m
We palTed the night in making feveral trips, in order to
keep to windward of the illand and as near is as poffible,
refolving to purfue our fearch of anchorage the next day.
In the mean time we refledted on the excellent means of af-
certaining the longitude, with which our Ihip had been
furnilhed, and which had carried us exactly to this ifland,,
though feveral former navigators, fuch as Byron, Carteret,
and Bougainville had miffed it, after taking their departure
from iflands at fo Ihort a diftance from it as thofe of Juan
Fernandez *. Captain Carteret it feems was only milled by
an erroneous latitude in the geographical tables which he
confulted; but this could not be the cafe with the reft.
We had the greateft reafon to admire the ingenious eon-
ftrudtion of the two watches which we had on board, one
executed by Mr. Kendal, exadfly after the model of that
made by Mr. Harrifon, and the other by Mr. Arnold on his
own plan, both which went with great regularity. The laft
was unfortunately flopped immediately after our departure
from New Zeeland in June 1773, but the other went till
our return to England, and gave general fatisfaftion. It
appears, however, that in a long run the obfervations of
drftances of the moon from the fun or liars, are more to be
depended upon, if they be made with good inftruments,
than the watches or time-keepers, which frequently change
their rates of going, The method of deducing the longitude
* Juan Eernan<iez, properly fo called or la de Tierra, and la Mas a fhera.
from
A VOYAGE: ROUND THE WORLD. s s s
from the diftances of the fun and moon, or moon and liars,
one of the moft valuable acquifitións to the art of navigation,
muft immortalize its firft inventors. Tobias Mayer,
a German, and profelfor at Gottingen, was the firft who undertook
the laborious talk o f calculating tables for this
purpofe, for which his heirs received a parliamentary reward.
Since his death the method was fo much facilitated
By additional calculations, that thé longitude will perhaps
never be determined with greater précifión at fea by any
other means.
The latitude of Eafter Illand correfpönds within a minute
of two with that which is marked in admiral Roggewein’s
own MS. journal *, and his longitude is only one degree er-*
roneons, our obfervations having afeertained it in 109? 4 6'
weft from Greenwich. TheSpanilh accounts of the latitude
are likëwife exadt, but they err in longitude about thirty
leagues.
* See the Lives of the Governors of Batavia.*—It- is there expreiled o f -
latitude, and. 265° 42' £ . from Tenerif, or n o 0 45' W. from. London..
4 B 2 C H A P .