Page:Early voyages to Terra Australis.djvu/282

 126 EXTRACT FROM THE JOURNAL OF A

along the coast, and found the latitude 30 degrees 17 minutes. In different places towards the south we saw a great smoke and vapour arising, and we went with our two boats on shore, and found, nearly a league from the shore, a rock ; and a gunshot from thence two fathoms water, and from that to the coast four, five, six, three, two and a half, three, five, eight, five, three, and two fathoms ; mostly foul bottom, not adapted for anchoring ; and on the south-west side there are generally breakers. These two corners extend south and north from the gulf; the soil dry and sandy, and but little adapted for the habitation of animals, still less of men. We had nearly proceeded a league and a half inland ; but we saw no men nor fresh water, but several footsteps of men, and steps like those of the dog and of the cassowary. Nor did we see any trees, but only briars and thorns. One of our people said that he had seen a red serpent. Some others said that as soon as we reached the shore, they saw a yellow dog leaping from the wild herbage, and throwing itself into the sea, as if to amuse himself with swimming. What truth there was in these statements, I do not know. At all events I did not see either of these things myself. At two o'clock we returned with our chief pilot on board.

On the 16th my companion went with the boats ashore, and marched onwards with his crew in order for one hour and a half; but returned on board in the evening without having made any discovery.

On the 17th the boats returned on shore, and directed their course then more towards the south than they had hitherto done, and brought on board from an island a quan- tity of sea-mews. The latitude 30 degrees 42 minutes. Nothing new.

The 20th, returning to the shore, I found nothing but a great plain very barren ; many rocks on the coast ; and the depth sixteen, fourteen, eleven, eight, six, five, three, and two fathoms ; the anchorage difficult.