Page:Artabanzanus (Ferrar, 1896).djvu/195

Rh board the Lady Jane Shore when she was piratically seized by the prisoners and soldiers on her way to Botany Bay, and escaped death by leaving his bed in the dark.

'When we arrived at Algoa Bay, we found two men-of-war belonging to England, and during the evening another entered the harbour, and cast anchor near them. I received an order immediately to pay the new arrival a visit; but, on going alongside in the boat, and being about to mount the side, I heard people talking in a foreign language, which I suspected was French. I returned to my ship with a report of what I had heard, and it was soon discovered that the stranger was the French frigate La Preneuse, of 44 guns, which had watched the English ships into the bay, and expected to make prizes of them in the morning. The latter lost no time in opening their fire, although both the captains were on shore. The battle lasted six hours, and at last the Frenchman spread his sails to the land breeze, and bade us good-bye.

'My next change was to the Lady Nelson, tender to the Investigator, discovery ship, under Captain Flinders, and we proceeded to Sydney to join that officer. (My memory becomes better as I get deeper into my history.) We spent a long time in surveying the coasts of Port Philip and Van Diemen's Land, now called Tasmania, where I was destined hereafter to spend many years of my chequered life. We then sailed to the northern shores of New Holland, where we lost all our anchors and cables on the coral reefs, but saved our vessel by means of a wooden anchor. When we got back to Sydney, however, our anchor would no longer sink, and our ship, the Lady Nelson, went on shore.

'In the year 1803 we set sail from Sydney with passengers and stores for the Derwent, and, after landing them, sailed to Port Philip, to bring over Colonel Collins and the persons who had attempted to form a settlement there. The soil