The Life of Captain James Cook, the Circumnavigator

by Arthur Kitson

CHAPTER 15. 1775 TO 1776. ENGLAND.

After his return Cook was busily engaged preparing his Journal and charts for publication, which had been sanctioned by the Admiralty, and was considerably annoyed and delayed by the conduct of Mr. Forster, who immediately on his return complained that the 4,000 pounds granted him to cover the whole of his expenses had proved totally inadequate. He claimed that Lord Sandwich had promised, verbally, that he was to have the exclusive duty of writing the History of the Voyage, was to receive the whole of the profits thereof, and to be provided with permanent employment for the remainder of his life. This promise was totally denied by Lord Sandwich, and it certainly does not appear to have been a reasonable one to make on behalf of the Admiralty.

After a protracted discussion, it was agreed that Cook should write the account of the voyage and the countries visited; whilst Forster was to write a second volume containing his observations as a scientist; the Admiralty was to pay the expenses of engraving the charts, pictures, etc., and, on completion of the work, the plates were to be equally divided between Cook and Forster. Cook was to proceed with his part at once and submit it to Forster for revision, and Forster was to draw up a plan of the method he intended to pursue and forward it to Lord Sandwich for approval.

Cook proceeded to carry out his share, and furnished Forster with a large amount of manuscript; but the latter proved obstinately insistent in having his own way in everything, with the result that, after submitting two schemes to Lord Sandwich, both extremely unsatisfactory, he was forbidden to write at all, and it was decided that Cook should complete the whole work, and it should be revised by the Reverend John Douglas, Canon of Windsor, afterwards Bishop of Carlisle.

FORSTER'S YARNS.

Notwithstanding the prohibition against Forster, a book was published under his son's name, and the latter claims that he started on the voyage with the intention of writing, took copious notes, and, excepting that he utilised those taken by his father, the work was entirely his own. He forgets, however, to say that a quantity of Cook's manuscripts had been in his father's hands, and does not explain how so much of his book corresponds with curious exactitude with that of Cook (in many cases word for word), and how, when the papers of Cook failed to provide him with further facts, he was obliged to rely on would-be philosophical dissertations which it is to be hoped were not obtained from his father's notebooks. Young Forster says that the appointment was first of all given to his father in a spirit of pique on the part of Lord Sandwich, and then the order forbidding him to write was made because the father had refused to give Miss Ray, Lord Sandwich's mistress, who had admired them when on board the ship, some birds brought home from the Cape of Good Hope as a present to the Queen. In the end the Forsters forestalled Cook's book by about six weeks, and as this was after Cook had left England on his last voyage, Mr. Wales undertook the defence of the absent against the sneers and insinuations that were plentifully given out all round. The Forsters infer that Cook was unreliable because he suppresses mention of the bombardment of the Loo fort at Madeira, an event which never happened; and because he places Valparaiso (where he had never been) in the position given on the Admiralty chart supplied to him, which proved to be some 10 degrees out. The Master who had refused to give up his cabin was, of course, never forgiven; and as for Mr. Wales, who had observed the Transit of Venus at Hudson's Bay in 1769, for the Royal Society, he, poor man, had neither knowledge nor experience in astronomical science. The crews of the two ships also, carefully selected men though they were, some of whom had been the previous voyage, were morally and physically bad, and utterly incapable of performing their duty in a proper and seamanlike manner. A little allowance must be made for the two authors, for the father suffered severely from rheumatism, the son was of a scorbutic tendency, and both were unaccustomed to sea life, and doubtless the hardships inseparable from such a voyage pressed heavily upon them.

A second Journal was published by F. Newbery about the same time, and Cook hearing of it, sent Anderson, the gunner, to find out the author. With little difficulty he was found to be Marra, the gunner's mate who tried to desert at Otaheite, and the publication was stayed till after the authorised version was out.

