74 cook's first voyage march, 



CHAP. VIL 



THE SEQUEL OF THE PASSAGE FROM CAPE HORN TO THE NEWLY 

 DISCOVERED ISLANDS IN THE SOUTH SEAS, WITH A DESCRIP- 

 TION OF THEIR FIGURE AND appearance; SOME ACCOUNT 

 OF THE INHABITANTS, AND SEVERAL INCIDENTS THAT HAP- 

 PENED DURING THE COURSE, AND AT THE SHIP's ARRIVAL 

 AMONG THEM. 



On the first of March, we were in latitude 38° 44' S. 

 and longitude 110° S3' W. both by observation and 

 by the log. This agreement, after a run of 660 

 leagues, was thought to be very extraordinary ; and 

 is a demonstration, that after we left the land of 

 Cape Horn we had no current that affected the ship. 

 It renders it also highly probable, that we had been 

 near no land of any considerable extent ; for currents 

 are always found when land is not remote, and some- 

 times, particularly on the east side of the continent 

 in the North Sea, when land has been distant 100 

 leagues. 



Many birds, as usual, were constantly about the 

 ship, so that Mr. Banks killed no less than 62 in one 

 day ; and what is more remarkable, he caught two 

 forest flies, both of them of the same species, but 

 different from any that have hitherto been described ; 

 these probably belonged to the birds, and came with 

 them from the land, which we judged to be at a 

 great distance. Mr. Banks also, about this time, 

 found a large cuttle-fish, which had just been killed 

 by the birds, floating in a mangled condition upon 

 the water ; it is very different from the cuttle-fishes 

 that are found in the European seas 5 for its arms, 

 instead of suckers, were furnished with a double row 

 of very sharp talons, which resemble those of a cat, 

 and, like them, were retractable into a sheath of skin, 

 from which they might be thrust at pleasure. Of 



