is approach. And at
last, on the 18th September, he weighed from St Helens, and, though
the wind was at first contrary, had the good fortune to get clear of
the channel in four days, as will be more particularly related in the
ensuing section.

Having thus gone through the respective steps taken in the equipment
of this squadron, it must be sufficiently obvious how different an
aspect the expedition bore at its first appointment in the beginning
of January, from what it did in the latter end of September, when
it left the channel, and how much its numbers, its strength, and the
probability of its success were diminished by the various incidents
which took place in that interval. For, instead of having all our old
and ordinary seamen exchanged for such as were young and able,
which the commodore was at first promised, and having our complement
complete to its full number, we were obliged to retain our first
crews, which were very indifferent; and a deficiency of three hundred
men in our numbers was no otherwise made up than by sending on board
an hundred and seventy men, the greatest part of whom were discharged
from hospitals, or new-raised marines who had never been at sea
before. In the land-forces allotted to us, the change was still more
disadvantageous; as, instead of Bland's regiment of foot, which was
an old one, and three independent companies of an hundred men each,
we had only four hundred and seventy invalids and marines, one part of
whom were incapable of action, by their age and infirmities, and the
other part useless, by ignorance of their duty. But the diminution of
the strength of the squadron was not the greatest inconveniency which
attended these alterations; for the contests, representations, and
difficulties which they continually produced, as we have seen above
that the authority of the Admiralty in these cases was not always
submitted to, occasioned a delay and waste of time, which, in its
consequences, was the source of all the disasters to which the
enterprize was afterwards exposed. For, owing to these circumstances,
we were forced to make our passage round Cape Horn at the most
tempestuous season of the year, whence proceeded the separation of our
squadron, the loss of numbers of our men, and the imminent hazard of
oar total destruction. By this delay also, the enemy had been so well
informed of our designs, that a person who had been employed in the
service of the South-Sea Company, and arriv