to
communicate, and falling in with the island of Savu, he yielded to
importunity, and touched there to get refreshments.

Thence he went by the south shore of the chain of islands to Sunda Strait
and Batavia.

So far all had gone well. It was undoubtedly far the most successful
voyage ever made. Much had been done--more than his orders directed--to
explore unknown lands, and the dire enemy of seamen, scurvy, had been
conquered.

But his luck was not to last.

It was absolutely necessary to remain some time at Batavia, while the
roughly repaired damage to the ship was made good in the Dutch dockyard.

Two months and a half in the sickly climate of Batavia, during a bad time
of the year, wrought a sad change in his ship's company. The port they so
much desired proved but the door of the grave to many of them, and Cook
sailed for England on December 27th, 1770, with dysentery pervading the
ship. The surgeon had already died of it; so had the poor Tahitian,
Tupia, with two seamen, and one of Mr. Banks' artists.

Worse was, however, to follow. Day by day, as the ship slowly found her
way over the Indian Ocean towards the Cape, against the wet and unhealthy
north-west monsoon, the sick list grew larger. Man after man succumbed,
and before half the distance to Capetown was traversed twenty-two more
were carried off. Green, the astronomer, two more of Banks' staff, two
midshipmen, the boatswain and carpenter were among the number. The crew
was more than decimated.

The ship touched at the Cape, and war with France being expected, the
Endeavour joined the East India convoy, under H.M.S. Portland, at St.
Helena. The heavy-sailing, collier-built craft was not, however, when the
ships had crossed the line and got upon a wind, able to keep up with
them, and she once more found herself alone on her way.

Two more officers, the First Lieutenant, Mr. Hicks, and the Master, Mr.
Molineux, died after leaving the Cape, but not of dysentery, and the ship
finally reached England on June 12th, 1771.

Ninety-four persons left England in the Endeavour, of whom fifty-four
returned. Thirty-eight died on the voyage, out of which number thirty-one
died after reaching Batavia, most of them from fever and dysentery
contracted at that place.

After paying off in August 1771, the Endeavour was sold in 1775, and for
many years sailed as a collier in the North Sea.

This voyage gave a new impetus to discovery, and the immediate thought
wa