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land, we had also been disappointed in our expectations of shooting wild
fowl, on a supply of which we had in some measure depended for our
subsistence; and, on its failure, began to think that we had been full long
absent from head quarters.
Our Kamtschadales now discovered that the want of success in not meeting
with game, was owing to the party being too large, and to the unavoidable
noise that was the consequence of it. We therefore agreed to separate,
Ivaskin, the corporal, and myself, forming one party, Captain Gore, and the
rest of the company, the other.
Accordingly, after passing the night under our tent, we set out on the
morning of the 19th, by different routes, meaning to take a circuit round
the country, and meet at Saint Peter and Saint Paul. The party to which I
belonged took the course of the river, at the mouth of which we had fished
for the salmon; and, after being thoroughly soaked by the heavy rains that
fell all the morning, we came about three in the afternoon to some old
_balagans_, where a Kamtschadale village had been formerly situated,
without meeting with a single bear during the whole of a long and tedious
walk. It was our first intention to have remained here all night, in order
to have resumed our chase early the next morning; but the weather clearing,
and, at the same time, a fresh breeze springing up from a quarter
unfavourable to our designs, the Hospodin, whom former sufferings had made
very unfit to bear much fatigue, and who seemed at present more
particularly distressed from having emptied his snuff-box, began to be very
importunate with us to return home. It was some time before the old
corporal consented, alleging, that we were at a great distance from the
harbour, and that, on account of the badness of the way, the night would
probably overtake us before we reached the end of our journey. At length,
however, he yielded to Ivaskin's entreaties, and conducted us along the
side of a number of small lakes, with which the flat part of this country
seems much to abound. These lakes are from half a mile to two miles in
length, and about half a mile broad; the water is fresh and clear, and they
are full of a red-coloured fish, resembling, both in shape and size, a
small salmon; of which a more particular description will be given
hereafter. The banks of these lakes were covered with fragments of fish
that the bears had half eaten, and which caused an intolerable stench. We
often came upon the spots which the bears had just left, but were never
able even to come within sight of them.
It was night before we reached the ships, and we had then been twelve hours
upon our legs. Poor Ivaskin found himself exceedingly tired and overcome
with fatigue; probably he was more sensible of it for want of a supply of
snuff; for every step he took his hand dived mechanically into his pocket,
and drew out his huge empty box. We had scarcely got into the tent, when
the weather set in exceedingly rough and wet. We congratulated ourselves
that we had not staid out another day, the Hospodin's box was replenished,
and we forgot the fatigues and ill success of our expedition over a good
supper.
I was exceedingly sorry, on being told the next day, that our friend the
serjeant had undergone corporal punishment during our absence, by command
of the old _Putparouchick_. None of our people had been able to learn, what
was the cause of his displeasure; but it was imagined to have arisen from
some little jealousy subsisting between them, on account of the civility
which we had shewn to the former. However, having every reason to believe
that the offence, whatever it might be, did not call for so disgraceful a
chastisement, we could not help being both sorry and much provoked at it,
as the terms on which we had lived with him, and the interest we were known
to take in his affairs, made the affront, in some measure, personal to
ourselves; for it has not yet been mentioned, that we had consulted with
the late worthy commander, Major Behm, who was also his friend, by what
means we might be most likely to succeed in doing him some service for the
good order he had kept in the _ostrog_ during our stay, and for his
readiness on all occasions to oblige us. The major advised a letter of
recommendation to the governor-general, which Captain Clerke had
accordingly given him, and which, backed with his own representations, he
had no doubt would get the serjeant advanced a step higher in his
profession.
We did not choose to make any remonstrance on this subject till the arrival
of Captain Shmaleff. Indeed our inability, from the want of language, to
enter into any discussion of the business, made it advisable to come to
this determination. However, when the _Putparouchick_ paid us his next
visit, we could not help testifying our chagrin by receiving him very
coolly.
The 22d being the anniversary of his majesty's coronation, twenty-one guns
were fired, and the handsomest feast our situation would allow of, was
prepared, in honour of the day. As we were sitting down to dinner, the
arrival of Captain Shmaleff was announced. This was a most agreeable
surprise; in the first place, because he arrived so opportunely to partake
of the good fare and festivity of the occasion; and, in the next, because,
in our last accounts of him, we were given to understand, that the effects
of a severe illness had made him unequal to the journey. We were glad to
find this had been merely an excuse; that, in fact, he was ashamed of
coming empty-handed, knowing we must be in great want of tea, sugar, &c.
&c.; and that therefore he had deferred his setting out, in daily
expectation of the sloop from Okotzk; but having no tidings of her, and
dreading lest we should sail, without his having paid us a visit, he was
determined to set out, though with nothing better to present to us than
apologies for the poverty of Bolcheretsk. At the same time he acquainted
us, that our not having received the sixteen head of black cattle we had
desired might be sent down, was owing to the very heavy rains at Verchnei,
which had prevented their setting out. We made the best answer we were able
to so much politeness and generosity; and the next day, on coming on board
the Resolution, he was saluted with eleven guns. Specimens of all our
curiosities were presented to him, and Captain Gore added to them a gold
watch and a fowling-piece.
