South West Pacific

Niua-fu or Good Hope Island which I presume to be the same as that Onouafu in “Coral Reefs” is entirely volcanic and has no reef whatever.² The shores are steep to. There is a salt water lake about 6 miles in circumference connected with the sea by a very narrow stream. The island is about 500 feet high. There are several craters and I was informed that some had very recently been in a state of activity. (June 1872)

Wallis Island is encircled. There are 11 islands, 7 of which are on the outer reef. Its native name is Uea³

Horn Islands comprising Fotuna and Alofa each have a distinct fringing reef. Fotuna is about 2500 feet and Alofa 1200 feet high.⁴ I can give you no information regarding the depth of water except that there is a deep ship channel between the islands no soundings being obtainable with the hand line. The channel is barely a mile broad.

Mitchell Island to the south of the Ellice Group is a very low atoll with about 10 small islands on the reef.⁵ We were unable to discover any entrance into the lagoon

“Grand Cocal was searched for in vain by HMS Basilisk and as all the local traders deny its existence, I cannot think it exists. It has long been marked doubtful on the Admiralty charts and the description leads me to suppose the island reported to have been S^t. Augustine⁶

Sapona or Edgecumbe Island (Otooboa of Dillon”) has a barrier reef with a four fathom channel through it which leads into a harbour in the island itself.⁷ There is also deep but uneven water generally inside the reef

Espiritu Santo and the Banks’ Islands have reefs of the fringing kind as also have all the New Hebrides & Torres Groups.⁸

Indian Ocean

S^t. Jean de Nova or Farquhar Islands is an undoubted atoll with 4 large & several smaller islands.⁹ There is a channel into the lagoon at the N.W. side between the largest island and the Western reef. A coral bank of considerable extent stretches off the southern end of the atoll with 5 fathoms of water on it.

Aldabra is undoubtedly an upheaved atoll. The account in Horsburgh is very misleading as neither the red cliffs nor high forests were to be found.¹⁰ It is entirely composed of coral rock with a fine growth of mangroves enclosing an extensive but shallow lagoon. There is a narrow riband of 9 fathoms water running 3 miles into the lagoon from the N.W. corner.

Great Comoro is volcanic and about 8600 feet high.¹¹ There is a little fringing reef on the North & S.E. sides

The above islands were surveyed by H.M.S. Fawn last year on an inch scale so that doubtless charts of them will shortly be published by the Admiralty.¹²

The East Coast of Africa South of Mombas has a fringing reef and is itself composed of coral rock.¹³ From Wasin to Punganis however there is a barrier of large coral reefs from 2 to 5 miles off shore with a deep channel inside having sometimes as great a depth as 20 fathoms. An Admiralty chart of Tanga Harbour and its approaches has recently been published by the Admiralty which will give a good general idea of the coast in that district.¹⁴

Chas V Smith | Lieut: HMS. Fawn