Page 463
An.1688
New Holland. Dragon-trees. The Animals.
this point, there is a pretty deep Bay, with abun- dance of Islands in it, and a very good place to anchor in, or to hale ashore. About a league to the Eastward of that point we anchored January the 5th, 1688. 2 mile from the shore, in 29 fathom, good hard sand, and clean ground.
New Holland is a very large tract of Land. It is not yet determined whether it is an Island or a main Continent; but I am certain that it joyns neither to Asia, Africa, nor America. This part of it that we saw is all low even Land, with sandy Banks against the Sea, only the points are rocky, and so are some of the Islands in this Bay.
The Land is of a dry sandy soil, destitute of Water, except you make Wells: yet producing divers sorts of Trees: but the Woods are not thick, nor the Trees very big. Most of the Trees that we saw are Dragon-trees as we supposed; and these too are the largest Trees of any there. They are about the bigness of our large Apple Trees, and about the same heighth: and the rind is blackish, and somewhat rough. The leaves are of a dark colour; the Gum distils out of the knots or cracks that are in the bodies of the Trees. We compared it with some Gum Dragon, or Dragons Blood, that was aboard; and it was of the same colour and taste. The other sorts of Trees were not known by any of us. There was pretty long grass growing under the Trees; but it was very thin. We saw no Trees that bore Fruit or Berries.
We saw no sort of Animal, nor any track of Beast, but once; and that seemed to be the tread of a Beast as big as a great Mastiff Dog. Here are a few small Land-birds, but none bigger than a Blackbird: and but few Sea-fowls. Neither is the Sea very plentifully stored with Fish, unless you reckon the Manatee and Turtle as such. Of these creatures there is plenty; but they are extraordinary shy;