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1768. At this place we breathed a pure air, had wholefome food,
No>em en an(j went freely about the country which is extremely pleafant,
fo that I began to think myfelf already in Europe. We
found the inhabitants open, hofpitable, and polite, there
being fcarcely a Gentleman in the place, either in a public
or private Ration, from whom I did not receive fome civility;
and I fhould very ill deferve the favours they bellowed, i f I
did not particularly mention the Firft and Second Governor,
and the Fifcal.
1769. The recovery o f my people made it neceflary to continue
WedneCti*. here till the 6th of January 1769; in the evening of this day
I fet fail, and beforeit was dark cleared the land.
Wednef. 20. On the 20th, after a fine and pleafant pafiage, we made the
ifland of SaintHelena; and fet fail again on the morning of the
Sunday 24. 24th. At midnight on the 30th, we made the north eall part of
Saturday 30. [f]anci Gf Afcenfion, and brought to till day-light, when we
ran in clofe to it. I fent a boat out to difcover the anchoring-
place which is called Crofs-hill Bay, while we kept running
along the north eaft and north fide o f the ifland, till we
came to the north weft extremity of it, and in the afternoon
anchored in the bay we fought. The way to find this place
at once, is to bring the largeft and molt confpicuous hill
upon the ifland to bear S. E .; when the fhip is in this pofi-
tion, the Bay will be open, right in the middle between two
other hills, the weftermoft of which is called Crofs-hill, and
gives name to the Bay. Upon this hill there is a flag-ftaff,
which i f a fhip brings to bear S. S. E. 4 E. or S. E. by E. and
runs in, keeping it fo till flie is in ten fathom water, Ihe
will be in the bell part o f the Bay. In our run along the
north eaft fide of the ifland, I obferved feveral other fmall
fandy bays, in fome o f which my boat found good anchorage,
age, and faw plenty o f turtle, though they are not fo con- *769.
venient as this, where we had plenty o f turtle too. The ■ ■*3nuarir-.
beach here is a fine white fand; the landing-place is at fome Saturday 3°'
rocks, which lie about the middle o f the Bay, and may be
known by a ladder of ropes which hangs from the top to
mount them by. In the evening I landed a few men to turn
the turtle that Ihould come on Ihore during the night, and
in the morning I found that they had thus fecured no lefs
than eighteen, from four hundred to fix hundred weight
each, and thefe were as many as we could well flow on the
deck. As there are no inhabitants upon this ifland, it is a
cuftom for the Ihips that touch at it to leave a letter in a
bottle, with their names and deftination, the date, and a few
other particulars. We complied with this cuftom, and in
the evening o f Monday the ill o f February, we weighed Monday1?!'
anchor and fet fail.
On Friday the 1 9th, we difcovered a fhip at a confiderable Friday ig .
(Jiflance to leeward in the fouth weft quarter, which hoifted
French colours; fhe continued in fight all day, and the next
morning we perceived that fhe had greatly outfailed us
during the night l i re made a tack however in order to get
farther to windward, and as it is not ufual for Ihips to turn
to windward in thefe parts, it was evident that fhe had
tacked in order to fpeak with us. By noon Ihe was near
enough to hail us, and, to my great furprife, made ufe both
of my name and that of the fhip, enquiring after my health,
and telling me, that after the return of the Dolphin to Europe,
it was believed we had fuffered fhipwreck in the
Streight of Magellan, and that two Ihips had been lent out
in quell o f us. I alked, in my turn, who it was that was fo
well acquainted with me and my fhip, and with the opinions
that had been formed of us in Europe after the return of our
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