PREFACE. 



xiii 



Acasta for his ship, because that ship had been left 

 by us on the Airierican coast, and there was no pos- 

 sibility of her being at Noronha, therefore Capt. 

 Porter could not be deceived The moment the 

 letter was brought to him, he recognized the 

 hand writing of Commodore Bainbridge, and he 

 was therefore perfectly certain that it was in reality 

 meant for himself The whole affair is so obvious 

 to the most ordinary perception, that the turn thus 

 given it by the Reviewer, can only be accounted 

 for upon the principle of a most singular want of 

 apprehension, or a determination to distort the 

 most innocent actions, into something directly op- 

 posite. With regard to the accuracy of his de- 

 scription of the Island of Fernando de Noronha, 

 the author must refer the reader to De UUoa's 

 Voyage, vol. ii. p. 320. 



The Reviewer next follows the author to the 

 Island of St. Catherine's, where he is again accused, 

 not only of speaking disrespectfully of the inha- 

 bitants, but of having never come within sight of 

 the coast of Brazil, which he attempts to describe. 

 The ignorance, as well as arrogance of this Review, 

 is becoming somewhat proverbial, but the hardihood 

 of this assertion is beyond the usual latitude allow- 

 ed to either. It will be remembered that Capt. 

 Porter cruised off Frio, and within sight of it for 

 several days ; that he captured the schooner Eliza- 

 beth close in with the Harbour of Rio de Janeiro ; 

 that he took in both his w ood and water at St. 

 Catherine's ; and that both were procured from the 

 Continent, that is, from the coast of Brazil, which 

 is not distant more than a quarter of a mile. Capt. 

 Porter was frequently ashore on the Island and main, 

 and has only described what he saw. To test the 

 accuracy of his account, it is only necessary to 

 compare it w ith those of Anson, Wallis, Le Pey- 



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