| This
preliminary step settled, the exact plan of the undertaking was next taken
into serious consideration. All former navigators round the globe, had
returned by the Cape of Good Hope; but to Captain Cook was assigned the
arduous task of attempting the same thing by reaching the high northern
latitudes between Asia and America; and, it appears that this plan was
adopted in consequence of his own suggestions. His instructions were, to
proceed to the Pacific Ocean, and through that cluster of islands he had
before visited within the southern tropic, and thence, if practicable, to
make his way into the Atlantic, along the northern coast of America, in
whatever latitude it might be found to lie; for nothing whatever was known
at that time respecting it.
To give every stimulus to the prosecution of this
great design, motives of interest were superadded to the obligations of
duty. An act of parliament, which passed in 1745, offering a reward of £20,000
to such as should discover a passage through Hudson's Bay, was enlarged
and explained; and it was now enacted, that if any ship belonging to his
majesty, or his subjects, should find and sail through any passage by sea,
between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, in any direction or parallel of
the northern hemisphere, to the northward of the 52d deg. of northern
latitude, the sum of £20,000 was to reward such discovery.
The vessels destined for this service were the Resolution
and the Discovery. The command of the former was given to Captain
Cook, and that of the latter to Captain Clerke, who had been second
lieutenant on the former voyage. Nearly the same complement of men and
officers was assigned to each as before.
Several months were spent in the equipment and
preparation of the ships, that the health of the seamen, and the success
of the expedition might have every advantage which a liberal and
enlightened attention could bestow. In order that the inhabitants of
Otaheite, and other islands in the South Seas where the English had been
treated with so much hospitality, might be benefited by the voyage, his
Majesty was graciously pleased to order some of the most useful European
animals to be put on board for those countries.
Besides these, Captain Cook was furnished with a
quantity of garden seeds, and the Board of Admiralty added such articles
of commerce as were most likely to promote a friendly intercourse with the
natives and to induce them to open a traffic with the English.
Omai, who has been mentioned in the preceding
voyage, was likewise to be carried back to his native country. He left his
friends in London with a mixture of regret and satisfaction. When he
reflected on the kindnesses he had received, he could not refrain from
tears; but the pleasing idea of revisiting his original connections, soon
made his eyes sparkle with joy.
Contrary winds, and other circumstances prevented
the ships from clearing the Channel till the 14th of July 1776. On board
both vessels were one hundred and ninety-two persons, officers included.
CJC: On the 18th of October, we arrived at the
Cape of Good Hope, and found in the bay two French East India ships; the
one outward, and the other homeward bound. And two or three days before
our arrival, another homeward-bound ship of the same nation had parted
from her cable and was driven on shore at the head of the bay, where she
was lost. The crew were saved; but the greatest part of the cargo shared
the fate of the ship.
As soon as we had saluted, I went on shore,
accompanied by some of my officers, and waited on the governor, the
lieutenant governor, the fiscal, and the commander of the troops. These
gentlemen received me with the greatest civility; and the governor, in
particular, promised me every assistance that the place afforded. At the
same time, I obtained his leave to set up our observatory, to pitch tents
for the sailmakers and coopers, and to bring the cattle on shore, to graze
near our encampment. Before I returned on board, I ordered soft bread,
fresh meat, and greens, to be provided every day for the ship's company.
Nothing remarkable happened till the evening of
the 31st, when it began to blow excessively hard at south-east, and
continued for three days; during which time there was no communication
between the ship and the shore. The Resolution was the only ship in
the bay that rode out the gale without dragging her anchors. We felt its
effects as sensibly on shore. Our tents and observatory were torn to
pieces, and our astronomical quadrant narrowly escaped irreparable damage.
On the 3d of November the storm ceased, and the next day we resumed our
different employments.
In the morning of the 10th, the Discovery
arrived in the bay. Captain Clerke informed me that he had sailed from
Plymouth on the 1st of August, and should have been with us here a week
sooner if the late gale of wind had not blown him off the coast. Upon the
whole, he was seven days longer in his passage from England than we had
been. He had the misfortune to lose one of his marines, by falling
overboard; but there had been no other mortality amongst his people, and
they now arrived well and healthy. Captain Clerke having represented to me
that his ship was in want of caulking; that no time might be lost in
repairing this defect, next day I sent all my workmen on board her, having
already completed this service on board the Resolution. I lent
every other assistance to the captain to expedite his supply of provisions
and water, having given him an order to receive on board as much of both
articles as he could conveniently stow. I now found that the bakers had
failed in baking the bread I had ordered for the Discovery. They
pretended a want of flour; but the truth was, they were doubtful of her
coming, and did not care to begin till they saw her at anchor in the bay.
