On the 16th at noon, we were in the latitude of 42 deg. 12’, and in the longitude of 160 deg. 5’; and as we were now approaching the place where a great extent of land is said to have been seen by De Gama, we were glad of the opportunity which the course we were steering gave, of contributing to remove the doubts, if any should be still entertained, respecting the falsehood of this pretended discovery.  For it is to be observed, that no one has ever yet been able to find who John de Gama was, when he lived, or what year this pretended discovery was made.

According to Mr Muller, the first account of it given to the public was in a chart published by Texeira, a Portuguese geographer, in 1649, who places it ten or twelve degrees to the north-east of Japan, between the latitudes of 44 deg. and 45 deg.; and announces it to be land seen by John de Gama, the Indian, in a voyage from China to New Spain.  On what grounds the French geographers have since removed it five degrees to the eastward, does not appear; except we suppose it to have been done in order to make room for another discovery made by the Dutch, called Company’s Land; of which we shall have occasion to speak hereafter.

During the whole day the wind was exceedingly unsettled, being seldom steady to two or three points, and blowing in fresh gusts, which were succeeded by dead calms.  These were not unpromising appearances; but after standing off and on the whole of this day, without seeing anything of the land, we again steered to the northward, not thinking it worth our while to lose time in search of an object, the opinion of whose existence had been already pretty generally exploded.  Our people were employed the whole of the 16th, in getting their wet things dry, and in airing the ships below.

We now began to feel very sharply the increasing inclemency of the northern climate.  In the morning of the 18th, our latitude being 45 deg. 40’, and our longitude 160 deg. 25’, we had snow and sleet, accompanied with strong gales from the S.W.  This circumstance will appear very remarkable, if we consider the season of the year, and the quarter from which the wind blew.  On the 19th, the thermometer in the day-time remained at the freezing point, and at four in the morning fell to 29 deg..  If the reader will take the trouble to compare the degree of heat, during the hot sultry weather we had at the beginning of this month, with the extreme cold which we now endured, he will conceive how severely so rapid a change must have been felt by us.

In the gale of the 18th, we had split almost all the sails we had bent, which being our second best suit, we were now reduced to make use of our last and best set.  To add to Captain Clerke’s difficulties, the sea was in general so rough, and the ships so leaky, that the sail-makers had no place to repair the sails in, except his apartments, which in his declining state of health was a serious inconvenience to him.