1769. April.

Tuesday 18.

Wednef. 19.

in order to observe an eclipse of the firft fatellite of Jupiter ; but the weather becoming cloudy, we were difappointed.

On the 18th, at day-break, I went on fhore, with as many people as could possibly be spared from the fhip, and began to erect our fort. While fome were employed in throwing up intrenchments, others were bufy in cutting pickets and fafcines, which the natives, who foon gathered round us as they had been used to do, were fo far from hindering, that many of them voluntarily affifted us, bringing the pickets and fafcines from the wood where they had been cut, with great alacrity: we had indeed been fo fcrupulous of invading their property, that we purchased every stake which was used upon this occafion, and cut down no tree till we had firft obtained their confent. The foil where we conftructed our fort was fandy, and this made it neceffary to ftrengthen the intrenchments with wood; three fides were to be fortified in this manner; the fourth was bounded by a river, upon the banks of which I propofed to place a proper number of water-cafks. This day we ferved pork to the fhip's company for the first time, and the Indians brought down fo much bread-fruit and cocoa-nuts, that we found it neceffary to fend away part of them unbought, and to acquaint them, by figns, that we should want no more for two days to come. Every thing was purchased this day with beads: a single bead, as big as a pea, being the purchase of five or fix cocoa-nuts, and as many of the bread-fruit. Mr. Banks's tent was got up before night within the works, and he slept on fhore for the first time. Proper centries were placed round it, but no Indian attempted to approach it the whole night.

The next morning, our friend Tubourai Tamaide made Mr. Banks a vifit at the tent, and brought with him not

only

only his wife and family, but the roof of a houfe, and
feveral materials for fetting it up, with furniture and im-
plements of various kinds, intending, as we understood him,
to take up his refidence in our neighbourhood: this instance
of his confidence and good-will gave us great pleasure, and
we determined to ftrengthen his attachment to us by every
means in our power. Soon after his arrival, he took Mr.
Banks by the hand, and leading him out of the line, figni-
fied that he should accompany him into the woods. Mr.
Banks readily confented, and having walked with him about
a quarter of a mile, they arrived at a kind of awning which
he had already fet up, and which feemed to be his occafional
habitation. Here he unfolded a bundle of his country
cloth, and taking out two garments, one of red cloth, and
the other of very neat matting, he clothed Mr. Banks in
them, and without any other ceremony, immediately con-
ducted him back to the tent. His attendants foon after
brought him fome pork and bread-fruit, which he eat, dip-
ping his meat into falt water inftead of fauce: after his meal
he retired to Mr. Banks's bed, and flept about an hour. In
the afternoon, his wife Tomio brought to the tent a young
man about two and twenty years of age, of a very comely
appearance, whom they both feemed to acknowledge as
their fon, though we afterwards discovered that he was not
fo. In the evening, this young man and another Chief, who
had also paid us a vifit, went away to the weftward, but
Tubourai Tamaide and his wife returned to the awning in
the skirts of the wood.

Our Surgeon, Mr. Monkhoufe, having walked out this
evening, reported, that he had feen the body of the man
who had been shot at the tents, which he faid was wrapped
in cloth, and placed on a kind of bier, fupported by stakes,
under a roof that feemed to have been fet up for the pur-
pose:

4

1769. April.

Wednef. 19.

1769: April.

pofe: that near it were depofited fome inftruments of war, and other things, which he would particularly have exWednes. 19. amined but for the ftench of the body, which was intolerable. He faid, that he faw alfo two more fheds of the fame kind, in one of which were the bones of a human body that had lain till they were quite dry. We difcovered afterwards, that this was the way in which they ufually dif pofed of their dead.

A kind of market now began to be kept just without the lines, and was plentifully fupplied with every thing but pork. Tubourai Tamaide was our conftant gueft, imitating our manners, even to the ufing of a knife and fork, which he did very handily.

As my curiosity was excited by Mr. Monkhouse's account of the fituation of the man who had been fhot, I took an opportunity to go with fome others to fee it. I found the shed under which his body lay, close by the house in which he refided when he was alive, fome others being not more than ten yards diftant; it was about 15 feet long, and 11 broad, and of a proportionable height: one end was wholly open, and the other end, and the two fides, were partly enclosed with a kind of wicker work. The bier on which the corps was depofited, was a frame of wood like that in which the fea beds, called cotts, are placed, with a matted bottom, and fupported by four pofts, at the height of about five feet from the ground. The body was covered first with a matt, and then with white cloth; by the side of it lay a wooden mace, one of their weapons of war, and near the head of it, which lay next to the clofe end of the fhed, lay two cocoa nut-fhells, fuch as are fometimes ufed to carry water in; at the other end a bunch of green leaves, with fome dried twigs, all tied together, were stuck in the ground, by which lay a stone

about

about as big as a cocoa-nut: near these lay one of the young plantain trees, which are used for emblems of peace, and close by it a stone ax. At the open end of the shed also hung, in several strings, a great number of palm-nuts, and without the shed, was ftuck upright in the ground, the stem of a plantain tree about five feet high, upon the top of which was placed a cocoa nut-shell full of fresh water: against the fide of one of the posts hung a small bag, containing a few pieces of bread-fruit ready roasted, which were not all put in at the same time, for fome of them were fresh, and others ftale. I took notice that feveral of the natives observed us with a mixture of folicitude and jealoufy in their countenances, and by their geftures expreffed uneafinefs when we went near the body, ftanding themselves at a little distance while we were making our examination, and appearing to be pleased when we came away.

Our refidence on shore would by no means have been difagreeable if we had not been inceffantly tormented by the flies, which, among other mischief, made it almost impoffible for Mr. Parkinson, Mr. Banks's natural history painter, to work; for they not only covered his fubject so as that no part of its furface could be feen, but even eat the colour off the paper as fast as he could lay it on. We had recourse to musquito nets and fly-traps, which, though they made the inconvenience tolerable, were very far from removing it.

1769.
April.

Wednef. 19.

On the 22d, Tootahah gave us a specimen of the mufic Saturday 22, of this country; four perfons performed upon flutes which had only two stops, and therefore could not found more than four notes, by half tones: they were founded like our German flutes, except that the performer, instead of applying it

J

1769. April.

to his mouth, blew into it with one noftril, while he stopped the other with his thumb: to these inftruments four other Saturday 22. perfons fung, and kept very good time; but only one tune was played during the whole concert.

Several of the natives brought us axes, which they had received from on board the Dolphin, to grind and repair; but among others, there was one which became the subject of much fpeculation, as it appeared to be French: after much enquiry, we learnt that a fhip had been here between our arrival and the departure of the Dolphin, which we then conjectured to have been a Spaniard, but now know to have been the Boudeufe, commanded by M. Bougainville.

CHAP.