A volume of Cook's letters to Dr. Douglas relating to the preparation of his Journal for the press is preserved at the British Museum, and it shows how Cook to the very last endeavoured to serve Mr. Forster's interests, and to smooth matters over so that they could work together. The last one Dr. Douglas received before Cook's departure was dated from Mile End, 23rd June 1776, the day before he joined his ship at the Nore.

Dear Sir,

It is now settled that I am to publish without Mr. Forster, and I have taken my measures accordingly. When Captain Campbell has looked over the manuscript it will be put into the hands of Mr. Strahan and Mr. Stuart to be printed, and I shall hope for the continuation of your assistance in correcting the press. I know not how to recompense you for the trouble you have had and will have in the work. I can only beg you will accept of as many copies after it is published as will serve yourself and friends, and I have given directions for you to be furnished with them. When you have done with the Introduction, please send it to Mr. Strahan or bring it with you when you come to Town, for there needs be no hurry about it. Tomorrow morning I set out to join my ship at the Nore, and with her proceed to Plymouth where my stay will be but short. Permit me to assure you that I shall always have a due sense of the favour you have done me, and that I am with great esteem and regard, Dear Sir, your obliged and very humble servant,

James Cook.

Notwithstanding the Forsters' endeavour to discount its success by forestalling the publication by some weeks, Cook's work was well received by the public, and Mrs. Cook, to whom the whole of the profits were given, reaped considerable benefit from its sale.

FELLOW OF ROYAL SOCIETY.

On 29th February 1776, Captain James Cook was unanimously elected a Fellow of the Royal Society, and his certificate of election was signed by no less than twenty-six of the Fellows. He was formally admitted on 17th March, on which date a paper written by him, on the means he had used for the prevention and cure of scurvy, was read. That he valued his success in dealing with this disease, which, at that time, even in voyages of very moderate length was the most terrible danger to be encountered, is plainly set forth in his Journal of the voyage. He says:

"But whatever may be the public judgment about other matters, it is with real satisfaction and without claiming any merit but that of attention to my duty, that I can conclude this account with an observation which facts enable me to make, that our having discovered the possibility of preserving health amongst a numerous ship's company, for such a length of time in such varieties of climate and amidst such continued hardships and fatigues, will make this voyage remarkable in opinion of every benevolent person, when the disputes about a Southern Continent shall have ceased to engage the attention and to divide the judgment of philosophers."

During his early days at sea it was no unusual thing for a man-of-war to be short-handed through scurvy after a cruise of a few weeks, and in a voyage across the Atlantic as many as twenty per cent of the crew are known to have perished. To give some of his own experiences in the Navy: On 4th June 1756, H.M.S. Eagle arrived in Plymouth Sound, after cruising for two months in the Channel and off the French coast, and Captain Pallisser reported landing 130 sick, buried at sea 22, and since his arrival in port his surgeon and 4 men had died, and both his surgeon's mates were very ill; this out of a complement of 400!

Boscawen, sailing from Halifax for Louisberg in 1758, left several ships behind on account of scurvy, one being the Pembroke, of which Cook was Master; she had lost 29 men crossing the Atlantic, but she was able to rejoin before the others as they were in a worse plight. Wolfe reported to Lord George Sackville that some of the regiments employed at Louisburg had "300 or 400 men eat up with scurvy." Of the Northumberland when at Halifax, Lord Colville wrote that frozen (fresh) beef from Boston kept his men healthy when in port, "but the scurvy never fails to pull us down in great numbers upon our going to sea in spring."

