A settlement having been commenced by the French on Falkland’s
Islands, in the month of February, 1764, the Spaniards demanded them
as an appendage to the continent of South America; and France having
allowed the propriety of the demand, Mons. de Bougainville was ordered
to yield possession of the islands to the Spaniards.
On the 5th of December he sailed from the harbor of Brest, in the
frigate La Boudeuse, having on board the Prince of Nassau Seighen,
three gentlemen who went as volunteers, eleven officers in commission,
and warrant-officers, seamen, soldiers, servants and boys to the
number of two hundred. On the evening of the 29th of January, they had
sight of Rio-de-la-Plata, and on the morning of the 31st came to
anchor in the Bay of Montevideo, where the two Spanish ships, which
were to take possession of Falkland Islands, had been at anchor for
some weeks. They sailed with these ships on the 28th of February,
1767; and on the 1st of April Bougainville, in the name of the French
king, surrendered the islands to Don Puente, the Spanish governor, who
received them for his most Catholic majesty, with the ceremony of
hoisting the Spanish colors, and the firing of guns from the ships and
on shore.
Falkland Islands lie in about 52 degrees south latitude, and 60
degrees west longitude. From the entrance of the Straits of Magellan,
and from the coast of Patagonia, their distance is about 250 miles.
The harbors are large, and well defended by small islands most happily
disposed; and even the smallest vessels may ride in safety in the
creeks, while fresh water is easily to be obtained. After waiting at
these islands till the 2d of June, 1767, in expectation of the Etoile
store-ship from Europe, Bougainville steered for Rio Janeiro, at which
place he had appointed the Etoile to join him. They had fine weather
from the 2d to the 20th of June, on which day they had sight of the
mountains on the main land of Brazil, and entered Rio Janeiro the day
following. At the same time a canoe was despatched from the captain of
the Etoile, with information of the safe arrival of that vessel, which
now lay in the port; and on the 14th of July, both vessels sailed, and
on the 31st came to anchor in the Bay of Montevideo. As it was
necessary that Bougainville should remain in his present station till
the equinox was passed, his first care was to build a hospital for the
sick, and to take lodgings at Montevideo.
On the 14th of November, 1767, they sailed from Montevideo, with a
fine gale of wind at north. On the 16th, and the five following days,
the sea ran high, and the wind was contrary. The 2d of December they
had sight of Cape Virgins, with a fair wind. They now saw a number of
albatrosses and petrels, the last of which are said to be a sign of
bad weather whenever they are seen. They made their best efforts to
reach the entrance of the Straits of Magellan; and Bougainville was
seven weeks and three days in passing through it, the whole length of
which, from Cape Virgin Mary to Cape Pillar, he computes at about 340
miles.
On the 22d of March, land was discovered, and when they had coasted
one of the islands for about two miles, they had sight of three men,
who advanced hastily towards the shore. They at first imagined that
these were part of the crew of some European ship which had been
wrecked on the coast, but discovered their conjecture ill-founded, for
the people retired to the woods, from which, in a short time, issued a
number of them, supposed to be near twenty, with long staves in their
hands, which they held up with an air of defiance. This done, they
retreated to the woods. These islanders were of a copper complexion
and very tall.
During the night between the 22d and 23d they had much rain,
accompanied with violent thunder, while the wind blew almost a
tempest. At day-break land was discovered, which was called Harp
Island, and in the evening a cluster of islands, eleven of which were
seen, received the name of the Dangerous Archipelago. A steep
mountain, which appeared to be encompassed by the sea, was discovered
on the 2d of April, and received the name of Boudoir, or Boudeuse
Peak, from Bougainville’s ship. Bearing to the northward of this peak
they had sight of land, which extended farther than the eye could
reach.
As Bougainville coasted the island, he was charmed with the appearance
of a noble cascade, which, falling immediately from the summit of a
mountain into the sea, produced a most elegant effect. On the shores
very near to the fall of this cascade, was a little town, and the
coast appeared to be free from breakers. It was the wish of our
adventurers to have cast their anchor within view of such an
enchanting prospect; but, after repeated soundings, they found that
the bottom consisted only of rocks, and they were, therefore, under a
necessity of seeking another anchoring place, where the ships were
safely moored.
[Illustration: VALPARAISO.]
[Illustration: IRON BRIDGE AT JAMAICA.]
