1777. T h e wind was fixed in the Weftern board ; that is, from
. Augalt- ■ the North, round by the Weft to South, and I fleered Eaft
North Eaft, and North Eaft, without meeting w ith any thing
Fridays. remarkable, till eleven o’c lock in the .morning o f
o f A uguft, w hen land was fe e n .b e a r in g North North Balt,
nine or ten leagues diftant. At firft, it appeared in detached
h ills, like fo many feparate iflands ; but, as we drew nearer,
w e found, that they were all connetfted, and belonged to
one and th e fam e ’ illand. I fleered diredlly for it, w ith a
fine g a le at South Eaft by South| and, at h a lf paft fix o’clock,
in the afternoon, it extended from North b y Eaft, to North
North Eaft 9 Eaft, diftant three or four leagues.
T h e night was. fpent Handing o ff and on ; and, at day-
Satorday g. b r e a k , the next morning, 1 fteered for the North Weft, o r
lee fide, o f the illand;. and, as we flood round its South or
South Weft part, w e faw it every where guarded by a
re e f o f coral rock, extending, in fome places, a fu ll mile
from the land, and a h ig h fu r f breaking upon it. Sòme
thought that they faw land io the-Southward o f this ifland V
hut, as that was to the windward, it was left undetermined.
As w e drew near, w e faw people on feveral parts o f the
eoaft, w a lk in g , Or running- a long Ihore; and; in a little
time, after we had reached the lee-fide o f the illand,-we
faw them launch two canoes, into w hich above a dozen,
men got, and paddled toward u s .
I now Shortened fail, as w e ll to giv e thefe canoes time to-
come up with us, as to found for anchprage. At the diftance
o f about h a lf a mile from the reef, we found from forty
to thirty-five fathoms water, over a bottom of. fine fand.
Nearer in, the bottom was ftrewed with coral rocks. T h e
canoes ha vin g advanced to about the diftance o f a piftol