I cannot express the surprise and sorrow which this statement gave me. According to it, a return to Port Jackson was almost immediately necessary; as well to secure the journals and charts of the examinations already made, as to preserve the lives of the ship's company; and my hopes of ascertaining completely the exterior form of this immense, and in many points interesting country, if not destroyed, would at least be deferred to an uncertain period. My leading object had hitherto been, to make so accurate an investigation of the shores of Terra Australis that no future voyage to this country should be necessary; and with this always in view, I had ever endeavoured to follow the land so closely, that the washing of the surf upon it should be visible, and no opening, nor any thing of interest escape notice. Such a degree of proximity is what navigators have usually thought neither necessary nor safe to pursue, nor was it always persevered in by us; sometimes because the direction of the wind or shallowness of the water made it impracticable, and at other times because the loss of the ship would have been the probable consequence of approaching so near to a lee shore. But when circumstances were favourable, such was the plan I pursued; and with the blessing of GOD, nothing of importance should have been left for future discoverers, upon any part of these extensive coasts; but with a ship incapable of encountering bad weather--which could not be repaired if sustaining injury from any of the numerous shoals or rocks upon the coast--which, if constant fine weather could be ensured and all accidents avoided, could not run more than six months--with such a ship, I knew not how to accomplish the task.
A passage to Port Jackson at this time, presented no common difficulties. In proceeding by the west, the unfavourable monsoon was likely to prove an obstacle not to be surmounted; and in returning by the east, stormy weather was to be expected in Torres' Strait, a place where the multiplied dangers caused such an addition to be peculiarly dreaded. These considerations, with a strong desire to finish, if possible, the examination of the Gulph of Carpentaria, fixed my resolution to proceed as before in the survey, during the continuance of the north-west monsoon; and when the fair wind should come, to proceed by the west to Port Jackson, if the ship should prove capable of a winter's passage along the South Coast, and if not, to make for the nearest port in the East Indies.
SUNDAY 28 NOVEMBER 1802
By the 28th, the watering and wooding of the ship were completed, the gunner had dried all his powder in the sun, and the tents and people were brought on board. All that the carpenters could do at the ship was to secure the hooding ends to the stem--shift some of the worst parts in the rotten planking--and caulk all the bends; and this they had finished. The wind being south-east on the morning of the 29th [MONDAY 29 NOVEMBER 1802], I attempted to quit the Investigator's Road by steering out to the northward; but this being found impracticable, from the shallowness of the water, we were obliged to beat out to the south; and so contrary did the wind remain, that not being able to weather the reef at the south-east end of Sweers' Island, we anchored within it on the evening of the 30th [TUESDAY 30 NOVEMBER 1802].
I shall now sum up into one view, the principal remarks made during our stay amongst these islands. The stone most commonly seen on the shores is an iron ore, in some places so strongly impregnated, that I conceive it would be a great acquisition to a colony fixed in the neighbourhood. Above this is a concreted mass of coral, shells, coral sand, and grains of iron ore, which sometimes appears at the surface, but is usually covered either with sand or vegetable earth, or a mixture of both. Such appeared most generally to be the consistence of all the islands; but there are many local varieties.
The soil, even in the best parts, is far behind fertility; but the small trees and bushes which grow there, and the grass in some of the less covered places, save the larger islands from the reproach of being absolutely sterile. The principal woods are eucalyptus and casuarina, of a size too small in general, to be fit for other purposes than the fire; the pandanus grows almost every where, but most abundantly in the sandy parts; and the botanists made out a long list of plants, several of which were quite new to them.
We saw neither quadruped nor reptile upon the islands. Birds were rather numerous the most useful of them were ducks of several species, and bustards and one of these last, shot by Mr. Bauer, weighed between ten and twelve pounds, and made us an excellent dinner. The flesh of this bird is distributed in a manner directly contrary to that of the domestic turkey, the white meat being upon the legs, and the black upon the breast. In the woody parts of the islands were seen crows and white cockatoos; as also cuckoo-pheasants, pigeons, and small birds peculiar to this part of the country. On the shores were pelicans, gulls, sea-pies, ox-birds, and sand-larks; but except the gulls, none of these tribes were numerous. The sea afforded a variety of fish; and in such abundance, that it was rare not to give a meal to all the ship's company from one or two hauls of the seine. Turtle abound amongst the islands; but it seemed to be a fatality that we could neither peg any from the boat, nor yet catch them on shore.
