M. La Jonquiere, with several of his officers and passengers, came on board the Speedwell to dine with me, on the 6th July. While they were on board, Hudson my boatswain raised a mutiny, which was easily quelled by the assistance of the French gentlemen: But the boatswain was sent home in the French ship. On the 15th July, we saw a large ship bearing in for the harbour; but on discovering us, she turned out again. This circumstance alarmed M. La Jonquiere, suspecting she might be our consort, so that he put to sea next morning. The large ship appeared again on the 25th under French colours, being the Solomon of St Malo of forty guns and 160 men, commanded by M. Dumain Girard, bound for Peru and Chili.
At this time great heart-burnings arose in my crew: for, having heard that the people on board the Duke and Duchess had been indifferently treated in regard to their prize-money when they got home, they resolved to secure themselves in time. With this view, and by the advice of Matthew Stewart, chief-mate, they drew up a paper of articles respecting plunder, and sent me a letter insisting on these articles being made the rule of our voyage; to which at last I was obliged to agree, rather than suffer them to proceed in a piratical manner.
On the 3d August the St Francisco Zavier came into the harbour, a Portuguese man of war of forty guns and 300 men, bound from Lisbon for Macao in China, commanded by Mons. Riviere, a Frenchman. We departed from the island of St Catharine on the 9th August. Its northern point being in lat. 27° 20' S. and long. 50° W. from the Lizard.[255] I kept the lead constantly sounding all along the coast of Patagonia, and had regular soundings. From the lat. of 40° to 30° 38' both S. we frequently saw great shoals of seals and penguins, which were always attended by flocks of pintadoes, birds about the size of pigeons. The French call these birds damiers, as their black and white feathers on their back and wings are disposed like the squares of a draught-board. These were also attended by albatrosses, the largest of all sea-fowl, some of them extending their wings twelve or thirteen feet from tip to tip. While passing the mouth of the Rio. Plata, the sea was covered with prodigious quantities of large seaweed, which often greatly incommoded us and deadened our way. On getting farther south we were freed from this inconvenience; after which we saw abundance of things floating on the surface of the sea, like white snakes. We took some of these up, but could not perceive them to have any appearance of life, neither had they the shape of any kind of animal, being only a long cylinder of a white jelly-like substance, perhaps the spawn of some large fish.
[Footnote 255: Only 27° S. and 48° 30' W. from Greenwich.--E.]
As we advanced to the southward, the appetites of our people increased with the cold, which occasioned disputes in the ship. Even at my own table, Captain Betagh of the marines insisted on a larger allowance in such coarse terms, that I confined him till he wrote me a submissive letter, on which I restored him. But this squabble constrained me to allow an extraordinary meal to the people daily, either of flour or calavances; which reduced our stock of provisions, and consumed our wood and water, proving afterwards of great inconvenience. Whales, grampuses, and other fish of monstrous size, are in such vast numbers on the coast of Patagonia, that they were often offensive to us, coming so close to us that it seemed impossible to avoid striking them on every scud of a sea, and almost stifling us with the stench of their breaths, when they blew close to windward. Being ignorant of the Greenland fishery, I cannot pretend to say whether that trade might not be carried on here; but this I may venture to affirm, that the navigation here is safer, and I am apt to believe it has a greater chance of being successful.[256]
[Footnote 256: This southern whale-fishery is now carried on to a considerable extent.--E.]
On the 19th September, about midnight, perceiving the water all at once to be discoloured, we sounded, and had 25 fathoms, on which we stood out from the land, but did not deepen our water in five leagues. This bank must lie very near the entrance into the Straits of Magellan. On this bank we saw great numbers of blubbers, appearing like the tops of umbrellas, curiously streaked with all sorts of colours, being an entirely different species from any I had ever seen before. We now steered for the Straits of Le Maire, and met with very foggy weather on approaching the coast of Terra del Fuego. The fog cleared up on the 23d September, when we had sight of stupendous mountains on that southern land, entirely covered with snow. The nearest point of land was at least eight leagues from us, in the S.W. but before we could ascertain our situation the mist returned. At four next morning, proceeding under easy sail to the S.E. it proved very clear at day-break, and I found we had fallen in with the land about five leagues N.W. from the straits of Le Maire. We had now a full, but melancholy prospect of the most desolate country that can well be conceived, appearing a congeries of chains of mountains in succession, one behind the other, perpetually cloathed in snow.
Hitherto we had not been sensible of any current, either favourable or adverse, after getting to the south of the Rio Plata. But this afternoon we were hurried with incredible rapidity into the straits of Le Maire; and when we had gained about the middle of the passage, the tide slackened. On sounding we had twenty-seven fathoms on a rocky bottom. We had a dear view of Staten-land, which yields a most uncomfortable prospect of a surprising height, quite covered with snow to the very wash of the sea, so that it seems more like a white cloud than firm land. These straits seemed to answer well to the map of Frezier; being about seven leagues through and six wide, and extend almost due north and south. Now the return tide rushed upon us with a violence equal to that which brought us in, and it was astonishing with what rapidity we were driven again to the north, though we had a fresh gale at N.W. so that we seemed to advance six knots by the log; whence I judged this tide ran not less than ten knots. In short, we were carried quite out of the straits to the north in about an hour. Upon this shift of tide there arose such a short sea, and so lofty at the same time, that we alternately dipped our bowsprit and poop-lanterns into the water; our ship all the while labouring most violently, and refusing to answer the helm. The tide shifted again at midnight, and we shot through the straits, steering S. with a brisk gale at N.W. without seeing the land distinctly on either side: And, in the morning, had a good offing to the southward.
We found it very cold before we got thus far; but now we began to feel the utmost extremity of coldness. The bleak western winds had of themselves been sufficiently piercing; but these were always accompanied by snow or sleet, which beat continually on our sails and rigging, cased all our masts, yards, and ropes with ice, and rendered our sails almost useless. We had been so much accustomed to most severe storms, that we thought the weather tolerable when we could carry a reefed main-sail; as we were often for two or three days together lying-to under bare poles, exposed to the shocks of prodigious waves, more mountainous than any I had ever seen. We now sensibly felt the benefit of our awning, without which we could scarcely have lived. The wind continued to rage without intermission from the westward, by which we were driven to the latitude of 61° 30' S. and had such continued misty weather, that we were under perpetual apprehension of running foul of ice islands: But, thank God, we escaped that danger, though under frequent alarms from fog banks and other false appearances. Though the days were long, we could seldom get sight of the sun, so that we had only one observation for the variation in all this passage, which was in lat. 60° 37' S. 5° W. of the straits of Le Maire, when we found it 22° 6' E. On the 1st October, as we were furling the main-sail, one William Camell, cried out that his hands and fingers were so benumbed that he could not hold himself: And, before those near could assist him, he fell down and was drowned. On the 22d October, our fore-top-mast was carried away, and we rigged another next day. Having contrary winds from the time we passed the straits of Le Maire, with the most uncomfortable weather, we made our way very slowly to the west and northwards, the hopes of getting soon into a wanner and better climate supporting us under our many miseries.
SECTION II.