bore up, and steered between the westernmost islet and two extensive
reefs, through a passage five or six miles wide, that appeared to be
clear.

The westernmost islet is in 17 degrees 42 minutes South, and 150 degrees
43 minutes East (148 degrees 23 minutes East of Paris) and the
westernmost reef, in 17 degrees 44 minutes South, and 150 degrees 32
minutes East (148 degrees 12 minutes East of Paris). A space of ten or
twelve leagues between Governor Farquhar's Group and that seen the
preceding day was passed in the night, and probably may contain other
reefs. The last group was named TREGROSSE'S ISLETS.

NORTH COAST.

The ALERT struck on a shoal to the westward of Torres Strait in 1817; it
seemed to be about two hundred fathoms in length, and about fifty yards
broad: it is in latitude 9 degrees 52 minutes, and longitude 140 degrees
50 minutes.

In the vicinity of Cape Van Diemen there are many submarine coral banks,
that are not yet shoal enough to be called reefs; that which Captain
Flinders saw, and sounded upon in seven fathoms, lies in 9 degrees 56
minutes latitude, and 129 degrees 28 minutes longitude. The Alert also
passed over a shoal patch with nine fathoms in 10 degrees 1 minute South,
and 129 degrees 8 minutes East.

NORTH-WEST COAST.

SAHUL BANK is but very imperfectly known, and its extent by no means so
large as is laid down upon the chart. In that interval, however, there
are probably many reefs, which have been occasionally seen. Captain
Heywood saw a dry part in latitude 11 degrees 35 minutes and longitude
124 degrees 10 minutes, and there are shoal soundings in crossing it on
the following parts, namely:

COLUMN 1: SOUNDINGS OVER CORAL REEF IN FATHOMS.
COLUMN 2: LATITUDE.
COLUMN 3: LONGITUDE.

12 : 11 degrees 21 minutes : 125 degrees 23 minutes.
16 : 11 degrees 10 minutes : 125 degrees 27 minutes.
12 : 11 degrees 7 minutes : 125 degrees 30 minutes.
15 : 10 degrees 57 minutes : 125 degrees 34 minutes.

All of which are detached and separated by deep water. (See Horsburgh
volume 1 page 103.)

CARTIER ISLAND, seen in 1800 by the ship Cartier, is a dry sand bank
surrounded by a shoal extending for four miles to the northward. It is in
12 degrees 29 minutes South, and 123 degrees 56 minutes East, by
chronometer.

Captain Heywood in 1801 saw the following reefs. The centre of one in
latitude 12 degrees 48 minutes, and longitude 124 degrees 25 minutes; and
the other in 13 degrees 29 minutes,