Ch.IV. south AMERICA. 339 



with black, refembling on the whole the Cormorant. 

 On the 18th we alfo faw great numbers of the fame 

 birds •, but from the 19th, when we were in 42 deg. 

 53 min. latitude, and 39 deg. 23 min. E. of Concep- 

 tion, they gradually decreafed, fo that we faw very 

 few of them. 



From the time of our leaving the ifland of Fer- 

 nando de Norona, till we reached the equino6lial, 

 the S. latitude by obfervation every day exceeded 

 that by account ten or eleven minutes, that is, the fliip 

 did not in reality, make fo much way as fhe feemed 

 to do by the log-line. But after pafling the equa- 

 tor, the latitude by obfervation continued ftill to 

 exceed that of the reckoning taken from the log- 

 line : and as v/e flood diredly north, it appeared 

 that the ihip's real way exceeded the diftance m.ea- 

 fured ; whence this corollary may be deduced, that 

 in the fouthern hemifphere near the equinodlial, the 

 waters tend fouthward and that, on the contrary, in 

 the northern hemifphere the current runs northward ; 

 which agrees with the accounts given of thofe, who 

 in the voyages to the Eaft- Indies have feveral times 

 had occafion to crofs the line. Till the 24th of June 

 the courfe of the waters continued northward 10 or 

 11 min. a day but when we reached 14 deg. 22 min. 

 the latitude by obfermion began to correfpond with 

 that by account. 



The differences between the latitudes by account 

 and obfervation can only be attributed to the courfe 

 of the water in the tw^o hemifpheres and not to any 

 defed in the meafurement by the log-line : for v/ere 

 that the cafe, how can it be reconciled with this 

 known circumilance, that the way of the Ihip whiift 

 in the fouthern hemifphere was in reality lefs than 

 it appeared by the log-line : and on coming into the 

 northern hemifphere, it was quite the reverfe. As 

 little can it be charged on any defed in the inftru- 

 ments j for befides the daily agreement of all con- 



Z 2 cerning 



