CHA P. XIII. The Paffage from Batavia to the Cape of Good Hope: Some Account of Prince's Inland and its Inhabitants, and a comparative View of their Language with the Malay and Javanese. 387 CHAP. XIV. Our Arrival at the Cape of Good Hope; fome Remarks on the Run from Java Head to that Place; a Defcription of the Cape and of Saint Helena: With fome Account of the Hottentots, and the Return of the Ship to England. 405 A Voyage The Run from New Zealand to Botany Bay, on the Eaft Coaft of New Holland, now called New South Wales; various Incidents that happened there; with fome Account of the Country and its Inhabitants. H 1770. March. AVING failed from Cape Farewell, of March 1770, we steered weftward, with a April. Monday 2. In the morning of the 9th, being in latitude Monday 9. 389 29' S. we faw a tropic bird, which in fo high a latitude is very uncommon. In the morning of the 10th, being in latitude Tuesday 10. 38° 51′ S., longitude 202° 43′ W., we found the VOL. IV. B variation, 1770. April. Wednef.11. Friday 13. variation, by the amplitude, to be 11° 25′ E. and by the azimuth 11° 20. In the morning of the 11th, the variation was 13° 48′, which is two degrees and an half more than the day before, though I expected to have found it lefs. In the courfe of the 13th, being in latitude 39° 23′ S., longitude 204° 2′ W., I found the variation to be 12° 27′ E., and in the morning of Saturd. 14. the 14th, it was 11° 30'; this day we also faw Sunday 15. fome flying fish. On the 15th, we saw an egg bird and a gannet, and as these are birds that never go far from the land, we continued to found all night, but had no ground with 130 Monday 16. fathom. At noon on the 16th, we were in latitude 39° 45′ S., longitude 208° W. At about two o'clock the wind came about to the W. S. W. upon which we tacked and stood to the N. W.; foon after, a small land-bird perched upon the rigging, but we had no ground with 120 fathom. At eight we wore and stood to the southward till twelve at night, and then wore and ftood to the N. W. till four in the Tuesday 17. morning, when we again ftood to the fouthward, having a fresh gale at W. S. W. with fqualls and dark weather till nine, when the weather became clear, and there being little wind, we had an opportunity to take several observations of the fun and moon, the mean result of which gave 207° 56′ W. longitude: our latitude at noon 1770. April. noon was 39° 36' S. We had now a hard gale from the southward, and a great fea from the fame quarter, which obliged us to run under Tuesday 17. our fore-fail and mizen all night, during which we founded every two hours, but had no ground with 120 fathom. In the morning of the 18th, we faw two Port Wednes. 18. Egmont hens, and a pintado bird, which are certain figns of approaching land, and indeed by our reckoning we could not be far from it, for our longitude was now one degree to the westward of the east side of Van Diemen's land, according to the longitude laid down by Tafman, whom we could not fuppofe to have erred much in fo fhort a run as from this land to New Zealand, and by our latitude we could not be above fifty or fifty-five leagues from the place whence he took his departure. All this day we had frequent squalls and a great fwell. At one in the morning we brought to and founded, Thurfd. 19. but had no ground with 130 fathom; at fix we faw land extending from N. E. to W. at the diftance of five or fix leagues, having eighty fathom water with a fine fandy bottom. We continued ftanding weftward, with the wind at S. S. W. till eight, when we made all the fail we could, and bore away along the fhore N. E. for the eastermoft land in fight, being at this time in latitude 37° 58′ S., and longitude 210° 39′ W. The fouthermoft point of land in 1770. April. fight, which bore from us W. S., I judged to lie in latitude 38°, longitude 211° 7, and gave it Thurfd. 19. the name of POINT HICKS, becaufe Mr. Hicks, the first lieutenant, was the first who discovered it. To the fouthward of this Point no land was to be feen, though it was very clear in that quarter, and by our longitude, compared with that of Tasman, not as it is laid down in the printed charts, but in the extracts from Tafman's journal, published by Rembrantfe, the body of Van Diemen's land ought to have borne due fouth; and indeed, from the fudden falling of the fea after the wind abated, I had reafon to think it did; yet as I did not fee it, and as I found this coaft trend N. E. and S. W. or rather more to the eastward, I cannot determine whether it joins to Van Diemen's land or not. At noon, we were in latitude 370° 5', longitude 210° 29′ W. The extremes of the land extended from N. W. to E. N. E. and a remarkable point bore N. 20 E. at the distance of about four leagues. This point rises in a round hillock, very much refembling the Ram Head at the entrance of Plymouth Sound, and therefore I called it by the fame name. The varia. tion by an azimuth, taken this morning, was 3° 7′ E.; and what we had now seen of the land, appeared low and level: the fea-fhore was a white fand, but the country within was green and woody. About one o'clock, we faw |