for many reasons, particularly because she
was what the sailors called a good sea-boat, was more roomy, would take
and lie on the ground better, and might be navigated by fewer men than
other vessels of the same burden.
Her complement of officers and men was Lieutenant Cook the commander,
with two lieutenants under him, a master and boatswain, with each two
mates, a surgeon and carpenter, with each one mate, a gunner, a cook, a
clerk and steward, two quarter-masters, an armourer, a sail-maker, three
midshipmen, forty-one able seamen, twelve marines, and nine servants, in
all eighty-four persons, besides the commander: she was victualled for
eighteen months, and took on board ten carriage and twelve swivel guns,
with good store of ammunition and other necessaries. The Endeavour also,
after the astronomical observation should be made, was ordered to
prosecute the design of making discoveries in the South Seas. What was
effected by these vessels in their several voyages, will appear in the
course of this work, of which it is now necessary to give some account.
It is drawn up from the journals that were kept by the commanders of the
several ships, which were put into my hands by the lords commissioners
of the admiralty for that purpose: and, with respect to the voyage of
the Endeavour, from other papers equally authentic; an assistance which
I have acknowledged in an introduction to the account of her voyage.
When I first undertook the work, it was debated, whether it should be
written in the first or third person; it was readily acknowledged on all
hands, that a narrative in the first person would, by bringing the
adventurer and the reader nearer together, without the intervention of a
stranger, more strongly excite an interest, and consequently afford more
entertainment; but it was objected, that if it was written in the name
of the several commanders, I could exhibit only a naked narrative,
without any opinion or sentiment of my own, however fair the occasion,
and without noting the similitude or dissimilitude between the
opinions, customs, or manners of the people now first discovered, and
those of nations that have been long known, or remarking on any other
incident or particular that might occur. In answer to this objection,
however, it was said, that as the manuscript would be submitted to the
gentlemen in whose names it would be written, supposing the narrative to
be in the first person, and nothing published without their approbation,
it would signify little who conceived the sentiments that should be
expressed, and therefore I might still be at liberty to express my own.
In this opinion all parties acquiesced, and it was determined that the
narrative should be written in the first person, and that I might,
notwithstanding, intersperse such sentiments and observations as my
subject should suggest: they are not indeed numerous, and when they
occur, are always cursory and short; for nothing would have been more
absurd than to interrupt an interesting narrative, or new descriptions,
by hypothesis and dissertation.[5] They will, however, be found most
frequent in the account of the voyage of the Endeavour; and the
principal reason is, that although it stands last in the series, great
part of it was printed before the others were written, so that several
remarks, which would naturally have been suggested by the incidents and
descriptions that would have occurred in the preceding voyages, were
anticipated by similar incidents and descriptions which occurred in
this.
[Footnote 5: It is highly questionable if this substitution of writer
for adventurer have the efficiency ascribed to it, when the reader knows
before hand, and cannot but remember, that it is artificial, and
avowedly intended for effect. This is so obvious, that one cannot help
wondering how the parties concerned in the publication of these Voyages
should have acquiesced in the mode of their appearance. The only way of
accounting for it, perhaps, is this; it was imagined that no one but an
author by profession was competent to fulfil the expectations that had
been formed in the public mind. The opinion generally entertained that
Mr Robins was the author of the Account of Anson's Voyage, might have
contributed to this very groundless notion; and the parties might have
hoped, that a person of Dr Hawkesworth's reputation in the literary
world, would not fail to fabricate a work that should at least rival
that excellent production. It would be unfair not to apprise the reader,
that this hope was not altogether realised. Public opinion has
unquestionably ranked it as inferior, but has not however been niggard
in its praise. The work is read, and always will be read, with high
interest. This, perhaps, is capable of augmentation; and the Editor much
deceives himself if he has not accomplished this effect by his labours,
as well in pruning off the redundant moralizings and cumbrous
ratiocinations of Dr Hawkesworth, as in contributing new but relevant
matter to the mass of amusing and instructive information which that
gentleman has recorded. He confesses that he has far less delicacy in
doing either of these offices in the present case, than he would chuse
to avow, had the account emanated purely and directly from the pens of
those who performed the voyages; nor can he help feeling a regret, that
such persons as Byron and Cook, both of whom have given most
satisfactory proofs of their possessing every literary requisite, were
not permitted to edify the public as they thought good, without the
officious instrumentality of an editor. These men needed no such
interference, though their modesty and good sense availed them,
undoubtedly, in profiting by the merely verbal corrections of
friendship; and their own productions have the charm of simplicity and
genuineness of narrative, which, it is certain, the ability acquired by
mere drudgery in composition is by no means adequate to produce.--E.]
