4.  Tasman having entered the Pacific Ocean, after leaving Van Diemen’s Land, had fallen in with a coast to which he gave the name of New Zealand.  The extent of this coast, and its position in any direction but a part of its west side, which he sailed along in his course northward, being left absolutely unknown, it had been a favourite opinion amongst geographers, since his time, that New Zealand was a part of a southern continent, running north and south, from the 33 deg. to the 64 deg. of south latitude, and its northern, coast stretching cross the South Pacific to an immense distance, where its eastern boundary had been seen by Juan Fernandez, half a century before.  Captain Cook’s voyage in the Endeavour has totally destroyed this supposition.  Though Tasman must still have the credit of having first seen New Zealand, to Captain Cook solely belongs that of having really explored it.  He spent near six months upon its coasts in 1769 and 1770, circumnavigated it completely, and ascertained its extent and division into two islands.  Repeated visits since that have perfected this important discovery, which, though now known to be no part of a southern continent, will probably, in all future charts of the world, be distinguished as the largest islands that exist in that part of the southern hemisphere.

5.  Whether New Holland did or did not join to New Guinea, was a question involved in much doubt and uncertainty, before Captain Cook’s sailing between them, through Endeavour Strait, decided it.  We will not hesitate to call this an important acquisition to geography.  For though the great sagacity and extensive reading of Mr Dalrymple had discovered some traces of such a passage having been found before, yet these traces were so obscure, and so little known in the present age, that they had not generally regulated the construction of our charts; the President de Brosses, who wrote in 1756, and was well versed in geographical researches, had not been able to satisfy himself about them; and Mons. de Bougainville, in 1768, who had ventured to fall in with the south coast of New Guinea, near ninety leagues to the westward of its south-east point, chose rather to work those ninety leagues directly to windward, at a time when his people were in such distress for provisions as to eat the seal-skins from off the yards and rigging, than to run the risk of finding a passage, of the existence of which he entertained the strongest doubts, by persevering in his westerly course.  Captain Cook, therefore, in this part of his voyage (though he modestly disclaims all merit), has established, beyond future controversy, a fact of essential service to navigation, by opening, if not a new, at least an unfrequented and forgotten communication between the South Pacific and Indian Oceans.[27]