CHAPTER XI. 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE FALKLAND ISLANDS. 



The Falkland Islands, lying between the parallels of 51° 

 and 53° S., and extending from near 57° almost to 62° W., are 

 in number about two hundred, but only two are of considerable 

 size. Between these latter, called East, and West Falkland, 

 is the channel to which our counti-yman, Strong, gave the 

 name of Falkland Sound, he himself calling the adjacent 

 country Hawkins' Land. 



Plausible assertions have been made by parties anxious to 

 disprove the claim of Great Britain to these islands, and so few 

 persons, excepting those immediately concerned, have inclina- 

 tion to refer to original documents, that I may be pardoned for 

 recalling to the recollection of those to whom the subject is 

 still interesting, a few well-known facts, which, if fairly con- 

 sidered, place the question above dispute. 



It has been asserted, that Americus Vespucius saw these 

 islands in 1502,* but if the account of Americus himself is 

 authentic,-[- he could not have explored farther south than the 

 right bank of La Plata. In 1501-2 Americus Vespucius, then 



• II me parott qu'on en peut attribuer la premiere d^couverte au cel^bre 

 Americ Vespuce, qui, dans son troisi^me voyage pour la decouverte de 

 I'Amerique, en parcourut la c6te du nord au mois d'Avril 1502, 11 

 ignoroit a la verite si elle appartenoit a une i\e, ou si elle faisoit partie 

 du continent ; mais il est facile de conclure de la route qu'il avoit suivie, 

 de la latitude a. laquelle il etoit arrive, de la description meme qu'il donne 

 de cette c6te, que c'etoit celle des Malouines. J'assurerais, avec non 

 moins de fondement, que Beauchesne GoUin, revenant de la nier du 

 Sud en 1700, a mouille dans la partie orientale des Malouines, croyant 

 ^tre aux Sebaldes. — Voyage de Bougainville, 2d edit. 1772, torn. i. p. 63. 



t Letters of Americus Vespucius, in Ramusio's Collection, vol, i. 

 fol. 128, 



i 



