they muft have been greatly diftrefled) 'and alfo by their very romantic appearance,
greatly heightened by the Foaming and daihing bf the waves into curious
holes and caverns formed in many of them; the whole exhibiting a view
that at once filled the mind with admiration. and horror, and can only be
defcribed by the hand of an able painter.
P- 57* Towards evening the gale abated, and in the night they had two or three
hours calm, jj This was fucceeded by a light breeze at weft, with which they
P -S 8 - fteered eaft under all the fail they could fet. On the 26th they were in latitude
P-64* 6i° 2 i ’ fouth, almoft the higheft they made; and from this time to March 16th
they had nearly, (but at intervals) a fucceflion o f the fame weather and events;
when being in latitude 590 7’ fouth, longitude 146° 53’, and having ufed his
utmoft endeavours to difcover land by purfuing every probable track, but without
effett, Captain Cook came to a refolution to quit the high fouthern
latitudes, where he had fo long combated the utmoft feverity of weather and
climate, and proceed to New-Zealand in fearch of the Adventure.
He had fome thoughts, and even defire, of vifiting the eaft coaft of Van Dieman’s
land; but the wind not permitting him to touch there, he ihaped his courfe to
p. 66. New Zealand, off which place they arrived on the 25th of March, and anp.
68. ~chored in Duiky Bay, fituated in the fouthern part of Tavei Poenanimoo, on the
26th; having been one hundred and feventeen days at fea, in which time they
had failed 3660 leagues, without having once fight of land.
During the different courfes they had fteered in thefe inclement feas, they
faw feveral kinds of aquatic birds, fome of which made them frequently con-
p.22. jefture they were near land. On the 1 i th of December, in latitude 510 50’
fouth, longitude 210 3’ eaft, they faw fome white birds about the fize of
pigeons, with blackiih bills and feet, fuch as Captain Cook had never feen before;
nor had Mr. Forfter ever met with a defcription of them in .Natural
Hiftory. They appeared to be o f the peteral tribe, and natives of thefe icy feas*
2>. 23. Upon their firft getting among the ice iflands, the albatroffes left them, that
is, they faw but one now and then. Nor did their other companions the
pintadoes.
pintadoes, iheerwaters, and fmall grey birds, that had accompanied them from
warmer latitudes, appear in fuch numbers; on the other hand, penguins began
to make their appearance.
December 23d, in latitude 55° 20’ fouth, longitude 31* 30’ eaft, Mr. Forfter, j
in the boat,, ihot fome of the fmall grey birds juft mentioned: they were of
the peterel tribe, about the fize of a fmall pigeon, their back, and upper fide
o f their wings, their feet and bill's arc of a blue grey colour, their bellies and
under fide of their wings are white, a little tinged with blue, the. upper fide of
their quill feathers is a dark blue tinged with black; a ftreak is formed by
feathers nearly o f this colour along the upper part of the wings, and crofiing
the back a little above the fail; the end of the tail feathers is alfo of the fame
colour, , their bills áre much broader than thofe of the fame tribe generally
aré, and their tongues remarkably broad. Thefe blue peterels, as they denominated
them, are feen no where but in the fouthern hemifphere, from latitude
28°, and:upwards.
•Being on the 27th, in latitude 58o 19’ fouth, longitude 24“ 39’ eaft, the day
calm and pleafant, and the Tea fmooth, they hoifted out a boat, from which
Mr. Forfter fhot-a penguin and fome peterels. Thefe penguins differ not'from
thofe feen | other parts of the world, except in fome minute particulars
diftinguiihable only by naturalifts. Some of the peterels were o f the bine fort
but different from thofe juft defcribed, in not having a broad bill, and th¡
ends of their tail feathers were tipped with while, inftead of dark blue But
whether thefe were only the diftinflions betwixt the male and female’ was a
difputed point with the naturalifts on board.
December 29th they brought to on the lee fide of an ifland o f ice,'under which
they lay for fome minutes, with every fail becalmed, it being about half a mile
m circuit, and upwards of one hundred feet high. Upon it they faw eighty-fix
penguins: the fide on which thefe birds were, rofe Hoping from the fea, fo as to
a nut them to creep up it. It is a received opinion thatpenguins never go.far
from land and that the fight of them is a fure indication of Its vicinity. This'
opinion. Captain Cook remarks, may hold good where there are no ice iflands,:
G S 2 but
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