good polish, and neatly executed. Some of them had a hand or a foot,
carved at the extremity of the handles, very well finished. 'I hey are
abont five feet and a half in length, including two feet eight inches of
blade, which is about a foot in width, curved, and furnished with a
small point or nail at the extremity. In shallow water they make use
of long poles for punting, in preference to their paddles.
CHAPTER VII.
Jan.
18 26.
Q u it Gambler Islands— Visit L o rd Flood’s I s l a n d — W a te r -S p o u t^C le rm o n t T o n n e r e -D e scription
of tlie Islan d and Natives, Canoe, &c.— Serle Island— W h itsu n d a y I s l a n d -
Lagoon Island— T h rum Cap Is lan d—E gm o n t Island— Discover Barrow Island; De scription
of It— Carysfort Island— Discover Cockburn Is lan d—Osnaburgh Island— F in d the
W r e c k of th e M a t i ld a -B l ig h ’s Lagoon Island— Discovery of Byam Martin Island—
M e e t a P a rty of Chain Islanders th e re—M y s te ry attached to th e ir H is to ry— T a k e two
of them on board the Ship— Glouce ste r Island— See Bow Island.
On the morning of the 13th of January we weighed from Gambier cHAP
Islands, and deepened the water so much that, after quitting our ’I “ -
anchorage, we could get no soundings with the hand-lines until near
the bar, which was plainly distinguished by its colour long before we
came upon it. There was not less than seven fathoms where we
passed, and yet the sea, which rolled in heavily from the S. V"., all
but broke, notwithstanding the wind had been blowing strong in the
opposite direction for a week before. This effect of the prevalent southwesterly
gales in the high latitudes, which is felt many hundred miles
from the place whence it proceeds, occasions a material obstacle to
landing npon the low islands, by rolling in upon the shore, in an opposite
direction to the trade wind, and thereby making it more dangerous
to land on the lee-side of the island than on the other. In the Gambier
groupe there are several small sandy islands at the S. YV. extremity of
the chain that surrounds it, over which the sea broke so heavily that
they were entirely lost amidst the foam. I named them YVolfe Islands,
after Mr. James YVolfe, one of the midshipmen of the ship. YY"e passed
them tolerably close, admiring the grand scene which they presented, and
then stood on a northerly course with the intention of visiting Lord
Hood’s Island. a