Fowler's Bay.
Departure from thence.
Arrival at the Isles of St. Francis.
Correspondence between the winds and the marine barometer.
Examination of the other parts of Nuyts' Archipelago, and of the main
coast.
The Isles of St Peter.
Return to St. Francis.
General remarks on Nuyts' Archipelago.
Identification of the islands in the Dutch chart.
THURSDAY 28 JANUARY 1802
(Atlas, Plate IV.)
The bay in which we anchored on the evening of January 28, at the
extremity of the before known south coast of Terra Australis, was named
FOWLER'S BAY, after my first lieutenant; and the low, cliffy point which
shelters it from southern winds and, not improbably, is the furthest
point (marked B) in the Dutch chart, was called POINT FOWLER. The
botanical gentlemen landed early on the following morning [FRIDAY 29
JANUARY 1802] to examine the productions of the country, and I went on
shore to take observations and bearings, and to search for fresh water.
The cliffs and rocks of Point Fowler are calcareous, and connected with
the main land by a low, sandy isthmus of half a mile broad. Many traces
of inhabitants were found, and amongst others, some decayed spears; but
no huts were seen, nor anything to indicate that men had been here
lately. Upon the beach were the foot marks of dogs, and some of the emu
or cassowary. I found in a hole of the low cliffs one of those large
nests which have before been mentioned, but it contained nothing, and had
been long abandoned.
No fresh water was discovered round the shores of the bay, nor was there
any wood large enough for fuel nearer than the brow of a hill two or
three miles off. Two teal were shot on the beach, whence it seemed
probable that some lake or pond of fresh water was not far distant; a
sea-pie and a gull were also shot, and a few small fish caught alongside.
These constituted everything like refreshment obtained here, and the
botanists found the scantiness of plants equal to that of the other
productions; so that there was no inducement to remain longer.
Fowler's Bay, however, may be useful to a ship in want of a place of
shelter. It is open to the three points of the compass between
south-east-by-south and east-south-east; and it was evident, from plants
growing close to the water side, that a swell capable of injuring a
vessel at anchor was seldom if ever thrown into it.
The _latitude_ of the east extremity of Point Fowler is 32° 1' south.
_Longitude_ of the point, deduced from twenty-two sets of distances (see
Table III of the Appendix to this volume) is 132° 30'; but that given by
time keepers with accelerated rates and supplemental correction, as
explained at the end of Chap. VI, and in the Appendix, is preferred, and
is 132° 27' east.
The _variation_ observed upon the binnacle, with the ship's head
east-south-east, was 3° 11' west by the surveying compass; and in the
offing, with the head north-north-east, it was 1° 41' west. These,
corrected, will be 0° 19' and 0° 30'; and therefore the variation allowed
upon the bearings on shore was 0° 25' west.
The wind was at south-east-by-south at one in the afternoon, when the
anchor was weighed to beat out of the bay. At half past five we were
three miles from a cliffy head which had been taken for an island at the
anchorage, and set at N 77° E. The shore forms a small bight on the east
side of this head, and then stretches south-south-eastward in a sandy
beach, with a ridge of barren land behind. At sunset we passed to
windward of Point Fowler, and stood off to sea for the night.
[SOUTH COAST. NUYTS' ARCHIPELAGO.]
SATURDAY 30 JANUARY 1802
Cape Nuyts bore north, two or three leagues, soon after daylight, and the
wind was then at east; but as the day advanced it veered to the
south-east, and permitted us to make a stretch toward the furthest land.
At five in the evening we tacked near some low, whitish cliffs, which had
been seen from the mast head when in Fowler's Bay; they were two or three
miles off, and the furthest land visible from the deck bore S. 63° E. at
no great distance. The coast here is broken into sandy beaches and small,
cliffy points, and the same ridge of barren land runs behind it, but the
elevation is not great.