Indians were repeatedly seen upon both Bentinck's and Sweers' Islands; but they always avoided us, and sometimes disappeared in a manner which seemed extraordinary. It is probable that they hid themselves in caves dug in the ground; for we discovered in one instance a large hole, containing two apartments (so to call them), in each of which a man might lie down. Fire places under the shade of the trees, with dried grass spread around, were often met with; and these I apprehend to be their fine-weather, and the caves their foul-weather residences. The fern or some similar root, appears to form a part of their subsistence; for there were some places in the sand and in the dry swamps, where the ground had been so dug up with pointed sticks that it resembled the work of a herd of swine.
Whether these people reside constantly upon the islands, or come over at certain seasons from the main, was uncertain; canoes, they seemed to have none, but to make their voyages upon rafts similar to those seen at Horse-shoe Island, and of which some were found on the shore in other places. I had been taught by the Dutch accounts to expect that the inhabitants of Carpentaria were ferocious, and armed with bows and arrows as well as spears. I found them to be timid; and so desirous to avoid intercourse with strangers, that it was by surprise alone that our sole interview, that at Horse-shoe Island, was brought about; and certainly there was then nothing ferocious in their conduct. Of bows and arrows not the least indication was perceived, either at these islands or at Coen River; and the spears were too heavy and clumsily made, to be dangerous as offensive weapons: in the defensive, they might have some importance.
It is worthy of remark, that the three natives seen at Horse-shoe Island had lost the two upper front teeth; and Dampier, in speaking of the inhabitants of the Northwest Coast, says, "the two front teeth of the upper jaw are wanting in all of them, men and women, old and young." Nothing of the kind was observed in the natives of the islands in Torres' Strait, nor at Keppel, Hervey's, or Glass-house Bays, on the East Coast; yet at Port Jackson, further south, it is the custom for the boys, on arriving at the age of puberty, to have one of the upper front teeth knocked out, but no more; nor are the girls subjected to the same operation. At Twofold Bay, still further south, no such custom prevails, nor did I observe it at Port Phillip or King George's Sound, on the South Coast; but at Van Diemen's Land it seems to be used partially, for M. Labillardière says (p. 320 of the London translation), "we observed some, in whom one of the middle teeth of the upper jaw was wanting, and others in whom both were gone. We could not learn the object of this custom; but it is not general, for the greater part of the people had all their teeth." The rite of circumcision, which seemed to have been practised upon two of the three natives at Horse-shoe Island, and of which better proofs were found in other parts of the Gulph of Carpentaria, is, I believe, novel in the history of Terra Australis.
On Sweers' Island, seven human skulls and many bones were found lying together, near three extinguished fires; and a square piece of timber, seven feet long, which was of teak wood, and according to the judgment of the carpenter had been a quarter-deck carling of a ship, was thrown up on the western beach. On Bentinck's Island I saw the stumps of at least twenty trees, which had been felled with an axe, or some sharp instrument of iron; and not far from the same place were scattered the broken remains of an earthen jar. Putting these circumstances together, it seemed probable that some ship from the East Indies had been wrecked here, two or three years back--that part of the crew had been killed by the Indians--and that the others had gone away, perhaps to the main land, upon rafts constructed after the manner of the natives. This could be no more than conjecture; but it seemed to be so supported by the facts, that I felt anxious to trace the route of the unfortunate people, and to relieve them from the distress and danger to which they must be exposed.
The advantages to be obtained here by a ship are briefly these: shelter against all winds in the Investigator's Road, wood for fuel, fresh water, and a tolerable abundance of fish and turtle; for to anticipate a little on the voyage, there are islands lying within reach of a boat from the Road, where the turtle are not disturbed by the Indians. Should it ever enter into the plan of an expedition, to penetrate into the interior of Terra Australis from the head of the Gulph of Carpentaria, the Investigator's Road is particularly well adapted for a ship during the absence of the travellers: the season most favourable to their operations would be in May, June, and July; but not so for the vessel, as the crew would probably be unable to procure turtle at that time. For a similar expedition from the opposite part of the South Coast, September, October, and November would seem to be most proper.
From the time of first arriving, to that of quitting Sweers' Island, the range of the thermometer on board the ship was between 81° and 90°, and on shore it might be 5° to 10° higher in the day time; the weather was consequently warm; but being alleviated by almost constant breezes either from sea or land, it was seldom oppressive; and the insects were not very troublesome. The mercury in the barometer ranged between 30.06 and 29.70 It stood highest with the winds from the sea, between north-east and north-west; and lowest when they blew gently off the land, between south-east and south-west, but most so from the latter direction. On the South Coast the winds from these points had produced a contrary effect: the mercury there stood lowest when the northern winds blew, and highest when they came from the southward; they coincided, however, so far, in that the sea winds raised, and the land winds depressed the mercury, the same as was observed at Port Jackson on the East Coast.
