t sweeps round to the South-South-West,
sometimes at the rate of nearly two knots and a half.

Having alluded to the entrance south of King Island in an earlier part of
the work, and as it is a passage I do not recommend, I shall not here
enter into many details respecting it, further than to say that if a ship
is obliged to enter Bass Strait by that entrance, she should keep to the
southward of Reid's Rocks, passing close to the Black Pyramid, a dark
rocky lump, 240 feet high, in latitude 40 degrees 28 minutes South,
longitude 144 degrees 18 1/2 minutes East. This should be made bearing
North-East 3/4 East, which would keep ships clear of the Conway and Bell
sunken rocks, the former and outermost of which lies fifteen miles North
83 degrees West from it. The cross set of the tides should be
particularly borne in mind, and likewise their strength, which is
sometimes 3 knots. The stream to the South-West by South begins at 3 P.M.
on the full and change days, or three hours and a half before high-water.
The depth in the south entrance varies from 35 to 38 fathoms.

I shall perhaps make this note more useful by stating that January and
February are the best months for making a passage to the westward through
Bass Strait; although easterly winds blow on some rare occasions at other
times, but these are mostly gales, and generally terminate in a breeze
from the opposite quarter, having much the character of a rotatory gale,
one of which I have described in an early part of the work. The gales
that chiefly prevail in this Strait begin at North-North-West, and
gradually draw round by West to South-West, at which point they subside;
but if the wind, before it has so much southing, veer again to the
northward of west--or backs, as it is expressed--the gale will continue;
but its duration may be told by the barometer, as it is seldom fine when
it registers less than 29.95, and bad weather is certain if it falls to
29.70.

N.B. The courses recommended in this note are marked in the chart
accompanying the work.)

Our anchorage this time was on the south side of the singular natural
fortification I have before described; and whilst there we were placed in
some anxiety by being caught in a gale from the eastward. The
holding-ground, however, being very good, and a strong outset sweeping
out of the bay round the south side of the head, lessened the strain on
the cables. The sudden appearance of this breeze, and the manner in which