and from the south, and even
from the eastward, in the months of June and July; allowances for lee way
were also frequent in that passage, and light winds or calms not
uncommon. The parallel of 42 deg. seems to be a very proper one, when the sun
is in his highest south declination, and from that time until the middle
of February; but in the opposite months of the year, I should prefer to
run down my easting two or three degrees even to the northward of what
was now chosen for the Investigator.

It may not be improper to anticipate upon the voyage so far as to state
what was the result of keeping in the parallel of 37 deg., in the month of
November. From the Cape of Good Hope to the island Amsterdam, the winds
were never so strong as to reduce the Investigator to close-reefed top
sails; and on the other hand, the calms amounted to no more than seven
hours in nineteen days. The average distance on the log board upon direct
courses, for we had no foul winds, was a hundred and forty miles per day;
and the Investigator was not a frigate, but a collier-built ship, and
deeply laden. In the following twelve days run, from Amsterdam to the
south-west cape of New Holland, the same winds attended us; and a hundred
and fifty eight miles per day was the average distance, without lee way
or calm.

THURSDAY 12 NOVEMBER 1801

On the 12th, I took the opportunity of light winds to send down a bucket,
fitted with valves to bring up water from a depth; but having no
thermometer of a proper size to go into the bucket, I could only immerse
one after the water was brought up. In this imperfect way, the
temperature at 150 fathoms depth was found to be 63 deg.,1, differing very
little from that of the water at the surface, which was 63 deg.,8. In the
air, the thermometer stood at 63 deg.,6. The specific gravity of the water
brought up was afterwards tried at King George's Sound, and proved, at
the temperature of 69 deg., to be 1,026, taking that of the crystal-glass
bulb, with which the experiment was made, at 3,150; and the specific
gravity of the surface water, taken up at the same time, was exactly the
same. The latitude of our situation was 36 deg. 36' south, and longitude 38 deg.
23' east. The mean inclination of the dipping needle, placed upon the
cabin table, was 58 deg. 4' of the south end; and the variation, by mean of
azimuths on the preceding evening and amplitude this morning, taken on
the binnacle when the ships head was S. E. by