t, a
large fire was immediately kindled, and a constant blaze kept up: This
prevented the beasts from invading the tent; but they continued to prowl
round it at a little distance, with incessant howlings, till the day
broke, and then, to the great comfort of the affrighted sailors, they
disappeared.

At this place, not far from where the ship lay, there is a hill that has
been cleared of wood, and we supposed this to be the spot where the
Spaniards formerly had a settlement.[25] One of the men, as he was
passing over this hill, perceived that, in a particular part, the ground
returned the sound of his foot, as if it was hollow: He therefore
repassed it several times, and finding the effect still the same, he
conceived a strong notion that something was buried there; when he came
on board, he related what he had remarked to me, and I went myself to
the spot, with a small party, furnished with spades and pickaxes, and
saw the spot opened to a considerable depth, but we found nothing, nor
did there appear to be any hollow or vault as was expected. As we were
returning through the woods, we found two very large skulls, which, by
the teeth, appeared to have belonged to some beasts of prey, but of what
kind we could not guess.

[Footnote 25: See some account of this settlement in the Voyage of
Captain Wallis, Section iii.]

Having continued here till Friday the 4th of January, and completed the
wood and water of both ships, for which purpose I had entered the
streight, I determined to steer back again in search of Falkland's
Islands.

SECTION V.

_The Course back from Port Famine to Falkland's Islands, with some
Account of the Country._

We weighed anchor at four o'clock in the morning, and worked to windward
out of the harbour: The wind continued contrary at N.N.E. till about one
o'clock the next day, when it shifted to W.S.W. and blew a fresh gale.
We steered N.W. by N. four leagues, and then three leagues north,
between Elizabeth and Bartholomew Islands: We then steered from the
islands N. by E. three leagues, to the second narrow; and steered
through N.E.E. continuing the same course from the second narrow to the
first, which was a run of eight leagues. As the wind still continued to
blow fresh, we steered through the first narrow against the flood, in
the direction of N.N.E.; but about ten o'clock at night, the wind dying
away, the flood set us back again into the entrance of the first narrow,
where we were