An Account of the Discovery of New Caledonia, and the Incidents that happened while the Ship lay in Balade.
1774 September
At sun-rise on the 1st of September, after having stood to S.W. all night, no more land was to be seen. The wind remaining in the S.E. quarter, we continued to stand to S.W. On the 2d, at five o'clock, p.m., being in the latitude 18° 22', longitude 165° 26', the variation was 10° 50' E.; and at the same hour on the 3d, it was 10° 51', latitude at that time 19° 14', longitude 165° E. The next morning, in the latitude of 19° 49' longitude 164° 53", the amplitude gave 10° 21', and the azimuths 10° 7' E. At eight o'clock, as we were steering to the south, land was discovered bearing S.S.W., and at noon it extended from S.S.E. to W. by S., distant about six leagues. We continued to steer for it with a light breeze at east, till five in the evening, when we were stopped by a calm. At this time we were three leagues from the land, which extended from S.E. by S. to W. by N., round by the S.W. Some openings appeared in the west, so that we could not tell whether it was one connected land or a group of islands. To the S.E. the coast seemed to terminate in a high promontory, which I named Cape Colnett, after one of my midshipmen who first discovered this land. Breakers were seen about half-way between us and the shore; and, behind them, two or three canoes under sail, standing out to sea, as if their design had been to come off to us; but a little before sun-set they struck their sails, and we saw them no more. After a few hours calm, we got a breeze at S.E., and spent the night standing off and on.
On the 5th, at sun-rise, the horizon being clear, we could see the coast
extend to the S.E. of Cape Colnett, and round by the S.W. to N.W. by W. Some gaps or openings were yet to be seen to the west; and a reef, or breakers, seemed to lie all along the coast, connected with those we discovered the preceding night. It was a matter of indifference to me, whether we plied up the coast to the S.E., or bore down to N.W. I chose the latter; and after running two leagues down the outside of the reef (for such it proved) we came before an opening that had the appearance of a good channel, through which we might go in for the land. I wanted to get at it, not only to visit it, but also to have an opportunity to observe an eclipse of the sun which was soon to happen. With this view we brought-to, hoisted out two armed boats, and sent them to sound the channel; ten or twelve large sailing canoes being then near us. We had observed them coming off from the shore, all the morning, from different parts; and some were lying on the reef, fishing, as we supposed. As soon as they all got together, they came down to us in a body, and were pretty near when we were hoisting out our boats, which probably gave them some alarm; for, without stopping, they hauled in for the reef, and our boats followed them. We now saw that what we had taken for openings in the coast was low land, and that it was all connected, except the western extremity, which was an island known by the name of Balabea, as we afterwards learnt.