to dry them, many of them were much damaged, and a great expence of canvas and of time became necessary to make them in some degree serviceable.  Having experienced the same defect in our sail-rooms on my late voyage, it had been represented to the yard-officers, who undertook to remove it.  But it did not appear to me that any thing had been done to remedy the complaint.  To repair these defects the caulkers were set to work, as soon as we got into fair and settled weather, to caulk the decks and inside weather-works of the ship; for I would not trust them over the sides while we were at sea.

[Footnote 83:  The particulars are mentioned in his log-book.  On the 14th of August a fire was made in the well, to air the ship below.  On the 15th, the spare sails were aired upon deck, and a fire made to air the sail-room.  On the 17th, cleaned and smoked betwixt decks, and the bread-room aired with fires.  On the 21st, cleaned and smoked betwixt decks; and on the 22d, the men’s bedding was spread on deck to air.—­D.]

On the first of September[84] we crossed the equator, in the longitude of 27 deg. 38’ W., with a fine gale at S.E. by S.; and notwithstanding my apprehensions of falling in with the coast of Brazil in stretching to the S.W., I kept the ship a full point from the wind.  However, I found my fears were ill-grounded; for on drawing near that coast, we met with the wind more and more easterly; so that, by the time we were in the latitude of 10 deg.  S., we could make a south-easterly course good.

[Footnote 84:  The afternoon, as appears from Mr Anderson’s Journal, was spent in performing the old and ridiculous ceremony of ducking those who had not crossed the equator before.  Though Captain Cook did not suppress the custom, he thought it too trifling to deserve the least mention of it in his Journal, or even in his log-book.  Pernetty, the writer of Bougainville’s Voyage to the Falkland Islands, in 1763 and 1764, thought differently; for his account of the celebration of this childish festival on board his ship, is extended through seventeen pages, and makes the subject of an entire chapter, under the title of Bapteme de la Ligne.

It may be worth while to transcribe his introduction to the description of it.  “C’est un usage qui ne remonte pas plus haut que ce voyage celebre de Gama, qui a fourni au Camoens le sujet de la Lusiade.  L’idee qu’on ne scauroit etre un bon marin, sans avoir traverse l’Equateur, l’ennui inseparable d’une longue navigation, un certain esprit republicain qui regne dans toutes les petites societes, peut-etre toutes ces causes reunies, ont pu donner naissance a ces especes de saturnales.  Quoiqu’il en soi, elles furent adoptees, en un instant, dans toutes les nations, et les hommes les plus eclaires furent obliges de se soumettre a une coutume dont ils reconnoissoient l’absurdite.  Car, partout, des que le peuple parle, il faut que le sage se mette a l’unison.”—­Histoire d’un Voyage aux Isles Malouines, p. 107, 108.—­D.]