224 FROM THE ST. LAWRENCE ISLANDS 



course to the west. It rained, and violent squalls 

 frequently obliged us to take in the sails. 



The 6tli of November. At day-break we all 

 eagerly looked about, confidently hoping to dis- 

 cover the Ralick chain, but in vain. At mid-day 

 we observed the latitude to be 9° 42' 5&' ; longi- 

 tude, according to the chronometers, 191° 52' 40" ; 

 we had, therefore, advanced from Ligiep one de- 

 gree of longitude to the west, and I was afraid 

 I had already crossed the chain, as such low land 

 is easily overlooked. When the sun set, and no 

 land yet appeared, I was obliged, though with a 

 heavy heart, to abandon the farther search for the 

 Ralick chain, which would have cost me too much 

 time. The northern monsoon in the China sea 

 was requisite for me to reach Manilla, where the 

 ship was to be repaired ; this same monsoon was 

 also to carry us through the Straits of Sunda. As 

 in this hitherto-unvisited part there might be other 

 islands besides the Ralick chain, I ordered the 

 ship to lay to during the night ; and, on the 7th, 

 at day-break, continued the course to west, but 

 this day was also spent in the vain expectation of 

 seeing land. The current had carried the ship, in 

 twenty-four hours, eighteen miles to the west. 



The 9th, we observed the latitude 9° 32' 54"; 

 longitude, according to the chronometers, 197° 

 22' 24", and sailed over the place where the Island 

 of Casbobus and the tliirty-six islands of the 

 Spaniards are said to lie, without discovering even 



