for the settlement at Port
Jackson.--Departure of the Sirius.--In great danger from a
violent tempest.--Arrives safe at Port Jackson.--Tables of the
winds, weather, variation of the compass,
etc.-

As soon as the ship was anchored, we sent a boat with the
first lieutenant on shore to the island, for such news from
Europe as the commanding officer there might be able to give; I
wished also to know if Governor Van de Graaff was still at the
Cape, and if Colonel Gordon was still commander in chief of the
troops in garrison there.

The officer commanding at the island was exceedingly civil to
the lieutenant who went on shore, and gave him every information
he could; but it was unfortunate that the one could not speak a
word of English, nor the other understand a word of Dutch:
however, it was observed, that he wore a large orange cockade in
his hat, and although he could not converse, he made the officer
sufficiently understand, by broken expressions of half English
and half Dutch, that the English and Dutch were very good friends
again, and that the French had no connection at all with Holland:
from all which I conjectured, that some considerable changes had
taken place in the affairs of the republic, since our departure
from England, and that the Stadtholder had been reinstated in all
his rights.

On hearing what a long voyage we had come, the officer was so
kind as to send a basket of such fruit as his garden afforded;
which, (to make the dejected sick well assured we were really in
port,) were sent down and divided among them, for until then some
of them very much doubted.

In the morning of the 2d of January, with a fine breeze from
the northward, we got under way, and sailed up to Table Bay. I
had generally understood, that the depth of water between this
island and the anchorage in Table Bay, was so very considerable
as to be unsafe for anchorage, in case of being becalmed, or
otherwise not able to reach the proper anchoring ground. I was
the more inclined to believe that to be the case, from never
having seen the soundings laid down in any chart of this bay,
except where ships commonly anchor: I therefore, to ascertain
whether that were the case or not, determined to go up under an
easy sail, and to keep the lead going; the soundings were
regular, and the deepest water was 15 fathoms; the ground was
hard and probably not very clear, but still there is anchorage,
which I did not before know.

At ten o'cloc