SUNDAY 31 JANUARY 1802
At three in the afternoon of the 31st we reached in again with the coast,
about four leagues beyond our situation on the preceding day. The depth
at two miles off shore was 7 fathoms on a coral bottom; the northern
extreme bore N. 58° W., and a low point on the other side, named _Point
Bell_, S. 45° E., seven miles. To seaward, a flat rock bore W. 3° S., one
mile and a half; it is the largest of four which were called _Sinclair's
Rocks_, and lie scattered at the distance of two or three miles off the
coast. We stood off at this time; but so little could be gained upon the
south-east winds that when we came in next morning [MONDAY 1 FEBRUARY
1802] it was almost exactly in the same spot, and Point Bell was not
passed until late in the afternoon; the weather, also, was adverse to the
examination, being so hazy that the highest land could not be seen beyond
three or four leagues.
At half-past six in the evening, when we tacked to stand off for the
night, Point Bell bore N. 68° W. four miles. It lies in 32° 16½' south
and 133° 5' east; and there is a broad, flat rock, surrounded with
breakers, one mile to the westward. The main coast beyond the point forms
some bights, and is divided betwixt sand and rock, as before described:
its general trending is nearly east. A small island, somewhat elevated,
lies six miles to the south-east of Point Bell, and has a ledge of rocks
and islets extending from it a league to the north-eastward, and a
separate islet one or two miles to the east: these obtained the name of
_Purdie's Isles_. After we had tacked in 9 fathoms, a wave was perceived
to break upon a sunken rock within less than half a mile of the ship; and
I think it would be dangerous to pass between Point Bell and Purdie's
Isles.
TUESDAY 2 FEBRUARY 1802
At noon of the 2nd February no land was in sight. The weather was still
hazy, and the wind at south-east; but in the afternoon it favoured us two
points, and we got sight of a higher and larger island than any before
seen on this part of the coast. At half-past four, being then near a
smaller isle and several rocks, we tacked towards the large island which
was six or seven miles to the southward; and soon after eight in the
evening got to an anchor in a little sandy bay on its north side. The
depth was 6 fathoms in passing the north-west point of the bay, but 10
within side, on a fine sandy bottom, where the anchor was dropped. At
daylight [WEDNESDAY 3 FEBRUARY 1802] we found ourselves hall a mile from
the shore, and the extremes bearing from N. 32° W., round by the west and
south, to S. 77° E.; and at the distance of two miles we were sheltered
by four small islands, extending from N. 41° to 88° E. The master was
sent to sound in the bay; but the bottom was everywhere good, and nothing
found to injure the cables. The scientific gentlemen landed upon their
respective pursuits; and I followed them to take angles for my survey,
and see what could be procured for the ship's company.
The island is nearly three miles long, north-west and south-east, and is
moderately high and cliffy at the ends; the middle part is a sandy
isthmus, not more than half a mile broad, but the breadth of the higher
ends is from one-and-half to two miles. This island is the central one of
a group; for besides the four small isles to the north-east, there are
two close to the west end, and two others, something larger, lying off to
the southward. I call these the ISLES OF ST. FRANCIS; in the persuasion
that the central one is that named St. Francis by Nuyts. Independently of
the eight isles and a rock, surrounding this Isle St. Francis, I set from
the north-east point three other islands. The first, named _Lacy's Isle_,
bore N. 28° E., seven miles; and two miles from it to the north-west
there is an islet and a separate rock above water surrounded with
breakers, the same near which we had tacked at half-past four on the
preceding evening. The second was called _Evans' Isle_, and bore N. 49°
E. eleven miles, and the third to which the name of _Franklin_ was given,
bore N. 81° E. sixteen miles. All these are much inferior in magnitude to
the central island of St. Francis.
