pass between them, and kept nearer the main than the island. At feven in the evening I founded, and had fifty-two fathom fine fand and oaze. I ftood to the northward to get clear of this ftreight, having but little wind and fair weather. The island all night vomited fire and smoke very amazingly, and at every belch we heard a dreadful noife like thunder, and faw a flame of fire after it, the most terrifying that ever I faw; the intervals between its belches were about half a minute, fome more, others lefs; neither were thefe pulfes or eruptions alike, for fome were but faint convulfions, in comparison of the more vigorous; yet even the weakest vented a great deal of fire; but the largest made a roaring noife, and fent up a large flame twenty or thirty yards high; and then might be feen a great stream of fire running down to the foot of the island, even to the fhore. From the furrows made by this defcending fire, we could, in the day time, fee great fmoaks arife, which probably were made by the fulphureous matter thrown out of the funnel at the top, which tumbling down to the bottom, and there lying in a heap, burned till either confumed or extinguifhed; and as long as it burned and kept its heat, fo long the smoak afcended from it; which we perceived to increase or decreafe, according to the quantity of matter discharged from the funnel: but the next night, being fhot to the weftward of the burning-ifland, and the funnel of it lying on the fouth-fide, we could not discern the fire there, as we did the fmoak in the day when we were to the southward of it. This volcano lies in the latitude of 5° 33′ fouth, and meridian distance from Cape St. George, three hundred and thirtytwo miles west.

The easternmost part of New Guinea lies forty miles to the weft ward of this tract of land; and by hydrographers they are made joining together; but here I found an opening and paffage between, with many islands, the largest of which lie on the north fide of this paffage or ftreight. The channel is very good, between the islands and the land to the eastward. The eaft part of New Guinea, is high and mountainous, ending on the north-eaft with a large promontory, which I named King William's Cape, in honour of His present Majefty. We faw fome fmoaks on it, and leaving it on our larboard fide, fteered away near the eaft land, which ends with two remarkable capes or heads, distant from each other about fix or feven leagues: within each head were two very remarkable mountains, afcending very gradually from the fea fide; which afforded a very pleasant and agreeable profpect. The mountains and lower land were pleasantly mixed with wood-land and favannahs; the trees appeared very green and flourishing; and the favannahs feemed to be very smooth and even; no meadow in England appears more green in the spring than these. We saw smoaks, but did not ftrive to anchor here, but rather chofe to get under one of the islands, (where I thought I should find few or no inhabitants), that I might repair my pinnace, which was fo crazy, that I could not venture ashore any where with her. As we ftood over to the iflands, we looked out very well to the north, but could fee no land that way; by which I was well affured that we were got through, and that this eaft land does not join to New Guinea; therefore I named it Nova Britannia. The north-west cape, I called Cape Glocefter, and the fouth-west-point Cape Anne; and the north-weft mountain, which is very remarkable, I called Mount Glocefter.

This island which I called Nova Britannia, has about 4° of latitude: the body of it lying in 4°, and the northernmost part in 2° 32', and the fouthernmost in 6° 30' fouth. It has about 5° 18' longitude from east to west. It is generally high mountainous land, mixed with large valleys, which, as well as the mountains, appeared very fertile; and in most places that we faw, the trees are very large, tall and thick. It is alfo very well inhabited with strong well-limbed negroes, whom we found very daring and bold at

feveral

feveral places. As to the product of it, I know no more than what I have faid in my account of Port Mountague; but it is very probable this ifland may afford as many rich commodities as any in the world; and the natives may be easily brought to commerce, though I could not pretend to it under my present circumstances.

Being near the island to the northward of the Volcano, I fent my boat to found, thinking to anchor here, but fhe returned and brought me word that they had no ground, till they met with a riff of coral rocks about a mile from the fhore; then I bore away to the north fide of the ifland, where we found no anchoring neither. We faw feveral people, and fome cocoa-nut-trees, but could not fend afhore for want of my pinnace, which was out of order. In the evening I ftood off to fea, to be at fuch a diftance that I might not be driven by any currunt upon the fhoals of this island, if it 'fhould prove calm. We had but little wind, efpecially the beginning of the night; but in the morning I found myself fo far to the weft of the island, that the wind being at eaft-fouth-eaft, I could not fetch it, wherefore I kept on to the fouthward, and ftemmed with the body of a high ifland about eleven or twelve leagues long, lying to the southward of that which I before defigned for. I named this island Sir George

Rook's Ifland.

