THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 
469 
now about to proceed to water at Cracatoa, having juft re- 
ceived final orders by the pacquet. 
At feven in the morning of the 9th, we weighed, and 
flood on through the Strait to the South Well, keeping 
pretty clofe in with the iflands on the Sumatra fhore, in 
order to avoid a rock near Mid-channel Illand, which lay 
on our left. At half after ten, I received orders from Cap¬ 
tain Gore to make fail toward a Dutch fhip which now 
hove in fight to the Southward, and which we fuppofed to 
be from Europe ; and, according to the nature of the intel¬ 
ligence we could procure from her, either to join him at 
Cracatoa, where he intended to flop, for the purpofe of 
fupplying the fhips with arrack; or to proceed to the South 
Eafl end of Prince’s Ifland, and there take in our water, 
and wait for him. 
I accordingly bore down toward the Dutch fhip, which, 
foon after, came to an anchor to the Eaftward; when the 
wind flackening, and the current ftill fetting very ftrong 
through the Strait to the South Weft, we found it impoflible 
to fetch her, and having therefore got as near her as the 
tide would permit, we alfo dropt anchor. I immediately 
difpatched Mr. Williamfon, in the cutter, with orders to get 
on board her if poflible; but as fhe lay near a mile off, and 
the tide ran with great rapidity, we foon perceived, that 
the boat was dropping faft aftern. We therefore made the 
lignal to return, and immediately began to veer away the 
cable, and fent out a buoy aftern, in order to aflift him in 
getting on board again. Our poverty, in the article of cord¬ 
age, was here very confpicuous; for we had not a fingle 
coil of rope, in the ftore-room, to fix to the buoy, but were 
obliged to fet about unreeving the ftudding-fail geer, the 
top-fail-halliards, and tackle-falls, for that purpofe; and the 
boat 
1780. 
February. 
<—-v ——f 
Wednef. 9. 
