The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1820-12-23 00:00:00

when commercial sesain shall stimulate the merclimit
to mmerpriae, the ZWartkops will be found capablY
of admitting ships of considerable tonnage ; in fact,
there is now in the river the remains of • Dutch ship
of 400 tonsord there were but few days when boats
could not have come over the bar whilst we remained
et Port Elizabeth. Ships may anchor oft the Zwarts
kap to wait for tide; but Ido not consider it so
safe esthe anchorage off Port Elizabeth.
" From the Zwerikops to the Kuge River, situat.
ed in jet. 33. 47. 19. S. long. '25.49. so. E. is five
The with a flat sandy
beach. The mooch of this river is closed, tind the
water peculiarly milt, that flows into a small lake;
.fromitence to the Sunday River is tea 4. 33. South
•nine miles. The mouth of ibis river is situated in
lat. 33. 43. 00. S. into:. 25. 32. 30. E. of Green-
"rids. Betweesr- this point anti Cape P.ecife, may
Ist leremminated A twin Bar. .
ionte Sunday "River runs into the s close to
remarkable rock, which 1 Ii tee dello/unwed R, ~!•;:
Monument, in remembrance of a tine )01,011, a
midshipman of the 'Venda. who peridwil with three
seamen, in the execution of their duty whilst sot-
veying the coast.
" Oil its northern side the bed of this ric, r is
deep, but the surf beat* with violence over area bar
across its mouth ; and, as here, the coast is ex-
posed to the constant rolling swell, little e:..ince of
its ever being useful to commercial porposes btfos.
There are limes when beats can enter or leave
Sunday River; but from its moo it cointeesices that
wild inhospitable coast, that refuses shelter to any
II
elms of shipping.
G 0 The island of St. Croix. in tat. 33. 47. $O. S.
I.ong. 25. 36. 50. E. lays S. 57. 59. rest of the
mouth of the lint, 3i miles ; and S. 71. In. W.
from the mouth of the Senielfty, six miles : it
about 21 in circunirerence. Aanilier small rocky
island. which I have called lii•ralon's lale. Ivy.
S. 46. W. of St. Croix 11 stile th•tout, and about
lof • mile in circum:eience. Off the mouth of
the Ruga, S. 2.3drof a mile, is the island of Jahlel,
about the seine size as Llrentuit's Isle. Round
these islands there it good aoctionage ; and, in the
event of necessity, a ship sought find partial shelter
near St. Croix. These islands are ioliabiled by
immense members of seals, winch at times literally
cover their surface,
" The coast, from the mouth of the Sunday
River, rolls to the eastward towards the tiojes-
-111414'1l River. The mouth of tlist river I tint not
cytosine; from reports I leceived, it dud not appear
to merit attention.
" From the Bosjesnisn's River, the coast conti-
nues the minenews of appearance, sand-hills covered
with bush.
" The Bird Islands are alone visible along the
whole line of coast.
" The mouths of the Karega and Kasoiska were
nearly doted, s ec.lc stream alone miming over
a bed of light Emil. The winter torrents, no doubt,
will at times fill the beds of these rivers to a great
extent. Further raatward is the Kuwie, • river
that promises fairer than any I have visited (ex.
ceut the Zerartkopt) at some name time to admit
ships over its bar. Like all the other rivers 1 have
visited, it receives its inland stream into an exten-
sive sandy basis, Traits which it forces its wry
through a narrow channel on its eastern side, into
the sea, not wider at low water than twenty yards ;
this meant runs in a S.S.E. direction ; the surf
broke across a bar about a gust t7r of a utile from
the entrance, but not violeut, and at a low tide
there must have been several feet of water. What
leads me to expect inure from this. river than the
others 1 have visited, is that the water appears
deep close to the shore, and there are two extensive
beds of rock. which bore by compa.s S.E. by S.
from the river's mouth about two miles and • hell.
If there is anchorage under these rocks, ships might
perhaps be able to wait the convenience of tile be-
lure they attempted to enter the river.
" The next appearance of a river to the eastward
is the Kleine Xlmeden, which lies, apparently at
times. three outlets to the vet ; but they were all
closed when I saw them, and I suspect are only at
spring title., or whets the mountain waters come
down.
" From the Kowie to the Great Fish River's
mouth, the coast has a more werdstit appeorance,
the sand hills are covered with luxuriant bush ; but
there is not an inlet or curve of any sort that offers
shelter for slips. The surf rolls in high breakers
along the coast.
" The country at the month of the Fish River
is open, interspersed with picturesque ravines, ge-
eritlly clothed with bush; when I arrived, the wa-
ter was ut the lowest ebb. From the S.W. side a
sand-bank projects to within twenty yards of the
N.E. side. .The current was running through this
channel slowly into the sea, and I could trace its
stream gradually decreasing in breadth, until finish-
ed in a point, making the mouth of the river form
the base of an equilateral triasigle; front this point
part of the ebb is thrown bock on the flat beach,
runs to the westward, and finds an nutlet close to
the rocks, on the western side; et this spot the wa-
ter appears deep. At the breadth of ten yards
the sea did not break successively. but at times
these was art interval of live umlaute., wheal • b, tit
could easily have landed ; but when it did break,
it was with treble the violence of the constant roll-
ing surf along the snot before the river's mouth.—
The entrance of the river E.S.E. suit IV.N.W.,
the stream inclines is little to the S.W. after pass-
log the extreme point where the sea broke with vio-
lence across.
" The position of the Fish River may be eneily
ascertained at sea, in a fine day, by sonic distant
hills of an undulating form. bearing N.N.W. lifer
compass ; these hills are then between the ravines
through which the riser flows.
" The Great Fish River, at particular season%
swells to a considerable height ; at these times,
from the violence of the current, no shipsoe vowel
could possibly enter; bat when the comers have
ceased that filled its bed, the river becomes a mere