4 FROM THE SANDWICH ISLANDS 



now, I tacked during night under few sails, and 

 continued our course in the morning towards 

 the W. 



The 30th, latitude 9° 48', longitude 187° 9'. 

 We had a fresh wind from N., and extremely high 

 waves from N.W. The current had carried us 

 since yesterday 27 miles to W. : we saw more birds 

 than usual. 



The 31st, latitude 9° 49' 51'\ longitude, accord- 

 ing to the ship's reckoning, deduced from the 

 chronometers, 188° 33'. During the whole day we 

 had gloomy weather with drizzling rain, which is 

 not usual in the tropics j the wind varied from N. 

 to N.N.E. and N.N.W. This changeable weather 

 gave me great hopes that land was near ; I how- 

 ever looked for it in vain. At tliree o'clock in the 

 afternoon, we were exactly N., 15 miles distant 

 from our course in the preceding year, and had 

 now sailed, for the second time, through the chain 

 of tlie Mulgrave islands, without having seen them. 

 I now directed my course as much north as 

 the wind permitted, to sail to KutusoPs islands, 

 which I have promised to examine more closely j 

 and we tacked during the night under few^ sails, 

 that we might neither run aground, nor pass the 

 islands. 



The 1st of January, 1817, latitude 10° lo; lon- 

 gitude, calculated according to the chronometers on 

 the 2d of January, 189° 54'. A faint wind, which 

 changed from N.N.W. to N.N.E., with drizzling 



