We had just read Captain P.P.  King’s interesting pamphlet in relation to this sad event, detailing with minuteness all the circumstances of the tragedy, and with our minds so recently imbued with the horrors it inspired, naturally advanced to the search with zeal and activity; anxious, if possible, to place the locality of its occurrence beyond a doubt.  The isle was easily traversed, being of small extent, not more, indeed, than a mile in circumference.  We crossed it accordingly in every direction, and discovered the remains of native fires, near which great quantities of turtle bones, and some coconut shells were scattered about.  It was remarkable that wherever boughs were cut, an axe or some other sharp instrument had been used.  A topmast with the lower cap attached to it, was found on the South-East side of the island, which we afterwards discovered to be a portion of the brig William, wrecked on the outer barrier three months before.

Captain King drew his conclusions relative to this island from the circumstance of young Ireland’s stating, that on their way to it in the canoe, after leaving the raft, they first passed three islands on the right northward, and one on the left southward.

CORRECT CHART.

From the bearings, however, and from our run on the following morning we found it necessary to correct the chart, thus decreasing the number of islands.  We found that marked 5, to have no existence, and 6, far too much to the westward, while 8 and 10 were placed to the eastward of their true position.  These errors occasionally occur where they are numerous, much alike, and are passed quickly.  The change in the number and position of the islands is in some measure hostile to the views of Captain King, and I am further inclined, from these corrections, to draw the conclusion that Number 4 of the group is Boydan island, a name given by the Murray islanders, to the spot rendered notorious by the cold-blooded massacre we have already alluded to, and which will be described more in detail in Captain Stanley’s highly interesting narrative, further on in the present work.

On examining the reef fronting the island, which is a more perfect specimen of a lagoon than any we had yet seen, we found that the outer edge consisted of a wall higher than any of the parts within, rising at low-water, to an elevation of ten feet, while inside, pools or holes existed, three or four feet deep, containing live coral, sponges, sea-eggs, and trepang.  Scattered about on different parts of the reef were many Chama gigas, not, however, so large as those I had formerly seen at Keeling or Cocos Islands, in the Indian Ocean, weighing 220 pounds.

Singular to say, at 3 P.M., I observed the latitude by a meridian altitude of Venus, although a bright sunny day.  The result agreed with Captain King’s chart, placing the centre of the island in latitude 11 degrees 28 minutes South.

TIDAL OBSERVATIONS.