For several days before anchoring here we had observed large flocks of
sooty petrels; and I found the surface of the island, where it was sandy
and produced small shrubs, to be full of their burrows. Penguins, similar
to those of Furneaux's Islands, had their burrows nearer to the
water-side. A small species of kangaroo, was also found, and at some
preceding season the island had been frequented by geese; but at this
time, the vegetation being almost burnt up, they seemed to have quitted
it from want of food. The heat was, indeed, such as to make walking a
great fatigue; and this was augmented by frequently sinking into the bird
holes and falling upon the sand. The thermometer stood at 98° in the
shade, whilst it was at 78° on board the ship.
Where the surface is not of sand it consists of calcareous rock, mostly
in loose pieces; but the stone which forms the basis of the island is
heavy and of a close grain, and was judged to be porphyry. In the
crevices of a low calcareous cliff, at the south-east side of the bay, I
found some thin cakes of good salt, incrusted upon a stone containing
_laminae_ of quartz.
A party was sent on shore at dusk to collect petrels, and in less than
two hours returned with sufficient to give four birds to every man in the
ship. Early in the morning [THURSDAY 4 FEBRUARY 1802] the boats were
again sent upon the same errand, and to haul the seine; but the birds
were gone off to sea for the day, and no fish were caught. A small
kangaroo was brought off, as also a yellow snake, which was the second
killed on this island. The great heat deterred the naturalists from going
on shore this morning, for the very little variety in the vegetable
productions presented no inducement to a repetition of their fatigue. I
landed to see what further could be discovered of the neighbouring
islands; and we then prepared to get under way so soon as the breeze set
in from the south-eastward, which it usually did about noon, after a few
hours of calm or of light airs.
The small bay in the Isle St. Francis, which I call _Petrel Bay_, affords
excellent shelter for two or three ships; but no fresh water, not even to
rinse our mouths, could be found at this time; and a few scattered bushes
were the nearest approach to wood upon the island. Petrels, penguins, and
a few hair seals may be procured, and probably some geese in the wet
season.
I had hitherto observed upon this coast that the south-east and east
winds produced the same effect upon the barometer as at the Cape of Good
Hope, in keeping the mercury high, commonly at or above 30 inches and
the more fresh was the wind, the higher it stood; but within the last few
days the barometer was much lower with the same winds, and at this time
was at 29.74. The dense haze which prevailed might possibly have caused
the change, but I suspected another reason for it. Winds coming off the
land, I had remarked, had a tendency to depress the mercury, and sea
winds to make it rise, though no change took place in the weather; and it
therefore seemed probable, as the trending of the coast beyond these
islands was unknown, that the south-east and east winds came off the
land, and not from the sea, as before; in which case the unknown coast
would be found trending to the southward, a conjecture which, it will be
seen, was verified. That there was no entrance to a strait, nor any large
inlet near these islands, was almost demonstrated by the insignificance
of the tides; for neither in Fowler's Bay nor at this Isle St. Francis
could any set be perceived; nor was there any rise by the shore worthy of
notice.
At half-past one we left Petrel Bay; and having passed between the small
isles to the north-east, steered for Evans' Island, and toward the Isles
of St. Peter, which were expected to lie beyond it. At five o'clock, we
passed between Evans' Island and some rocks above water, with breakers
round them, lying three miles to the eastward. An island, equally high
with that of St. Francis, was then seen to the north, and low land
extended from it to N. 45° E., which had some appearance of being part of
the main. We steered for these lands; and seeing an opening between them
at sunset, I attempted it in the hope of getting anchorage for the night;
but the water shoaled suddenly, from 4 fathoms to sixteen feet upon
rocks, and obliged me to veer on the instant. We then stood back to the
southward till eight o'clock, and nothing being perceived in the way of
the ship's drift, hove to for the night.