Some particulars that are related in one voyage will perhaps appear to
be repeated in another, as they would necessarily have been if the
several commanders had written the account of their voyages themselves;
for a digest could not have been made of the whole, without invading the
right of each navigator to appropriate the relation of what he had seen:
these repetitions, however, taken together, will be found to fill but a
few pages of the book.[6]
[Footnote 6: These repetitions have been studiously avoided in this
work, wherever omission could be practised, or reference to different
parts of the collection seemed unembarrassing.--E.]
That no doubt might remain of the fidelity with which I have related the
events recorded in my materials, the manuscript account of each voyage
was read to the respective commanders at the Admiralty, by the
appointment of Lord Sandwich, who was himself present during much the
greatest part of the time. The account of the voyage of the Endeavour
was also read to Mr Banks and Dr Solander, in whose hands, as well as in
those of Captain Cook, the manuscript was left for a considerable time
after the reading. Commodore Byron also, Captain Wallis, and Captain
Carteret, had the manuscripts of their respective voyages to peruse,
after they had been read at the Admiralty in their presence, and such
emendations as they suggested were made. In order thus to authenticate
the voyage of Captain Cook, the account of it was first written, because
it was expected when his journal was put into my hand, that he would
have sailed on his second voyage in less than five months.
[Some paragraphs, containing reasons or apologies for certain minute
specifications of courses, bearings, &c. &c. are here omitted, as
unnecessary where the things themselves, to which objections were
anticipated, are not given. Some cuts also alluded to are of course
unsuitable to this work, and the references to them are in consequence
left out. Dr Hawkesworth occupies the remainder of this introduction in
discussing two subjects, about which it is thought unadvisable to take
up the reader's attention at present--the controversy respecting the
existence of giants in Patagonia, asserted by Byron, Wallis, and
Carteret; and the justifiableness of attempting discoveries, where, in
prosecution of them, the lives of human beings in a savage state are of
necessity sacrificed.]
* * * * *
AN ACCOUNT OF A VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD, IN THE YEARS 1764, 1765, AND
1766, BY THE HONOURABLE COMMODORE BYRON, IN HIS MAJESTY'S SHIP THE
DOLPHIN.
SECTION I.
_The Passage from the Downs to Rio de Janeiro._
[The longitude in this voyage is reckoned from the meridian of London,
west to 180 degrees, and east afterwards.]
On the 21st of June, 1764, I sailed from the Downs, with his majesty's
ship the Dolphin, and the Tamar frigate, under my command. In coming
down the river, the Dolphin got a-ground; I therefore put into Plymouth,
where she was docked, but did not appear to have received any damage.[7]
At this place, having changed some of our men, and paid the people two
months wages in advance, I hoisted the broad pendant, and sailed again
on the 3d of July; on the 4th we were off the Lizard, and made the best
of our way with a fine breeze, but had the mortification to find the
Tamar a very heavy sailer. In the night of Friday the 6th, the officer
of the first watch saw either a ship on fire, or an extraordinary
phenomenon which greatly resembled it, at some distance: It continued to
blaze for about half an hour, and then disappeared. In the evening of
July the 12th, we saw the rocks near the island of Madeira, which our
people call the Deserters, from Desertes, a name which has been given
them from their barren and desolate appearance: The next day we stood in
for the road of Funchiale, where, about three o'clock in the afternoon,
we came to an anchor. In the morning of the 14th, I waited upon the
governor, who received me with great politeness, and saluted me with
eleven guns, which I returned from the ship. The next day, he returned
my visit at the house of the consul, upon which I saluted him with
eleven guns, which he returned from the fort. I found here his majesty's
ship the Crown, and the Ferret sloop, who also saluted the broad
pendant.
[Footnote 7: In a well-drawn-up account of this voyage, published 1767,
by an officer of the Dolphin, it is said that "her bottom was sheathed
with copper, as were likewise the braces and pintles for the use of the
rudder, which was the first experiment of the kind that had ever been
made on any vessel." This work will be referred to occasionally, and is
certainly deserving of that notice.--E.]
Having completed our water, and procured all the refreshment I was able
for the companies of both the ships, every man having twenty pounds
weight of onions for his sea-stock, we weighed anchor on Thursday the
19th, and proceeded on our voyage. On the 21st, we made the island of
Palma, one of the Canaries, and soon after examining our water, we found
it would be necessary to touch at one of the Cape de Verd islands for a
fresh supply. During the whole of our course from the Lizard, we
observed that no fish followed the ship, which I judged to be owing to
her being sheathed with copper. By the 26th, our water was become foul,
and stunk intolerably, but we purified it with a machine, which had been
put on board for that purpose: It was a kind of ventilator, by which air
was forced through the water in a continual stream, as long as it was
necessary.
