THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 243 



and were therefore under the neceffity of bearing up again, y 7 ,?.' 

 and pairing them all to the leeward. 1 J- — j 



We had a better opportunity of fettling the longitude of 

 the ifland Saint Laurence, when we laft faw it, than now- 

 But feeing it at that time but once, and to the Southward, 

 we could only determine its latitude fo far as we could 

 judge of diftances ; whereas now the noon obfervations en- 

 abled us to afcertain it correctly, which is 63° 47'. Its lon- 

 gitude was found to be 188 15', as before. This illand, if 

 its boundaries were at this time within our view, is about 

 three leagues in circuit. The North part may be feen at 

 the diftance of ten or twelve leagues ; but as it falls in low 

 land to the South Eaft, the extent of which we could not 

 fee, fome of us conjectured, that it might probably be 

 joined to the land to the Eaftward of it ; this, however, the 

 hazinefs of the weather prevented our afcertaining. Thefe 

 iflands, as well as the land about the Tfchukotfkoi Nofs, 

 were covered with mow, and prefented us with a mod 

 dreary picture. At midnight, Saint Laurence bore South 

 South Eaft, five or fix miles diftant ; and our depth of water 

 was eighteen fathoms. We were accompanied by various 

 kinds of fea fowl, and faw feveral fmall crcflcd hawks. 



The weather ftill continuing to thicken, we loft all fight 

 of land till the 5th, when it appeared both to the North Ealt Monday 5, 

 and North Weft. Our latitude, by account, was, at this 

 time, 65 24', longitude 189 14'. As the iflands of Saint 

 Diomede, which lie between the two continents in Beer- 

 ing's ftrait, were determined by us laft year to be in latitude 

 63° 48', we could not reconcile the land to the North Eaft, 

 with the fituation of thofe illand?. We therefore flood to- 

 ward the land till three in the afternoon, when we were 



1 i s within 



