Page:Voyage in search of La Perouse, volume 2 (Stockdale).djvu/117

] an anchor in Lauriston Bay, but the fatal disasters that befell Captain Marion, and afterwards Furneaux, made the General resolve to pass on.

I thought it my duty, however, to represent to him, how important an object it was, to procure from New Zealand the liliaceous plant known by the name of phormium tenax, or New Zealand flax, in order to convey it to Europe, where it would thrive in perfection. The fibres obtained from the leaves of this plant are much superior in strength to any other vegetable production employed for making ropes, and cables made of it would bear the greatest strain. No one could be more sensible of all the benefits our navy might derive from this plant, than the Commander in Chief of our expedition; yet we held on our course for the Friendly Islands, continuing to steer north-east.

There would have been this advantage, likewise, in stopping at the northern extremity of New Zealand, that it would have afforded us an opportunity of verifying our observations, which led us to place Cape North 36′ more to the eastward than it is laid down by Wales. It will be granted, however, that we have sufficient reason to give our observations the preference, when it is considered, that the English astronomer determined the situation of this point only