Series 03: Joseph Banks - Endeavour journal, 25 August 1768 - 12 July 1771 (vol. 2) - No. 0350
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[Page 350]
246.
Becalmed off the Reef.
died away into as flat a calm as ever now was our anziety again renewd innumerable small peices of paper &c were thrown over the ships side to find whither the boat realy movd her a head or not & so little did she move that it remaind almost every other time a matter of dispute our little freindly Breeze now visited us again & lasted about as long as before thrusting us possibly 100 yards farther from the breakers we were still however in the very jaws of destruction a small opening had been seen in the reef about a furlong from us its breadth was scarce the lengh of the ship into this however it was resolvd to push her if posible within was no surf therefore we might save our lives the doubt was only whether we could get the ship so far our little breeze however a third time visited us & pushd us almost there the fear of Death is Bitter the prospect we now had before us of saving our lives tho at the expence of every thing we had made my heart set much lighter on its throne & I suppose there were none but what felt the same sensations at lengh we arrivd off the mouth