On the loth, we continued our courfe to the north-well; and, about nine
o’clock in the morning, we failed down a reef of coral-rocks. Our water Ihoaled
very foon, from twenty-one to eight fathoms; which alarmed us very much :
every countenance exprefled furprize, and every heart felt fome trepidation,. A-
bout eleven, the (hip ftruck upon the rocks, and remained immoveable. We
were, at this period, many thoufand leagues from our native land, (which we had
left upwards of two years,) and on a barbarous coaft, where, if the (hip had been
wrecked, and we had efcaped the perils of the fel, we (hould have fallen into the
rapacious hands of favages.. Agitated and furprifed as we were, we attempted
every apparent eligible method to efcape, if pofiible, from the brink of dc(lr:i£ion.
The fails were immediately handed, the boats launched, the yards and. topmafts
llruck, and an anchor was carried to the fouthward : the fliip linking hard, another
anchor Was difpatched to the fouth-weft. Night came on, which providentially
Was moon-light; and we weathered it out as patiently as poflible, confider-
ing the dreadful fufpenfe we were in. - .
On the nth, early in the morning, we lightened the Ihip, by th,rowing overboard
our billall, fire-wood, fome of our llores, our water-calks, all our water,
and fix of our great guns; and fet the pumps at work, at which' every man on
board aflilled, the Captain, Mr. Banks', and all the officers, not excepted ; relieving
one another every quarter of an hour. About noon, .the Ihip heaved much, on one
fide; upon which five anchors were carried out, and dropt at different parts; while
all the hands on board plied the. pumps i.nceffantly, .hoping to have heaved’ her off
the rock, but hoping in vain. At four o’clock, in the aftcrnoon.it.wasdsw water,
and the Ihip, in feveral placets, grounded on the rock.. Between nine an| ten, the
tide tofe four feet, and the Ihip righted again ; and, about ten, after fomefarther
attempts to clear her, (he providentially got off. This definable event gave us
fpirits; which, however, proved but the tranfient gleam of fun-lliine; in t tem-
peftuous day; for they were foon depreffed again, by obferving that the water in-
creafed in the hold, falter than we could throw it out ; and we expedled, every
minute, that the Ihip would link, or that we [hould be obliged .to run her again
upon the rocks.-
In
In the midft of thefe gloomy profpedts and alarming apprehenfions, we found
means to flop the leak, by a method fuggefted to us by an officer, who had, in a
former voyage, made ufe of it with fuccefs: we fewed a great quantity of hair and
oakum to a large piece of canvas, which we let down by two ropes, one on each
lide of the bow of the ihip: in making way, ihe fucked this under, clofe to her bottom;
and, when it reached the leak, it was forced in by the intruding water, andob-
ftrudled its paifage fo much, that we kept it under with a fingle pump. Providentially,
too, at this inftant, a breeze fprang up, and we fleered towards the land, the
boats going before, in queft of a harbour, which they alfo happily found, at about
two or three leagues diftance. Ojv the 14th of June, we dropped anchor in the
mouth of it ; but the entrance into it was fo narrow, that we were obliged to place
buoys all the way, to fleer by. While we lay on the rock, it was calm; and,
from the time we left it, till this day, it blew gently; but now it began to blow
hard, which prevented us from getting into the bay till the 18th j when we reached
the delired haven, though not without fome danger, the ihip having feveral times
touched the ground.
When we threw the guns overboard, we fixed buoys to them, intending, if
we eicaped, to have heaved them up again ; but, on attempting it, we found it
• was impracticable.
Soon after we arrived in the bay, we laid the fliip on a fteep bank, on the fide of
a river j fet up tents on ihore, unloaded her, carried all the cargo and provifions
into them, and there lodged and accommodated our fick.
On the 22d-, we examined the ihip’s bottom, and found a large hole,
through the planks into the hold, which had a piece of coral-rock, half a yard
fquare, flicking in it : the fame rock, therefore, that endangered us, yielded us
N the principal means of our redemption ; for, had nor this fragment intruded into
the leak, in all probability the ihip would have funk.
We loft no time, but immediately fet about repairing the fliip’s bottom, and in a
few days made it found again. In the mean time, the boats were fent out, in
ft arch