pigajfetta’s voyage round the world.

519

!t is half a league in breadth, fometimes more, fometimes lefs, and terminates inanother fea, which we denominated the Pacific Ocean . This ftrait is inclofed betweenlofty mountains, covered with fnow,and it is likewife very deep, fo that we were unable toanchor, except quite clofe to fhore, where was from twenty-five to thirty fathoms water.

The whole of the crew were fo firmly perfuaded that this ftrait had no weftemoutlet, that we Ihould not, but for the deep fcience of the captain-general, haveventured on its exploration. This man, as Ikilful as he was intrepid, knew that hewould have to pafs by a ftrait very little known, but which he had feen laid down ona chart of Martin de Boheme, a moft excellent cofmographer, in the treafury of theKing of Portugal *.

As foon as we entered on this water, imagined to be only a bay, the captain fentforward two veflels, the Sto. Antonio, and La Conception, to examine where itterminated, or whither it led ; while we in the Trinidad and the Vittoria awaited them1 n the mouth of it.

At night came on a terrible hurricane, which lafted fix and thirty hours, and forcedUs to quit our anchors, and leave our veflels to the mercy of the winds and waves inthe gulph f. The two other veflels, equally buffeted, were unable to double a cape J,l n order to rejoin us; fo that by abandoning themfelves to the gale, which drove themc °nftantly towards what they conceived to be the bottom of a bay, they were appre-henfive momentarily of being driven on Ihore. But at the inftant they gave themfelvestip for loft, they faw a fmall opening §, which they took for an inlet of the bay, intothis they entered, and perceiving that this channel was not clofed, they threaded it,

. an d found themfelves in another j|, through which they purfued their courfeanother ftrait ^[, leading into a third bay ftill larger than the preceding. Then, inheu of following up their exploration, they deemed it moft prudent to return, andvender account of what they had obferved to the captain-general.

Two days paffed without the two veflels returning, fent to examine the bottomthe bay, fo that we reckoned they had been fwallowed up during the tempeft;and feeing fmoke on Ihore, we conjectured that thofe who had had the good fortuneto efcape, had kindled thofe fires to inform us of their exiftence and diftrefs. But'vhile in this painful incertitude as to their fate, we faw them advancing towards uspi-der full fail, and their flags flying ; and when fufficiently near, heard the report of“ eir bombards, and their loud exclamations of joy We repeated the falutation ja nd when we learnt from them that they had feen the prolongation of the bay, or,e »er fpeaking, the ftrait, we made towards them, to continue our voyage in thisc °urfe, if poflible.

Tf hen we had entered into the third bay, which I have before noticed, we'faw twoHP ei ft n gs, or channels, the one running to the fouth-eaft, the other to the fouth-weft * *•he captain-general fent the two veflels, the Sant Antonio and La Conception to the° u th-eaft, to examine whether or no this channel terminated in an open fea. The firft

a - e fche iiitrodu&ion, parag. xi. and the following.g a ; nv j )| ate "■ reprefents the typography of the ftrait of Magellan, extracted from a chart of' M. de Bou-LVaf " C ^ t * le 0, her c ha rt annexed, is given the fouthern part of America , as it is in the manufeript ofIi 0 'hin tt u’ The draught is far from exaft ; but the geographers of the fixteenth century have left usis etter ’ as ma y be feen by the geography of Hoitclius. The bay of which Pigafetta fpeaks,-

a Say,

t Uap e 0 f p 0 (] effioni * Firft Gut.

B i a.

°ucault Bay. f Second Gut. . ,

of ;! The channel on the fouth-eaft is that near Cape Monmouth,, called Detroit Suppofe, in the c art01 M-de Bougainville.