In the morning of the 27th, we made the island of Sal, one of the Cape
de Verds, and seeing several turtle upon the water, we hoisted out our
jolly-boat, and attempted to strike them, but they all went down before
our people could come within reach of them. On Monday the 30th, we came
to an anchor in Port Praya bay, the principal harbour in St Jago, the
largest of the Cape de Verd Islands. The rainy season was already set
in, which renders this place very unsafe; a large swell that rolls in
from the southward, makes a frightful surf upon the shore, and there is
reason every hour to expect a tornado, of which, as it is very violent,
and blows directly in, the consequences are likely to be fatal; so that
after the 15th of August no ship comes hither till the rainy season is
over, which happens in November; for this reason I made all possible
haste to fill my water and get away. I procured three bullocks for the
people, but they were little better than carrion, and the weather was so
hot, that the flesh stunk in a few hours after they were killed.
On Thursday the 2d of August, we got again under sail, with a large
cargo of fowls, lean goats, and monkies, which the people contrived to
procure for old shirts, jackets, and other articles of the like kind.[8]
The intolerable heat, and almost incessant rain, very soon affected our
health, and the men began to fall down in fevers, notwithstanding all my
attention and diligence to make them shift themselves before they slept,
when they were wet.
[Footnote 8: "Clothes, particularly those that are black, however mean,
are here an object of ambition and vanity, rendered less necessary by
the warmth of the climate."]
On Wednesday the 8th, the Tamar fired a gun, upon which we shortened
sail till she came up: We found that she had suffered no damage but the
carrying away of her topsail-yard; however, as we were obliged to make
an easy sail till she had got up another, and the wind seemed to be
coming again to the southward, we lost a good deal of way. We continued,
to our great mortification, to observe that no fish would come near
enough to our copper bottom for us to strike, though we saw the sea as
it were quickened with them at a little distance. Ships in these hot
latitudes generally take fish in plenty, but, except sharks, we were not
able to catch one.
On the 11th of September, we made the coast of Brazil; and on the 13th,
anchored in eighteen fathom, in the great road of Rio de Janeiro. The
city, which is large, and makes a handsome appearance, is governed by
the viceroy of Brazil, who is perhaps, in fact, as absolute a sovereign
as any upon earth. When I visited him, he received me in great form;
above sixty officers were drawn up before the palace, as well as a
captain's guard, who were men of a good appearance, and extremely well
clothed: His excellency, with a number of persons of the first
distinction, belonging to the place, met me at the head of the stairs,
upon which fifteen guns were fired from the nearest port: We then
entered the room of state, and, after conversing about a quarter of an
hour in French, I took my leave, and was dismissed with the same form
that had been used at my reception. He offered to return my visit at a
house which I had hired on shore, but this I declined, and soon after he
returned it on board.
The people in my own ship, who had as much fresh meat and greens as they
could eat every day, were very healthy, but there being many sick on
board the Tamar, I procured a place for them on shore, where they soon
recovered. As the seams of both the ships were very open, some
Portuguese caulkers were engaged, who, after having worked some time,
rendered them perfectly tight.[9] While we lay here, Lord Clive, in the
Kent Indiaman, came to the port. This ship had sailed from England a
month before us, and had not touched any where, yet she came in a month
after us; so that her passage was just two months longer than ours,
notwithstanding the time we lost in waiting for the Tamar, which, though
the Dolphin was by no means a good sailer, sailed so much worse, that we
seldom spread more than half our canvas. The Kent had many of her people
down in the scurvy.
[Footnote 9: "We had six, who were paid at the rate of six shillings
sterling a day; though it is certain that one of our English caulkers
would do as much in one day as they could in three; but though they are
slow and inactive, they perform their work very completely, or else
their vessels could not run so many voyages in a shattered condition as
they frequently do."]
On Tuesday the 16th of October, we weighed anchor, being impatient to
get to sea for the heat here was intolerable; but we lay four or five
days above the bar, waiting for the land-breeze to carry us out, for
there is no getting out with the sea-breeze, and the entrance between
the two first forts is so narrow, and so great a sea breaks in upon
them, that it was not without much danger, and difficulty we got out at
last, and if we had followed the advice of the Portuguese pilot, we had
certainly lost the ship.[10] As this narrative is published for the
advantage of future navigators, particularly those of our own nation, it
is also necessary I should observe, that the Portuguese here, carrying
on a great trade, make it their business to attend every time a boat
comes on shore, and practise every artifice in their power to entice
away the crew: if other methods do not succeed, they make them drunk,
and immediately send them up the country, taking effectual care to
prevent their return, till the ship to which they belong has left the
place; by this practice I lost five of my men, and the Tamar nine: Mine
I never recovered, but the Tamar had the good fortune to learn where
her's were detained, and by sending out a party in the night, surprised
them, and brought them back.
[Footnote 10: The harbour of Rio de Janeiro is uncommonly good, and
spacious enough for a large fleet, but the entrance is very narrow, and
requires to be entered with the assistance of a sea-breeze, which
fortunately blows daily from before noon till sun-set. According to
Captain Krusenstern, the harbour of St Catharines in the island of that
name near the Brazil coast, is "infinitely preferable to Rio Janeiro,"
for ships going round Cape Horn.--See his reasons in the account of his
voyage p. 76.--E.]