“Many turtles’ heads were placed on the shelfs or niches of the excavation, amply demonstrative of the luxurious and profuse mode of life these outcasts of society had, at a period rather recently, followed.  The roof and sides of this snug retreat were also entirely covered with the uncouth figures I have already described.

“As this is the first specimen of Australian taste in the fine arts that we have detected in these voyages, it became me to make a particular observation thereon:  Captain Flinders had discovered figures on Chasm Island, in the Gulf of Carpentaria, formed with a burnt stick; but this performance, exceeding a hundred and fifty figures, which must have occupied much time, appears at least to be one step nearer refinement than those simply executed with a piece of charred wood.  Immediately above this schistose stratum is a superincumbent mass of sandstone, which appeared to form the upper stratum of the island.” (Cunningham manuscript.)*

(Footnote.  Similar representations were found by Mr. White, carved on stone in the neighbourhood of Port Jackson.  White’s Journal quarto page 141.)

June 25.

Having procured all the spars and planks from the wreck that could be useful to us, we made preparations to sail, and at daylight, the 25th, got underweigh with my two companions, and resumed our course to the northward, over that of last year, excepting that we steered inside of Pelican Island, and to leeward of Island 4.  We passed several large sting-rays asleep on the surface of the sea, which our people ineffectually endeavoured to harpoon.  On the former island large flights of pelicans were seen, and upon the sandbank, to the southward of it, there was a flock of two or three hundred young birds.

The breeze not being sufficient to carry us to Night Island before dark, the anchor was dropped in eleven fathoms muddy bottom, two miles to the eastward of Island 8.  The Dick and San Antonio anchored close to us.  During the night we had a fresh breeze from South-East by East, and, not having any island or reef to shelter us from the swell, we were obliged to drop a second anchor to retain our position.  The San Antonio drove for some distance, but the Dick rode through the night without driving, although she had but forty fathoms of cable out.

June 26.

On weighing the next morning, we made sail to the North by West, but, from the compass-box not being quite straight in the binnacle, we made a North by West 1/2 West course, which was not discovered until we had nearly paid dear for our neglect; for we passed close to a rock which I intended to have gone at least a mile to windward of.  It was seen just in time to put the helm a-lee, or we should have run upon it.

The weather was now so thick that we could not see a mile around us; we were therefore obliged to follow our former courses, to avoid the risk of running over a strange track in such unfavourable weather.  At sunset we anchored under the lee of Piper’s Islets.