Since it appears, from what has been already said, that all our future expeditions to the South Seas must run a considerable risk of proving abortive, while we remain under the necessity of touching at Brazil in our passage thither, the discovery of some place more to the southward, where ships might refresh, and supply themselves with the necessary sea stock for their passage round Cape Horn, would relieve us from this embarrassment, and would surely be a matter worthy of the attention of the public. Neither does this seem difficult to be effected, as we already have an imperfect knowledge of two places, which might perhaps prove, on examination, extremely convenient for this purpose. One of these is Pepy’s Island, in the latitude of 47 deg. S. and laid down by Dr Bailey about eighty leagues to the eastward of Cape Blanco, on the coast of Patagonia.[1] The other is Falkland’s Islands, in lat. 51 deg. 30’ S.[2] nearly south of Pepy’s Island.
[Footnote 1: Isla Grande, supposed to be the Pepy’s Island discovered by Cowley, is in lat. 46 deg. 34’ S. and is placed by Mr Dalrymple in long. 46 deg. 40’ W. while the illustrious navigator Cook makes its long. 35 deg. 40’ W. a difference of longitude of no less than eleven degrees.]
[Footnote 2: The centre of Falkland’s Islands is in 51 deg. 45’ S. Janson’s Islands, the most north-westerly of the group, or the Sebaldines, is in 51 deg.; and Beauchene’s Isle, the most southerly, in 53 deg. S.—E.]
The first of these was discovered by Captain Cowley in 1683, during his voyage round the world, and is represented by that navigator as a commodious place for ships to wood and water at, being provided with a good and capacious harbour, where a thousand sail of ships might ride at anchor in great safety, being also the resort of vast numbers of fowls; and as its shores consist of either rocks or sands, it seems to promise great plenty of fish. Falkland’s Islands have been seen by many navigators, both French and English. It is laid down by Frezier, in his chart of the extremity of South America, under the name of the New Islands. Woods Rogers, who ran along the N.E. coasts of these islands in 1708, says they extend about two degrees in length,[3] and appeared with gentle descents from hill to hill, seeming to be good ground, interspersed with woods, and not destitute of harbours.