The latitude of Inspection Hill, from several single and two double observations, was 17° 8' 15" S.
Longitude from forty-two sets of lunar distances taken by lieutenant Flinders, the particulars of which are given in Table III. of the Appendix No. I. to this volume, 139° 44' 52" E.
The rates of the time keepers were deduced from morning's altitudes, taken with a sextant and artificial horizon at the shore under Inspection Hill, from Nov. 16 to 29; and the mean rates during this period, with the errors from mean Greenwich time at noon there on the 30th, were as under:
The longitude given by the time keepers, with the rates from Upper Head in Broad Sound, on our arrival Nov. 16, was by
No. 520 therefore differed very little to the east of the lunar observations, and the first day's rate was almost exactly the same as that with which we had quitted Upper Head; whilst No. 543 differed greatly, both in longitude and rate. A similar discordance had been noticed at the Cumberland Island, marked l2, twenty days after leaving Upper Head; No. 520 then differed only 1' 1.2" from the survey, but No. 543 erred 7' 2.2" to the east. I have therefore been induced to prefer the longitude given by No. 520, to the mean of both time keepers; and accordingly, the positions of places before mentioned or laid down in the charts, between Upper Head and Sweers' Island, including Torres' Strait, are from this time keeper alone; with such small correction equally proportioned; as its error from the lunars, 2' 50.2" to the east in fifty-two days, made necessary.
No. 543 had undergone some revolution on the passage, but seemed at this time to be going steadily; whereas No. 520, which had kept its rate so well, now varied from 18.79" to 25.39", and ceased to be entitled to an equal degree of confidence.
Mean dip of the south end of the needle, observed upon the west point of Sweers' Island, 44° 27'.
Variation of the theodolite in the same place, 4° 7' E.
Variation of the surveying compass in the Road, 2° 28' with the ship's head E. N. E, and 4° 30' with the head northward; the mean corrected to the meridian, will be 4° 31' E.
In bearings taken on the east side of Bentinck's Island, the variation appeared to be a full degree greater than on the west side of Sweers' Island.
The tides in the Investigator's Road ran N. N. E. and S. S. W., as the channel lies, and their greatest rate at the springs, was one mile and a quarter per hour; they ran with regularity, but there was only one flood and one ebb in the day. The principal part of the flood came from N. N. E.; but according to lieutenant Fowler's remarks on shore, between the 23rd and 27th, it was high water three hours after the opposite tide had set in; or about three hours and a quarter before the moon came to the meridian. At the Prince of Wales' Islands, and at Coen River, it had also appeared that the tide from south-west made high water. The time here happened between 8½h and 11½h at night, from the 23rd to the 27th; but whether high water will always take place at night, as it did at King George's Sound on the South Coast, I cannot be certain. About twelve feet was the greatest rise, which I apprehend would be diminished to eight, at the neap tides.
Departure from Sweers' Island.
South side of C. Van Diemen examined.
Anchorage at Bountiful Island: turtle and sharks there.
Land of C. Van Diemen proved to be an island.
Examination of the main coast to Cape Vanderlin.
That cape found to be one of a group of islands.
Examination of the islands; their soil, etc.
Monument of the natives.
Traces of former visitors to these parts.
Astronomical and nautical observations.
[NORTH COAST. WELLESLEY'S ISLANDS.]
WEDNESDAY 1 DECEMBER 1802
(Atlas, Plate XIV.)
On the 1st of December we got under way, and passed the reef at the south-east end of Sweers' Island. I wished to run close along the north side of this, and of Bentinck's Island, and get in with the main land to the west; but the shoal water and dry banks lying off them presented so much impediment, that we steered north-westward for land which came in sight in that direction. At noon, the land was distant six or seven miles, and appeared to be the inner part of that great projection of the main, represented in the old chart under the name of Cape Van Diemen; but the rocky nature of the shore and unevenness of the surface were so different from the sandy uniformity of the continent, that I much doubted of its connexion. Our situation at this time, and the bearings taken were as under:
A smoke was rising in the direction of Horse-shoe Island, but no land was there visible.
We had a light breeze at E. by N., and steered westward along the rocky shore, at the distance of two or three miles, till five in the evening; when the breeze having shifted to S. W., we tacked and came to an anchor in 6 fathoms, mud and shells. The land was then distant three miles, and extended from N. 61° E. to a point with a clump of high trees on it, which appeared to be the south-west extremity of the northern land and bore N. 84° W. Whether the space between it and the main near Allen's Isle were the entrance of an inlet, or merely a separation of the two lands, could not be distinguished; but the tide set W. by S., into the opening, and there was a low island and many rocks in it. From an amplitude at this anchorage, the variation was 3° 16' east, corrected to the meridian, nearly the same as at Allen's Isle, five leagues to the south; and a full degree less than in the Investigator's Road.
