This Ship Had Been At The Mina, Or Gold Coast Of
Guinea, Whence She Had Been Driven Off By The Portuguese Gallies, And
Obliged To Make For The Terra Firma To Endeavour To Sell Her Wares.
She
informed that the Minion had been treated in the same manner; and that
the captain, David Carlet, with
A merchant or factor and twelve
mariners, had been treacherously made prisoners by the negroes on their
arrival on that coast, and remained in the hands of the Portuguese;
besides which they had lost others of their men through the want of
_fresh water_, and were in great doubts of being able to get home the
ships[291].
[Footnote 291: Hakluyt might have said whether they did come home or
not, which he certainly might have known; but he often leaves us in the
dark as to such matters. - Astl. I. 185. a.]
* * * * *
_Note_. - It may not be improper to state in this place, that no ship
need be reduced to utter distress for want of _fresh water_ at sea; as
distilled sea water is perfectly fresh and wholesome. For this purpose,
all ships bound on voyages of any length, ought to have a still head
worm and cooler adapted to the cooking kettle, to be used when needed,
by which abundance of fresh water may always be secured while cooking
the ships provisions, sufficient to preserve the lives of the crew. In
default of that useful appendage, a still may be easily constructed for
the occasion, by means of the pitch kettle, a reversed tea kettle for a
head, and a gun barrel fixed to the spout of the tea kettle, the breach
pin being screwed out, and the barrel either soldered to the spout, or
fixed by a paste of flour, soap and water, tied round with rags and
twine. The tea kettle and gun barrel are to be kept continually wet by
means of swabs and sea water, to cool and condense the steam. This
distilled water is at first vapid and nauseous, both to the taste and
the stomach; but by standing open for some time, especially if agitated
in contact with air, or by pumping air through it, as is commonly done
to sweeten putrid water, this unpleasant and nauseous vapidness is soon
removed.
The nautical world owes this excellent discovery, of distilled sea water
being perfectly fresh, to the late excellent and ingenious Dr James
Lino, first physician to the general hospital of the navy at Haslar near
Portsmouth during the American war, the author of two admirable works,
on the Scurvy, and the Means of Preserving the Health of Seamen during
long voyages, to which the British navy, and seamen in general, owe
inestimable advantages. The editor, while giving this useful hint to
seamen engaged on long voyages, is happy in having an opportunity of
bearing this feeble testimony of honourable respect to the friend of his
youth, under whom he had the happiness and advantage of serving, in that
magnificent asylum of the brave defenders of the glory and prosperity of
our king and country, for the last three years of the American war.
Besides being an eminent and experienced physician, Dr Lind was a man of
exemplary humanity, and of uncommon urbanity and singleness of manners:
He was truly the seaman's friend. The rules and expedients which he
devised and proposed, founded on the solid basis, of observation and
experience, for Preserving the Health of Seamen on long voyages, were
afterwards employed and perfected by the great navigator and discoverer
COOK, and by his pupils and followers; and are now universally
established in our glorious navy, to the incalculable advantage of the
service.
In high northern or southern latitudes, solid clear ice melted affords
good fresh water, the first runnings being thrown away as contaminated
by adhering sea water. White cellular ice is quite unfit for the
purpose, being strongly impregnated with salt. In future articles of our
work, several opportunities will occur in which these two expedients for
supplying ships with fresh water will be amply detailed. But on the
present opportunity, it seemed proper to mention these easy and
effectual expedients for preserving the health and lives of seamen, when
in want of fresh water by the ordinary means. - Ed.
SECTION XII.
_A Voyage to Guinea and the Cape de Verd Islands in 1566, by George
Fenner_[292]
Three ships were employed on this voyage, the admiral, called the Castle
of Comfort, George Fenner general[293] of the expedition, and William
Bats master; the May-Flower, vice-admiral, William Courtise master; the
George, John Heiwood captain, and John Smith of Hampton master; besides
a small pinnace. Walter Wren, the writer of the narrative, belonged to
the George.
[Footnote 292: Hakluyt, II. 533. Astley, I. 185.]
[Footnote 293: This general was probably head factor - E.]
We departed from Plymouth on the 10th December 1566, and were abreast of
Ushant on the 12th. On the 15th we got sight of Cape Finister, and lost
company of our admiral that night, for which reason we sailed along the
coast of Portugal, hoping our admiral might be before us. Meeting a
French ship on the 18th and getting no intelligence of our admiral, we
made sail for the Canaries, and fell in with the island of Tenerife on
the 28th, where we came to anchor in a small bay, at which there were
three or four small houses, about a league from the town of Santa Cruz.
In this island there is a marvellous high hill called the Peak, and
although it is in lat. 28 deg. N. where the air is as warm in January as it
is in England at midsummer, the top of this hill, to which no man has
ever been known to ascend, is seldom free from snow even in the middle
of summer. On the 3d January 1567, we departed from this place, going
round the western point of the island, about 12 or 14 leagues from Santa
Cruz, and came into a bay right over against the house of one Pedro de
Souza, where we came to anchor on the 5th, and heard that our admiral
had been there at anchor seven days before us, and had gone thence to
the island of Gomera, to which place we followed him, and coming to
anchor on the 6th over against the town of Gomera, we found our admiral
at anchor to our great mutual satisfaction.
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