of QuirOs, which M. de Bougainville calls the Great Cyclades,
and that thé coafl we were now upon was the Eaft fide of
Aurora Ifland, whofe longitude is 1680 30' Eaft.
The gale kept increafing till we were reduced to our low
fails; fo that, on the 18th, at feven in the morning, I gave
over plying, fet the top-fails double-reefed, bore up for, and
hauled round the North end of Aurora Ifland, and then
ftretched over for the Hie of Lepers, under clofe-reefed top-
fails and courfes, with a very-hard gale at N. E.; but we had-
now the advantage o f a fmooth fea, having the Ifle o f Aurora
to windward. At noon the North end of it bore N. E. a N.,
diftant four leagues ; our latitude, found by double altitudes,,
and reduced to this time, was 15° 1' 30" South, longitude
1680 14' Eaft. At two o’clock P. M. we drew near the middle
of the Ifle of Lepers, and tacked about two miles from land;
in which fituation we had no foundings with a line of
feventy fathoms. We now faw people on the fhore, and
many beautiful cafcades of water pouring down the neighbouring
hills. The next tipic we flood for this ifle, we came
to within half a mile o f it, where we found thirty fathoms, a*
fandy bottom; but a mile off we had no foundings at feventy
fathoms. Here two canoes came off to us, in one of which*
were three men, and in the other but one. Though we made
all the figns of friendlhip, we could not bring them nearer
than a ftone’s-throw; and they made but a fhort flay before
they retired afhore, where we faw a great number of people
affembled in parties, and armed with bows and arrows. They
are of a very dark colour; and, excepting fome ornaments-
at their breaft and arms, feemed to be entirely naked-
As I intended to get to the South, in order to explore the
land which might lie there, we continued to ply between
4 the
the Ifle of Lepers and Aurora; and on the 19th at noon, the y74-
South end of the Jaft-mentioned ifle bore South 24° Eaft, and
the North end North, diftant twenty miles. Latitude ob-
ferved iy° II,• The wind continued to blow ftrong at S. E.,
fo that what we got by plying in the day, we loft in the
night. On the 20th at fun-rife, we found ourfelves off the wednef. 204
South end of Aurora, on the N. W. fide of which, -the coaft
forms a fmall bay. In this we made fome trips to try for
anchorage; but found no lefs than eighty fathoms water,
.the bottom a fine dark fand, at half a mile from fhore. Ne-
verthelefs, I am of opinion that, nearer, there is rnuch lefs
depth, and fecure riding; and in the neighbourhood is plenty
of frefh water and wood for fuel. The whole ifle, from the
fca-fhore to the fummits of the hills, feemed to be covered
with the latter; and every valley produced a fine ftream of
the former. We faw people on the fhore, and fbme canoes
on the coaft, but none came off to us. Leaving the bay juft
mentioned, we ftretched acrofs the channel which divides
Aurora from Whitfuntide Ifland. At noon we were abreaft
of the North end of this latter, which bore E. N- E., and ob-
ferved in 150 28'i . The Ifle of Aurora bore from N. to N. E.
-L E-, and the Ifle of Lepers from N. by W. f W- t0 Weft.
Whitfuntide Ifle appeared joined to the land to the S. and
S. W. o f i t ; but in ftretching to S. W. we difcovered the reparation.
This was about four o’clock P. M., and then we tacked
and ftretched in for the ifland till near fun-fet, when the
wind veering more, to the Eaft made it neceffary to refume
our courfe to the South, We faw people on the fhore,
fmokes in many parts of the ifland, and feveral places
which feemed to be cultivated. About midnight, drawing
-near the South land, we tacked and ftretched to the North,
in order to fpend the remainder of the night.
E 2 At