1769. November. From the point, of which we were now abreast, 1 2 the land trends W. S. near a league, and then Saturd. 18. S. S. E. as far as we could fee; and, befides the islands that lay without us, we could fee land round by the S. W. as far as N. W.; but whether this was the main or islands, we could not then determine: the fear of losing the main, however, made me refolve to follow its direction. With this view, I hauled round the point and fteered to the fouthward, but there being light airs all round the compafs, we made but little progrefs. Sunday 19. About one o'clock, a breeze fprung up at eaft, which afterwards came to N. E. and we fteered along the shore S. by E. and S. S. E. having from twenty-five to eighteen fathom. At about half an hour after feven in the evening, having run feven or eight leagues fince noon, I anchored in twenty-three fathom, not chufing to run any farther in the dark, as I had now land on both fides, forming the entrance of a ftreight, bay, or river, lying S. by E. for on that point we could fee no land. At day-break, on the 19th, the wind being ftill favourable, we weighed and stood with an eafy fail up the inlet, keeping nearest to the east fide. In a fhort time, two large canoes came off to us from the shore; the people on board faid, that they knew Toiava very well, and called 1769. November. I invited fome of them on Tupia by his name. board; and as they knew they had nothing to fear from us, while they behaved honeftly and Sunday 19. peaceably, they immediately complied: I made each of them fome presents, and difmiffed them much gratified. Other canoes afterwards came up to us from a different fide of the bay; and the people on board of these alfo mentioned the name of Toiava, and fent a young man into the ship, who told us he was his grandfon, and he alfo' was difmiffed with a prefent. After having run about five leagues from the place where we had anchored the night before, our depth of water gradually decreased to fix fa-" thom; and not chufing to go into lefs, as it was tide of flood, and the wind blew right up the inlet, I came to an anchor about the middle of the channel, which is near eleven miles over; after which I fent two boats out to found, one on one fide, and the other on the other. The boats not having found above three feet more water than we were now in, I determined to go no farther with the fhip, but to examine the head of the bay in the boats; for, as it appeared to run a good way inland, I thought this a favourable opportunity to examine the interior part of the country, and its produce. At day-break, therefore, I fet out in the pin- Monday 20. nace and long-boat, accompanied by Mr. Banks, Dr. Solander, and Tupia; and we found the in ! let 1759. November. let end in a river, about nine miles above the ship into this river we entered with the first of Monday 20 the flood, and within three miles found the water perfectly fresh. Before we had proceeded more than one third of that distance, we found an Indian town, which was built upon a small bank of dry fand, but entirely surrounded by a deep mud, which poffibly the inhabitants might confider as a defence. These people, as foon as they faw us, thronged to the banks, and invited us on shore. We accepted the invitation, and made them a vifit notwithstanding the mud. They received us with open arms, having heard of us from our good old friend Toiava; but our ftay could not be long, as we had other objects of curiofity in view. We proceeded up the river till near noon, when we were fourteen miles within its entrance; and then, finding the face of the country to continue nearly the fame, without any alteration in the course of the stream, which we had no hope of tracing to its fource, we landed on the weft fide, to take a view of the lofty trees which every where adorned its banks. They were of a kind that we had seen before, though only at a distance, both in Poverty Bay and Hawke's Bay. Before we had walked an hundred yards into the wood, we met with one of them which was nineteen feet eight inches in the girt, at the height of fix feet above the ground: having a quadrant with me, I mea fured fured its height from the root to the firft branch, 1769. November. and found it to be eighty-nine feet: it was as ftraight as an arrow, and tapered but very little Monday aò, in proportion to its height; fo that I judged there were three hundred and fifty-fix feet of folid timber in it, exclufive of the branches. As we advanced, we faw many others that were ftill larger; we cut down a young one, and the wood proved heavy and folid, not fit for masts, but fuch as would make the finest plank in the world. Our carpenter, who was with us, faid that the timber refembled that of the pitch-pine, which is lightened by tapping; and poffibly fome fuch method might be found to lighten these, and they would then be fuch mafts as no country in Europe can produce. As the wood was swampy, we could not range far; but we found many ftout trees of other kinds, all of them utterly unknown to us, fpecimens of which we brought away. The river at this height is as broad as the Thames at Greenwich, and the tide of flood as ftrong; it is not indeed quite fo deep, but has water enough for veffels of more than a middle fize, and a bottom of mud, so soft that nothing could take damage by running afhore. About three o'clock, we reimbarked, in order to return with the first of the ebb, and named the river the THAMES, it having fome resemblance to our own river of that name. In our return, 17591 November. Monday 20. the inhabitants of the village where we had been afhore, feeing us take another channel, came off to us in their canoes, and trafficked with us in the most friendly manner, till they had disposed of the few trifles they had. The tide of ebb just carried us out of the narrow part of the river, into the channel that run up from the fea, before it was dark; and we pulled hard to reach the thip, but meeting the flood, and a strong breeze at N. N. W. with fhowers of rain, we were obliged to defift; and about midnight, we run under the land, and came to a grappling, where we took fuch reft as our fituation would admit, Tuesday 21. At break of day, we fet forward again, and it was paft feven o'clock before we reached the fhip. We were all extremely tired, but thought ourselves happy to be on board; for before nine it blew fo hard that the boat could not have rowed ahead, and must therefore either have gone afhore, or taken fhelter under it. About three o'clock, having the tide of ebb, we took up our anchor, made fail, and plied down the river till eight in the evening, when we came to an anchor again: early in the Wednef. 22. morning we made fail with the firft ebb, and kept plying till the flood obliged us once more to come to an anchor. As we had now only a light breeze, I went in the pinnace, accompanied by Dr. Solander, to the western fhore, but I faw nothing worthy of notice. When |