7th of September.--We anchored last night about ten o'clock in seventeen fathoms; the flood tide had made; it ran north nearly three miles an hour, till four A.M. when we got under weigh, and drifted fast to the southward with the ebb. At 9.30. got sights, which gave longitude 125º 52' 45" east, latitude 34º 42' north; at this time a very remarkable hill on an island bore east 8º south; it has the appearance of a turret or large chimney. The other bearings from this spot were-- Western extreme of a large island stretching west north-west, and east south-east; north 27º, east 4 or 5'. Round rock, north 18º east, 8'. Cluster of islands from north 50º west, to north 74º west. Round bluff small island, west 9º south. Large island, west 42º south, 7 or eight leagues. Two small distant islands, west 53º south, 10' leagues. Small island, south 11º east. [Sidenote: Soundings.] [Sidenote: Variation of the compass.] Extreme of distant land, south 37º east: besides, as usual, innumerable distant islands. The flood tide made against us between ten and eleven. The soundings this morning have been from twenty-three to nineteen fathoms. The weather extremely hot and the water smooth. The ebb made about four, and there being no wind, it carried us rapidly towards some rocks joining two islands. We anchored in twenty-one fathoms. The variation of the compass 2-1/2º westerly. The bearings at anchor this evening were as follows: [Sidenote: Bearings.] Small island, south 3º 22' east. Large island, from south to south 20-1/2º east. A small island, south 22º east. Another, south 28-1/2º east. High bluff island, south 31º east. Island from south 9º east, to south 18º west. Sharp peaked rock, south 25º 40' west. Island from south 63º west, to south 65º west. Distant island, from south 63-1/2º west, to south 66º west, nine or ten leagues. Distant small island, west 1º 10' north, seven or eight leagues. [Sidenote: Bearings.] Distant island, from west 6º 39' north, to west 9º north, formed of one large flat space and five hummocks, eight or nine leagues. Island, west 28º 50' north. Large island, from west 31º north, to west 38º 19' north. Round bluff island, off which we observed at noon to-day, west 39º 52' north. Distant small island, west 44º 28' north, four or five leagues. Large island, from west 71º north, to west 81º 30' north. An island, afterwards called Thistle Island, south 79º east, to east 14º 52' north, besides numberless islands, in thick clusters, extending as far as the eye could reach, in the north-east and east quarters. In the afternoon a boat went inside Thistle Island, and reported that there was a clear anchorage. [Sidenote: Sail into Murray's Sound.] [Sidenote: Latitude observed on shore.] [Sidenote: Longitude.] [Sidenote: Tides.] [Sidenote: Variation of the compass.]