>766. Ifland and Green Point, and worked into Table Bay with
February- ( Qur t0p_fails ci0fe reefed, there being a flrong gale, with
Thurfdayij. ]lard fqualls at S. S. E. At three o'clock in the afternoon,
we anchored, and fainted the fort, which was returned.
The Dutch told me, that none of their fhips could have
worked in in fuch a gale o f wind, and that we feemed to
come in fatter than they were generally able to do when the
. wind was fair.
Friday J4- The next morning, I waited upon the Governor, who had
fent his coach and fix to the water-fide for me. He is an old
man, but is a favourite with all ranks of people 5 he received
•me with the greateft politenefs, and not only offered me the
Company’s houfe in the garden for my refidence'while I
fhould continue at the Cape, but his coach whenever I
fhould think fit to ufe it. As I was one day at dinner with
him, and florae other gentlemen, I took occafion to mention
the fmoke that I had feen upon one of the fandy beaches on
a defolate part o f the coaft, and the furprife with which it
had (truck m e : they then told me that another {hip, fome
time before, had fallen in with that part of the coaft, and
had feen large fmokes as I had done, although the place was
uninhabited, and fuppofed to be an ifland : to account for
•the fmokes, however, they told me alfo, that two Dutch Eaft
Indiamen had, about two years before, failed from Batavia
for the Cape, and had never afterwards been heard of; and
it was fuppofed that one or both o f them had been {hip-
wrecked there, and that the fmokes which had been feen,
were made by fome o f the unfortunate c rew: they added,
that they had more than once fent out velfels to look for
them, but that there broke fo dreadful a fea upon the coaft,
■ they were obliged to return without attempting to go on
9 Ihore.
R O U N D T H E W O R L D .
jfF
Ihore. When I heard this melancholy account,, I could only
regret that I had not known it before, for I would then certainly
have made every effort in my power to have found
thefe unhappy wretches, and taken them from a place where
now, in all probability, they muft miferably perifh.
The Cape is certainly a moft excellent place for {hips to
touch at; ; it is a healthy climate, a fine country, and
abounds with refrefhments o f every kind. The Company’s
garden is \a delightful fpot, and at the end of it there is a
paddock belonging to the Governor, in which are kept a
great number o f rare and curious animals, and among
others, when I was there, were three fine oftriches, and four
zebras of an uncommon fize. I gave all the people leave to
go on Ihore by turns, and they always contrived to get very
drunk with Cape wine before they came back. Many {hips
came in while we lay he re ; fome were Dutch, fome French,
fome Danes, but all were outward bound.
Having continued here three weeks, and during that time
refrefhed our men, and completed our water, I took leave o f
the good old Governor on the 6th o f March, and on the 7th,
failed out of the bay, with a fine breeze at S. E.
On Sunday the 16th, at fix in the morning, we faw the
ifland of Saint Helena, bearing W. by N at the diftance of
about fixteen leagues, and about noon, a large lhip, which
{hewed French colours. We purfued our courfe, and a few
days afterwards, as we were failing with a fine gale, and at
a great difiahcg from land, the lhip fuddenly received a rude
fhock, as if file had ftruck the ground: this inftantly
brought all who were below upon tire deck in great con-
fternation, and upon looking out we faw the water to a
very large extent, tinged with blood; this put an end to our
V ol . I. T fears,
I766.
February,
March-
Thurfday 6.
Friday 7.
Sunday 16,