Page:A voyage round the world, in His Britannic Majesty's sloop, Resolution, commanded by Capt. James Cook, during the years 1772, 3, 4, and 5 (IA b30413849 0001).pdf/262

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E entered Cook's Strait after noon, and standing down to the southward, beheld the immense ocean before us, which goes by the name of the South Sea. This vast expanse of sea, through which many former navigators had passed, in the happy climate of the torrid zone, but whose middle latitudes no European vessel, except the Endeavour bark, had hitherto attempted to explore, has always been believed to contain a large tract of land, distinguished by geographers with the name of a Southern Continent. Previous to the Endeavour's voyage, New Zeeland was thought the western coast of this unknown land, and certain pretended discoveries near America were asserted as its eastern shores. Captain Cook in that voyage having cut off both these by his course, and even penetrated to 40 degrees of south latitude without finding land, the southern continent was restrained within narrower limits, though these were still considerable enough to engage the attention of future navigators. We were now to enter on this unexplored part, and running to the eastward between the 50th and 40th degrees of south latitude, to search for undiscovered countries in the depth of