THURSDAY 2 DECEMBER 1802
At five next morning we steered for the opening, with light, variable winds. On each side of the low island and rocks there seemed to be passages leading into a large spread of water, like the sea; and our course was directed for the northernmost, until the water shoaled to 2½ fathoms and we tacked to the southward. The south-west point of the northern land then bore N. 74° W. four miles, and the north end of Allen's Isle was seen from the mast head, bearing S. 3° W. five leagues; but that part of the opening between them, not occupied by the main land, seemed to be so choaked with rocks that there was little prospect of a passage for the Investigator. This being the case, and the wind becoming unfavourable to the search, we steered back eastward, along the shore; and at eight in the evening, anchored near the furthest part yet seen in that direction, in 6½ fathoms sand and shells.
FRIDAY 3 DECEMBER 1802
At daylight, the piece of hilly land before judged to be an island, and which still appeared so, bore N. 86° to 28° W., two or three miles, with some nearer rocks lying in front; the northern land extended from behind it to N. 32° E., and we followed its course at the distance of five, and from that to two miles off shore. At noon we approached the eastern extremity, and saw a small island two leagues further out, one of three laid down in the old chart near Cape Van Diemen; it is thickly covered with wood, principally of that softish, white kind, whence it obtained the name of Isle Pisonia. Another and a larger island afterwards opened from the cape; but this could not be one of the three, for it lies so close, that Tasman, or whoever discovered these parts, would scarcely have observed the separation; and in fact, the other two isles presently came in sight to the southward, nearly in the situation assigned to them. The wind being unfavourable to doubling the cape, we bore away for the two islands; and soon after four o'clock, anchored on the south-east side of the outermost, in 6½ fathoms, good holding ground.
Turtle tracks were distinguished on the beach as we rounded the north-east point, and afforded us the pleasurable anticipation of some fresh food. We had explored tropical coasts for several months, without reaping any one of the advantages usually attending it, and been frequently tantalized with the sight of turtle in the water, and of bones and shells round the fire places on shore; but we now hoped to have found a place where the Indians had not forestalled us, and to indemnify ourselves for so many disappointments.
In rowing to the Island, we carried 5 fathoms nearly close to the beach. Several turtle were swimming about, and some perceived above high-water mark, which we ran to secure, but found them dead, and rotten; they appeared to have fallen on their backs in climbing up a steep part of the beach, and not being able to right themselves, had miserably perished. I walked the greater part of the length of the island; and from the highest hillock set the eastern extreme of the island close to Cape Van Diemen, at N. 34¾° W., and Isle Pisonia from N. 22¾° to 19½° W.
During my absence from the boat, the impatient crew, not waiting for the turtle to come on shore, had been attacking them in the water; and had caught three large ones, and broken my harpoon. They had also been scratching out some of the holes, of which the upper part of the sandy beach was full; from one they filled a hat with turtles eggs, and from another took a swarm of young ones, not broader than a crown piece, which I found crawling in every part of the boat. It was then past sunset, and numbers of turtle were collected, waiting only for our departure to take the beach; I therefore hastened to the ship, and sent lieutenant Fowler with a party of men, to remain all night and turn them.
SATURDAY 4 DECEMBER 1802
Next morning, two boats went to bring off the officer and people with what had been caught; but their success had been so great, that it was necessary to hoist out the launch; and it took nearly the whole day to get on board what the decks and holds could contain, without impediment to the working of the ship. They were found by Mr. Brown to be nearly similar to, but not exactly the true green turtle, and he thought might be an undescribed species. We contrived to stow away forty-six, the least of them weighing 250 lbs, and the average about 300; besides which, many were re-turned on shore, and suffered to go away.
This Bountiful Island, for so I termed it, is near three miles long, and generally low and sandy; the highest parts are ridges of sand, overspread with a long, creeping, coarse grass, which binds the sand together, and preserves it from being blown away; grass of the common kind grows in the lower parts, and in one place there were some bushes and small trees. The basis consists partly of a streaked, ochrous earth, and in part of sand, concreted with particles of iron ore. Nothing bespoke this island to have been ever before visited, whence it is probable that the natives of the neighbouring lands do not possess canoes; for with them, the distance of four leagues from Cape Van Diemen would not have been too great to be passed, though too far in a tide's way for such rafts as I saw at Horse-shoe Island.
