120 SAHUL SHOAL. 



denly to 16 fathoms, from 68, a mile to the south- 

 east. The helm was put down, and when in stays 

 there were only H^. The position of this patch is 

 in lat. 11° 8 J' S., long. 126° 33' E. Standing offS. 

 by E., in two miles the water deepened to 7^ fa- 

 thoms. It was not until we had gone about ten 

 miles, that we again got into 60 fathoms, on the 

 outer edge of the bank of green sandy mud, front- 

 ing the Australian shore, and approaching within 

 a hundred miles of the south end of Timor. This 

 bank appears to be separated from the collection 

 of coral patches, forming the Sahul Shoal by a 

 deep gap or gut, in which the depth generally was 

 above 70 fathoms, with a rocky bottom; though 

 in one part of it, in lat. 11° 36' S. and long. 124° 

 53' E., there was no bottom with 207 fathoms. 



Dr. Wilson, in his Voyage round the World, 

 mentions that he crossed several parts of the Sahul 

 Shoal on his passage from Timor to Raffles Bay, 

 and never found less than 14 fathoms. 



On the 20th, at noon, we had no bottom with 131 

 fathoms, lat. 11° 34' and long. 124° 52' E. Our 

 progress now appeared to improve. Strange to say, 

 though apparently in the very heart of the monsoon, 

 we were favoured with a light breeze from the 

 south-east ; and, to shew how currents are governed 

 by the wind, I may remark that the current ex- 

 perienced this day had changed its direction from 

 N.N.E.toWest. 



On the 24th, several water-snakes were seen, and 



