clothed with wood, and that fome of the trees in the 1769. vallies were very large. By noon, we fetched in with the fouth-west point, but not being able to weather it, tacked and stood off: at this time we faw feveral canoes ftanding crofs the bay, which, in a little time, made to fhore, without feeming to take the leaft notice of the ship; we also saw some houses, which appeared to be small, but neat; and near one of them a confiderable number of the people collected together, who were fitting upon the beach, and who, we thought, were the fame that we had seen in the canoes. Upon a small peninsula, at the north-east head, we could plainly perceive a pretty high and regular paling, which inclofed the whole top of a hill; this was alfo the fubject of much speculation, fome fuppofing it to be a park of deer, others an inclofure for oxen and sheep. About four o'clock in the afternoon, we anchored on the northweft fide of the bay, before the entrance of a fmall river, in ten fathom water, with a fine fandy bottom, and at about half a league from the fhore. The fides of the bay are white cliffs, of a great height; the middle is low land, with hills gradually rifing behind, one towering above another, and terminating in the chain of mountains, which appeared to be far inland.

1

In the evening I went on fhore, accompanied by Mr. Banks and Dr. Solander, with the pinnace and yawl, and a party of men. We landed a-breast of the fhip, on the eaft fide of the river, which was here about forty yards broad; but feeing fome natives, on the weft fide, whom I wished to speak with, and finding the river not fordable, I ordered the yawl in to carry us over, and left the pinnace at the entrance. When we came near the place where the people were affembled, they all ran away; however, we landed, and leaving four boys to take care of the yawl, we walked up to fome huts which were about two or three hundred yards from the water-fide. When we had got fome distance from the boat, four men, armed" with long lances, rufhed out of the woods, and running up to attack the boat, would certainly have cut her off, if the people in the pinnace had not difcovered them, and called to the boys to drop down the

I 3

Aream:

1769. ftream: the boys inftantly obeyed; but being closely October. purfued by the Indians, the cockfwain of the pinnace,

Mond. 9.

who had the charge of the boats, fired a mufquet over their heads; at this they stopped and looked round them, but in a few minutes renewed the purfuit, brandishing their lances in a threatening manner; the cockfwain then fired a fecond mufquet over their heads, but of this they took no notice; and one of them lifting up his fpear to dart it at the boat, another piece was fired, which fhot him dead. When he fell, the other three flood motionless for some minutes, as if petrified with astonishment; as foon as they recovered they went back, dragging after them the dead body, which, however, they foon left, that it might not incumber their flight. At the report of the first mufquet we drew together, having straggled to a little diftance from each other, and made the best of our way back to the boat, and, croffing the river, we foon faw the Indian lying dead upon the ground. Upon examining the body we found that he had been shot through the heart. He was a man of middle fize and ftature, his complexion was brown, but not very dark, and one fide of his face was tattowed in spiral lines of a very regular figure; he was covered with a fine cloth, of a manufacture altogether new to us, and it was tied on exactly according to the representation in Valentyn's account of Abel Tafman's Voyage, hereafter given; his hair alfo was tied in a knot on the top of his head, but had no feather in it. We returned immediately to the fhip, where we could hear the people on fhore talking with great earnestness, and in a very loud tone, probably about what had happened, and what should be done.

In the morning, we faw feveral of the natives where they had been seen the night before, and fome walking with a quick pace towards the place where we had landed, molt of them unarmed, but three or four with long pikes in their hands. As I was defirous to establish an intercourfe with them, I ordered three boats to be manned with feamen and marines, and proceeded towards the fhore, accompanied by Mr. Banks, Dr.Solander, the other gentlemen, and Tupia; about fifty of them feemed to wait for our landing, on the

opfofite

October.

