CHAPTER XH, 



WASHINGTON ISLANDS,— ROOAHOOGA. 



On the meridian of the 23d October, the man at the 

 masthead discovered land bearing S.W. Our latitude at 

 this time was 9" 6' south, and the longitude by chronome- 

 ter 138° 27' west, from which we supposed it to be Hood's 

 Island, one of the group of the Marquesas Islands, disco- 

 vered by lord Hood, while a midshipman with captain Cook ; 

 and from its position it could be no other. Yet the descrip- 

 tion given of this island by the historian of that voy- 

 age, answers so little to Hood's Island, as seen by us, that 

 I should have had my doubts as to its identity, did not its 

 latitude and longitude both correspond with that given by 

 Cook, Hergest, and other navigators. Cook describes 

 Hood's Island to be mountainous, cut into valleys, and 

 thickly covered with brush-wood, and about fifteen or six- 

 teen leagues in circuit. The Hood's Island, seen by us, 

 is a barren lump of rock inaccessible on ail its sides, des- 

 titute of verdure, and about three miles in circuit. After 

 making this island, which is the most northerly of that 

 group called the Marquesas de Mendania, first discovered 

 by the Spaniards, I hove-to for my prizes to come up, 

 which were a great distance astern, as they had been ge- 

 nerally during our passage. On their joining me, I steered 

 a little more to the northward, under easy sail, to fall in with 

 the island of Rooahooga, one of the group discovered by- 

 captain Roberts of Boston, in the month of May, in the 

 year 1792. This group was called by him Washington 

 Group, and some of the islands were named by him, 

 Adams, Jefferson, Hamilton, Szc. &lc. They were seen 

 the preceding year (1791) by a captain Ingraham, of the 

 same place ; but he had done no more than point out their 

 situation. 



On the 20th June, 1791, some of them were seen, and 

 their position determined by a captain Marchand, in the 

 French ship Solide, bound on a trading voyage to the 

 N.W. coast of America. Lieutenant Hergest. of the 



