VOYAGE FOR THE DISCOVERY OF SOUTHERN LANDS.
795
morning, we weighed anchor to purfue our examination northward of Endraght’sland.
On the fame day we doubled a large cape which forms the north-eaft point of the bayof Sharks, and which has the appearance of an enormous baftion ; we called it CapeCuvier in memory of a learned naturalift of that name.
In the night, between the 14th and 15th of July, we paffed the tropic of Capricon forthe fourth time ; the thermometer was from 16 0 to 18° *, the barometer from 28 p 1 1to 28 p 3 1 . The portion of land we coafted, like the reft of thefe unpleafing fhores,was naked, fterile, low, uniform, fandy, and wettifh. The 15th, at noon, we were inlatitude 22® 17' fouth, no° 46' eafl of Paris .
From the 18th to the 22d we had fight of the river King William, which in no re-fpect is deferving of the importance that, from the ancient charts of this part of NewHolland, one would feel inclined to give it. The opening of it is narrow, barred byrufs, and embarraffed by rocks ; and the direction it feems to affect inclines me toimagine that, like all the other pretended rivers of this continent, it is only a fort ofchannel by which the waters of the fea penetrate a greater or lefs depth in land. More-over, at its mouth, no fenfible difference is obferved in the colour of the waves; incroffing it no current is experienced ; and the continent in this part prefents the famepicture of barrennefs and monotony to which I have had fo often to advert.
The fame may be faid of the north-weft cape of New Holland, which w r e defcried the22d July and which, we denominated Cape Murat. In front of this important cape apretty extenfive reef is projected, againft which the fea breaks with violence. On thenorth, and, as it were, on the fame line, feven fandy, low, and barren iflands prefentthemfelves, called the Iflands Rivoli, in memory of the celebrated victory of that name.Thefe iflands are inconfiderable, the largeft of them not exceeding three leagues inlength ; but they are very eafy for navigators to reconnoitre, and their pofition in frontof Cape Murat renders them of importance.
Immediately beyond the cape, and the iflands I have juft defcribed, begins De Witt’sLand, a new theatre of troubles and perils which we are about to pourtray in thefucceeding chapter.
CHAP. VII. — De Witt's Land.
[From the 23d July to the 16th Auguft 1801.]
UNDER the name of De Witt’s Land is generally comprized all that part of NewHolland which, from the north-weft cape extends to the north cape of this vaft con-tinent, thus comprizing ten degrees nearly of latitude by fifteen of longitude. It wasdifcovered, according to common opinion, by William de Witt, a Dutch navigator, whogave it his name ; but the epoch of this difcovery is uncertain; fome ftate it to havetaken place in 1616, others in 1623, or even 1628. In this laft year alfo it is thatVianen is reputed to have been wrecked on this coaft. In 1669 Dampier appeared offthefe fhores; but repulfed by fimilar obftacles, which will be feen to have multipliedthemfelves around us, he was obliged to abandon them. At length, in 1705, threeDutch fhips were expedited from Timor to reconnoitre De Witt’s Land, and that ofVan Diemen on the north ; but this laft voyage never having been publifhed, all cir-cumftances relating to it remain unknown 5 it appears, however, that to this laft under-
* 60j° to 64!° of Fahrenheit.
5 1 2
taking