Produced by Martin Pettit and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from scans of public domain works at The National Library of Australia.) +-------------------------------------------------+ |Transcriber's note: | | | |Superscript characters are prefixed with | |the 'carat' sign ^. | | | +-------------------------------------------------+ CAPTAIN COOK IN NEW SOUTH WALES OR THE MYSTERY OF NAMING BOTANY BAY BY JAMES BONWICK, F.R.G.S. AUTHOR OF "GEOGRAPHY OF AUSTRALIA," "LAST OF THE TASMANIANS," ETC., ETC. SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON AND CO., LTD. ST. DUNSTAN'S HOUSE, FETTER LANE 1901 RICHARD CLAY AND SONS, LIMITED, LONDON AND BUNGAY. CAPTAIN COOK IN NEW SOUTH WALES This being the age of criticism, and not the time of taking for granted as a fact whatever one had heard from book or speech, an investigation of the story of Cook's Discovery of New South Wales may neither be unwelcome nor unexpected. The story must have been deemed of consequence, when the Admiralty was willing to pay Dr. Hawkesworth six thousand guineas, or pounds, as reported, to write the account of that voyage in H.M.S. _Endeavour_. Though even after its appearance some doubts were expressed as to its propriety, or even veracity, yet some allowance was made for professional jealousies, as well as for the paucity of information upon Australian matters, and the want of means either to substantiate or reject the assertions of the writer. Objection was taken to the literary mode adopted. The author chose to make the narrative in the form of a personal record of events. The Captain was represented as speaking of himself, saying, "I saw," or "I did," &c. It was asserted by critics that to accomplish this personal mode of narration, there would necessarily arise some difficulties in the rearrangement of his sources of history. Was there not a little temptation in the adoption of that plan to alter, repress, or exaggerate facts, or even to invent trivial matters for accommodation? The book had a wonderful sale, and no great amount of hostile remarks. Dr. Hawkesworth's death, so soon after the publication, disarmed those ready to question. Cook's fellow-voyagers, Banks, Matra, and the officers of the _deavour_, were either silent, absent, or unqualified to speak. Thoughtful men did inquire into the sources of the writer's information, their extent, and authenticity. The singular dispersion, loss, or destruction of such sources were fresh causes of embarrassment. Mr., afterwards Sir Joseph, Banks, is said to have declared that he furnished no assistance to the Editor.