The island cannot be more than two miles in circumference: it is low, but entirely covered with trees, many of which are the cocoa-nut; we likewise saw a number of large trees which bore a very fine red blossom, but the red was so very conspicuous, that I am inclined to think the leaves were of that colour. These trees reached to the margin of a very fine sandy beach, which entirely surrounds the island; a great number of canoes were lying on the beach, and, from the number of natives we saw there, besides what were in the canoes, there cannot be less than a thousand inhabitants on the island. Lieutenant Ball named this place _Tench's Island_, after Captain Watkin Tench of the marines: it is situated in 1 deg. 39' south latitude, and 150 deg. 31' east longitude. After lying-to near an hour, and finding we could have no farther intercourse with the natives, without considerable loss of time, we bore up and kept on our course, steering west by north. At sun-set, we saw another island bearing west by north, Tench's Island bearing east half north. The next morning at day-light, the island seen the preceding evening, bore from south by west, to west by south, about three leagues distant; on this, we altered our course, in order to run along the shore. This island is pretty high, and appears to be about 70 miles in circumference, if I may judge from the length of its east side, which I measured by angles. It is well wooded, and there were a number of clear cultivated tracts of ground, on which something was growing that had the appearance of Indian corn, or sugar-cane. As we ran along shore, we could not perceive any place of shelter for a vessel on the east side of the island, but there probably is on some part of it. The island is surrounded by a sandy beach, on which the surf beats with some violence: a number of canoes were lying on the beach, and some parts of the shore were covered with the natives; but none of them attempted to come off, although the vessel was not more than a mile and a half from the shore. We saw several houses amongst the trees, which appeared to be large and well constructed. This island has a luxuriant and picturesque appearance, and there can scarcely be a doubt but it is very fertile and well peopled. The natives were quite naked, and seemed to be the same sort of people we had seen at Tench's Island; and their canoes were apparently of the same construction.