as the shell is certainly found in the Mediterranean, whether it be not the Purpura of the ancients.*

.

*On the 8th, in latitude 8° 25 north, longitude 22° 4' west, we found a current setting to the southward, which the next day in latitude 7° 58′, longitude 22° 13, shifted to the N.N. W. W. at the rate of one mile and a furlong an hour. The variation here, by the mean of several azimuths, appeared to be 8 39 W.

On the 10th, Mr Banks shot the black-toed gull, not yet described according to Linnæus's system; he gave it the name of Larus crepidatus: It is remarkable that the dung of this bird is of a lively red, somewhat like that of the liquor procured from the shells, only not so full; its prin cipal food therefore is probably the Helix just mentioned. A current to the N.W. prevailed more or less till Monday the 24th, when we were in latitude 1° 7′ N. and longitude 28° 50′.

On the 25th we crossed the Line with the usual ceremo nies, in longitude 29° 30', when, by the result of several very good azimuths, the variation was 2° 24.

On the 28th, at noon, being in the latitude of Ferdinand Noronha, and, by the mean of several observations by Mr Green and myself, in longitude 32° 5′ 16′′ W. which is to the westward of it by some charts, and to the eastward by others, we expected to see the island, or some of the shoals

that

2 It is quite impossible to discuss this subject here. But it may be worth while to refer the learned reader for some curious information about it, to the illustrious Bochart's work entitled Hierozoicon, Part II. Book V. Ch. II. There are several sorts of sea shells, that yield the purple-dye so much esteemed among the ancients. Pliny, who has written on the subject, divides them into two classes, the buccinum and purpura, of which the latter was most in request. According to him, the best finds were found in the vicinity of Tyre. That city was famous for the i of purple. To be Tyrio conspectus in ostro, seemed, in the estimation of the Mantuan poet, essential to his due appearance in honour of Augustus, Geor. 317. But several other places in the Mediterranean afforded this precious article. Thus Horace speaks of Spartan purple, Nec Laconicas mihi

Trahunt honestæ purpuras clientæ.

ર

Od. Lib. 2. 18.

1

The English, reader will be much pleased with, several interesting remarks as to the purple and other colours known to the ancients, given in President Goguet's valuable work on the origin of laws, arts. &c. &c. of which a translation by Dr Henry was published at Edinburgh 1761.-E.

1

that are laid down in the charts between it and the main, but we saw neither one nor the other.

In the evening of the 29th, we observed that luminous appearance of the sea which has been so often mentioned by navigators, and of which such various causes have been assigned; some supposing it to be occasioned by fish, which agitated the water by darting at their prey, some by the putrefaction of fish and other marine animals, some by electricity, and others referring it to a great variety of different causes. It appeared to emit flashes of light exactly resembling those of lightning, only not so considerable, but they were so frequent that sometimes eight or ten were visible almost at the same moment. We were of opinion that they proceeded from some luminous animal, and upon throwing out the casting-net our opinion was confirmed: It brought up a species of the Medusa, which when it came on board had the appearance of metal violently heated, and emitted a white light: With these animals were taken some very small crabs, of three different species, each of which gave as much light as a glow-worm, though the creature was not so large by nine-tenths: Upon examination of these animals, Mr Banks had the satisfaction to find that they were all entirely new.3

On Wednesday the 2d of November, about noon, being in the latitude of 10° 38′ S. and longitude 32° 13′ 43′′ W. we passed the Line, in which the needle at this time would have pointed due north and south, without any variation: For in the morning, having decreased gradually in its deviation for some days, it was no more than 18′ W. and in the afternoon it was 34' east.

On the 6th, being in latitude 19° 3′ south, longitude 35° 50′ west, the colour of the water was observed to change, upon which we sounded, and found ground at the depth of thirty-two fathoms; the lead was cast three times within about four hours, without a foot difference in the depth or quality of the bottom, which was coral rock, fine sand, and shells; we therefore supposed that we had passed over the tail of the great shoal which is laid down in all

our

3 The reader is referred to the account of Captain Krusenstern's circumnavigation, for a very satisfactory relation of an experiment on this subject, which clearly proves the truth of the opinion above stated, as to the cause of the shining appearance so often noticed at sea. It is too long for quotation in this place.-E.

3

our charts by the name of Abrothos, on which Lord Anson struck soundings in his passage outwards: At four the next morning we had no ground with 100 fathom.

As several articles of our stock and provisions now began to fall short, I determined to put into Rio de Janeiro, rather than at any port in Brazil or Falkland's Islands, knowing that it could better supply us with what we wanted, and making no doubt but that we should be well received.

On the 8th, at day-break, we saw the coast of Brazil, and about ten o'clock we brought-to, and spoke with a fishingboat; the people on board told us that the land which we saw, lay to the southward of Santo Espirito, but belonged to the captainship of that place.

Mr Banks and Dr Solander went on board this vessel, in which they found eleven men, nine of whom were blacks; they all fished with lines, and their fresh cargo, the chief part of which Mr Banks bought, consisted of dolphins, large pelagic scombers of two kinds, sea-bream, and some of the fish which in the West Indies are called Welshmen. Mr Banks had taken Spanish silver with him, which he imagined to be the currency of the continent, but to his great surprise the people asked him for English shillings ; he gave them two, which he happened to have about him, and it was not without some dispute that they took the rest of the money in pistereens. Their business seemed to be to catch large fish at a good distance from the shore, which they salted in bulk, in a place made for that purpose in the middle of their boat: Of this merchandise they had about two quintals on board, which they offered for about fifteen shillings, and would probably have sold for half the money. The fresh fish, which was bought for about nineteen shillings and sixpence, served the whole ship's company; the salt was not wanted.

