and rural improvements might look forward with the moft pleafing expectations! How many thousands of useful members of the community, feeling themfelves relieved from a burden always irkfome in its nature, and frequently oppreffive by its weight, would gather new vigour from their arduous and important purfuits! As men who had been accuftomed to labour for a foreign intereft, and to fuftain difadvantages commonly proportioned to their indultry,---as men liable to be counteracted by heavy taxation on their best projects of advancement,---as men frequently haraffed by thofe of their own order, whofe exactions they could neither brook nor repel, and infpected and preffed by others whom they wished to regard with fome degree of reverence, they had heretofore been galled and agitated between real hardship and conftant apprehenfion! Delivered at length from the ftanding caufe of complaint, and encouraged by the certainty of labouring and improving chiefly for their own emolument, they will take a new character in fociety, and become a benefit to that fociety in proportion to the liberty of their new fituation. 5. TO THE NATION AT LARGE. Having fhewn the difadvantages of the old and vexatious fyftem; the mifapplication of Tithes from their original defign, the prefent non-neceffity of their exiftence; the means by which they may be removed; and the advantages which would confequently refult to particular claffes from that removal, I come now, and laftly, to fum up the whole in a few words. The whole nation, thus renovated in an article of the firft confequence to its profperity, would have a new face of wisdom, cheerfulness, and content. Every citizen would have a new pledge, that, under the bleffing of Providence, he is in that fituation in which the fruits of the earth, "excellent and comely," would be cultivated and brought forth in the greatest abundance which the foil and the elements are adapted to fupply. Ingenuity and ufeful induftry would operate with out restraint, where they could be most effectually exercifed for the fupply of human wants. The attachment of Englishmen, under fuch improved circumftances, might be expected to be more firmly fixed and rivetted to their native home; instead of their wishing to migrate to diftant regions in queft of more fruitful fields, and more happy habitations. Re ligion, the last great source of human felicity, would be more uniformly and focially cherished; and that brotherly love, which is one of its moft amiable features, would have a fairer profpect of a more rooted cultivation and growth! Such are the diftinct advantages which would evidently refult from fuch measures as, we have been confidering; and, I trust, the evidence of them is too clear, not to gain the affent of the generality of my readers: fome will be found ready to controvert my reafoning, as a matter of courfe; others will approve with reluct ance, and will perhaps tell me that to turn the weakness of the human mind into ftrength, and to remove a crooked, inte. refted, or bigotted policy, by dint of arguments, however rational, might in me be arrogance of expectation! Yet will I reply with integrity, The mifery of the world, both moral and political, has ever arifen from the folly of continuing to prefer, from whatever motive, that which is known to be wrong, before that which is feen to be right! There never was an overthrow of a government, or a dangerous commotion in any ftate, but what was engendered by habits of cultivating error, and giv. ing fanction and continuance to some evil policy, instead of promptly avowing and embracing a found one. This falfe and wicked policy, always foftered for the fuppofed intereft of fome unprincipled individuals, will ever lead to its own punishment, in the general refult. But it is the infallible property of truth to ftand invulnerable, and to fhield thofe individuals and thofe governments who bravely embrace her whenever the appears, and repofe under her banner ! There is an eternal diftinction of right and wrong, good and evil, in the whole of human conduct, from the largest meafures of the largest connexions, down to the fmalleft efforts of approbation or diffent, in the most obfcure individual who acts in them. And thofe diftinctions are never without their phyfical effects, in proportion to the quantity of truth or error, by which the actions and policy of men are fwayed. Nothing, therefore, however fmall, is unimportant in the whole of things, or of any particular department of things, to which it natu rally belongs. Human conduct is naturally liable to error; but truth should be sought out in all circumstances, and in all times, and be immediately applied