elm
port, and at the hole abaft in my gallery, about two hours after
midnight, which wet some of our bales of cloth. We were then in lat. 35 deg.
22' S. [I allow thirteen leagues S.S.E. wind E.N.E. and N.E. six leagues
drift S. and three leagues N.E. wind all westerly.[160]] Our too great
quantity of _Kintledge_ goods occasions our ship to labour greatly,
which the company must have special care of on another voyage. The 20th
I carefully aired and dried our cloth, oiled the fire-arms and sword
blades belonging to the company, strengthened the packing cases, &c.
This afternoon, contrary to expectation, and to the astonishment of all
our mariners, we saw land bearing N.N.W. about twelve leagues off, being
in the lat. of 34 deg. S. If I had not had dear experience of the strong
westerly current in my last voyage, I likewise had admired this; yet I
am more westerly in my reckoning than any, having doubted the currents
for causes before noted; being by reckoning 100 leagues more easterly
than the sight of land warranted.

[Footnote 159: This unusual expression, and others similar, as
west-northerly, east-southerly, and east-northerly, which frequently
occur in this voyage, are most probably the same with the usual
expressions of west by south, west by north, east by south, and east by
north.--E.]

[Footnote 160: These observations within brackets are unintelligible:
Probably notes in the log-book, for being attended to in calculating the
ship's day's work; and either left unexplained as a species of
short-hand writing of Keeling, or rendered unintelligible by the
ignorant abbreviation of Purchas. Such often occur in this article of
the Pilgrims; but, except in this instance, as an example, we have
omitted such useless unintelligibilities.--E.]

The 17th of February we saw land, bearing E. about eight leagues from
us, and, as I judged, in lat. 24 deg. 20' S. About noon we were athwart two
small islands, which seemed to make a good road; but not being sure of
our latitude, we stood off and on till high noon, when we might take an
observation, having no ground with 60 fathoms line within two miles of
the shore. The 18th, in lat. 23 deg. 37' we anchored in 71/2 fathoms sandy
ground, the two islands bearing S.W. one mile distant. There was an
island E. by N. from us about three leagues off, which the master
supposed to be St Augustine, for which we proposed to search. The
variation here was 15 deg. 30'. The 19th we weighed in