i76?- at about the diftance of two leagues. It appeared to be a
double range of low woody iflands joined together by reefs,
aturday 8. ag . j form one ifland, in the form of an ellipfis or oval,
with a lake in the middle of it. The fmall iflands and reefs
that circumfcribe. the lake have the appearance of a chain,
and we therefore gave it the name of C h a i n I s l a n d . Its
length feemed to be about five leagues, in the direction of
N.W. and S. E. and its breadth about five miles. The trees
upon it appeared to be large, and we faw fmoke rifing in d ifferent
parts of it from among them, a certain fign that it
was inhabited. The middle of it lies in latitude 17° 23' S.
and longitude 1450 54' W. and is diftant from Bird Ifland
forty-five leagues in the direction o f W. by N. The variation
here was, by feveral azimuths, found to be 40 54' E.
Monday I0. On the ioth, having had a tempeftuous night with thunder
and rain, the weather was hazy till about nine o’clock in the
morning, when it cleared up, and we faw the ifland to which
Captain Wallis, who firft difeovered it, gave the name of
Ofnaburgh Ifland, called by the natives Matted, bearing
N.W. by W. diftant about five leagues. It is a high round
ifland, not above a league in circuit; in fome parts it is covered
with trees, and in others a naked rock. In this direction
it looked like a high crown’d hat; but when it bears
North, the top of it has more the appearance of the roof o f
a houfe. We made its latitude to be 170 48'S. its longitude
148° to'W. and its diftance from Chain Ifland 44 leagues, in
the diredtion of W. by S.
C H A P .