Having had such experiences Cook appears to have made up his mind to fight the dreadful scourge from the very first, and though the popular idea is that he only turned his mind to it during the second voyage, it is very evident that on the Endeavour he fought it successfully, and it is most probable would have laid claim to victory had it not been for the serious losses incurred through the malarial fever and its usual companion, dysentery, contracted at Batavia. In proof of this reference may be made to the report of Mr. Perry, surgeon's mate, and, after Mr. Monkhouse's death, surgeon on board. He states they rounded the Horn with the crew "as free from scurvy as on our sailing from Plymouth," i.e. after five months. He reports FOR THE WHOLE OF THE VOYAGE, FIVE CASES OF SCURVY, "three in Port at New Holland, and two while on the Coast of New Zealand, not a man more suffered any inconvenience from this distemper." He was one of the five cases, but, at the same time, it must not be understood that no others developed symptoms of scurvy, only they were so closely watched and at once subjected to such treatment that the disease was not able to gain the upper hand. Cook wrote to the Secretary to the Admiralty immediately after his arrival at Batavia, saying, "I have not lost one man from sickness." He means here, as elsewhere in his Journals, "sickness" to be taken as scurvy, and at that time he had lost only seven men: two of Mr. Banks's servants from exposure; three men drowned; Mr. Buchan, a fit, probably apoplectic; and one man, alcoholic poisoning. He arrived at home with a total loss of forty-one, including Tupia and his boy; thirty-two of these deaths were from fever and dysentery, and 2, Mr. Hicks and Sutherland, from consumption.

TREATMENT OF SCURVY.

The chief anti-scorbutics used on the Endeavour, according to Mr. Perry's report, were:

"Sour Kraut, Mustard, Vinegar, Wheat (whole), Inspissated Orange and Lemon juice, Saloup, Portable Soup, Sugar, Molasses, Vegetables (at all times when they could possibly be got), were some in constant, others in occasional use."

Saloup was a decoction made from the Orchis mascula root, a common meadow plant, or else from Sassafras, and was at one time sold in the streets as a drink before the introduction of tea and coffee. In the United Service Museum there is a cake of the portable soup which was on board the Endeavour, in appearance like a square of "whitish glue, which in effect it is," says Sir John Pringle, President of the Royal Society.

Mr. Perry continues:

"Cold bathing was encouraged and enforced by example. The allowance of Salt Beef and Pork was abridged from nearly the beginning of the voyage, and the usual custom of the sailors mixing the Salt Beef fat with the flour was strictly forbidden. Salt Butter and Cheese was stopped on leaving England, and throughout the voyage Raisins were issued in place of the Salt Suet; in addition to the Malt, wild Celery was collected in Tierra del Fuego, and, every morning, breakfast was made from this herb, ground wheat and portable soup."

Of the personal cleanliness of the crew, which Cook looked upon as of the first importance, Marra says (when writing of the Resolution's voyage) he was very particular:

"never suffering any to appear dirty before him, in so much that when other Commanders came on board, they could not help declaring they thought EVERY DAY Sunday on board of Captain Cook."

He inspected the men at least once a week, and saw they had changed their clothing and were dry; the bedding was dried and aired when occasion offered, and the whole ship was stove-dried; special attention being paid to the well, into which an iron pot containing a fire was lowered.

Fresh water was obtained when possible, for Cook remarks, "nothing contributes more to the health of seamen than having plenty of water." He was provided with a condenser, but it was too small and unsatisfactory, and he looked upon it as "a useful invention, but only calculated to provide enough to preserve life without health." He attributed the losses on the Adventure to Furneaux's desire to save his men labour, and neglecting to avail himself of every opportunity of obtaining fresh water. Cook throughout the voyage was never short of water; Furneaux was on two or three occasions.

Dr. McBride advised the use of fresh wort made from malt as an anti-scorbutic, and the Endeavour was ordered to give it a thorough trial. Fresh ground malt was treated with boiling water and allowed to stand, then the liquid was boiled with dried fruit or biscuit into a panada, and the patient had one or two meals with a quart or more of the liquid per diem. This treatment was favourably reported on, but, at the same time, so many other precautions were taken that it was not possible to say which was the most successful. Banks, who was threatened, tried the wort, but thinking it affected his throat, substituted a weak punch of lemon juice and brandy, which had satisfactory results. After a time the malt, though dry and sweet, had lost much strength, so as strong a wort was made as possible, and ground wheat boiled with it for breakfast, "a very pleasant mess which the people were very fond of," and Cook "had great reason to think that the people received much benefit from it."

