at of their friends, which they might be
unwilling, in their present form, to have submitted to the inspection of
strangers. On the other hand, I could not, consistently with the
instructions we had received, leave in their custody papers, which, either
from carelessness or design, might fall into the hands of printers, and
give rise to spurious and imperfect accounts of the voyage, to the
discredit of our labours, and perhaps to the prejudice of officers, who,
though innocent, might be suspected of having been the authors of such
publications. As soon, therefore, as I had assembled the ship's company on
deck, I acquainted them with the orders we had received, and the reasons
which, I thought, ought to induce them to yield a ready obedience. At the
same time, I told them, that any papers which they were desirous not to
have sent to the Admiralty, should be sealed up in their presence, and kept
in my own custody, till the intentions of the Board, with regard to the
publication of the history of the voyage, were fulfilled; after which, they
should faithfully be restored back to them.

It is with the greatest satisfaction I can relate, that my proposals met
with the approbation, and the cheerful compliance both of the officers and
men; and I am persuaded, that every scrap of paper, containing any
transactions relating to the voyage, were given up. Indeed, it is doing
bare justice to the seamen of this ship to declare, that they were the most
obedient and the best-disposed men I ever knew, though almost all of them
were very young, and had never before served in a ship of war.

[92] As we have already exceeded the proportion of notes in the preceding
pages, it would be improper, even if the importance of the remaining
matter were more considerable than it is, to hazard farther
commentary. The reader will find, as, indeed, he will naturally
expect, that the condition of the vessels, &c. did not admit of much
more research that could benefit navigation or geography. This,
therefore, renders it less necessary to occupy attention in the
results. Some additions have been made to our knowledge of Jesso, the
neighbouring seas and islands, since the date of this voyage, and in
no small degree, especially by the expedition under Krusenstern, from
whose remarks we have already enriched our work. The additional
observations will properly fall to be considered hereafter. It may be
neces