We also saw some other iflands to the weftward, which may be better seen in my draft of these lands than here described; but feeing a very fmall island lying to the north-weft of the long island which was before us, and not far from it, I fteered away for that, hoping to find anchoring there; and having but little wind, I fent my boat before to found, which, when we were about two miles diftance from the fhore, came on board and brought me word that there was good anchoring in thirty or forty fathom water, a mile from the ifle, and within a reeff of the rocks which lay in a half-moon, reaching from the north part of the island to the fouth-eaft; fo at noon we got in and anchored in thirty-fix fathom, a mile from the isle.

In the afternoon I fent my boat afhore to the island, to fee what convenience there was to haul our veffel afhore in order to be mended, and whether we could catch any fish. My men in the boat rowed about the island, but could not land by reafon of the rocks and a great furge running in upon the fhore. We found variation here, 8° 25' west.

I defigned to have staid among these islands till I had got my pinnace refitted; but having no more than one man who had skill to work upon her, I faw fhe would be a long time in repairing (which was one great reafon why I could not profecute my dif coveries further); and the easterly winds being fet in, I found I should scarce be able to hold my ground.

The 31ft, in the forenoon, we fhot in between two iflands, lying about four leagues afunder, with intention to pass between them. The fouthernmoft is a long ifland, with a high hill at each end; this I named Long Island. The northernmost is a round high ifland towering up with feveral heads or tops, fomething refembling a crown; this I named Crown Ifle, from its form. Both these islands appeared very pleasant, having fpots of green favannahs mixed among the wood-land: the trees appeared very green and flourishing, and fome of them looked white and full of bloffoms. We paffed clofe by Crown Ifle, faw many cocoa-nut trees on the bays and fides of the hills; and one boat was coming off from the fhore, but returned again. We faw no fmoaks on either of the islands, neither did we fee any plantations, and it is probable they are not very well peopled. We faw many fhoals near Crown Ifland, and reefs of rocks running off from the points a mile or more into the fea: my boat was once over-board, with defign

to

to have fent her afhore, but having little wind, and feeing fome fhoals, I hoisted her in again, and stood off out of danger.

In the afternoon, seeing an island bearing north-west-by-weft, we steered away northweft-by-north, to be to the northward of it. The next morning, being about midway from the islands we left yesterday, and having this to the weftward of us, the land of the main of New Guinea within us to the fouthward, appeared very high. When we came within four or five leagues of this ifland to the weft of us, four boats came off to view us, one came within call, but returned with the other three without speaking to us; fo we kept on for the island, which I named Sir R. Rich's Island. It was pretty high, woody, and mixed with favannahs like thofe formerly mentioned. Being to the north of it, we saw an opening between it and another island two leagues to the west of it, which before appeared all in one. The main feemed to be high land, trending to

the weftward.

On Tuesday, the 2d of April, about eight in the morning, we discovered a high-peaked ifland to the weftward, which feemed to fmoak at its top: the next day we paffed by the north fide of the Burning Ifland, and faw a fmoak again at its top, but the vent lying on the fouth fide of the peak, we could not obferve it diftinctly, nor fee the fire. We afterwards opened three more islands, and fome land to the fouthward, which we could not well tell whether it were islands or part of the main. These islands are all high, full of fair trees and spots of great favannahs, as well the Burning Ifle as the reft; but the Burning Ifle was more round and peaked at top, very fine land near the fea, and for two-thirds up it: we alfo faw another ifle fending forth a great fmoak at once, but it foon vanifhed, and we faw it no more; we faw alfo, among these islands, three fmall veffels with fails, which the people on Nova Britannia feem wholly ignorant of.

The 11th, at noon, having a very good obfervation, I found myself to the northward of my reckoning, and thence concluded that we had a current fetting north-weft, or rather more wefterly, as the land lies. From that time to the next morning we had fair clear weather, and a fine moderate gale from fouth-eaft to east-by-north: but at day-break the clouds began to fly, and it lightened very much in the east, fouth-east, and north-east. At fun-rifing, the fky looked very red in the east near the horizon, and there were many black clouds both to the fouth and north of it. About a quarter of an hour after the fun was up, there was a fquall to the windward of us; when on a fudden one of our men on the fore-castle called out that he faw fomething a-ftern, but could not tell what: I looked out for it, and immediately faw a fpout beginning to work within a quarter of a mile of us, exactly in the wind: we presently put right before it. It came very fwiftly, whirling the water up in a pillar about fix or feven yards high. As yet I could not fee any pendulous cloud, from whence it might come; and was in hopes it would foon lofe its force. In four or five minutes time, it came within a cable's length of us, and paffed away to leeward, and then I faw a long pale ftream coming down to the whirling water. This ftream was about the bignefs of a rainbow: the upper end feemed vaftly high, not defcending from any dark cloud, and therefore the more ftrange to me; I never having feen the like before. It past about a mile to leeward of us, and then broke. This was but a small spout, not strong nor lafting; yet I perceived much wind in it as it paffed by us. The current still continued at north-weft a little wefterly, which I allowed to run a mile per hour.

