rest of their fellow-creatures, is not easy to guess.  By our meeting with inhabitants in this place, it seems probable that there are people scattered over all this southern island.  But the many vestiges of them in different parts of this bay, compared with the number that we actually saw, indicates that they live a wandering life; and, if one may judge from appearances and circumstances, few as they are, they live not in perfect amity, one family with another.  For, if they did, why do they not form themselves into some society? a thing not only natural to man, but observed even by the brute creation.

I shall conclude this account of Dusky Bay with some observations made and communicated to me by Mr Wales.  He found by a great variety of observations, that the latitude of his observatory at Pickersgill Harbour, was 45 deg. 47’ 26” half south; and, by the mean of several distances of the moon from the sun, that its longitude was 106 deg. 18’ E., which is about half a degree less than it is laid down in my chart constructed in my former voyage.  He found the variation of the needle or compass, by the mean of three different needles, to be 13 deg. 49’ E, and the dip of the south end 70 deg. 5’ three quarters.  The times of high water, on the full and change days, he found to be at 10 deg. 57’, and the tide to rise and fall, at the former eight feet, at the latter five feet eight inches.  This difference, in the rise of the tides between the new and full moon, is a little extraordinary, and was probably occasioned at this time by some accidental cause, such as winds, &c., but, be it as it will, I am well assured there was no error in the observations.

Supposing the longitude of the observatory to be as above, the error of Mr Kendal’s watch, in longitude, will be 1 deg. 48’ minus, and that of Mr Arnold’s 39 deg. 25’.  The former was found to be gaining 6",461 a-day on mean time, and the latter losing 99",361.  Agreeably to these rates the longitude by them was to be determined, until an opportunity of trying them again.

I must observe, that in finding the longitude by Mr Kendal’s watch, we suppose it to have gone mean time from the Cape of Good Hope.  Had its cape rate been allowed, the error would not have been so great.

CHAPTER VI.

Passage from Dusky Bay to Queen Charlottes Sound, with an Account of some Water Spouts, and of our joining the Adventure.

1773 May

After leaving Dusky Bay, as hath been already mentioned, I directed my course along shore for Queen Charlotte’s Sound, where I expected to find the Adventure.  In this passage we met with nothing remarkable, or worthy of notice, till the 17th at four o’clock in the afternoon.  Being then about three leagues to the westward of Cape Stephens; having a gentle gale at west by south, and clear weather, the wind at once flattened to a calm, the sky became suddenly obscured