As soon as the boat was hoisted in, I made sail to the northward, and at eight o’clock in the morning of the 29th, we were close under the Peak of Bolabola, which was high, rude, and craggy. As the island was altogether inaccessible in this part, and we found it impossible to weather it, we tacked and stood off, then tacked again, and after many trips did not weather the south end of it till twelve o’clock at night. At eight o’clock the next morning, we discovered an island, which bore from us N. 63° W. distant about eight leagues; at the same time the Peak of Bolabola bore N. ½ E. distant three or four leagues. This island Tupia called MAURUA, and said that it was small, wholly surrounded by a reef, and without any harbour for shipping; but inhabited, and bearing the same produce as the neighbouring islands: the middle of it rises in a high round hill, that may be seen at the distance of ten leagues.

When we were off Bolabola, we saw but few people on the shore, and were told by Tupia that many of the inhabitants were gone to Ulietea. In the afternoon we found ourselves nearly the length of the south end of Ulietea, and to windward of some harbours that lay on the west side of this island. Into one of these harbours, though we had before been ashore on the other side of the island, I intended to put, in order to stop a leak which we had sprung in the powder room, and to take in more ballast, as I found the ship too light to carry sail upon a wind. As the wind was right against us, we plied off one of the harbours, and about three o’clock in the afternoon on the 1st of August, we came to an anchor in the entrance of the channel leading into it in fourteen fathom water, being prevented from working in, by a tide which set very strong out. We then carried out the kedge-anchor, in order to warp into the harbour; but when this was done, we could not trip the bower-anchor with all the purchase we could make; we were therefore obliged to lie still all night, and in the morning, when the tide turned, the ship going over the anchor, it tripped of itself, and we warped the ship into a proper birth with ease, and moored in twenty-eight fathom, with a sandy bottom. While this was doing many of the natives came off to us with hogs, fowls, and plantains, which they parted with at an easy rate.

Voyaging Accounts