Captain Gore attributed this difference in part, and probably with some reason, to the Discovery having her fire-place between decks; the heat and smoke of which, he conceived, might help to mitigate the bad effects of the damp night air.  But I am rather inclined to believe, that we escaped the flux by the precautions that were taken to prevent our catching it from others.  For if some kinds of fluxes be, as I apprehend there is no doubt they are, contagious, it is not improbable, that the Resolution caught this disorder from the Dutch ships at Cracatoa.  In order to avoid this danger, when Mr Williamson was sent to the Indiaman in the entrance of the Strait of Sunda, he had the strictest orders not to suffer any of our people, on any account whatever, to go on board; and whenever we had afterward occasion to have any communication with the Resolution, the same caution was constantly observed.

We were no sooner clear of Prince’s Island, than we had a gentle breeze from the W.N.W.; but this did not last long; for the following day the wind became again variable, and continued so till the noon of the 25th, when it grew squally, and blew fresh from the north.

On the 22d at noon, being in latitude 10 deg. 28’ S., and longitude 104 deg. 14’, we saw great quantities of boobies, and other fowls, that seldom go far from land; from which we conjectured, that we were near some small unknown island.

In the evening of the 25th, the wind changed suddenly to the southward, accompanied with heavy rains, and began to blow with great violence.  During the night, almost every sail we had bent gave way, and most of them were split to rags; our rigging also suffered materially, and we were, the next day, obliged to bend our last suit of sails, and to knot and splice the rigging, our cordage being all expended.  This sudden storm, we attributed to the change from the monsoon to the regular trade-wind; our latitude was about 13 deg. 10’ S., and we had made by our reckoning about 4-1/2 deg. of longitude west from Java head.

From the 26th of this month to the 28th of March, we had a regular trade-wind from the S.E. to E. by S., with fine weather; and being in an old beaten track, met no occurrence that deserved the smallest notice.

In the morning of the 28th of March, being in latitude 31 deg. 42’ S., and longitude 35 deg. 26’ E., the trade-wind left us in a violent thunder-storm.  From this time to the 3d of April, when our latitude was 35 deg. 1’ S., and longitude 26 deg. 3’ E., the winds were moderate, and generally from the south quarter.  A fresh breeze then sprung up from the eastward, which continued till the afternoon of the 4th; after which we had a calm that lasted the two following days.

It had hitherto been Captain Gore’s intention to proceed directly to St Helena, without stopping at the Cape; but the rudder of the Resolution having been, for some time, complaining, and, on being examined, reported to be in a dangerous state, he resolved to steer immediately for the Cape, as the most eligible place, both for the recovery of his sick, and for procuring a new main-piece to the rudder.