as the natural and Vol. II.] Voyage round the World, by the French, in 1791-2-3. and proper remedy. The neglect of this application engenders new and increafing evil and embarraffment, and every moment of delay augments the difficulty. The contrary doctrine has been exemplified in the trimming and garbling conduct of all ages. And the confequences have followed, i. e. the murmur ing, the commotion, and mifery of fociety! There cannot, in nature, be a more unworthy, dangerous, and impious doctrine held, than that truth, moral juftice, and the fitness of things, are less worthy, or lefs fafe to be immediately trufted to, than impropriety, injuftice, and falfbood. It is a doctrine deftructive, on its first principles, of all order and happiness in human fociety; and fo far as the tranfgreffion of men can effect it, deftructive of the fovereignty of God himself. There cannot be the poffibility of a period in which an immediate, ardent, and reverential preference fhould not be given to the former foundations of duty, and in which the latter principles fhould not be abandoned, as the fource of deformity, tending to general anarchy ! 961 tendant on his mind. Were this fimple rule more generally obferved, prejudices of an idle and flavifh nature would be gradually removed, and we should have lefs difficulty in getting rid of numerous political and focial evils,-evils which frequently become fuch, or are more fenfibly felt, by mere change of times and circumftances around us. This general remark will apply to the fubject in view. It is a fubject confeff edly requiring the exertion of men of talents and comprehenfive minds; but if once the uncomprehending, the unthinking, and thofe who are prejudiced by cuftom would ceafe to obftruct, by timorous opinion and groundlefs apprehenfion, we fhould get peaceably forward in a work of reform, which would reflect honour on the wildom, patriotism, and rational religion of this country. Nothing can be more certain, than that the longer a national evil is fuffered to remain, uncorrected by the authority of reafon and juftice, the more fure is its progrefs towards a terrible remedy, in the convulfion of government! The ge nuine friends of order, peace, and happinefs, have this alarming truth ever before their eyes; they feel it painfully engraven on their minds, and from the folemnity or their conviction, they speak, and struggle, in the hope of averting an impending ca lamity! The generous union of magnanimous men is not wanting, in the great business before us. The delay of it is big with incalculable danger! Bath, Sept. 1, 1796. A LAYMAN, For the Monthly Magazine. ACCOUNT OF THE LATE VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD, In the multiform complexions of human character, there are, and ever will be, fome men, perhaps the greater part, whofe minds may not be furnifhed with fufficient energy for the noble promptitude of active public virtue! This would be no evil to fociety were it practicable to prevail on fuch men, to be diffident in proportion to their inability for public fervice. Whenever a man feels a fubject too extenfive and complex for him to comprehend, and clearly to develop, to his own fatisfaction, he hould be admonished not to be arrogant on fuch a fubject, but leave the difcuffion of it to clearer minds, or minds more fitted to that particular topic. He should confider, that by feeming to give an opinion, or by blaming thofe who reafon with ardour, for the public weal, he may poffibly be contributing to embarrassment and the extenfion of evil, which, but forON September 28th, 1791, in the two him, and such as him, might be got rid floops, la Recherche and l'Efperance, of, by the unobstructed powers of reafon, of fixteen guns, and 110 men each, we prevalent of other men, of whofe hearts, weighed from the harbour of Breft, comas well as whofe heads, he has caufe to pletely equipped for a vovage of circumentertain a favourable idea. navigating the globe. The government had previously fent on board a number of gentlemen, verfed in aftronomy, natural hiftory, botany, painting, &c. and had provided an apparatus of aftronomical inftruments, marine time-pieces; in fine, every article that appeared likely to render the expedition fubfervient to the purposes of science. The conduct of the ex I am no friend to implicit confidence on the one hand, or fupinenefs, with regard to the cultivation of a man's own faculties, on the other. But we may fay with fafety, that whenever there is a confcioufnefs of a want of comprehenfion, on an important topic, it becomes a man's duty to be filent, till rational conviction is at J pedition pedition was affigned to