A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels Novel Chapters
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Latest Release: Chapter 1 : A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels.Vol. 1.by Robert Kerr.PREFACE.In
A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels.Vol. 1.by Robert Kerr.PREFACE.In this enlightened age, when every department of science and literature is making rapid progress, and knowledge of every kind excites uncommon interest, and is widely d
- 501 The following night the wind blew in hard squalls from S. to E.attended with heavy showers of rain. In one of the squalls, the cable by which the Resolution was riding, parted just without the hawse.We had another anchor ready to let go, so that the s.h.i
- 502 Day of Water at a stand Mean Time Perpendicular the of rise Month. from to High Water. Inches.November 6. 11h 15m to 12h 20m 11h 48m 5,5 7. 11 40 1 00 12 20 5,2 8. 11 35 12 50 12 12 5,0 9. 11 40 1 16 12 28 5,5 10. 11 25 1 10 12 18 6,5 11. 12 00 1 40 12 20
- 503 Some of their notions about the deity are extravagantly absurd: They believe that he is subject to the power of those very spirits to whom he has given existence; and that, in their turn, they frequently eat or devour him, though he possess the power of r
- 504 As soon as Captain Clerke knew that one of the stragglers was still in this awkward situation, he sent a party in search of him; but neither the man nor the party having come back, the next morning I ordered two boats into the _lagoon_, to go different wa
- 505 We had light airs and calms, by turns, with showers of rain, all night, and at day-break, in the morning of the 24th, we found that the currents had carried the s.h.i.+p to the N.W. and N., so that the west end of the island, upon which we had been, calle
- 506 They stain their gourd-sh.e.l.ls prettily with undulated lines, triangles, and other figures of a black colour; instances of which we saw practised at New Zealand. And they seem to possess the art of varnis.h.i.+ng; for some of these stained gourd-sh.e.l.
- 507 We had variable light airs and calms till eight o'clock in the evening, when a breeze sprung up at S.W. With it I stood to the N.W., under an easy sail, waiting for day-light, to range along the coast.But at four, next morning, the wind s.h.i.+fted to N.
- 508 From this place, I crossed over to the other, or east side of the Sound, pa.s.sing an arm of it that runs in N.N.E., to appearance not far. I now found, what I had before conjectured, that the land, under which the s.h.i.+ps lay, was an island; and that t
- 509 [Footnote 4: The reflection in the text may furnish the admirers of Herodotus, in particular, with an excellent apology for some of his wonderful tales of this sort.--D.]The only dress amongst the people of Nootka, observed by us, that seems peculiarly ad
- 510 Some account of a Spanish voyage to this coast, in 1774, or 1775, had reached England before I sailed; but the foregoing circ.u.mstances sufficiently prove that these s.h.i.+ps had not been at Nootka.[4] Besides this, it was evident, that iron was too com
- 511 _Tides._ It is high water on the days of the new and full moon at 12^h 20^m.The perpendicular rise and fall, eight feet nine inches; which is to be understood of the day-tides, and those which happen two or three days after the full and new moon. The nigh
- 512 These people were also desirous of iron; but they wanted pieces eight or ten inches long at least, and of the breadth of three or four fingers. For they absolutely rejected small pieces. Consequently, they got but little from us; iron having, by this time
- 513 There is likewise a species of diver here, which seems peculiar to the place. It is about the size of a partridge, has a short, black, compressed bill, with the head and upper part of the neck of a brown black, the rest of a deep brown, obscurely waved wi
- 514 After we had entered the bay, the flood set strong into the river Turnagain, and ebb came out with still greater force; the water falling, while we lay at anchor, twenty feet upon a perpendicular.These circ.u.mstances convinced me, that no pa.s.sage was t
