Celebrated Travels and Travellers, Part 2.: The Great Navigators of the Eighteenth CenturyVerne, Jules
History
Celebrated Travels and Travellers, Part 2.: The Great Navigators of the Eighteenth Century
Verne, Jules
Discoveries in geography; Explorers; Voyages and travels
The rising wind prevented an entrance into Cumberland Bay, and after
cruising about for an entire day, Carteret was obliged to content
himself with reaching Mas-a-Fuero. But he met the same obstacles, and
the surge which broke upon the shore interfered with his operations,
and it was only with the utmost difficulty that he succeeded in
shipping a few casks of water. Some of the crew, who had been forced
by the state of the sea to remain on land, killed guinea fowls enough
to feed the entire crew. These, with the exception of some seals and
plenty of fish, were the sole result of a stay, marked by a succession
of squalls and storms, which constantly placed the ship in danger.
Carteret, who, owing to unfavourable winds, had had several
opportunities of noticing Mas-a-Fuero, corrected many of the errors in
the account of Lord Anson's voyage, and furnished many details of
inestimable use to navigators.
On leaving Mas-a-Fuero, Carteret steered northward in the hope of
meeting the south-eastern trade wind. Carried farther than he had
counted upon, he determined to seek St. Ambrose, and St. Felix Island,
or the island of St. Paul. Now that the Spaniards had taken possession
of and fortified Juan Fernandez, those islands might be of great value
to the English in the event of war.
But Mr. Green's charts and the "Elements of Navigation" by Robertson
did not tally as to their situation. Carteret, having most confidence
in the latter work, sought for them in the north, and failed to find
them. In re-reading the description given by Waser, Davis' surgeon, he
thought these two islands were identical with the land met with by
that filibuster, in his route to the south of the Galapagos Islands,
and that Davis' Land did not exist. This caused a double error, that
of identifying St. Felix Island with Davis' Land, and of denying the
existence of the latter, which is in reality Easter Island.
"At this parallel," says Carteret, that is in 18 degrees west from his
point of departure, "we had fresh breezes, and a strong northerly
current, and other reasons for conjecturing that we were near Davis'
Land, which we were seeking so carefully. But a stiff breeze rising
again, we steered quarter S.W. and reached 28-1/2 degrees southern
latitude, from which it follows that if this land or anything
answering to it exists, I must infallibly have fallen in with it, or
at least have seen it. I afterwards remained in 28 degrees south
latitude, and 40 degrees west of my point of departure, and as far as
I can conjecture 121 degrees west London."
All the navigators combined in insisting upon the existence of a
southern continent. Carteret could not conceive that Davis' Land was
but a small island, a spot lost in the immensity of the ocean. As he
found no continent, he decided upon the non-existence of Davis' Land.
It was precisely in this way that he was misled.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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