The tide of flood being spent, and having a fine land-breeze on the 23rd in the morning, I went away from the anchoring place before it was light; and then lay by till daylight that we might see the better how to go out of the harbour.  I had a pilot belonging to Mr. Cock who went out with me, to whom I gave 3 dollars; but I found I could as well have gone out myself by the soundings I made at coming in.  The wind was east by north and fair weather.  By 10 o’clock I was got past all danger and then sent away my pilot.

Cape Salvador.

At 12 Cape Salvador bore north distant 6 leagues, and we had the winds between the east by north and south-east a considerable time, so that we kept along near the shore, commonly in sight of it.  The southerly blasts had now left us again; for they come at first in short flurries, and shift to other points (for 10 or 12 days sometimes) before they are quite set in:  and we had uncertain winds, between sea and land-breezes, and the coasting trade, which was itself unsettled.

The winds on the Brazilian coast; and Abrolho shoal; fish and birds:  The shearwater bird, and cooking of sharks.

The easterly winds at present made me doubt I should not weather a great shoal which lies in latitude between 18 and 19 degrees south, and runs a great way into the sea, directly from the land, easterly.  Indeed the weather was fair (and continued so a good while) so that I might the better avoid any danger from it:  and if the wind came to the southward I knew I could stretch off to sea; so that I jogged on courageously.  The 27th of April we saw a small brigantine under the shore plying to the southward.  We also saw many men-of-war-birds and boobies, and abundance of albicore-fish.  Having still fair weather, small gales, and some calms, I had the opportunity of trying the current, which I found to set sometimes northerly and sometimes southerly:  and therefore knew I was still within the verge of the tides.  Being now in the latitude of the Abrolho Shoals, which I expected to meet with, I sounded, and had water lessening from 40 to 33 and so to 25 fathom:  but then it rose again to 33, 35, 37, etc., all coral rocks.  Whilst we were on this shoal (which we crossed towards the further part of it from land, where it lay deep, and so was not dangerous) we caught a great many fish with hook and line:  and by evening amplitude we had 6 degrees 38 minutes east variation.  This was the 27th of April; we were then in latitude 18 degrees 13 minutes south and east longitude from Cape Salvador 31 minutes.  On the 29th, being then in latitude 18 degrees 39 minutes south, we had small gales from the west-north-west to the west-south-west often shifting.  The 30th we had the winds from west to south-south-east, squalls and rain:  and we saw some dolphins and other fish about us.