I have before made mention of our getting our
cattle on shore. The bull and two cows, with their calves, were sent to
graze along with some other cattle; but I was advised to keep our sheep,
sixteen in number, close to our tents, where they were penned up every
night. During the night preceding the 14th, some dogs having got in
amongst them, forced them out of the pen, killing four, and dispersing the
rest. Six of them were recovered the next day; but the two rams, and two
of the finest ewes in the whole flock, were amongst those missing. Baron
Plettenberg being now in the country, I applied to the
lieutenant-governor, Mr. Hemmy, and to the fiscal. Both these gentlemen
promised to use their endeavours for the recovery of the lost sheep. The
Dutch, we know, boast that the police at the Cape is so carefully
executed, that it is hardly possible for a slave, with all his cunning and
knowledge of the country, to effectuate his escape. Yet my sheep evaded
all the vigilance of the fiscal's officers and people. However, after much
trouble and expense, by employing some of the meanest and lowest
scoundrels in the place (who, to use the phrase of the person who
recommended this method to me, would, for a ducatoon, cut their master's
throat, burn the house over his head, and bury him and the whole family in
the ashes), I recovered them all but the two ewes. Of these I never could
hear the least tidings: and I gave over all inquiry after them, when I was
told, that since I had got the two rams, I might think myself very well
off. One of these, however, was so much hurt by the dogs, that there was
reason to believe he would never recover...
While the ships were getting ready for the
prosecution of our voyage, some of our officers made an excursion to take
a view of the neighbouring country. Mr. Anderson, my surgeon, who was one
of the party, gave me the following relation of their proceedings:
WA:
In the afternoon, we went to see a stone of a remarkable size, called by
the inhabitants the Tower of Babylon, or the Pearl Diamond. It lies, or
stands, upon the top of some low hills, at the foot of which our
farm-house was situated; and though the road to it is neither very steep
nor rugged, we were above an hour and a half in walking to it. It is of an
oblong shape, rounded on the top, and lies nearly south and north. The
east and west sides are steep, and almost perpendicular. The south end is
likewise steep, and its greatest height is there; from whence it declines
gently to the north part, by which we ascended to its top, and had an
extensive view of the whole country.
It's circumference, I think, must be at least
half a mile; as it took us above half an hour to walk round it, including
every allowance for the bad road, and stopping a little. At its highest
part, which is the south end, comparing it with a known object, it seems
to equal the dome of St. Paul's church. It is one uninterrupted mass of
stone, if we except some fissures, or rather impressions, not above three
or four feet deep, and a vein which runs across near its north end. It is
of that sort of stone called, by mineralogists, Saxum conglutinatum,
and consists chiefly of pieces of coarse quartz and glimmer,
held together by a clayey cement. But the vein which crosses it, though of
the same materials, is much compacter. This vein is not above a foot broad
or thick; and its surface is cut into little squares or oblongs, disposed
obliquely, which makes it look like the remains of some artificial work.
But I could not observe whether it penetrated far into the large rock, or
was only superficial. In descending, we found at its foot a very rich
black mould; and on the sides of the hills, some trees of a considerable
size, natives of the place, which are a species of olca. In the
morning on the 20th, we set out from the Pearl; and going a different road
from that by which we came, passed through a country, wholly uncultivated,
till we got to the Tyger hills, when some tolerable corn-fields appeared.
At noon, we stopped in a hollow for refreshment; but, in walking about
here, were plagued with a vast number of musquitoes or sand-flies, which
were the first I saw in the country. In the afternoon we set out again,
and in the evening arrived at the Cape Town, tired with the jolting
waggon.
CJC: After the disaster which happened to our
sheep, it may be well supposed I did not trust those that remained long on
shore, but got them, and the other cattle, on board as fast as possible. I
also added to my original stock by purchasing two young bulls, two
heifers, two young stone-horses, two mares, two rams, several ewes and
goats, and some rabbits and poultry. All of them were intended for New
Zealand, Otaheite, and the neighbouring islands, or any other places, in
the course of our voyage, where there might be a prospect that the leaving
any of them would be useful to posterity. Towards the latter end of
November the calkers had finished their work on board the Discovery,
and she had received all her provisions and water. Of the former, both
ships had a supply sufficient for two years and upwards; and every other
article we could think of, necessary for such a voyage, that could be had
at the Cape, was procured; neither knowing when or where we might come to
a place where we could furnish ourselves so well.
