The succeeding morning, the 15th, being then in latitude 63° 33ʹ south, the longitude was observed by the following persons, viz.
| Myself, being the mean of six distances of the sun and moon | 40° | 1ʹ | 45ʺ E. |
| Mr. Wales, ditto | 39 | 29 | 45 |
| Ditto, ditto | 39 | 56 | 45 |
| Lieutenant Clerke, ditto | 39 | 38 | 0 |
| Mr. Gilbert, ditto | 39 | 48 | 45 |
| Mr. Smith, ditto | 39 | 18 | 15 |
| Mean | 39 | 42 | 12 |
| Mr. Kendal’s watch made | 38 | 41 | 30 |
Which is nearly the same difference as the day before. But Mr. Wales and I took each of us six distances of the sun and moon, with the telescopes fixed to our sextants, which brought out the longitude nearly the same as the watch. The results were as follows:—By Mr. Wales 38° 35ʹ 30ʺ, and by me 38° 36ʹ 45ʺ.
It is impossible for me to say whether these or the former are the nearest the truth, nor can I assign any probable reason for so great a disagreement. We certainly can observe with greater accuracy through the telescope, than with the common sight, when the ship is sufficiently steady. The use of the telescope is found difficult at first, but a little practice will make it familiar. By the assistance of the watch, we shall be able to discover the greatest error this method of observing the longitude at sea is liable to; which, at the greatest, does not exceed a degree and a half, and in general will be found to be much less. Such is the improvement navigation has received by the astronomers and mathematical instrument-makers of this age; by the former from the valuable tables they have communicated to the public, under the direction of the Board of Longitude, and contained in the astronomical ephemeris; and by the latter, from the great accuracy they observe in making instruments, without which the tables would, in a great measure, lose their effect. The preceding observations were made by four different sextants, of different workmen; mine was made by Mr. Bird; one of Mr. Wales’s by Mr. Dollond; the other, and Mr. Clerke’s, by Mr. Ramsden; as also Mr. Gilbert’s and Smith’s, who observed with the same instrument.
Five tolerable fine days had now succeeded one another. This, besides giving us an opportunity to make the preceding observations, was very serviceable to us on many other accounts, and came at a very seasonable time. For having on board a good quantity of fresh water or ice, which was the same thing, the people were enabled to wash and dry their clothes and linen; a care that can never be enough attended to in all long voyages. The winds during this time blew in gentle gales, and the weather was mild. Yet the mercury in the thermometer never rose above 36, and was frequently as low as the freezing point.
In the afternoon, having but little wind, I brought to under an island of ice, and sent a boat to take up some. In the evening the wind freshened at east, and was attended with snow showers and thick hazy weather, which continued great part of the 16th. As we met with little ice, I stood to the south, close hauled; and at six o’clock in the evening, being in the latitude of 64° 56ʹ south, longitude 39° 35ʹ east, I found the variation by Gregory’s compass to be 26° 41ʹ west. At this time, the motion of the ship was so great, that I could by no means observe with any of Dr. Knight’s compasses.
As the wind remained invariably fixed at east, and E. by S. I continued to stand to the south; and on the 17th, between eleven and twelve o’clock, we crossed the Antarctic circle in the longitude of 39° 35ʹ east; for at noon we were by observation in the latitude of 66° 36ʹ 30ʺ south. The weather was now become tolerably clear, so that we could see several leagues round us; and yet we had only seen one island of ice since the morning. But about four P. M. as we were steering to the south, we observed the whole sea in a manner covered with ice, from the direction of S. E. round by the south to west.
In this space, thirty-eight ice islands, great and small, were seen, besides loose ice in abundance, so that we were obliged to luff for one piece, and bear up for another, and as we continued to advance to the south, it increased in such a manner, that at 3⁄4 past six o’clock, being then in the latitude of 67° 15ʹ south, we could proceed no farther; the ice being entirely closed to the south, in the whole extent from east to W. S. W., without the least appearance of any opening. This immense field was composed of different kinds of ice, such as high ills, loose or broken pieces packed close together, and what, I think, Greenlandmen call field-ice. A float of this kind of ice lay to the S. E. of us, of such extent that I could see no end to it, from the mast-head. It was sixteen or eighteen feet high at least; and appeared of a pretty equal height and surface. Here we saw many whales playing about the ice, and for two days before had seen several flocks of the brown and white pintadoes, which we named Antarctic peterels, because they seem to be natives of that region. They are undoubtedly of the peterel tribe; are in every respect shaped like the pintadoes, differing only from them in colour. The head and fore-part of the body of these are brown; and the hind-part of the body, tail and ends of the wings, are white. The white peterel also appeared in greater numbers than before; some few dark grey albatrosses, and our constant companion the blue peterel. But the common pintadoes had quite disappeared, as well as many other sorts, which are common in lower latitudes.
CHAP. III.
SEQUEL OF THE SEARCH FOR A SOUTHERN CONTINENT BETWEEN THE MERIDIAN OF THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE AND NEW ZEALAND; WITH AN ACCOUNT OF THE SEPARATION OF THE TWO SHIPS, AND THE ARRIVAL OF THE RESOLUTION IN DUSKY BAY.
After meeting with this ice, I did not think it was at all prudent to persevere in getting farther to the south, especially as the summer was already half spent, and it would have taken up some time to have got round the ice, even supposing it to have been practicable, which, however, is doubtful. I therefore came to a resolution to proceed directly in search of the land lately discovered by the French. And as the winds still continued at E. by S., I was obliged to return to the north, over some part of the sea I had already made myself acquainted with, and for that reason wished to have avoided. But this was not to be done; as our course, made good, was little better than north. In the night, the wind increased to a strong gale, attended with sleet and snow, and obliged us to double-reef our top-sails. About noon the next day, the gale abated; so that we could bear all our reefs out; but the wind still remained in its old quarter.