1789.] kendrick's passage through the strait of fuca. 219 



continually with him during that interval, and received the particu- 

 lars of the track from him, was so obliging as to state it to me." 



Thus it appears that the passage of the Washington through the 

 strait, as reported by Meares, took place under Kendrick, after Gray 

 had quitted the command of that sloop. This explanation was 

 published in London subsequent to the departure of Vancouver for 

 the Pacific ; and, the discussion between Meares and Dixon being 

 on matters in which the public could have taken little or no interest, 

 it was doubtless forgotten, and their pamphlets were out of circu- 

 lation, long before the return of the navigator to England. 



With regard to the truth or falsehood of the account, no infor- 

 mation has been obtained, in addition to that afforded by Meares ; 

 and, although little dependence can be placed on his statements, 

 when unsupported by other evidence, yet they should not be 

 rejected in this case, because — first, he had no interest in ascribing 

 any thing meritorious to citizens of the United States, whom he 

 uniformly mentions with contempt or dislike in his work, and 

 accuses of taking part with the Spaniards against his vessels ; 

 — secondly, the subject was one with which he was perfectly con- 

 versant, and on which he would not probably have been deceived, 

 or have committed any error of judgment; and, — lastly, the geog- 

 raphy of that part of the American coasts corresponds exactly with 

 the descriptions given by Kendrick of what he had seen, though 

 the inferences drawn from them by Meares are incorrect. Thus 

 the easternmost part of the Strait of Fuca is now known to be in 

 the meridian of 237£ degrees east from Greenwich, and under the 

 parallel of 48^ degrees, from the intersection of which lines the 

 coast of the continent runs north-westward, through ten degrees of 

 latitude, penetrated by numerous inlets, and bordered by thousands 

 of islands ; so that a navigator, sailing along this coast, without 

 tracing to their terminations all these channels and inlets, might 

 well have supposed himself in a sea extending far on either side, 

 and filled with islands. 



Under these circumstances, Kendrick is to be considered as the 

 first person, belonging to a civilized nation, who sailed through the 

 Strait of Fuca, after its discovery by the Greek pilot, in 1592. 



Vancouver did not reach the north-west coasts of America until 

 March, 1792. In the mean time, the Spaniards had resumed their 

 position at Nootka Sound, and formed another establishment in its 

 vicinity ; and several voyages of discovery had been made by their 

 navigators along those coasts. The Spanish government was, 



