jo TERRA DEL FUEGO TO OTAHITE CHAP. IV 
After dinner, land was again seen, with which we came 
up at sunset ; it proved a small island, not more than three- 
quarters of a mile in length, but almost round. We ran 
within less than a mile of it, but saw no signs of inhabitants, 
or any cocoanut trees, or indeed any that bore the least 
resemblance to palms, though there were many sorts of 
trees, or at least many varieties of verdure. 
In the neighbourhood of both this and the other island 
were many birds, man-of-war birds, and a small black sort 
of Sterna with a white spot on its head, which the seamen 
called noddies, but said that they were much smaller than 
the West Indian noddies. 
While we were near the island a large fish was taken 
with a towing-line baited with a piece of pork rind cut like 
a swallow’s tail; the seamen called it a king-fish (Scomber 
lanceolatus). 
9th. It is now almost night, and time for me to wind up 
the clue of my this day’s lucubrations; so, as we have 
found no island, I shall employ the time and paper which I 
had allotted to describe one in a work which I am sure will be 
more useful, if not more entertaining, to all future navigators, 
by describing the method which we took to cure cabbage in 
England. This cabbage we have eaten every day since we left 
Cape Horn, and have now good store remaining ; as good, to 
our palates at least, and fully as green and pleasing to the 
eye as if it were bought fresh every morning at Covent 
Garden Market. Our steward has given me the receipt, 
which I shall copy exactly—false spelling excepted. 
Take a strong iron-bound cask, for no weak or wooden- 
bound one should ever be trusted in a long voyage. Take 
out the head, and when the whole is well cleaned, cover the 
bottom with salt; then take the cabbage, and, stripping off 
the outside leaves, take the rest leaf by leaf till you come to 
the heart, which cut into four. Lay these leaves and heart 
about two or three inches thick upon the salt, and sprinkle 
salt freely over them; then lay cabbage upon the salt, 
stratum super stratum, till the cask is full. Then lay on 
the head of the cask with a weight which, in five or six 
