On the south-west side of the reef, and near the south end of the island, they thought they saw openings in the reefs which promised safe anchorage.
In the forenoon of the 29th, they passed several Chinese fishing boats; and the sea was covered with wrecks of boats that had been lost, as they conjectured, in the late boisterous weather.

They were in latitude 22 deg.

1', having run 110 miles since the preceding noon.
On the 30th, they ran along the Lema Islands, and got a Chinese pilot on board.

In obedience to the instruction given to Captain Cook by the Admiralty, the captains now required of the officers and men of both ships to give up their journals, and what other papers they had to their possession relative to the voyage, which was cheerfully complied with; and at nine o'clock in the evening of the following day, they anchored three leagues from Macao.
Here, upon sending on shore to negotiate for supplies of provisions, &c.

they first received intelligence of the occurrences in Europe, during the protracted period of their absence.