Masasuero to Queen Charlotte's Island
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On the 22d, we were got into latitude 18° S., longitude 161° W. which was about one thousand eight hundred leagues to the westward of the continent of America, and in all this track we had no indication of a continent. The men now began to be very sickly, the scurvy having made great progress among them, and as I found that all my endeavours to keep in a high southern latitude at this time, were ineffectual, and that the badness of the weather, the variableness of the winds, and above all the defects of the ship, rendered our progress flow, I thought it absolutely necessary to fix upon that course which was most likely to preserve the vessel and the crew; instead therefore of attempting to return back by the south east, in which, considering our condition, and the advanced season of the year, it was scarcely possible that we should succeed, I bore away to the northward, that I might get into the trade-wind, keeping still in such a track as, if the charts were to be trusted, was most likely to bring me to some island, where the refreshments of which we stood so much in need might be procured; intending then, if the ship could be put into a proper condition, to have pursued the voyage to the southward, when the fit season should return, to have attempted farther discoveries in this track; and, if I should discover a continent, and procure a sufficient supply of provisions there, to keep along the coast to the southward till the sun had crossed the equinoctial, and then, getting into a high southern latitude, either have gone west about to the Cape of Good Hope, or returned to the eastward, and having touched at Falkland's Islands if necessary, made the best of my way from thence back to Europe.
When I got into latitude 16° S. and not before, I found the true trade-wind; and as we proceeded to the north west, and the northward, we found the variation increase very fast; for when we had advanced to latitude 18° 1° S. and were in longitude 80° ¼#188; W. of our departure, it was 7° 3° E. We had bad weather, with hard gales, and a great sea from the eastward till the 25th, when being in latitude 12° 15' S. we saw many birds flying in flocks, and supposed ourselves to be near some land, particularly several islands that are laid down in the charts, and one which was seen by Commodore Byron in 1765, and called the Island of Danger; none of these islands however could we see. At this time it blew so hard that, although we went before the wind, we were obliged to reef our topsails, and the weather was still very thick and rainy. The next morning, being in latitude 10° S., longitude 167° W. we kept nearly in the same parallel, in hopes to have fallen in with some of the islands called Solomon' S Islands, this being the latitude in which the southermost of them is laid down. We had here the trade wind strong, with violent squalls and much rain, and continuing out course till Monday the 3d of August, we were then in latitude 10° 1° S., longitude by account 177° ½ E.; our distance west from the continent of America about twenty-one hundred leagues, and we were five degrees to the westward of the situation of those islands in the charts. It was not our good fortune however to fall in with any land; probably we might pass near some, which the thick weather prevented our seeing; for in this run great numbers of sea-birds were often about the ship: however, as Commodore Byron in his last voyage sailed over the northern limits of that part of the ocean in which the islands of Solomon are said to lie, and as I sailed over the southern limits without seeing them, there is great reason to conclude that, if there are any such islands, their situation in all our charts is erroneously laid down.
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Voyaging Accounts |  |
© Derived from Volume I of the London 1773 Edition: National Library of Australia call no. FERG 7243, pages 564 - 566, 2004
Published by kind permission of the Library
To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/hv01/566.html