1767. many times to let fly our top-fail flieets, though the fails
. May~ were clofe reefed; and I think it is impoilible to work a fliip
Sunday 10. jntQ this bay when the wind blows hard from the fouth-
ward. As we flood crofs the bay to the weftward, one of
the boats put off from thelhore, and-rowed towards us; but
perceiving that the gufts, or flaws, made us lie at a con-
fiderable diftance from the land, flie went in again. We
then opened Weft Bay, on the eaft part of which, clofe to the
fea fide, is a fmall houfe, which I took for a guard-houfe,
and two pieces o f cannon mounted upon their carriages,
without any works about them. We now wore, and flood
again for Cumberland Bay, but as foon as we opened it, the
boat again put off, and made towards us ; as the hard gufts
would not permit us to come any nearer to the land than
before, we flood along it to the eaftward, the boat fiill
making after us till fhe was very far out o f the bay,: at
length it grew dark, and we loft fight o f her, upon which
we made all the fail we could to the eaftward.
During all this time I hoifted no colours, having none but
Englilh on board, which at this time I did not think it proper
to fhew.
As I was difappointed o f wood and water at this place,
and of the refrelhments, of which, after the dangers and
fatigue of our voyage through the Streight, and our paflage
from it, we flood in the moft prefling need, I made all the
TwHay 12. fa d '% could for the ifland of Mafafuero. On the 12th of May
we arrived off the fouth eaftermoft part of it, but it blowing
hard, with a great fea, we did not dare to come near it on
this fide, and therefore went round to the weft fide, where,
in the evening, we caft anchor upon an excellent bank, fit
to receive a fleet of ihips, which, in the fummer, might, ride
here with great advantage. 1 fent out both the boats to en-
9 deavQur
deavour to get fome water, but they found it impoflible to 1767.
land, for the beach is rocky, and the furf at this time was < >
fo great,, that the fwimmers could not get through the l2*
breakers: this was tire more mortifying,- as we faw a fine
run o f frefh water from the fliip, with plenty of trees fit for
fire-wood, and a! .great number o f goats upon the hills.
The next morning,- as foon as it was light, I fent the boats wedaeCij.
out again, to examine any place where they could get on
fliore. They returned with a few calks o f water, which
they had filled at a fmall rill, and reported, that the wind
being at S;E: blew fo ftrong on the-eaft fide of the ifland,
and raifed fo great a fea, that they could not come near the
fliore.
We continued here till the 15th, at day-break, and then,
the weather becoming more moderate, we weighed, and in
the evening, juft at fun-fet, we anchored on the eaft fide of
the ifland, iii the fame place where Commodore Byron had
anchored about two years before. We loft no time, but
immediately got off fifteen calks of water, and fent a number
of men on fliore with others, that were empty, to be
filled againft the next morning, and a ftrong party to cut
wood: but it happened that about two o’clock in the morning
a hard gale of wind came on from the N. W. with violent
gufts from the Ihore, which drove us off the bank, though
we had two anchors a-head, which were in the utmoft
danger of being loft; we got them up, however, with great
difficulty, and immediately fet the fails, and worked under
the lee of the ifland, keeping as near the fliore as we could;
the weather foon afterwards became more moderate, fo that
we could carry double reefed top-fails ; we had alfo very
fmooth water, yet we could not make the fliip tack, and
were forced to wear her every time we wanted to go about.
Friday 15.
Saturday 16,
T t 2 At