that remained full; so that we were not certain for a moment of our stock
of that article, of which we had no chance of procuring a supply on this
dreary coast.

September 8.

The following morning we weighed and stood out of Port Keats. On
attempting to steer close round Cape Hay we were obliged to desist and to
pass round a reef that extended from it in a North 1/2 West direction to
the distance of four leagues.

At sunset no land was in sight.

September 9.

But at eight o'clock the next morning (9th) the north end of the above
reef bore East-South-East and the land about Cape Hay South-South-East.
The Barthelemy Hills were also seen from the masthead, and reported as
islands; this mistake of ours therefore tends still more to excuse the
error of the French charts.

During the day we had light winds and the coast was but indistinctly
seen. The sea was covered with a brown scum which Captain Cook's sailors
called sea saw-dust, from its resemblance to that substance.* Very few
fish were noticed, but they were generally more numerous nearer to the
shore.

(*Footnote. Hawkesworth volume 3 page 248. Peron Voyage de Decouvertes
aux Terres Australes volume 2 chapter 31.)