The surgeon and his party returned on the 30th, and the next morning, at day-light, I set out, with some men, to see what further could be effected: we got to the bay by half past eight o'clock, and found the tides of the preceding day had thrown a number of loose small stones into the cut. As the tide ebbed, I directed the labourers to clear away a number of large stones which lay in the entrance of the cut; and at low water, all the stones were removed as far out as possible, which was compleated at five o'clock in the afternoon. The out was about three feet deep, and at half tide there was upwards of six feet at the entrance: with any other wind than between south-west and north-west, there is a surf on the beach, which often breaks with so much violence, as to render any attempt to land highly dangerous. As I found every thing done at this place, which could be effected with the small number of men I had, we returned to Sydney-Bay on the 3d. Hitherto, the people on the settlement had not done much work for themselves; and, all the good seed of Indian corn being sown, I gave every person liberty from this time till the 14th, to clear away their gardens, and sow them. For four days past, a single turtle had been observed on the beach; I was loath to turn it, hoping it would draw others on, but finding that did not happen, it was turned on the 6th day, and brought to the settlement, where it was served out as usual. This turtle had been recently wounded between the shoulders with a kind of peg; which circumstance, together with some pieces of canoes, a wooden image resembling a man, and a fresh cocoa-nut, found in Ball-Bay, induced me to suppose that there is a considerable island undiscovered, not far from the eastward of Norfolk-Island. The Indian-corn sown during the last and present month, was now all up, and likely to do well. I set off at day-light in the morning of the 15th, and went to the western or rocky point. The entangled state of the woods on this part of the island, were worse, if possible, than any where else, but the soil and general appearance was much the same. From Point-Ross to Rocky-Point, the shore is inaccessible; consisting altogether of steep cliffs, which rise perpendicular from the sea. I returned at sun-set, much fatigued, and my cloaths, as usual on these excursions, were torn from my back. As the houses and tents were surrounded by a thick wood, I set the men to make an opening to the sea-side, by cutting down the trees and piling up the timber. In the course of this month, we saw a great number of whales and thrashers, some of which came close to the reef: indeed, on our first landing here, I found the entire skeletons of two whales, which had every appearance of having been driven on shore, and the flesh destroyed by rats and birds.