and connected by fand banks and breakers. Thefe iflots
were clothed with wood, among which the cocoa-nut trees
were only diftinguiffiable. We ranged the fouth fide of this
ifle or fhoal a.t the diftance of one or two miles from the
coral bank, againft which the fea broke in a dreadful furf.
In the middle is a large lake or inland fea, in which was a
canoe under fail.
This ifland, which I named after Captain Furneaux, lies in
the latitude 17° 5', longitude 1430 16'Weft. The fituation is
nearly the fame that is afiigned for one of thofe difcovered
by Bougainville. I muft here obferve, that amongft thefe
low and half-drowned iiles (which are numerous in this
part of the ocean) Mr. Bougainville’s difcoveries cannot be
known to. that degree of accuracy which is necefiary to
diftinguifli them from others. We were obliged to have
recourfe to his chart for the latitudes and longitudes of the
files he difcovered, as neither the one nor the other is mentioned
in his narrative. Without waiting to examine this
ifland we continued to fleer to the Weft, ail fails fet, till fix
o’clock in the evening, when we ihortened fail to three top-
fails, and at nine brought to.
Friday 13. The next morning at four A. M. we made fail, and at daybreak
faw another of thefe low iflands, fituated in the latitude
of 170 4', longitude 144° 30' Weft, which obtained the
name of Adventure Ifland. M. de Bougainville very properly
calls this clufter of low overflowed ifles the Dangerous
Archipelago. The fmoothnefs of the fea fufficiently convinced
us that we were furrounded by them, and how
neceflary it was to proceed with the utmoft caution, efpe-
dally in the night.
At
At five o’clock P. M. we again faw land, bearing S. W- ^773-
by S., which we afterwards found to be Chain Ifland, dif- <----
covered in my former voyage. But as I was not fure of it
at this time, and being defirous of avoiding the delay which
lying by in the night occafioned, I hoifted out the cutter and
manned her with an officer and feven men, with orders to
keep as far a-head of the fliips, with a light at her maft-head,
as a fignal could be diftingufihed, which ffie was to make in
cafe Ihe met with any danger. In this manner we continued
to run all night; and, at fix o’clock the next morning, Saturday 14.
I called her on board and hoifted her in. For it did not
appear fhe would be wanted again for this purpofe, as we
had now a large fwell from the South, a fure fign that we
were clear of the low iflands; therefore I fleered for Otaheite
without being apprehenfive of meeting with any danger.
CHAP .