Note.--It may not be improper to state in this place, that no ship need be reduced to utter distress for want of fresh water at sea; as distilled sea water is perfectly fresh and wholesome. For this purpose, all ships bound on voyages of any length, ought to have a still head worm and cooler adapted to the cooking kettle, to be used when needed, by which abundance of fresh water may always be secured while cooking the ships provisions, sufficient to preserve the lives of the crew. In default of that useful appendage, a still may be easily constructed for the occasion, by means of the pitch kettle, a reversed tea kettle for a head, and a gun barrel fixed to the spout of the tea kettle, the breach pin being screwed out, and the barrel either soldered to the spout, or fixed by a paste of flour, soap and water, tied round with rags and twine. The tea kettle and gun barrel are to be kept continually wet by means of swabs and sea water, to cool and condense the steam. This distilled water is at first vapid and nauseous, both to the taste and the stomach; but by standing open for some time, especially if agitated in contact with air, or by pumping air through it, as is commonly done to sweeten putrid water, this unpleasant and nauseous vapidness is soon removed.
The nautical world owes this excellent discovery, of distilled sea water being perfectly fresh, to the late excellent and ingenious Dr James Lino, first physician to the general hospital of the navy at Haslar near Portsmouth during the American war, the author of two admirable works, on the Scurvy, and the Means of Preserving the Health of Seamen during long voyages, to which the British navy, and seamen in general, owe inestimable advantages. The editor, while giving this useful hint to seamen engaged on long voyages, is happy in having an opportunity of bearing this feeble testimony of honourable respect to the friend of his youth, under whom he had the happiness and advantage of serving, in that magnificent asylum of the brave defenders of the glory and prosperity of our king and country, for the last three years of the American war. Besides being an eminent and experienced physician, Dr Lind was a man of exemplary humanity, and of uncommon urbanity and singleness of manners: He was truly the seaman's friend. The rules and expedients which he devised and proposed, founded on the solid basis, of observation and experience, for Preserving the Health of Seamen on long voyages, were afterwards employed and perfected by the great navigator and discoverer COOK, and by his pupils and followers; and are now universally established in our glorious navy, to the incalculable advantage of the service.
In high northern or southern latitudes, solid clear ice melted affords good fresh water, the first runnings being thrown away as contaminated by adhering sea water. White cellular ice is quite unfit for the purpose, being strongly impregnated with salt. In future articles of our work, several opportunities will occur in which these two expedients for supplying ships with fresh water will be amply detailed. But on the present opportunity, it seemed proper to mention these easy and effectual expedients for preserving the health and lives of seamen, when in want of fresh water by the ordinary means.--Ed.
SECTION XII.
A Voyage to Guinea and the Cape de Verd Islands in 1566, by George Fenner[292]
Three ships were employed on this voyage, the admiral, called the Castle of Comfort, George Fenner general[293] of the expedition, and William Bats master; the May-Flower, vice-admiral, William Courtise master; the George, John Heiwood captain, and John Smith of Hampton master; besides a small pinnace. Walter Wren, the writer of the narrative, belonged to the George.
[Footnote 292: Hakluyt, II. 533. Astley, I. 185.]
[Footnote 293: This general was probably head factor--E.]
We departed from Plymouth on the 10th December 1566, and were abreast of Ushant on the 12th. On the 15th we got sight of Cape Finister, and lost company of our admiral that night, for which reason we sailed along the coast of Portugal, hoping our admiral might be before us. Meeting a French ship on the 18th and getting no intelligence of our admiral, we made sail for the Canaries, and fell in with the island of Tenerife on the 28th, where we came to anchor in a small bay, at which there were three or four small houses, about a league from the town of Santa Cruz. In this island there is a marvellous high hill called the Peak, and although it is in lat. 28° N. where the air is as warm in January as it is in England at midsummer, the top of this hill, to which no man has ever been known to ascend, is seldom free from snow even in the middle of summer. On the 3d January 1567, we departed from this place, going round the western point of the island, about 12 or 14 leagues from Santa Cruz, and came into a bay right over against the house of one Pedro de Souza, where we came to anchor on the 5th, and heard that our admiral had been there at anchor seven days before us, and had gone thence to the island of Gomera, to which place we followed him, and coming to anchor on the 6th over against the town of Gomera, we found our admiral at anchor to our great mutual satisfaction. We found here Edward Cooke in a tall ship, and a ship of the coppersmiths of London, which had been treacherously seized by the Portuguese in the bay of Santa Cruz on the coast of Barbary, or Morocco, which ship we left there all spoiled. At this place we bought 14 buts of wine for sea stores, at 15 ducats a but, which had been offered to us at Santa Cruz for 8, 9, or 10 ducats. The 9th we went to another bay about three leagues off, where we took in fresh water; and on the 10th we sailed for Cape Blanco on the coast of Africa.
The 12th we came to a bay to eastwards of Cape Pargos, (Barbas?) which is 35 leagues from Cape Blanco, but being unacquainted with that part of the coast, we proceeded to Cape Blanco, off which we had 16 fathoms two leagues from shore, the land being very low and all white sand. At this place it is necessary to beware of going too near shore, as when in 12 or 10 fathoms you may be aground within two or three casts of the lead. Directing our course on the 17th S. and S. by E. we fell into a bay about 16 leagues east of Cape Verd, where the land seemed like a great number of ships under sail, owing to its being composed of a great number of hummocks, some high some low, with high trees upon them. When within three leagues of the land we sounded and had 28 fathoms over a ground of black ouze. This day we saw much fish in sundry sculs or shoals, swimming with their noses at the surface. Passing along this coast we saw two small round hills about a league from the other, forming a cape, and between them great store of trees, and in all our sailing we never saw such high land as these two hills. The 19th we came to anchor at the cape in a road, fast by the western side of two hills[294], where we rode in 10 fathoms, though we might safely have gone into five or six fathoms, as the ground is good and the wind always blows from the shore.