em.
After this, they proceeded to refit the ship with all expedition, for
which purpose they built a smith's forge, making charcoal for its
supply, and made nails, bolts, and spikes. Others of the crew were
employed in making ropes from a piece of cable; and others again in all
the necessary repairs of the ship, sails, and rigging; while those not
fit for such offices, gathered muscles and caught smelts for the whole
company. Three leagues from Port Desire there is an island, having four
small isles about it, on which there are great abundance of seals, and
where likewise penguins resort in vast numbers at the breeding season.
To this island it was resolved to dispatch the Black pinnace
occasionally, to fetch seals for us to eat, when smelts and muscles
failed, for we could get no muscles at neap-tides, and only when the ebb
was very low.
In this miserable and forlorn condition we remained till the 6th of
August, 1592, still keeping watch on the hills to look out for our
general, suffering extreme anguish and vexation. Our hope of the
general's return becoming very cold, our captain and master were
persuaded that he might have gone directly for the straits; wherefore it
was concluded to go there and wait his coming, as there we could not
possibly miss seeing him if he came. This being agreed to by the whole
company, we set sail from Port Desire on the 6th August, and went to
Penguin island, where we salted twenty hogsheads of seals, which was as
much as our salt could do. We departed from Penguin island towards night
of the 7th August, intending for the straits. The 14th we were driven
among certain islands, never before discovered, fifty leagues or better
from the shore, east-northerly from the straits.[66] Fortunately the
wind shifted to the east, or we must have inevitably perished among
these islands, and we were enabled to shape our course for the straits.
[Footnote 66: These are doubtless the Falkland Islands, or Malouines,
but to which no name seems to have been affixed on this occasion.--E.]
We fell in with the cape [Virgin] on the 18th of August, in a very thick
fog, and that same night came to anchor ten leagues within the straits'
mouth. The 19th we passed the first and second narrows, doubled Cape
Froward on the 21st, and anchored on the 22d in a cove, or small bay,
which we named _Savage Cove_, because we here found savages.
Notwithstanding the excessive coldness of this place, yet do these
people g
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