On the 19th June, the two brigs in company fell in with a range of reefs, terminated to the eastward by two sandy islets, the easternmost of which is in 151 degrees 47 minutes (149 degrees 27 minutes East of Paris); the vessels hauled to the wind immediately, but finding they could not pass to windward, bore up, and ran along the shoal from eight a.m. to four p.m., at the distance of a league and a half.  Altogether they counted seven islets, three of which were covered with shrubs, and the whole connected by a reef, on the edge of which the sea broke heavily:  they were called GOVERNOR FARQUHAR’S GROUP:  the westernmost islet is in 17 degrees 39 minutes, and 151 degrees 27 minutes (149 degrees 7 minutes East of Paris) and appeared to terminate the group.  As it was near sunset, the vessels hauled to the wind for the night, and at daylight bore up on a north course:  soon afterwards they saw an islet West-North-West; they, however, continued to steer North until eight o’clock, and then, having run nine miles, saw another island North-North-East.  On attempting to steer between the isles, they were found to be connected, and having sounded in eleven fathoms, the vessels bore up, and steered between the westernmost islet and two extensive reefs, through a passage five or six miles wide, that appeared to be clear.

The westernmost islet is in 17 degrees 42 minutes South, and 150 degrees 43 minutes East (148 degrees 23 minutes East of Paris) and the westernmost reef, in 17 degrees 44 minutes South, and 150 degrees 32 minutes East (148 degrees 12 minutes East of Paris).  A space of ten or twelve leagues between Governor Farquhar’s Group and that seen the preceding day was passed in the night, and probably may contain other reefs.  The last group was named TREGROSSE’S ISLETS.

NORTH COAST.

The ALERT struck on a shoal to the westward of Torres Strait in 1817; it seemed to be about two hundred fathoms in length, and about fifty yards broad:  it is in latitude 9 degrees 52 minutes, and longitude 140 degrees 50 minutes.

In the vicinity of Cape Van Diemen there are many submarine coral banks, that are not yet shoal enough to be called reefs; that which Captain Flinders saw, and sounded upon in seven fathoms, lies in 9 degrees 56 minutes latitude, and 129 degrees 28 minutes longitude.  The Alert also passed over a shoal patch with nine fathoms in 10 degrees 1 minute South, and 129 degrees 8 minutes East.

NORTH-WEST COAST.

SAHUL BANK is but very imperfectly known, and its extent by no means so large as is laid down upon the chart.  In that interval, however, there are probably many reefs, which have been occasionally seen.  Captain Heywood saw a dry part in latitude 11 degrees 35 minutes and longitude 124 degrees 10 minutes, and there are shoal soundings in crossing it on the following parts, namely: 

COLUMN 1:  SOUNDINGS OVER CORAL REEF IN FATHOMS.
COLUMN 2:  LATITUDE. 
COLUMN 3:  LONGITUDE.