bay prefmnt."

THE MERCURY COOK.

At this point all the writers on Captain Cook have been led into error by
following the lead of Dr. Kippis. Everyone (with the single exception of
Lord Brougham, who by an evident slip of the pen puts him on board the
Mersey) writes that he was appointed Master of H.M.S. Mercury, and that
he joined the fleet of Admiral Saunders in the Gulf of St. Lawrence at
the time of the capture of Quebec in that ship. From the Public Records
it has been ascertained that the Mercury was not in the Gulf of St.
Lawrence with Saunders, but in the latter half of 1759 was sent to New
York, thence to Boston, and was at Spithead in April the following year.
The same source also shows that not only was the Circumnavigator never on
board the Mercury in any capacity, but in all probability he never even
saw her. He is also said to have been Master's mate on the Pembroke, and
Dr. Kippis has him appointed to three different ships on three
consecutive days: the Grampus, but she sailed before Cook could join her;
the Garland, but she was found to have a Master when Cook joined; and,
lastly, the Mercury.

The explanation of this confusion as far as the Mercury is concerned (the
rest was imagination) is that there was a second James Cook in the
service, who was appointed Master of the Mercury under a warrant dated
15th May 1759 and entered on his duties immediately. He was with his ship
at Sheerness on 12th July, at which time his namesake was before Quebec.
On the return of the Mercury from Boston her Master was returned for some
time as "sick on shore," and on 11th June 1760 was superseded by one John
Emerton. Soon after he was appointed third lieutenant of the Gosport, his
commission bearing date 1st April 1760, that is before he left the
Mercury. He was with his new ship at the recapture of St. John's,
Newfoundland, in 1762, with John Jervis, afterwards Lord St. Vincent, as
his Captain. In 1765 he was on the Wolf on the Jamaica station, and was
selected by Admiral Burnaby to carry despatches to the Governor of
Yucatan. This duty he successfully carried out, and in 1796 published a
pamphlet describing his adventures during the journey. On his return to
England he applied to the Duke of Newcastle for the command of a cutter,
and the letter is now in the British Museum, having been included in a
collection in mistake for one written by his celebrated namesake. There
is a certain similarity in the writing, but in