PORTER’S JOURNAL. 
156 
probably afford shelter and anchorage for vessels; but having 
but a short time to spare, we devoted it entirely to the object for 
which we came, and in less than half an hour we loaded all our 
boats with as many fish as they could carry, and returned to the 
ship. On the east side of the point before mentioned, is a re- 
markable cavern, formed by the beating of the sea, which has 
caused the rock to fall in, until it has formed what the French 
call a trombe dans Vangle, and excavated nearly the whole point 
or peninsula, leaving merely a support for the arch. Under this 
place we caught our fish, and all the boats of the ship might 
have been loaded in the same time. The moment the hook was 
in the water, hundreds of them were seen rushing towards it, and 
many of them of a size which made it very difficult to haul in 
with our largest lines. They were chiefly the black, yellow, and 
red grouper, and a fish greatly resembling the sheeps-head, all 
of an excellent quality ; and so abundant were they, that they were 
frequently caught with the boat hooks while swimming about the 
boats. They afforded not only a pleasant amusement to those 
who caught them, but a plentiful repast to the crew of the Essex, 
as well as to that of the Barclay; and our supply was so much 
greater than we wanted for immediate consumption, that after 
salting many of them, large quantities were thrown overboard, to 
keep them from spoiling on our hands. We also caught one of 
that description of black turtle formerly mentioned; and as many 
were desirous of tasting its qualities, it was brought on board, 
and found to be superior to any we had yet tasted; after supply¬ 
ing my own table and that of the officers of the ward-room, it 
furnished an abundant meal to six messes of the ship’s company, 
consisting of 48 men. We here also caught a number of shags 
and penguins, and killed some pelicans and other aquatic birds. 
In the morning I stood out of the bay with the land breeze, 
which, since we have been here, has constantly sprung up at sun¬ 
rise, and continued to blow until about 10 o’clock, when, after a 
calm of an hour or two, the sea breeze has set in from the west¬ 
ward, which continued until sundown; the rest of the 24 hours 
has been perfectly calm. I made the signal to speak the Barclay; 
and, on capt. Randall’s coming on board, he assured me that the 
