there never was a crew in a more distressed situation.  They had already thrown overboard two-thirds of their complement, and of those that remained alive scarcely any were capable of doing duty except the officers and their servants.  They had been a considerable time at the small allowance of a pint of fresh water to each man for twenty-four hours, and yet they had so little left that, had it not been for the supply we sent them, they must soon have died of thirst.

The ship plied in within three miles of the bay, but, the winds and currents being contrary, she could not reach the road.  However she continued in the offing the next day, but had no chance of coming to an anchor unless the wind and current shifted; and therefore the Commodore repeated his assistance, sending to her the Trial’s boat manned with the Centurion’s people, and a further supply of water and other refreshments.  Captain Mitchel, the captain of the Gloucester, was under a necessity of detaining both this boat and that sent the preceding day; for without the help of their crews he had no longer strength enough to navigate the ship.  In this tantalising situation the Gloucester continued for near a fortnight, without being able to fetch the road, though frequently attempting it, and at some times bidding very fair for it.  On the 9th of July we observed her stretching away to the eastward at a considerable distance, which we supposed was with a design to get to the southward of the island; but as we soon lost sight of her and she did not appear for near a week, we were prodigiously concerned, knowing that she must be again in extreme distress for want of water.  After great impatience about her, we discovered her again on the 16th, endeavouring to come round the eastern point of the island; but the wind, still blowing directly from the bay, prevented her getting nearer than within four leagues of the land.  On this captain Mitchel made signals of distress, and our long-boat was sent to him with a store of water and plenty of fish and other refreshments; and the long-boat being not to be spared, the coxswain had positive orders from the Commodore to return again immediately; but the weather proving stormy the next day, and the boat not appearing, we much feared she was lost, which would have proved an irretrievable misfortune to us all.  But the third day after we were relieved from this anxiety by the joyful sight of the long-boat’s sails upon the water, and we sent the cutter immediately to her assistance, which towed her alongside in a few hours.  The crew of our long-boat had taken in six of the Gloucester’s sick men to bring them on shore, two of whom had died in the boat.  And now we learned that the Gloucester was in a most dreadful condition, having scarcely a man in health on board, except those they received from us; and numbers of their sick dying daily, we found that, had it not been for the last supply sent by our long-boat, both the healthy and diseased must