1769. December. CHAP. V. Range from the Bay of Islands round North O' 2 N Thursday the 7th of December, at noon, Cape Bret bore S. S. E. ÷ E. diThurfd. 7. ftant ten miles, and our latitude, by obfervation, was 34° 59' S.; foon after we made feveral obfervations of the fun and moon, the result of which made our longitude 185° 36′ W. The wind being against us, we had made but little way. In the afternoon, we stood in shore, and fetched close under the Cavalles, from which islands the main trends W. by N.: several canoes put off and followed us, but a light breeze springing up, I did not chuse to wait for them. I kept standing to the W. N. W. and N. W. till the next morning ten o'clock, when I tacked and stood in for the fhore, from which we were about five leagues diftant. At noon, the westermost land in fight bore W. by S. and was about four leagues diftant. In the afternoon, we had a gentle breeze to the weft, which in the evening came to the fouth, and continuing fo all night, by day-light brought us pretty well Friday 8. Saturd. 9. in 1769. December. in with the land, feven leagues to the weftward of the Cavalles, where we found a deep bay running in S. W. by W. and W. S. W. the bot- Saturd. 9. tom of which we could but just fee, and there the land appeared to be low and level. To this bay, which I called DOUBTLESS BAY, the entrance is formed by two points, which lie W. N. W. and E. S. E. and are five miles diftant from each other. The wind not permitting us to look in here, we fteered for the weftermoft land in fight, which bore from us W. N. W. about three leagues, but before we got the length of it it fell calm. While we lay becalmed, several canoes came off to us, but the people having heard of our guns, it was not without great difficulty that they were perfuaded to come under our stern: after having bought fome of their cloaths, as well as their fish, we began to make inquiries concerning their country, and learnt, by the help of Tupia, that, at the distance of three days rowing in their canoes, at a place called MOORE-WENNUA, the land would take a short turn to the southward, and from thence extend no more to the weft. This place we concluded to be the land discovered by Tafman, which he called CAPE MARIA VAN DIEMEN, and finding these people fo intelligent, we inquired farther, if they knew of any country befides their own: they answered, that they never had vifited any other, 1769. December. Saturday 9. Sunday 10. other, but that their ancestors had told them, that to the N. W. by N. or N. N. W. there was a country of great extent, called ULIMAROA, to which some people had failed in a very large canoe, that only part of them returned, and reported, that after a paffage of a month they had feen a country where the people eat hogs. Tupia then inquired whether these adventurers brought any hogs with them when they returned? they faid No: then, replied Tupia, your story is certainly falfe, for it cannot be believed that men who came back from an expedition without hogs, had ever vifited a country where hogs were to be procured. It is however remarkable, notwithstanding the fhrewdness of Tupia's objection, that when they mentioned hogs it was not by defcription but by name, calling them Booah, the name which is given them in the South-fea iflands; but if the ani'mal had been wholly unknown to them, and they had had no communication with people to whom it was known, they could not possibly have been acquainted with the name. About ten o'clock at night, a breeze fprung up at W. N. W. with which we stood off north; and at noon the next day, the Cavalles bore S. E. by E. distant eight leagues; the entrance of Doubtless Bay S. by W. diftant three leagues; and the north weft extremity of the land in fight, which we judged to be the main, bore N. W. by 1769. December. by W.: our latitude by observation was 34° Early in the morning, we stood in with the Monday 11. land, seven leagues to the weftward of Doubt lefs Bay, the bottom of which is not far diftant from the bottom of another large bay, which the shore forms at this place, being separated only by a low neck of land, which juts out into a peninsula that I have called KNUCKLE POINT. About the middle of this bay, which we called SANDY BAY, is a high mountain, standing upon a diftant fhore, to which I gave the name of MOUNT CAMEL. The latitude here is 34° 51′ S. and longitude 1869 50. We had twentyfour and twenty-five fathom water, with a good bottom; but there feems to be nothing in this bay that can induce a fhip to put into it; for the land about it is utterly barren and defolate, and, except Mount Camel, the fituation is low: the foil appears to be nothing but white fand, thrown up in low irregular hills and narrow ridges, lying parallel with the fhore. But barren and defolate as this place is, it is not with out inhabitants: we faw one village on the weft fide of Mount Camel, and another on the east fide; we saw also five canoes full of people, who pulled after the ship, but could not come up with us. At nine o'clock, we tacked and stood 1769. December. to the northward; and at noon, the Cavalles' bore S. E. by E. diftant thirteen leagues; the Monday 11. north extremity of the land in fight, making like an island, bore N. W. N. diftant nine L 4 leagues; and Mount Camel bore S. W. by S. distance fix leagues. The wind being contrary, we kept plying Tuesday 12. northward till five o'clock in the evening of the 12th, when, having made very little way, we tacked and stood to the N. E., being two leagues to the northward of Mount Camel, and about a mile and a half from the fhore, in which fituation we had two and twenty fathom water. At ten, it began to blow and rain, which brought us under double reefed topfails; at twelve, we tacked and stood to the weftward Wednef. 13. till seven the next morning, when we tacked and stood again to the N. E. being about a mile to windward of the place where we tacked laft night. Soon after it blew very hard at N. N. W. with heavy squalls and much rain, which brought us under our courfes, and split the maintop-fail; fo that we were obliged to unbend it and bend another: at ten, it became more moderate, and we fet the topfails, double reefed at noon, having ftrong gales and heavy weather, we tacked and ftood to the weftward, and had no land in fight for the first time since we had been upon this coast. We |