The next day he was entertained on board the Discovery, and on the 25th he
took leave of us to return to Bolcheretsk. He could not be prevailed upon
to lengthen his visit, having some expectations, as he told us, that the
sub-governor-general, who was at this time making a tour through all the
provinces of the Governor-general of Jakutzk, might arrive in the sloop
that was daily expected from Okotzk. Before his departure, and without any
interference of ours, he reinstated the serjeant in the command of this
place, having determined to take the _Putparouchick_ along with him; at the
same time we understood that he was highly displeased with him on account
of the punishment that had been inflicted on the serjeant, and for which
there did not appear to be the slightest foundation.
Captain Shmaleff's great readiness to give us every possible proof of his
desire to oblige us, encouraged us to ask a small favour for another of our
Kamtschadale friends. It was to requite an old soldier, whose house had
been at all times open to the inferior officers, and who had done both them
and all the crew a thousand good offices. The captain most obligingly
complied with our request, and dubbed him (which was all he wished for) a
corporal upon the spot, and ordered him to thank the English officers for
his great promotion. It may not here be improper to observe, that in the
Russian army the inferior class of officers enjoy a degree of pre-eminence
above the private men, with which we, in our service, are in a great
measure unacquainted. It was no small astonishment to us, to see a serjeant
keep up all the state, and exact all the respect from all beneath him
belonging to a field-officer. It may be farther remarked, that there are
many more gradations of rank amongst them than are to be met with in other
countries. Between a serjeant and a private man, there are not less than
four intermediate steps; and I have no doubt, but that the advantages
arising from this system are found to be very considerable. The salutary
effects of little subordinate ranks in our sea-service cannot be
questioned. It gives rise to great emulation, and the superior officers are
enabled to bestow, on almost every possible degree of merit, a reward
proportioned to it.
Having been incidentally led into this subject, I shall beg leave to add
but one observation more, namely, that the discipline of the Russian army,
though at this distance from the seat of government, is of the strictest
and severest kind, from which even the commissioned officers are not
exempt. The punishment of the latter for small offences is imprisonment,
and a bread and water diet. An ensign, a good friend of ours at this place,
told us, that, for having been concerned in a drunken riot, he was confined
in the black hole for three months, and fed upon bread and water; which, he
said, so shattered his nerves, that he had never since had spirits for a
common convivial meeting.
I accompanied Captain Shmaleff to the entrance of Awatska River; and having
bid him farewell, took this opportunity of paying a visit to the priest of
Paratounca. On Sunday, the 26th, I attended him to church. The congregation
consisted of his own family, three Kamtschadale men, and three boys, who
assisted in singing part of the service; the whole of which was performed
in a very solemn and edifying manner. The church is of wood, and by far the
best building either in this town or that of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. It
is ornamented with many paintings, particularly with two pictures of Saint
Peter and Saint Paul, presented by Beering; and which, in the real richness
of their drapery, would carry off the prize from the first of our European
performances; for all the principal parts of it are made of thick plates of
solid silver, fastened to the canvas, and fashioned into the various
foldings of the robes with which the figures were clothed.
The next day, I set on foot another hunting party, and put myself under the
direction of the clerk of the parish, who was a celebrated bear-hunter. We
arrived by sun-set, at the side of one of the larger lakes. The next step
was to conceal ourselves as much as possible; and this we were able to do
effectually, among some long grass and brushwood, that grew close to the
water's edge. We had not lain long in ambush, before we had the pleasure to
hear the growlings of bears in different parts round about us; and our
expectations were soon gratified, by the sight of one of them in the water,
which seemed to be swimming directly to the place where we lay hid. The
moon, at this time, gave a considerable light; and when the animal had
advanced about fifteen yards, three of us fired at it, pretty nearly at the
same time. The beast immediately turned short on one side, and set up a
noise, which could not properly be called roaring, nor growling, nor
yelling, but was a mixture of all three, and horrible beyond description.
We plainly saw that it was severely wounded, and that with difficulty it
gained the bank, and retreated to some thick bushes at a little distance.
It still continued to make the same loud and terrible noise; and though the
Kamtschadales were persuaded it was mortally wounded, and could get no
farther, yet they thought it most advisable not to rouse it again for the
present. It was at this time past nine o'clock; and the night becoming
overcast, and threatening a change of weather, we thought it most prudent
to return home, and defer the gratification of our curiosity till morning,
when we returned to the spot, and found the bear dead, in the place to
which it had been watched. It proved to be a female, and beyond the common
size.
As the account of our first hunting-party will be apt to give the reader a
wrong idea of the method in which this sport is usually conducted, it may
not be amiss to add a few more words on the subject; and which I am the
better able to do since this last expedition.
