Allow me then, GENTLEMEN, to deliver this medal, with his unperishing name engraven upon it, into the hands of one who will be happy to receive that trust, and to know that this respectable Body never more cordially nor more meritoriously bestowed that faithful symbol of their esteem and affection. For if Rome decreed the _Civic Crown_ to him who saved the life of a single citizen, what wreaths are due to that Man, who, having himself saved many, perpetuates in your Transactions the means by which Britain may now, on the most distant voyages, preserve numbers of her intrepid sons, her Mariners; who, braving every danger, have so liberally contributed to the fame, to the opulence, and to the maritime empire, of their Country*.
[* Here followed Captain Cook's Paper, which was presented to the Society, and is inserted in part 2. vol. 1xvi. of the Philosophical Transactions; but as the Substance of that Publication is now contained in the last pages of Captain Cook's Voyage, it was judged unnecessary to repeat it here. The only material circumstance of Captain Cook's communication to the Society, omitted in his journal, is the following Extract of a Letter which he wrote to the President, just before his late embarkation, dated _Plymouth Sound_, July 7, 1776; and is as follows:
"I entirely agree with you, that the dearness of the Rob of lemons, and of oranges, will hinder them from being furnished in large quantities; but I do not think this so necessary, for though they may assist other things, I have no great opinion of them alone. Nor have I a higher opinion of vinegar: my people had it very sparingly during the late voyage; and towards the latter part, none at all; and yet we experienced no ill effects from the want of it. The custom of washing the inside of the ship with vinegar I seldom observed, thinking that fire and smoke answered the purpose much better."]
End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of A Voyage Towards the South Pole and Round the World Volume 2, by James Cook