FRIDAY 5 FEBRUARY 1802
The wind was north-east in the morning; and at half-past four o'clock we
filled the sails and steered eastward until eight, when the central
island of St. Francis bore N. 71° W., and Franklin's Isles, for there are
two, besides rocks, were distant four leagues, the small opening between
them bearing N. 28° W. To the south-eastward of these islands, at the
distance of eleven miles, is a low projection of the main land, to which
the name of _Point Brown_ was given, in compliment to the naturalist; and
four leagues further, in the same line, was a cliffy head, called _Cape
Bauer_ after the painter of natural history. Between these projections
there was a wide space where no land was visible, and for which we
accordingly steered on the wind veering more to the northward. The
atmosphere was still hazy, more especially about the horizon, and no
observations worthy of confidence could be taken for either latitude or
longitude. At noon,
Franklin's Isles bore N. 48½° to 56½° W.
Point Brown, distant four miles, N. 34 W.
Cape Bauer, south extremity, dist. 3 leagues, S. 50 E.
No land was yet visible ahead; and there being much refuse from the
shore, as well as seaweed floating about, some hopes of finding a river
were entertained. At half-past two, however, low, sandy land was seen
from the mast head, nearly all round, the depth had diminished from 19 to
7 fathoms, and the water was much discoloured in streaks at less than a
mile from the ship. Smokes Were rising in three different places; but as
the wind was unfavourable, and there was no prospect of any opening
sufficiently large to admit the Investigator, I gave up the further
examination of this place, and called it STREAKY BAY.
There remained nearly forty miles of space between Point Bell and Point
Brown, in which the main coast had not been seen. This it was necessary
to explore; but the wind being then at north-north-east, I steered to the
southward, to gain some further knowledge of the coast in that direction
before dark.
West of Cape Bauer, and distant four miles, there is a low island,
extensively surrounded with rocks and breakers, which I called _Olive's
Island_. We passed between it and the cape, and observed the cliffs of
the latter to be stratified, and apparently calcareous. Another cliffy
and somewhat higher projection opened from it at S. 1° W., distant seven
miles, the intermediate low land forming a bight four or five miles deep,
which is mostly skirted by a sandy beach. This projection I named _Point
Westall_, in compliment to the landscape painter; and at six in the
evening, when it bore north-east-by-east two or three miles, we veered
round to the northward. Beyond Point Westall the coast takes a more
eastern direction, the first land which opened out from it being at S.
43° E.: this was a third cliffy projection, terminating another sandy
bight in the coast. No hill nor anything behind the shore could be
perceived, but it does not certainly follow that there are no hills in
the back country, for the haze was too thick to admit of the sight
extending beyond four or five leagues.
The wind having veered to east-north-east, we kept to the northward all
night, under easy sail; and at daylight [SATURDAY 6 FERBRUARY 1802], the
lands around us were in the following bearings:
I. St. Francis, the largest southern cliffs, N. 80° W.
Lacy's Isle, centre, N. 57 W.
Evans' Isle, centre, N. 43 W.
Franklin's Isles, extremes, N. 29° to 10 W.
Point Brown, south extremity, N. 65 E.
Cape Bauer, north extremity, S. 78 E.
Olive's Island, centre, S. 67 E.
Cliffy Head beyond Point Westall, S. 45 E.
All sail was made to fetch between Franklin's Isles and Point Brown, in
order to follow the course of the main land as close as possible; but
finding, after several tacks, the impossibility of weathering the isles,
we bore away; and at noon hauled up north-north-east round them. The wind
was light at east, and the weather fine over head; but there was so dense
a haze below that, the true horizon could not be distinguished from
several false ones, and we had six or seven different latitudes from as
many observers: those taken by me to the north and south differed 19
minutes. This dense haze, from its great refractive power, altered the
appearance of objects in a surprising manner: a sandy beach seemed to be
a chalky cliff, and the lowest islands to have steep shores. The
thermometer stood, at this time, at 82° and the barometer at 29.60
inches.
On the north side of Point Brown the shore formed a large open bay, into
which we hauled up as much as the wind would permit, passing near to a
reef of rocks and breakers, two miles to the north-north-east of
Franklin's Isles. At half-past two the water had shoaled to 5 fathoms;
and not being able to distinguish any inlet, we then bore away westward
along the land. The number of smokes rising from the shores of this wide,
open place induced me to give it the name of SMOKY BAY.
