Personal Narrative Of Travels To The Equinoctial Regions Of America During The Years 1799-1804 - Volume 1 - By Alexander Von Humboldt And Aime Bonpland.
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The
Longitudes Deduced From The Accurate Observations Of Messrs.
Churruca, Fidalgo, And Noguera, Were Not Then Published.
The pilots trusted more to the log than the timekeeper; they smiled
at the prediction of so speedily making land, and thought
themselves two or three days' sail from the coast.
It was therefore
with great pleasure, that on the 13th, about six in the morning, I
learned that very high land was seen from the mast-head, though not
clearly, as it was surrounded with a thick fog. The wind blew hard,
and the sea was very rough. Large drops of rain fell at intervals,
and every indication menaced tempestuous weather. The captain of
the Pizarro intended to pass through the channel which separates
the islands of Tobago and Trinidad; and knowing that our sloop was
very slow in tacking, he was afraid of falling to leeward towards
the south, and approaching the Boca del Drago. We were in fact
surer of our longitude than of our latitude, having had no
observation at noon since the 11th. Double altitudes which I took
in the morning, after Douwes's method, placed us in 11 degrees 6
minutes 50 seconds, consequently 15 minutes north of our reckoning.
Though the result clearly proved that the high land on the horizon
was not Trinidad, but Tobago, yet the captain continued to steer
north-north-west, in search of this latter island.
An observation of the meridian altitude of the sun fully confirmed
the latitude obtained by Douwes's method.
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