1770. ROUND THE WORLD. 295 



S. W. and in the day from the N. W. or N. For some 

 nights before this, we had very heavy rain, with 

 much thunder; and in the night between the 25th 

 and 26th, such rain as w r e had seldom seen, for near 

 four hours without intermission. Mr. Bank's house 

 admitted the water in every part like a sieve, and it 

 ran through the lower rooms in a stream that would 

 have turned a mill; he was by this time sufficiently 

 recovered to go out, and, upon his entering Batavia 

 the next morning, he was much surprised to see the 

 bedding every where hung out to dry. 



The wet season was now set in, though we had 

 some intervals of fair weather. The frogs in the 

 ditches, which croak ten times louder than any frogs 

 in Europe, gave notice of rain by an incessant noise 

 that was almost intolerable, and the gnats and mus- 

 quitos, which had been very troublesome even during 

 the dry weather, were now become innumerable, 

 swarming from every plash of water like bees from a 

 hive; they did not, however, much incommode us 

 in the day, and the stings, however troublesome at 

 first, never continued to itch above half an hour, so 

 that none of us felt in the day, the effects of the 

 wounds they had received in the night. 



On the 8th of December, the ship being perfectly 

 refitted, and having taken in most of her water and 

 stores, and received the sick on board, we ran up to 

 Batavia Road, and anchored in four fathom and an 

 half of water. 



From this time, to the 24th, we were employed in 

 getting on board the remainder of our water and 

 provisions, with some new pumps, and in several 

 other operations that were necessary to fit the ship 

 for the sea, all which would have been effected much 

 sooner, if sickness and death had not disabled or 

 carried off a great number of our men. 



While we lay here, the Earl of Elgin, Captain 

 Cook, a ship belonging to the English East India 



u 4 



