We were now driven by currents, notwithstanding our utmost endeavours to get to the westward, eleven deg. of longitude, or 220 leagues farther to the eastward than the account by the ship’s run; and that had happened within the last month, and between the latitudes 3 deg. 00’ north, and 6 deg. 30’ north.

On the 13th of July we bore away to the northward, it being determined either to attempt the strait through which the Acapulco ships pass to the port of Manilla, or to go round the north end of Luconia, and endeavour to fetch Macao, in China, though we were a little doubtful about fetching the latter in so leewardly a vessel.  It appeared from the winds that we then had, that the south-west monsoon at times blows very strong through the opening between the islands of Mindanao and Celebes, and reaches a considerable way to the eastward; I can with certainty say as far as 142 deg. 00’ east longitude.

On the 14th in the morning, we saw land bearing north; this we found to be two islands joined together, or nearly so, by a long sandy spit, above water, which reached for about two-thirds of the distance from the eastermost or largest island, to the westmost, which is small.  All round the largest is a sand-bank above water, which extends from the foot of the higher land about half a mile into the sea, and may have shoal water from it.  We saw on the beach a few natives running along shore, as the ship sailed past.  These islands are dangerous to people in the night, on account of the sandy spits which project from them; they were covered with shrubs, and had but few tall trees on them, and the land is but low:  the latitude of the large or eastmost island, is 8 deg. 06’ north, and longitude 140 deg. 03’ east.  I did at first suppose them to have been part of the New Carolines, but they seem to lie quite alone, and are about five miles asunder.  I called them Phillip Islands, after Arthur Phillip, the governor of New South Wales.

On the 17th of July in the morning, we saw land from the mast-head, bearing west by south nine or ten leagues distant; at noon we could see it from the deck, and it appeared to be three islands; at four in the afternoon, they bore south by west three-quarters west, and were by intersections taken from the ship, distant eight leagues.  A considerable number of fish being at that time round the ship, the people, in looking over the side at them, discovered rocks under the bottom; we immediately sounded, and had fifteen fathoms:  the rocks appeared very large, with patches of white sand between them; in twenty minutes, the water appeared to deepen, and we had no ground with forty fathoms of line.  This ridge of rocks appeared to be about half a mile in breadth, and was seen from the mast-head to stretch to the southward towards the islands, and considerably to the northward of the ship; although it be of great extent in a north-north-east and south-south-west direction, yet I do not think there is any very shoal water upon it, for we saw no break, surf, or rippling, which would indicate shoal water; and there was a sufficient swell of the sea to have occasioned some appearance where any ship would have struck the ground.