- 515 I therefore kept along the southernmost chain of islands, and at noon we were in the lat.i.tude of 55 18', and in the narrowest part of the channel, formed by them and those which lie along the continent, where it is about a league and a half, or two lea
- 516 Having weighed next morning, at two o'clock, with a light breeze at S.W. by W., we plied to windward till nine; when, judging the flood-tide to be now made against us, we came to an anchor in twenty-four fathoms. We lay here till one, when the fog, which
- 517 They seemed very fearful and cautious, expressing their desire by signs, that no more of our people should be permitted to come up.On my laying my hand on the shoulder of one of them, he started back several paces. In proportion as I advanced, they retrea
- 518 I continued to stand to the westward, till five in the afternoon, when we were in a manner embayed by the ice, which appeared high, and very close in the N.W. and N.E. quarters, with a great deal of loose ice about the edge of the main field. At this time
- 519 "You are to proceed to the northward as far as the extreme point we saw on Wednesday last, or a little further, if you think it necessary; land there, and endeavour, from the heights, to discover whether the land you are then upon, supposed to be the isl
- 520 I was in hopes to have had by him, the chart which his three countrymen had promised, but I was disappointed. However, he a.s.sured me I should have it; and he kept his word. I found that he was very well acquainted with the geography of these parts, and
- 521 They produce fire both by collision and by attrition; the former by striking two stones one against another, on one of which a good deal of brimstone is first rubbed. The latter method is with two pieces of wood; one of which is a stick of about eighteen
- 522 [Footnote 1: On the chart of Krenitzen's and Levasheff's voyage in 1768 and 1769, which we find in Mr c.o.xe's book, p. 251, an island called Amuckta, is laid down, not very far from the place a.s.signed to Amoghta by Captain Cook.--D.]At e
- 523 At four in the afternoon, after purchasing every thing that the natives had brought off, which was full as much as we had occasion for, we made sail, and stretched to the N., with the wind at E.N.E. At midnight, we tacked, and stood to the S.E. Upon a sup
- 524 This sort of religious interdiction they call _taboo_, a word we heard often repeated, during our stay amongst these islanders, and found to be of very powerful and extensive operation. A more particular explanation of it will be given in the general acco
- 525 At midnight, a gale of wind came on, which obliged us to double reef the topsails, and get down the top-gallant yards. On the 8th, at day-break, we found that the foremast had again given way, the fishes, which were put on the head, in King George's,
- 526 "To widen the breach between us, some of the Indians, in the night, took away the Discovery's large cutter, which lay swamped at the buoy of one of her anchors; they had carried her off so quietly, that we did not miss her till the morning, Sund
- 527 We pressed our two friendly visitors to remain on board till morning, but in vain. They told us, that if this transaction should come to the knowledge of the king, or chiefs, it might be attended with the most fatal consequences to their whole society; in
- 528 During the night, the wind was again variable; but early next morning it settled at E., and blew so fresh as to oblige us to double-reef the top-sails. At seven, in hauling round the W. point of Morotoi, we opened a small bay, at the distance of about two
- 529 A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels.Volume 17.by Robert Kerr.PART III. BOOK III. (CONTINUED.) CHAPTER V. CONTINUED. CAPTAIN KING'S JOURNAL OF THE TRANSACTIONS ON RETURNING TO THE SANDWICH ISLANDS.SECTION VI.General Account of the
- 530 It must however be observed, that they fall very short of the other islanders, in that best test of civilization, the respect paid to the women. Here they are not only deprived of the privilege of eating with the men, but the best sorts of food are _taboo
- 531 The dagger, or _pahooa_, is made of heavy black wood, resembling ebony. Its length is from one to two feet, with a string pa.s.sing through the handle, for the purpose of suspending it to the arm.The clubs are made indifferently of several sorts of wood.
