London 15 August 1827, To the Chairman of the Central Committee of the Geographical Society

Dear Sir,
His Excellency the Earl of Bathurst, member of His Britannic Majesty's Privy Council and his Minister for the Colonies, had, by despatch no. 33 dated 2 April 1826, invited the authorities of Isle Maurice, formerly Isle de France, to collect and forward to him statements which would indicate in an authentic manner the number of isles and islets known as dependencies of Isle Maurice, stating also their geographical position, the extent of their territory, their population and their civil and military establishments. The commissioned work was completed on 18 August 1826, and by dispatch no. 69 of 19 September his Excellency Sir Lowry Cole, Governor of Mauritius, sent Earl Bathurst 25 statements containing the desired information, which the Colonial Archivist certified as conforming to the reports of the authorities or principal inhabitants of the said isles and islets. Material such as this can only be of value to the Geographical Society, and so it gives me great pleasure, Mr President, to send you what seems to me to be of interest from the points of view of geography and above all navigation.

Rodrigues Island

This island is situated at latitude 19°40'40'' south and longitude 63°18'20'' east of the Greenwich meridian and is 100 leagues east half north of Mauritius. In a length of about 18 miles from east to west and 9 to 4 miles from north to south, this island contains only about 9,000 acres of cultivable land, mainly in its western part, and is almost entirely covered with sand and has no drinking water. It has two anchorages, one with a safe and convenient port in the northern part and the other in the southern part, which is nothing more than a XXXXX with a tortuous and very narrow entrance. To date, this island has only been inhabited by 129 people. There are several requests for land grants from people in Mauritius who wish to settle there (...). There has been no civil or military establishment there since 1824. There used to be a government agent, but if the population were to increase, it would be essential to establish an agent of some kind to maintain order and keep civil records, as no military force has been stationed on this island since the conquest.