10 AT SEA. 
April 10. — As we approached the land, the breezes became 
more light ; the fish, less ahraid of the ship's foul bottom than they 
would have been of a clean one, were in great abundance. With 
the bait of a cockroach, my servant caught a small fish of the 
genus Diodon, but not of the species described by Linnaeus, though 
I think it is the one mentioned in Chambers's Dictionary under 
the name of Guamajacu atinga, and for which he quotes Piso's 
Nat. Hist. lib. V. cap. 16. The description perfectly corresponds, 
but the drawing given has no resemblance. Mr. Salt drew it and I 
stuffed its skin, which was thick and glutinous. It is covered with 
prickles, which it has the power of expanding when it blows out 
its body ; the cavity of which is filled with a very large air-bladder, 
and a liver disproportioned to its size. Its length is about four 
inches : as we caught several, I conclude this to be its full growth. 
No injury follows the puncture of one of its prickles, though a juice 
exudes from the base, of a bright yellow colour, that permanently 
stains paper and other substances. It puts out two small tentacula 
from its mouth as it swims, and lives a considerable time out of 
water. Towards evening the wind began to come round to the 
southward. 
On the l^th at day fight the African coast was in view, bearing 
N. W. distant about eleven leagues. As we approached it most 
rapidly, by twelve we were only about three miles from Cape 
Guardafui. The Cape itself is not very high, but the land behind 
it is extremely lofty. It consists of rocky beds, one over the other, 
with gullies apparently formed by the rain. Not a vestige of ve- 
getation was seen. We made it in 51° lo' E. and 1 T 50' N. There 
was a considerable cross swell as we rounded the land. Our little 
