At fix in the evening, the hunters brought in a fine young bull, of near four hundred weight; part of it we kept on fhore, and fent the reft on board, with bread-fruit, limes, and oranges.

1767.

September.

Early the next morning the carpenters were set at Monday 21. work to caulk the fhip all over, and put every thing in repair as far as poffible. All the fails were also got on shore, and the fail-makers employed to mend them : the armourers at the fame time were busy in repairing the iron-work, and making new chains for the rudder. The number of people now on fhore, fick and well, was fifty three.

In this place we got beef, pork, poultry, papaw apples, bread-fruit, limes, oranges, and every refreshment that is mentioned in the account of Lord Anfon's voyage. The fick began to recover from the day they first went on fhore: the air, however, was fo different here from what we found it in King George's Island, that flesh meat, which there kept fweet two days, could here be scarcely kept fweet one. There had been many cocoa-nut trees near the landing-place, but they had been all waftefully cut down for the fruit, and none being grown up in their flead, we were forced to go three miles into the country before a fingle nut could be procured. The hunters alfo fuffered incredible fatigue, for they were frequently obliged to go ten or twelve miles through one continued thicket, and the cattle were fo wild that it was very difficult to come near them, so that I was obliged to relieve one party by another; and it being reported that cattle were more plenty at the north end of the island, but that the hunters, being quite exhausted with fatigue when they got thither, were not able to kill them, much less to bring them down, I fent Mr. Gore, with fourteen men, to establish themselves in that part of the island, and ordered that a boat fhould go every morning, at day-break, to bring in what they should kill. In the mean time, the fhip was laid by the ftern to get at fome of the copper fheathing which had been much torn; and in repairing the copper, the Carpenter difcovered and stopped a large leak under the lining of the knee of the head, by which we had reafon to hope most of the water that the yeffel had lately admitted in : VOL. I.

bad

1767. October.

Thurf. 15.

Frid. 16.

bad weather, came in. During our stay here, I ordered all the people on fhore by turns, and by the 15th of October, all the fick being recovered, our wood and water completed, and the fhip made fit for the fea, we got every thing off the fhore, and embarked all our men from the watering-place, each having, at leaft, five hundred limes, and there being feveral tubs full on the quarter-deck, for every one to squeeze into his water as he fhould think fit.

At break of day, on Friday the 16th, we weighed, and failed out of the bay, fending the boats at the fame time to the north end of the island, to bring off Mr. Gore and his hunters. At noon, we received them and their tents on board, with a fine large bull, which they had just killed.

While we lay at anchor in this place, we had many obfervations for the latitude and longitude, from which we drew up the following table:

Latitude of the ship, as the lay at anchor 14° 55' N.

214° 15'W.

14

59 N.

214

o W.

7

Medium of longitude,obferved at Tinian 214

We continued a westerly courfe, inclining fomewhat Wedn. 21. to the North, till the 21ft, when Tinian bearing S. 71° 40' E. diftant 277 leagues, we faw many birds; Thurf. 22. and the next day, faw three refembling gannets, of the fame kind that we had feen when we were within about thirty leagues of Tinian.

Friday 23

On the 23d we had much thunder, lightning, and rain, with strong gales and a great fea. The ship la-boured very much, and the rudder, being loofe again, Saturd. 24. fhook the ftern as much as ever. 'The next day we faw several small land birds, and the gales continuing, we split the jib and main-top-mast-ftay-fail; the wind increased all the remainder of the day, and all night, and on Sunday it blew a storm. The fore-fail and mizen-fail were torn to pieces, and lost; and having bent others, we wore and stood under a reefed forefail, and balanced 'mizen. We had the mortification to find the ship admit more water than ufual. We got

Sunday 25.

the

the top-gallant mafts down upon the deck, and took the jib-boom in; foon after which a fea ftruck the ship upon the bow, and washed away the round-houses, with all the rails of the head, and every thing that was upon the fore-caftle: we were, however, obliged to carry as much fail as the fhip would bear, being, by Lord Anson's account very near the Bashee Islands, and, by Mr. Byron's, not more than thirty leagues, with a lee-fhore.

1767. October.

The next morning, we faw feveral ducks and shags, Monday 26. fome fmall land birds, and a great number of horseflies about the fhip; but had no ground with 160 fathoms. The inceffant and heavy rain had kept every man on board conftantly wet to the fkin for more than two days and two nights; the weather was still very dark, and the fea was continually breaking over the fhip.

On the 27th, the darkness, rain, and tempeft con- Tuesd. 27. tinuing, a mountainous fea that broke over us, ftaved all the half-ports to pieces on the star-board-fide, broke all the iron ftanchions on the gunwale, washed the boat off the fkids, and carried many things overboard. We had, however, this day, a gleam of funfhine, fufficient to determine our latitude, which we found to be 20° 50′ N. and the ship appeared to be fifty minutes north of her reckoning.

