To judge of this
island from what we saw of it, it must be very fertile and well inhabited.
The land on the sea-coast is rather low, and lies with a gentle slope from
the hills which are in the middle of the island. Two-thirds of the N.E.
coast was only seen at a great distance; therefore the delineations of it
can have no pretensions to accuracy; but the other parts, I apprehend, are
without any material errors.
St Bartholomew lies between the S.E. end of Tierra del Espiritu Santo, and
the north end of Mallicollo; and the distance between it and the latter is
eight miles. This is the passage through which M. de Bougainville went; and
the middle of it is in latitude 15 deg. 48'.
The Isle of Lepers lies between Espiritu Santo and Aurora Island, eight
leagues from the former, and three from the latter, in latitude 15 deg. 22',
and nearly under the same meridian as the S.E.. end of Mallicollo. It is of
an egg-like figure, very high, and eighteen or twenty leagues in circuit.
Its limits were determined by several bearings; but the lines of the shore
were traced out by guess, except the N.E. part where there is anchorage
half a mile from the land.
