ell of the sea breaking so heavily around us
that our escape for the fourth time on this shoal was quite providential.
After getting into clear water we ran along the edge of the coloured
water, sounding in fourteen fathoms hard sand, mixed with shells and
stones; at noon we hauled round its north-west extremity and steered for
the land, which was soon afterwards visible from south to south-west, the
latter bearing being that of a remarkable hill, of quadrilateral shape,
answering in position to Captain Baudin's Lacrosse Island. At two o'clock
our soundings, for the first time since leaving Port Keats, were on a
muddy bottom; at sunset we were within six miles of a small rocky island
of half a mile in extent, surrounded by an extensive reef, which was
partially dry; the land between South-East and West by South appeared to
be a very low sandy coast, and the back lands to the south-east are
wooded and level. Nearer to Lacrosse Island the coast is not only more
irregular in its outline but of a more mountainous character: on each
side of the nearest part of the coast, which was eight miles off and bore
South, the shores fall back and form two bays; the land was however so
enveloped by the smoke of the natives' fires that the greater part was
very indistinctly seen and therefore very imperfectly described. After
dark a light breeze sprang up from the South-West, and we stood off
shore; but not being able to find an anchorage we continued under weigh
during the night.

September 14.

The next morning the land was not in sight: as we stood towards the shore
it was soon afterwards discerned, and at noon we were very near to our
last night's position but were prevented from steering towards Lacrosse
Island by a considerable shoal which extended to the North-West and
crossed our course: we anchored near it at sunset in ten fathoms.

The land this day was more visible towards the South-East and observed to
join the low land at the back of the reefs that we passed on the 12th.

A remarkable echo was heard in the evening: whilst the cook was chopping
his wood every blow was echoed round the bight, although we were eight
miles from the shore. After leaving Port Keats we met with large
quantities of a very beautiful species of medusa, it appeared to be the
Medusa panopyra, figured in Peron's Atlas, (Plate 31 figure 2). It is
from this animal that the French have named their Banc des Meduses. No
turtle or snakes had for some time