At four o'clock we passed the small opening which had been unsuccessfully
attempted in the evening of the 4th, and hauled up northward under the
lee of the island forming its western side. The mainland then came in
sight ahead; but between it and the islands was a space five or six miles
wide, which had the appearance of being the entrance to a river. No land
was visible to the north-east; and besides quantities of grass and
branches of trees or bushes floating in the water, there was a number of
long, gauze-winged insects topping about the surface, such as frequent
fresh-water lakes and swamps. In order to form a judgment of how much
fresh was mixed with the salt water, or whether any, I had some taken up
for the purpose of ascertaining its specific gravity; but before the
experiment could be made, the depth diminished to 3 fathoms, and low land
was distinguished nearly all round. We then veered ship; and at seven
o'clock came to an anchor in 6 fathoms, off a small beach on the north
side of the western and smallest island, being sheltered at all points
except between S. 58° and N. 80° W.
The specific gravity of the water taken up proved to be 1.034, or .008
greater than the water of the Southern Indian Ocean, westward of the
Island Amsterdam, although the temperature in which it was weighed was
higher by 14°. This circumstance, with the shallowness of the inlet and
the land having been seen to close round so nearly, made me give up the
intention of attempting to proceed any higher up, since no river of
importance was to be expected.
Great flocks of sooty petrels were observed coming in from sea to the
island, and at the first dawn next morning [SUNDAY 7 FEBRUARY 1802] a
boat was sent to collect a quantity of them, and to kill seals; but the
birds were already moving off, and no more than four seals, of the hair
kind, were procured. The botanists preferred going on shore to the more
eastern land, which, though low, was much more extensive than the island
nearer to the ship; and in fact it was not yet ascertained whether it
were not a part of the main. I went to the higher island with a
theodolite to take bearings; and as the survey had shown that no
dependence was to be placed in any observations taken on board the ship
during the last five days, I took with me the necessary instruments for
determining the latitude and longitude.
Granite was found to compose the rocks of the shore, and seemed to be the
basis of the island; but it was covered with a crust of calcareous stone,
in some places fifty feet thick. The soil at the top was little better
than sand, but was overspread with shrubs, mostly of one kind, a whitish
velvety plant--(_artriplex reniformis_ of Brown),* nearly similar to what
is called at Port Jackson, Botany Bay greens. Amongst these the petrels
had everywhere undermined; and from the excessive heat of the sun, the
reflection from the sand, and frequently stepping up to the mid-leg in
the burrows, my strength was scarcely equal to reaching the highest hill
near the middle of the island. I had no thermometer, but judged the
temperature could scarcely be less than 120°; and there was not a breath
of air stirring. My fatigue was, however, rewarded by an extensive set of
bearings, and I overlooked the lower and larger island to the eastward,
and saw the water behind it communicating with Smoky Bay. That low land
and the island upon which I stood, being the north-easternmost of this
archipelago, must, I conceive, be the ISLES OF ST. PETER in Nuyts' chart,
notwithstanding their relatively small distance from those of St.
Francis. The bay to the northward, between these islands and the
mainland, I named DENIAL BAY, as well in allusion to St. Peter as to the
deceptive hope we had formed of penetrating by it some distance into the
interior country. The bearings most essential to the survey, taken from
this station were these,
Point Brown, sandy hillocks on it, S. 52° 0' E.
Franklin's Isles, the extremes, S. 49° 15' to 33 45 E.
Evans' Isle, centre, S. 23 0 W.
Isles of St. Francis, southernmost,
the centre S. 34 0 W.
do., the largest extremes, S. 38 0 to 46 20 W.
Lacy's Isle, centre, S. 51 0 W.
Purdie's Isles, the easternmost, N. 83 15 W.
Lound's Isle, centre, N. 76 30 W.
Point Bell, the hill on it, N. 73 0 W.
