Flinders Journal – 17 November

Wednesday 17 November, 1802 Gulf of Carpentaria; Sweers Island "The coast to the southward was scarcely visible from the mast head, but land was seen to extend westward from the hill, as far as nine or ten miles; and in order to gain a better knowledge of what this land might be, I went on shore, taking instruments with me to observe for the rates of the time keepers. The hill proved to be a mass of calcareous rock, whose surface was cut and honeycombed as if it had been exposed to the washing of a surf. It was the highest land we had seen in Carpentaria, after having followed one hundred and seventy-five leagues of coast; nor was any land to be distinguished from the top of the whill which had an equal degree of elevation; yet it did not much exceed the height of the ship's mast head! The land round it proved to be an island of five miles long; separated from other land to the west by a channel of nearly two miles in width. The wide opening between this land and the low coast to the southward, I take to have been what is called Maatsuyker's River in the old chart ... Maatsuyker was one of the counsellors at Batavia, who signed Tasman's instructions in 1644. ... I would have followed in the intention of doing him honour, by transferring his name to the island, but Maatsuyker's Isles alreadys exist ...; I therefore adopt the name of Sweers, another member of the same Batavia council; and call the island at the entrance of the supposed river, Sweers' Island. The hill obtained the name of Inspection Hill and after taking bearings from it, I rowed into the channel which separates Sweers' Island from the western land; and finding the shelter to be good, the bottom soft, and soundings regular between 3 and 6 fathoms, the shores on each side were searched for fresh water, with a view to filling up the holds there and caulking the ship, before proceeding further in the examination of the Gulph: the search, however, was unsuccessful. In Torres' Strait, when running with a fresh side wind, the ship had leaked to the amount of ten inches of water per hour, and in some hours the carpenters had reported as much as fourteen; but no anchorage, adapted to the purpose of caulking the bends, had presented itself until our arrival here. Before going on shore, I had left orders for the ship to be put on a careen, and the carpenters began upon the larbord side. In the course of their work two planks were found to be rotten, and the timber underneath was in no better state." (P134-135)

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