Page:A Voyage to Terra Australis Volume 2.djvu/169

Gulph of Carpentaria.]

This opening may be half a mile in width, but a dry sand runs across from the west side, and left no prospect of its being accessible to the ship; the shoal water, indeed, extended further out than usual, being caused, probably, by a deposit of sand from the inlet. The range of low hills, before mentioned as running behind the coast, was still perceived; but in front, the country was low as before, and somewhat less covered with wood.

The direction of the coast, which had been from north to north-west the day before, was now again W.N.W.; and after making a tack at noon, in 3 fathoms, and stretching off for an hour, we lay along it till near eight o'clock. At that time the depth diminished from 3½, suddenly to 2½ fathoms; and before the helm was put down the ship touched upon a rock, and hung abaft. By keeping the sails full she went off into 3 fathoms, but in five minutes hung upon another rock; and the water being more shallow further on, the head sails were now laid aback. On swinging off, I filled to stretch out by the way we had come; and after another slight touch of the keel we got into deep water, and anchored in 4 fathoms, on a bottom of blue mud. The bad state of the ship would have made our situation amongst these rocks very alarming, had we not cleared them so quickly; but the water was very smooth at this time, and it could not be perceived that any injury had been sustained.

Our distance here from the shore was three miles. It is very low and broken, with many dry rocks and banks lying near it; and in the space of seven or eight miles we had counted five small openings, and behind them some lagoons were perceived from the mast head. The Abel Tasman's River of the old chart is marked in about this situation; and however little these shallow openings and salt lagoons resemble a river, there is no other place to which the name could have been applied.

I was preparing to take altitudes of the star Rigel, to ascertain our longitude at this anchorage, when it was found that the time keepers had stopped, my assistant having forgotten to wind them up