Of These We Name The
Late Commander J. A. Young, Lieutenants Wellsted, Wyburd, Wood, And
Christopher, Retired Commander Ormsby, The Present Capt.
H. B. Lynch C.B.,
Commanders Felix Jones and W. C. Barker, Lieutenants Cruttenden and
Whitelock.
Their researches extended from the banks of the Bosphorus to
the shores of India. Of the vast, the immeasurable value of such
services," to quote the words of the Quarterly Review (No. cxxix. Dec.
1839), "which able officers thus employed, are in the mean time rendering
to science, to commerce, to their country, and to the whole civilized
world, we need say nothing:--nothing we could say would be too much."
"In five years, the admirable maps of that coral-bound gulf--the Red Sea--
were complete: the terrors of the navigation had given place to the
confidence inspired by excellent surveys. In 1829 the Thetis of ten guns,
under Commander Robert Moresby, convoyed the first coal ship up the Red
Sea, of the coasts of which this skilful and enterprising seaman made a
cursory survey, from which emanated the subsequent trigonometrical
operations which form our present maps. Two ships were employed, the
'Benares' and 'Palinurus,' the former under Commander Elwon, the latter
under Commander Moresby. It remained, however, for the latter officer to
complete the work. Some idea may be formed of the perils these officers
and men went through, when we state the 'Benares' was forty-two times
aground.
"Robert Moresby, the genius of the Red Sea, conducted also the survey of
the Maldive Islands and groups known as the Chagos Archipelago.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 4 of 479
Words from 819 to 1081
of 128411
