y? "Befides-why could not you for drizzle pray "Dear mifter Jay, I do proteft "I do affirm it, mifter Jay, indeed 'Till you and all the parish are agreed.” VERSES, written, during a Fit of Sickness, by John Lord Hervey. (Now first published.) ACH hour my fpirits and my ftrength decay, In pain and laffitude I drag the day, Bankrupt of Joy, and ftranger ev'n to Eafe. And when the world's great Æfculapius, Sleep, And gives Defpair herself a tranfient reft; My eyes alone, rebellious to his power, At night the rigour of my fate deplore, Account of Books for 1799, A Voyage round the World, in the Yeurs 1785, 1786, 1787, and 1788, by J. F G. de la Peroufe: published conformably to the Decree of the National Affembly, of the 22d of April, 1791, and edited by M. L. A. Milet Mureau, Brigadier-General in the Corps of En gineers, Director of Fortifications, Ex-confituent and Member of feveral Literary Societies at Paris. Tranflated from the French. In three Volumes, 8vo. With an Atlas. NE TEITHER length of time, nor the quick fucceffion of events the most important and the most univerfally interesting, seem to have diminished the eagerness of expectation for the account of the labours of this enterprising but unfortunate navigator; to whofe great care and forefight the world are indebted for any advantages which they may obtain from the refults of his refearches; as he feized every opportunity of fending, fucceffively, his journals and obfervations to Europe. The editor juftly regrets the want of diligence in the other fcientific perfons embarked with their worthy commander; who, if they had exerted themselves in the like manner, might have prevented the total lofs of many articles and branches of important information. Yet it appears that thofe gentlemen were not all alike begligent, as the laft volume is in a great measure compofed of notes and detached pieces, forwarded to government by the men of fcience employed in the expedition. About two years after the time at which M. de la Pérouse had been expected to return to France, it was propofed and decreed by the national affembly. (their attention having been drawn to the fubject by a petition from the fociety of Natural History at Paris, January 22, 1791,) that two fhips fhould be fent in fearch of him: the laft accounts, which he had tranfinitted home, giving a clue to form an opinion of the route that he had intended to purfue. The ships were accordingly difpatched, under the command of M. d'Entrecafteaux : but the fearch was not attended with fuccefs at all proportioned to their active and humane endeavours; and no new certain information was procured respecting the fate of M. de la Péroule and his companions. By a decree of the fame affembly, it was likewife directed that the accounts and charts, which this lamented navigator had fent home, fhould be printed and engraved at the national expense; and the profits were affigned to his widow. Both Both the decrees manifeft much regard and attention for M. de la Pérouse and his affociates, and are expreffed with that degree of feeling which the circumftances must naturally excite. : The preparation of the materials which had been received, for the prefs, was at firft intrufted to the care of M. Fleurieu, minifter of the marine but circumftances having obliged this gentleman to relinquith the undertaking, it was put into the hands of the prefent editor, M. Milet Mureau, ex-conftituent, and a brigadier-general in the engineers. He offers an apology for having fixed the title of a voyage round the world; which we think very allowable, as all the route of importance to difcowery was completed, and the return from China to Europe only was wanting. The editor alfo gives fome particulars of the life of la Péroufe;which, from the age of 15, when (in the year 1756) he firft entered into the French marine, to the time of his death, was a life of almost conftant hard fervice. He was in feveral actions against our countrymen. The following is the character given of him by M. Mureau: Uniting in himself the vivacity peculiar to the inhabitants of warin climates, with an agreeable wit, and an equal temper, his mildnefs and his amiable gaiety made his company always fought after with eagernels on the other hand, matured by long experience, he joined to uncommon prudence a firmness of character, which is the characteriftic of a ftrong mind, and which, increafed by the hardthips of a feaman's life, rendered him qualified to attempt, and to conduct the grealeft enterprizes with fuccefs,' The most honourable teftimony to his character, however, and to which is given the evidence of our own countrymen, is his humane conduct when fent to deftroy the English fettlements in Hudson's Bay, in the year 1782. Knowing that at his approach the English had fled into the woods, and that at his departure, on account of the deftruction of their fettlements, they would be expofed to the danger of perith ing with hunger, or of falling defencelefs into the hands of the lavages, he had the fingular humanity and generofity to leave them provifions and arms. In a preliminary difcourfe by the editor, a plan is fuggefted for the perfection of geography, by eftabihing a congrels compoled of aftronomers, hydrographers, navi. gators, &c. and it is recommended that each of the maritime nations fhould contribute a proportion to the expenfe of expeditions, plan ned by and under the inftructions of the congrels, &c. This defign requires a time of perfect peace and good Therhood. meridians in the voyage before us are, throughout reckoned from Paris: on which head the eatfor remarks the inconvenience of calculations from many different meridians, and propofes, in order to obviate difputes for pre-emipence, to eftablifh, as the firit meridian that remarkable peak which nature feems to have placed in the middle of the feas to ferve as a beacon for navigators,' i e. the peas of Teneriffe. This new meridian he obferves, would leave our i menfe materials of geography in their full value; and he adds the