THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 363 



larly to the Northward, where it feemed to clofe. This left ^778- 

 us but little hopes of finding a pafTage that way ; or, in- 

 deed, in any other direction, without putting out again to 

 fea. 



To enable me to form a better judgment, I difpatched Mr. 

 Gore, with two armed boats, to examine the Northern arm ; 

 and the mafler, with two other boats, to examine another 

 arm that feemed to take an Eafterly dire(5lion. Late in 

 the evening, they both returned. The Matter reported, 

 that the arm he had been fent to, communicated with that 

 from which we had lafl. come; and that one fide of it was 

 only formed by a group of iflands. Mr. Gore informed me, 

 that he had feen the entrance of an arm, which, he was of 

 opinion, extended a long way to the North Eaft ; and that, 

 probably by it, a pafTage might be found. On the other 

 hand, Mr. Roberts, one of the mates, whom I had font 

 •with Mr. Gore to fketch out the parts they had examined, 

 was of opinion, that they faw the head of this arm. The 

 difagreement of thefc two opinions, and the circumflance 

 already mentioned of the flood-tide entering the Sound from 

 the South, rendered the exiftence of a pafTage this way 

 very doubtful. And, as the wind in the morning had be- 

 come favourable for getting out to fea, I refolved to fpend 

 no more time4n fearching for a palTage in a place that pro- 

 mifed fo little fuccefs. Eefides this, I confidered, that, if the 

 land on the Weft fliould prove to be iflands, agreeably to the 

 late Ruflian Difcoverics *, we could not fail of getting far 

 enough to the North, and that in good time ; provided we 

 did not lofe the fealbn in fearching places, where a pafTage 

 was not only doubtful, but improbable. We were now 



* Captain Cook feems to take his ideas of thefe from Mr. Stxhlin's map, prefixed 

 to the Account of the Northern Archipelago ; publilhed by Dr. Maty. London, 1774. 



3 A 2 upward 