A kind of bustard, with a very strong bill, and not larger than a hen, was numerous at Bountiful Island; and appeared to subsist upon the young turtle. The effect of instinct is admirable in all cases, and was very striking in these little amphibious creatures. When scratched out from their holes, they no sooner saw the day light than they made for the water, and with speed, as if conscious that the bustards were watching them; when placed in a direction from the sea, which was done for experiment, they turned themselves and took the straightest course to the water side. But it is not only in the bustards, nor on land alone, that they have enemies to fear; tiger sharks were numerous. and so voracious, that seven were hooked along-side the ship, measuring from five to nine feet in length. These were ready to receive such of the little animals as escape their first enemies; and even one of the full grown turtle had lost a semi circular piece, equal to the tenth part of its bulk, which had been bitten out of its side; and what seemed more extraordinary, the shell had closed, and the place was healed up. Were it not for the immense destruction made of these animals in the different stages of their existence, and that food must in the end fail, their fecundity is such, that all the tropical seas and shores would scarcely afford room for them in a few years. The number of eggs found in the females, and there were few, if any males amongst the forty-six taken here, usually ran from four to seven hundred; and in one weighing 459 lbs, taken earlier in the following season, the number of eggs counted was 1940, as recorded in lieutenant Fowler's journal; but many were not bigger, some not so large as peas. They seem to lay from twenty to a hundred eggs at once, and this is done many times in the season; after which they go very little on shore. In Terra Australis, the season appears to commence in August, and to terminate in January or February.
The latitude of our anchorage, one mile from the south-east side of Bountiful Island, was 16° 41' south. Lieutenant Flinders observed six sets of lunar distances, which gave 139° 46' 18" east longitude; but the time keeper No. 543 made it 14½' east of Inspection Hill, or in 139° 59½'. The variation of the compass, from azimuth and amplitude observed with the ship's head in the magnetic meridian, was 3° 46' east; and at my station on shore, an amplitude with the theodolite gave 3° 47' east. From a little past ten in the morning to eleven at night, the tide ran half a mile an hour to the S. W., and N. E. during the remainder of the twenty-four hours; the first, which seemed to be the flood, was only three hours after the moon, above six hours earlier than in the Investigator's Road; but the time of high water by the shore might be very different: no greater rise than five feet was perceivable by the lead line.
SUNDAY 5 DECEMBER 1802
In the morning of the 5th, we quitted Bountiful Island to resume our examination at Cape Van Diemen; and the weather being rainy, with thunder and lightning, and the wind fresh at N. N. E., we passed round the smaller island, two miles to the southwest, before hauling to the northward. At ten o'clock, Cape Van Diemen was distant three miles, and we tacked to the east; and from that time till evening, continued to work up between the cape and a shoal lying two leagues from it to the E. S. E. This shoal is a narrow ridge of sand, over which we had passed in going to Bountiful Island; but there were now breakers upon a more southern part. It seems to be formed by different sets of tide amongst the islands, and to be steep to; for in passing over, the soundings had been 13, 4, 5, 7, 11 fathoms, almost as quick as the lead could be heaved. At dusk the wind had gone down, and the anchor was dropped in 6 fathoms, sand and shells, in the following situation.
That part of Cape Van Diemen above set, is in latitude 16° 32' south, and longitude 139° 49½ east.
The tide here set N. N. E. and S. S. W., between the island close to the cape and Isle Pisonia; and at daylight [MONDAY 6 DECEMBER 1802] we steered for the middle of the opening. On seeing breakers ahead, the master was sent in the whale boat to sound, and we kept more westward, after him. There were natives upon the island nearest to the land, who seemed to wait in expectation of being visited; but our soundings diminishing to 3 fathoms, and the master having still less, we stood out and were followed by the boat. The wind was then at N. E.; and Isle Pisonia being brought to bear N. W. at nine o'clock, we tacked and weathered it nearly a mile, carrying from 9 to 13 fathoms water. Turtle tracks were very distinguishable upon the beach, but these prognostics, once so much desired, did not now interest us; however, on the wind becoming so light that we could not weather some breakers whilst the lee tide was running, the stream, anchor was dropped in 9 fathoms, and I went to the island with the botanical gentlemen.
More holes were scratched in the sand here by the turtle, than even upon the island last quitted; and several of the poor animals were lying dead on their backs. The isle is nothing more than a high sand bank upon a basis of coral rock, which has become thickly covered with wood, and much resembles several of the smaller isles in Torres' Strait. There was no trace of former visitors, though it is not more than four miles from the island where Indians had been seen in the morning; the tides probably run too strong in a narrow, four-fathom channel, close to Isle Pisonia, to be encountered by their rafts.
