96 cook's first voyage may, 



to all appearance, without the least emotion, either 

 of curiosity or surprise, though it is impossible they 

 should not have seen the ship by a casual glance as 

 they walked along the shore ; and though she must, 

 with respect to every other object they had yet seen, 

 have been little less stupendous and unaccountable 

 than a floating mountain with all its woods would 

 have been to us. At noon, our latitude, by observ- 

 ation, was 28 39' S., and longitude 206 Tj' W. A 

 high point of land, which 1 named Cape Byron, 

 bore N. W. by W. 5 at the distance of three miles. 

 It lies in latitude 28 37' 30" S., longitude 206 30' 

 W., and may be known by a remarkable sharp-peaked 

 mountain, which lies inland, and bears from it N. W. 

 by W. From this point the land trends N. 13 W. : 

 inland it is high and hilly, but low near the shore: to 

 the southward of the point it is also low and level. 

 We continued to steer along the shore with a fresh 

 gale, till sun-set, when we suddenly discovered 

 breakers a-head, directly in the ship's course, and 

 also on our larboard bow. At this time we were 

 about five miles from the land, and had twenty fa- 

 thom water : we hauled up east till eight, when we 

 had run eight miles, and increased our depth of 

 water to forty-four fathom ; we then brought to, 

 with the ship's head to the eastward, and lay upon 

 this tack till ten, when, having increased our sound- 

 ing to seventy-eight fathom, we wore and lay with 

 the ship's head to the land till five in the morning, 

 when we made sail, and, at day-light, were greatly 

 surprised to find ourselves farther to the southward 

 than we had been the evening before, though the 

 wind had been southerly, and blown fresh all night. 

 We now saw the breakers again within us, and passed 

 them at the distance of one league. They lie in 

 latitude 28 8" S., stretching off east two leagues 

 from a point of land, under which is a small island. 

 Their situation may always be known by the peaked 

 mountain which has been just mentioned, and which 



