Page:Voyage of discovery to the North Pacific Ocean, and round the world in the years 1791-95, volume 2.djvu/359

Rh eating with the ocean to the north. The water that flowed from it re- mained, without mixing, on the furface of the water of the inlet. The upper water was nearly frefh, of a lightifh colour, interfperfed with thick muddy fheets, indicating it to have flowed from a fmall river whofe fource was not very remote.

At three o'clock the cutter returned, with a very unfavorable account of the place fo far as their examination had gone; efpecially on the northern fide of the opening, from whence a fliallow flat extended fome diftance, on which there was not more than from i to 3 fathoms water. The latter depth fuddenly increafed to 30, and, at the diltance of a cable's length from the edge of the bank, to 50 and 60 fathoms. This fliallow flat made the communication with the fhore very unpleafant, and appeared to be continued all round. To thofe in the cutter the opening feemed to be nothing more than a deep bay with very fliallow water, excepting in its north-eafl: part, where a branch from which the muddy water flowed, feemed to extend into the country. Acrofs this branch they had alfo founded, and found fliallow water. As it did not, from this report, feem likely to anfwer our purpofe, we proceeded round its north point of entrance, and again made fail up the inlet, which; be- yond this bay, was in general about half a league wide. The fliores on both fides were nearly ftraight and compafl ; in this purfuit our pro- grefs was greatly retarded by a counter tide, or under tow, and notwiih- ftanding that we had a frefli gale from the fouth-eaft, the flrength of this repelling current was fuch, that the wind had no influence what- ever, though in other fituations the veflel with fuch a gale would have gone 5 or 6 knots per hour. On this occafion the fliip became totally unmanageable; the wind was fometimes a-head, at others a-ftern, a- broadfide, and in every other direftion ; and we were drifting from fide to fide in the moft unpleafant fituation imaginable for two hours and a half, when the force of the wind prevailing, we advanced flowly up the inlet until about eleven at night. The diftance of its fliores had now again increafed, and the country became Icfs elevated. A fmall cove was dircovered on the eaftern fliorc, where we anchored in 30 fathoms water.

'703- J"ly.