- 532 We were able to learn but little of their notions with regard to a future state. Whenever we asked them whither the dead were gone? we were always answered, that the breath, which they appeared to consider as the soul, or immortal part, was gone to the _E
- 533 I believe the inhabitants had not yet seen either the s.h.i.+p or the boats; for even after we had got on the ice, we could not perceive any signs of a living creature in the town. By the time we had advanced a little way on the ice, we observed a few men
- 534 About seven o'clock the commander, conceiving we might be fatigued with our journey, and desirous of taking some repose, begged he might conduct us to our lodgings. It was in vain that we protested against a compliment which we had certainly no t.i.t
- 535 They were of a moderate size; and, notwithstanding the Kamtschadales had been seventeen days in driving them down to the harbour, arrived in good condition. The four following days were employed in making ready for sea; and on the 11th, at two in the morn
- 536 From the snout to the end of the tail 7 2 From the snout to the shoulder-bone 2 3 Height of the shoulder 4 3 Circ.u.mference near the fore-legs 4 10 Breadth of the fore-paw 10 lb.Weight of the four quarters 436 Weight of the four quarters of the smallest
- 537 As far as our experience went, it appears, that the sea to the north of Beering's Strait is clearer of ice in August than in July, and perhaps in a part of September it may be still more free. But after the equinox the days shorten so fast, that no f
- 538 On the 30th, the different parties returned to their respective employments, as mentioned in the course of the preceding week; and, on the 2d of September, the carpenters having s.h.i.+fted the rotten and damaged planks, and repaired and caulked the sheat
- 539 This striking difference of the land on each side Awatska Bay, with their different bearings, are the best guides to steer for it in coming from the southward; and, in approaching it from the northward, Cheepoonskoi Noss will make itself very conspicuous;
- 540 SECTION VI.General Account of Kamtschatka.--Geographical Description.--Rivers.-- Soil.--Climate.--Volcanoes.--Hot Springs.--Productions.--Vegetables.-- Animals.--Birds.--Fish.[42]Kamtschatka is the name of a peninsula situated on the eastern coast of Asia
- 541 There are rein-deer, both wild and tame, in several parts of the peninsula; but none in the neighbourhood of Awatska. It is somewhat singular, that this nation should never have used the rein-deer for the purposes of carriage, in the same manner as their
- 542 Black duck No 483 _Anas spectabilis_ 195 Velvet duck No 481 _Anas fusca_ 196 Shoveler No 485 _Anas clypeata_ 200 Golden eye No 486 _Anas clangula_ 201 Harlequin No 490 _Anas histrionica_ 204 Mallard No 494 _Anas boschas_ 205 * Western No 497 Pintail No 50
- 543 The Russians having extended their conquests, and established posts and colonies along that immense extent of coast of the Frozen Sea, from the Jenesei to the Anadir, appointed commissaries for the purpose of exploring and subjecting the countries still f
- 544 I shall here conclude this article, since all we can say of this people, on our own knowledge, hath been laid before the reader in the preceding volume.[78] It is proper to remark, that Atla.s.soff sent an advanced party, under the command of a subaltern,
- 545 On the 28th, at six in the morning, we again saw land, twelve leagues to the southward of that seen the preceding day, extending from W.S.W. to W.by N. We steered S.W. obliquely with the sh.o.r.e; and, at ten, saw more land open to the S.W. To the westwar
- 546 [100] _Lage Hoeck_, or Low Point, is placed by Jansen in lat.i.tude 36 40'.[101] _Witte Hoeck_, placed by Jansen in lat.i.tude 35 24'.[102] _Sanduynege Hoeck_, in lat.i.tude 35 55'. Jansen.[103] See Kaempfer's Hist. of j.a.pan, vol. i.
