of the bay.  The next day we got up our anchor; and that afternoon came to an anchor once more near 2 islands and a shoal of coral rocks that face the bay.  Here I scrubbed my ship; and, finding it very improbable I should get anything further here, I made the best of my way out to sea again, sounding all the way:  but, finding by the shallowness of the water that there was no going out to sea to the east of the two islands that face the bay, nor between them, I returned to the west entrance, going out by the same way I came in at, only on the east instead of the west side of the small shoal to be seen in the plan; in which channel we had 10, 12, and 13 fathom water, still deepening upon us till we were out at sea.  The day before we came out I sent a boat ashore to the most northerly of the 2 islands, which is the least of them, catching many small fish in the meanwhile with hook and line.  The boat’s crew returning told me that the isle produces nothing but a sort of green, short, hard, prickly grass, affording neither wood nor fresh water; and that a sea broke between the 2 islands, a sign that the water was shallow.  They saw a large turtle and many skates and thornbacks, but caught none.

The author’s removing to another part of new Holland:  Dolphins, whales, and more sea-serpents:  And of A passage or strait suspected here:  Of the vegetables, birds, and fish.

It was August the 14th when I sailed out of this bay or sound, the mouth of which lies, as I said, in 25 degrees 5 minutes, designing to coast along to the north-east till I might commodiously put in at some other part of New Holland.  In passing out we saw 3 water-serpents swimming about in the sea, of a yellow colour, spotted with dark brown spots.  They were each about 4 foot long, and about the bigness of a man’s wrist, and were the first I saw on this coast, which abounds with several sorts of them.  We had the winds at our first coming out at north and the land lying north-easterly.  We plied off and on, getting forward but little till the next day:  when the wind coming at south-south-west and south we began to coast it along the shore to the northward, keeping at 6 or 7 leagues off shore; and sounding often, we had between 40 and 46 fathom water, brown sand with some white shells.  This 15th of August we were in latitude 24 degrees 41 minutes.  On the 16th day at noon we were in 23 degrees 22 minutes.  The wind coming at east by north we could not keep the shore aboard, but were forced to go farther off, and lost sight of the land.  Then sounding we had no ground with 80 fathom line; however the wind shortly after came about again to the southward, and then we jogged on again to the northward and saw many small dolphins and whales, and abundance of scuttle-shells swimming on the sea; and some water-snakes every day.  The 17th we saw the land again, and took a sight of it.