204 On Capt. Cook’s Account of the Tides [Mancw, 
lighten the vessel, in hopes of her floating at the next high tide; 
but it did not rise sufficiently by two feet to accomplish their 
wishes. They had now no hopes but from the tide at midnight, 
and these were only founded on a notion, very general, Captain 
Cook says, among seamen, that the tide rises in those seas 
higher by night than by day. The result exceeded their most 
sanguine expectations. The ship floated about 20 minutes after 
10 in the evening, which was a full hour before high water. At 
this time, the heads of the rocks, which, during the preceding 
tide were at least a foot above water, were wholly covered. 
This circumstance led Captain Cook to attend to the tides, dur- 
ing the time (from June 17 to Aug. 4) which he lay in the 
Endeavour river, repairing the damages which the vessel had 
suffered ; and he found that the neap tides were very inconsider- 
able, with no remarkable difference of height by day or night; 
but that the spring tides rose niue feet perpendicularly in the 
evening, and scarcely seven in the morning; the ditference was 
uniformly the same on each of the three springs, which happened 
while he lay at the place, and was apparent for about six or 
seven days; that is, for about three days before and after the 
full and change of the moon. 
The paper is entitled, “ On the Tides in the South Seas.” 
This may have been added by the person. who superintended the 
ublication ; but whether it was or was not prefixed by Captain 
ook, it evidently points out an intention to generalize, and 
shows that these observations were considered as a proof of the 
tides being higher by night than by day, in those seas. It must 
be confessed that this seems, at first sight, to be not an impro- 
bable conclusion, and yet it is one which certainly does not carry. 
complete conviction with it. We do not readily acquiesce in a 
general conclusion, for which we see no reason, even from 
analogy ; and Captain Cook himself acknowledges that previous 
to this occurrence, the belief, though common among seamen, 
had not been confirmed by any thing which had fallen under his 
own observation. At the conclusion of his paper, he mentions 
that the wind had prevailed from the S. E. blowing, for the most 
part, a brisk gale, and rather stronger by day than by night. 
Now he judged the flood tide to come in that same direction; 
but how far the height of it was affected by the gale, he does 
not pretend to determine: indeed it appears that he had no 
great confidence in this conjecture, although he adds that no 
other cause had occurred to him which could account for the 
phenomenon ; and he concludes by saying, that he leaves it for 
others to supply the explanation. It does not appear that this’ 
has been done ; and some remarks may, therefore, not be without 
their use. They are not offered.as a complete solution of the 
problem ; but if they serve to recall the subject to the attention 
of the scientific world, they may be the means of producing a: 
mote correct mvestigation from some other writers. 
