184 cook's SECOND VOYAGE JAN. 



above three or four leagues broad. The coast is 

 rocky, much indented, and seemed to form several 

 bays or inlets. It shews a surface of craggy hills 

 which spire up to a vast height, especially near 

 the west end. Except the craggy summits of the 

 hills, the greatest part was covered with trees and 

 shrubs, or some sort of herbage, and there was little 

 or no snow on it. The currents between Cape De- 

 seada and Cape Horn, set from west to east, that is, 

 in the same direction as the coast ; but they are by 

 no means considerable. To the east of the cape 

 their strength is much increased, and their direction 

 is N. E. towards Staten Land. They are rapid in 

 Strait Le Maire and along the south coast of Staten 

 Land, and set like a torrent round Cape St. John ; 

 where they take a N.W. direction, and continue to 

 run very strong both within and without New Year's 

 isles. While we lay at anchor within this island, I 

 observed that the current was strongest during the 

 flood ; and that, on the ebb, its strength was so much 

 impaired, that the ship would sometimes ride head to 

 wind when it was at west and W. N. W. This is only 

 to be understood of the place where the ship lay at 

 anchor ; for at the very time we had a strong current 

 setting to the westward, Mr. Gilbert found one of 

 equal strength near the coast of Staten Land, setting 

 to the eastward ; though probably this was an eddy 

 current or tide. 



W the tides are regulated by the moon, it is high* 

 water by the shore at this place, on the days of the 

 new and full moon, about four o'clock. The per- 

 pendicular rise and fall is very inconsiderable, not 

 exceeding four feet at most. In Christmas Sound it 

 is high water at half past two o'clock on the days of 

 the full and change, and Mr. Wales observed it to 

 rise and fall, on a perpendicular, three feet six inches ; 

 but this was during the neap-tides, consequently 

 the spring-tides must rise higher. To give such an 

 account of the tides and currents on these coasts as 



