Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 24.djvu/156

 136 F. W. Howay The next letter is an exact duplicate of the above, ex- cept that it bears only the signature of Robert Gray. It was evidently enclosed in the following letter. On board Ship Columbia at Sea November 14 1790 Sir The foregoing is a copy of what we wrote you yes- terday by a Portuguese Ship bound to the Coast of Bra- zil. 4 We avaiFd ourselves of the first opportunity not knowing when we should have another, but well convinc'd it would be a long time before you receiv'd it yet we thought that news from us though a long time coming would be agreeable to you & the owners & the necessity of our having the Grand Chop to save duties at China We are with all respect Robert Gray John Hoskins 5 Ship Columbia of Cape Percival Falkland Islands Feb^ 2 d 1791 Sir We this day came out of New Island Harbour 6 where we arrived 10 days since, after a long tedious passage of 113 days. We have been wind bound four days, all hearty & well on board — we still hope to get safe round Cape Horn & be early on the Coast; depend on it every thing will be done to give us as short a passage as pos- sible 4 Hoskins says: "The boat was sent on board with a letter which the Portuguese Captain was polite enough to say he would forward by the earliest conveyance." 5 This letter was sent by Capt. Butler of the Aurora of Bristol, a whaler then bound around Cape Horn. See Hoskins' Narrative MS. 6 This was on one of the small islands lying to the westward of the main Falkland Islands. The Columbia anchored here on 23d January 1791. Hoskins' Narrative gives a lengthy account of the occurrences there. See also, Boit's Journal in xxii Oregon Historical Quarterly, p. 271. Cape Percival is the westernmost point of the group; see a map in Cook's First Voyage, by Hawkesworth (London, 1773), p. 40.