it is with regret that he rejects, fr the prefent, the plan which has been been recommended by Borda, and politico-commercial nature. The hiftory of the voyage commences with copies of the inftructions given to the commander; to which is prefixed a note from the French king (Louis XVI.), under whofe particular patronage the expedition was defigned and executed. They are divided under diftinct heads. The plan of the voyage, according to thefe directions, appears to us too extenfive: for more was undertaken than a fingle expedition could well accomplih. The time requifite, according to the calculation of thofe who formed the defign, exceeded four years; and allowances must always be made, in fuch long voyages, for accidents which are not to be forefeen or prevented, but which must be expected. Of this circumftance, indeed, they were not unmindful, for the orders are qualified by giving to M. de la Péroule a confiderable degree of difcretionary power, relying on his abilities and on his zeal for the fervice in which he was engaged. Many parts of the inftructions are drawn up with great judgement. The acquirement of information refpecting the interefts of commerce is an object not neglected. The navigator was directed to inquire into the American fur-trade, and likewife into the particulars of the concerns of the Dutch and English in the Molucca and Spice lands; with other matters of a The interefts of general knowledge and humanity are likewife objects of attention. Kindness and moderation are in the strongest manner recommended to be obferved in all intercourfe with Indians; with this addition, "his majefty will look upon it as one of the most fuccessful parts of the expedition, fhould it be terminated without cofting the life of a fingle man:" this is highly commendable, in every view! The general intereft which was excited by this undertaking appears in many inftances; and in the equipment, the fhips were most liberally provided with every thing that could be thought useful. It has been mentioned that no ftep was taken towards publication, till the return of the flips began to be confidered as almoft hopeless. M. de la Péroufe, in a letter which he had written to a friend, had defired that, if his journal fhould be printed before his return, it might be trufted to the direction of a man well verfed in mathematical knowledge, and not to one who was merely a man of letters. In their appointment of an editor, the French government feem to have coincided in opinion with the lamented navigator; and the charts have been executed un-der the direction of M. Buache, hydrographer of the marine. The firft paper prefented to the reader, from the materials fent home by M. de la Péroufe, is a narrative of a voyage made in a Spanish frigate, la Princeffa, commanded by Don Francifco Antonio Maurelle, from Manilla to San Blas in New Spain. This narrative was tranflated from the Spanish original by A. G. Pingré; and is accompa nied with a chart conftructed by Buache. The voyage, by the addition of fome newly-discovered islands, affifts, in fome degree, towards completing the geography of the South Seas: but the fituations given by the Spanish commander appear not always worthy of reliance; and the tranflator complains that the original journal was, in fome places, unintelligible. The track and the narrative likewise difagree, though Buache has taken confiderable pains in endeavouring to reconcile them. We have here alfo other accounts of voyages of the Spaniards, to explore the N. W. coaft of America, but unaccompanied with charts.. They differ from our difcoveries in their account of the longitudes, and there is nothing peculiarly interef ting in the occurrences. With thefe accounts, what the editor calls the preliminary part concludes; and we now enter on the subject of M. de la Péroufe's voyage. On the 1st of Auguft, 1785, the two frigates la Bouffole, and l'Aftrolabe, the latter commanded by M. de Langle, but both under the or ders of M. de la Péroufe, failed from Breft Road. They touched at Madeira and at Teneriffe; at the first of which places they experienced much kindnefs and attention from Mr. Johnson, an English merchant, and from Mr. Murray the British conful. October the 16th. They faw the ifland of Trinidada, which, fince it has been forfaken by the English, has been occupied by the Portuguefe, as M. de la Péroufe conjectures, from no other motive than left fome other European nations fhould avail themselves of the vici nage, and carry on a contraband trade with the Brafils.' After having quitted Trinidada, they endeavoured to find the island Afcençaon, but miffed it; which, with what the commodore afterwards heard at St. Catherine's, made him conclude that no fuch inland exifts. On the 6th of November, they anchored at the ifland of St. Catherine, on the coaft of Brafil; which is defcribed as a convenient and excellent place for all neceffary refreshments. In profecuting their route from this place towards the fouth, they fearched for the ifle Grande of la Roche, but without fuccefs. The editor is of opinion that M. de la Péroule too haftily pronounces against the existence of lands which he cannot find in the pofitions affigned for them. He obferves: It would be dangerous to the progrefs of navigation, and fatal to navigators, to adopt the method of expunging iflands formerly difcovered from the charts, under the pretence of their having been fought for in vain, or of their pofition being at any raté 'uncertain, in confequence of the want of means to lay them down with precifion upon the charts, at the time of their difcovery. I have the greater right to exprefs my difapprobation of fuch a method, as, a few pages back, I have proved that Afcençaon really exists, and that thofe who fhould expunge an ifland from the globe, would be in a manner responsible for the risks to which navigators who might fall in with it would be expofed by the falle fecurity infpired by the charts; while its being laid down, even in an uncertain manner, by keeping |