Volume I Part 31 (1/2)

(Footnote As soine that vultures and birds of prey are attracted to the carcasses of animals by smell, I may state that an experi hoodwinked, he passed unnoticed a large piece of beef, but as soon as the bandage was reerly towards and devoured it)

PUDDING-PAN HILL

We left our readers at Cairncross Island, and now return to our narrative by describing the neighbouring coast The enerally speaking a dullover the extre the south side of Cairncross, South 45 degrees West, to which Captain Bligh has given the quaint na-Pan Hill It received this appellation fro dish, coh The coast about ten miles to the northward projects a mile and a half further eastward than is marked in the chart This error did not however appear to be so great south of Escape River, where the character of the coast is low and cliffy, separated by small sandy bays; instead of a continued line of cliffs as at present represented

ESCAPE RIVER

At noon ere in the parallel of the south point of Escape River, in latitude 10 degrees 58This river receives its na vessels are subject, Captain King having been nearly wrecked in the Mer to enter the river he found it not to be navigable, a reef extending across its mouth, on which his vessel struck very heavily

CORRECT POSITION OF REEFS

Avoiding Captain King's track, we passed to the eastward of reef x, being thus afforded a better opportunity of deter its position than he had This we did by transit bearings with different points, which placed it nearly two ned it on the charts

(Footnote On , he told iven him satisfaction; for there the monsoon blows fresh, and his s able to land in search of better data for the chart

The reader must not, from these corrections (fee consider the extent of the survey) be led to iine that our object is to pick out errors in the surveys of others; but froer and better appointed vessel, our opportunities of exareater than those afforded to Captain King, as always most anxious to detect errors in his own charts Without dwelling on the fact that the result of our exa parts of the chart, before erroneously corrected, to his original construction, ould venture to hope that, while desirous as e of the coast, ere in no , so pithily described by Liebeg, when he says that it is ”startling to reflect that all the tienius, talent, and knowledge is expended in endeavours to demonstrate each others' errors”)

This error we found to extend also to reefs y and z X is one of the oval-shaped reefs, with the singular white patch of dead coral on its northern extremity which I have before spoken of Z is similarly marked, and dries at last quarter ebb, while the South-East part of y is never covered, a fewon it When abreast of x,froest York island, Mount Adolphus, and when over the centre of reef z, it bore North 23 1/2 degrees West We now steered to the ard between reefs, x and y, and afterwards North-North-West for Mount Adolphus Between the Brothers and Albany Islands the depth was 10 fathoms; these are both black rocky lu a ether they assu with the inhospitable character of the adjoining coast Several shoals and much shoal water were noticed in Newcastle Bay

BLACKWOOD BAY

At 4 PM, we anchored in Blackwood Bay, in a depth of 10 fatho South half aa plan wasplace for shi+ps, and all the angles taken to the North-West extreroup, place them a mile and a half to the eastward of their position in the chart

Observations were also obtained near Point dicky, which we found to be in latitude 10 degrees 38 3/4 rees 28 ton The North-West extre 1 minute 05 seconds North, and 45 seconds East of this spot The first question interesting to shi+ps is the supply of wood and water; the latter we had no time to look for, but of the for fronted by extensive coral flats, it is difficult to be attained

The appearance of the island is si the same rocky, bleak, and almost wild look; froeneral terms we may call porphyritic Parts of the island appeared to be intersected by a growth of ularity in the tides at this anchorage, as if there were aSouth-West about an hour, and continued to run in that direction until 8 hours 30its rate It then took a North and by East direction with the saain changed back to South-South-West, a course it pursued during the remainder of our stay By the rise of the water on the shore it would appear that the flood ca York Island we considered ourselves within the Strait, which took its naator Torres, who sailed in 1605, second in command under Pedro Fernandes de Quiros, fro the Tierra Austral, then supposed to be a continent occupying a considerable portion of the southern heh this strait in 1606, but despite the great importance of the discovery, its existence remained unknown until 1762, from the jealousy of the Spanish ators a secret from the world At the time in question, however, Manila fell into our hands, and in the archives of that colony, a duplicate copy of Torres's letter to the king of Spain was found by the hydrographer, Mr Dalrye was now made known, and in tardy justice to the discoverer it received the appellation of Torres Strait; a tribute to the reputation of reatest perhaps which could be bestowed, since noa nareat and imperishable works of the Creator's hand It was not however until 1770, that the world received full confire; the i the question of its existence This being the high road between our growing Eastern and Australian possessions, the reader will at once see the importance which must ever attach to the discovery, and will the ree upon the circumstance

July 13

There had been noticed last evening a slight rippling outside the bay, and on leaving this e about two cables width, the least water on it being three fathorees East, and Point dicky South 26 degrees East It appeared by the ripples continuing towards the north-west of York Island, that this rocky ledge extended in that direction Vessels entering Blackwood Bayclose to Point dicky, or by steering for Mount Adolphus, when it bears North-East 1/2 North

Being desirous to know if there were a practicable channel through Endeavour Strait, by which the inconvenience before alluded to, of passing the reef fronting Haht be avoided, we proceeded in that direction, passing along the north-eastern extreme of the continent, and between the Possession Islands we entered Endeavour Strait This ter level and ofre the Possession Isles

COOK'S ISLAND

It has an inhospitable appearance, being apparently similar in formation with York Isles, and subsides rapidly to the South-West for the south side of Endeavour Strait, where it scarcely reaches an elevation of fifty feet: contrasting forcibly with the high rocky land of the opposite side of the Strait, forest of the Prince of Wales Islands; upon which for bestowed a naator Not but that the Strait known by the name of his shi+p, is quite sufficient to recall the ers in these seas; but that we his huht add our lory which must ever encircle the name of Captain Cook

On the North-East extremity of this island is a remarkable peak, in the shape of a horn, called by hi only passed between the eastern of the Possession Isles, little was known of the western shores A few angles and bearings were accordingly taken, as we passed between the this deficiency

ENDEAVOUR STRAIT

There was no iot abreast of Wallis Isles, Cape Cornwall bearing East by North 1/2 North; when the water shoaled to four fatho up on either tack, that ere on a ridge extending from the Cape, we ran to the ard, until we could cross it, which we did in three and a half fatho South-West five miles