were in latitude 45 deg. 16’, the south point of Banks’s Island bearing N. 6 deg. 30’ W. distant twenty-eight leagues.  The variation by the azimuth this morning was 15 deg. 30’ E. As no signs of land had yet appeared to the southward, and as I thought that we had stood far enough in that direction to weather all the land we had left, judging from the report of the natives in Queen Charlotte’s Sound, I hauled to the westward.

We had a moderate breeze at N.N.W.N. till eight in the evening, when it became unsettled; and at ten fixed at south:  During the night, it blew with such violence that it brought us under our close reefed topsails.  At eight the next morning, having run twenty-eight leagues upon a W. by N. 1/2 N. course, and judging ourselves to be to the westward of the land of Tovy Poenammoo, we bore away N.W. with a fresh gale at south.  At ten, having run eleven miles upon this course, we saw land extending from the S.W. to the N.W. at the distance of about ten leagues, which we hauled up for.  At noon, our latitude by observation was 44 deg. 38’, the south-east point of Banks’s Island bore N. 58 deg. 30’ E. distant thirty leagues, and the main body of the land in sight W. by N. A head sea prevented us from making much way to the southward; at seven in the evening the extremes of the land stretched from S.W. by S. to N. by W.; and at six leagues from the shore we had thirty-two fathom water.  At four o’clock the next morning, we stood in for the shore W. by S. and during a course of four leagues, our depth of water was from thirty-two to thirteen fathom.  When it was thirteen fathom we were but three miles distant from the shore, and therefore stood off; its direction is here nearly N. and S. The surface, to the distance of about five miles from the sea, is low and flat; but it then rises into hills of a considerable height.  It appeared to be totally barren, and we saw no signs of its being inhabited.  Our latitude, at noon, was 44 deg. 44’; and the longitude which we made from Banks’s Island to this place was 2 deg. 22’ W. During the last twenty-four hours, though we carried as much sail as the ship would bear, we were driven three leagues to the leeward.

We continued to stand off and on all this day and the next, keeping at the distance of between four and twelve leagues from the shore, and having water from thirty-five to fifty-three fathom.  On the 22d, at noon, we had no observation, but by the land judged ourselves to be about three leagues farther north than we had been the day before.  At sun-set, the weather, which had been hazy, clearing up, we saw a mountain which rose in a high peak, bearing N.W. by N.; and at the same time, we saw the land more distinctly than before, extending from N. to S.W. by S. which, at some distance within the coast, had a lofty and mountainous appearance.  We soon found that the accounts which had been given us by the Indians in Queen Charlotte’s Sound of the land to the southward were not true; for they had told us that it might be circumnavigated in four days.