A Voyage to the South Sea | Page 8

of course its annual variation
which never can be accurately ascertained unless the observations are
made always in one spot and with the same compass.
Tenerife, though considerably without the tropic, is so nearly within the
limits of the tradewind that navigators generally steer to it from the
eastward. The road of Santa Cruz lies on the east side of the island, at
the end of a range of craggy hills, barren and very lofty, along with you
sail west by south by compass into the road, with a sea unfathomable
until near the shore. The anchoring ground may be accounted from fifty
fathoms to twenty, or even fifteen. The bank is very steep and gives but
little time to sound; for which reason it should be done effectually with
a heavy lead, or a ship will be too near in before a stranger is aware of
it: he will likewise too soon expect to find bottom, owing to the great

deception of the adjacent high land. To obviate these difficulties it is
necessary to observe that while a town which lies some distance to the
southward of Santa Cruz is open with the castle on the south part of the
road, though you may appear near to the shore, there is no anchorage;
but after it is shut entirely in you get on the bank. The church bearing
west or west by south and the south point of the road south-west half
south to south-west by west is a good situation for anchoring: the depth
about twenty-five fathoms. The distance from the shore will be three
quarters of a mile; and the southernmost land that can be seen then will
be a half or quarter point of the compass farther out than the south point
of the road.
The bottom is black soft mud, with some patches of rocks; for which
reason vessels that lie here any length of time buoy their cables. This
precaution, besides being useful in that particular, they think makes
them ride more easy when there is much sea setting into the road,
which, with the wind any way to the southward of east or at south-west,
must be very considerable; it is therefore usual to moor with four
anchors, though more than two are scarce ever of use. Mooring is
however advisable if a ship is only to remain twenty-four hours, and
the tighter the better, that the cables may keep clear of the ground.
The landing on the beach is generally impracticable with our own boats,
at least without great risk; but there is a very fine pier on which people
may land without difficulty if there is not much swell in the road. To
this pier the water is conveyed by pipes for the use of shipping, and for
which all merchant-ships pay.
There is a degree of wretchedness and want among the lower class of
people which is not anywhere so common as among the Spanish and
Portuguese settlements. To alleviate these evils the present governor of
Tenerife has instituted a most charitable society which he takes the
trouble to superintend; and by considerable contributions a large airy
dwelling that contains one hundred and twenty poor girls and as many
men and boys has been built and endowed with a sufficiency of land
round it, not only for all present purposes but for enlarging the building
for more objects of charity as their funds increase. I had the honour to

be shown by his excellency this asylum (Hospicio they call it) where
there appeared in every countenance the utmost cheerfulness and
content. The decency and neatness of the dress of the young females,
with the order in which they were arranged at their spinning-wheels and
looms in an extensive airy apartment, was admirable. A governess
inspected and regulated all their works, which were the manufacturing
of ribbons of all colours, coarse linens, and tapes; all which were
managed and brought to perfection by themselves from the silk and
flax in their first state; even the dying of the colours is performed by
them. These girls are received for five years, at the end of which they
are at liberty to marry, and have for their portions their wheel and loom,
with a sum of money proportioned to the state of the fund, which is
assisted by the produce of their labour, and at this time was estimated at
two thousand dollars per annum.
The men and boys are not less attended to: they are employed in
coarser work, blanketing and all kinds of common woollens: if they
become infirm they spend the remainder of their days here comfortably
and under a watchful inspector who attends them in the same manner as
the governess does the girls. They are all visited every day by