e had without leave from the governor, and the payment of a very
high price. We took in 270 lib. of fresh, beer, and a live bullock,
charged at 613 lib. 3,032 gallons of water, and ten tons of wine; and in
the night, between Sunday the 18th and Monday the 19th of September, we
set sail in prosecution of our voyage.

When Funchiale bore north, 13 east, at the distance of seventy-six
miles, the variation appeared by several azimuths to be 16 deg. 30'West.

SECTION II.

_The Passage from Madeira to Rio de Janeiro, with some Account of the
Country, and the Incidents that happened there_.

On the 21st of September we saw the islands called the Salvages, to the
north of the Canaries; when, the principal of these bore S. 1/2 W. at
the distance of about five leagues, we found the variation of the
compass by an azimuth to be 17 deg. 50. I make these islands to lie to
latitude 80 deg. 11' north, and distant fifty-eight leagues from Funchiale
in Madeira, in the direction of S. 16 deg. E.

On Friday the 23d we saw the Peak of Teneriffe bearing W. by. S. 1/2 S.
and found the variation of the compass to be from 17 deg. 22' to 16 deg. 30'.
The height of this mountain, from which I took a new departure, was
determined by Dr. Heberden, who has been upon it, to be 15,396 feet,
which is but 148 yards less than, three miles, reckoning, the mile at
1760 yards.[68] Its appearance at sunset was very striking; when the
sun was below the horizon, and the rest of the island appeared of a deep
black, the mountain still reflected his rays, and glowed with a warmth
of colour which no painting can express. There is no eruption of visible
fire from it, but a heat issues from the chinks near the top, too strong
to be borne by the hand when it is held near them. We had received from
Dr Heberden, among other favours, some salt which he collected on the
top of the mountain, where it is found in large quantities, and which he
supposed to be the true _natrum_ or _nitrum_ of the ancients:
He gave us also some native sulphur exceedingly pure, which he had likewise
found upon the surface in great plenty.

[Footnote 68: It is not said by what means Dr H. ascertained the height
of this peak, and one may safely call in question his accuracy. In the
table referred to in a former note, its height, as measured by the
barometer, is stated to be 12,358 English feet, being nearly 10,000 feet
lower than that of Chimborazo, the highest summit of the Andes, whic