When the natives come to the ground frequented by the bears, which they
contrive to reach about sun-set, the first step is to look for their
tracks; to examine which are the freshest, and the best situated with a
view to concealment; and taking aim at the beast, either as he is passing
by, or advancing in front, or going from them. These tracks are found in
the greatest numbers, leading from the woods down to the lakes, and among
the long sedgy grass and brakes by the edge of the water. The place of
ambuscade being determined upon, the hunters next fix in the ground the
crutches, upon which their firelocks are made to rest, pointing them in the
direction they mean to make their shot. This done, they kneel, or lie down,
as the circumstances of the cover require; and, with their bear-spears by
their side, wait for their game. These precautions, which are chiefly taken
in order to make sure of their mark, are, on several accounts, highly
expedient. For, in the first place, ammunition is so dear at Kamtschatka,
that the price of a bear will not purchase more of it than is sufficient to
load a musquet four or five times; and, what, is more material, if the bear
be not rendered incapable of pursuit by the first shot, the consequences
are often fatal. He immediately makes toward the place from whence the
noise and smoke issue, and attacks his adversaries with great fury. It is
impossible for them to reload, as the animal is seldom at more than twelve
or fifteen yards distance when he is fired at; so that if he does not fall,
they immediately put themselves in a posture to receive him upon their
spears; and their safety greatly depends on their giving him a mortal stab,
as he first comes upon them. If he parries the thrust, (which, by the
extraordinary strength and agility of their paws, they are often enabled to
do,) and thereby breaks in upon his adversaries, the conflict becomes very
unequal, and it is well if the life of one of the party alone suffice to
pay the forfeit.[38]
There are two seasons of the year when this diversion, or occupation, as it
may be rather called, is more particularly dangerous; in the spring, when
the bears first come forth, after having subsisted, as is universally
asserted here, on sucking their paws through the winter; and especially if
the frost happen to be severe, and the ice not to be broken up in the lake
at that time, by which means they are deprived of their ordinary and
expected food. Under these circumstances, they soon become exceedingly
famished, and fierce and savage in proportion. They will pursue the natives
by the scent; and as they now prowl about out of their usual tracks,
frequently come upon them unawares; and when this happens, as the
Kamtschadales have not the smallest notion of shooting flying, nor even at
an animal running, or in any way except with their piece on a rest, the
bear-hunters often fall a sacrifice to their hunger. The other season in
which it is dangerous to come in their way, is at the time of their
copulation, which is generally about this time of the year.
An extraordinary instance of natural affection in these animals has been
already mentioned. The chace affords a variety of a similar nature, and not
less affecting; many of which were related to me. The Kamtschadales derive
great advantage in hunting from this circumstance. They, never venture to
fire upon a young bear, when the mother is near; for if the cub drop, she
becomes enraged to a degree little short of madness; and if she get sight
of the enemy, will only quit her revenge with her life. On the contrary, if
the dam be shot, the cubs will not leave her side, even after she has been
dead a long time, but continue about her, shewing, by a variety of
affecting actions and gestures, marks of the deepest affliction, and thus
become any easy prey to the hunters.
Nor is the sagacity of the bears, if the Kamtschadales are to be credited,
less extraordinary, or less worthy to be remarked, than their natural
affection. Of this they have a thousand stories to relate. I shall content
myself with mentioning one instance, which the natives speak of as a well-
known fact, and that is, the stratagem they have recourse to in order to
catch the bareins, which are considerably too swift of foot for them. These
animals keep together in large herds; they frequent mostly the low grounds,
and love to browse at the feet of rocks and precipices. The bear hunts them
by scent, till he come in sight, when he advances warily, keeping above
them, and concealing himself amongst the rocks, as he makes his approaches,
till he gets immediately over them, and nigh enough for his purpose. He
then begins to push down with his paws pieces of the rock amongst the herd
below. This manoeuvre is not followed by any attempt to pursue, until he
find he has maimed one of the flock, upon which a course immediately
ensues, that proves successful, or otherwise, according to the hurt the
barein has received.[39]
I cannot conclude this digression, without observing, that the
Kamtschadales very thankfully acknowledge their obligations to the bears
for what little advancement they have hitherto made either in the sciences
or polite arts. They confess that they owe to them all their skill both to
physic and surgery; that, by remarking with what herbs these animals rub
the wounds they have received, and what they have recourse to when sick and
languid, they have become acquainted with most of the simples in use among
them, either in the way of internal medicine, or external application. But,
what will appear somewhat more singular, is, they acknowledge the bears
likewise for their dancing-masters. Indeed, the evidence of one's senses
puts this out of dispute; for the bear-dance of the Kamtschadales is an
exact counterpart of every attitude and gesture peculiar to this animal,
through its various functions; and this is the foundation and groundwork of
all their other dances, and what they value themselves most upon.
