yet my fears were momentarily alive lest any should be taken ill. A
land-wind at night enabled us to make some progress, and before dark we
had reached twenty-five miles into the opening without seeing anything
like its termination; the western side still trended in a southerly
direction, losing itself in distance, and bore the appearance of being an
island.

February 15.

By the next day we descried some hills of peaked shape to the southward,
which was the only indication we had of the termination of the gulf: to
the eastward the islands were very numerous and low; but to the
South-East the land was so continuous as to impress us with the idea of
its being the continent. We steered towards it to satisfy our doubts but
the water shoaled and prevented our approaching it near enough to
ascertain the fact. The gulf was here so much narrower, and the bottom so
uneven and rocky, that an anchorage was now of material importance, but
our poverty in anchors made me fearful of risking our last upon a bottom
of the least questionable nature. Before dark however we were fortunate
in finding a bay on the western shore, in which the anchor was dropped in
three fathoms muddy bottom, at one mile from the shore.

The discovery of this anchorage proved so welcome to our fatigued crew,
that the place was not unaptly named the Bay of Rest. We remained here
three days, in which time I was enabled to lay down my plan of the gulf,
and give some little respite to the people who had been up both night and
day, and most laboriously occupied, since we rounded the North-West Cape.

As soon as the vessel was secured Mr. Bedwell landed on the eastern shore
of the bay, and found it to be of bold approach, but lined with coral