The weather now became more moderate; at noon, Wedn. 28. on the 28th, we altered our course, steering S. by W.

at half an hour after one, we faw the Bafhee Iflands bearing from S. by E. to S. S. E, distant about fix leagues. These islands are all high, but the northermost is higher than the reft. By an obfervation made this day, we found Grafton Island to lie in the longitude of 239° W. and in latitude of 21° 4' N. At midnight, the weather being very dark, with fudden gufts of wind, we miffed Edmund Morgan, a marine taylor, whom we fuppofed to have fallen overboard, having reason to fear that he had drank more than his allowance.

From this time, to the 3d of November, we found November, the ship every day from ten to fifteen miles north of Tuesday 3. her reckoning. The day before we had feen feveral gannets; but upon founding many times during the day and the next night, we had no ground within 160 fathoms.

Q 2

1767. fathoms. This morning, at feven o'clock, we saw a November. ledge of breakers bearing S. W. at the distance of about three miles we hauled off from them, and at eleven faw more breakers bearing S. W. by S. diftant about five miles. At noon, we hauled off the east end of them, from which we were not distant more than a quarter of a mile.

The firft fhoal lies in latitude 11° 8' N. longitude, from Bafhee Iflands, 8° W.

The second shoal lies in latitude 10° 46' N. longitude of the N. E. end, from Bafhee Islands, 8° 13′ W.

We saw much foul ground to the S. and S. S. E. but had no bottom with 150 fathoms. Before one, however, we faw fhoal water on the larboard bow, and standing from it, paffed another ledge at two. At three, we Sandy Ifle. faw a low fandy point, which I called SANDY ISLE, bearing N. E. distant about two miles. At five, we Small Key. faw a fmall Island, which I called SMALL KEY, bearing

N. by E. diftant about five miles; and foon after, anLong Island. other larger, which I called LONG ISLAND, beyond it. At fix in the evening, the largest island being distant between two and three leagues, we brought to, and flood off and on from mid-night till break of day, continually founding, but having no ground.

Wednef. 4. At feven in the morning, of Wednesday, the 4th, we New Ifland. faw another island, which I called NEW ISLAND,

bear

ing S. F. by E. and a large reef of rocks bearing S. W. diftant fix miles. At ten, we faw breakers from W. S. W. 10 W. by N. At noon, the north end of the great reef bore S. E. by E. distant two leagues, and another reef bore W. N. W. at about the fame distance. The latitudes and longitudes of these islands and fhoals, appear by the following table :

Soon after we faw another reef in latitude 10° 15',

longitude 2489.

The

November.

Thurfd. 5.

The next day we found the fhip, which had for 1767. fome time been to the northward of her reckoning, eight miles to the fouthward. ...We continued our courfe, often founding, but finding no bottom. On the 7th we paffed through several Saturd. 7. ripplings of a current, and faw great quantities of drift-wood, cocoa-nut leaves, things like cones of firs, and weed, which fwam in a stream N. E. and S. W. We had now foundings and fixty-five fathoms, with brown fand, fmall fhells, and ftones; and at noon, found the fhip again to the northward of her reckoning ten miles, and had decreased our foundings to twenty eight fathoms, with the fame ground. Our latitude was 8° 36' N. longitude 253° W. At two o'clock, we faw the island of Condore, from the mast-head, bearing W. N. At four, we had ground with twenty fathoms; the island bearing from W. to N. W. by W. diftant about thirteen leagues, and having the appearance of high hummocks. The latitude of this ifland is 8° 40' N longitude, by our reckoning, 254° 15's

We now altered our courfe; and the next morning Sunday 8. I took, from the petty officers and feamen, all the log... and journal books relative to the voyage.

A

On the roth, being in latitude 5° 20' N. longitude Tuesday 10. 255° W. we found a current fetting four fathoms an

hour S. by W. and during our courfe to the islands

V

Timoun, Aros, and Befang, which we faw about fix in the afternoon of the 13th, we were every day from Friday 13. ten to twenty miles fouthward of our reckoning,

On the 16th, at ten in the morning, we croffed the Mond. 16. line again into fouth latitude, in longitude 255°; and foon after we faw two iflands, one bearing S. by E. distant five leagues, the other S. by W. diftant feven leagues.

The next morning the weather became very dark Tuefd. 17. and tempestuous, with heavy rain; we therefore clewed all up, and lay by till we could fee about us,: The two iflands proved to be Pulo Toté, and Pulo Weste; and having made fail till one o'clock, we faw the Seven Iflands. We continued our courfe till two the next Wednef. 18. morning, the weather being very dark, with heavy fqualls of wind, and much lightning and rain. While one of these blafts was blowing with all its violence,

and