THE COAST OF CHILI. 123 



which account we could not reach Talcaguano 

 without tacking. 



At three o'clock, P. M. we could see the place 

 very distinctly, where three merchantmen lay at 

 anchor. We hoisted our flag, and by another, 

 which was accompanied by a gun, demanded a 

 pilot ; soon after, a boat appeared from Talca- 

 guano, but did not venture near enough to our 

 ship for us to hear any thing that they said. 

 They made all kinds of signs, which we understood 

 as little ; and at night-fall they returned to the 

 shore. This distrust surprised us ; but we after- 

 wards learnt that it was for fear of pirates, many 

 of which come here from Buenos Ayres, and do 

 great damage on the coast. We tacked till even- 

 ing, and at eight o'clock, when it had got dark, we 

 cast anchor 30 miles from Talcaguano, in a clayey 

 bottom 12 fathoms deep. On the 13th, at break 

 of day, our sentinels saw a boat near the ship, 

 which hailed us ; but we could not understand 

 them: we called to them, '' Russians, friends of the 

 Spaniards !" The people at length resolved to 

 come on board, and were much surprised to find 

 us to be Russians, no ship of that nation having 

 ever yet visited this place. 



There are numbers of whales in Conception Bay, 

 which spouted out the water ; one of them had 

 the boldness to come up about one foot under the 

 siu'face of the water, and to rest against the Ru- 

 rick ; thus, we had an opportunity of observing him 



