d on; for no
bottom was to be found to anchor upon, which was not of much
consequence, as the party who had landed from our boats were the only
human beings upon the island.

About one o'clock one of the boats came on board, laden with
scurvy-grass and young cocoa-nut trees, which, at this time, was a feast
for the cattle. The same boat brought a message from Mr Gore, who
commanded the party, informing me that there was plenty of such produce
upon the island, as also of the wharra tree, and some cocoa-nuts. This
determined me to get a good supply of these articles before I quitted
this station, and, before evening, I went ashore in a small boat,
accompanied by Captain Clerke.

We found every body hard at work, and the landing place to be in a small
creek, formed by the reef, of something more than a boat's length in
every direction, and covered from the force of the sea by rocks
projecting out on each side of it. The island is scarcely a mile in
circuit, and not above three feet higher than the level of the sea. It
appeared to be composed entirely of a coral sand, with a small mixture
of blackish mould, produced from rotten vegetables. Notwithstanding this
poor soil, it is covered with trees and bushes of the same kind as at
Wanooa-ette, though with less variety; and amongst these are some cocoa
palms. Upon the trees or bushes that front the sea, or even farther in,
we found a great number of men-of-war birds, tropic birds, and two sorts
of boobies, which at this time were laying their eggs, and so tame, that
they suffered us to take them off with our hands. Their nests were only
a few sticks loosely put together; and the tropic birds laid their eggs
on the ground, under the trees. These differ much from the common sort,
being entirely of a most splendid white, slightly tinged with red, and
having the two long tail-feathers of a deep crimson or blood colour. Of
each sort our people killed a considerable number; and, though not the
most delicate food, they were acceptable enough to us who had been long
confined to a salt diet, and who, consequently, could not but be glad of
the most indifferent variety. We met with vast numbers of red crabs,
creeping about every where amongst the trees; and we caught several
fish that had been left in holes upon the reef when the sea retired.

At one part of the reef, which looks into, or bounds, the lake that is
within, there was a large bed of coral, almost even with the surface,
wh