24 



BAY OF VALPARAISO. 



tended by a high swell. D uring the winter^ the best 

 ground-tackle ought to be laid out to the northward, 

 and a birth taken sufficiently far from the shore 

 to allow of veering, in the event of bad weather 

 coming on. It does not seem necessary to take more 

 than barely room for this purpose, since, by lying 

 near the shore, there will be always an undertow, 

 which relieves the sea-cable of great part of the 

 strain. As the launch will on these occasions be 

 apt to swamp at her moorings, she ought to be 

 hoisted in before the gale comes on, of which the 

 barometer, the threatening aspect of the weather, 

 and the rising swell, generally give sufficient warn- 

 ing. Previous to a Norther," also, the land of 

 Concon, and that beyond it to the northward, are 

 seen with unusual sharpness and distinctness. 



This passage in eighteen days may be termed 

 short. Formerly thirty days was usual, it after- 

 wards sunk to twenty-five days, and, at the period 

 of our arrival, three weeks was considered good. 

 Sir Thomas Hardy, in his Majesty's ship Creole, 

 made the passage from Huacho in something less 

 than fourteen days, the distance being more than 

 two thousand two hundred miles. This was early 

 in May 1821, and it is well worth attending to. 



