»§• M
August, tribe, upon its back, which much refembled the fpecies in
the gills of falmons. ft A fcorpion was likewife diflodged
from a lhelf, by the accidental removal of a book; fome of
thefe creatures having been brought on board at the'Society
or Friendly Iflands with clutters of bananas, on which they
fometimes lit., Towards night _we made another acquifi-
tion ; it was a booby, of the fort which Linriams calls pelecanus
fiber, which had roofted on the main-yard.
The day following a light air likewife retarded our pro-
grefs, fo that we flowly examined the weftern coaft of
Tierra del Efpiritu Santo. A variety of fifh were obferved
fwimming along fide; two albecores were Caught, and a
fingle dolphin was ftruck with the harpoon, after many un-
fuccefsful attempts. The land on this fide was high, and
the mountains very fieep. Many fires were obferved at night,
probably in order to clear the ground for plantations. Quiros
having likewife feen fires on this ifland, conjeaured as we
had done at firft, that they - were fieux dejoye, and illuminations,
on account of the arrival of fliips. A foutherly
breeze fpringing up, obliged us to tack off and on, during
the 30th and 31ft, when we reached the S. W. point of the
ifland, which we named Cape Lifburne, and which is fitu-
ated in 1 5 0 35'S, and 167° E. We flood once more into
the paffage between Tierra del Efpiritii Santo and Mallicollo,
in order to complete the circuit of the former. Here we
faw the bay which M. de Bougainville has expreffed in his
map,
map, fheltered by fome of the Bartholomew Iflands: it did aS
not however appear to be of fuch great extent as it is there
reprefented. About fix in the evening we put about, and
flood to the S. S. W. from the New Hebrides, with a S. E.
trade-wind. This group of iflands, which we had now
curforily examined in the fpace of forty-fix days, feems to-
be well worth the attention of future navigators, efpecially
if they fhould ever be fent out upon the liberal plan of
making difcoveries in all the various branches of fcience.
I will not pretend to fay that they would find great riches of
filver and pearls, which Quiros was forced to fpeak of, in
order to engage an interefted, avaricious court, to fupport
his great and fpirited undertakings. Thefe incitements are
not neceffary now a-days, when feveral monarchs in Europe
have convinced the world that they can inftitute voyages of
difcovery, with no other view than the increafe of human
knowledge, and the improvement of mankind. The fums
which fome of their predecefiors have lavished on parafites-,
have been found fuffieient to make an immenfe progrefs,
nay, to produce a new and important revolution in the
flate of the fciences, which have ever required a trifling expence
to triumph over the numberlefs obftacles that ignorance,
envy, or fuperftition oppofed againft them. The natural
productions of the New Hebrides, exclufive of all kinds
of artificial riches, are therefore in my opinion confiderable
enough to engage the attention of future voyagers. Their
volcanoes.