O&ober creafed to io fathoms, where conceiving ourfelves in fafety,. we ani
-— < chored for the night, which pafled very uncomfortably, owing to the
violent motion of the velfel, and anxiety for the fafety of the Chatham,
from which a fignal was made at the moment we hauled out of the
breakers, which we were fearful might have been for afiiftance, as the
doling in o f the day prevented our accurately diftinguilhing the colour
o f the flags : but as fhe appeared to be perfectly under command, and as
the rapidity of the tide and the heavy fea rendered any afliftance from
us imprafticable, I was willing to hope the fignal might have been for
the bar, which, at day-light the next morning, was proved to be the
cafe by her being feen riding in perfect fafety, about two miles within the
ftation we had taken.
Saturday 20. The morning was calm and fair, yet the heavy crofs fwell continued,
and within the Chatham the breakers feemed to extend without the leaft
interruption from fhore to Ihore. Anxious however to afcertain this
faft, I fent Lieutenant Swaine, in the cutter, to found between us and
the Chatham, and to acquire fuch information from Mr. Broughton as
he might be able to communicate ; but a frefh eaftwardly breeze prevented
his reaching our confort, and obliged him to return : in confe-
quence of which a fignal was made for the lieutenant of the Chatham,
and was anfwered by Mr. Johnftone, who founded as he came out, but
found no bar, as we had been given to underhand. The bottom was a
dead flat within a quarter of a mile o f our anchorage. From Mr. Johnftone
I received the unpleafant intelligence, that by the violence of the
furf, which, during the preceding night, had broken over the decks of
the Chatham, her fmall boat had been dallied to pieces. Mr. Johnftone
was clearly of opinion, that had the Difcovery anchored where the
Chatham did, lhe muft have ftruek with great violence. Under this
circumftance, we undoubtedly experienced a moft providential efcape in
hauling from the breakers. My former opinion of this port being inac-
ceflible to veflels of our burthen was mow fully confirmed, with this exception,
that in very fine weather, with moderate winds, and a fmooth fea,
veflels not exceeding four hundred tons might, fo far as we were enabled
to judge, gain admittance.. The Daedalus, however, being directed to
fearch for us here, I was induced, to perfevere ; particularly as, towards '792-
. . _ . r ^ Oftober
noon, a thick haze, which-before had in a great degree obfeured the <_
land, cleared away, and the heavy fwell having much fubfided, gave us
a more perfeft view of our fituation, and {hewed this opening in the
coaft to be much more extenfive than I had formerly imagined. Mount
Olympus, the northernmoft land in fight, bore by compafs n . y w . ;
cape Difappointment N. 61 e ., 2 miles, the breakers extending from its
fhore .Si 87 e. about half aleague diftant; thofeon the fouthern or oppo-
fite fide of the entrance into the river s..76 E. : between thefe is the channel
into the. river, where at this time the fea did not break. The coaft
was feen to the fouthward as far as s . 31 e . The obferved latitude 46°
20', which placed cape Difappointment - one mile further north than did
our former obfervations... The flood at one o’clock making in our favor,
we weighed, with a fignal as before for the Chatham to lead.
With boats, ahead founding,. we. made all fail to windward, in 4 to 6
fathoms water. The Chatham being further advanced in the channel,
and having more wind and tide, made a greater .progrefs than the Difcovery.
About three o’clock a gun was fired from behind a point that
projefted from the inner part of cape Difappointment, forming, to all
appearance,-a very fnug co v e ; this was anfwered by the hoifting of the
Chatham’s colours, and firing a gun to leeward, by which we concluded
fome veffel was there at anchor. Soon afterwards foundings were denoted
by the Chatham to be S and 7 fathoms, and at four fhe anchored
apparently in a tolerably fnug birth. Towards fun-fet, the ebb
making ftrongly againft us, with fcarcely fufficient wind to command
the fhip, we were driven out o f the channel into 13 fathoms water, where
we anchored for the night; the ferenity of which flattered us with the
hope o f getting in the next day.
The clearnefs of the atmofphere enabled us to fee the high round
fnowy mountain, noticed when in the fouthern parts of Admiralty inlet,
to the fouthward of mount Rainier ; from this ftation it bore by compafs
N..77 E ., and, like mount Rainier, feemed covered with perpetual fnow,
as,low down as the intervening country permitted it to be feen. This I
have diftinguifhed by the name of M o u n t St , H e l e n s , in honor of