1766. word from another. When I again intimated that it was
•December,^ for him to go into the boat, he pointed to the fun,
w-ednef. 17. and then moving his hand round to the weft, he paufed,
looked in my face, laughed, and pointed to the fhore: by
this it was eafy to underftand that he wifhed to ftay on board
till fun-fet, and I took no little pains to convince him that
we could not ftay fo long upon that part o f the coaft, before
he could be prevailed upon to go into the boat; at length
however he went over the fhip’s fide with his companion,
and when the boat put off they all began to fing, and continued
their merriment till they got on Ihore. When they
landed, great numbers o f thofe on fhore preffed eagerly to
get into the boat; but the officer oh board, having pofitive
orders to bring none of them off, prevented them, though
not without great difficulty, and apparently to their extream
mortification and difappointment.
When the boat returned on board, I fent her off agaiih
with the mafter, to found the ffioal that runs off from the
point: he found it about three miles broad from north to
fouth, and that to avoid it, it was neceffary to keep four
miles off the Cape, in twelve or thirteen fathom water.
c h a p , m
“The Pajfage through the Streight of Magellan, with fame
further Account of the Patagonians, and a Defcription
o f the Coaft on each Side, and its Inhabitants.
A BO U T one o’clock, onWednefday the 17th of Decern- ,-5 5 ,
ber, I made the fignal and weighed, ordering the ,December-.
Swallow to go a-head, and the ftore-fhip to bring up the Wednef- '7«
rear. The wind was right againft us, and blew frefh, fo that
we were obliged to turn into the Streight o f Magellan with
the flood-tide, between Cape Virgin Mary and the Sandy
Point that refembles Dungenefs. When we got a-breaft of
this Point, we flood clofe into the fhore, where we faw two
guanicoes, and many o f the natives on horfeback, who
feemed to be in purfuit o f them: when the horfemen came
near, they ran up the country at a great rate, and were pur-
fued by the hunters, with their flings in their hands ready
for the caft ; but neither of them was taken while they were
within the reach o f our fight;
When we got about two leagues to the weft of Dungenefs,
and were Handing off fhore, we fell in with a ffioal upon J
which we had but feven fathom water at half flood: this
obliged us to make ffiort tacks, and keep continually heaving
the lead. At half an hour after eight in the evening,,
we anchored about three miles from the fhore, in ao fathom,
with a muddy bottom: Cape Virgin Mary then bear--
ing N. E. by E; i E.; Point Poflefiion W. i S. at the diftance
of about five leagues..
About £