THE SAND HILL. QjO 



securing some soundings to the S. W. of Sweers 

 Island and carrying a line eobtwards from it, mid- 

 way across the gulf, where we found a very even 

 dark sandy mud bottom, with a depth of 7 fathoms. 

 Strong south and south-east winds, which reduced 

 the temperature, on one occasion, to 56" about 

 4 A. M,, generally prevailed, excepting for a few hours 

 in the afternoon; quite reminding us of the wnnds we 

 experienced at Depuch Island on the North-west 

 coast, and preventing us from reaching our destina- 

 tion till the morning of the 24th, when we anchored 

 two miles and a quarter from a particularly bare 

 sand hillock, bearing S. 53° W. This was named 

 The Sand Hill, par excellence ; there being no other 

 on the shore of the Gulf. To the eastward there 

 appeared an opening with a remarkable quoin-shaped 

 clump of tall mangroves at the entrance. It being 

 neap tide, we were enabled to take the ship thus 

 close to the shore, and as it was the nearest ap- 

 proach we could make to the head of the Gulf, another 

 boat expedition was set on foot to explore it, con- 

 sisting of the yawl and gig, in which Lieut. Gore 

 and myself left the ship the same afternoon. The 

 first spot visited was The Sand Hill, which we found 

 to be forty feet high, in lat. 17° 38' 20" S., long. 

 7" 48' 00" East, of Port Essington. From its sum^ 

 mit we immediately perceived that our conjecture 

 was right respecting the opening close to the east- 

 ward. The shore was sandy to the westward, a 

 remarkable circumstance, considering that nearly 



