was high water between three and four in the afternoon»,
after which it ebbed all night, and was low water about fits,
in the morning. The water rifes and falls between eight or
nine feet, fometimes more, fometimes lefs ; but I doubt
whether this fludluation is not rather the effedt o f the fea
and land breeze, than of a regular tide. We anchored herewith
our belt bower in twenty-feven fathom water, with a
bottom o f fand and mud; we veered into the cove a cable
and a half from the anchor, moored head and Hern with
the fir earn anchor, and Readied with hawfers on each bow
the fhip then lay in ten fathom, at the diftance o f a cable’s
length from the fhore at the bottom o f the Cove, Wallis’s
Point bearing S. W. i S. diftant about three or four miles.
At this place there is plenty of excellent wood and water,
and good fhingle ballaft. The variation was 6° f E.
SeptemW On Monday the 7th o f September, I weighed anchor, but
Monday 7. before j failed, I took pofleffion o f this country, with all its
illands, bays, ports, and harbours; for his Majelly George
the Third, King o f Great Britain; and we nailed upon a high
tree a piece of board, faced with lead, on which was engraved
the Englilh Union, with the name o f the fhip, and
her commander, the name of the Cove, and the time o f her
coming in and failing out of it. While we lay here, I fent
the boat out to examine the harbours upon the coaft, from
one of which expeditions fhe returned with a load o f cocoa-
nuts, which fhe procured in a fine little harbour, about four
. leagues W.N.W. from the flation we were in. The officer
on board reported that the trees grew where he had gathered
the fruit in great plenty ; but as he had obferved that
feveral of them were marked, and that there were many huts
o f the natives near them, I did not think it proper that the
boat fhould return: but the refi'efhment which now offered
n&j-
AugufL
7 was
was of fuch importance to the lick, that I determined to go ^
into the harbour with the fhip, and place her fo as to pro- »— -v-— i
re6t the men who fhould be employed to fell the trees, and " ay7"
cut off the cabbages and the fruit. We failed from Englilh’
Cove with the land breeze early in the morning, and in the'
evening fecured the fhip a-breaft o f the grove, where the-
eocoa-nuts had been gathered, and at very little diftance'
from the fhore. Here we procured above a thoufand cocoa-
nuts, and as many of the cabbages as we could ufe while’
they were good; and I would have ftaid long enough to have
given my people all the refrelhments they wanted, but the
feafon o f the year made the fhorteft delay dangerous. There’
was too much reafon to fuppofe that the lives of all on board
depended upon our getting to Batavia while the monfoon
continued to blow from the eaftward; there was indeed
time enough for any other fhip to have gone three times*
the diftance, but I knew it was fcarcely fufficient for the1
Swallow in her prefent condition -r and that i f we fhould be'
obliged to continue here another feafon, it would probably
become impoffible to navigate her at all, efpecially as fhe'
had but a Angle fheathing, and her bottom was not filled
with nails, fo that the worms would have eaten through it ;
befides that our provifion would long before that time have
been totally exhaulled. I therefore weighed anchor and
quitted this flation, which was much the befl that had been
our lot during the whole run from the Streight of Magellan,
on the 9th in the morning, at break of day, with a light Wed-er. 9.
breeze from the land.
To this place we gave the name of C a r t e r e t ’ s H a r b o u r ;
it is about W. N. W. four leagues from Englilh Cove, and'
formed by two illands and the main ; the largeft, which is;
tn the N W. we called C o c o a - n u t I s l a n d , and the other, C o c o a - « ,
■ which m,nd’ '