leagues to the S.E. the shore forms a bay, in the bottom of which there
appeared to be an inlet or harbour. To the westward of the Cape the land
trends S.W. 1/2 S. and there forms a very large bay which turns to the
eastward, and probably communicates with the inlet, and makes the land
of the Cape an island. As soon as we got round this cape, we hauled our
wind to the westward, in order to get within the islands, which lie
scattered in the bay in great numbers, and extend out to sea as far as
the eye could reach, even from the mast-head: These islands vary both in
height and circuit from each other, so that although they are very
numerous, no two of them are alike. We had not stood long upon a wind
before we came into shoal water, and were obliged to tack at once to
avoid it. Having sent a boat a-head, I bore away W. by N. many small
islands, rocks, and shoals lying between us and the main, and many of a
larger extent without us; our soundings till near noon were from
fourteen to seventeen fathom, when the boat made the signal for meeting
with shoal water; upon this we hauled close upon a wind to the eastward,
but suddenly fell into three-fathom and a quarter; we immediately
dropped an anchor, which brought the ship up with all her sails
standing. When the ship was brought up we had four fathom, with a
coarse sandy bottom, and found a strong tide setting to the N.W. by W.
1/2 W. at the rate of near three miles an hour, by which we were so
suddenly carried upon the shoal. Our latitude, by observation, was 22 deg.
8' S. Cape Townshend bore E. 16 S. distant thirteen miles; and the
westermost part of the main in sight W. 3/4 N. At this time a great
number of islands lay all round us.

In the afternoon, having sounded round the ship, and found that there
was water sufficient to carry her over the shoal, we weighed, and about
three o'clock made sail and stood to the westward, as the land lay,
having sent a boat a-head to sound. At six in the evening we anchored in
ten fathom, with a sandy bottom, at about two miles distance from the
main; the westermost part of which bore W.N.W. and a great number of
islands, lying along way without us, were still in sight.

At five o'clock the next morning, I sent away the master with two boats
to sound the entrance of an inlet which bore from us west, at about the
distance of a league, into which I intended to go with the ship, that I
might wait a few days till the moon should increase, an