COASTS OF AUSTRALIA. 
251 
that the rocky islets, round which we passed last 
evening, were those off Captain Flinders’s Point 
Dale* There was, however, an error of ten miles 
in the latitude, which was so unusual an occur- 
rence in the charts of that navigator, that for some 
time I doubted the justice of my suspicions ; but, 
on referring to the account of his voyage, it ap- 
peared that no meridional observation was ob- 
tained by him for the latitude near this channel ; 
and also that the weather, when he passed through 
was thick and cloudy. This error, therefore, 
when he was unassisted by an observation for 
his latitude, in a place where the tide sets at 
the rate of three or four knots, did not appear at 
all improbable ; and as my conjectures, by com- 
paring our respective pians, were soon afterwards 
confirmed, we hauled in for the extremity of the 
land in sight. 
The Strait to the eastward of Point Dale, I 
have named after my friend, Robert Brown, Esq., 
the profound botanist of that voyage. 
In the evening we anchored about three miles 
from a low rocky island; beyond which is an 
opening like a rivulet, but it was so inconsider- 
able in appearance, that I was not induced to 
examine it farther. 
The next evening we anchored at the bottom 
1819. 
July 29. 
30 . 