SOUR KRAUTE.

Cook set great store on the Sour Kraute, and says:

"The men at first would not eat it, until I put it in practice—a method I never once knew to fail with seamen—and this was to have some of it dressed every day for the Cabin Table, and permitted all the officers, without exception, to make use of it, and left it to the option of the men to take as much as they pleased, or none at all; but this practice was not continued above a week before I found necessary to put every one on board to an allowance, for such are the Tempers and Disposition of seamen in general, that whatever you give them out of the common way, although it be ever so much for their good, it will not go down, and you will hear nothing but murmurings against the man that first invented it, but the moment they see their superiors set a value upon it, it becomes the finest stuff in the world, and the inventor is an honest fellow."

A pound of this was served to each man, twice a week, at sea, or oftener if thought necessary.

Portable soup, at the rate of an ounce per man, was boiled with the pease thrice a week, and when vegetables could be obtained it was boiled with them, and wheat or oatmeal for breakfast, and with pease and vegetables for dinner, and "was the means of making the people eat a greater quantity of vegetables than they would otherwise have done." The Rob of Lemon and Orange was a doubtful quantity, for though Cook had no great confidence in its efficacy, Furneaux reported very favourably on its use, but it was expensive. Of vinegar, Cook was of opinion that it was of little service, and preferred smoking the ship with wood-fires to washing with vinegar, which had been strongly advised. He substituted sugar for oil, as he esteemed it "a very good anti-scorbutic, whereas oil (such as the navy is usually supplied with) I am of opinion has the contrary effect."

Cook says that the introduction of the most salutary articles would prove unsuccessful unless accompanied by strict regulations so the crew were divided into three watches except on some extraordinary occasion, in order that they might not be so exposed to the weather, and had a better chance to get into dry clothes if they happened to get wet. Hammocks, bedding, clothes, and ship were kept as clean and dry as possible, and when the ship could not be "cured with fires," once or twice a week she was smoked with gunpowder, mixed with vinegar or water:

"to cleanliness, as well in the ship as amongst the people, too great attention cannot be paid: the least neglect occasions a putrid and disagreeable smell below which nothing but fires will remove."

He finishes his paper read before the Royal Society as follows:

"We came to few places where either the art of man or the bounty of nature had not provided some sort of refreshment or other, either in the animal or vegetable way. It was my first care to procure whatever of any kind could be met with, by every means in my power, and to oblige our people to make use thereof, both by my example and authority; but the benefits arising from refreshments of any kind soon became so obvious that I had little occasion to recommend the one or exert the other."

COPLEY GOLD MEDAL.

On the 30th November 1776 Sir John Pringle, President of the Royal Society, in his address to the Fellows, announced that the Copley Gold Medal had been conferred on Captain Cook for his paper on the Treatment of Scurvy, and gave some corroborative facts which had come under his own observation, concluding his speech as follows:

"If Rome decreed the Civic Crown to him who saved the life of a single citizen, what wreaths are due to that man, who, having himself saved many, perpetuates in your Transactions the means by which Britain may now, on the most distant voyages, preserve numbers of her intrepid sons, her mariners; who, braving every danger, have so liberally contributed to the fame, to the opulence, and to the Maritime Empire of this country."

Before Cook left England on his last voyage he had been informed that the medal had been conferred on him, but he never received it, and it was presented to Mrs. Cook, and is now in the British Museum.

