2 FROM THE SANDWICH ISLANDS 



in hopes of descrying the island, which must be 

 very low, unless its situation had been determined 

 quite inaccurately. 



The 22d, at break of day, I again directed my 

 course to W., and expected every moment to hear 

 it announced from the mast-head that land had been 

 discovered ; but in vain ! At eight o'clock, accord- 

 ing to the ship's reckoning, we were in latitude 

 16° 56\ longitude 169° 21', consequently almost 

 on the point on which the island was said to lie, 

 without discovering any thing. The many sea- 

 fowls, however, still kept up my hope ; but at 

 noon, when our longitude far exceeded that of the 

 island, I was obliged to give it up, as it now 

 appeared probable that the Cornwallis frigate had 

 oeen mistaken in fixing the longitude. Our lati- 

 tude, according to t)bservation, at noon, was 17° 3', 

 longitude 170° 1' ; we had consequently been car- 

 ried by the current six miles to the N. in 24 hours, 

 and must certainly, if their latitude had been 

 accurately determined, have sailed past Cornwallis 

 islands at such a short distance, that we must have 

 seen them had they been ever so low. At noon I 

 gave up looking further for the islands, being con- 

 vinced that I had sailed by them, which was con- 

 firmed by the small number of sea-fowl, and now 

 steered to S.W., with the intention of coming into 

 the latitude of the island of St. Pedro, the longitude 

 of which I wished to determine, if it existed at all. 

 A strong E. wind favoured our course j the weather 



