The Life of Captain James Cook, the CircumnavigatorKitson, Arthur
History
The Life of Captain James Cook, the Circumnavigator
Kitson, Arthur
Cook, James, 1728-1779; Explorers -- Great Britain -- Biography; Geographers -- Great Britain -- Biography
In February he was back in London, and Dr. Burney says in his Memoirs:
"I had the honour of receiving the illustrious Captain Cook to dine with
me in Queen's Square [Bloomsbury] previously to his second voyage round
the world. Observing upon a table, Bougainville's Voyage Autour du Monde,
he turned it over, and made some curious remarks on the illiberal conduct
of that circumnavigator towards himself when they met and crossed each
other; which made me desirous to know, in examining the chart of M. de
Bougainville, the several tracks of the two navigators, and exactly where
they had crossed or approached each other.
"Captain Cook instantly took a pencil from his pocket book and said he
would trace the route; which he did in so clear and scientific a manner
that I would not take fifty pounds for my book. The pencil marks, having
been fixed by skim milk, will always be visible."
This volume is now in the British Museum, and the pencil marks on the
chart are as distinct as on the day they were made.
The alterations to the ship were completed early in February, and on the
6th she was hauled out of dock, and rigging, ballasting, and storing
commenced. Cook says:
"Every department seemed to vie with the other in equiping these two
ships, every standing rule and order in the Navy was dispensed with,
every alteration, every necessary and useful article, was granted as soon
as asked for."
SUPPLIES INCREASED.
In another passage he again refers to the anxiety of the Navy Board to
see that the quality of the stores was everything that could be wished,
and the quantity was increased from one to two and a half years' supply.
On the 22nd April the two sloops were at Longreach to take in their guns
and gunners' stores; twelve carriage guns and twelve swivel musketoons
for the Resolution, and ten carriage guns and ten swivels for the
Adventure. These should have been taken on board at Galleon's Reach, but
the Resolution was drawing too much water--seventeen feet. When here Cook
showed that he thought she was rather over-weighted with her new upper
works, and might prove crank, but:
"as the Gentlemen's apartments were full of heavy baggage and the sloop a
good deal lumbered aloft with heavy and some useless articles, which we
might soon get rid of or get into the hold after we had consumed some of
our provisions, I still entertained hopes that she would bear all her
additional works, and suspended giving any other opinion until a full
trial had been made of her, foreseeing what would be the consequence in
case she did not answer in the manner she was now fitted."
On 29th April, Mr. Banks gave an entertainment on board to Lord Sandwich,
the French Ambassador, and other distinguished personages, and Cook notes
that the first named had been on board several times, "a laudable tho '
rare thing in a First Lord of the Admiralty."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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