'Travels in Assyria, Media, and Persia, including a journey from Bagdad by Mount Zagros, to Hamadan, the ancient Ecbatana, researches in Ispahan and the ruins of Persepolis, and journey from thence by Shiraz and Shapoor to the sea-shore. Description of Bussorah, Bushire, Bahrein, Ormuz, and Muscat, narrative of an expedition against the pirates of the Persian Gulf, with illustrations of the voyage of Nearchus, and passage by the Arabian Sea to Bombay.' [‎501] (532/582)

THE QUOINS.
501
breeze setting in at north, and gradually came up hourly to north-
north-east at midnight, having gone about thirty-two miles, and
deepened our water hourly to twelve, twelve and a half, thirteen,
fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, and eighteen fathoms, always
on a sandy bottom.
D ec. 3rd.—The wind having drawn round progressively to the
north-west, we steered from midnight to sun-rise a course of north-
north-east, making a distance of thirty miles, deepening our water
on the whole to forty-three fathoms, on a soft bottom, and then
having the extremes of the Arabian land to bear from east by
north to south-south-east, with the high land of Gomberoon
north-east. The wind now became light and variable, and at ten
a.m . it freshened up from the south-south-east, drawing round
southerly, and settling at last at south-west.
At noon we observed in lat. 26° 17' north, and were in long.
56° 8' east, the island of the Great Quoin bearing east-north-east
half-east, and the extremes of the Arabian land from east half-
north to south half-west. The south-west wind continuing fresh
and fair, we stood on to the eastward, with all sad, going nearly
eight knots. At one p.m . the islands called the Quoins became
visible from the deck, and at three p.m . we saw through the
passage between them and Cape Mussunndom. The Quoins are
two small islands, or masses of rocks, high, barren, and presenting
cliffs on all sides, so as seemingly to preclude landing on any
part of them ; they are consequently uninhabited, and perhaps as
yet untrodden by human foot. These islands are less than a
league distant from each other, but have a clear passage of twenty
fathoms between them, which is never however attempted but in
cases of the most urgent necessity, from the probability of irre
gular blasts of wind, eddy currents, and the forbidding aspect of
their cliffy shores. They lie about three leagues to the north-
north-east of Cape Mussunndom, and afford a clear passage o y
fathoms between ; though even this, broad as it is, is seldom run
through but with a steady leading wind, to secure success.
Cape Mussunndom, erroneously called Mussledom in most