it
would be safer to call at the French colony than at the Cape, since he
had a passport from the French Government, but not from the Dutch, who
would probably be involved in hostilities against England. He did not
forget that the passport was made out for the Investigator, not for the
Cumberland. "But I checked my suspicions by considering that the passport
was certainly intended to protect the voyage and not the Investigator
only. A description of the Investigator was indeed given in it, but the
intention of it could be only to prevent imposition. The Cumberland was
now prosecuting the voyage, and I had come in her for a lawful purpose,
and upon such an occasion as the passport allowed me to put into a French
port. The great desire also that the French nation has long shown to
promote geographical researches, and the friendly treatment that the
Geographe and the Naturaliste had received at Port Jackson, rose up
before me as guarantees that I should not be impeded, but should receive
the kindest welcome and every assistance."* (* Flinders to Fleurieu; copy
in Record Office, London. An entry in his Journal shows that only when he
was informed that the war had been renewed did it occur to Flinders that
the French authorities would interpret literally the fact that the
passport was granted to the Investigator.)

He had no chart of Ile-de-France, but a description in the third edition
of the Encyclopaedia Britannica informed him that the principal harbour,
Port Louis, was on the north-west side, and thither he intended to steer.

On December 15th the peaks of the island showed up against the morning
sky. At noon the Cumberland was running along the shore, close enough to
be observed, and made a signal for a pilot from the fore-topmast head. A
small French schooner came out of a cove, and Flinders, wishing to speak
with her to make enquiries, followed her. She ran on, and entered a port,
which proved to be Baye du Cap (now Cape Bay) on the south-west coast.
Flinders steered in her wake, thinking that she was piloting him to
safety. The truth was that the French on board thought they were being
pursued by an English fighting ship, which meant to attack them; and
immediately they came to anchor, without even waiting to furl sails, they
hurried ashore in a canoe and reported accordingly. Thus from the very
beginning of his appearance at Ile-de-France, was suspicion cast on
Flinders. So began his years of sore trouble.

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