12 NOTES ON CAPTAIN BLKUI S VISITS TO TASMANIA, 



one of the large posts. The seine was tried on the beach, 

 but without great success, better results being obtained by 

 fishing with hook and line from the ship, as by the latter 

 method considerable quantities of large red rock cod were 

 caught. The afternoon of the day of their arrival was "given 

 "to the people to take their rest in," the stations being fixed 

 for the following day, and everyone ordered to breakfast at 

 7 a.m. 



In spite of the preparations made for an early start on 

 the morrow, Bligh was to suffer a disappointment, as the 

 weather was so squally and rainy that work could not be 

 commenced until late in the morning, and in the afternoon 

 the first launch load of wood was received on board. Bligh 

 records that "Mr. Wiles and Mr. Smith, the botanists, were 

 "employed about the hills, and I planted in the fresh water at 

 "the east end of the beach a pot of watercress — on a tree a 

 "few yards from it, I had cut a memorandum." 



On the following day, Saturday, the eleventh, the weather 

 improved, and at 7 o'clock the wooding and watering parties 

 were sent ashore, as well as the pinnace being sent to Pen- 

 guin Island to secure grass. It had, however, blown strongly 

 from the south-west during the night, and there was a con- 

 siderable surf on the beach, which made the work of the 

 various parties rather difficult. 



Bligh had a small boat belonging to the Assistnnt car- 

 ried into "the lake," for the purpose of examining it. He 

 found that the principal arm was about twenty yards wide, 

 and in different parts had 3, 4, 8, 6, and 13 feet of water. 

 From the main arm there were several smaller branches, in 

 which there was 2, 4, and 6 feet of water in various parts. 

 Bligh describes "the lake" as winding through a flat circum- 

 scribed by hills, the water being brackish in all parts. The 

 flat itself was swampy, and the vegetation mostly wire grass 

 and a few scrubs. The "lake" abounded with bream, and 

 numbers of wild ducks were seen. 



The same day that Bligh carried out his exploration of 

 "the lake" he sent the botanists to plant certain trees upon 

 the rising grounds near the east end of the beach, and the 

 following is a list of the items planted: — Three fig trees, nine 

 oaks, three quinces, three pomegranates, one rosemary, and 

 twenty strawberry plants. 



On the twelfth there was a moderate southerly breeze and 

 a sharp air, the "wooders, waterers, grass cutters, and 

 "broomers employed, and at leisure moments hauling the 



