404 HONOLULU. 



and his natives of Apia, boasted much of the failure of our attempt 

 to get the chief, and said we were afraid to take him by force, and 

 this too in the presence of the missionaries. 



Lieutenant-Commandant Ringgold procured all the papers from 

 the consul for my full understanding of the case, and prepared for his 

 departure, after laying in a good stock of pork, vegetables, and fruit, 

 for his crew. The Polenchano, commanded by a Frenchman, was 

 lying at Apia : this is the vessel the part of whose crew we saw on 

 Hull's Island, engaged in taking turtles. 



On inquiry being made about Opotuno, it was found that no 

 claimant had appeared for the reward ; the deposit was therefore taken 

 on board again, and exchanged for the requisite provisions for the 

 crew, which were found in great abundance here. 



On the 10th of September, the Porpoise left the harbour for the 

 Hawaiian Islands, steering for some islands which the missionaries 

 had reported to me as existing about two hundred and fifty miles to 

 the northeast ; but no indication of land was seen on that bearing, 

 and at that distance. In this passage they experienced similar 

 winds and weather to those described in speaking of the passage 

 of the Vincennes, and saw many birds flying about in the neigh- 

 bourhood of the island we visited. They found the magnetic equator 

 in latitude 3° 15' S., longitude 166° 07' W., and crossed the equator 

 in 166° W. 



They had the east-southeast and east winds until latitude 5° N. 

 Between that and latitude 10° N., they experienced the same easterly 

 current that we had done. In that latitude the northeast winds were 

 fallen in with, accompanied with squalls of rain, and sometimes of 

 wind. From latitude 10° N., the current was found to set to the 

 westward ; and the winds settled with little variation into the north- 

 east trades. 



On the 7th of October they made the Hawaiian Islands, and on 

 the 8th reached Oahu; by ten o'clock they had taken the pilot on 

 board, entered the passage, and anchored in the harbour. The 

 officers and crew were all well. Their passage from the Samoan 

 Islands occupied thirty days ; and their course was nearly direct. 



The tender, agreeably to the orders given her, made the island of 

 Kie, and ran down the sea-reef as far as Round Island, where it 

 becomes a sunken one, running in the direction of Biva, the most 

 western island of the group. The Round Island Passage is the only 

 large break through it. There are, indeed, several narrow passages as 



