be overcome, for these qualities, so seldom expected in a savage, formed leading features in the character of my humble friend.  But there was one of the sailors also, who preferred hunger to ray-eating!  It might be supposed he had an eye to the mullet; but this was not the case.  He had been seven or eight years with me, mostly in New South Wales, had learned many of the native habits, and even imbibed this ridiculous notion respecting rays and sharks; though he could not allege, as Bongaree did, that “they might be very good for white men, but would kill him.”  The mullet accordingly underwent a further division; and Mr. Westall and myself, having no prejudice against rays, made up our proportion of this scanty repast from one of them.

We rowed northward, round the west end of Inglis’ Island, leaving a hummocky isle and a sandy islet to the left; but on coming to a low point with a small island near it, the rapidity of the flood tide was such, that we could not make head way, and were obliged to wait for high water.  I took the opportunity to get another set of bearings, and then followed the example of the boat’s crew, who, not finding oysters or any thing to eat, had fallen asleep on the beach to forget the want of food.

It was high water at eleven o’clock, and we then passed between the islet and sandy point, and across two rather deep bights in Inglis’ Island; and leaving three rocks and as many small islands on the left hand, entered the passage to the west of the ship, and got on board at two in the afternoon.

This island is twelve miles long, by a varying breadth of one to three miles.  Its cliffs and productions are much the same as those of Cotton’s Island; but in the south-eastern part it is higher, and the size and foliage of the wood announced more fertility in the soil.

The construction of my chart, and taking bearings from the north end of Bosanquet’s Island, occupied me the next day [SATURDAY 26 FEBRUARY 1803]; astronomical observations were also taken; and it appeared that the cliffy east end of Bosanquet’s Island, a mile north of the anchorage, was in 11 deg. 57 1/3’ south, and 136 deg. 19’ east.  According to the swinging of the ship in the evenings, the flood tide ceased to run at eight hours and a half after the moon passed the upper meridian, whereas in the mornings it ceased seven hours and a half after the moon passed below; whether the same difference took place in the times of high water by the shore, I cannot tell; but if the mean of the morning’s and evening’s tides be taken as the time of high water, it will follow eight hours after the moon, the same nearly as in Malay Road.

[NORTH COAST. ARNHEM BAY.]

SUNDAY 27 FEBRUARY 1803