Page 607

Voyages in the Southern Hemisphere, Vols. II - III

Table of Contents On this day ... 16 - 17 August 1770 Endeavour Voyage Maps James Cook's Journal Ms 1, National Library of Australia Transcript of Cook's Journal Joseph Banks's Journal Sydney Parkinson's Journal Endeavour River to the Northern Extremity of the Country Index Search Contact us

Endeavour River to the Northern Extremity of the Country (continued) Having now congratulated ourselves upon getting within the reef, notwithstanding we had so lately congratulated ourselves upon getting without it, I resolved to keep the main land on board in my future route to the northward, whatever the consequence might be; for if we had now gone without the reef again, it might have carried us so far from the coast, as to prevent my being able to determine, whether this country did, or did not, join to New Guinea; a question which I was determined to resolve from my first coming within sight of land. However, as I had experienced the disadvantage of having a boat under repair, at a time when it was possible I might want to use her, I determined to remain fast at anchor, till the pinnace was perfectly refitted. As I had no employment for the other boats, I sent them out in the morning to the reef, to see what refreshments could be procured, and Mr. Banks, in his little boat, accompanied by Dr. Solander, went with them. In this situation I found the variation by amplitude and azimuth to be 4° 9’ E.; and at noon, our latitude by observation was 12° 38’ S. and our longitude 216° 45’ W. The main land extended from N. 66 W. to S.W. by S. and the nearest part of it was distant about nine leagues. The opening through which we had passed, I called PROVIDENTIAL CHANNEL; and this bore E.N.E. distant ten or twelve miles: on the main land within us was a lofty promontory which I called CAPE WEYMOUTH; on the north side of which is a bay, which I called WEYMOUTH BAY: they lie in latitude 12° 42’ S., longitude 127° 15’ W. At four o’clock in the afternoon the boats returned with two hundred and forty pound of the meat of shell-fish, chiefly of cockles, some of which were as much as two men could move, and contained twenty pounds of good meat. Mr. Banks also brought back many curious shells, and Mollusca; besides many species of coral, among which was that called the Tubipora musica. Voyaging Accounts © Derived from Vols. II-III of the London 1773 edition: National Library of Australia call no. FERG 7243, pages 607 - 608, 2004 Published by kind permission of the Library To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/hv23/607.html