ke our gannets on the coast of England, flying 3 or 4
together; and a sort of white seamews, but black about the eyes, and with
forked tails. We strove to run in near the shore to seek for a harbour to
refresh us after our tedious voyage; having made one continued stretch
from Brazil hither of about 114 degrees designing from hence also to
begin the discovery I had a mind to make on New Holland and New Guinea.
The land was low, and appeared even, and as we drew nearer to it it made
with some red and some white cliffs; these last in latitude 26 10 south,
where you will find 54 fathom within 4 miles of the shore.

THAT PART DESCRIBED, AND SHARK'S BAY, WHERE HE FIRST ANCHORS.

About the latitude of 26 degrees south we saw an opening, and ran in,
hoping to find a harbour there: but when we came to its mouth, which was
about 2 leagues wide, we saw rocks and foul ground within, and therefore
stood out again: there we had 20 fathom water within 2 mile of the shore.
The land everywhere appeared pretty low, flat and even; but with steep
cliffs to the sea; and when we came near it there were no trees, shrubs
or grass to be seen. The soundings in the latitude of 26 degrees south,
from about 8 or 9 leagues off till you come within a league of the shore,
are generally about 40 fathom; differing but little, seldom above 3 or 4
fathom. But the lead brings up very different sorts of sand, some coarse,
some fine; and of several colours, as yellow, white, grey, brown, bluish
and reddish.

When I saw there was no harbour here, nor good anchoring, I stood off to
sea again, in the evening of the second of August, fearing a storm on a
lee shore, in a place where there was no shelter, and desiring at least
to have sea-room: for the clouds began to grow thick in the western
board, and the wind was already there, and began to blow fresh almost
upon the shore; which at this place lies along north-north-west and
south-south-east. By 9 o'clock at night we had got a pretty good offing;
but, the wind still increasing, I took in my main topsail, being able to
carry no more sail than two courses and the mizzen. At 2 in the morning
August 3 it blew very hard, and the sea was much raised; so that I furled
all my sails but my mainsail. Though the wind blew so hard we had pretty
clear weather till noon: but then the whole sky was blackened with thick
clouds, and we had some rain, which would last a quarter of an hour at a
time, and then it would blow ver