>775; to S. S. E., and blew fre fh; with which we flood to the
Janaary.
'— *— >■ N. E.
Saturday 14. At nine o’clock the next morning we faw an ifland of ice,
as we then thought; but at noon were doubtful whether it
was ice or land. At this time it bore E. &S., diftant thirteen
leagues ;, pur latitude was 530 56' f , longitude 39° 24' Weft.;
feveral penguins, fmall divers, a fnow peterel,. and a vaft
number of blue peterels' about the fliip. We had but little
wind all the morning; and at two P. M. it fell calm. It was
now no longer doubted that it was land, and not ice, which
we had in fight. It was, however, in a manner wholly covered
with fnow. We- were farther confirmed in our judg-
ment of its being land, by finding foundings at one hundred
and feventy-five fathoms, a muddy bottom. The land at
this time, bore E. by S., about twelve leagues diftant. At fix
o’clock the calm was fucceeded by a breeze at N. E.,. with
which we flood to S. E. At firft it blew a gentle gale, but a fterwards
increafed fo as to bring us under double-reefed top-
fails, and was attended with fnow and fleet..
Sunday iS'- We continued to ftand to the S. E., till feven in the morning
on the 15th, when the wind veering to the S. E., we
tacked and flood to-the North. A little before we tacked; we
law the land bearing E. by N. At noon the mercury in the
thermometer was. at 35° *. The wind blew in fqualls,. attended
with fnow and fleet, and we had a great fea to encounter.
At a lee-lurch which the fhip took, Mr. Wales ob-
ferved her to lie down 42?,. At half paff four P. M., we took
in the top-fails, got down top-gallant yards, wore the fhip,
and flood to the S. W\, under two courfes. At midnight
the ftorm abated, fo that we could carry the top-fails double
reefed.
At
At four in the morning of the 16th, we wore and flood to
the Eaft, with the wind at S. S. E„ a moderate breeze and fair;
at eight o’clock faw the land extending from E. by N. to N. E.
by N.; loofed a reef out o f each top-fail, got top-gallant yards
acrofs, and fet the fails. At noon obferved in latitude 54°
'25' 4 ; longitude 38° 18' Weft. In this fituation we had one
hundred and ten fathoms w ater; and the land extended from
N. f W. to Eaft, eight leagues diftant. The northern extreme
was the fame that we firfl difcovered, and it proved to be an
ifland which obtained the name of Willis’s Ifland, after the
perfon who firft faw it.
At this time we had a great fwell from the South, an indication
that no land was near us in that direction; neverthe-
lefs the vaft quantity of fnow on that in fight, induced us to
think it was extenfive, and I chofe to begin with exploring
-the northern coaft. With this view we bore up for Willis’s
Ifland, all fails fet, having a fine gale at S. S. W. As we advanced
to the North, we perceived another ifle lying Eaft of
Willis’s, and between it and the main. Seeing there was a
clear pafiage between the two ifles, we fleered for it, and at
five o’clock, being in the middle of it, we found it about two
miles broad.
Willis’s Ifle is an high rock of no great extent, near to
which are fome rocky iflots. It is fituated in the latitude of
540 S., longitude 38° 23' Weft. The other ifle, which obtained
the name of Bird Ifle, on account of the vaft number
that were upon it, is not fo high, but o f greater extent, and is
clofe to the N. E. point o f the main land, which I called Cape
North.