At two in the afternoon, we again made the land to the westward, at the distance of about twelve leagues; the southernmost land in sight, which we supposed to be White Point,[101], bore W.S.W. 1/2 W.; a hummock to the northward, which had the appearance of being an island, bore N.N.W. 1/2 W., within which we saw from the mast-head low land, which we took to be Sand-down Point.[102] We stood in toward the land, till half-past five, when we hauled our wind to the southward.  At this time we saw a number of Japanese vessels, close in with the land, several seemingly engaged in fishing, and others standing along shore.  We now discovered to the westward a remarkably high mountain, with a round top, rising far inland.  There is no high ground near it, the coast being of a moderate elevation, and, as far as we could judge, from the haziness of the horizon, much broken by small inlets.  But to the southward of the hummock island before mentioned, there appeared, at a great distance, within the country, a ridge of hills, stretching in a direction toward the mountain, and probably joining with it.  As this is the most remarkable hill on the coast, we could have wished to have settled its situation exactly; but having only had this single view, were obliged to be contented with such accuracy as our circumstances would allow.  Its latitude therefore we conceive to be 35 deg. 20’, its longitude, estimated by its distance from the ships, at this time fifteen leagues, 140 deg. 26’.

As the Dutch charts make the coast of Japan extend about ten leagues to the S.W. of White Point, at eight we tacked, and stood off to the eastward, in order to weather the point.  At midnight, we again tacked to the S.W., expecting to fall in with the coast to the southward, but were surprised, in the morning at eight, to see the hummock, at the distance only of three leagues, bearing W.N.W.  We began, at first, to doubt the evidence of our senses, and afterward to suspect some deception from a similarity of land; but, at noon, we found ourselves, by observation, to be actually in latitude 35 deg. 43’, at a time when our reckonings gave us 34 deg. 48’.  So that, during the eight hours in which we supposed we had made a course of nine leagues to the S.W., we had in reality been carried eight leagues from the position we left, in a direction diametrically opposite; which made, on the whole, in that short space of time, a difference in our reckoning of seventeen leagues.  From this error, we calculated, that the current had set to the N.E. by N., at the rate of at least five miles an hour.  Our longitude, at this time, was 141 deg. 16’.