PORTER’S JOURNAL. 
to be no longer trust-worthy ; we took, however, the best means 
in our power to render every thing secure, and carried as heavy 
a press of sail as the ship would bear, to keep her from drifting 
©n the coast of Patagonia, which we had reason to believe was 
not far distant, from the appearance of birds, kelp, and whales, 
which I have heretofore found to be a tolerable sure indication of 
a near approach to land, and from the clouds to leeward, which 
appeared as if arrested by the high mountains of the Andes. From 
the excessive violence with which the wind blew, we had strong 
hopes that it would be of short continuance; until, worn out with 
fatigue and anxiety, greatly alarmed with the terrors of a lee- 
shore, and in momentary expectation of the loss of our masts and 
bowsprit, we almost considered our situation hopeless; and to add 
to our distress, our pumps had become choaked by the shingle 
ballast, which, from the violent rolling of the ship, had got into 
them; the ship made a great deal of water, and the sea had in¬ 
creased to such a height, as to threaten to swallow us at every in¬ 
stant ; the whole ocean was one continued foam of breakers, and 
the heaviest squall that I ever before experienced, had not equal¬ 
led in violence the most moderate intervals of this tremendous 
hurricane. We had, however, done all that lay in our power to 
preserve the ship from the violence of the elements, which seem¬ 
ed united to effect our destruction, and turned our attention to 
our pumps, (which we were enabled to clear,) and to keep the 
ship from drifting on shore, by getting on the most advantageous 
tack ; we, however, were not enabled to wear but once, for the 
violence of the wind and sea was such, as afterward to render it 
impossible to attempt it, without hazarding the destruction of the 
ship, and the loss of every life on board. The whole of the 1st 
and 2d of March, we anxiously hoped for a change, but in vain; 
our fatigues had been constant and excessive; many had been 
severely bruised, by being thrown, by the violent jerks of the ship, 
down the hatchways, and I was particularly unfortunate, in re¬ 
ceiving three severe falls, which at length disabled me from go¬ 
ing on deck ; the oldest seaman in the ship had never experienced 
any thing to equal the gale. We had done all in our power to 
save the ship (except throwing her guns overboard, which I rc** 