Point Peter, across Denial Bay, N. 12 45 W.
[* _Prod. flor. Nov. Holl._ p. 406.]
On returning to the shore to complete my observations, a flock of teal
presented themselves, and four were shot. There were also pied shags, and
gulls of three species; and in the island were seen many crows, a green
paroquet, and two smaller birds. A black snake, of the common size, was
killed, but its form did not bespeak it to be venemous. After observing
the sun's altitude at noon, I returned on board with the intention of
getting the ship under way, to examine more closely a bight in the coast
near Point Bell; and then of returning to Petrel Bay in the Isle St.
Francis, in order to obtain better observations for a base to my chart of
this archipelago. At two o'clock, Mr. Brown and his party returned from
the eastern island, bringing four kangaroos, of a different species to
any before seen. Their size was not superior to that of a hare, and they
were miserably thin, and infested with insects. No other than calcareous
rock was seen upon the eastern island. It seemed to afford neither wood
nor water, nor were there any marks of its having been visited by the
natives of the continent; in which respect it resembled the western
island, as it also did in its vegetation, and in being frequented by the
sooty petrel. Mr. Brown's pocket thermometer stood at 125° when placed on
the sand, and 98° in the shade; whilst on board the ship the height was
only 83°.
The sun was too high at noon for its altitude to be taken from an
artificial horizon with a sextant; but by laying down upon the beach I
obtained it from the sea horizon tolerably free from the refractive
errors caused by the haze. The _latitude_ of the north side of the
western Isle of St. Peter, thus observed, was 32° 21¼' south, and the
_longitude_ by time-keepers, corrected as usual, 133° 29' east. There was
no set of _tide_ past the ship; but from eight o'clock to noon the water
had risen about a foot by the shore.
The anchor was weighed on the return of the botanists, and we steered
westward past the small island named Lound's, and as far as Purdie's
Isles. when, having seen the whole line of the coast behind them, we
hauled to the southward at six o'clock for Petrel Bay; and at one in the
morning [MONDAY 8 FEBRUARY 1802] came to, in 13 fathoms, near our former
anchorage.
It was here confirmed by satisfactory observations on shore that our
former latitudes and longitudes taken on board the ship were erroneous;
and the consequent necessity of reconstructing my chart of these islands
induced me to remain at anchor the rest of the day. A boat was sent to
fish with hook and line, and had some success; and at dusk a sufficient
number of sooty petrels were taken from the burrows to give nine to every
man, making, with those before caught, more than twelve hundred birds.
These were inferior to the teal shot at the western Isle of St. Peter,
and by most persons would not be thought eatable on account of their
fishy taste, but they made a very acceptable supply to men who had been
many months confined to an allowance of salt meat.
The _latitude_ of our anchorage in Petrel Bay proved to be 32° 33 1/3'
south, and corrected _longitude_, by time-keepers, 133° 15½' east. The
_variation_ of the compass on the binnacle, with the ship's head
south-eastwardly, but the exact point not noted, was 2° 23' west. Other
azimuths, taken five leagues to the north-westward, with the head
south-half-west, gave 0° 19' east; and six leagues to the eastward, the
head being north half-west, we had 0° 16' east. All these observations,
being corrected, and supposing the ship's head in the first case to have
been south-east-half-east, as is probable, would agree in showing that
the true and magnetic meridians exactly coincided at the Isles of St.
Francis in 1802.
Being about to quit this archipelago, it may be expected that I should
make some general remarks upon it. The basis stone of the islands where
we landed, and that of the others, as also of the projecting parts of the
main, appeared to be similar, was either porphyry or granite; but this
was generally covered with a _stratum_, more or less thick, of calcareous
rock. The and sterility of the two largest islands has been already
mentioned; and yet they appeared superior to any of the smaller isles,
where there was no probability that the small kangaroos could exist in
the dry season. The surface of the continent seemed to be almost equally
destitute of vegetable soil to cover the sand and rock; and from the hot
winds off the land, which we felt in Streaky and Smoky Bays, it would
seem that this aridity prevails to a considerable distance in the
interior. There are, however, some grounds to believe that a lake or run
of fresh water exists not far from Denial Bay: the flock of teal seen
upon the western Isle of St. Peter, and the number of winged, fresh-water
insects skimming the surface of that bay, are the grounds to which I
allude.
