porter's journal. 



15 



CHAPTER Xin. 



MADISON'S ISLAND.— HAPP AH WAR, 



After passing the island I hove to for the night, and 

 directed my prizes, as they came up, to do the same. We 

 had here very heavy squalls, and some showers of rain ; 

 and at daylight next morning I bore up for the island of 

 Nooaheevah, which I shall hereafter call Madison's Island, 

 and which bore from us W. not more than ten leagues dis- 

 tant. At the dawn of day I made the signal to bear up 

 for the anchorage of Madison's Island, and stood in for the 

 point forming the E. side of the weather bay, called by 

 lieutenant Hergest, (who appears to be the first navigator 

 that discovered it) Comptroller's Bay. This point is 

 steep, and the coast from thence to the N. appears iron 

 bound and inaccessible. The whole island seems to have 

 suffered much during former periods, from the ravages of 

 volcanoes. On standing in for Comptroller's Bay, I per- 

 ceived a rock above water at the distance of one mile and 

 a half or two miles from the point. This I left on the 

 starboard hand, and stretched into the bay, which was deep, 

 spacious, and appeared very safe and commodious. It 

 contains several interior bays, which seemed to afford 

 good landing ; several pleasant villages were situated near 

 the beaches, and the houses were interspersed among the 

 trees of the valleys, which appeared highly cultivated and 

 thickly inhabited. Several canoes came off the point, but 

 none seeming disposed to visit us, I bore up for a small 

 but high island, about two leagues to leeward, which I sup- 

 posed formed one side of the entrance of the harbour, 

 where I intended anchoring. It is called by lieutenant 

 Hergest Port Anna Maria. In about an hour we opened 

 the bay, which appeared to offer us every advantage we 

 could possibly desire. It may be known b^ the small, but 

 high and rocky island before-mentioned, which forms the 

 E. side, and a similar one, but more in the figure of a sugar 

 loaf, which forms the W. side of the entrance. About 

 half way between the entrance and Comptroller's Bay, is 

 a red chff of rocks, the only one to be seen. The point 



