THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 



79 



giganteiis *. Some of this weed is of a mod enormous length, 1776. 



T I 1 n • ■,■,■■.■, December. 



though the item is not much thicker than a man's thumb. 

 I have mentioned, that on fome of the flaoals upon which it 

 grows, we did not ftrike ground with a line of twenty-four 

 fathoms. The depth of water, therefore, mufl have been 

 greater. And as this weed does not grow in a perpendicu- 

 lar diredlion, but makes a very acute angle with the bot- 

 tom, and much of it afterwards fpreads many fathoms on 

 the furface of the fea, I am well warranted to fay, that 

 fome of it grows to the length of fixty fathoms and up- 

 ward. 



At one o'clock (having run two leagues upon a South 

 Eaft i Eaft courfe, from noon) we founded, and found 

 eighteen fathoms water, and a bottom of fine fand. Seeing 

 a Imall bending in the coaft, on the North fide of Cape 

 Digby, I fleered for it. It was my intention to anchor there, 

 if I fliould find it might be done with fafety, and to land 

 on the Cape, to examine what the low land within it pro- 

 duced. After running in one league, we founded again, 

 and found thirteen fathoms ; and immediately after, faw a 

 flioal right before us, that feemed to extend off from the 

 iliore, from which we were diftant about two miles. This 

 difcovery obliged us to haul off, Eaft by South, one league, 

 where our depth of water encreafed to twenty-five fathoms. 

 We then fleered along fliore, and continued in the fame 

 depth, over a bottom of fine fand, till Cape Digby bore 

 Weft, two leagues diftant, when we found twenty-fix fa- 

 thoms- 



After this we did not flrike ground, though we tried 

 feveral times ; but the lliip having a good deal of way, ran 



* See Hawkefwoith's Colledion of Voyages, Vol. ii. p. 42. 



the 



