Page:Voyage in search of La Perouse, volume 1 (Stockdale).djvu/155

] other a German, a very kilful workman in mathematical intruments, who had practied his trade for nine years in England. The Englih, he told us, were going to end him to Botany-bay, amongt a great number of other convicts. He aured us, that he had been condemned to be ent thither for debt. Having eized an opportunity of ecaping from the veel where he was confined, he fled for refuge to the mountains in the neighbourhood of the Cape-Town. We had no ue for the talents of this artit in the line of his profeion; we therefore firt employed him as our armourer, and afterwards as a mith. The armourer of our hip had been left on hore at the Cape, on account of icknes.

On the 20th of February we weathered Needle Point, at the ditance of about 100 toies, with winds from S.W. and W.

On the 22d we were in 35° lat. S. long. 20° E. when the oundings gave us our depth at 62 fathoms, over a bottom of grey calcareous and.

The currents had hitherto et to the N.W. but on the 25th they drove us towards S.W. as we were now off the channel of Mozambique, where the current, at this eaon of the year, takes a S.W. direction along the coat of Natal, which we had in ight.

On the 26th the urge ran o high, that a windmill,