We continued our search till Wednesday the 17th of June, when, in latitude 28 deg.  S., longitude 112 deg.  W., we saw many sea-birds, which flew in flocks, and some rock-weed, which made me conjecture that we were approaching, or had passed by, some land.  At this time the wind blew hard from the northward, which made a great sea, but we had notwithstanding long rolling billows from the southward so that whatever land was in that quarter, could be only small rocky islands; and I am inclined to believe that if there was land at all it was to the northward, possibly it might be Roggewein’s eastern island, which he has placed in latitude 27 deg.  S., and which some geographers have supposed to be about seven hundred leagues distant from the continent of South America, if indeed any credit is to be given to his account.

It was now the depth of winter in these parts, and we had hard gales and high seas that frequently brought us under our courses and low sails:  The winds were also variable, and though we were near the tropic, the weather was dark, hazy, and cold, with frequent thunder and lightning, sleet and rain.  The sun was above the horizon about ten hours in the four-and-twenty, but we frequently passed many days together without seeing him; and the weather was so thick, that when he was below the horizon the darkness was dreadful:  The gloominess of the weather was indeed not only a disagreeable, but a most dangerous circumstance, as we were often long without being able to make an observation, and were, notwithstanding, obliged to carry all the sail we could spread, day and night, our ship being so bad a sailer, and our voyage so long, to prevent our perishing by hunger, which, with all its concomitant horrors, would otherwise be inevitable.

We continued our course westward till the evening of Thursday the 2d of July, when we discovered land, to the northward of us.  Upon approaching it the next day, it appeared like a great rock rising out of the sea:  It was not more than five miles in circumference, and seemed to be uninhabited; it was, however, covered with trees, and we saw a small stream of fresh water running down one side of it.  I would have landed upon it, but the surf, which, at this season broke upon it with great violence, rendered it impossible.  I got soundings on the west side of it at somewhat less than a mile from the shore, in twenty-five fathom, with a bottom of coral and sand; and it is probable that in fine summer weather landing here may not only be practicable but easy.  We saw a great number of sea-birds hovering about it, at somewhat less than a mile from the shore, and the sea here seemed to have fish.  It lies in, latitude 25 deg. 2’ S., longitude 133 deg. 21’ W., and about a thousand leagues to the westward of the continent of America.  It is so high that we saw it at the distance of more than fifteen leagues, and it having been discovered by a young gentleman, son to Major Pitcairn of the marines, who was unfortunately lost in the Aurora, we called it PITCAIRNS ISLAND.