268 DAMPIER'S SOJOURN IN GREAT NICOBAR 



vessel, being made of strong poles. So that while these con- 

 tinued firm, the vessel could not overset, which she would 

 easily have done without them, and with them too, had they 

 not been made very strong ; and we were therefore much be- 

 holden to our Achinese companions for this contrivance. 



" These men were none of them so sensible of the danger 

 as Mr Hall and myself, for they all confided so much in us, 

 that they did not so much as scruple anything we did approve 

 of. Neither was Mr Hall so well provided as I was, for before 

 we left the ship, I had purposely consulted our draft of the 

 East Indies (which we had but one in the ship), and out of 

 that I had written in my pocket-book an account of the bear- 

 ing and distance of all the Malacca coast, and that of Sumatra, 

 Pegu, and all Siam, and also brought away with me a pocket 

 compass for my direction in any enterprise that I should 

 undertake. 



" The weather at our setting out was very fair, clear, and 

 hot. The wind was still at S.E., a very small breeze, just fanning 

 the air, and the clouds were moving gently from west to east, 

 which gave us hopes that the winds were either at west already 

 abroad at sea, or would be so in a very short time. We took 

 this opportunity of fair weather, being in hopes to accomplish 

 our voyage to Achin before the western monsoon was set in 

 strong, knowing that we should have very blusterous weather 

 after this fair weather, especially at the first-coming of the 

 western monsoon. 



" We rowed, therefore, away to the southward, supposing that 

 when we were clear from the island we should have a true wind, 

 as we call it ; for the land hales the wind ; and we often find 

 the wind at sea different from what it is near the shore. We 

 rowed with four oars, taking our time. Mr Hall and I steered 

 also by turns, for none of the rest were capable of it. We 

 rowed the first afternoon and the night ensuing about 12 

 leagues by my judgment. Our course was S.S.E. ; but the 

 1 6th day, in the morning, when the sun was an hour high, we 

 saw the island whence we came, bearing N.W. by N. Therefore 



