The land-breeze carrying us clear of the islands in the offing, the Supply was sent to speak a ship that was perceived at some little distance ahead, and which proved to be a ship from Oporto.  By her we learned that the viceroy was superseded in his government, and it was imagined that his successor was standing into the harbour in a royal yacht which we then saw under the land.  Toward evening it fell calm, and the islands and high land were still in sight.  The calm continued during the greatest part of the following day; but toward evening a light and favourable breeze sprung up, which enabled us to cross the tropic of Capricorn, and bend our course toward the Cape of Good Hope.

On the night of Friday the 7th we had heavy squalls of rain, thunder, and lightning.  From that time until the 1lth the wind was rather unfavourable; but shifting to the northward on that day, it blew during the two following in strong gales, with squalls of heavy rain, attended with much sea.

These strong gales having, on Friday the 14th, terminated in a calm, Lieutenant Shortland, the day following, reported to the commanding officer, that there were eleven soldiers sick on board the Alexander and five or six convicts on board the Charlotte.  The calm continued until the 16th, when a favourable breeze sprung up; but those ships of the fleet which could sail were prevented from making the most of the fair wind, by the Lady Penrhyn transport and others, which were inattentive, and did not make sail in proper time.

On the 19th the wind was fresh, and frequently blew in squalls, attended with rain.  In one of these squalls the Charlotte suddenly hove-to, a convict having fallen overboard; the man, however, was drowned.  Our weather was at this time extremely cold; and the wind, which had for some days been unfavourable, shifting on the 22nd, we again looked towards the Cape.  At one o’clock the next morning it came on to blow very hard, accompanied with a great sea; we had nevertheless the satisfaction to observe that the convoy appeared to get on very well, though some of them rolled prodigiously.  This gale continued with very little variation until the morning of the 28th, when it moderated for a few hours, and shifted round to the SE.  It now again blew in fresh gales, attended with much rain and sea.  But a calm succeeding all this violence shortly after, on Sunday morning the 30th the weather was sufficiently clear to admit of some altitudes being taken for the time-keeper, when our longitude was found to be 3 degrees 04 minutes.

October.] Thence to the 4th of October both wind and weather were very uncertain, the wind sometimes blowing in light airs, very little differing from a calm, with clear skies; at others, in fresh breezes, with rain.  On the 4th, Captain Phillip was informed that thirty of the convicts on board of the Charlotte were 111; some of them, as it was feared, dangerously.  To render this information still more unpleasant, the wind was foul during the two succeeding days.