The Three Voyages of Captain Cook Round the World. Vol. VI. Being the Second of the Third VoyageCook, James
History
The Three Voyages of Captain Cook Round the World. Vol. VI. Being the Second of the Third Voyage
Cook, James
Cook, James, 1728-1779 -- Travel; Explorers -- Great Britain -- Biography; Voyages around the world -- History -- 18th century
We had baffling light winds all the afternoon, so that we made but
little progress; and the weather was not clear enough to enable us to
determine the extent of the land before us. We supposed it to be one of
the many islands laid down by Mr. Stæhlin in his map of the New Northern
Archipelago; and we expected every moment to see more of them.
At four in the afternoon of the 30th, Point Upright bore north-west by
north, six leagues distant. About this time a light breeze springing up
at north north-west, we stood to the north-east till four o’clock next
morning, when the wind veering to the eastward, we tacked and steered to
the north-west. Soon after the wind came to the south-east, and we
steered north-east by north; which course we continued, with soundings
from thirty-five to twenty fathoms, till next day at noon. At this time
we were in the latitude of 60° 58ʹ, and in the longitude of 191°. The
wind now veering to north-east, I first made a stretch of ten leagues to
the north-west; and then, seeing no land in that direction, I stood back
to the eastward about fifteen leagues, and met with nothing but pieces
of drift-wood. The soundings were from twenty-two to nineteen fathoms.
Variable light winds, with showers of rain, prevailed all the 2d; but
fixing in the south-east quarter, in the morning of the 3d, we resumed
our course to the northward. At noon we were, by observation, in the
latitude of 62° 34ʹ, our longitude was 192°; and our depth of water
sixteen fathoms.
Mr. Anderson, my surgeon, who had been lingering under a consumption for
more than twelve months, expired between three and four this afternoon.
He was a sensible young man, an agreeable companion, well skilled in his
own profession; and had acquired considerable knowledge of other
branches of science. The reader of this Journal will have observed how
useful an assistant I had found him in the course of the voyage; and had
it pleased God to have spared his life, the public, I make no doubt,
might have received from him such communications, on various parts of
the natural history of the several places we visited, as would have
abundantly shown that he was not unworthy of this commendation.[79] Soon
after he had breathed his last, land was seen to the westward, twelve
leagues distant. It was supposed to be an island; and, to perpetuate the
memory of the deceased, for whom I had a very great regard, I named it
_Anderson’s Island_. The next day, I removed Mr. Law, the surgeon of the
Discovery, into the Resolution, and appointed Mr. Samuel, the surgeon’s
first mate of the Resolution, to be surgeon of the Discovery.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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