Captain ENTRE CASTEAUX. The leading object of the voyage was to endeavour to procure intelligence relative to Captain LA PEYROUSE, who had long been mithing in the South Seas, and to make a complete tour of New Holland; an ifland, by far the largest in the world; comprehending an immenfe circuit of at leaft 3000 (French) leagues. The accomplishment of this laft point was effential to the hiftory of geography, and what had not been effected by either Cook, or LA PEYROUSE. The first port we made was Santa Cruz in Teneriffe; we arrived there on the 17th of October, and having taken in wines and provifions, we proceeded on our route to the Cape of Good Hope: we arrived there; and while we continued there, the expedition fuftained a confiderable misfortune in the death of the aftronomer BERTRAND. Feb. 16th, 1792. We left the Cape, and bore away for the island of New Guinea, fome parts of which we explored we reached the islands Arfacides on July the 9th, and New Ireland the 17th ditto. We afterwards made for Amboyna, one of the Molucca iflands, where we arrived September 6th. Oct. 11th. We left Amboyna, and failed immediately for the weft part of New Holland, along which we intended to coaft (as being the leaft known), and then to proceed along the fouthern fhore; we were always driven back, however, by eaft and fouth-east winds, and this part of our enterprize was confequently fruftrated. Dec. 3d, 1792. We arrived at that cape which is at the fouth-weft extremity of New Holland, and failed along the fouthern fhore till Jan. 3d, having by this means traced and afcertained about twothirds of the whole extent of the fouthern coaft, In confequence of the want of water, and the prevalence of high fouth-easterly winds, we bore away for the Cape de Diernes; the fouth-east extremity of this extenfive inland. In this part of the fouthern coast we observed a number of bold and noble harbours.. After a delay here of three weeks, we fhaped our courfe for New Zealand, and afterwards for the Friendly Islands. On the 11th of March, we paffed very near the North Cape of New Zealand, and making for the fhore, feveral canoes came along-fide of us. We procured a number of ornaments from the favages, and parting from them reluctantly, continued our route. On the 16th, we difcovered two little iflands, at a little distance from each other. The most eastern one lies in 30°. 17, fouth latitude, and in 179°. 41, eaft longitude. On the 17th, we difcovered an island about five leagues in circumference, confpicuous by its elevated fituation. It lies in 29°. 3, fouth latitude, and in 179°. 54, eaft longitude. On the 2d of March, we faw Ehoua, the moft fouth westerly of the Friendly lands. The next day we anchored at Tongataboo, the largeft of the Friendly Iflands. A multitude of canoes crowded about us, and the beach was foon covered with the natives, who welcomed our ar rival by every poffible expreffion of joy. This fatisfaction was fometimes interrupted by the imprudence of fome of our people, and fometimes by the exceffive curiofity of the iflanders, to fee and poffefs every thing that was European. After a tedious voyage, which had often forced us to put into uninhabited places, how grateful was the fatisfaction we experienced to find ourselves so hofpitably entertained by a people among whom civilization is already confiderably advanced! Among thefe iflanders, we frequently meet with men fix feet high, their limbs fhaped in the most comely proportion. The fertility of the foil, which exempted them from the neceffity of extreme labour, may conduce not a little to the unusual perfection of their forms. Their features. have a ftrong resemblance to those of Europeans. A burning fky has impreffed a flight difcolour on their fkins. Those, among the women, who are but little expofed to the rays of the fun, are fufficiently fair. Some of them are diftinguished by a beautiful carnation, which gives a vivacity to their whole figure. A thoufand nameless graces are vifible in their geftures, when engaged in the flightest employments. In the dance, their movements are enchanting, ners. The language of this people bears an analogy with the gentleness of their manIt is well adapted to mufic, for which they have a peculiar tafte. Their concerts, wherein every one performs his part, demonftrate the juft ideas which they entertain of harmony. The women, as well as the men, have their shoulders and breasts naked. A cotton cloth, or rather a piece of ftuff, manufactured with the bark of mulberry tree into paper, ferves them for apparel. It forms a beautiful drapery, reaching from a little above the waist down to the feet. Vol. II.] Voyage round the World, by the French, in 1791-2-3. 