DISCOVERY OF EASTERN AUSTRALIA 429 



again rose, and the leak gained upon the pumps. 

 " It was," writes Cook in careful language, " an alarming 

 and terrible circumstance, and threatened immediate 

 destruction." Banks despaired of the ship, packed what 

 might possibly be saved, and prepared for the worst. The 

 only hope now was to haul at the anchors. Yet, if the 

 ship were got off the rocks, the leak would be still bigger, 

 and the end would come at once. The land could be 

 seen six or seven leagues away. But " we well knew," 

 writes Banks, " that our boats were not capable of carry- 

 ing us all ashore, so that some, probably most of us, must 

 be drowned ; a better fate, may be, than those would have 

 who should get ashore without arms to defend themselves 

 from the Indians, or provide themselves with food, in 

 a country where we had not the least reason to hope 

 for subsistence, so barren had we always found it ; and, 

 had they even met with good usage from the natives 

 and food to support them, debarred from the hope of ever 

 seeing again their native country, or conversing with 

 any but savages, perhaps the most uncivilised in the 

 world." 



Bjut the danger had to be faced. The capstan and Escape, 

 windlass were manned, and they began to heave. At 

 10 p.m. she floated, and was hauled into deep water. 

 To their delight and amazement she leaked no worse than 

 before. By some miracle the desperate peril had passed. 

 The miracle was explained a little later. But for the 

 present we should note that the escape was due not -merely 

 to miracle, but^ also to skill, and still more to character. 

 Cook seldom praised people, and, when he praised, he 

 praised in measured words. His sailors got more floggings 

 than compliments, and there are hints that he regarded 

 " gentlemen " as a nuisance. 1 Yet he now allowed 



1 Cf . Cook's Journal under date 23rd May, 1770: "he (Magra) 

 being one of those gentlemen frequently found on board King's ships 

 that can very well be spared," and the original manuscript has another 

 phrase which has been crossed out. With difficulty I have read the 

 deleted words. They are : " to speak more plain, good for nothing." 

 The note which Cook afterwards wrote with his own hand on the 

 margin of the copy of his Journal see p. 383 shows that he was led 

 to take a less unfavourable view of Magra's conduct. 



