safe. We continued to ply
to windward, between the two tides, without either gaining or losing an
inch, till near high water, when, by a favourable slant, we got into the
eastern tide's influence. We expected, there, to find the ebb to run
strong to the eastward in our favour, but it proved so inconsiderable,
that, at any other time, it would not have been noticed. This informed
us, that most of the water which flows into the _lagoon_, comes from the
N.W., and returns the same way. About five in the afternoon, finding
that we could not get to sea before it was dark, I came to an anchor,
under the shore of Tongataboo, in forty-five fathoms water, and about
two cables length from the reef, that runs along that side of the
island. The Discovery dropped anchor under our stern; but before the
anchor took hold, she drove off the bank, and did not recover it till
after midnight.

We remained at this station till eleven o'clock the next day, when we
weighed, and plyed to the eastward. But it was ten at night before we
weathered the east end of the island, and were enabled to stretch away
for Middleburgh, or Eooa, (as it is called by the inhabitants,) where we
anchored, at eight o'clock in the next morning, in forty fathoms water,
over a bottom of sand, interspersed with coral rocks; the extremes of
the island extending from N. 40 deg. E., to S. 22 deg. W.; the high land of
Eooa, S. 45 deg. E.; and Tongataboo, from N. 70 deg. W., to N. 19 deg. W., distant
about half a mile from the shore, being nearly the same place where I
had my station in 1773, and then named by me, _English Road_.

We had no sooner anchored, than Taoofa, the chief, and several other
natives, visited as on board, and seemed to rejoice much at our arrival.
This Taoofa[172] had been my _Tayo_, when I was here, during my last
voyage; consequently, we were not strangers to each other. In a little
time, I went ashore with him, in search of fresh water, the procuring of
which was the chief object that brought me to Eooa. I had been told at
Tongataboo, that there was here a stream, running from the hills into
the sea; but this was not the case now. I was first conducted to a
brackish spring, between low and high water mark, amongst rocks, in the
cove where we landed, and where no one would ever have thought of
looking for what we wanted. However, I believe the water of this spring
might be good, were it possible to take it up before the tide mixes with
it. Finding