I returned to the ships on the 28th, very well pleased with my excursion,
as it had afforded me an opportunity of seeing a little more of the
country, and of observing the manners and behaviour of the Kamtschadales,
when freed from that constraint which they evidently lie under in the
company of the Russians.
No occurrence worth mentioning took place till the 30th, when Captain Gore
went to Paratounca, to put up in the church there an escutcheon, prepared
by Mr Webber, with an inscription upon it, setting forth Captain Clerke's
age and rank, and the object of the expedition in which he was engaged at
the time of his decease. We also affixed to the tree under which he was
buried, a board, with an inscription upon it to the same effect.[40]
Before his departure, Captain Gore left orders with me to get the ships out
of the harbour into the bay, to be in readiness to sail. We were prevented
from doing this by a violent gale of wind, which lasted the whole day of
the 1st of October. However, on the 2d, both ships warped out of the
harbour, clear of the narrow passage, and came to anchor in seven fathoms,
a quarter of a mile from the _ostrog_.
The day before we went out of the harbour the cattle arrived from Verchnei;
and, that the men might receive the full benefit of this capital and much-
longed-for supply, by consuming it fresh, Captain Gore came to a
determination of staying five or six days longer. Nor was this time idly
employed. The boats, pumps, sails, and rigging of both ships, thereby
received an additional repair. And Captain Gore sparing me some molasses,
and the use of the Resolution's copper, I was enabled to brew a fortnight's
beer for the crew, and to make a farther provision of ten puncheons of
strong spruce essence. The present supply was the more acceptable, as our
last cask of spirits, except a small quantity left in reserve for cases of
necessity, was now serving out.
The 3d was the name-day of the Empress, and we could want no inducement to
shew it every possible respect. Accordingly, Captain Gore invited the
priest of Paratounca, Ivaskin, and the serjeant, to dinner; and an
entertainment was also provided for the inferior officers of the garrison;
for the two _Toions_ of Paratounca and Saint Peter and Saint Paul, and for
the other better sort of Kamtschadale inhabitants. The rest of the natives,
of every description, were invited to partake with the ships' companies,
who had a pound of good fat beef served out to each man; and what remained
of our spirits was made into grog, and divided amongst them. A salute of
twenty-one guns was fired at the usual hour; and the whole was conducted
(considering the part of her dominion it was in) in a manner not unworthy
so renowned and magnificent an empress.
On the 5th, we received from Bolcheretsk a fresh supply of tea, sugar, and
tobacco. This present had met Captain Shmaleff on his return, and was
accompanied by a letter from him, in which he informed us, that the sloop
from Okotzk had arrived during his absence; and that Madame Shmaleff, who
was entirely in our interests, had lost no time in dispatching a courier
with the few presents, of which our acceptance was requested.
The appearance of foul weather on the 6th and 7th, prevented our unmooring;
but on the morning of the 8th, we sailed out toward the mouth of the bay,
and hoisted in all the boats, when the wind, veering to the southward,
stopped our farther progress, and obliged us to drop anchor in ten fathoms;
the _ostrog_ bearing due north, half a league distant.
The weather being foggy, and the wind from the same quarter during the
forenoon of the 9th, we continued in our station. At four in the afternoon
we again unmoored; but whilst we were with great difficulty weighing our
last anchor, I was told that the drummer of the marines had left the boat
which had just returned from the village, and that he was last seen with a
Kamtschadale woman, to whom his messmates knew he had been much attached,
and who had often been observed persuading him to stay behind. Though this
man had been long useless to us, from a swelling in his knee, which
rendered him lame, yet this made me the more unwilling he should be left
behind, to become a miserable burden both to the Russians and himself. I
therefore got the serjeant to send parties of soldiers, in different
directions, in search of him, whilst some of our sailors went to a well-
known haunt of his in the neighbourhood, where they found him with his
woman. On the return of this party, with our deserter, we weighed, and
followed the Resolution out of the bay.
Having at length taken our leave of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, I shall
conclude this section with a particular description of Awatska Bay, and the
coast adjoining; not only because (its three inlets included) it
constitutes, perhaps, the most extensive and safest harbour that has yet
been discovered, but because it is the only port in this part of the world
capable of admitting ships of any considerable burden. The term Bay,
indeed, is perhaps not applicable, properly speaking, to a place so well
sheltered as Awatska; but, then, it must be observed, that, from the loose
undistinguishing manner in which navigators have denominated certain
situations of sea and land, with respect to each other, bays, roads,
sounds, harbours, &c. we have no defined and determinate ideas affixed to
these words, sufficient to warrant us in changing a popular name for one
that may appear more proper.
The entrance into this bay is in 52° 51' north latitude, and 158° 48' east
longitude, and lies in the bight of another exterior bay, formed by
Cheepoonskoi Noss to the N., and Cape Gavareea to the S. The former of
these head lands bears from the latter N.E. by N. 3/4 E., and is distant
thirty-two leagues. The coast from Cape Gavareea to the entrance of Awatska
Bay, takes a direction nearly N., and is eleven leagues in extent. It
consists of a chain of high ragged cliffs, with detached rocks frequently
lying off them. This coast, at a distance, presents in many parts an
appearance of bays or inlets, but, on a nearer approach, the head-lands
were found connected by low ground.