963 vafes of potter's earth, tolerably well baked, in which they preferved their water: thefe vafes are manufactured in an ifland named Seidgy, lying, according to the beft accounts we could gather, about 100 leagues to the north of the place where we were at anchor. Thefe iflands produce a fpecies of nutmegs, which differs very little in form from thofe of the Moluccas. It is not, however, aromatic, and is almoft twice as large. We collected in the island a number of objects which may prove useful for the ftudy of natural history. We also procured the bread- fruit tree, for the purpofe of transporting it into our Weft-India Iflands; we were obliged to leave it, however, at Sourabaya, in the island of Java. At our departure from thence we took a receipt from LAHAYE, the Dutch gardener there, for eleven young plants of this invaluable tree, and as many roots and stocks, all in prime condition, which we had brought away from the Friendly Iflands, after having had them nearly eleven months in our poffeffion. The roots and plants together amount to twenty-two, all in high prefervation; and as the tree grows very rapidly, this quantity will fuffice to replenifh the Islands with them in fix or eight years time. They were at Farnarang, in the island of Fava, on the 20th of March, 1795. We must not confound this excellent fpecies of bread-fruit tree with the wild fpecies of it found in the Moluccas, and obferved for a long time paft in the Ifle of France. In this fecond fort the grains do not miscarry; while in the good fruit tree they are replaced by a food truly delicious, when baked under afhes or in the oven. In other refpects it is a moft wholesome viand, affording us a pleasant repast during the whole time of our continuance on this ifland, and for which we willingly relinquifhed our fhip's ftock of baker's bread. The Molucca fort produces thirty or forty fmall fruits; while every tree of the Friendly Iflands produces three or four hundred, extremely large, of an oval form, the greatest diameter be ing from nine to ten inches, and the fmalleft from feven to eight. A tree would be oppreffed with fuch an enormous load, if the fruit were to ripen all at once: but fagacious nature has fo ordered it, that the fruits fucceed each other, during eight months of the year, thus providing the nations with a food equally falubrious and plentiful. Every tree occupies a circular space of abont thirty feet dia meter. A fingle acre occupied by this vegetable would fupply the wants of a number of families. Nothing in nature exhibits a fimilar fecundity. As it it produces no feeds, it has a wonderful faculty of throwing out fuckers: and its roots frequently force their way up to the furface of the earth, and there give birth to fresh plants. It thrives exceedingly in a tropical climate, in a foil fomewhat elevated above the level of the fea; and fuits very well with a marly foil in which a mixture of argillaceous clay preponderates. We quitted the Friendly Islands on the 10th of April, 1793. The next day we obferved a small ifland named Tortoife. April 15th, we faw Errouan, the most eaftern of the islands of the Archipelago of the Holy Ghoft, and afterwards that of Anatom. The eruptions of the volcano of Tana prefented in the night a fpectacle truly fublime. April 27th, fteering for New Caledonia, in a night darker than ufual, we ran among fome iflands furrounded with breakers, not noticed till then by navigators. We were only apprized of our danger by an uncommon circumftance, the flight of a flock of fea fowl over our heads about three o'clock in the morning. This indication of the proximity of land induced the officer upon watch to flacken fail, and lie to, at a critical juncture, when an hour's more failing muft have dafhed us to pieces against the rocks. Thefe new-difcovered iflands lie about thirty leagues N. E. of New Caledonia, where we anchored April 18th. After the defcription that Cook and FORSTER have given of the inhabitants of New Zealand, we expected to find realized the advantageous portrait given of them by thofe celebrated voyagers. We had reafo., however, partly to fuf pend our belief of thofe accounts, when we afterwards obferved a number of human bones, broiled, which the favages were devouring, eagerly fastening on the fmalleft tendinous parts which adhere to them. This fact at least fuffices - to prove, that the New Zealanders are cannibals. They often attacked our boat; but the good countenance we exhibited prevented their affailing or maf facring any of our company. Notwithftanding thefe hoftilities, the hip was every day vifited by numerous budies of the iflanders. The