78 
PORTER’S JOURNAL, 
expectation of avoiding, in future, the sudden gusts, and the irre¬ 
gular seas, which we supposed were owing to violent currents, 
and confined to the neighbourhood of the coast; but in this ex¬ 
pectation we were much disappointed; for, as we receded from 
the coast, the unpleasantness of the weather, and the freshness of 
the gale, increased; and it was in vain that we hoped for that 
moderate and pleasant weather, which former navigators have ge¬ 
nerally experienced, in the latitude of 60° south, which we reach¬ 
ed on the 18th. From the time we lost sight of the land, until 
this period, the gales blew hard from the north-west, accompa¬ 
nied with heavy rains, cold disagreeable weather, and a danger¬ 
ous sea. We were never enabled to carry more sail than a close- 
reefed main top-sail and reefed fore-sail, and were frequently un¬ 
der our storm stay-sails ; but by keeping the ship a point free, 
she made but little lee-way, went fast through the water, and 
gave us considerable westing; but we were carrying a heavy 
press of sail, and we-re frequently deluged with the sea that broke 
into us. We, however, escaped every injury of importance, ex¬ 
cept the loss of our sprit-sail yard, which was carried away by a 
heavy sea, that filled the fore top-mast stay-sail, and carried away 
the bees of the bowsprit. On the 18th, as I before observed, we 
were in the latitude of 60° 7' south, and longitude of 76° 20' 
west; and this I considered sufficiently to the westward, to en¬ 
able us, on a change of wind, which we anxiously looked for, to 
weather the coast of Terra del Fuego. The movement of every 
passing cloud was anxiously watched, every appearance of the 
heavens carefully noted, and our chief employment was compar¬ 
ing the weather vre had experienced, and present appearances, 
with the accounts of those who had preceded us. 
The eclipse of the moon, on the 14th, had prepared us to 
meet with bad weather; and we felt much gratified, to believe it 
all over (as the weather had now become somewhat moderate); 
and as we were as far to the west as Cook on his first voyage, and 
nearly as far as La Perouse, when they stood to the northward ; 
and as we had run this distance, from the streights of Le Maire, 
in as short a time as it had ever been done by any ship, we were 
willing to believe ourselves the favourite children of fortune ; for 
