Early in the afternoon, the boat returned with an account that the large ship was a Dutch East-Indiaman, bound for Europe; and the other a packet from Batavia, with orders for the several ships lying in the Straits. It is the custom for the Dutch ships, as soon as their lading is nearly completed, to leave Batavia, on account of its extreme unwholesomeness, and proceed to some of the more healthy islands in the Straits, where they wait for the remainder of their cargo, and their dispatches. Notwithstanding this precaution, the Indiaman had lost, since her departure from Batavia, four men, and had as many more whose recovery was despaired of. She had lain here a fortnight, and was now about to proceed to water at Cracatoa, having just received final orders by the packet.
At seven in the morning of the 9th, we weighed, and stood on through the Straits to the south-west, keeping pretty close in with the islands on the Sumatra shore, in order to avoid a rock near Mid-channel Island, which lay on our left. At half after ten, I received orders from Captain Gore to make sail toward a Dutch ship which now hove in sight to the southward, and which we supposed to be from Europe; and, according to the nature of the intelligence we could procure from her, either to join him at Cracatoa, where he intended to stop, for the purpose of supplying the ships with arrack, or to proceed to the south-east end of Prince’s Island, and there take in our water, and wait for him.
I accordingly bore down toward the Dutch ship, which, soon after, came to an anchor to the eastward; when the wind slackening, and the current still setting very strong through the strait to the south-west, we found it impossible to fetch her, and having, therefore, got as near her as the tide would permit, we also dropped anchor. I immediately dispatched Mr. Williamson, in the cutter, with orders to get on board her if possible; but as she lay near a mile off, and the tide ran with great rapidity, we soon perceived, that the boat was dropping fast astern. We therefore made the signal to return, and immediately began to veer away the cable, and sent out a buoy astern, in order to assist him in getting on board again. Our poverty, in the article of cordage, was here very conspicuous; for we had not a single coil of rope, in the store-room, to fix to the buoy, but were obliged to set about unreeving the studding-sail gear, the top-sail-halliards, and tackle-falls, for that purpose; and the boat was at this time driving to the southward so fast, that it was not before we had veered away two cables, and almost all our running rigging, that she could fetch the buoy.
I was now under the necessity of waiting till the strength of the tide should abate, which did not happen till the next morning, when Mr. Williamson got on board the ship, and learnt, that she had been seven months from Europe, and three from the Cape of Good Hope; that before she sailed, France and Spain had declared war against Great Britain; and that she left Sir Edward Hughes, with a squadron of men-of-war, and a fleet of East-India ships, at the Cape. Mr. Williamson having, at the same time, been informed, that the water at Cracatoa was very good, and always preferred, by the Dutch ships, to that of Prince’s Island, I resolved to rejoin the Resolution at the former place; and a fair breeze springing up, we weighed and stood over toward the island, where we soon after saw her at anchor; but the wind falling, and the tide setting strong against us, I was obliged to drop anchor, at the distance of about five miles from the Resolution, and immediately sent a boat on board, to acquaint Captain Gore with the intelligence we had received.
As soon as the Resolution saw us preparing to come to, she fired her guns, and hoisted an English jack at the ensign staff, the signal at sea to lead ahead. This we afterward understood was intended to prevent our anchoring, on account of the foul ground, which the maps she had on board placed here. However, as we found none, having a muddy bottom, and good holding ground, in sixty fathoms water, we kept fast till the return of the boat, which brought orders to proceed the next morning to Prince’s Island. We were at this time two miles distant from the shore; the peak of Cracatoa bore north-west by north; Bantam Point east north-east half east; Prince’s Island south-west by west.
The island of Cracatoa is the southernmost of a group situated in the entrance of the Straits of Sunda. It has a high-peaked hill on the south end[[84]], which lies in latitude 6° 9ʹ S., and longitude 105° 15ʹ E.; the whole circuit of the island is not more than three leagues. Off the north-east end lies a small island, which forms the road where the Resolution anchored; and within a reef that runs off the south end of the latter, there is good shelter against all northerly winds, with eighteen fathoms water near the reef, and twenty-seven in the mid-channel. To the north-west, there is a narrow pass for boats between the two islands.
The shore, which forms the western side of the road, is in a north-west direction, and has a bank of coral stretching into the sea, about one third of a cable’s length, which makes the landing difficult for boats, except at high water; but the anchoring ground is very good, and free from rocks. The place where the Resolution watered is a small spring, situated abreast of the south end of the small island, at a short distance from the water-side. A little to the southward, there is a very hot spring, which is used by the natives as a bath. Whilst we were lying off the south end of this island, we sent a boat with the Master on shore, to look for water; but after having landed with some difficulty, he returned unsuccessful.
Cracatoa is esteemed very healthy, in comparison of the neighbouring countries. It consists of high land, rising gradually on all sides from the sea; and the whole is covered with trees, except a few spots which the natives have cleared for rice fields. The number of people on the island is very inconsiderable. Their chief, as are those of all the other islands in the Straits, is subject to the king of Bantam. The coral reefs afford plenty of small turtles; but other refreshments are very scarce, and sold at an enormous price.
| Latitude of the road where the Resolution anchored, | 8° | 6ʹ | south. |
| Longitude, by Mr. Bayly’s time-keeper, | 104 | 48 | east. |
| Ditto, by observation | 105 | 36 | east. |
| Dip of the south end of the magnetic needle | 26 | 3 | |
| Variation of the compass, | 1 | 0 | west. |
On the full and change days, it is high-water at 7h in the morning. The water rises three feet two inches perpendicular.