Having given Captain Clerke a copy of my
instructions, and an order directing him how to proceed in case of
separation, in the morning of the 30th we repaired on board. At five in
the afternoon a breeze sprung up at S.E., with which we weighed, and stood
out of the bay. At nine it fell calm, and we anchored between Penguin
Island and the east shore, where we lay till three o'clock next morning.
We then weighed and put to sea, with a light breeze at south, but did not
get clear of the land till the morning of the 3d, when with a fresh gale
at W.N.W. we stood to the S.E. to get more into the way of these winds.
On the 5th a sudden squall of wind carried away
the Resolution's mizen topmast. Having another to replace it, the
loss was not felt, especially as it was a bad stick, and had often
complained. On the 6th, in the evening, being then in the latitude of 39°
14' S., and in the longitude of 23° 56' E., we passed through several
small spots of water of reddish colour. Some of this was taken up, and it
was found to abound with a small animal which the microscope discovered to
be like a cray-fish, of a reddish hue. We continued our course to the
south-east, with a very strong gale from the westward, followed by a
mountainous sea, which made the ship roll and tumble exceedingly, and gave
us a great deal of trouble to preserve the cattle we had on board.
Notwithstanding all our care, several goats, especially the males, died;
and some sheep. This misfortune was, in a great measure, owing to the
cold, which we now began most sensibly to feel.
Included in Cook's orders was a paragraph
directing him to explore the newly discovered Kerguelen Island, part of a
group which was first discovered by the French in 1772 and re-visited by
them in 1773. The first island was seen at six o'clock on the morning of
December 24th (Christmas Eve) and upon a nearer approach, it was found to
be of considerable height and about three leagues in circuit. Soon after,
they saw another of the same magnitude, one league to the eastward and
between these two, in the direction of S.E., some smaller ones. Breaks in
the fog revealed a third high island, where the ships anchored the next
day.
CJC: I found the shore, in a manner, covered with
penguins and other birds, and seals. These latter were not numerous, but
so insensible of fear (which plainly indicated that they were unaccustomed
to such visitors), that we killed as many as we chose, for the sake of
their fat or blubber, to make oil for our lamps, and other uses. Fresh
water was in no less plenty than were birds; for every gully afforded a
large stream. But not a single tree or shrub, nor the least sign of any,
was to be discovered, and but very little herbage of any sort. The
appearances, as we sailed into the harbour, had flattered us with the hope
of meeting with something considerable growing here, as we observed the
sides of many of the hills to be of a lively green. But I now found that
this was occasioned by a single plant, which, with the other natural
productions, shall be described in another place. Before I returned to my
ship, I ascended the first ridge of rocks, which rise in a kind of
amphitheatre above one another. I was in hopes, by this means, of
obtaining a view of the country; but before I reached the top, there came
on so thick a fog, that I could hardly find my way down again. In the
evening, we hauled the seine at the head of the harbour, but caught only
half-a-dozen small fish. We had no better success next day, when we tried
with hook and line. So that our only resource here, for fresh provisions,
were birds, of which there was an inexhaustible store.
The morning of the 26th proved foggy, with rain.
However, we went to work to fill water, and cut grass for our cattle,
which we found in small spots near the head of the harbour. The rain which
fell swelled all the rivulets to such a degree, that the sides of the
hills bounding the harbour seemed to be covered with a sheet of water. For
the rain, as it fell, ran into the fissures and crags of the rocks that
composed the interior parts of the hills, and was precipitated down their
sides in prodigious torrents.
The people having wrought hard the two preceding
days, and nearly completed our water, which we filled from a brook at the
left corner of the beach, I allowed them the 27th, as a day of rest, to
celebrate Christmas. Upon this indulgence, many of them went on shore and
made excursions, in different directions, into the country, which they
found barren and desolate in the highest degree. In the evening, one of
them brought to me a quart-bottle which he had found, fastened with some
wire to a projecting rock on the north side of the harbour. This bottle
contained a piece of parchment, on which was written the following
inscription: |
