to seek counsel or suggestion ; in fact no contact  with  any  admiralty authority  and  no  means of contacting them from the other side of the world  other  than  leaving  despatches  with captains whose ships may be bound for England, but who might take months to reach a British port. Yet Cook would have no hope of expecting a reply.

    As a captain he strove to improve the health of his men and the conditions under which they lived and worked. As an explorer he continually reached to grasp further knowledge that man could more easily understand his environment and his relationship to it. His diligence led him to chart unknown seaways and islands meticulously, his accuracy only surpassed by advances in technology, and his discoveries in effect proved the first tent-ative steps whose tracks were to be the foundation of the British Empire and subsequently the Commonwealth.

    The statue on Whitby’s West Cliff comes nearer than any portrait in evoking James Cook’s character and yearning. A sturdy six foot man, he is sculpted with feet firmly planted in his capability. One hand holds dividers, the other a chart as he stares out to sea, searching. For men like Cook are driven to discover what lies beyond the next hill, unable to suppress their desire to unravel the secret of the next horizon.

    We owe a great deal to Captain James Cook’s efforts.