338 
wards noon it fo far cleared up, that we 
faw one of the men of war and two or 
three of the convoy: about this hour, 
however, and at no great diftance from 
us, one of the trigates (La Dedaigneufe) 
was completely difmatied, and nearly 
fent to the bottom by the violence of the 
typhoon. 
Our progrefs had been fo rapid during 
the typhoon, that we made Pedra Branca, 
2 perpendiculas rock, near Haerlem bay 
on the coait of China, about two P. M. 
on the fifth, and hove to, to the Weft- 
ward of it, till the next morning. In 
the courfe of the night the gale increafed 
almoft to a hurricane, and that too, 
dead on fhore ! 
The fituation of feveral of the convoy 
was now extremely perilous, as they were 
much to leeward of us, and completely 
embayed, without the ability of carrying 
fuficient fail to extricate themfelves ; 
and one of them indeed was obliged to 
run in at the utmoft rifque, and take 
fhelter under the lee of a fmall ifland, 
where fhe lay in fafety till the gale was 
SVEr)), =. 
The gale fomewhat abated »n the 6th, 
though {till blowing with confiderable 
violence ; we were therefore obliged to 
carry a great prefs of canvas to keep us 
from fettling down too far in the bay, 
expecting frequently indeed, that fome 
of the mafts would go over the fide. 
A favourable flant of wind -enabled 
us, next day, to run in between the Great 
Lama, and a clufier of iflands called the 
Nine Pins, where we were foon furroun- 
ded by fwarms of fifhing boats, out of one 
of which we got a pilot, who offered to 
take us to Lintin for eighty dollars ; this 
being refufed, he afked fifty, and ulti- 
‘mately came down to forty, but would 
on no account accept a {malier fum: 
this being counted out*to him, he very lei- 
furely marched forward to the galley-fire, 
where he fat down to fmoke with the ut- 
moft compofure, leaving the pilotage 
entirely to ourfelves! On being roufed 
up on the quarter-deck, however, he 
made fome trifling figus with his hands 
refpecting the adjacent fhores, which we - 
could rot well comprehend; in fhort, we 
were obliged entirely to truft to our lead, 
while winding in among thofe iflands ; 
and there feems to be little danger, the 
fhores being fo bold that a fhip may run 
clafe to them. 
In the evening, while paffing the high 
peak of Lantou, the pilot made figns to 
drop the anchor, which we complied 
with; this is the higheft mountain on this 
Journal of a Voyage in the Indian Seas. 
[May a. 
part of the coaft, and may be feen at an 
immenfe diftance. In every direction 
that we now could look, nothing prefen- 
~ted itfelf but the wildeft aflemblage of 
mountainous iflands that it is poifible— 
to conceive, all having a barren inbofpi- 
table appearance. - 
We next morning got under weigh, 
and kept working up for Lintin, clofe to 
which we anchored in the. evening, 
abreait of the principal village on the 
fouth fide of the ifland,. and about a 
mile from the fhore. 
Lintin ‘liesgin the mouth of the river 
Tigris, about thirty miles above Macao, 
and -is remarkable for a very high peak 
in the centre of the iiland ; which may be 
from fifteen to twenty miles in circumfe- 
rence, . , 
It containsthree villages, befides fome 
ftraggling cottages, aiid is frequently the 
rendezvous of two or three of the fithing 
fleets, that are fcattered in fuch numbers 
over every part of the coatt. “Tlie princi= 
pal village is (as 1 have faid before) on- 
the S. W. fide of the iland, where there 
is a pleafant bay (called “ Lintin bay,”) 
and good anchorage, completely thelter- 
ed_ from the north-ealt monioon by the 
peak. Near this village, at the foot of a 
little ill, we pitched our ‘tents; one for 
the furgeon and another otlicer, one for 
the fick, and a large tent for the artifi- 
cers, 
When we firft arrived here, the wea- 
ther was fo hot and fultry, that we gene- 
rally flept outfide of the tents at night, 
without any danger of catching cold, 
there being little or no dews, but the 
moft beautiful ferene fkies imaginable. 
The villagers were a little intrulive at 
firft, from curiofity alone; for they never, 
during the whole of our ftay, attempted 
to plunder or fteal the fmalleit article 
from our tents, nor to moleft us in any 
refpect whatever ! an example which, I 
am forry to fay, ail our exertions -could 
not induce our own men to imitate, 
The proximity of a potatoe field to our. 
tents, was the caufe of many complaints 
from the natives, and it required all our 
vigilance to prevent the failors levying 
contributions, during the night, on this fa- 
vorite reot. As our prefence on this ifland 
excited the curiolity of every man, woman, 
and child belonging to it; and as our 
artificers and fick were no lefs curious, 
in viewing the grotefque and novel ap- 
pearance of the Chinefe villagers; we 
were forced to draw a line of circumval- 
lation round the tents, and give orders to 
the centinels not to permit any commu- 
nication, 
