Joseph Banks - Endeavour Journal, 25 August 1768 - 12 July 1771 - No. 0254
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[Page 254]
South Sea
him & told him to follow him upon deck he got up & slipping the Sargeant went forward it was dusk & the people thought he was gone to the head & could were not be convincd that he was gone over till half an hour after it hapned.
26. This whole day calms succeeded by hard squalls with much rain which weather the seamen call trolly lollys the wind has been went more than once round the Compass which made us hope that we were near the trade at least few or no birds & no tropick birds
27. Weather much like yesterday no birds at night a little more setled
28. Calm today one tropick bird was seen this morn after dinner a Shark came the first we had seen in these seas he greedily takes took the bait but the line being old broke very soon he however returnd with the hook & chain hanging out of his mouth but would not take the second bait
29. Calm again bent a new shark line in the even a shark alongside took the bait but broke the new line just as we were going to hoist him in I am
told by the people that common fishing line will never last above a year if ever so much care is taken of it.
30. Some birds and bonitos seen this morn but none after I came upon deck.
31. Pleasant breeze of wind which is the trade: some few tropick birds seen this morn. Myself not quite well a little inflammation in my throat and swelling of the glands.
1. Something better today. As my complaint has something in it that at least putts me in mind of the scurvy I took up the lemon Juice put up by Dr Hulmes direction and found that which was concentrated by evaporating 6 Galls into less than 2 has kept as well as any thing could do. The small Cagg in which was lemon juice with one fifth of brandy was also very good tho large part of it had leak'd out by some fault in the Cagg; this therefore I began to make use of immediately drinking very weak punch made with it for my common liquor.
2. Many birds today about noon passd by the ship making a noise something like gulls,