is nearly the same; but if not, the land he saw could not be more considerable:  Whatever it was, he went to the southward of it, and the long billows we had here, convinced us that there was no land near us in that direction.  The wind here being to the eastward, I hauled to the southward again, and the next day, Monday the 13th, in the evening, as we were steering W.S.W. we observed that we lost the long southerly billows, and that we got them again at seven o’clock the next day.  When we lost them we were in latitude 21 deg.7’S., longitude 147 deg.4’ W.; and when we got them again we were in latitude 21 deg. 43 S., longitude 149 deg.48’W; so that I imagine there was some land to the southward, not far distant.[57]

[Footnote 57:  The Islands called Oheteroa, Toobouai, Vabouai, Vavitoo, lie a little to the south of this part of Carteret’s track.—­E.]

From this time to the 16th, the winds were variable from N.E. round by the N. the N.W. and S.W. and blew very hard, with violent gusts, one of which was very near being fatal to us, with thick weather and hard rain.  We were then in latitude 22 deg.  S., and 70 deg.30’W. of our departure, where we found the variation 6 deg.30’E. and the tempestuous gales were succeeded by a dead calm.  After some time, however, the wind sprung up again at west, and at length settled in the W.S.W. which soon drove us again to the northward, so that on the 20th we were in latitude 19 deg.  S., longitude 75 deg.30’W. of our departure:  The variation was here 6 deg.E.

On the 22d, we were got into latitude 18 deg.S., longitude 161 deg.W., which was about one thousand eight hundred leagues to the westward of the continent of America, and in all this track we had no indication of a continent.  The men now began to be very sickly, the scurvy having made great progress among them, and as I found that all my endeavours to keep in a high southern latitude at this time were ineffectual, and that the badness of the weather, the variableness of the winds, and above all, the defects of the ship, rendered our progress slow, I thought it absolutely necessary to fix upon that course which was most likely to preserve the vessel and the crew; instead therefore of attempting to return back by the south-east, in which, considering our condition, and the advanced season of the year, it was scarcely possible that we should succeed, I bore away to the northward, that I might get into the trade-wind, keeping still in such a track, as if the charts were to be trusted, was most likely to bring me to some island, where the refreshments of which we stood so much in need might be procured intending then, if the ship could be put in a proper condition, to have pursued the voyage to the southward, when the fit season should return, to have attempted farther discoveries in this track; and, if I should discover a continent, and procure a sufficient supply of provisions there, to keep along the coast to the southward till the sun had crossed the equinoctial, and then, getting into a high southern latitude, either have gone west about to the Cape of Good Hope, or returned to the eastward, and having touched at Falkland’s Islands, if necessary, made the best of my way from thence back to Europe.