Page:Narrative of a survey of the intertropical and western coasts of Australia, Volume 1.djvu/334

 ?' SURYEY OF ?/E INTERTItOPICAL lsig. which I could compare my longitude with that Sept. s. of Captain Baudin; and as. the Peak of Peron Island is one of his fixed points, and is placed by him in 127 � 86", I find that my chart is in this part 6' 9./t" to the eastward. In order to set at rest the question of the in- sularity of this land, we passed within it, but not without difficulty, from the numerous shoals that. are scattered over the channel. A smoke was seen upon the smaller island among the trees for a few minutes, but no people made their appear- ance as we passed by.. The natives of this part of the coast were seen probably by'Tasman; for in Mr. Dalrymples' .Papua the following paragraph is found: "In latitude 18 � and longitude 146 �8' 6' E. (probably 1'29} E. of Greenwich, and answering to this part), the people are bad and wicked, shooting at the Dutch with arrows with- out provocation, when they were coming on shore. It is here very populous." On arriving abreast of the peaked hill above- mentioned, a considerable shoal, connected with the main land, appeared to separate us from it; in crossing it we had three fathoms, and, as soon as we-passed over it, the water deepened instantly to thirteen fathoms. We then bore up, and steered through the channel between the islands and the main, which was both narrow

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