Page:Voyage of discovery to the North Pacific Ocean, and round the world in the years 1791-95, volume 3.djvu/363

Rh and put into order every caflc on board capable of holding water ; in many cafes this was attended with great trouble, from the length of time they had been in ufc, and the hard fervice that many of them had endured. Although the very great diflance, and the badnefs of the road we had to pals in getting the water down to the fea-fide, made the obtaining of this indifpenfablc article a very tedious and fatiguing bufinefs, yet as we were in the mean time benefiting from the air, the exercife of the (hore, and the excellent refrefhments of the country, I could not confider our detention here as a lofs of time, becaufe I was afTured that it would be attended with the ineflimable advantage of fecuring to us all, that ftate of health which the remainder of our voyage we had yet to perform home- wards, would ncceffarily require. Some doubts having arifen in my mind, as to the fafe arrival in Eng- land of the copies (which I had forwarded thither) of our furvey of the American coafl to the northward, from Fitzhugh's found to cape Deci- fion, and fouthward from this port to the 30th degree of north latitude I. deemed it expedient that a duplicate of the former papers, together with a copy of our furvev during the preceding fummer, as alfo that of the Sandwich iflands, fhould from hence be tranfmitted to the Admiralty ; that in the event of any mifchance having befallen the others, or any unlortunate accident happening hereafter to us, our labours might not l)e intirely loft to our country. The like information, in conformity to my original promife to my much-lamented friend the late Sen' Quadra, iiad been folicited by Sen'- Alava, for the ulh and information of the Spanifli court, and with which of courfe I complied. The prepa- ration of thefe documents v.'ould neccllarily occupy fome time, but I had little doubt of their being finiflicd by the time we fliould in other re- fjjccl.s be ready to depart. The deferters fi om the Chatham and Daedalus had, at my requeft, been delivered up to me, at leaft fuch of them as were the fubjefts of Great Britain. An account of expences, amounting to three hundred and twenty-five dollars and an half, was exhibited againft them ; but as I did not confider myfelf authorized to difcharge this debt, (though of its having been imcurred by the deferters, I could entertain no doubt) of which

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