Winds at South-East, fair weather.

At 4 p.m., having got out most of the Coals, cast loose the Ship's moorings, and warped her a little higher up the Harbour to a place I had pitched upon to lay her ashore to stop the Leak; draught of water Forward 7 feet 9 inches and abaft 13 feet 6 inches.

At 8, being high water, hauld her bow close ashore, but Keept her stern afloat, because I was afraid of Neaping her,* (* I.e., Having her so far on shore that they could not heave her off at Neap tide.) and yet it was necessary to lay the whole of her as near the ground as possible.* (* The town of Cooktown now stands where the Endeavour was beached, and the (as near as can be judged) exact spot is marked by a monument.) At 2 a.m.the Tide left her, which gave us an Opportunity to Examine the Leak, which we found to be at her Floor Heads, a little before the Starboard Fore Chains; here the Rocks had made their way thro' 4 planks, quite to, and even into the Timbers, and wounded 3 more.

The manner these planks were damaged--or cut out, as I may say--is hardly credible; scarce a Splinter was to be seen, but the whole was cut away as if it had been done by the Hands of Man with a blunt-edge Tool.
Fortunately for us the Timbers in this place were very close; other wise it would have been impossible to have saved the Ship, and even as it was it appeared very extraordinary that she made no more water than what she did.

A large peice of Coral rock was sticking in one Hole, and several peices of the Fothering, small stones, etc., had made its way in, and lodged between the Timbers, which had stopped the Water from forcing its way in in great Quantities.