rocks under water. I ran in by a
chart in the English East India Pilot, which upon the whole I round a
good one, though the names of the islands, points, and bays, differ very
much from those by which they are now known. When we got near to the
Celebes shore, we had land and sea-breezes, which obliged us to edge
along the coast, though our strength was so much reduced, that it was
with the utmost difficulty we could work the stream anchor.

In the evening of Tuesday the 15th, we anchored at about the distance of
four miles from the town of Macassar, which, according to my account,
lies in latitude 5 deg. 10' or 5 deg. 12' S., longitude 117 deg. 28'E. having spent
no less than five and thirty weeks in out passage from the Streight of
Magellan.

I have been the more particular in my description of as much as I saw
of this streight, because all the charts, both English and French, that
I consulted, are extremely deficient and erroneous, and because an exact
knowledge of it may be of great service to our China trade: The ships by
which that trade is carried on, may pass this way with as little danger
as by the common one, which lies along the Prassel shoals; and when they
miss their passage to China, in the south-east monsoon, and lose the
season, they may be sure of a clear channel here, and fair winds at
W.S.W., W. and round to W.N.W., in November, December, and the four
following months: I am also of opinion, that it is a better and shorter
way to go to the N.E. and eastward of the Philippine Islands, than to
thread the Moluccas, or coast New Guinea, where there are shoals,
currents, and innumerable other dangers, as they were forced to do when
the French were cruising for them in the common passage during the last
war.

SECTION X.

_Transactions off Macassar, and the Passage thence to Bonthain._

The same night that we came to an anchor, at about eleven o'clock, a
Dutchman came on board, who had been dispatched by the governor, to
learn who we were. When I made him understand that the ship was an
English man-of-war, he seemed to be greatly alarmed, no man-of-war
belonging to the King of Great Britain having ever been there before,
and I could not by any means persuade him to leave the deck, and go down
into the cabin; we parted, however, to all appearance, good friends.

The next morning, at break of day, I sent the lieutenant to the town,
with a letter to the governor, in which I acquainted him with the reaso