TUESDAY 7 DECEMBER 1802
Next morning, the wind was at N. E.; and after weathering a reef which runs out three miles from the island under Cape Van Diemen, we closed in with the land, and steered westward along it with soundings from 9 to 4 fathoms. A low head with white cliffs was passed at nine o'clock, and proved to be the northernmost point of this land; beyond it the coast extended W. by S., in a long sandy beach, and the country was better clothed with trees than on the south side. At noon we came abreast of a low woody point, with a shoal running off, where the coast took a south-west direction; and our situation and bearings were then as under:
From one o'clock till four, we steered S. S. W. past three other small cliffy projections; and I then saw the clump of high trees on the south-west point of this land, bearing S. 31° E. six miles, the same which had been set five days before from the inner side. Our course was continued, to get in with the main land; but in half an hour the depth had diminished to 2½ fathoms, and obliged us to haul out W. by N., close to the wind. The low main coast was then in sight from the mast head to the south-westward, and at dusk we anchored about three leagues off, in 5 fathoms, sandy bottom.
No doubt remained that the land of Cape Van Diemen was an island; for it had been circumnavigated, with the exception of about three leagues, which the rocks and shoal water made impracticable. Its extent is considerable, being thirty-five miles long, and the circumference near ninety, independently of the smaller sinuosities in the coast; I did not land upon any part, but the surface appeared to be more rocky than sandy; and judging from the bushes and trees with which it is mostly covered, there must be some portion, though perhaps a small one, of vegetable soil. In any other part of the world, this would be deemed low land; but here, where even the tops of the trees on the main scarcely exceed a ship's mast head in elevation, it must be called moderately high; for it may in some parts, reach three hundred feet. Several smokes and some natives were seen, and it is reasonable to suppose there are fixed inhabitants, but their number is probably small.
Had not the name of Van Diemen so often occurred in Terra Australis, as to make confusion, I should have extended it from the cape to the whole island; but such being the case, I have taken this opportunity of indulging my gratitude to a nobleman of high character and consideration; who, when governor-general of British India, humanely used his efforts to relieve me from an imprisonment which was super-added to a shipwreck in the sequel of the voyage. This large island is therefore distinguished by the name of Isle Mornington; and to the whole of the group, now discovered to exist at the head of the Gulph of Carpentaria, I have given the appellation of WELLESLEY'S ISLANDS.
WEDNESDAY 8 DECEMBER 1802
In the morning of the 8th, the wind was light from the southward, and unfavourable for closing in with the main land; but a water spout brought the wind up from north-east, and obliged us to double reef the top sails. At noon the squalls had mostly passed over, and the shore, which then extended from S. E. by S. to W. S. W., was distant five miles in the nearest part; our latitude being then 16° 42½' south, and longitude 138° 49' east. We continued to steer westward till five o'clock, at nearly the same distance from the land, and in soundings between 5 and 3 fathoms; the wind then drew forward, and the trending of the shore being W. N. W., we could barely lie along it. At seven, tacked for deeper water; and in half an hour anchored in 4 fathoms, sand and shells, the land being distant five or six miles, and the furthest extreme from the mast head bearing N. 70° W. A meridian altitude of the star Achernar gave the latitude 16° 39 2/3'; and from the sun's western amplitude the variation was 4° 10', with the ship's head N. W., or 2° 37' east, corrected to the meridian.
The main land, from Wellesley's Islands to this anchorage, is of the same description as that along which we had previously sailed a hundred and ninety leagues, being a very low, woody country, fronted by a sandy beach; there are some slight wavings in the shore, but so slight, that not any part of it could be set twice. This tedious uniformity began, however, to be somewhat broken; for a range of low hills was perceived at three or four leagues inland, and the sinuosities of the shore were becoming more distinguishable: two smokes were seen during the day.
THURSDAY 9 DECEMBER 1802
Our progress next morning was very little, until the sea breeze set in; and we were then obliged, from the more northern trending of the coast, to keep up to the wind. The soundings varied between 6 and 3 fathoms; and at five in the evening diminished rather suddenly to 2½, on a rocky bottom, two or three miles from the land. We then tacked, and worked to windward till dark, when the anchor was dropped in 4½ fathoms upon rocky ground covered with mud; but as there was little wind and no sea, the anchor held. The observed latitude here, from the moon, was 16° 28', and longitude by time keeper 138° 6½' east.
During the night, the wind came as usual off the land; and in the morning [FRIDAY 10 DECEMBER 1802] we lay up N. by W., nearly parallel to the then direction of the coast. At ten, the sea breeze set in at N. by W.; and from that time until evening we worked to windward, tacking from the shore when the depth diminished to 2½ fathoms, and stretching in again when it increased to 6; the distances from the land being in miles, as nearly as might be what the depth was in fathoms, a coincidence which had been observed in some parts on the east side of the Gulph. At sunset, a hillock upon a projecting point bore N. 73° W. four miles, and behind it was a small opening which answered in situation to the River Van Alphen of the old chart; our last tack was then made from the shore; and at dusk we anchored in 4 fathoms, coarse sand and gravel. Variation from amplitude, with the head W. by N., 4° 45', or corrected to the meridian, 2° 38' east, nearly as on the 8th.