Cheepoonskoi Noss bears, from the entrance of the bay, E.N.E. 1/4 E, and is
twenty-five leagues distant. On this side the shore is low and flat, with
hills rising behind to a considerable height. In the latitude of Cape
Gavareea there is an error of twenty-one miles in the Russian charts, its
true latitude being 52° 21'.
This striking difference of the land on each side Awatska Bay, with their
different bearings, are the best guides to steer for it in coming from the
southward; and, in approaching it from the northward, Cheepoonskoi Noss
will make itself very conspicuous; for it is a high projecting head-land,
with a considerable extent of level ground lower than the Noss, uniting it
to the continent. It presents the same appearance, whether viewed from the
north or south, and will warn the mariner not to be deceived in imagining
Awatska Bay to lie in the bight which the coast forms to the northward of
this Noss, and which might be the case, from the striking resemblance there
is between a conical hill within this bight or bay, and one to the south of
Awatska Bay.
I have been thus particular in giving a minute description of this coast,
from our own experience of the want of it. For had we been furnished with a
tolerable account of the form of the coast on each side of Awatska Bay, we
should, on our first arrival upon it, have got safely within the bay two
days before we did, and thereby have avoided part of the stormy weather
which came on when we were plying off the mouth of the harbour. Besides,
from the prevalence of fogs in these seas, it must frequently happen, that
an observation for ascertaining the latitude cannot be got; to which we may
add, that the deceptive appearances land makes when covered with snow, and
when viewed through an hazy atmosphere, both which circumstances prevail
here during the greatest part of the year, render the knowledge of a
variety of discriminating objects the more necessary.
Should, however, the weather be clear enough to admit a view of the
mountains on the coast in its neighbourhood, these will serve to point out
the situation of Awatska Bay, with a great deal of precision. For to the
south of it are two high mountains; that which is nearest to the bay, is
shaped like a sugar-loaf; the other, which is farther inland, does not
appear so high, and is flat at the top. To the north of the bay, are three
very conspicuous mountains; the westernmost is, to appearance, the highest;
the next is the _volcano_ mountain, which may be known from the smoke that
issues from its top, and likewise from some high table-hills connected with
it, and stretching to the northward; these two are somewhat peaked. The
third, and the most northerly, might perhaps be more properly called a
cluster of mountains, as it presents to the sight several flat tops.
When the navigator has got within the capes, and into the outward bay, a
perpendicular head-land, with a lighthouse erected upon it, will point out
the entrance of the bay of Awatska to the northward. To the eastward of
this head-land lie many sunken rocks, stretching into the sea, to the
distance of two or three miles; and which will shew themselves, if there be
but a moderate sea or swell. Four miles to the south of the entrance lies a
small round island, very distinguishable from being principally composed of
high pointed rocks, with one of them strikingly remarkable, as being much
larger, more peaked and perpendicular than the rest.
It is no way necessary to be equally particular in the description of the
bay itself, as of its approaches and environs; since no words can give the
mariner a perfect idea of it. The entrance is at first near three miles
wide, and in the narrowest part one mile and a half, and four miles long,
in a N.N.W. direction. Within the mouth is a noble bason of twenty-five
miles circuit, with the capacious harbours of Tareinska to the W., of
Rakoweena to the E., and the small one of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, where
we lay, to the N.
Tareinska harbour is about three miles in breadth, and twelve in length; it
stretches to the E.S.E., and is separated from the sea, at the bottom, by a
narrow neck of land. The road into this harbour is perfectly free from
rocks or shoals. We had never less than seven fathoms water, as far as our
survey extended; for we were not able to get to the bottom of the harbour
on account of the ice.
The harbour of Rakoweena would deserve the preference over the other two,
if its entrance were not impeded by a shoal lying in the middle of the
channel; which, in general, will make it necessary to warp in, unless there
be a leading wind. It is from one mile to half a mile in width, and three
miles long, running at first in a S.E., and afterward in an easterly
direction. Its depth is from thirteen to three fathoms.
Saint Peter and Saint Paul's is one of the most convenient little harbours
I ever saw. It will hold conveniently half a dozen ships, moored head and
stern; and is fit for giving them any kind of repairs. The south side is
formed by a low sandy neck, exceedingly narrow, on which the _ostrog_ is
built; and whose point may almost be touched by ships going in, having
three fathoms water close in with it. In the mid channel, which is no more
than two hundred and seventy-eight feet across, there are six fathoms and a
half; the deepest water within is seven fathoms; and in every part over a
muddy bottom. We found some inconvenience from the toughness of the ground,
which constantly broke the messenger, and gave us a great deal of trouble
in getting up the anchors. There is a watering-place at the head of the
harbour.
