the brig rejoined; and the wind being at S. by E., we
steered across towards Pine Mount, passing over the shoal in sixteen
feet. In crossing the middle channel, our soundings increased to 9, and
then diminished to less than 3 fathoms upon a second shoal, the width of
the channel here being not quite three miles. On the west side of the
second shoal is another channel, nearly as wide as the former; and the
greatest depth in it, reduced to low water as usual, was 8 fathoms. The
water shoaled again suddenly on approaching the west side of the bay, and
obliged us to veer round off; we then steered to pass within Aken's
Island, intending to anchor in the West Bight behind it; but the depth
not being sufficient for the ship at low water, we came to in 4 fathoms,
muddy bottom, one mile from the shore and two from Aken's Island, the
east end of which bore N. 27 deg. W.

Pine Mount is a single round hill with a high peaked top, standing about
two miles inland from the West Bight; and to obtain a set of bearings
from it which should cross those from Mount Westall, had induced me to
anchor here; but finding my health too much impaired by fatigue to
accomplish a laborious walk, I sent the launch next morning [FRIDAY 3
SEPTEMBER 1802] with the scientific gentlemen, and as an easier task,
landed upon Aken's Island and took angles from the little eminence at its
north-east end.

At every port or bay we entered, more especially after passing Cape
Capricorn, my first object on landing was to examine the refuse thrown up
by the sea. The French navigator, La Perouse, whose unfortunate
situation, if in existence, was always present to my mind, had been
wrecked, as it was thought, somewhere in the neighbourhood of New
Caledonia; and if so, the remnants of his ships were likely to be brought
upon this coast by the trade winds, and might indicate the situation of
the reef or island which had proved fatal to him. With such an
indication, I was led to believe in the possibility of finding the place;
and though the hope of restoring La Perouse or any of his companions to
their country and friends could not, after so many years, be rationally
entertained, yet to gain some certain knowledge of their fate would do
away the pain of suspense; and it might not be too late to retrieve some
documents of their discoveries.

Upon the south-east side of Aken's Island, there was thrown up a confused
mass of different substances; including a quantity of p