[NORTH COAST. GULPH OF CARPENTARIA.]
SATURDAY 11 DECEMBER 1802
At daylight, we steered northward with a land wind; and when the sea breeze came, stretched W. S. W. towards the shore.
At noon,
This opening may be half a mile in width, but a dry sand runs across from the west side, and left no prospect of its being accessible to the ship; the shoal water, indeed, extended further out than usual, being caused, probably, by a deposit of sand from the inlet. The range of low hills, before mentioned as running behind the coast, was still perceived; but in front, the country was low as before, and somewhat less covered with wood.
The direction of the coast, which had been from north to north-west the day before, was now again W. N. W.; and after making a tack at noon, in 3 fathoms, and stretching off for an hour, we lay along it till near eight o'clock. At that time the depth diminished from 3½, suddenly to 2½ fathoms; and before the helm was put down the ship touched upon a rock, and hung abaft. By keeping the sails full she went off into 3 fathoms, but in five minutes hung upon another rock; and the water being more shallow further on, the head sails were now laid aback. On swinging off, I filled to stretch out by the way we had come; and after another slight touch of the keel we got into deep water, and anchored in 4 fathoms, on a bottom of blue mud. The bad state of the ship would have made our situation amongst these rocks very alarming, had we not cleared them so quickly; but the water was very smooth at this time, and it could not be perceived that any injury had been sustained.
Our distance here from the shore was three miles. It is very low and broken, with many dry rocks and banks lying near it; and in the space of seven or eight miles we had counted five small openings, and behind them some lagoons were perceived from the mast head. The Abel Tasman's River of the old chart is marked in about this situation; and however little these shallow openings and salt lagoons resemble a river, there is no other place to which the name could have been applied.
I was preparing to take altitudes of the star Rigel, to ascertain our longitude at this anchorage, when it was found that the time keepers had stopped, my assistant having forgotten to wind them up at noon. In the morning [SUNDAY 12 DECEMBER 1802] they were set forward, and altitudes of the sun taken to find their errors from the time under this meridian. The moon and planet Mars had been observed in the night, from which, and the noon's observation following, the latitude of the anchorage was ascertained to be 16° 7½'; and a projection on the west side of the R. Van Alphen, which had been the nearest shore at the preceding noon, was now set at S. 64½° E. From these data and from the log, I ascertained the difference of longitude, from half past ten in the morning of the 11th, when the last observations for the time keepers had been taken, to be 20' 18"; and that this anchorage was in 137° 37' 18" east. The errors from mean Greenwich time were thence obtained; and they were carried on as before, with the rates found at Sweers' Island, which it was to be presumed, had undergone no alteration from the letting down, since none had been caused by former accidents of the same kind. An amplitude taken when the ship's head was W. N. W., gave variation 3° 46', or 1° 47' east, corrected to the meridian; being nearly a degree less than on the east side of the River Van Alphen, when the land lay to the west of the ship.
Soon after seven o'clock the anchor was weighed; and the breeze being at N. W., we stretched off till noon, when the observed latitude from both sides was 16° 2' 11", and the land was nine or ten miles distant; but the only part visible from the deck was the range of low hills, two or three leagues behind the shore. We then tacked to the westward, and kept closing in with the coast until sunset; at which time the corrected variation was 1° 47' east, as on the preceding evening, and the following bearings were taken.
Beyond the head, much higher land than any we had passed in the gulph was seen from aloft as far as N. W. by N. This I expected was the Cape Vanderlin of the old chart; and if so, there ought to be a large double bay between it and the sandy head; and in fact, no land was visible there in a space of two points.
Our course along the shore was prolonged till dusk, when we tacked in 3½ fathoms; and on getting 4½, came to an anchor upon fine sandy ground. In the morning [MONDAY 13 DECEMBER 1802], the wind was light from the south-westward, and little progress was made until the sea breeze set in. At noon, our situation was in
Many rocks are scattered along the east side of this land; some of them are steep, and one, which we approached within a mile soon after one o'clock, resembled the crown of a hat. The whale boat was then sent towards the opening, and we bore away S. W. by S. after her; but the water shoaling fast, and looking worse ahead, we hauled out close to the wind, and worked northward; anchoring at dusk, two or three miles from the east point of the northern land, in 6 fathoms, coarse sand and shells.
