The 24th, steering N.W. and W.N.W. and being in lat. 0 deg. 30’ S. they sailed along a very pleasant island, which they named Schouten’s Island, after their master,[130] and called its western point Cape of Good Hope.  The 25th they passed an extensive tract of uneven land on their larboard hand, stretching from E.S.E. to W.N.W.  The 26th they saw three other islands, the coast stretching N.W. by W. The 27th they were in lat. 0 deg. 29’ S. still seeing much land to the south, some of which were very high and some low, which they passed, continuing their course to the north of west.  The 29th they felt the shock of an earthquake, which shook the ship to that degree that the men ran terrified out of their births, believing the ship had run a-ground, or had bilged against some rock.  On heaving the lead they found the sea unfathomable, and their ship clear from all danger of rocks or shoals.  The 30th they put into a great bay, out of which they could find no opening to the west, and resumed therefore a northern course.  Here the ship trembled again with loud claps of thunder, and was almost set on fire by the lightning, had it not been prevented by prodigious rain.

[Footnote 130:  The centre of Schouten Island is in lat. 0 deg. 30’ S. and long. 223 deg.  W. It is nearly 24 leagues long from E. to W. and about eight leagues from N. to S. In some maps this island is named Mysory, probably the native appellation, and it lies off the mouth of a great bay, having within it another island of considerable size, called Jobie, or Traitor’s Island.—­E.]

The 31st, continuing a northern course, they passed to the north of the equator, and being encompassed almost all round by land, they anchored in twelve fathoms on good ground, near a desolate island which lay close by the main land.  The 1st of August they were in lat. 0 deg. 15’ N. The 2d and 3d being calm, they were carried by the current W. and W. by N. This day at noon their latitude was 0 deg. 35’ N. when they saw several whales and sea-tortoises, with two islands to the westwards.  They now reckoned themselves at the western extremity of the land of New Guinea, along which they had sailed 280 leagues.  Several canoes came off to them in the morning of the 5th, bringing Indian beans, rice, tobacco, and two beautiful birds of paradise, all white and yellow.  These Indians spoke the language of Ternate, and some of them could speak a little Spanish and Malayan, in which last language Clawson the merchant was well skilled.  All the people in these canoes were finely clothed from the waist downwards, some with loose silken robes, and others with breeches, and several had silken turbans on their head, being Mahometans.  All of them had jet black hair, and wore many gold and silver rings on their fingers.  They bartered their provisions with the Dutch for beads and other toys, but seemed more desirous of having linen.  They appeared so fearful and suspicious of the Dutch, that they would not tell the name of their country, which however was suspected to be one of the three eastern points of Gilolo, and that the people were natives of Tidore, which was afterwards found to be the case.