jJJ-MjI The mean of 31 fets taken by Mr. Whidbey, - 273° 25' 55"
Ditto 18 ditto Mr. Baker, - 273 36 48
Ditto 3° ditto Mr. Swaine, - 273 32 30
Ditto 37 ditto Mr. Manby, - 273 18 37
Ditto 30 ditto Mr. Orchard, - 273 *7 44 The niean of the whole 136 fets colle&ively taken,
(hewed what I eonfidered the true, or nearly the true longitude
to be, . - - - - - 273 25 30
By Arnold’s chronometer No. 14, the longitude was 273 5 30
176, ditto - 272 7
Kendall’s, ditto ditto - 273 7 45
From thefe ftatements it (hould feem, that the chronometers were at
this time materially gaining on the rate now allowed. The dead reckoning
[hewed 280° l'. The obferved latitude was 330 50' fouth, and the
variation of the compafs 9° 15' eaftwardly.
A t day-light in the morning a ftrange fail had been difeovered at a
great diftance aftern, or rather upon our weather quarter; (he was foon
found to be drawing up to us, although we had all the fail fet that we
were able to carry; and as (he appeared to be a brig, little doubt was entertained
of her being the Chatham; the opinion of her being our confort
was confirmed about four in the afternoon by her anfwering the private
fignal, and as (he had now evidently the advantage of us in point of
failing, we did not (horten fail, but left her to overtake us ; which haw-
Friday 20. ever was not effected until about nine o’clock on friday, forenoon, when
Mr. Puget came on board, and I had the pleafure to underftand from him,
that, like ourfelves, they had had very fine weather ever fince our fepaj,
ration; and that on the 2d of march he had met with a large Spanilh
merchant (hip named the Rofalie, Antonio Jofeph Valaro, mailer, laden
with cocoa and jefuit’s bark from Guayaquil, and bound round cape
Horn to Rio de la Plata, and from thence to Cadiz; having quitted the
former place on the 20th of the preceding january. The commander o f
this velfel mentioned the lofs of the (hip Edward of London, which had
been unfortunately cad away at a place called Manquiva, and that feve-
ral other Britilh veffels, which had been very fuccefsfully employed in
the
the fouthern whale filhery, had vifited different ports on the coaft of
Peru and Chili, where they had been well received; and that the Englilh
were in high eftimation in thofe countries. From this gentleman Mr.
Puget became informed, that the anchorage at Juan Fernandez was
eonfidered as very bad and greatly expofed; that a Spanilh frigate had
lately been loft: there; and that the ifland afforded but very few refrefh-
ments. On thefe accounts he ftrongly recommended, that in cafe the
Chatham Hood in need of any articles of naval (lores, that (he (hould
repair to the port of Valparaifo, as being the mod likely place on the
coaft of Chili for procuring fuch fupplies.
After Mr. Puget had obtained1 this information, and exchanged with
Senr- Valaro fome mutual, though trivial marks of civility, they parted,
and each veffel purfued her courfe with a pleafant gale at e . n . e . , which
enabled the Chatham the next morning to crofs the fouthern tropic in
the longitude of 257° 40', about a degree and a half to the eaftward of
our track aerofs that line, about forty hours before them. The winds had
permitted the Chatham to (leer a more eafterly courfe than we had been
enabled to do, which, with our reduced rate of failing, had contributed
to form this early jun&ion, and had obtained me a great degree of
fatisfaftion, as it had rendered our (lopping at Juan Fernandez intirely
unneceffary.
The very unferviceable and damaged (late of our main-mail demanded,
that we (hould without delay repair to fome port more eligible than this
ifland was likely Ur prove for adminiftering to our neceffities, efpecially
as the head of the maft, in addition to the former accident, had upon a
more minute furvey been found to be very rotten. A defeft of fo feri-
ous a nature, admitting of no delay in the application of the mod effeftual
remedy, left no doubt in my mind refpefting the meafures that it would be
m o f t defirable to purfue for the accomplilhment of that objeft.
In confequence of the ftrong injunctions contained in my inftruCtions,
not to vifit any of the Spanifh fettlements on this coaft, excepting in the
event of the moft abfolute neceffity, I deemed it expedient to fubmit to
Mr.. Puget, and the principal officers of the Difcovery, the (late and condition
of the maft from the carpenters written report, together with that
3 part