The sea-provision of these fishermen consisted of nothing more than a cask of water, and a bag of Cassada flour, which they called Farinha de Pao, or wooden flour, which indeed is a name which very well suits its taste and appearance. Their water-cask was large, as wide as their boat, and exactly fitted a place that was made for it in the bal last; it was impossible therefore to draw out any of its contents by a tap, the sides being, from the bottom to the top, wholly inaccessible; neither could any be taken out

by

by dipping a vessel in at the head, for an opening sufficiently wide for that purppse would have endangered the loss of great part of it by the rolling of the vessel: Their expedient to get at their water, so situated, was curious; when one of them wanted to drink, he applied to his neighbour, who accompanied him to the water-cask with a hollow cane about three feet long, which was open at both ends; this he thrust into the cask through a small hole in the top, and then, stopping the upper end with the palm of his hand, drew it out; the pressure of the air against the other end keeping in the water which it contained; to this end the person who wanted to drink applied his mouth, and the assistant then taking his hand from the other, and admitting the air above, the cane immediately parted with its contents, which the drinker drew off till he was satisfied.+

We stood off and on along the shore till the 12th, and successively saw a remarkable hill near Santo Espirito, then Cape St Thomas, and then an island just without Cape Frio, which in some maps is called the island of Frio, and which being high, with a hollow in the middle, has the appearance of two islands when seen at a distance. On this. day we stood along the shore for Rio de Janeiro, and at nine the next morning made sail for the harbour. I then sent Mr Hicks, my first lieutenant, before us in the pin-. nace, up to the city, to acquaint the governor, that we put in there to procure water and refreshments; and to desire the assistance of a pilot to bring us into proper, anchoringground. I continued to stand up the river, trusting to Mr Bellisle's draught, published in the Petit Atlas Maritime, vol. ii. N°. 54, which we found very good, till five o'clock in the evening, expecting the return of my lieutenant; and

just

4 It seems pretty obvious that the form and position of the water-cask, were accommodated to this known practicability of getting conveniently at its contents. But how such a method should have become familiar to these fishermen, it is difficult to conjecture. Some accidental observation of a reed or similar body containing water when one of its ends was pressed close, had, in all probability, furnished them or their ancestors with the hint. Man, when necessitated to exertion, is essentially a philosopher; but when his natural wants are by any means supplied, he dwindles into a fool. Hence his discoveries are often invaluable in their consequences, whilst his reasonings in explanation of them are absurd and childish. A contrasted collection of both would be a most amusing, and at the same time a humiliating picture of the inconsistency of human nature.—E.

just as I was about to anchor, above the island of Cobras, which lies before the city, the pinnace came back without him, having on board a Portuguese officer, but no pilot. The people in the boat told me, that my lieutenant was detained by the viceroy till I should go on shore. We came immediately to an anchor; and, almost at the same time, a ten-oared boat, full of soldiers, came up, and kept rowing round the ship, without exchanging a word: In less than a quarter of an hour, another boat came on board with several of the viceroy's officers, who asked, whence we came; what was our cargo; the number of men and guns on board; the object of our voyage, and several other questions, which we directly and truly answered: They then told me, as a kind of apology for detaining my lieutenant, and putting an officer on board my pinnace, that it was the invariable custom of the place, to detain the first officer who came on shore from any ship on her arrival, till a boat from the viceroy had visited her, and to suffer no boat to go either from or to a ship, while she lay there, without having a soldier on board. They said that I might go on shore when I pleased; but wished that every other person might remain on board till the paper which they should

draw

5 There is no reason for supposing that this viceroy had any greater dislike to our countrymen than to any other, or that he acted otherwise towards them than he was accustomed to do in similar cases. Bougainville complains of him much, and represents him as a turbulent ill-mannered fellow. "Having," ," says he, " on one occasion, upon the repeated leave of the viceroy, concluded a bargain for buying a snow, his excellency forbad the seller to deliver it to me. He likewise gave orders, that we should not be allowed the necessary timber out of the royal dock-yards, for which we had already agreed; he then refused me the permission of lodging with my officers (during the time that the frigate underwent some essential repairs) in a house near the town, offered me by its proprietor, and which Commodore Byron had occupied in 1765, when he touched at this port. On this account, and likewise on his refusing me the snow and the timber, I wanted to make some remonstrances to him. He did not give me time to do it: And at the first words I uttered, he rose in a furious passion, and ordered me to go out; and being certainly piqued, that in spite of his anger, I remained sitting with two officers who accompanied me, he called his guards; but they, wiser than himself, did not come, and we retired, so that nobody seemed to have been disturbed. We were hardly gone, when the guards of his palace were doubled, and orders given to arrest all the French that should be found in the streets after sunsetting." According to this writer, it appears that neither the laws of nations, nor the rules of good breeding, were respected by this very important being, "vain of his authority."-E.