Cook, Captain James. A VOYAGE TOWARDS THE SOUTH POLE AND ROUND THE WORLD. Performed in His Majesty's Ships the Resolution and Adventure, in the Years 1772, 1773, 1774 and 1775. Written by James Cook, Commander of the Resolution. In which is included, Captain Furneaux's Narrative of his Proceedings in the Adventure during the Separation of the Ships. In two volumes. Illustrated with Maps and Charts, and a Variety of Portraits of Persons and Views of Places; drawn during the Voyage by Mr. Hodges, and engraved by the most eminent Masters. The Fourth Edition. London: Printed for W. Strahan; & T. Cadell in the Strand. MDCCLXXXIV [1784]. 2 vols., med. 4to, Fourth Edition; Vol. I, pp. xl, 378; portrait frontispiece, large folding chart of the Southern Hemisphere & 35 other engraved charts & plates, some folding; Vol. II, pp. [viii], 396; 27 engraved charts & plates (several folding), folding language table, 5 appendices, including vocabularies and Sir John Pringle's Discourse upon some late improvements of the Means of Preserving the Health of Mariners; full contemporary marbled calf with contrasting title and volume labels (front joint to Volume I expertly repaired, that to Volume II cracked but firm; some occasional mild browning, marginal foxing and marginal stains to plates, the occasional spot or offset to text); a very good, crisp, handsome and unsophisticated set; scarce. London; W. Strahan & T. Cadell; [1784].
***First published in 1777, this is the last edition published in the same format as the first. This set has all the plate imprints present (these are often cropped); one plate only (XXXVIII) has the imprint just shaved. At the foot of the first page of the List of Plates (Page xxxvii) is a printed note regarding the plate of a plant used by the Tahitians to catch fish by intoxicating them (Plate XXIV); this note does not appear in the first edition. Cook's ship, the Resolution, accompanied by Furneaux in the Adventure, was the first to cross the Antarctic circle in January 1773. On the same voyage he circumnavigated the pole and subsequently crossed twice more, penetrating to 71 degrees S, further than anyone else for another 50 years, and possibly within sight of the Antarctic continent. This voyage in extremely difficult and dangerous conditions, was a monument to Cook's abilities as a seaman and commander - he lost only four men from a complement of 112 on the entire voyage - three through accidents and one from illness (not scurvy). [Spence 314 (1st Edn.); U.S.N. 23-5.6; Beddie 1229]. #21082
