'7 9 4 - July. As the day declined with every profpeft of a difmal boifterous night,
the party anxioufly looked out for fome place of Ihelter, and endea-
youred to get rid of the Indians by firing fome mulkets over their heads;
but inftead of this meafure having the defired effeft, it feemed only to
make them more daring, and encouraged them to advance nearer to the
boats. Thus unpleafantly circumftanced,, they continued at their, oars
until ten at night, without having gained more than 4 miles from the
place where they had dined, and without the mod diftant probability of
the Indians taking their leave. Although this branch had every appearance
of being clofed not far a-head, yet as Mr. Whidbey wilhed to afcer-
tain that faff pofitively, the party fleered for the lhore with an intent of
there pafling the night; this the Indians perceived, made the belt o f their
way thither, and got poffeflion of the beach before them, where they drew
up in battle array, with their fpears couched ready to receive our people
on landing. There was now no alternative but. either to force a landing
by firing upon them, or to remain at their oars all night. The latter
Mr. .Whidbey confidered to be not only the moft humane, but the moft
prudent meafure to adopt, concluding that their habitations were not
far diftant, and believing them, from the number of fmokes that had
been feen during the day, to be a very numerous tribe. So. far as the
branch had been difcernible before dark, which was not more .than a
mile wide, there was every reafon to think its termination had been
feen; but Ihould the party have been deceived, it was here infinitely too
rocky and dangerous to be confidered as navigable for (hipping, and for
that reafon unworthy any further examination, at the rifle of a ferious
difpute with thefe troublefome people. Thefe confiderations determined
Mr. Whidbey to return through the channel aboye-mentioned into the
main canal, where about the dawn of day on the igth the boats, arrived
at a point which obtained, the name of P o i n t R e t r e a t ,, fituated in
latitude 58° 24', longitude 225“ 12'. Here they flopped, to take fome
reft, and having breakfafted, Mr. Whidbey, although in fome meafure
departing from the fcrupulous exa&nefs with which our furvey had been
hitherto conduced, became fatisfied that the branch he had thus quitted,
was but barely navigable for boats, and therefore purfued his refearches
about
about lixteen miles, to a point called b y me P o i n t M a r s d e n , along 1794.
the eaftern lhore of the canal, concluding it to be the continent, taking 1_->^1—J
a direction s. g e . ; it is compofed of land, very moderately elevated,
covered with fine timber, chiefly of the pine kind, and terminating at
the water-fide, with alternate fteep rocky cliffs and fmall fandy bays,
with a few detached rocks and iflets lying near it. The wind was ftill
boifterous, with thick, rainy, unpleafant Weather, fo that they could
feldom fee a mile before them; they Were, however, fometimes favored
by a light northerly wind, with which, on the 20th, they advanced about
10 leagues further, ftill finding the eaftern lhore compaft, and the country
of a fimilar defeription to that they had paffed the preceding day.
Here, at a point in latitude $7° ii?'- longitude 205°29', which I called
P o i n t P a r k e r , the par-fy took Up their abode for the night, which
was very rainy ; but in the mofning of the 2.1ft the weather became fair,
and gave them a diftinft view of the furrounding region. It was feen
that they were advancing in a very fpacious ftrait Or channel, to all appearance
free from interruption; its weftern lhore, diftant feven miles,
appeared to confift of an extenfiVe traft o f land, or a large group of
iflands, that feemed to ' form channels, which took a wefterly direftion
towards the ocean; the latter appearing the moft probable; ‘I have honored
this country with thé name of K in g G e o r g e t h e T h i r d ’s
A r c h i p e l a g o .
The flood-tide, although of (hórt duration, not running more than two
hours, had, fince their pafling to the fouth of the fpacious branch, communicating
with Grofs found, been regularly obferved to come from the
fouthward, and ftongly indicated that this channel likewife communicated
with the ocean in a foütheiiy direftion. As the weather was now
favorable to that purfuit they loft no time, but ftill kept along the eaftern
lhore, which, from, point Parker, took a general direction s. 7 e . indented
into feveral fmall bays ; the fliores are low, and at high tide are much
divided by the water. A league to the1 s.e. of point Parker, in one of
thefe bays, is an opening about the eighth part of a mile wide, where
many of the natives in their canoes were affembled, and from the treatment
our party had lately received, it was neceffary that their fire-arms
3 Ihould