The plan we drew points out the shoal to be avoided, lying off the eastern
harbour, as well as the spit within the entrance, stretching from the S.W.
shore, and over which there are only three fathoms water. In order to steer
clear of the latter, a small island, or perhaps it may rather be called a
large detached rock, lying on the west shore of the entrance, is to be shut
in with the land to the south of it; and to steer clear of the former, the
Three Needle Rocks, which lie on the east shore of the entrance near the
light-house head, are to be kept open with the head-lands (or bluff-heads)
that rise to the northward of the first small bay, or bending, observable
on the east side of the entrance. When arrived to the north of the north
head-land of the eastern harbour, the shoal is past.
In sailing into the harbour of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, and approaching
the village, it is necessary to keep in close to the eastern shore, in
order to avoid a spit which runs from the head-land to the S.W. of the
town.[41]
Before I proceed to give a table of the result of our astronomical
observations at this place, it may be proper to acquaint the reader, that
the time-keeper we had on board the Resolution, which was an exact copy of
that invented by Mr Harrison, and executed by Mr Kendal, stopped on the
27th of April, a few days before we first came into Awatska Bay. It had
been always kept with the most scrupulous care during the voyage, having
never been trusted for a moment into any other hands than those of Captain
Cook and mine. No accident could therefore have happened to it, to which we
could attribute its stopping; nor could it have arisen from the effects of
intense cold, as the thermometer was very little below the freezing point.
As soon as the discovery was made, I consulted with Captain Clerke what
course it was best to pursue; whether to let it remain as it was, entirely
useless to us, for the purpose of satisfying the curious at home, where it
was sure of being examined by proper judges, or suffer it to be inspected
by a seaman on board, who had served a regular apprenticeship to a
watchmaker in London, and appeared sufficiently knowing in the business,
from his success in cleaning and repairing several watches since we had
been out. The advantages we had derived from its accuracy, made us
extremely unwilling to be deprived of its use during the remaining part of
the voyage; and that object appeared to us to be of much greater importance
than the small degree of probability, which we understood was all that
could be expected, of obtaining any material knowledge respecting its
mechanism, by deferring the inspection of it. At the same time, it should
be remembered, that the watch had already a sufficient trial, both in the
former voyage and during the three years we had now had it on board to
ascertain its utility. On these considerations, we took the opportunity of
the first clear day, after our arrival in Awatska Bay, of opening the
watch, which was done in the captain's cabin, and in our presence. The
watchmaker found no part of the work broken; but not being able to set it
a-going, he proceeded to take off the cock and balance, and cleaned both
the pivot-holes, which he found very foul, and the rest of the work rather
dirty; he also took off the dial-plate; and, between two teeth of the wheel
that carries the second-hand, found a piece of dirt, which he imagined to
be the principal cause of its stopping. Having afterward put the work
together, and oiled it as sparingly as possible, the watch appeared to go
free and well.
Having received orders the next day to go to Bolcheretsk, the time-keeper
was left in the care of Mr Bayley, to compare it with his watch and clock,
in order to get its rate. On my return, I was told it had gone for some
days with tolerable regularity, losing only from fifteen to seventeen
seconds a-day, when it stopped a second time. It was again opened, and the
cause of its stopping appeared to be owing to the man having put some part
of the work badly together when he first opened it. Being again adjusted,
it was found to gain above a minute a-day; and, in the attempt to alter the
regulator and balance-spring, he broke the latter. He afterward made a new
spring; but the watch now went so irregularly, that we made no farther use
of it. The poor fellow was not less chagrined than we were at our bad
success; which, however, I am convinced, was more owing to the miserable
tools he was obliged to work with, and the stiffness his hands had
contracted from his ordinary occupation, than to his want of skill.
For the satisfaction of those who may wish to have a general view of its
rate of going, I have added the following table.
The first and second columns contain the dates when, and the names of the
places where its rate was observed. The third column contains the daily
error of its rate, so found from mean time. The fourth column has the
longitude of each place, according to the Greenwich rate; that is,
calculated on a supposition that the time-keeper had not varied its rate
from the time it left Greenwich. But as we had frequent opportunities of
ascertaining the variation of its daily error, or finding its new rate, the
fifth column has the longitude according to its last rate, calculated from
the true longitude of the place last departed from. The sixth is the true
longitude of the place deduced from astronomical observations made by
ourselves, and compared with those made by others, whenever such could be
obtained. The seventh column shews the difference between the fourth column
and the sixth in space; and the eighth the same difference in time. The
ninth shews the number of months and days in which the error, thus
determined, had been accumulating. The difference between the fifth and
sixth columns is found in the tenth, and shews the error of the time-
keeper, according to its rate last found, in space; and the eleventh the
same error in time. The twelfth contains the time elapsed in sailing from
the place where the rate was last taken, to the place whose longitude is
last determined. The thirteenth and fourteenth contain the state of the air
at the time of each observation.
