Our distance from the mouth was sixteen miles and the breeze blew directly against us but, as the tide was running out with great strength, we succeeded in reaching an anchorage in Brunswick Bay before dark; not however without incurring considerable danger in passing through strong tide ripplings when abreast of Rothsay Water; which caused me to suspect that it communicated with Prince Frederic’s Harbour.

In beating out of the river the cutter leaked a good deal, which showed that our late repair at Careening Bay had not placed us without the pale of danger:  and I now began to fear that the leak had been occasioned more from the defect of her fastenings than from the accident that happened to her keel; so that we were in every respect as badly off as before the cutter was careened.  This made me decide upon instantly returning to Port Jackson; but it was with great regret that I found it necessary to resolve so; for the land to the westward appeared so indented as to render the necessity of our departure at this moment particularly vexatious.

October 14.

The next day therefore we passed out to sea to the westward of Baudin’s
Keraudren Island.

The wind, upon leaving the coast, being West-South-West and West-North-West, carried us as far to the north as 11 degrees 43 minutes before we met with southerly winds; after which they gradually veered to the south-east trade.

October 30.

On the 30th at midnight we were upon the parallel of 19 degrees 33 minutes, on which the Tryal rocks have been said to exist; in order therefore to be on the safe side we tacked to the northward for four hours and then passed back again until daylight when we resumed our course.

October 31.

At ten o’clock a.m. we were in the latitude assigned to these rocks by the brig Greyhound, the master of which vessel, on his arrival at Port Jackson from China last year, published an account in the Sydney Gazette of his having seen them at a distance.  Had he been certain of the fact he would not have hesitated to approach sufficiently near them to have made all on board sensible of their existence; but it appears that the greater part, if not the whole, of the crew were so obstinate that they either would not, or could not, see them.

Were the tracks of every vessel that has passed over this part laid down, I think there would remain very little belief of their existence; in my own opinion I am convinced that there is no danger of the sort between the coast of New Holland and the meridian of 102 degrees east longitude.  The Dutch account records this danger to be forty miles in extent from east to west and fifteen miles in breadth; and the Danish account describes it to extend for twenty-four miles from north-east to south-west.  Was there a danger of so considerable an extent in existence in the direct track of outward-bound China-ships, it is hardly possible to conceive it could be passed without having been repeatedly seen.