第76章

PYLSTAART Island. Judging from the chart in Freycinet's "Atlas," I should have supposed that it had been regularly fringed; but as nothing is said in the "Hydrog. Memoir" (or in the "Voyage" of Tasman, the discoverer) about coral-reefs, I have left it uncoloured.--TONGATABOU: In the "Atlas of the Voyage of the 'Astrolabe'," the whole south side of the island is represented as narrowly fringed by the same reef which forms an extensive platform on the northern side. The origin of this latter reef, which might have been mistaken for a barrier-reef, has already been attempted to be explained, when giving the proofs of the recent elevation of this island.--In Cook's charts the little outlying island also of EOAIGEE, is represented as fringed; coloured red.--EOUA. I cannot make out from Captain Cook's charts and descriptions, that this island has any reef, although the bottom of the neighbouring sea seems to be corally, and the island itself is formed of coral-rock. Forster, however, distinctly ("Observations," page 14) classes it with high islands having reefs, but it certainly is not encircled by a barrier-reef and the younger Forster ("Voyage," volume i., page 426) says, that "a bed of coral-rocks surrounded the coast towards the landing-place." I have therefore classed it with the fringed islands and coloured it red. The several islands lying N.W. of Tongatabou, namely ANAMOUKA, KOMANGO, KOTOU, LEFOUGA, FOA, etc., are seen in Captain Cook's chart to be fringed by reefs, in several of them are connected together.

From the various statements in the first volume of Cook's "Third Voyage," and especially in the fourth and sixth chapters, it appears that these reefs are of coral-formation, and certainly do not belong to the barrier class; coloured red.--TOUFOA AND KAO, forming the western part of the group, according to Forster have no reefs; the former is an active volcano.--VAVAO. There is a chart of this singularly formed island, by Espinoza: according to Mr. Williams it consists of coral-rock: the Chevalier Dillon informs me that it is not fringed; not coloured. Nor are the islands of LATTE and AMARGURA, for I have not seen plans on a large scale of them, and do not know whether they are fringed.

NIOUHA, 16 deg S., 174 deg W., or KEPPEL Island of Wallis, or COCOS Island.

From a view and chart of this island given in Wallis's "Voyage" (4to edition) it is evidently encircled by a reef; coloured blue: it is however remarkable that BOSCAWEN Island, immediately adjoining, has no reef of any kind; uncoloured.

WALLIS Island, 13 deg S., 176 deg W., a chart and view of this island in Wallis's "Voyage" (4to edition) shows that it is encircled. A view of it in the "Naut. Mag." July 1833, page 376, shows the same fact; blue.

ALLOUFATOU, or HORN Island, ONOUAFU, or PROBY Island, and HUNTER Islands, lie between the Navigator and Fidji groups. I can find no distinct accounts of them.

FIDJI or VITI GROUP.

The best chart of the numerous islands of this group, will be found in the "Atlas of the 'Astrolabe's' Voyage." From this, and from the description given in the "Hydrog. Memoir," accompanying it, it appears that many of these islands are bold and mountainous, rising to the height of between 3,000 and 4,000 feet. Most of the islands are surrounded by reefs, lying far from the land, and outside of which the ocean appears very deep. The "Astrolabe" sounded with ninety fathoms in several places about a mile from the reefs, and found no bottom. Although the depth within the reef is not laid down, it is evident from several expressions, that Captain D'Urville believes that ships could anchor within, if passages existed through the outer barriers. The Chevallier Dillon informs me that this is the case: hence I have coloured this group blue. In the S.E. part lies BATOA, or TURTLE Island of Cook ("Second Voyage," volume ii., page 23, and chart, 4to edition) surrounded by a coral-reef, "which in some places extends two miles from the shore;" within the reef the water appears to be deep, and outside it is unfathomable; coloured pale blue. At the distance of a few miles, Captain Cook (Ibid., page 24) found a circular coral-reef, four or five leagues in circuit, with deep water within; "in short, the bank wants only a few little islets to make it exactly like one of the half-drowned isles so often mentioned,"--namely, atolls. South of Batoa, lies the high island of ONO, which appears in Bellinghausen's "Atlas" to be encircled; as do some other small islands to the south; coloured pale blue; near Ono, there is an annular reef, quite similar to the one just described in the words of Captain Cook; coloured dark blue.

ROTOUMAH, 13 deg S., 179 deg E.--From the chart in Duperrey's "Atlas," I thought this island was encircled, and had coloured it blue, but the Chevallier Dillon assures me that the reef is only a shore or fringing one; red.

INDEPENDENCE Island, 10 deg S., 179 deg E., is described by Mr. G. Bennett, ("United Service Journal," 1831, part ii., page 197) as a low island of coral-formation, it is small, and does not appear to contain a lagoon, although an opening through the reef is referred to. A lagoon probably once existed, and has since been filled up; left uncoloured.

ELLICE GROUP.

OSCAR, PEYSTER, and ELLICE Islands are figured in Arrowsmith's "Chart of the Pacific" (corrected to 1832) as atolls, and are said to be very low; blue.--NEDERLANDISCH Island. I am greatly indebted to the kindness of Admiral Krusenstern, for sending me the original documents concerning this island. From the plans given by Captains Eeg and Khremtshenko, and from the detailed account given by the former, it appears that it is a narrow coral-island, about two miles long, containing a small lagoon. The sea is very deep close to the shore, which is fronted by sharp coral-rocks.