As persons, unaccustomed to calculations of this sort, may find some
difficulty in comprehending the nature of the table, the two following
instances will more clearly explain it.
Thus, on the 24th October, 1776, (first column,) at the Cape of Good Hope
(second column,) we found the daily error, in the rate of its going, to be
2",26 (third column.) The longitude of that place, calculated on a
supposition that the rate of the time-keeper had continued the same from
the time of our leaving Greenwich, that is, had a regular daily error of
1",21, is found to be 18° 26' 30" east (fourth column.) And as its rate at
Greenwich is, in this instance, its latest rate, the longitude thus found
is the same (fifth column.) The true longitude of the place is 18° 23' 15"
(sixth column.) From whence it appears, that in our run from Greenwich to
the Cape, the watch would have led us into an error only of 3' 15" (seventh
column,) or three miles one quarter; or had varied 13" of time (eighth
column,) in four months twenty-three days (ninth column,) the period
between our leaving Greenwich and our arrival at the Cape. As the Greenwich
is the latest error, the tenth, eleventh, and twelfth columns, will be the
same with the seventh and ninth.
But, on the 23d of February, 1777, (first column,) at Queen Charlotte's
Sound, New Zealand, (second column,) the daily error of its rate was found
to be 2",91, (third column.) The longitude of this place, according to the
Greenwich rate, is 175° 25', (fourth column.) But having found at the Cape,
that it had altered its rate from a daily error of 1",21, to 2",26, the
longitude corrected by this new rate is found to be 174° 44' 23", (fifth
column.) The true longitude of the place being 174° 23' 31", (sixth
column;) it appears that, in our run from Greenwich to New Zealand, the
error would have been only 1° 1' 29", (seventh column,) or sixty-one miles
and a half, even if we had not had an opportunity of correcting its daily
error; or, in other words, that the watch had varied 4' 5",3, (eighth
column,) in nine months four days, (ninth column.) But the longitude, as
given by its new rate, leaves an error of only 30' 54", (tenth column,)
near thirty-one miles, or, in time, 2' 3",6, (eleventh column,) which has
been accumulating during our run from the Cape to New Zealand, or in four
months nine days, (twelfth column.) The thirteenth and fourteenth columns
require no explanation.
TABLE of the Rate and Error of Mr Kendall's Watch on Board the Resolution.
I. | II. | III. | IV. | V. | VI. |
-------|---------------|--------|-------------------------------|
| | | | | |
| |Error of|Longitude |Longitude|True |
TIME. | PLACE. | Daily |by Green- | by |Longitude.|
| | Rate. |wich Rate.|New Rate.| |
| | | | | |
| | | | | |
-------|---------------|--------|----------|---------|----------|
| | " | ° ' " | ° ' " | ° ' " |
1776. | |--------|----------|---------|----------|
June 11|Greenwich |-1,21 | 0 0 0E | 0 0 0E| 0 0 0E |
Oct. 24|Cape of Good |-2,26 | 18 26 30 | 18 26 30| 18 23 15 |
| Hope | | | | |
1777. | | | | | |
Feb. 22|Queen Char- | | | | |
| lotte's Sound,|-2,91 |175 25 0 |174 54 25|174 23 31 |
| New Zealand | | | | |
May 7|Anamooka |+0,52 |186 13 26 |186 13 15|185 11 18 |
June 7|Anamooka |-0,54 |186 8 28 |186 12 43|185 11 18 |
July 1|Tongataboo |-1,78 |185 48 50 |184 53 0|184 55 18 |
Sept. 1|Otaheite |-1,54 |211 41 26 |210 39 8|210 22 28 |
Oct. 17|Huaheine |-2,30 |210 14 52 |208 50 24|208 52 24 |
Nov. 7|Ulietea |-1,52 |209 42 54 |208 25 22|208 25 22 |
1778. | | | | | |
Apr. 16|Nootka |-7,0 |235 32 45 |233 56 0|233 17 8 |
Oct. 14|Samganoodha |-8,8 |197 44 15 |193 12 35|193 31 20 |
1779. | | | | | |
Feb. 2|Owhyhee |-9,6 |214 7 35 |203 37 22|204 0 0 |
May 1|Saint Peter and| T.K. | | | |
| Saint Paul, | stopt. |173 86 0 |159 20 0|158 43 16 |
| Kamtschatka | | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
| VII. | VIII. | IX. | X. | XI. | XII. |XIII. | XIV.|
|-----------------------------------------------|------|---------|-------|
|Accumulated Error by| |Error by New Rate. | |Thermo- | B |
| Greenwich Rate. |Length| |Length| meter. | a |
|--------------------| of |-------------------| of |---------| r |
| | | Time.| | | Time.| | o |
| In | In | | In | In | |Gr. Least| m |
| Space. | Time. | | Space. | Time. | | Height. | e |
|---------|----------|------|---------|---------|------|---------| t |
| ° ' "|H. ' " |Mo Da | ° ' "| H ' " | Mo Da| | | er. |
