, 1791. objeft; and I yet hope to fee the period arrive, when every feafaring
July’ , perfon capable of ufmg a quadrant, will, on due inftru&ion, be enabled
by lunar obfervations to determine 1 his longitude at fea. It has , been
already obferved, that fuch information.may be acquired with eafe, and
without laborious ftudy or tedious application; this was further warranted
by our example :on board the Difcovery; ■ where;, on our departure
from England, Mr. Whidbey and myfelf could be confidered as the only
proficients in this branch of fcience;. but now, amongft the officers and
gentlemen of the; quarter deck, there were feveral capable o f afcertaining
their fituation in the ocean, with every degree of accuracy necelfary for
all the important purpofes of navigation.
Sunday 10. With a light fouthwardly breeze in- the morning of the loth we
weighed anchor, and with the affiftance of our boats a -head,, towing the
{hip, we reached Simon’s Bay at about fevem in the evening, where
we anchored in 12 fathoms water; Fallq. Cape bearing by compafs
in a line with the fouth point of the bay s, 37 e .,Noah's ark s.' 51 e , the
Roman rocks s .8 6 e. and the flag-ftaff on the battery s. 89 w . about a
quarter of a mile from the ffiore. g ■; :
The day before a brig was feen in ffiore of us, which was fuppofed
to be the Chatham; but as the private fignal was not acknowledged by
her, we concluded ourfelves miftaken. Our firft conjectures, however,
proved to be right, as Mr. Broughton now informed me the, fignal had
efcaped their attention. Since we had feparated, the Difcovery had out-
lailed her confort only the night’s run ; the Chatham not having hauled
her wind or ffiortened fail on friday night, ffie was the next morning within
the fame diftance of the land as the Difcovery. Nothing had occurred
during this .{eparation worthy of notice. I was made exceffively
happy to underftand from Mr. Broughton, that the officers and crew of
the Chatham, like thofe of the Difcovery, were in general very healthy.
Befide the Chatham, we found here His Majefty’s {hip the Gorgon; the
Warren Haftings, and Earl Fitzwilliam Indiamen, from Bengal; two
port Jaekfan tranfports from China bound home; three with conviQ:»
bound to port Jackfon; two American, and fome Dutch and Daniffi
merchant {hips; the total amounting to feVenteen fail in the bay.
In
In the morning, an officer was fent on ffiore to acquaint the refident »79«.
commandant of the port, Mr. Brandt,, of our arrival, and to requeft ■ J“‘y'
his permiffion to procure fuch refreffiments and ftores as our wants now Monday
demanded, and to ereft our obfervatory and fuch tents on ffiore as might
be requilite for carrying into execution the necefldry refitment of the vef-
: ^ s; which Mr. Brandt very politely complied; and, on the
return of the officer, the garrifon was faluted with eleven guns; which
compliment being equally returned,. attended by Mr. Broughton and
fome of the officers I waited on Mr. Brandt, who received us with the
greateft politenefs and hofpitality; the well known charafteriftics o f that
gentleman. Having, on a former occafion, benefited by his good
offices m the excellency o f the fupplies provided for the Refolution and
Difcovery, I concerted meafures with him, on the prefent, for the like
purpofe. Mr. Brandt undertook, in conjunftion with Mr. DeWit of Cape
Town, to fee all our neceffities provided for with the beft of the feveral
commodities the country afforded. The Difcovery’s bowfprit, being found
infinitely, too weak, was taken out in order to be ftrengthened by one
o f the fifties we had on board ; the whole of the head railing, having
been waffied away, was to be replaced ; the veffels wanted caulking fore
and aft; the rigging, overhauling; calks to be fet up for receiving pro-
vifions and water; the fails repairing, and feveral materially altering;
the powder airing; and the {kids and booms railing, for the better enabling
o f the people to work upon deck; the ffiip proving fufficiently ftiff
to admit of fuch accommodation. Artificers were hired to affift our own
in thefe feveral duties ; which being in a ftate o f forwardnefs by the 14th,
Mr. Broughton and myfelf paid our refpefts to Mr. Rhenias, the acling
governor at Cape Town, with the further view of infpe&ing the ftores
and provifions, the major part o f which were to come from thence. Four
of our feamen, whofe conftitutions feemed unequal to the fervice in which
they, had engaged, and whom I had now an opportunity- o f replacing,
were fent on board the Warren Haftings ; and, with her, , on .the 18th’ Monday ,8
failed for England.
All our ftores and provifions being forwarded from Cape Town by Auguit.
t e 5th, we took leave of the governor and our Cape friends, from
whom we had experienced the rnoft attentive civility; and haying
V ol. I. n 1 j • completed