Accordingly an arrangement took place, and on the 26th of February, I received an order to prepare the Sirius for sea, and to embark the lieutenant-governor, with one company of marines, and the officers, baggage, and also 186 convicts; in all, 221 persons; with such a proportion of the remaining provisions and other stores, as the settlement at that time could furnish; and I was directed to land them upon Norfolk Island: Lieutenant Ball, commander of his Majesty's armed tender Supply, was ordered under my command, and he also embarked a company of marines, and twenty convicts.
We sailed from Port Jackson on the 6th of March, and the wind being from the westward, we made Lord Howe's Island on the 9th, at four in the afternoon, bearing east-north-east, distant about 16 or 18 leagues. The south end of this island is two very high mountains, nearly perpendicular from the sea; those hills are the only land you see until you come within six or seven leagues, when the lower land begins to appear, extending from the foot of the mountains, northward: it was calm most of the night, with now and then a light air, with which, and an easterly set of current, which is generally found here, we were enabled to get in with the land by noon of the 10th. I made the Latitude of the southermost hill:
(Mount Gower) 31° 35' S.
Longitude, by time-keeper, 159° 10' 30" E. of Greenwich.
Longitude, by distance of the sun and moon, taken at 10, A. M. 159° 08' 00" E.
There is a very remarkable rock, which lies about 12 or 14 miles to the southward of the island, and which is named Ball's-pyramid, and has much the appearance of a church steeple at a distance; but as you come near, it is exceedingly high and perpendicular: we passed in the evening between the island and the pyramid, and had 26 fathoms within two miles of Mount Gower, over a rocky bottom. This island I judge to be about three miles and a half long, north-north-west and south-south-east; it is very narrow across. There is anchorage on both sides of it, but the bottom is foul. On the west side there is a bay, off which lies a reef parallel to the shore, with good swatches, or passages through for boats; this reef breaks off the sea from the shore, which is a fine sandy beach, so that there is no difficulty in landing. I have observed before, that turtle are sometimes caught here, and that there are many birds upon the island.
On the 13th, at two o'clock in the morning, we made Norfolk Island, which I did not expect we should have done quite so soon, but the easterly current, which is commonly found here, had been strong: we brought to till day-light, and then, as the wind was fresh from the south-west, I well knew there could be no landing in Sydney-bay, where the settlement is fixed, on account of the high surf, which southerly winds occasion, I therefore bore away, and ran round to the north-east side of the island into a bay called Cascade-bay; where, after a few days of moderate weather, and an off-shore wind, it is possible to land; but that only on one spot, which is a rock that projects some distance into the sea, and has deep water to it: on that rock I landed, on the afternoon of the 13th, all the marines, and a considerable number of the convicts, but being set to the eastward in the night, I did not land the remainder until the 15th, when they were also put on shore on the same place.
These people were no sooner on shore than the wind shifted to the eastward, and the weather became hazy and blew strong, so that I had no prospect of being able to land any part of the provisions. We had put on shore from the Sirius and Supply 270 people, and had no opportunity of sending any stores with them, as we were now driven out of sight of the island. I knew the exhausted state of the stores there; I was also acquainted with the many difficulties which Lieutenant Ball, commander of the Supply, had met with in the different voyages he had made from Port Jackson to this island, with provisions; and the length of time he had, in some of these voyages, been obliged to cruize, before he could have any access to the shore; so continually does the surf break all round it: these considerations gave me much anxiety and uneasiness.
On the 19th, a slant wind from the south-east brought me again in with the island: the Supply had the preceding night parted company, but as they were better acquainted here than we were, I judged they had stood for the land in the night before I did. As we stood in, finding we could fetch the windward part of the island, I steered in for Sydney-bay; and as we drew near, I observed the Supply lying to in the bay, and the signal upon the shore was flying, that long-boats, or any other boats might land, without any danger from the surf. Anxious to avail myself of this favourable signal, I steered in as far as I judged safe, and brought to with the ship's head off shore, in the south-east or windward part of the bay, hoisted out the boats, loaded them with provisions, and sent them in; but observing that the ship settled fast to leeward, we made sail, and immediately hauled on board the fore and main tacks, the Supply had also made sail, and was to leeward of the Sirius.
There is a reef of sunken rocks, which lies off the west point of the bay, and which (as the wind freshened and the sea rose) broke a considerable way out; the Supply having drawn a-head, could not weather this reef: on this she tacked; and, as we drew near, I plainly perceived that we settled so fast to leeward that we should not be able to weather it: so, after standing as near as was safe, we put the ship in stays; she came up almost head to wind, but the wind just at that critical moment baffled her, and she fell off again: nothing could now be done, but to wear her round in as little room as possible, which was done, and the wind hauled upon the other tack, with every sail set as before; but, still perceiving that the ship settled into the bay, and that she shoaled the water, some hands were placed by one of the bower anchors, in five fathoms water; the helm was again put down, and she had now some additional after-sail, which I had no doubt would ensure her coming about; she came up almost head to wind, and there hung some time; but by her sails being all a back, had fresh stern way: the anchor was therefore cut away, and all the haulyards, sheets, and tacks let go, but before the cable could be brought to check her, she struck upon a reef of coral rocks which lies parallel to the shore, and in a few strokes was bulged.
When the carpenter reported to me, that the water flowed fast into the hold; I ordered the masts to be cut away, which was immediately done. There was some chance, when the ship was lightened of this weight, that by the surges of the sea, which were very heavy, she might be thrown so far in up the reef, as to afford some prospect of saving the lives of those on board, if she should prove strong enough to bear the shocks she received from every sea.
It was now about eleven o'clock in the forenoon, and after the masts were gone, all hands were employed in getting out of the hold such provisions as could be come at, and securing them upon the gun-deck, that they might be at hand in case any opportunity offered of floating them on shore.