- 547 I proposed then, that the company's China s.h.i.+ps should carry an additional complement of men each, making in all one hundred. Two vessels, one of two hundred, and the other of one hundred and fifty tons, might, I was told, with, proper notice, be
- 548 We thought it our duty to provide ourselves with these means of defence, though we had some reason to believe that the generosity of our enemies had, in a great measure, rendered them superfluous. We were informed at Canton, that the public prints, which
- 549 I have the honour to be, Gentlemen, Your most obedient humble servant, B. FRANKLIN, Minister Plenipotentiary from the Congress of the United States, at the Court of France. _At Pa.s.sy, near Paris, this 10th day of March, 1779_.'"It is observabl
- 550 At eight o'clock in the evening, it began to blow afresh from the westward, with violent thunder, lightning, and rain; and at three the next morning, we weighed and stood over for Prince's Island, but the westerly wind dying away, was succeeded
- 551 _April_, 1778._Nootka_. English.Opulszthl, _The sun_.Onulszthl, _The moon_.Nas, _or_ eenaeehl nas, _The sky_. Noohchai, _A mountain_, or _hill_.Mooksee, _Rocks_, or _the sh.o.r.e_.Tana.s.s, _or_ tanas, _A man_.Oonook, _A song_.Eeneek, _or_ eleek, _Fire_.N
- 552 Kaheita, _A barbed bone point for ditto_.Cheetakulheiwha, _Bracelets of white bugle beads_.Mittemulszth, _Thongs of skin worn about the wrist and neck_.Iaiopox, _Pieces of copper worn in the ear_.Neesksheetl, _To sneeze_. Suchkas, _A comb_.Seehl, _Small f
- 553 Eissuk, _A sort of leek_; allium triquetrum.Kutskus.h.i.+lzsth, _To tear a thing_.Mitzsleo, _A knot_.Mamakeeo, _To tie a knot_.Kluksilzsth, _To loosen_, or _untie_. Klakaikom, _The leaf of a plant_.Sasinne, _or_ sasin, _A humming-bird_.Koohquoppa, _A gran
- 554 _The cheek_ Oolooeik Oollooak Ou-lu uck-cur._The ear_ Tootoosh Shudeka Se-u-teck._The lip_ Adhee Hashlaw._The teeth_ Agaloo._The tongue_ Agonoc. _The beard_ Engelagoong Oongai._The chin_ Ismaloch Tamluk Taplou._The neck_ Ooioc c.o.o.n-e-soke._The breast_
- 555 And yet it is but justice, even to this ungovernable herd, to explain, that though, as I have said above, they appeared in the light of mutineers, they were not actually such in the eye of the law; for, till a subsequent act, made indeed on this occasion,
- 556 We were in all eighty-one when we left the island, distributed into the long-boat, cutter, and barge; fifty-nine on board the first, twelve in the second, in the last ten. It was our purpose to put into some harbour, if possible, every evening, as we were
- 557 Navigation of the River.--One of our Men dies from Fatigue.--Inhumanity of the Captain.--Description of our Pa.s.sage through a horrible and desolate Country.--Our Conductor leaves us, and a Party of our Men desert with the Boat.--Dreadful Situation of th
- 558 I got up, and marking a great tree, I then deposited my load, not being able to carry it any farther, and set out to join my company.It was some hours before I reached my companions. I found them sitting under a tree, and sat myself down by them without s
- 559 It was about the middle of December this s.h.i.+p came in, and the second of January, 1742-3, we embarked on board of her. She was bound to Valparaiso.We got out to sea with some difficulty, having been driven by the strength of the tide very near those s
- 560 When I got to the Borough, I took a coach and drove to Marlborough-street, where my friends had lived when I left England; but when I came there, I found the house shut up. Having been absent so many years, and in all that time never having heard a word f
- 561 It has been hinted to us, as if publis.h.i.+ng this journal would give offence to some persons of distinction. We can't conceive how any transactions relating to the Wager, although made ever so public, can give offence to any great man at home. Can
- 562 On the 17th of May, being Whitsunday, got several wild fowls, and plenty of muscles, limpets, and other sh.e.l.l-fish, which we find very refres.h.i.+ng, having subsisted a long time on nothing but salt provisions.The 18th, went on board the s.h.i.+p, to
- 563 Wednesday the 29th, fresh gales at N.W. with rain; sure no men ever met with such weather as we have in this climate: To-day we walked in the woods to take some notice of the trees, which we find to be very much like our beech in England; but the trees an
- 564 On Sunday the 23d, the store-tent was again robbed, and, on examination, was found a deficiency of twelve days brandy for ninety men: The lieutenant, myself, and carpenter, went to the captain to consult some way which might effectually prevent those vill
