to obftrve the ceremony ufually pradtifed in palling under It.
The longitude was 26° $7' W. the wind at baft, the .weather
moderate -and clear. In* lat. i° 24.'. S. dong. /2&0, 2T W,
the boatfwaSn eatight fixteen fine howtpdSf* which' proved a
very feafonable ancTacceptable fupply. | A t night the. fea, • all
around the fhip, exhibited a moft delightful fight. This
appearance was occafioned by the gambols of an- incredible
■ number of various kinds of; fifh, who fpor,ted about us,'sand
who ft fudden turnings caufed an emanation, which refem-
hled flalhes of lightning darting in quick fucceffioh,. Wha£
1 before fpoke of as the fpawn, I am now fully convinced
Were rather the fifh themfolves," turning up their white
bellies at fome little.^, diftance below the fjjrlace. pf the
water, and theft fudden evolutions vegf(T what gave. theiha
the luminous appearance' obferved on it before, I a?ah the
'more readily affirm this to be the caufe, as, prfe^evening,
when we had immenfe quantities about Us, I carefully attended
to them till it became dark, and was fully fatjsfiedj
from the obfervations. I was then able to make, that it vvas
the fifh, and not the fpawn, which occafioned the appear,,
ancc ; for there .was not an officer or perfon on board but
.what was able very plainly to perceive their frolicfome turnings
ings and windings, Indeed^ fdme of them canfe fo> near the.
-fiirfacey that we« frequently attempted to ftrikc them with
a pair of grams»'
1 8th. Beingi, informed thatlftveral of the mariners and
JGonvi£fs'!p& board the Alexander Wefe Suddenly taken ill, I
fifimcdiately yifited that-’ fh|^;,4n^;fmm'difthat t-he| ilineft
eomplamedlfif was. whollyfodcafibned. by the;‘bilgb- water,-
which had by fbm'e means o^bthek rifieii to/' fa ap hei|hf,i I
that the panfjfikafl^^cabia, and the buttons; ©n^he clothe a,
o f the! officers*/were .turned nearly blacky by the noxiops;
effluvia.: - Whefi. the, hatfehes were taken off,: .the1 feneh was,
fo powerful,'ffiat it wa'sTearcely’poffibk to. hand aver them-/
How it could have- got fp this beighfemss-very flrange; for
I well know,-’ that Captain‘Phillip gave firiA orders; -(Which
orders I rnyfelf delivered), to the mailers ofltlxeltrahfports to
pump, the* flaps* out daily, in ordieuJtMke%^-them Tweet, und
wholefonie and; it was added, that bf')thebfiiips did not
make water - enough fa t! that pur-poft, they were, to employ
the con^ol^m throwing \Vafei: into the well,<and- pumping
it out again, until it became clear a i id v u n ^ e d ^ T h e
people’ s health, however, being endangered! % the circum-,
fiance,! I. found .a reprefontatioftu'pon the fubjed to Captain
Phillip