|---------|----------|------|---------|---------|------|----|----|-------|
| | | | | | | | | |
|+ 0 3 15|0 0 13,0 | 4 23 |+ 0 3 15|0 0 13,0| 4 23| 84| 63| 30, 0|
| | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
| 1 1 29|0 4 5,9 | 9 4 |+ 0 30 54|0 2 3,6| 4 9| 73| 53| 30, 0|
| | | | | | | | | |
| 1 2 8|0 4 8,5 |11 22 |+ 1 1 57|0 4 7,8| 2 18| 83| 74| 30, 1|
| 0 57 10|0 3 48,6 |12 25 |+ 1 1 25|0 4 5,6| 1 3| 79| 73| 30,15|
| 0 53 32|0 3 34,1 |13 21 |- 0 2 18|0 0 9,2| 0 24| 85| 69| 30,15|
| 1 18 58|0 5 15,8 |15 27 |+ 0 16 40|0 1 6,6| 2 6| 90| 70| 30, 1|
| 1 22 28|0 5 29,8 |17 17 |- 0 2 0|0 0 8,0| 1 18| 90| 72| 29, 9|
| 1 17 32|0 5 10,1 |18 10 | 0 0 0|0 0 0,0| 0 21| 92| 70| 29, 7|
| | | | | | | | | |
| 2 15 27|0 9 1,8 |24 2 |+ 0 28 42|0 2 34,8| 5 20| 65| 41| 30, 0|
| 4 12 55|0 16 51,6 |30 15 |- 0 18 45|0 1 15,0| 6 13| 57| 36| 20,15|
| | | | | | | | | |
| 10 7 35|0 40 30,3 |34 14 |- 0 22 38|0 1 30,5| 3 27| 88| 70| 29, 8|
| | | | | | | | | |
| 14 52 44|0 59 30,9 |37 18 |- 0 36 44|0 2 16,9| 3 4| | | |
| | | | | | | | | |
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
From this view of the time-keeper it appears, that for near two years it
altered its rate very inconsiderably, and therefore that its error,
according to the Greenwich rate, if we had had no opportunities of
correcting it, amounted only to 2-1/4°. That afterward, at King George's
Sound, or Nootka, it was found to have varied exceedingly; of course, the
longitude, by its Greenwich rate, was becoming considerably erroneous.
About this time, it should be remarked, the thermometer was varying from
65° to 41°. The greatest alteration we ever observed in the watch was,
during the three weeks we were cruising to the N.; in which interval, it
gave the longitude of the East Cape with a difference of twenty-eight
miles, I have marked the longitude of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, as given
by the time-keeper, notwithstanding it stopped a few days before we arrived
there; this I was enabled to do, from comparing the longitude it gave the
day before it stopped, with that given by Mr Bayley's watch, and allowing
for the error of the latter.
The use of so accurate a measure of time is sufficiently evident, from its
furnishing in itself the means of approximating to the longitude at sea, as
may be seen in the above table. But, besides this, we were enabled, by the
same means, to give a degree of accuracy to the lunar observations, which
they cannot otherwise pretend to; and, at the same time, by reducing a
number of those observations to one time, obtain results approaching still
nearer to the truth. In surveying coasts, and ascertaining the true
position of capes and head-lands, it reaches the utmost degree of practical
exactness. On the other hand, it is to be observed, that lunar
observations, in their turn, are absolutely necessary, in order to reap the
greatest possible advantages from the time-keeper; since, by ascertaining
the true longitude of places, they discover the error of its rate. The
original observations that were made in the course of this voyage, have
been published by order of the Board of Longitude, and to those I must
refer the reader, for his further information on this subject.
N.B. The observatories were placed on the west side of the village of Saint
Peter and Saint Paul.
Latitude deduced from meridian zenith
distances of the sun, and of five stars
to the S., and five to the N. of the
zenith 53° 0' 38" N.
Longitude deduced from one hundred
and forty-six sets of lunar observations 158 43 16 E.
Longitudy by time-keeper, according to
its Greenwich rate 173 36 0
Longitude by time-keeper, according to
its rate found at Owhyhee 159 20 0
Variation of the compass, by azimuths
taken with three compasses, made by
Knight, Gregory, and Martin 6 18 40 E.
Dip of the North Pole of the magnetic
needle, being a mean of the observations
taken in June and September 63 5 0
It was high water, on the full and change of the moon, at thirty-six
minutes past four, and the greatest rise was five feet eight inches. The
tides were very regular every twelve hours. On the coast, near the bay, the
flood came from the S., and the time of high water was near two hours
sooner than in the harbour of Saint Peter and Saint Paul.
[35] See all that is known of this voyage, and a chart of discoveries, in
Mr Coxe's Account of Russian-Discoveries between Asia and America. We
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