- 565 Robert Beans, lieutenant Thomas Clark, master John King, boatswain John Bulkeley, gunner John c.u.mmins, carpenter Thomas Harvey, purser Robert Elliot, surgeon's mate John Jones, master's mate John Snow, ditto The Hon. John Byron, mids.h.i.+pman
- 566 Tuesday the 10th, at four this morning made all the sail we could; steering S.E. in order to make the land, at six steer'd in E.S.E. at seven made the land; at eight saw a point of land bearing S.E. distant six leagues, which, when a-breast, seeing n
- 567 In Freshwater Bay, dated on board the Speedwell schooner, on the coast of South America, in the lat.i.tude of 37: 25 S. longitude from the meridian of London, 65: 00 W. this 14th day of January, 1741-2."These are to certify the right honourable the l
- 568 Thursday, April the 8th, little wind at S.W., and fair weather. At ten this morning anchor'd before the town of St Sebastians. The Portugueze pilots, who have been in England, call the land here the Isle of Wight; and indeed it is very like it, tho&#
- 569 "Nos abaixo asignados Joam Bulkeley, Joam c.u.mmins, & Joam Young, Va.s.salos de sua Magg de Brittanica El Rey Jorge Segundo, declaramos que temos recebido da mam do Snor' Cappam de Mar e Guerra Theodorio Rodrigues de Faria a coanthia de Corenta
- 570 Robert Kerr's General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels.Volume 18.by William Stevenson.PREFACE.The curiosity of that man must be very feeble and sluggish, and his appet.i.te for information very weak or depraved, who, when he compares the
- 571 The balmy spirit of the western gale Eternal breathes on fruits untaught to fail: Each dropping pear a following pear supplies, On apples apples, figs on figs arise: The same mild season gives the blooms to blow, The buds to harden, and the fruits to grow
- 572 He was the first who established a distinction of climate by the length of days and nights: and he is said to have discovered the dependence of the tides upon the position of the moon, affirming that the flood-tide depended on the increase of the moon, an
- 573 [Ill.u.s.tration]In the mean time Nearchus was prosecuting his journey along with Archias and five or six others, when he fortunately fell in with a party from the army, which had been sent out with horses and carriages for his accommodation. The admiral
- 574 In his description of the coast between Myos Hormos and Ptolemais, he points out a bay, which, both from the ident.i.ty of the name, and the circ.u.mstances respecting it which he narrates, undoubtedly is the Foul Bay of the moderns. Strabo, who, as we ha
- 575 The first Punic war was occasioned by a desire on the part of the Carthaginians to enlarge and secure their acquisitions in Sicily, and to preserve their dominion of the sea, and by a determination on the part of the Romans to check the progress of the Ca
- 576 During the interval between the first and second Punic wars, the Roman commerce seems to have been gradually, but slowly extending itself, particularly in the Adriatic: we do not possess, however, any details on the subject, except a decisive proof of the
- 577 Trapezus was a Greek city, in Pontus, situated on a peninsula, in the Black Sea, where it begins to turn to the east: it had a large and convenient port, and carried on a considerable trade. But the most celebrated of the Grecian colonies in this part of
- 578 The war with Mithridates employed the attention and the resources of the Romans so completely, that the pirates again infested the Mediterranean seas without control. Their numbers and force were greatly augmented by the destruction of Carthage and Corint
- 579 Our ideas of the vastness and wealth of the empire will be still farther encreased, if we regard the cities which it contained, though it is impossible to decide in most instances the extent and population of many places which were honoured with the appel
- 580 Another land route is particularly described by Ptolemy: according to his detail, this immense inland communication began from the bay of Issus, in Cilicia; it then crossed Mesopotamia, from the Euphrates to the Tigris, near Hieropolis: it then pa.s.sed t
- 581 Aduli, the first port on the west side of the Red Sea, and the port of communication with Axuma, was, in the age of the Periplus, subject to the same prince, who possessed the whole coast, from Berenice. The exports from this place were confined to ivory,
- 582 The reputation of his geography remained unshaken and undiminished during the middle ages, both in Arabia and Europe; and even now, the scientific language which he first employed, is constantly used, and the position of places ascertained by specifying t
