14 Occurrences In ike Navigation ^ 



horseback, and attended by their dogs. Many of tberri alightefl^ 

 and began to dance and leap about, in token of their friendly 

 dispositions. 



As the safety of our vessel required that we should find more 

 proper anchorage than that where we Jay^ we weighed at eight 

 A.M. observing the tide to be on the turn, and steered for Pos- 

 session Bay, ending on the launch before us, to make signals 

 of the depth of water and quality of the bottom, that the frigate 

 might be the less exposed to accidents. Having stood for two 

 hours on a tack to the northward, till we got into seven fathoms 

 fine brown sand, we began to put about for the southward ; 

 but the vessel, having little way, was so long in stays, that be- 

 fore she got round, we were in less than four fathoms water, 

 and only a little more than a cable's length from the shore^ 

 "w^here we heard distinctly the natives repeating the sounds of 

 the seamen on board the frigate, — a strong proof of the acute-^ 

 ness of their hearing, and of the great manageableness of their 

 organs of speech. 



We continued, after this tacking, with easy winds from the 

 W. to the SW, till half-past two p.m., when we began to lose 

 ground; to avoid Avhich, we came to anchor in 24 fathoms 

 dark-coloured sand, Cape Possession then bearing W. 18^ N. 

 and the high land of Cape de las Virgenes N. 58^ £. At half- 

 past four P.M. the Avind changed to the E. still easy ; and 

 although the wind was contrary, yet we hoped with that wind 

 to make way against it ; but, at six p.m. it again blew from the 

 W. ; nevertheless, we continued tacking till half-past eleven 

 P.M., when we again dropped anchor in 24 fathoms fine sand 

 and mud. 



As the wind soon afterwards came to blow hard, we became 

 alarmed for our launch, which was at some distance, and were 

 obliged to ply a good deal to windward before she could get 

 alongside. AJl this night we remained at anchor, the wind 

 blowing fresh from WSW, to W. At nine in the morning 

 w^e reefed our top-sails, to be ready to get under sail as soon as 

 the current should cease to be against us, which we executed at 

 noon ; and continued making tacks and sounding all the way, 

 carefully examining the bottom, till seven p.m., when we came 

 to anchor in 16 fathoms brown sand. Cape Possession bearingW^ 

 '2}^ N. and the hill Del Dinero N. 48^ W. The wind Avas con- 

 stantly changing, so that it was still contrary on every tack we 

 made for the space of seven hours ; on which account we made 

 very little way, not having advanced four leagues in five days 

 of incessant exertion. 



The current set to the SE. till half-past eleven p.m., when 

 We rode to the wind, which came on with heavy squalls. The 



