r, till ten o'clock at night, when we had forty-two fathom, at eleven
we had thirty-seven, at twelve forty-five, at one in the morning,
forty-nine, and at three, 120, after which we had no ground. At
day-light we made all the sail we could, and at ten o'clock saw land
extending from N.N.W. to W. by N., distant between five and six leagues:
At noon it bore from N. to W., and at about the same distance: It
appeared to be level, and of a moderate height; by our distance from New
Guinea, it ought to have been part of the Arrou Islands, but it lies a
degree farther to the south than any of these islands are laid down in
the charts; and, by the latitude, should be Timor Laoet: We sounded, but
had no ground with fifty fathom.

As I was not able to satisfy myself from any chart, what land it was
that I saw to leeward, and fearing that it might trend away more
southerly, the weather also being so hazy that we could not see far, I
steered S.W., and by four had lost sight of the island. I was now sure
that no part of it lay to the southward of 8 deg. 15' S., and continued
standing to the S.W. with an easy sail, and a fresh breeze at S.E. by E.
and E.S.E.: We sounded every hour, but had no bottom with 120 fathom.

At day-break in the morning, we steered W.S.W., and afterwards W. by S.,
which by noon brought us into the latitude of 9 deg. 30' S., longitude 229 deg.
34' W., and by our run from New Guinea, we ought to have been within
sight of Weasel Isles, which in the charts are laid down at the distance
of twenty or twenty-five leagues from the coast of New Holland; we
however saw nothing, and therefore they must have been placed
erroneously; nor can this be thought strange, when it is considered that
not only these islands, but the coast which bounds this sea, have been
discovered and explored by different people, and at different times, and
the charts upon which they are delineated, put together by others,
perhaps at the distance of more than a century after the discoveries had
been made; not to mention that the discoverers themselves had not all
the requisites for keeping an accurate journal, of which those of the
present age are possessed.

We continued our course, steering W. till the evening of the 8th, when
the variation of the compass, by several azimuths, was 12' W., and by
the amplitude 5' W. At noon, on the 9th, our latitude, by observation,
was 9 deg. 46' S., longitude 232 deg. 7' W. For the last two days we had steere