I78 VOYAGE IN SEARCH 



aftronomers had packed up their inftruments, 

 and beat their retreat. 



Our fail-maker having been alone on a (hoot- 

 ing excurfion the day before, had loft himfelf in 

 the woods, where he had been compelled to pafs 

 the night. Several guns had been fired from the 

 fhip to let him know the place where the 

 fhip lay ; at laft he had returned on board in the 

 afternoon, exhaufted by hunger and fatigue. 

 Having taken with him no provifions, he had 

 been a day and a half without eating. He re- 

 lated that, in the middle of the night, different 

 quadrupeds had come and fmelt him at a few 

 centimeters diflance. Many of the people on 

 board believed him : biit we, who had paffed 

 fcveral nights in the thickt.lt part of the woods 

 without meeting with fuch familiar animals, 

 were not fo cafy to be perfuaded : very far from 

 thinking that he wifhed to impofe on us, we 

 law, in this account, the effect of the imagina- 

 tion of a man deprived of food, and bewildered 

 i the midft of immenfe forefis. 



We had weighed the bower anchor by which 



rode, and let go the ftrcam, in order to get 



und< r way more eafily : the Efperancc had done 



fame. During the night of the 14th fome 



y heavy fqualls from the north- weft made 



1 fnips drive; they went on fhore on the 



id, where xperienced no damage, and 



4 they 



