Having procured such refreshments as the island afforded, they made sail at four o'clock, with the Charlotte in company, and stood to the eastward, with a moderate breeze at south-west.

At eight o'clock in the morning of the 22d, they saw Norfolk Island, bearing east by south twelve leagues distant.

At two o'clock, they were within one mile of the land, and had soundings in sixteen fathoms water over a hard bottom: the Charlotte being a considerable distance a-stern, Captain Marshall lay to for her to come up, and when she joined the Scarborough he stood under an easy sail to the distance of six leagues westward of the island, and carried soundings from sixteen to twenty-five fathoms, the ground various; in some places being soft, in other parts a corally bottom, and sometimes coarse white sand, intermixed with broken shells.
26 May 1788 After leaving Norfolk Island, they stretched to the northward and eastward, and at one o'clock on the twenty-sixth they saw a small island bearing north north-east eight or nine leagues distant; when about four miles from the island, they sounded with fifty fathoms of line, but got no bottom.

Towards evening, Captain Marshall was close in with the island, and being desirous to examine it, he plied occasionally during the night.

At day light the next morning, he was close to the land, and found it to be a barren rock, not more than half a mile over in the broadest part; it is very high, and was entirely covered with birds of various kinds, but there was no possibility of landing on account of a frightful surf that entirely surrounded it.