Z LKAVE PORT ESSINGTON. 



Essington before a light land wind. We had taken 

 a hearty farewell of our friends at Victoria, in whose 

 prosperity we felt all the interest that is due to those 

 who pioneer the way for others in the formation of 

 a new settlement. No doubt the hope that our dis- 

 coveries might open a new field for British enter- 

 prise, and contribute to extend still more widely 

 the blessings of civilization, increased the sympathy 

 we felt for the young colony at Victoria. There is 

 always a feeling of pride and pleasure engendered 

 by the thought that we are in any way instrumental 

 to the extension of man's influence over the world 

 which has been given him to subdue. In the pre- 

 sent instance, the success of our last cruise and the 

 state of preparation in w^hich we were now in for 

 a longer one, caused us to take our departure from 

 Port Essington in far higher spirits than on the 

 former occasion. 



We again shaped our course for Clarence Strait, 

 the western entrance of which was still unexamined. 

 The wind, however, being light, we passed the night 

 in Popham Bay ; and on leaving next morning, had 

 only six fathoms in some tide ripplings nearly two miles 

 ofl^its south point, Cape Don. We passed along the 

 south side of Melville Island, where a large fire was 

 still burnino^. Earlv in the evenins; we anchored in 

 seven fathoms, to wait for a boat that had been sent 

 to examine a shoal bay on the N. W. side of Cape 

 Keith. Green Ant Clifi^s bore S. W. two miles. 



September 7. — Weighing at daylight we hauled 



