PELELEW. 249 



v. The southern reef of the Pelew Islands. — The most 

 southerly point of Babelthuap is connected with a perfectly 

 irregular system of islands of various sizes, and of the most dis- 

 similar form and structure, which are separated by channels, 

 some very narrow and others of considerable width. They are 

 most numerous close to the main island, and more and more 

 scattered as we proceed farther to the south. Quite to the south 

 the single island of Pelelew is enclosed by the lower end of the 

 great barrier-reef. The character of this reef, which surrounds 

 the elevated islands, alters conspicuously as we pass from north 

 to south, but this change is not gradual. As far as the latitude 

 of Coroere (Corror on Friedrichsen's and some English maps), the 

 channels between the outer reef and the islands become on the 

 whole somewhat shallower, but the difference is not great ; nay, 

 in many spots, as, for instance, in the eastern passage into the 

 harbour of Coroere, they attain at least as great a depth (accord- 

 ing to Friedrichsen, whose map may in this matter be relied 

 upon) as in the western channel at the latitude of Aibukit, and 

 in this median region of the islands the reef, both in the east 

 and west, lies at a considerable distance from the land it en- 

 closes. 



Farther to the south, however, the condition of things alters 

 considerably. From about the latitude of Urudzapel (Urucktapel 

 of some maps) the two sides of the reef rapidly close in towards 

 the islands, till Pelelew exhibits a barrier- reef with a shallow 

 boat channel on the north-west side only, while the south and 

 the whole east side are surrounded by a true fringing reef close 

 to the shore. 



Even the barrier-reef to the north-west of Pelelew is scarcely 

 to be called a barrier-reef; its outer edge is at about 600 

 paces from the shore ; the surface of the reef, like that of the 

 eastern reef of Babelthuap, is only navigable by boats, and 

 at high water ; a true channel is wholly wanting, and the reef is 

 merely intersected by a great number of smaller canals of various 

 widths and depths, as is the case on the eastern reef of the 

 northern island. Finally, its outer margin is not much 

 raised. However, this portion of the reef of Pelelew may cer- 

 tainly be designated as a banier-reef, though with a certain 



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