o the
north, and the other to the south. As the weather was very fine, I
tacked and stood in for it about ten o'clock; but as there were many
sunken rocks at about two leagues distance from it, upon which the sea
broke very high, and the wind seemed to be gradually dying away, I
tacked again and stood off. The land appeared to be barren and rocky,
without either tree or bush: When I was nearest to it I sounded, and had
forty-five fathom, with black muddy ground. To my great misfortune, my
three lieutenants and the master were at this time so ill as to be
incapable of duty, though the rest of the ship's company were in good
health.

The next day I shaped my course by the chart in the account of Lord
Anson's voyage, for Cape Blanco. In the evening it blew extremely hard
at S.W. by S. so that we brought to for the night under our main-sail.
In the morning we made sail again, but we had a great sea; and although,
it was now almost Midsummer in these parts, the weather was, in every
respect, much worse than it is in the Bay of Biscay at the depth of
winter. About six in the evening, having carried all the sail I could,
we made land, bearing about S.S.W. which, as we had a good observation
of the sun, we knew to be Cape Blanco; but it now began to blow with
more violence than ever, and the storm continued all night, with a sea
that was continually breaking over us, so that the ship laboured very
much. At four in the morning, we sounded and had forty fathom, with
rocky ground; having stood off in the night, we now wore and stood in
again, the storm still continuing with hail and snow; and about six
o'clock we saw the land again, bearing S.W. by W. The ship was now so
light, that in a gale of wind she drove bodily to leeward; so that I was
very solicitous to get into Port Desire,[12] that I might put her hold
in order, and take in sufficient ballast, to avoid the danger of being
caught upon a lee-shore in her present trim. We steered in for the land
with the wind at N.E. and in the evening brought to; but the wind coming
to the westward, we were driven off in the night. At seven the next
morning, we stood in again, steering S.W. by S. by the compass, and soon
perceived the sea to break right a-head of us; we immediately sounded,
and shoaled our water from thirteen to seven fathom, soon after
deepening it again from seventeen to forty-two; so that we went over the
end of a shoal, which a little farther to the northward might hav