A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 12 eBook

Robert Kerr (writer)
This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 760 pages of information about A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 12.

A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 12 eBook

Robert Kerr (writer)
This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 760 pages of information about A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 12.
the same hour in the afternoon, returned with an account that the ship was safe, but that the fatigue of the people had been incredible, the whole crew having been upon the deck near three days and three nights.  At midnight the gusts returned, though not with equal violence, with hail, sleet, and snow.  The weather being now extremely cold, and the people never dry, I got up, the next morning, eleven bales of thick woollen stuff, called fearnought, which is provided by the government, and set all the tailors to work to make them into jackets, of which every man in the ship had one.

I ordered these jackets to be made very large, allowing, one with another, two yards and thirty-four inches of the cloth to each jacket.  I sent also seven bales of the same cloth to the Swallow, which made every man on board a jacket of the same kind; and I cut up three bales of finer cloth, and made jackets for the officers of both ships, which I had the pleasure to find were very acceptable.

In this situation we were obliged to continue a week, during which time, I put both my own ship, and the Swallow, upon two-thirds allowance, except brandy; but continued the breakfast as long as greens and water were plenty.

On Sunday the 15th, about noon, we saw the Swallow under sail, and it being calm, we sent our launch to assist her.  In the evening the launch returned, having towed her into a very good harbour on the south shore, opposite to where we lay.  The account that we received of this harbour, determined us to get into it as soon as possible; the next morning therefore, at eight o’clock, we sailed from Goodluck Bay, and thought ourselves happy to get safe out of it.  When we got a-breast of the harbour where the Swallow lay, we fired several guns, as signals for her boats to assist us in getting in; and in a short time the master came on board us, and piloted us to a very commodious station, where we anchored in twenty-eight fathom, with a muddy bottom.  This harbour, which is sheltered from all winds, and excellent in every respect, we called Swallow Harbour.  There are two channels into it, which are both narrow, but not dangerous, as the rocks are easily discovered by the weeds that grow upon them.

At nine o’clock the next morning, the wind coming easterly, we weighed, and sailed from Swallow Harbour.  At noon we took the Swallow in tow, but at five, there being little wind, we cast off the tow.  At eight in the evening, the boats which had been sent out to look for anchorage, returned with an account that they could find none:  At nine we had fresh gales, and at midnight Cape Upright bore S.S.W.1/2 W.

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A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 12 from Project Gutenberg. Public domain.