180 AVOYAGETO 



l '7o- tcrtained, refpeeting the falfehood of this pretended diSco* 



\— — , 1 very. For it is to be obferved, that no one has ever yet been 



able to find who John de Gama was, when he lived, or what 

 year this pretended difcovery was made. 



According to Mr. Muller, the firft account of it given to 

 the Public was in a chart publifhed by Texeira, a Portu- 

 gueze geographer, in 1 649, who places it in ten or twelve de- 

 grees to the North Eaft of Japan, between the latitudes of 

 44 and 45°; and announce it to be landfeen by John de Gam.:, 

 the Indian, in a voyage from China to New Spain. On what 

 grounds the French geographers have fince removed it five 

 degrees to the Eaftward, does not appear; except we fuppofe 

 it to have been in order to make room for another difcovery 

 of the fame kind made by the Dutch, called Company's Lan< ; 

 of which we fhall have occafion to fpeak hereafter. 



During the whole day, the wind was exceedingly un- 

 settled, being feldom Heady to two or three points ; and 

 blowing in frefh gufls, which were Succeeded by dead 

 calms. Thefe were not unpromising appearances; bur, 

 after ftanding off and on, the whole of this day, with- 

 out feeing any thing of the land, we again fleered to the 

 Northward, not thinking it worth our while to lofe time in 

 Search of an object, the opinion of whofe existence had 

 been already pretty generally exploded. Our people were 

 employed the whole of the 1 6th, in getting their wet things 

 to dry, and in airing the mips below. 



We now began to feel very fharply the increafing in- 

 clemency of the Northern climate. In the morning of 

 Sun^y 18. the 1 8th, our latitude being 45 40', and our longitude 

 160° 25', we had fnow and fleet, accompanied with ftrong 

 gales from the South Wert:. This circumflancc will ap- 

 pear 



