At eight o’clock the next morning we weighed, and proceeded through the Strait, the tide setting to the southward, as it had done all night; but about ten, the breeze failing, we came to again in thirty-five fathoms; a high, island, or rather rock, called the Grand Toque, bearing S. by E. We were at this time not more than two miles from the ships, which now hoisting Dutch colours, Captain Gore sent a boat on board for intelligence.  The rain still continued, with thunder and lightning.

Early in the afternoon the boat returned, with an account that the large ship was a Dutch East Indiaman, bound for Europe; and the other a packet from Batavia, with orders for the several ships lying in the Strait.  It is the custom for the Dutch ships, as soon as their lading is nearly completed, to leave Batavia on account of its extreme unwholesomeness, and proceed to some of the more healthy islands in the Strait, where they wait for the remainder of their cargo and their dispatches.  Notwithstanding this precaution, the Indiaman had lost, since her departure from Batavia, four men, and had as many more whose recovery was despaired of.  She had lain here a fortnight, and was now about to proceed to Cracatoa, having just received final orders by the packet.

At seven in the morning of the 9th we weighed, and stood on through the Strait to the S.W., keeping pretty close in with the islands on the Sumatra shore, in order to avoid a rock near Mid-channel Island, which lay on our left.  At half after ten, I received orders from Captain Gore to make sail toward a Dutch ship, which now hove in sight to the southward, and which we supposed to be from Europe; and, according to the nature of the intelligence we could procure from her, either to join him at Cracatoa, where he intended to stop, for the purpose of supplying the ships with arrack, or to proceed to the S.E. end of Prince’s Island, and there take in our water and wait for him.

I accordingly bore down toward the Dutch ship, which, soon after, came to an anchor to the eastward; when the wind slackening, and the current still setting very strong through the Strait to the S.W., we found it impossible to fetch her, and having therefore got as near her as the tide would permit, we also dropt anchor.  I immediately dispatched Mr Williamson in the cutter with orders to get on board her, if possible; but as she lay near a mile off, and, the tide ran with great rapidity, we soon perceived that the boat was dropping fast astern.  We therefore made the signal to return, and immediately began to veer away the cable, and sent out a buoy astern, in order to assist him in getting on board again.  Our poverty, in the article of cordage, was here very conspicuous; for we had not a single coil of rope in the store-room to fix the buoy, but were obliged to set about unreeving the studding-sail geer, the topsail-halliards and tackle-falls for that purpose; and the boat was at this time driving to the southward so fast, that it was not before we had veered away two cables, and almost all our running-rigging, that she could fetch the buoy.