d to me,
that it was his intention very soon to dispatch the Sirius to the
Cape of Good Hope, in order to purchase such quantity of
provisions as she might be capable of taking on board; and that
she might be made as light as possible for that purpose, he
desired I would land eight or ten of her guns and carriages, with
any other articles which I judged the ship could spare, for the
time she might be absent, and which might answer the purpose of
lightening the ship and the making of room.

In consequence of this order, eight guns, with their
carriages, and 24 rounds of shot for each gun, 20 half barrels of
powder, a spare anchor, and various other articles, were put on
shore at Sydney-cove: he also directed that I should leave the
ship's long-boat behind for the use of the settlement: this order
I confess I with reluctance obeyed, as the want of such a boat
has often been very severely felt; at the same time I was desired
to endeavour, on my arrival at the Cape, to purchase such a boat
for the settlement; and that written directions for that and
other purposes would be given me, when I received my final
instructions. Whilst upon this subject, I thought it a proper
opportunity to represent, that the Sirius was (except in the
carpenter's department,) perfectly ready for sea; but the
carpenter's crew, together with the carpenter of the ship
himself, having all been employed constantly on the business of
the settlement, since our arrival in this country, the ship had,
in consequence, been much neglected in that department; and as
she was soon to go to sea, it was highly necessary that those
people should be immediately sent on board to prepare her for a
voyage.

We had, it is true, (upon my representing the absolute
necessity of having the ship's decks and sides caulked,) employed
an old man, the carpenter's yeoman, and a convict caulker, upon
the weather work of the ship; but that work, we had afterwards
reason to know, had not been so well executed as it might have
been, had the carpenter of the ship been permitted to stay on
board and attend so necessary a duty.

On Tuesday the 30th of September, I received my final orders,
and on Wednesday the Ist of October, unmoored the ship; the
governor and his family dined on board, and the wind being
easterly, we got under weigh and worked down to the lower
anchorage, where we came to, intending to take advantage of the
land wind in the morning to put to sea. The Golden Gro