At daylight we got under sail but the weather had clouded in and bore a very unsettled appearance. After steering outside the easternmost island of Barnard's Group we passed Double Point; two miles north of which a small opening was seen trending in to the south-west. Between Double Point and Frankland Islands Captain Cook did not see the coast, having passed it during the night; we therefore traced it with some care, but found nothing worth particular notice, being a continuity of sandy bays formed by projecting heads, in some of which natives were observed walking.
At 11 hours 30 minutes a.m. we passed Point Cooper. The summit of the back hills (which were named by Mr. Cunningham's desire after John Bellenden Ker, Esquire) now began to be enveloped in clouds, and the wind to increase; and no meridional altitude was obtained, from the unfortunate state of the weather. At one o'clock we passed between Frankland's largest Island and a group of four smaller ones which are connected together by a surrounding rocky reef. At four o'clock we anchored in a bay on the north-west side of Fitzroy Island, at four miles from the shore, in eleven and a half fathoms' mud, where we found complete shelter from the wind which now blew a fresh gale from south-east.
June 23.
The weather continued so unfavourable all the following day that we remained at the anchorage, and made our stay profitable by filling our water-casks from a hollow at the back of the beach, which is composed entirely of coral that has been washed up by the surf. The coral was of various kinds, but a beautiful specimen of Porites clavaria was obtained by one of our people who dived for it in two fathoms' water, within a few yards of the shore. In many parts the coral had been consolidated into large masses of solid rock.
Tracks of natives were seen in many parts of the island; and their beaten paths were noticed leading from the beach to all parts of it; but it did not appear that it was inhabited during our visit. This delay gave Mr. Cunningham a good opportunity of increasing his botanical collection. Among the various trees which grow upon this island he found a nutmeg tree (Myristica cimicifera), two species of olive (Olea paniculata and Notoloea punctata), and three palms, namely the Corypha australis or large fan palm, the Seaforthia elegans, and another, remarkable for its prickly leaves. We also found and procured seeds of Sophora tomentosa, and a plant of the natural order scitamineae, Hellenia coerulea, Brown: two parasitical plants of orchideae were found growing upon the bark of trees in the shady place near our watering-place; one was Dendrobium caniculatum, Brown; the other was also subsequently found at Cape Grafton and is not yet described; it has oblong, three-nerved, thick and leathery leaves; we saw no quadrupeds and but very few birds.
June 24.
On the 24th we left Fitzroy Island and, steering round Cape Grafton, hauled in towards the centre of Trinity Bay. To the west of Cape Grafton an opening was observed in the beach that bore every appearance of being the mouth of a rivulet, from the broken and irregular form of the hills behind it.
At noon our latitude was 16 degrees 28 minutes 48 seconds, and three small islands were in sight ahead, which we passed to seaward of. They are laid down by Captain Cook as one island, whereas they are distinctly three, but all connected by a reef which was covered when we passed. At 2 hours 30 minutes p.m. we anchored under Snapper Island (so called by Lieutenant Jeffreys), but found the anchorage more open than had been expected.
Snapper Island is high and covered with a thick impenetrable mass of underwood, but no fresh water was found. The ashes of a fireplace, strewed around with broken shells, was the only trace seen of natives. The beach, like that of Fitzroy Island, is composed of dead coral and is fronted by rocks.
June 25.