They remained at Otaheite until the 16th of April, when they departed,
and in the beginning of May three islands were discovered. On the
following day another island was seen to the westward of the ship’s
course. To the islands the commodore gave the general name of the
Archipelago of the Navigators. On the morning of the 11th, another
island was discovered, which received the name of the Forlorn Hope.
The ships now steered a westerly course, and early on the morning of
the 22d two islands were discovered, one of which received the name
Aurora, from the early hour on which it was first seen, and the other
that of Whitsuntide Isle, from the day which gave birth to it being so
named. In the afternoon, mountainous lands, at thirty miles distance,
were seen, appearing, as it were, over and beyond the Island of
Aurora. On the 23d it was discovered that this was a separate island,
the appearance being lofty, its descent steep, and the whole clothed
with trees. From this time to the 27th, they passed many islands, on
one of which they observed a fine plantation of trees, between which
there were regular walks, resembling those of an European garden. They
now quitted this great cluster of islands, which received the general
name of Archipelago of the great Cyclades, which, it is conjectured,
occupies no less than three degrees of latitude, and five of
longitude.
From the 14th to the 18th of June they discovered a number of islands.
On July the 2d a cape was discovered, which was called Cape l’Averdi,
on which were mountains of an astonishing height. Two more islands
were seen on the 6th, and, as the wood and water were expended, and
disease reigning aboard, the commodore resolved to land here, and on
the following afternoon the ships came to anchor.
In the afternoon of the 24th a favorable breeze enabled the ships to
get out to sea. On the 31st a number of Indian boats attacked the
Etoile with a volley of stones and arrows; but a single discharge of
the musketry got rid of these troublesome companions. On the 4th of
August two islands were seen. On the 5th a third island was seen, and
then the northern point of New Britain which lies only forty-one
minutes south of the land. On the 7th a flat island was seen, covered
with trees, abounding with cocoa-nuts. Fishing-boats in multitudes
surrounding the island; but the fisherman took no notice of the ships.
This received the name of the Island of Anchorets. From this time till
the end of the month innumerable small islands were observed every
day.
Early in the morning of the 31st our voyagers had sight of the island
of Ceram, which runs in a parallel east and west, abounds in lofty
mountains, and is partly cleared, and partly in its original state. At
midnight a number of fires attracted their attention to the island of
Boero, where there is a Dutch factory, at the entrance of the Gulf of
Cagei, which the French had sight of at day-break. Their joy on this
occasion is not to be expressed, for at this time not half of the
seamen were able to perform any duty, and the scurvy had raged so
violently, that no man on board was perfectly clear of it.
They sailed on the 7th September and on the 13th the ships were
surrounded with Indian boats, bringing parroquets, cockatoos, fowls,
eggs, and bananas, which the natives sold for Dutch money, or
exchanged for knives. By day-light on the 19th they were within about
a league of the Coast of Celibes, which in this part is described as
one of the finest countries in the world. On the morning of the 26th
the coast of Java appeared with the rising sun. Having come to an
anchor for the night, the ships sailed early in the morning of the
27th and on the next day came to anchor in the port of Batavia.
The ships sailed thence on the 16th of October, 1768, and cleared the
straits of Sunda on the 19th in the afternoon. By this time the crew
were all perfectly recovered of the scurvy, but a few remained ill of
the bloody flux. On the 20th the ships were in sight of the Isle of
France, and, on the 8th of November, the Boudeuse anchored in the port
of that island; the Etoile, which had been unavoidably left behind,
anchoring in the same port on the following day.
They sailed from this the 12th of December, 1768, leaving the Etoile
behind them to undergo some necessary repairs. Without encountering
any singular accident they had sight of the Cape of Good Hope on the
18th of January, and came to anchor in Table Bay on the following
morning. Bougainville quitted this on the 17th, anchored off St.
Helena on the 4th of February, and on the 25th, joined the Swallow,
commanded by Captain Cartert. Nothing material happened from this time
till they had sight of the Isle of Ushant, where a violent squall of
wind had nearly blasted the hopes of the voyage. On the 15th the
commander bore away for St. Maloes, which he entered on the following
day, after an absence of two years and four months from his native
country; during all which time he had buried only seven of his crew, a
circumstance that will be deemed truly astonishing, when we reflect on
the variety of dangers they had encountered and the amazing changes of
climate they had experienced.