Mr. WAFERS Voyages, Sec. 395 



In all our PaflTage round Terra del Fuego, the 

 Weather was fo ftormy for 3 Weeks, that we lay 

 to the Southward of Cape Horn, and the Sun and 

 Stars fo obfeur'd, that we could take no Obferva- 

 tion of our Lat. yet, by our Reckoning, we were 

 in very ne^Lr 63 Deg t S. Lat. which is the fartheft 

 to the S^uth that any European, probably, ever 

 yet wasy 7 and perhaps any Man. When we were in 

 Lat. j&2. Deg. 30 Min. we began to think of lift- 

 ing our Courfe to the Northward again, toward the 

 Mthiopick and Atlantick Seas and we foon brought 

 our felves to ftand E. N. E. and E. and by N. 

 and kept much thofe Courfes for a great way. 

 In our PaflTage, we had allow'd for 3 Points Weft- 

 erly Variation : But when we came to have a good 

 Obfervation we found that we had gone to theMifreck- 

 Eaftward, making our way E. and by S. We onln § the 

 found therefore that we had miftaken the Variation Variatl0n < 

 of the Compafs, fo that we concluded the Varia- 

 tion to be Eafterly, and fteer'd away N. N. E. and 

 N. E. and by N, 



By this Means, when we came into the Latitude 

 of the River of Plate ^ along which we intended to 

 run, we reckoned our felves to be about 100 

 Leagues off Land ; and flood in direftly for the 

 Shore, not doubting but we fliould find it at that 

 Diftance. But we were then really 500 Leagues 

 off-, and having run fome hundreds of Leagues to 

 the Weft in the fame Latitude, and yet finding no 

 Land, our Men were out of Heart, fearing we 

 were ftill in a wrong Courfe, and being all in Dan- 

 ger of perifhing at Sea, through want of Provifi- 

 ons ; having little Food, and lefs Water. It pleas'd A feafoQ- 

 God, during this Exigence, to fend us a Day's able Ram, 

 Rain, which fell very plentiful ; and we fav'd of it 

 feveral Casks of Water, which was a great Refrefh- 

 ment to us, and made our Men pluck up their 

 Hearts for fqme Time, But having run 450 Leagues 



m 