During May 1776 Cook sat for his portrait, now in the Painted Hall, Greenwich, to Sir Nathaniel Dance. There are several portraits of him in existence; three by Webber, one being in the National Portrait Gallery; one by Hodges; and one or two others by unknown artists. Mr. Samwell, surgeon on the third voyage, says of an engraving by Sherwin, from the portrait by Dance, that it "is a most excellent likeness of Captain Cook; and more to be valued, as it is the only one I have seen that bears any resemblance to him." This portrait of Dance's represents Cook dressed in his Captain's uniform, seated at a table on which is a chart. The figure is evidently that of a tall man—he was over six feet in height—with brown unpowdered hair, neatly tied back from the face; the clear complexion shows little effect of exposure to the sea breezes, the pleasant brown eyes look from under rather prominent brows, the nose rather long, and a good firm mouth. The whole face gives a very pleasant impression of the man, and conveys the idea that it was a good likeness.

COOK VOLUNTEERS.

Omai, a native of Otaheite, was brought to England by Furneaux, was introduced to the King, made much of in Society, was painted by Reynolds, Dance, and Hodges, and seems to have conducted himself fairly well. He was to be sent back to his own country; and from the orders given to the Resolution, when she returned, it was evident she was to be the ship to take him. There was some difficulty as to the man to take command of the new expedition, as the Admiralty felt they could not send out Cook again so soon after his return. However, early in February 1776, he was invited to dine with Lord Sandwich, to meet Sir Hugh Pallisser and Mr. Stephens, the Secretary, when the proposed expedition was discussed and the difficulty of finding a commander was brought forward. It is said that after some conversation Cook jumped up and declared he would go, and as the result of this resolve he called at the Admiralty Office on 10th February, and made formal application for the command, which was accepted on the same day, and he there and then went to Deptford and hoisted his pendant on the Resolution. Her complement was the same as the previous voyage, i.e. 112 men, including 20 marines; and the Quarter Bill, preserved in the Records Office, shows the stations and duties of each of the crew, and the positions of the civilians who in cases of necessity were expected to take their places as small arms men.

The companion ship, the Discovery, was built by Langborne of Whitby, and was purchased for 2,450 pounds from W. Herbert of Scarborough. According to the Records she was 229 tons burthen, but Cook puts her down as 300 tons; and Burney says the two ships were splendid sailing company, any advantage there might be resting with the Discovery. The command was given to Charles Clerke, who had been both the previous voyages.

The Resolution hauled out of dock, 10th March, completed her rigging and took in stores and provisions, "which was as much as we could stow and the best of every kind that could be got." On the 6th May the pilot went on board to take her down to Longreach for her guns and powder, but owing to contrary winds she did not reach there till the 30th. On 8th June she was visited by Lord Sandwich, Sir Hugh Pallisser, and others from the Admiralty, "to see that everything was compleated to their desire and to the satisfaction of all who were to embark in the voyage." A bull, two cows and their calves, with some sheep, were embarked as a present from King George to the Otahietans in hopes to start stocking the island. A good supply of trade was shipped, and extra warm clothing for the crew was supplied by the Admiralty:

"and nothing was wanting that was thought conducive to either conveniency or health, such was the extraordinary care taken by those at the head of the Naval Departments."

Cook and King were to take observations on the Resolution, and Bailey, who was with the Adventure the previous voyage, was appointed as astronomer to the Discovery; the necessary instruments being supplied by the Board of Longitude. The chronometer, made by Kendal, which had given such satisfaction last voyage, was again on board the Resolution. It was afterwards with Bligh in the Bounty, sold by Adams after the Mutiny to an American, who sold it again in Chili. It was then purchased for 52 pounds 10 shillings, repaired, and rated, and after keeping fair time for some years was presented by Admiral Sir Thomas Herbert to the United Service Museum, and is still in working order.

CLERKE IN THE FLEET.

On 15th June the two ships sailed for the Nore; there the Resolution waited for her Captain, whilst the Discovery, under the command of Burney, went on to Plymouth, but, meeting with damage in a gale, had to put into Portland for temporary repairs. Captain Clerke was detained in London, "in the Rules of the Bench," as he had become financially responsible for a friend who left him in the lurch. He wrote to Banks, saying, "the Jews are exasperated and determined to spare no pains to arrest me." It appears that he contracted the illness which led to his death at this period.