The natives residing about this river do not appear to be numerous, considering the great extent of the country. But they are strong, well-made, and active people, and all of them paint their bodies with red oker and oil from head to foot, which we had not seen before. Their canoes were large and well built, and adorned with carving, in as good a taste as any that we had seen upon the coast. We continued to stand along the shore till night, with the main land on one side, and islands on the other, and then anchored in a bay, with fourteen fathom, and a sandy bottom. We had no sooner come to an anchor, than we tried our lines, and in a short time caught near one hundred fish, which the people called Sea-bream; they weighed from six to eight pounds a-piece, and consequently would supply the whole ship’s company with food for two days. From the success of our lines here, we called the place BREAM BAY: the two points that form it lie north and south, five leagues from each other; it is every where of a good breadth, and between three and four leagues deep: at the bottom of it there appears to be a river of fresh water. The north head of the bay, called BREAM HEAD, is high land, and remarkable for several pointed rocks, which stand in a range upon the top of it: it may also be known by some small islands which lie before it, called the HEN AND CHICKENS, one of which is high, and terminates in two peaks. It lies in latitude 35° 46ʹ S., and at the distance of seventeen leagues and an half from Cape Colville, in the direction of N. 41 W. The land between Point Rodney and Bream Head, an extent of ten leagues, is low, and wooded in tufts, with white sand banks between the sea and the firm lands. We saw no inhabitants, but many fires in the night; and where there are fires, there are always people. At day-break, on the 25th, we left the bay, and steered along shore to the northward: we found the variation of the compass to be 12° 42ʹ E. At noon, our latitude was 35° 36ʹ S., Bream Head bore south, distant ten miles; and we saw some small islands, to which I gave the name of the POOR KNIGHTS, at N. E. by N. distant three leagues; the northernmost land in sight bore N. N. W.: we were in this place at the distance of two miles from the shore, and had twenty-six fathom water. The country appeared low, but well covered with wood: we saw some straggling houses, three or four fortified towns, and near them a large quantity of cultivated land.