w no sign of
people. At night the yawl came aboard and brought a wooden fishgig, very
ingeniously made; the matter of it was a small cane; they found it by a
small barbecue, where they also saw a shattered canoe.

GREAT QUANTITIES OF MACKEREL.

The next morning I sent the boatswain ashore a-fishing and at one haul he
caught 352 mackerels and about 20 other fishes; which I caused to be
equally divided among all my company. I sent also the gunner and chief
mate to search about if they could find convenient anchoring nearer a
watering-place: by night they brought word that they had found a fine
stream of good water, where the boat could come close to and it was very
easy to be filled; and that the ship might anchor as near to it as I
pleased: so I went thither. The next morning therefore we anchored in 25
fathom water, soft oazie ground, about a mile from the river: we got on
board 3 tun of water that night; and caught 2 or 3 pike-fish, in shape
much like a parracota, but with a longer snout, something resembling a
gar, yet not so long. The next day I sent the boat again for water and
before night all my casks were full.

A WHITE ISLAND.

Having filled here about 15 tuns of water, seeing we could catch but
little fish, and had no other refreshments, I intended to sail next day;
but finding that we wanted wood I sent to cut some; and going ashore to
hasten it, at some distance from the place where our men were, I found a
small cove where I saw two barbecues, which appeared not to be above 2
months standing: the spars were cut with some sharp instrument; so that,
if done by the natives, it seems that they have iron. On the 10th, a
little after 12 o'clock, we weighed and stood over to the north side of
the bay; and at 1 o'clock stood out with the wind at north and
north-north-west. At 4 we passed out by a White Island, which I so named
from its many white cliffs, having no name in our charts. It is about a
league long, pretty high, and very woody: it is about 5 miles from the
main, only at the west end it reaches within 3 miles of it. At some
distance off at sea the west point appears like a cape land; the north
side trends away north-north-west, and the east side east-south-east.
This island lies in latitude 3 degrees 4 minutes south; and the meridian
distance from Babao, 500 and 12 miles east. After we were out to sea we
plied to get to the northward; but met with such a strong current against
us that we got but little.