FORTER^S JOURNAL. 



53 



gave orders to Mr. Shaw to endeavour to procure a supply 

 of beef, flour, bread, and rum ; to remain in town until it 

 was ready, hire a vessel, and bring it down. The weather 

 was squall} , with heavy rains, when they started, as indeed 

 was the case the whole time we lay here. I felt uneasy 

 that the boat did not return in the evening, but hoped, as 

 the weather had grown much worse, that they had deter- 

 mined on remaining that night ; however, at two o'clock in 

 the morning, lieutenants Wilmer and Gamble came into my 

 cabin almost naked, and shivering with the wet and cold. 

 They informed me that the boat had been upset in a squall ; 

 but that all hands had saved themselves, after having been 

 four hours on her bottom. They fortunately were to wind- 

 ward of an island, lying in the middle of the bay, where they 

 drifted on shore and righted the boat. They lost all their 

 clothes, as well as every thing they had purchased in town, to 

 the amount of six or seven hundred dollars, but were so for- 

 tunate as to find next day, among the rocks of the island, 

 every article that would float. Lieutenant Wilmer inform- 

 ed me, that there would be great difliculties in getting the 

 articles required ; that the quantity of bread wanting could 

 not be procured in a month ; that there were, also, great 

 difficulties, as well as delays, in procuring a boat to bring 

 them down. I immediately ordered my small gig-boat to be 

 prepared, and in one hour and three quarters landed in the 

 town, although the distance from the ship was thirteen miles. 

 1 remained there two hours, to make such arrangements as 

 were necessary ; and was about the same time returning to 

 ihe ship. Next morning Mr. Shaw came down with five 

 puncheons of rum, fresh beef for two days, a quantity of 

 onions, and a few bags of flour ; which were all that could 

 be procured. The beef was spoiled before it came on 

 board. We were obliged to throw it overboard •, and short- 

 ly afterwards an enormous shark, at least twenty-five feet 

 in length, rose along side, with a quarter of a bullock in his 

 mouth. It would be impossible to describe the horror that 

 ihis voracious animal excited. Several of our seamen, and 

 most of the officers, had been swimming along side the eve- 

 ning previous. A man would scarcely have been a mouth- 

 ful for him. When he first made his appearance, every one 

 was impressed with a belief that it was a young whale. 

 During our stay here, we were constantly attended by an 