The main coast on the south side of the opening had been seen extending W. N. W., two or three leagues from the sandy head; it was low as ever, and there was no appearance of the northern land, which was hilly and rocky, being connected with it; and I therefore called the separated piece Vanderlin's Island. Having no prospect of being able to get the ship up the opening, we proceeded northward next morning [TUESDAY 14 DECEMBER 1802], along the east side of the island; but the wind being directly contrary, it was sunset before the outermost of the scattered rocks could be weathered; soon afterward the anchor was dropped in 6 fathoms, one mile and a quarter from the north-east point, and something more from the outer rocks which bore S. 63° E. The north point of the island, which is the true Cape Vanderlin, bore N. 71° W., and was distant three or four miles: its utmost extremity lies in 15° 34½' south, and 137° 8½' east.
Some Indians had been seen tracking a canoe or raft, along the east side, and a body of thirty-five of them had been there collected, looking at the ship. This comparatively numerous population, and the prospect there was of this island proving more than usually interesting to the naturalists, made me desirous of finding a secure anchorage near it; and in the morning [WEDNESDAY 15 DECEMBER 1802] we landed at the north-east point, which is a peninsula joined to the island by a low sandy neck, and has three hummocks upon it, near the extremity. From the highest of these hummocks, I set two small islands in the offing, to the north-west, where two are laid down in the old chart; and saw more land to the west of Cape Vanderlin, apparently a large and distinct island. The water between them was extensive; and as it promised to afford good shelter, we returned on board after a short examination, in order to work the ship into it.
A hard, close-grained sand stone forms the basis of the north-east point of Vanderlin's Island; but the hummocks and the upper rocks are calcareous, similar to Inspection Hill at the head of the Gulph. The soil is very sandy, and poorly clothed with vegetation; though in the more central parts of the island the hills seemed to be moderately well covered with wood. There were foot marks of men, dogs, and kangaroos, and tracks of turtle near the shore; but none of the men, nor of the animals, were seen.
We got under way soon after ten o'clock with a breeze from the north-westward, and were obliged to make a long stretch to sea before Cape Vanderlin could be weathered. Towards evening we came in with a small reef, lying N. 40° E. two-and-half miles from the extremity of the cape; and this, with the lateness of the hour, making it hazardous to run into the new opening, we anchored at dusk, under the easternmost of the two small islands in the offing, in 6 fathoms, coral sand and rock. The white beach here seemed to be so favourable a situation for turtle, that an officer with a party of men was sent on shore to watch them; but he returned immediately, on finding the beach to be not sand, but pieces of coral bleached white by the sun, which bore no traces of turtle.
[NORTH COAST. PELLEW'S GROUP.]
THURSDAY 16 DECEMBER 1802
I landed early in the morning, with the botanical gentlemen, to take bearings; and amongst them set the craggy north end of the western island., which I call Cape Pellew, at S. 87° W., distant three or four miles. It lies in latitude 16° 30½', longitude 137° 2', and there is a rock lying half a mile off to the N. E.; indeed these two small isles and another rock may be considered as also lying off, and appertaining to it. The basis of the easternmost and largest isle was found to be the same close-grained sand stone as at Vanderlin's Island; but the surface consisted of loose pieces of coral, with a slight intermixture of vegetable soil, producing a few shrubs and small bushes: there were no traces either of men or turtle.
On our return to the ship, we steered for the opening between the Capes Vanderlin and Pellew; the wind was from the north-westward, and this being now the most settled quarter for it, we anchored under the western island, in 4½ fathoms soft bottom, half a mile from the shore; with the extremes bearing N. 25° E. one mile, and S. 23° W. two miles. An outer rocky islet near Cape Vanderlin bore N. 70° E., and a small island within half a mile of the ship covered five points in the south-eastern quarter; to the south there was very little land visible, but no sea was to be feared from that side; and the sole direction in which we were not sheltered, was between N. N. E. and E. N. E.
The botanical gentlemen landed abreast of the ship, and lieutenant Flinders went to commence a series of observations for the rates of the time keepers on the small isle, thence called Observation Island. My attention was attracted by a cove in the western shore, upon the borders of which, more abundantly than elsewhere, grew a small kind of cabbage palm, from whence it was called Cabbage-tree Cove. This presented the appearance of a complete little harbour; and supposing it to afford fresh water, was just such a place as I wished for the ship, during the time necessary for making an examination of the islands in my whale boat. I found the cove to run near two miles into the island, and there was a small rill at the head; but unfortunately, the depth at the entrance was insufficient for the ship, being no more than 2 fathoms, and in the upper part it was too shallow even for a boat.