he Spaniards and the Dutch had circumnavigated that
island.

"I always understood, before I had a sight of these maps, that it was
unknown whether or no New Holland and New Guinea was one continued land,
and so it is said in the very History of Voyages these maps are bound up
in. However, we have now put this wholly out of dispute; but as I believe
it was known before, but not publickly, I claim no other merit than the
clearing up of a doubtful point."

With this question of New Guinea and New Holland in view, he again made
to the west, sighting the Barrier again on 15th August, and on the
following morning, the wind having changed in the night, the breakers
were heard very distinctly. The lead gave no bottom at 140 fathoms, but
at daybreak the reef was not a mile away, and they found themselves in a
dead calm, rapidly drifting with the current towards the breakers. The
yawl and long-boat were got out, the pinnace being under repair, and the
sweeps were used from the gun-room ports. By six o'clock she was heading
north again, but:

"not above 80 or 100 yards from the breakers. The same sea that washed
the side of the ship rose in a breaker prodigiously high the very next
time it did rise, so that between us and destruction was only a dismal
valley, the breadth of one wave, and even now no ground could be felt
with 120 fathoms."

A PERILOUS POSITION.

The carpenter had by this time fastened a temporary streak on the
pinnace, and it was sent off to assist in towing. Cook had almost given
up hope, but he says:

"In this truly terrible situation, not one man ceased to do his utmost,
and that with as much calmness as if no danger had been near."

Admiral Wharton draws special attention to the fact that in the very
height of the danger, Green, Charles Clerke, and Forwood, the gunner,
were engaged in taking a Lunar for the longitude. Green notes:

"These observations were very good, the limbs of the sun and moon very
distinct, and a good horizon. We were about 100 yards from the reef,
where we expected the ship to strike every minute, it being calm, no
soundings, and the swell heaving us right on."

When things seemed perfectly hopeless, a small breath of air, "so small
that at any other time in a calm we should not have observed it," came,
and every advantage being taken, the distance from the reef was slightly
increased, but then again it fell calm. A small opening of the reef was
seen and an attempt was made to p