se that we had seen before. At six o'clock in
the evening, we were nearly the length of the north end of the passage;
the north-westermost point of the main in sight bore N. 54.W., and the
north end of the island N.N.E. with an open sea between the two points.
As this passage was discovered on Whitsunday, I called it _Whitsunday's
Passage_, and I called the islands that form it _Cumberland Islands_, in
honour of his Royal Highness the Duke. We kept under an easy sail, with
the lead going all night, being at the distance of about three leagues
from the shore, and having from twenty-one to twenty-three fathom water.
At daybreak, we were abreast of the point which had been the farthest in
sight to the north-west the evening before, which I named _Cape
Gloucester_. It is a lofty promontory, in latitude 19 deg. 59'S., longitude
211 deg. 49' W. and may be known by an island which lies out at sea N. by W.
1/2 W. at the distance of five or six leagues from it, and which I
called _Holborne Isle_; there are also islands lying under the land
between Holborne Isle and Whitsunday's Passage. On the west side of Cape
Gloucester the land trends away S.W. and S.S.W. and forms a deep bay,
the bottom of which I could but just see from the mast-head: It is very
low, and a continuation of the low land which we had seen at the bottom
of Repulse Bay. This bay I called _Edgecumbe Bay_, but without staying,
to look into it, we continued our course to the westward, for the
farthest land we could see in that direction, which bore W. by N. 1/2 N.
and appeared very high. At noon, we were about three leagues from the
shore, by observation in latitude 19 deg. 47' S., and Cape Gloucester bore
S. 63 E. distant seven leagues and a half. At six in the evening, we
were abreast of the westermost point just mentioned, at about three
miles distance, and because it rises abruptly from the low lands which
surround it, I called it _Cape Upstart_. It lies in latitude 19 deg. 39' S.,
longitude 212 deg. 32' W., fourteen leagues W.N.W. from Cape Gloucester, and
is of a height sufficient to be seen at the distance of twelve leagues:
Inland there are some high hills or mountains, which, like the Cape,
afford but a barren prospect. Having passed this Cape, we continued
standing to the W.N.W. as the land lay, under an easy sail, having from
sixteen to ten fathom, till two o'clock in the morning, when we fell
into seven fathom; upon which we hauled our wind to the northwar