foil being every where barren, we perceived but few veltiges of any tafte for agriculture; ftill, how ever, ever, we obferved in fome gardens, the Colocafia, the Caribbee cabbage, the banana tree, and the fugar-cane. The cocoa tree bears but very diminutive fruit, the water of which is far from being pleafant. The barbarous customs of the natives did not prevent our reiterated excurfions into the interior parts of the country. On thefe occafions we kept together to the number of twenty, always well armed. As evening came on, we commonly took our ftation on some elevated poft in the mountains, where we paffed the night in a fituation which protected us from hoftile affaults. To guard against surprize, we kept watch by turns. Obfervations made for twenty days together in this extenfive region, of which FORSTER had but a glimpfe (being fick all the eight days of his being off the island), furnished us with a variety of novel materials, especially in the vegetable kingdom. On the 6th of May, we loft Citizen HUON, Captain of the Esperance. He had been for fome time before afflicted with an incurable narafmus. We buried him in Obfervation Island. May 9th, we weighed anchor, and failed before the wind for the north. In our courfe, we obferved the caftern part of the reefs and iflands, the western fide of which we faw the year before. May 21ft, we were clofe on the island of Saint Croix, and fent in two boats to look out for an anchoring place. While the failors were employed in founding, one of the natives, at the diftance of upwards of eighty paces, lanced an arrow, which flightly wounded the forehead of one of them. A volley of fire-arms, however, foon difperfed the groupe of canoes which had furrounded the boats, and from which the lance proceeded. Although the wound was apparently fo inconfiderable, it was attended with a tetanus, which proved mortal to the unfortunate failor after only eight days. The arrow did not appear to us to have been poifoned, as it is well known that beafts pierced with the fame weapons do not experience any fatal fymptoms. In India, it is no uncommon thing to fee the flightest pundure followed by a spasm, which is a certain forerunner of death. After this, we proceeded to vifit the Arfacides Inlands; and that part of Louifiade which BOUGAINVILLE did not explore, the northern part of which is very difficult of accefs. We anchored after this near fome very lofty mountains on the fouth-east coast of New Guinea. After having paffed through Dampier's Streights, we difcovered the northern fide of New Britain *. July 16th and 17th, we failed in view of the Anchoret Islands of BOUGAINVILLE. July 20th, we loft ENTRECASTEAUX, our Captain. He died of convulfions, every fit of which was fucceeded by a fpeechlefs ftupor. After having taken fome notice of Traitor's Iflands, and part of the elevated lands of New Guinea, we anchored at Waigiore. Aug. 16th, 1793, in 129° 14′ of eaft longitude, and fo near the equator, that we were only half a minute to the fouth. Here the inhabitants brought us very large fea-turtles, the foup of which we experienced to be a falutary remedy for the fcurvy, which was now prevalent among us. In this ifland we procured a number of interefting objects, and quitted it August 29th, and failed for Bourvo, where we anchored September 3d, 1793. In this mountainous ifle, where the productions of nature are extremely varied, we had a favourable opportunity of continuing our botanical refearches, &c. We paffed through Button's Streights, from September 23d to October 9th, frequently coming to anchor and going afhore for the fake of enlarging our collections. Here feveral of our men died of a contagious bilious dyfentery, contracted in the low marfhy grounds of this country.. Oct. 28, 1793, we caft anchor in the road of Sourabaya, in the Isle of Jaya. Here divifions broke out among the crews, in confequence of gaining intelligence of the further progrefs of the French Revc lution. D'AURIBEAU infamously hoisted the white flag, Feb. 19th, 1794, and fhamefully furrendered the two veffels to the Dutch. He alfo feized all the journals, charts, and memoirs, which were connected with the voyage, and in the moft daftardly manner arrefted all those of the fhips' companies that were obnoxious to his own political fentiments. One The whole extent of this navigation is extremely dangerous; for a length of 1200 leagues (French) a line of rocks or breakers, nearly level with the water, runs along the bottom of the fea. In this route, it is probable that the unfortunate La Peyroufe perifhed, unlefs, as was fuppofed at the time, his veffel foundered in the dreadful tempeft of Dec. 31, 1788. |