east, we steered N.W. by W., along the outside of the shoals, with a view of falling in with the land a little to S.W. of the foreland.  At two o’clock p.m. two low islets were seen bearing W. by S., and as they were connected by breakers, which seemed to join those on our starboard, this discovery made it necessary to haul off S.W., in order to get clear of them all.  At three, more breakers appeared, extending from the low isles towards the S.E.  We now hauled out close to the wind, and, in an hour and a half, were almost on board the breakers, and obliged to tack.  From the mast-head they were seen to extend as far as E.S.E., and the smoothness of the sea made it probable that they extended to the north of east, and that we were in a manner surrounded by them.  At this time the hill on the Isle of Pines bore N. 71 1/2 E., the foreland N. 1/4 W., and the most advanced point of land on the S.W. coast bore N.W., distant fifteen or sixteen leagues.  This direction of the S.W. coast, which was rather within the parallel of the N.E., assured us that this land extended no farther to the S.W.  After making a short trip to N.N.E., we stood again to the south, in expectation of having a better view of the shoals before sun-set.  We gained nothing by this but the prospect of a sea strewed with shoals, which we could not clear but by returning in the track by which we came.  We tacked nearly in the same place where we had tacked before, and on sounding found a bottom of fine sand.  But anchoring in a strong gale, with a chain of breakers to leeward, being the last resource, I rather chose to spend the night in making short boards over that space we had, in some measure, made ourselves acquainted with in the day:  And thus it was spent, but under the terrible apprehension, every moment, of falling on some of the many dangers which surrounded us.

Day-light shewed that our fears were not ill-founded, and that we had been in the most imminent danger; having had breakers continually under our lee, and at a very little distance from us.  We owed our safety to the interposition of Providence, a good look-out, and the very brisk manner in which the ship was managed; for, as we were standing to the north, the people on the lee-gangway and forecastle saw breakers under the lee-bow, which we escaped by quickly tacking the ship.

I was now almost tired of a coast which I could no longer explore, but at the risk of losing the ship, and ruining the whole voyage.  I was, however, determined not to leave it, till I knew what trees those were which had been the subject of our speculation; especially as they appeared to be of a sort useful to shipping, and had not been seen any where but in the southern part of this land.  With this view, after making a trip to the south, to weather the shoals under our lee, we stood to the north, in hopes of finding anchorage under some of the islets on which these trees grow.  We were stopped by eight o’clock by the shoals which lie extended between the Isle of Pines and Queen Charlotte’s Foreland; and found soundings off them in fifty-five, forty, and thirty-six fathoms, a fine sandy bottom.  The nearer we came to these shoals, the more we saw of them, and we were not able to say if there was any passage between the two lands.