ur water again, and had all night
from fifteen to twenty fathom.

The 28th day we had between twenty and forty fathom. We saw no land this
day, but saw a great many snakes and some whales. We saw also some
boobies and noddy-birds, and in the night caught one of these last. It
was of another shape and colour than any I had seen before. It had a
small long bill, as all of them have, flat feet like ducks' feet, its
tail forked like a swallow, but longer and broader, and the fork deeper
than that of the swallow, with very long wings; the top or crown of the
head of this noddy was coal-black, having also small black streaks round
about and close to the eyes; and round these streaks on each side, a
pretty broad white circle. The breast, belly, and under part of the
wings of this noddy were white, and the back and upper part of its wings
of a faint black or smoke colour. Noddies are seen in most places
between the tropics, as well in the East Indies and on the coast of
Brazil, as in the West Indies. They rest ashore at night, and therefore
we never see them far at sea, not above twenty or thirty leagues, unless
driven off in a storm. When they come about a ship they commonly perch
in the night, and will sit still till they are taken by the seamen. They
build on cliffs against the sea, or rocks.

The 30th day, being in latitude 18 degrees 21 minutes, we made the land
again, and saw many great smokes near the shore; and having fair weather
and moderate breezes, I steered in towards it. At four in the afternoon
I anchored in eight fathom water, clear sand, about three leagues and a
half from the shore. I presently sent my boat to sound nearer in, and
they found ten fathom about a mile farther in, and from thence still
farther in the water decreased gradually to nine, eight, seven, and at
two miles distance to six fathom. This evening we saw an eclipse of the
moon, but it was abating before the moon appeared to us; for the horizon
was very hazy, so that we could not see the moon till she had been half
an hour above the horizon; and at two hours twenty-two minutes after
sunset, by the reckoning of our glasses, the eclipse was quite gone,
which was not of many digits. The moon's centre was then 33 degrees 40
minutes high.

The 31st of August, betimes in the morning, I went ashore with ten or
eleven men to search for water. We went armed with muskets and cutlasses
for our defence, expecting to see people there, and ca