276 cook's SECOND VOYAGE FEB. 



the South Seas. This gentleman places it under the 

 meridian of 90, where I think it cannot be ; for M. 

 de Bougainville seems to have run down under that 

 meridian, and we had now examined the latitude in 

 which it is said to lie, from the meridian of 94 to 

 101. It is not probable it can lie to the east of 90; 

 because if it did, it must have been seen at one time 

 or other by ships bound from the northern to the 

 southern parts of America. Mr. Pengre, in a little 

 treatise concerning the transit of Venus published 

 in 1763, gives some account of land having been dis- 

 covered by the Spaniards in 1714, in the latitude of 

 38, and 550 leagues from the coast of Chili, which 

 is in the longitude of 110 or 111 W., and within a 

 degree or two of my track in the Endeavour ; so that 

 this can hardly be its situation. In short, the only 

 probable situation it can have must be about the 

 meridian of 106 or 108 W. ; and then it can only 

 be a small isle, as I have already observed. 



I was now taken ill of the bilious colic, which was 

 so violent as to confine me to my bed ; so that the 

 management of the ship was left to Mr. Cooper, the 

 first officer, who conducted her very much to my 

 satisfaction. It was several days before the most 

 dangerous symptoms of my disorder were removed ; 

 during which time Mr. Patten, the surgeon, was to 

 me not only a skilful physician, but an affectionate 

 nurse -, and I should ill deserve the care he bestowed 

 on me, if I did not make this public acknowledg- 

 ment. When I began to recover, a favourite dog, 

 belonging to Mr. Forster, fell a sacrifice to my tender 

 stomach. We had no other fresh meat whatever on 

 board ; and I could eat of this flesh, as well as broth 

 made of it, when I could taste nothing else. Thus I 

 received nourishment and strength from food which 

 would have made most people in Europe sick ; so 

 true it is, that necessity is governed by no law. 



On the 28th, in the latitude of 33 7' S., longitude 

 102 33' W., we began to see flying-fish, egg-birds 5 



