then between 14° 41' and 15° 47' S. latitude, and between the longitude of 142° and 150° W., fell in with several other islands, which I take to be some of those seen by the late English navigators. He next discovered two islands in latitude 15° S., longitude 170° W., which he called Baumen's Islands; and, lastly, Single Island, in latitude 13° 41' S., longitude 171° 30' W. These three islands are, undoubtedly, the same that Bougainville calls the Isles of Navigators.
1738 Bouvet.
In 1738, the French East India Company sent Lozier Bouvet with two ships, the Eagle and Mary, to make discoveries in the South Atlantic Ocean. He sailed from Port L'Orient on the 19th of July in that year; touched at the island of St. Catherine; and from thence shaped his course towards the south-east.
On the 1st of January, 1739, he discovered land, or what he judged to be land, in latitude 54° S., longitude 11° E. It will appear in the course of the following narrative, that we made several attempts to find this land without success. It is, therefore, very probable, that what Bouvet saw was nothing more than a large ice-island. From hence he stood to the east, in 51° of latitude to 35° of E. longitude: After which the two ships separated, one going to the island of Mauritius, and the other returning to France.
After this voyage of Bouvet, the spirit of discovery ceased, till his present majesty formed a design of making discoveries, and exploring the southern hemisphere; and, in the year 1764, directed it to be put in execution.
1764 Byron.
Accordingly Commodore Byron, having under his command the Dolphin and Tamer, sailed from the Downs on the 21st of June the same year; and having visited the Falkland Islands, passed through the Straits of Magalhaens into the Pacific Ocean, where he discovered the islands of Disappointment, George's, Prince of Wales's, the isles of Danger, York Island, and Byron Island.
1766 Wallis.
He returned to England the 9th of May, 1766, and, in the month of August following, the Dolphin was again sent out under the command of Captain Wallis, with the Swallow, commanded by Captain Carteret.
They proceeded together, till they came to the west end of the Straits of
Magalhaens, and the Great South Sea in sight, where they were separated.
Captain Wallis directed his course more westerly than any navigator had done before him in so high a latitude; but met with no land till he got within the tropic, where he discovered the islands of Whitsunday, Queen Charlotte, Egmont, Duke of Gloucester, Duke of Cumberland, Maitea, Otaheite, Eimeo, Tapamanou, How, Scilly, Boscawen, Keppel, and Wallis; and returned to England in May, 1768.
Carteret.
His companion Captain Carteret kept a different route, in which he discovered the islands of Osnaburg, Gloucester, Queen Charlotte's Isles, Carteret's, Gower's, and the strait between New Britain and New Ireland; and returned to England in March, 1769.
1766 Bougainville.
In November, 1766, Commodore Bougainville sailed from France in the frigate La Boudeuse, with the store-ship L'Etoile. After spending some time on the coast of Brazil, and at Falkland's Islands, he got into the Pacific Sea by the Straits of Magalhaens, in January, 1768.
In this ocean he discovered the Four Facardines, the isle of Lanciers, and Harp Island, which I take to be the same that I afterwards named Lagoon, Thrum Cap, and Bow Island. About twenty leagues farther to the west he discovered four other islands; afterwards fell in with Maitea, Otaheite, isles of Navigators, and Forlorn Hope, which to him were new discoveries. He then passed through between the Hebrides, discovered the Shoal of Diana, and some others, the land of Cape Deliverance, several islands more to the north, passed the north of New Ireland, touched at Batavia, and arrived in France in March, 1769.
This year was rendered remarkable by the transit of the planet Venus over the sun's disk, a phenomenon of great importance to astronomy; and which every-where engaged the attention of the learned in that science.
In the beginning of the 1768, the Royal Society presented a memorial to his majesty, setting forth the advantages to be derived from accurate observations of this transit in different parts of the world; particularly from a set of such observations made in a southern latitude, between the 140th and 130th degrees of longitude, west from the Royal Observatory at Greenwich; and that vessels, properly equipped, would be necessary to convey the observers to their destined stations; but that the society were in no condition to defray the expence of such an undertaking.
In consequence of this memorial, the Admiralty were directed by his majesty to provide proper vessels for this purpose. Accordingly, the Endeavour bark, which had been built for the coal-trade, was purchased and fitted out for the southern voyage, and I was honoured with the command of her. The Royal Society, soon after, appointed me, in conjunction with Mr. Charles Green the astronomer, to make the requisite observations on the transit.
It was at first intended to perform this great, and now a principal business of our voyage, either at the Marquesas, or else at one of those islands which Tasman had called Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Middleburg, now better known under the name of the Friendly Islands. But while the Endeavour was getting ready for the expedition, Captain Wallis returned from his voyage round the world, in the course of which he had discovered several islands in the South Sea; and, amongst others, Otaheite. This island was preferred to any of those before mentioned, on account of the conveniences it afforded; because its place had been well ascertained, and found to be extremely well suited to our purpose.
I was therefore ordered to proceed directly to Otaheite; and after astronomical observations should be completed, to prosecute the design of making discoveries in the South Pacific Ocean, by proceeding to the south as far as the latitude of 40°; then, if I found no land, to proceed to the west between 40° and 35°, till I fell in with New Zealand, which I was to explore; and thence to return to England by such route as I should think proper.
1768 Cook's first voyage.
In the prosecution of these instructions, I sailed from Deptford the 30th July, 1768; from Plymouth the 26th of August, touched at Madeira, Rio de Janeiro, and Straits Le Maire, and entered the South Pacific Ocean by Cape Horn in January the following year.
I endeavoured to make a direct course to Otaheite, and in part succeeded; but I made no discovery till I got within the tropic, where I fell in with Lagoon Island, Two Groups, Bird Island, Chain Island; and on the 13th of April arrived at Otaheite, where I remained three months, during which time the observations on the transit were made.
I then left it; discovered and visited the Society Isles and Oheteroa; thence proceeded to the south till I arrived in the latitude of 40° 22', longitude 147° 29' W.; and, on the 6th of October, fell in with the east side of New Zealand.
I continued exploring the coast of this country till the 31st of March, 1770, when I quitted it, and proceeded to New Holland; and having surveyed the eastern coast of that vast country, which part had not before been visited, I passed between its northern extremity and New Guinea, landed on the latter, touched at the island of Savu, Batavia, the Cape of Good Hope, and St. Helena,* and arrived in England on the 12th of July, 1771.
In this voyage I was accompanied by Mr. Banks and Dr. Solander; the first a gentleman of ample fortune; the other an
