York Cape. 131 
The point of the main which forms the fide of the channel, 
through which we had palled, oppolite to the ifland, is the 
northern promontory of the country, and I called it York 
Cape. Its longitude is 218° 24 W. the latitude of the north 
point is io° 3 7', and of the eafi point io° 42' S. The land 
over the eafi point, and to the fouthward of it, is rather low, 
and as far as the eye can reach, very flat, and of a barren ap- 
pearance. To the fouthward of the cape the fliore forms a 
large open bay, which I called Newcastle Bay, and in 
which are fome fmall low iflands and fhoals ; the land adja- 
cent is alfo very low, flat, and fandy. The land of the nor- 
thern part of the cape is more hilly, the vallies feem to be 
well clothed with wood, and the lhore forms fome fmall bays, 
in which there appeared to be good anchorage. Clofe to the 
eaftern point of the cape are three fmall iflands, from one of 
which a fmall ledge of rocks runs out into the fea : there is alfo 
an ifland clofe to the northern point. The ifland that forms 
the ftreight or channel through which we had palled, lies 
about four miles without thefe, which, except two, are very 
fmall : the fouthermofl is the largeA. and much higher than 
any part of the mainland. On the north weA fide of this 
ifland there appeared to be good anchorage, and on fliore, val- 
lies that promifed both wood and water. To the fouthward 
and fouth eafi, and even to the eaflward and northward of 
them, there are feveral other low iflands, rocks, and flioals : 
our depth of water in failing between them and the main, 
was twelve, thirteen, and fourteen fathom. 
We flood along the fliore to the weflward, with a gentle 
breeze at S. E. by S. and when we had advanced between three 
and four miles, we difcovered the lank! ahead, which, when 
we firfl faw it, we took for the main, to be iflands detached 
from it by feveral channels : upon this we fent away the boats, 
with proper inflruttions, to lead us through that channel which 
was next the main ; but foon after difcovering rocks and flioals 
in this channel, I made a fignal for the boats to go through 
the next channel to the northward, which lay between thefe 
iflands, leaving fome of them between us and the main : the 
fnip followed, and had never lefs than five fathom water in 
the narrowefi part of the channel, where the difiance from 
ifland to ifland was about one mile and an half. 
At. four o’clock in the afternoon we anchored, being about 
a mile and a half, or two miles within the entrance, in fix 
fathom and a half, with clear ground : the channel here had 
begun to widen, and the iflands on each fide of us were dif- 
tant about a mile : the main land flretched away to the S. W. 
the farthefi point in view bore S. 48 W. and the fouthermofl: 
point of the iflands, on the north wefifide of the pafiage, bore 
S. 76 W. Between thefe two points we could fee no land, fo 
that 