- 583 During the voyage from Methone, where fresh bread was taken on board to the southern coast of Sicily, from which, according to modern language, they were to take their departure for Africa, they were becalmed, and 161 days were spent in this navigation. A
- 584 The same energy and comprehension of mind which induced and enabled Alfred to improve his navy so much, led him to favour geographical pursuits and commere. In his Anglo-Saxon translation of Orosius, he has inserted the information he had obtained from tw
- 585 Within the period to which the present chapter is confined, there are few traces of commerce in any other parts of Europe besides the Italian states and the Hanseatic League: the former monopolizing the commerce of the south of Europe and of Asia, and the
- 586 In the year 1335, Pegoletti, an Italian, wrote a system of commercial geography; in this, the route taken by the merchants who brought produce and manufactures from China to Azof is particularly described. "In the first place," he says, "fr
- 587 "It is this letter," observes Dr. Vincent, "above all other information, which, with equal justice and equal honour, a.s.signs the theoretical discovery to Covilham, as the practical to Diaz and Gama; for Diaz returned without hearing any t
- 588 The beginning of the seventeenth century was particularly distinguished by the voyage of La Maire and Schouten. The States General of Holland, who had formed an East India Company, in order to secure to it the monopoly of the Indian trade, prohibited all
- 589 In the year 1541, it contained 100,000 inhabitants: soon afterwards the persecutions on account of religion in Germany, England, and France, drove many people thither, and of course increased both its population and wealth. If we may believe Huet, in his
- 590 The East India Company, on the other hand, alleged that the cloth they exported was finer and more valuable than that exported by the Turkey Company, and that, if they were rightly informed, the medium of cloths exported by that company, for the last thre
- 591 The Dutch, he adds, have a regular trade to England with 500 or 600 vessels annually, whereas we trade, not with fifty to their country. After entering into details respecting the Dutch fishery, by means of which, he says, they sell herrings annually to t
- 592 One of the most celebrated men engaged in the Russian discoveries in the early part of the eighteenth century was Behring: he was a Dane by birth, but in the service of Catherine, the widow of Peter the Great, who fixed upon him to carry into execution on
- 593 It is evident, too, that the entrance to many inland seas seems, when viewed from a distance, to be blocked up by connected land. It is well observed by the reviewer, whom we have already quoted, that there is not a reach in the Thames that to the eye doe
- 594 At this period the French were prosecuting voyages of discovery in the same portion of the globe. An expedition sailed from France in 1766, commanded by M. Bougainville: he arrived within the limits of Australasia in May, 1768. Besides visiting a group of
- 595 The last excursion of Mr. Burckhardt was from Cairo to Mount Sinai and the eastern head of the Red Sea. This journey was published in 1822, along with the travels in Syria and the Holy Land; the latter of which he accomplished while he was preparing himse
- 596 The computations, however, necessary in making use of these tables, were found to be very laborious and inconvenient; to obviate this difficulty, the nautical almanack, suggested by Dr. Maskelyne, was published, which is now annually continued. The longit
- 597 Besides the want of capital, which might be supplied, and would indeed be actually supplied by industry and invention, the French are dest.i.tute of the stimulus to industry and invention. As a nation, they are much more disposed to be content with a litt
- 598 But there is a second objection to a select catalogue to be considered. The information and research of the person who draws it up may be inadequate to the task, or his judgment may be erroneous. This observation, however, applies to a complete catalogue-
- 599 27. Collection Portative de Voyages, traduit de differentes Langues Orientales et Europiennes. Par Langles. Paris, 3 vols. 18mo.28. Histoire Generale des Voyages. Par Prevot. Paris, 20 vols. 4to.--This work is valuable for its excellent engravings, maps,
- 600 66. Marchand's Voyage round the World, 1790-92. 2 vols. 4to. Translated from the French.67. A Voyage of Discovery into the North Pacific Ocean, and round the World in 1790-5. By G. Vancouver, 3 vols. 4to. and an Atlas. 1798.68. A Missionary Voyage to