But the stay in that unhealthy country was fatal after such severe fatigue. Endemic fevers raged there; and Banks, Solander, and Cook, as well as the greater part of the crew, fell ill. Many died, amongst them Monkhouse, the surgeon, Tupia, and little Tayeto. Ten men only escaped the fever. The _Endeavour_ set sail on the 27th of December, and on the 15th of January, 1771, put into Prince of Wales Island for victuals. From that moment, sickness increased among the crew. Twenty-three men died, amongst them Green, the astronomer, who was much regretted. After a stay at the Cape of Good Hope, where he met with the welcome he so sorely needed, Cook re-embarked, touched at St. Helena, and anchored in the Downs on the 11th of June, 1772, after an absence of nearly four years. "Thus," says Kippis, "ended Cook's first voyage, a voyage in which he had experienced such dangers, discovered so many countries, and so often evinced his superiority of character. He was well worthy of the dangerous enterprise and of the courageous efforts to which he had been called." CHAPTER IV. CAPTAIN COOK'S SECOND VOYAGE. I. Search for the Southern Continent--Second stay at New Zealand-- Pomontou Archipelago--Second stay at Tahiti--Reconnoitring Tonga Isles--Third stay at New Zealand--Second crossing of the Southern Ocean--Easter Island reconnoitred--Visit to the Marquesas Islands. Had the government not been desirous of rewarding James Cook for the way in which he had fulfilled the mission entrusted to him, the unanimous voice of the public would have constrained them. On the 29th of August he received the rank of commander in the Royal Navy. But the great navigator, proud of the services he had rendered to England and to science, thought the reward less than his achievements merited. He would have delighted in an appointment as ship's captain, but Lord Sandwich, who was then at the head of the Admiralty, pointed out to him, that it was not possible to gratify him without upsetting all established customs, and injuring the discipline of the Royal Navy. However, Cook busied himself in putting together the necessary materials for the narration of his experiences; but, being soon occupied with still more important matters, he placed them in the hands of Dr. Hawkesworth, who was to superintend their publication. At the same time, the observations he had taken on the transit of Mercury in concert with Mr. Green, his calculations and astronomical solutions, were submitted to the consideration of the Royal Society, and that learned body at once recognized his merit.