212 JOURNAL OF GALLEGO. 



could scarcely sail along,^ on account of the many reefs ; and we 

 entered a passage a quarter of a league further on, but seeing that 

 there was no outlet we had to return by the aid of the oars.^ At 

 this time many Indians came out against us, from among the reefs, 

 with their bows and arrows. We made sail, and as we were })ro- 

 ceeding in the same direction, 18 canoes full of fishermen, in each 

 canoe 30 Indians, with their bows and arrows, came to shoot at us. 

 We fired some shots, and so they went away and left us. 



" On the 26th of April, we reached some reefs and grounded on 

 them . . .^ Some Indians came out at this time with bows and 

 arrows ; and we fired some shots, but because the Indians did not 

 leave us, we did not repeat this. There are many islets near, both 

 inhabited and uninhabited. The island became narrower as we 

 arrived at a point of this island which is from the extremity 6 

 leagues north-west to south-east. We entered a passage separating 

 the island from the other islets around, which are many and in- 

 habited. This is the west part of the is,land ; and I took the sun at 

 its extremity and found myself in 7|°. This island is 95 leagues in 

 length, and in circuit more than 200.* As we sailed on, some canoes 

 came out to us ; and on our firing some shots, they left us, because 

 . . . (porqiie nos aflirian). 



" Issuing from the passage, we saw, towards the east-by-sou th,^ 6 

 leagues away, a large island. We did not go to it, so as not to de- 

 lay ouiselves. We gave it the name of San Marcos.^ It is in lati- 

 tude 7f°. This island lies with that of Santa Isabel west-by-north 

 and east-by-south. All this people, which we have hitherto seen, 

 are naked, and arc as the Moors of Barbary, and do not confess the 

 Lord. 



" Sailing on to the 28th of the month, there came out to us 34 

 canoes in line of battle, in order to stop us. Three large canoes, 

 which passed astern, followed us for more than 2 leagues. When 

 we saw their determination to overhaul us (que trahian), we fired 



1 Lit " we Were uiiiible to sail along." 



- This blind i)assage may be the one indicated in the present chart in <he vicinity of 

 Nairn Island, an ofF-iyiiig islet. 



' •'•The following sentence, being unintelligible to me, has not been translated, "porque en 

 esta isla hay muchos sue5os que Uaman fuenos forzado volver atras para salir." 



* These dimensions are very greatly in e.^cess. 



5 This bearing is evidently an error ; the correct bearing is given a few lines below. 



" The island of San Marcos is evidently the Choiseul Island of the present chart, as named 

 by Bougainville in 1768 ; and the passage through which the brigaatine had just passed, is 

 that known as Manning Strait between Choiseul and Isabel. 



