CHAPTER IV
Vifil the ijland of Cocos — Some defer Iption of that ijlond — Aflronrmiiad and nautical obftrvaiions there — Proceed to the fculhzva^d — Paf bctzvcen Wennuuis and Culpepper' s iflands — See the GaUipdgos 7jlands, and aLer- iuin their JiLuation.
JJURING our pafTage thus far from Monterrey, it did not appear that we had been much affetled by currents, the log and the obfcrva- tions having in general correfponded very nearly, and the (hircrencc between the longitude, by the dead reckoning, and that which I confi - dered to be the true longitude, had not exceeded half a degree, the dead reckoning having been in general to the eallward of the truth.
The wind in the north-weflern quarter continued to blowr a ftcady breeze, and as we advanced to the fouth-eaflward it incrcafcd in its force ; the heat was lefs oppreflTive, and the mercury in the thcrnionieter fell to a general temperatiiie of about 78 ; the atmofphere was generally clear, and the fea, which was remarkably fmooth, abounded with immenfc numbers of flying fifh, dolphins, bonitos, albicores, and a great variety of fmaller filhes ; of turtles we eafily procured as many as wc could difpenfe with.
By noon on monday we had reached the latitude of 9° 27', and the Monday longitude, brought forward from the preceding lunar obfervations, with the new rates of the chronometers, was fhewn by Arnold's No. 1 j to be 263° 36' 15", No. 176, 263° 34' 15", and by Kendall's 263° 40' ; the dead reckoning at this time (hewed 265" 33' ; whence it became evident that we were now materially affeded by a current feiting to the weltward,