My examination of this group of islands was tolerably minute to be done
wholly in a ship; but much still remained, which boats would best
accomplish, to make the survey complete, especially in the bays of the
main land. No more than a general examination was prescribed by my
instructions at this time, and I therefore left the minute parts for a
second visit, when the ship would be accompanied by the Lady Nelson
tender.
Upon the identity of the particular islands composing this group, as
compared with the chart of Nuyts' discovery, there may possibly be some
difference of opinion, but there can be no doubt that the group generally
is the same with that laid down by the Dutch navigator; and I therefore
distinguish it from others upon this coast by the title of NUYTS'
ARCHIPELAGO. Besides the nine Isles of St. Francis and two of St. Peter,
and several distinct rocks and patches of reef, it contains Sinclair's
four Rocks, Purdie's Isles, Lound's Isle, Lacy's and Evans' Islands,
Franklin's Isles, and Olive's Island; all of which are named after young
officers of the Investigator. The state of navigation in 1627 does not
permit the expectation of any exact coincidence between the islands laid
down by the Dutch and those in my chart; if a few leading features of
resemblance be found, this is all that can be fairly required; and these
I shall endeavour to trace.
The Cape marked A (see the copy of the Dutch chart from _Thevenot_), the
point B, and the western reefs, I conceive to be clearly identified in
Cape Nuyts, Point Fowler, and Nuyts' Reefs, although there be a
difference of near half a degree in latitude. The next leading mark is
the line of islands marked 1, 2, to 5, extending south-south-east from
the furthest extremity of the main land. I found no islands corresponding
to the first three of these; but the main coast there trends south-east,
and there are cliffy projections upon it which might appear like islands
to a ship so far distant as not to raise the intermediate beaches. I
conceive then, that the island marked 3, is the projecting point which I
have named Point Bell; and that 1 and 2 are the two cliffy projections
further northward. The island marked 4 will be the largest of Purdie's
Isles; and in looking on, nearly in the same line, we find 5 in Lacy's
Island. The island 6, or St. Francis, should lie to the west-south-west,
or perhaps south-west, for since the line of the five islands is two
points too much to the right, this bearing may be the same. To the
south-west-by-south the large Isle St. Francis is found, in the centre of
eight smaller isles which Nuyts has not distinguished. The islands 8, 9,
and 10, are to be sought to the east-north-east of 5, or Lacy's Island,
or rather to the north-east, two points to the left; and there we find,
though not very exactly, Evans' Island and the two Isles of St. Peter.
Island 7 should be to the north-west of 8, and in a direction between 4
and 9; and in that position is Lound's small Isle.
This explanation, I am aware, may be disputed, because it leaves
Franklin's Isles unnoticed; and it may be objected, that had Lound's Isle
been seen, the main land north of it would have been seen also. That
Nuyts passed to the southward of all the islands laid down in his chart
seems improbable, since he distinguished only one of the Isles of St.
Francis; but if this be supposed, then 7 and 8 might be Evans' and
Franklin's Isles, and 9 and 10 would be Point Brown and Cape Bauer, which
lie to the south-east, instead of north~east; and in this case the
islands which I suppose to be St. Peter's, and that of Lound, will not
have been seen. The question is, in fact, of no importance, other than
what arises from a desire to do justice to the Dutch navigator; and on
this head, I trust there can be no accusation. My opinion coincides with
the first explanation; and unless an island exist to the south-west of
St. Francis, and I am tolerably certain that none lies within five
leagues, a correspondence more free from objections cannot easily be
pointed out.