horage against the approaching night. Many patches of breakers were
passed; and seeing a small bay in the north side of Middle Island, we
stood in for it under shortened sail, and came to an anchor in 7 fathoms,
sandy bottom, off the first of three small beaches. The island sheltered
us from east-north-east, round by the south to west-by-north; and to the
northward there was, besides the main land, a number of reefs and small
isles, of which the nearest and largest was a quarter of a mile distant,
as Middle Island was on the other side. The master was immediately sent
to examine the passage through to the eastward, that we might know
whether there were a possibility of escape in case the anchor should not
hold; for the wind blew fresh at west-south-west, and threw some swell
into the bay; he found 3 fathoms in the shallow part of the opening.

FRIDAY 15 JANUARY 1802

The botanists landed in the morning upon Middle Island; for I had
determined to stop a day or two, as well for their accommodation as to
improve my chart of the archipelago. I went to the northern island, which
is one mile long and near half a mile in breadth, and found it to be
covered with tufts of wiry grass intermixed with a few shrubs. Some of
the little, blue penguins, like those of Bass Strait, harboured under the
bushes; and amongst the grass and upon the shores were a number of the
bernacle geese, of which we killed nine, mostly with sticks; and sixteen
more were procured in the course of the day.

After taking bearings from the uppermost of the small elevations of GOOSE
ISLAND, as it was now named, I ascended the high north-western hill of
Middle Island, which afforded a more extensive view. The furthest visible
part of the main land was a projecting cape, with a broad-topped hill
upon it bearing N. 58 deg. E., six or seven leagues. This projection not
having been seen by D'Entrecasteaux, was named after the late admiral Sir
Thomas Pasley, under whom I had the honour of entering the naval service.
The shore betwixt Cape Pasley and Cape Arid is low and sandy, and falls
back in a large bight, nearly similar to what is formed on the west side
of Cape Arid. Behind that cape was a high bank of sand, which stretched
from one bight nearly to the other, and had the appearance of having been
the sea shore not very long since.

(Atlas, Plate XVII. View 5.*)

[* This view was taken in the following year, at five leagues distant
from Middle Island, but it