My intention in coming so near the South Coast, was to skirt along the outer parts of the Archipelago of the Recherche, which had before been seen imperfectly; and to stop a day or two in Goose-Island Bay, for the purposes of procuring geese for our sick people, seal oil for our lamps, and a few casks of salt from the lake on Middle Island. It was night [MONDAY 16 MAY 1803] when we approached the archipelago, and I therefore steered to make Termination Island, which is the outermost part; at four in the morning of the 17th [TUESDAY 17 MAY 1803], it was seen about two leagues to the N. E, and we had 62 fathoms on a bottom of white sand. Mondrain Island was set at daylight, and the positions of many other places were either verified or corrected, during the run to noon; at that time we had 45 fathoms, and a reef was seen which may probably be that marked _Vigie_, in the French chart, and is the more dangerous from the sea breaking upon it only at times. No observation was obtained for the latitude, but it should be 34° 13' south, from the following bearings then taken. Western Twin, N. 5° W. A nearer isle, surrounded with breakers, N. 3 E. Cape Arid, top of the mount on it, N. 53 E. Middle I., highest top of the mount, N. 66½ E. Douglas's Isles, two appearing in one, N. 80 E. High breakers, distant 6 miles, S. 42 E. At one o'clock in steering for Douglas's Isles, a single breaker was seen right ahead of the ship, lying six miles N. E. ½ N. of the former dangerous reef, and about eight from the isles, in a W. by ½ S. direction. We passed to the northward of it, having no ground at 25 fathoms; and as we approached to do the same by the isles, Mr. Charles Douglas, the boatswain, breathed his last; and I affixed his name to the two lumps of land, which seemed to offer themselves as a monument to his memory. We hauled up close along the east side of Middle Island with the wind at west; and at six in the evening anchored in Goose-Island Bay, in 12 fathoms, fine sand, one-third of a mile from the middle rock. and nearly in a line between it and the north-east point of Middle Island. WEDNESDAY 18 MAY 1803