After this we passed by an island, called by the Dutch St. John’s Island, leaving it to the north of us.  It is about nine or ten leagues round, and very well adorned with lofty trees.  We saw many plantations on the sides of the hills, and abundance of cocoa-nut trees about them, as also thick groves on the bays by the seaside.  As we came near it three canoes came off to us, but would not come aboard.  They were such as we had seen about the other islands.  They spoke the same language, and made the same signs of peace, and their canoes were such as at Cave’s Island.

We stood along by St. John’s Island till we came almost to the south-east point, and then, seeing no more islands to the eastward of us, nor any likelihood of anchoring under this, I steered away for the main of New Guinea, we being now, as I supposed, to the east of it, on this north side.  My design of seeing these islands as I passed along was to get wood and water, but could find no anchor ground, and therefore could not do as I purposed; besides, these islands are all so populous, that I dared not send my boat ashore, unless I could have anchored pretty nigh; wherefore I rather chose to prosecute my design on the main, the season of the year being now at hand, for I judged the westerly winds were nigh spent.

On the 8th of March we saw some smoke on the main, being distant from it four or five leagues.  It is very high, woody land, with some spots of savannah.  About ten in the morning six or seven canoes came off to us.  Most of them had no more than one man in them.  They were all black, with short curled hair, having the same ornaments in their noses, and their heads so shaved and painted, and speaking the same words as the inhabitants of Cave’s Island before mentioned.

There was a headland to the southward of us, beyond which, seeing no land, I supposed that from thence the land trends away more westerly.  This headland lies in the latitude of 5 degrees 2 minutes south, and meridian distance from Cape Mabo 1,290 miles.  In the night we lay by, for fear of overshooting this headland, between which and Cape St. Manes the land is high, mountainous and woody, having many points of land shooting out into the sea, which make so many fine bays; the coast lies north-north-east and south-south-west.

The 9th, in the morning a huge black man came off to us in a canoe, but would not come aboard.  He made the same signs of friendship to us as the rest we had met with; yet seemed to differ in his language, not using any of those words which the others did.  We saw neither smoke nor plantations near this headland.  We found here variation 1 degree east.