coast between Cape Saint Sebastian and Cape Mendocino. In 1542, Gaetano had already found several scattered islands not far from the group of Sandwich islands; and it cannot be called in question, that even this last group was known to the Spaniards for more than a century before the voyage of Cook; for the island of Mesa indicated on an old chart of the galleon of Acapulco is the same with the island Owhyhee, which contains the high mountain of the table or Monna-Roa*. Mendaña accompanied by Quirost discovered in 1595 the group of islands, known by the name of the Marquesas de Mendoça or Mendaña islands, which comprehends San Pedro or O-Nateya, Santa Christina or Wahitaho, la Dominica or O-Hivahoa, and la Madalena. We owe to the same intrepid navigators the discovery of the islands of Santa Cruz de Mendaña named by Carteret Queen Charlotte's Islands; the

* Voyage de Marchand. T. i. p. 416.

† Alvaro Mendaña de Neyra and Pedro Fernandez de Quiros. See Successos de las islas Filippinas (Mexico 1699) cap. vi. Hechos de Don Garcia Hurtado de Mendoza, marques de Canete, virey del Peru, los escribò el Doctor Don Christobal Suarez de Figueroa, p. 238. After the death of Mendaña, his wife Doña Isabella Baretos, celebrated for her strength of mind and extraordinary courage, assumed the command of the expedition, which was terminated in

Archipelago del Espiritu Santo de Quiros*, which are the New Cyclades of Bougainville and the New Hebrides of Cook; the Archipelago of the islands of Solomon de Mendaña called by Survillet the Arsacides; the islands Dezena (Maitea) Pelegrino (Scylly island of Wallis), and probably also Otaheite (la Sagittaria de Quiros) which all three are part of the group of Society Islands. Is it just, therefore, to say that the Spaniards have crossed the great ocean without discovering any land,

when we recollect that the mass of discoveries which we have been mentioning‡, and which were made at a period when the art of navigation and nautical astronomy were very far from the degree of improvement to which they have attained in our days. The names of Viscayno, Mendaña, Quiros, and Sarmiento undoubtedly

* Fleurieu Découvertes des François dans le sud-est de la Nouvelle Guinée, p. 85.

↑ The New Georgia of Shortland (Voyage de Marchand, T. vi. p. 63.)

I might have added to the list of discoveries of the Spaniards in the South Sea, those of Garcia Jofre de Loaisa (Viage al estrecho de Magellanes, p. 206), Grixalva, Gallego, Juan Fernandez, Luis Vaez de Torres, and Seyavedra Cedron, who first discovered the northern coast of New Guinea. See the beautiful chart of this southern part of the South Sea, drawn up agreeably to the learned researches of M. Dalrymple.

deserve a place beside the names of the most illustrious navigators of the eighteenth century.

We have already observed that the Archipelago of the Sandwich Islands contains a point of refreshment for the vessels from Acapulco or the north west coast of America to the Philippine Islands and China, in the same manner as the Marquis de Mendoza Islands or the Society Islands furnish an excellent anchorage and a great abundance of provisions to the vessels which double Cape Horn in quest of the furs of Nootka and Norfolk bay. Notwithstanding these advantages, the inhabitants of Mexico, interested in the commerce with Asia, would wish that the Sandwich Islands were not situated on the route from Acapulco to Manilla. They are afraid lest some European power establish settlements there, lest the islanders who are naturally active and enterprising, should be tempted to piracy on these seas. It is true that the treaty of Karakakooa, by which Tamaahmaah king of Owhyhee, made in 1794 a free and voluntary cession of his empire to the king of Great Britain, has hitherto had no effects more durable than so many other treaties concluded between the nations of civilized Europe. The chiefs constantly at war with one another give the preference to that nation' which supplies them with the greatest

quantity of fire arms and ammunition; and these arms are in a short time afterwards constantly directed against those who are imprudent enough to furnish them. Many Europeans, for the most part vagabonds and deserteis from English and Anglo-American ships, have settled among the islanders.

By their assistance an enterprising power of Europe, will one day become an easy mistress of the Sandwich Islands and settle a colony there. These islanders are excellent sailors, and many of them have already embarked in European vessels and sailed to the north west coast of America and China. They have attempted to build schooners and even armed vessels with which they project distant expeditions. The north west currents bring them large trunks of pines from the northern coast of the continent of America. All these circumstances will very much facilitate the establishment of a colony in this Archipelago. The natives of the Sandwich Islands, have profited more from their communication with Europeans than all the other South Sea islanders. The sphere of their ideas has been extended, wants have been communicated to them which they were ignorant of, and within these twenty years they have made a considerable progress towards that social state which we very improperly designate by the word civili

zation*. This progress which would be very slow if the islanders were left to themselves, will become very rapid under European dominion; and perhaps this people will one day be as formidable on the Great Ocean as the privateers and pirates of the Bermudas and Bahama islands, and Barbary are dreaded in the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean. A squadron stationed in the bay of Karakakooa, and directing their cruizes to the south and the east would become formidable to the vessels bound for the Philippine islands or China, either from Acapulco and San Blas, or from the north west coast of America.

The coasting trade on the western coast of New Spain is less considerable than what takes place between Campeche, the mouth of the Rio Huasacualco, newly called port Bourbon, Vera Cruz and Tampico. In following the coast from the south east to the north west, we find the following ports: Tehuantepec, los Angeles, Acapulco, Siguantejo, Zaca

* From the effects of this pretended civilization the inhabitants of Otaheite accustomed to European tools and stuffs, gradually forget the art of making tools of stone and bone, and neglect the cultivation of the paper mul berry. See the very sage observations of M. Vancouver on the condition of these islanders since their frequent communications with Europeans. (Voyage autour du Monde. T. i. p. 179).