1803.
August.
Wednes. 17.
mined to remain under the lee of the breakers until she should approach, and to lie near the Porpoise; that in case of her going to pieces before morning, we might save some of the people. In rowing back we met the cutter, which the men in her, having got the leak partly stopped, had pushed off without an officer, and were going they scarcely knew whither; they furnished us with a third oar, and I desired them to keep close to the gig, near the wreck, until morning. We found the bottom here to be coral rock, and the water so shallow, that a man might stand up in many places without being over head.
I wished to have got on board the ship, to let them know of the boats being safe and what we had discovered of the reef; but the breakers between us, and the darkness of the night cut off all hope of communication before morning. They burned blue lights every half hour, as a guide to the Bridgewater; but her light was lost to us in the boats at eleven o'clock, and after two in the morningThursday 18. it was no longer seen from the Porpoise. At that time it appeared to be low water, and the ship lay so much more quiet than before, that the apprehension of her going to pieces before daylight had much subsided; to be prepared, however, for the next flood, Mr. Fowler employed his people during the night in making a raft of the spare top masts, yards, &c, with short ropes all round it, by which the people might hold on; and a cask of water, with a chest containing some provisions, a sextant, and the Investigator's log books, were secured upon the raft.
In the small gig we were quite drenched, the south-east wind blew fresh and cold, and the reflexions excited by the great change so suddenly made in our situation, with the uncertainty of what had befallen the Cato and even the Bridgewater, did not tend to make this long night pass more agreeably. My thoughts were principally occupied in devising plans for saving ourselves, under the apprehension that we might see no more of the Bridgewater; but not to discourage the people, I spoke of every body getting on board that