Page:Early voyages to Terra Australis.djvu/298

 142 dampier's voyages.

good ofEn, bat the wiud still increasing I took in my main top-sail, being able to cany no more sail than two courses and the mizen.

At two in the morning, August 3rd, it blew very hard, and the sea was much raised, so that I furled all my sails but my main-sail. Tho' the wind blew so hard, we had pretty clear weather till noon ; but then the whole sky was blackned with thick clouds, and we had some rain, which Avould last a quarter of an hour at a time, and then it would blow very fierce while the squalls of rain were over our heads ; but as soon as they were gone the wind was by much abated, the stress of the storm being over. We sounded several times, but had no ground till eight a clock, August the 4th, in the evening, and then had sixty fathom water, coral ground. At ten, we had fifty-six fathom, fine sand. At twelve, we had fifty-five fathom, fine sand, of a pale blueish colour. It was now pretty moderate weather, yet I made no sail till morning ; but then, the wind veering about to the S.W., I made sail and stood to the north ; and at eleven a clock the next day, August 5th, we saw land again, at about six leagues distance. This noon we were in latitude 25 degrees, 30 minutes, and in the afternoon our cook died, an old man, who had been sick a great while, being infirm before we came out of England.

The 6th of August, in the morning, we saw an opening in the land, and we ran into it, and anchored in seven and a half fathom water, two miles from the shore, clean sand. It was somewhat difficult getting in here, by reason of many shoals we met with, but I sent my boat sounding before me. The mouth of this sound, which I call'd Shark's Bay, lies in about twenty-five degrees south latitude, and our reckoning made its longitude from the Cape of Good Hope to be about 87 degrees ; which is less by about one hundred and ninety-five leagues than is usually laid down in our com- mon draughts, if our reckoning was right, and our glasses