1774. ROUND THE WORLD* 139 



The wind increased in such a manner as to oblige us 

 to close reef our top-sails, and strike top-gallant yards. 

 At last we could bear no more sail than the two 

 courses, and two close-reefed top-sails ; and under 

 them we stretched for Cape Stephens, which we 

 made at eleven o'clock at night. . 



At midnight we tacked, and made a trip to the 

 north till three o'clock next morning, when we bore 

 away for the sound. At nine we hauled round Point 

 Jackson, through a sea which looked terrible, occa- 

 sioned by a rapid tide and a high wind ; but as we 

 knew the coast, it did not alarm us. At eleven 

 o'clock we anchored before Ship Cove ; the strong 

 flurries from off the land not permitting us to get in. 

 In the afternoon, as we could not move the ship, 

 1 went into the cove, with the seine, to try to catch 

 some fish. The first thing I did after landing was 

 to look for the bottle I left hid when last here, in 

 which was the memorandum. It was taken away ; 

 but by whom it did not appear. Two hauls with the 

 seine producing only four small fish, we, in some 

 measure, made up for this deficiency, by shooting 

 several birds, which the flowers in the garden had 

 drawn thither, as also some old shags, and by robbing 

 the nests of some young ones. 



Being little wind next morning, we weighed, and 

 warped the ship into the Cove, and there moored 

 with the two bowers. We unbent the sails to repair 

 them, several having been split, and otherwise da- 

 maged in the late gale. The main and four courses, 

 already worn to the very utmost, were condemned as 

 useless. I ordered the top-masts to be struck and 

 unrigged, in order to fix to them moveable chocks 

 or knees, for want of which the trestle-trees were 

 continually breaking ; the forge to be set up, to make 

 bolts and repair our iron-work ; and tents to be erect- 

 ed on shore for the reception of a guard, coopers, 

 sail-makers, &c. I likewise gave orders that vegeta- 

 bles (of which there were plenty) should be boiled 



