27th of April we saw a small brigantine under the shore plying to the
southward. We also saw many men-of-war-birds and boobies, and abundance
of albicore-fish. Having still fair weather, small gales, and some calms,
I had the opportunity of trying the current, which I found to set
sometimes northerly and sometimes southerly: and therefore knew I was
still within the verge of the tides. Being now in the latitude of the
Abrolho Shoals, which I expected to meet with, I sounded, and had water
lessening from 40 to 33 and so to 25 fathom: but then it rose again to
33, 35, 37, etc., all coral rocks. Whilst we were on this shoal (which we
crossed towards the further part of it from land, where it lay deep, and
so was not dangerous) we caught a great many fish with hook and line: and
by evening amplitude we had 6 degrees 38 minutes east variation. This was
the 27th of April; we were then in latitude 18 degrees 13 minutes south
and east longitude from Cape Salvador 31 minutes. On the 29th, being then
in latitude 18 degrees 39 minutes south, we had small gales from the
west-north-west to the west-south-west often shifting. The 30th we had
the winds from west to south-south-east, squalls and rain: and we saw
some dolphins and other fish about us. We were now out of sight of land
and had been so 4 or 5 days: but the winds now hanging in the south was
an apparent sign that we were still too nigh the shore to receive the
true general east trade; as the easterly winds we had before showed that
we were too far off the land to have the benefit of the coasting south
trade: and the faintness of both these winds, and their often shifting
from the south-south-west to the south-east with squalls, rain and small
gales, were a confirmation of our being between the verge of the south
coasting trade and that of the true trade; which is here regularly
south-east.

The 3rd of May, being in latitude 20 degrees 00 minutes and meridian
distance west from Cape Salvador 234 miles, the variation was 7 degrees