136 FROM RADACK TO 



the marine, Traversey. As our time would not 

 suffer -me to examine the islands Arno, Mediuro, 

 and Mille, more closely myself, I could only fol- 

 low with the compass the direction which the 

 islanders pointed out : the distances are reckoned 

 according to a day*s voyage. The population of 

 the group Aur may be estimated between three 

 and four hundred : scanty, when compared to its 

 size ; but numerous, compared with the other 

 groups. 



The 27th of February. We weighed anchor at 

 day-break, to leave Aur ; during the whole night 

 we had heard the drums and songs of the savages: 

 when the sails were set, the noise on shore in- 

 creased, and Kadu thought that it was done to 

 wish us a happy voyage. At seven o'clock we 

 were already at the passage, by which we had pe- 

 netrated, and came safely through it. I directed 

 my course northward, to sail close to the island of 

 Kawen ; we soon reached it, and, at noon, it lay 

 four miles east of us. We now continued our 

 voyage, sailed round the group of Otdia with a 

 fair wind, and tacked, during the night, under few 

 sails. 



The 28th. We had fine weather, and, according 

 to our ship's reckoning, ought to have seen Otdia 

 at seven o'clock in the morning ; but as we could 

 descry no land, even from the mast-head, the 

 current must have been the cause of the inaccuracy 

 ot our calculation, and which was afterwards 



