Transcription

From New Guinea to Batavia
[margin] 1770 [/margin]
[margin] Straits of [?] [/margin]
and the cap, soundings from 18 to 20 fa.om we had but little wind all night & having a strong current against us we go not further by 8 o'clock in the morning than under Bantam Point at this time the wind came to NE & obliged us to anchor in 22 fa.om, about 2 miles from the shore, the above point bore NEbE dist.ce 1 league, here we found a strong currt. setting to the NW. In the morning we saw the Dutch packet landing after us, but after the wind shifted to the NE she bore away. one of the Dutch captains told Mr Hicks yesterday that the current sits constantly to the SW.ward & that it would continue to set so for a month or six weeks longer.
Thursday . In the pm had the wind NEbN which obliged us to lay fast about 6 o'clock in the evening one of the country boats came alongside in which was the Commander of the packet before mention'd he seem'd to have 2 motives for coming, one to take an acco.t of the ship & the other to sell us refreshments, for in the boat were turtle, birds etc all of which they hold at a pretty high price & had bought to a bad market as our [Pavu?] stock was not all expended. I gave a Spanish dollar for a small turtle which weighed only 36 pounds with respect to the ship he wanted to know her name, the Captains, the place we came last from & were bound, as I would not see him myself. I order'd that no account should be given him from whence we came, but Mr Hicks who wrote the ships name down in his book put down from Europe, seeing this he express'd some surprise & said that we might write down what we pleased for it was of no other use than for the information of such of our country men as might pass these Streights. At 7 o'clock a light breeze sprung up at SSW with which we got under sail a1 1 am anch'd again having not wind to stern the current which we found ran 3 knots at 2 o'clock we weighed again but finding that we lost ground we were obliged to anchor in 18 fa.om. the island Pulo Morack which lies close under the shore 3 miles to the westward of the Bantam Point bore EbS dist.ce 11/2 miles Lat.de observed 5.55'S.
Friday At 5 in the pm we weighed with a light breeze at SWbS which continued not long before it fell calm & obliged us to anchor again, at 1 o'clock we weighed with the same wind at SSW which died away in the morning & the curr.t running strong against us we anchor'd in 17 fa.om a little before this a prow came along side wherein a Dutch officer who came upon the same business as the other he sent me down a printed paper in English containing 9 articles in questions of which this is a copy.
The Commander & Officers of the ships where this paper may be presented will be pleased to answer on the following questions/ Viz/
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