By an obfervation the 13th, at noon, I found myself 2.5′ to the northward of my reckoning; whether occafioned by bad steerage, a bad account, or a current, I could not determine; but was apt to judge it might be a complication of all; for I could not think it was wholly the current, the land here lying eaft-by-fouth, and west-by-north,

3

or

or a little more northerly and foutherly. We had kept fo nigh as to fee it, and at fartheft had not been above twenty leagues from it, but fometimes much nearer; and it is not probable that any current fhould fet directly off from a land. A tide indeed may; but then the flood has the fame force to ftrike in upon the fhore, as the ebb to strike off from it: but a current must have set nearly along fhore, either easterly or wefterly; and if any thing northerly or foutherly, it could be but very little in comparison of its eaft or weft course, on a coaft lying as this doth; which yet we did not perceive. If therefore we were deceived by a current, it is very probable that the land is here disjoined, and that there is a paffage through to the southward, and that the land from King William's Cape to this place is an island, separated from New Guinea by fome ftreight, as Nova Britannia is by that which we came through. But this being at best but a probable conjecture, I fhall infift no farther upon it.

The 14th we paffed by Scouten's Ifland, and Providence Ifland, and found ftill a very strong current fetting to the north-weft. On the 17th we faw a high mountain on the main, that fent forth great quantities of fmoke from its top: this volcano we did not fee in our voyage out. In the afternoon we difcovered King William's Island, and crowded all the fail we could to get near it before night, thinking to lie to the eastward of it till day, for fear of fome fhoals that lie at the weft end of it. Before night we got within two leagues of it, and having a fine gale of wind and a light moon, I refolved to pass through in the night, which I hoped to do before twelve o'clock, if the gale continued; but when we came within two miles of it, it fell calm; yet afterwards by the help of the current, a small gale, and our boat, we got through before day. In the night we had a very fragrant fmell from the island. By morning-light we were got two leagues to the weftward of it; and then were becalmed all the morn ing; and met fuch whirling tides, that when we came into them, the fhip turned quite round: and though fometimes we had a small gale of wind, yet fhe could not feel the helm when she came into these whirlpools: neither could we get from amongst them, till a brisk gale fprung up; yet we drove not much any way, but whirled round like a top. And those whirlpools were not conftant to one place but drove about ftrangely; and fometimes we faw among them large ripplings of the water, like great over-falls, making a fearful noife. I fent my boat to found, but found no ground.

The 18th Cape Mabo bore fouth, diftance nine leagues; by which account it lies in the latitude of 50' fouth, and meridian distance from Cape St. George one thoufand two hundred and forty-three miles. St. John's Ifle lies forty-eight miles to the east of Cape St. George; which being added to the distance between Cape St. George and Cape Mabo, makes one thousand two hundred and ninety-one meridional parts; which was the furthest that I was to the east. In my outward-bound voyage I made meridian distance between Cape Mabo and Cape St. George, one thoufand two hundred and ninety miles; and now in my return, but one thousand two hundred and forty-three; which is forty-feven fhort of my distance going out. This difference may probably be occafioned by the strong western current which we found in our return, which I allowed for after I perceived it; and though we did not difcern any current when we went to the eastward, except when near the islands, yet it is probable we had one against us, though we did not take notice of it becaufe of the strong wefterly winds. King William's Island lies in the latitude of 21' fouth, and may be seen distinctly off Cape Mabo.

In the evening we paft by Cape Mabo; and afterwards steered away south-east halfeast, keeping along the shore, which here trends fouth-eafterly. The next morning,

497

feeing a large opening in the land, with an island near the fouth fide; I ftood in, thinking to anchor there. When we were fhot in within two leagues of the ifland, the wind came to the weft, which blows right into the opening. I ftood to the north fhore; intending, when I came pretty nigh, to fend my boat into the opening, and found, before I would adventure in. We found feveral deep bays, but no foundings within two miles of the fhore; therefore I ftood off again. Then feeing a ripling under our lee, I fent my boat to found on it; which returned in half an hour, and brought me word that the rippling we faw was only a tide, and that they had no ground there.

VOL. XI.