A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Vol. 14 | Page 3

to the Southern Hemisphere, prior to that which I had lately the honour to conduct, and which I am now going to relate.
The first who crossed the vast Pacific Ocean, was Ferdinand Magalhaens, a Portuguese, who, in the service of Spain, sailed from Seville, with five ships, on the 10th of April, 1519. He discovered the straits which bear his name; and having passed through them, on the 27th of November, 1520, entered the South Pacific Ocean.
In this sea he discovered two uninhabited islands, whose situations are not well known. He afterwards crossed the Line; discovered the Ladrone Islands; and then proceeded to the Phillipines, in one of which he was killed in a skirmish with the natives.
His ship, called the Victory, was the first that circumnavigated the globe; and the only one of his squadron that surmounted the dangers and distresses which attended this heroic enterprise.[2]
The Spaniards, after Magalhaens had shewed them the way, made several voyages from America to the westward, previous to that of Alvaro Mendana De Neyra, in 1595, which is the first that can be traced step by step. For the antecedent expeditions are not handed down to us with much precision.
We know, however, in general, that, in them, New Guinea, the islands called Solomon's, and several others, were discovered.
Geographers differ greatly concerning the situation of the Solomon Islands. The most probable opinion is, that they are the cluster which comprises what has since been called New Britain, New Ireland, &c.[3]
On the 9th of April, 1595, Mendana, with intention to settle these islands, sailed from Callao, with four ships; and his discoveries in his route to the west, were the Marquesas, in the latitude of 10° S.; the island of St Bernardo, which I take to be the same that Commodore Byron calls the Island of Danger; after that, Solitary Island, in the latitude of 10° 40' S., longitude 178° W.; and, lastly, Santa Cruz, which is undoubtedly the same that Captain Carteret calls Egmont Island.
In this last island, Mendana, with many of his companions, died; and the shattered remains of the squadron were conducted to Manilla, by Pedro Fernandes de Quiros, the chief pilot.
This same Quiros was the first sent out, with the sole view of discovering a southern continent, and, indeed, he seems to have been the first who had any idea of the existence of one.
He sailed from Callao the 21st of December, 1605, as pilot of the fleet, commanded by Luis Paz de Torres, consisting of two ships and a tender; and steering to the W.S.W., on the 26th of January, 1606. being then, by their reckoning, a thousand Spanish leagues from the coast of America, they discovered a small low island in latitude 26° S. Two days after, they discovered another that was high, with a plain on the top. This is probably the same that Captain Carteret calls Pitcairn's Island.
After leaving these islands, Quiros seems to have directed his course to W.N.W. and N.W. to 10° or 11° S. latitude, and then westward, till he arrived at the Bay of St Philip and Jago, in the Island of Tierra del Espirito Santo. In this route be discovered several islands; probably some of those that have been seen by later navigators.
On leaving the bay of St Philip and St Jago, the two ships were separated. Quiros, with the Capitana, stood to the north, and returned to New Spain, after having suffered greatly for want of provisions and water. Torres, with the Almiranta and the tender, steered to the west, and seems to have been the first who sailed between New Holland and New Guinea.[4]
The next attempt to make discoveries in the South Pacific Ocean, was conducted by Le Maire and Schouten. They sailed from the Texel, on the 14th of June, 1615, with the ships Concord and Horn. The latter was burnt by accident in Port Desire. With the other they discovered the straits that bear the name of Le Maire, and were the first who ever entered the Pacific Ocean, by the way of Cape Horn.
They discovered the island of Dogs, in latitude 15° 15' S., longitude 136° 30' W.; Sondre Grondt in 15° S. latitude, and 143° 10' W. longitude; Waterland in 14° 46' S., and 144° 10' W.; and twenty-five leagues westward of this, Fly Island, in latitude 15° 20'; Traitor's and Coco's Islands, in latitude 15° 43' S., longitude 173° 13' W.; two degrees more to the westward, the isle of Hope; and in the latitude of 14° 56' S., longitude 179° 30' E., Horn Island.
They next coasted the north side of New Britain and New Guinea, and arrived at Batavia in October, 1616.[5]
Except some discoveries on the western and northern coasts of New Holland, no important voyage to the Pacific Ocean was undertaken till 1642,