This road seems to be well sheltered from the south and east winds. One of my seamen had been on board a Dutch India ship, who put in at this isle in her way out, in 1770. They were very sickly, and in want of refreshments and water. The Portuguese supplied them with some buffaloes and fowls; and they watered behind one of the beaches in a little pool, which was hardly big enough to dip a bucket in. By reducing the observed latitude at noon to the peaked hill, its latitude will be 3° 53ʹ south; and its longitude, by the watch, carried on from St. Helena, is 32° 34ʹ west; and by observations of the sun and moon, made before and after we made the isle, and reduced to it by the watch, 32° 44ʹ 30ʺ west. This was the mean result of my observations. The results of those made by Mr. Wales, which were more numerous, gave 32° 23ʹ. The mean of the two will be pretty near the watch, and probably nearest the truth. By knowing the longitude of this isle, we are able to determine that of the adjacent east coast of Brazil; which, according to the modern charts, lies about sixty or seventy leagues more to the west. We might very safely have trusted to these charts, especially the Variation Chart for 1744, and Mr. Dalrymple’s of the Southern Atlantic Ocean.[20] On the 11th, at three o’clock in the afternoon, we crossed the equator in the longitude of 32° 14ʹ west. We had fresh gales at S. S. E., blowing in squalls, attended by showers of rain, that continued at certain intervals, till noon the next day, after which we had twenty-four hours’ fair weather. At noon, on the 13th, being in the latitude of 3° 49ʹ north, longitude 31° 47ʹ west, the wind became variable, between the N. E. and south; and we had light airs and squalls by turns, attended by hard showers of rain, and for the most part dark gloomy weather, which continued till the evening of the 15th, when in the latitude of 5° 47ʹ north, longitude 31° west, we had three calm days, in which time we did not advance above ten or twelve leagues to the north. We had fair weather and rain by turns; the sky, for the most part, being obscured, and sometimes by heavy dense clouds which broke in excessive hard showers. At seven o’clock in the evening on the 18th, the calm was succeeded by a breeze at east, which, the next day, increasing and veering to and fixing at N. E., we stretched to N. W. with our tacks on board. We made no doubt that we had now got the N. E. trade wind, as it was attended with fair weather, except now and then some light showers of rain; and, as we advanced to the north, the wind increased and blew a fresh top-gallant gale.