oppofite fide of the river, which we thought a fign of 1769. fear, and seated themselves upon the ground. At first, therefore, myself, with only Mr. Banks, Dr. Solander, and Tupia, landed from the little boat, and advanced towards them; but we had not proceeded many paces before they all started up, and every man produced either a long pike, or a small weapon of green talc, extremely well polished, about a foot long, and thick enough to weigh four or five pounds. Tupia called to them in the language of Otaheite, but they answered only by flourishing their weapons, and making figns to us to depart. A mufquet was then fired wide of them, and the ball ftruk the water, the river being still between us; they faw the effect, and defifted from their threats, but we thought it prudent to retreat till the marines could be landed this was foon done, and they marched, with a jack carried before them, to a little bank, about fifty yards from the water fide; here they were drawn up, and I again advanced, with Mr. Banks and Dr. Solander; Tupia, Mr. Green, and Mr. Monkhouse being with us. Tupia was again directed to speak with them, and it was with great pleasure that we perceived he was perfectly understood, he and the natives speaking only different dialects of the fame language. He told them that we wanted provision and water, and would give them iron in exchange, the properties of which he explained as well as he was able. They were willing to trade, and defired that we would come over to them for that purpofe; to this we consented, provided they would lay by their arms, which, however, they could by no means be perfuaded to do. During this converfation, Tupia warned us to be upon our guard, for that they were not our friends. We then preffed them, in our turn, to come over to us; and at last one of them ftripped himself, and fwam over without his arms; he was almost immediately followed by two more, and foon after by most of the reft, to the number of twenty or thirty; but thefe brought their arms with them. We made them all prefents of iron and beads, but they seemed to fet little value upon either, particularly the iron, not having the leaft idea of its ufe; fo that we got nothing in return but a few feathers. They offer

I 4

eda

October.

1769. ed, indeed, to exchange their arms for ours, and, when we refused, made many attempts to fnatch them out of our hands. As foon as they came over, Tupia repeated his declaration, that they were not our friends, and again warned us to be upon our guard. Their attempts to fnatch our weapons, therefore, did not fucceed; and we gave them to understand by Tupia, that we should be obliged to kill them if they offered any farther violence. In a few minutes, however, Mr. Green happening to turn about, one of them fnatched away his hanger, and, retiring to a little diftance, waved it round his head, with a fhout of exultation: the reft now began to be extremely infolent, and we faw more coming to join them from the oppofite fide of the river. It was therefore become neceffaty to reprefs them, and Mr. Banks fired at the man who had taken the hanger with fmall fhot, at the distance of about fifteen yards: when the fhot ftruck him he ceased his cry; but, inftead of returning the hanger, continued to flourish it over his head, at the fame time flowly retreating to a greater distance. Mr. Monkhoufe feeing this, fired at him with ball, and he inftantly dropped. Upon this the main body, who had retired to a rock in the middle of the river upon the first discharge, began to return; two that were near to the man who had been killed, ran up to the body, one feized his weapon of green talc, and the other endeavoured to fecure the hanger, which Mr. Monkhoufe had but just time to prevent. As all that had retired to the rock were now advancing, three of us difcharged our pieces, loaded only with fmall fhot, upon which they fwam back for the shore; and we perceived, upon their landing, that two or three of them were wounded. They retired flowly up the country, and we re-embarked in our boats.

As we had unhappily experienced that nothing was to be done with thefe people at this place, and finding the water in the river to be falt, I proceeded in the boats round the head of the bay, in fearch of fresh water, and with a defign, if poffible, to furprife fome of the natives, and take them on board, where, by kind treatment and prefents, 1 might obtain their friendship,

and

and by their means establish an amicable correfpondence 169. with their countrymen.

To my great regret, I found no place where I could land, a dangerous furf every where beating upon the fhore; but I faw two canoes coming in from the fea, one under fail, and the other worked with paddles. I thought this a favourable opportunity to get fome of the people into my poffeffion without mifchief, as thofe in the canoes were probably fishermen, and without arms, and I had three boats full of men. I therefore difpofed the boats fo, as moft effectually to intercept them in their way to the fhore. The people in the canoe that was paddled perceived us fo foon, that by making to the nearest land with their utmoft ftrength, they escaped us; the other failed on till fhe was in the midst of us, without difcerning what we were; but the moment she discovered us, the people on board ftruck their fail, and took to their paddles, which they plied fo brifkly that the out-ran the boat. They were, however, within hearing, and Tupia called out to them to come along fide, and promised for us that they fhould come to no hurt; they chofe, however, rather to trust to their paddles than our promifes, and conti nued to make from us with all their power. 1 then ordered a mufquet to be fired over their heads, as the least exceptionable expedient to accomplish my design, hoping it would either make them furrender or leap into the water. Upon the discharge of the piece they ceafed paddling, and all of them, being seven in number, began to ftrip, as we imagined to jump over board; but it happened otherwife. They immediately formed a refolution not to fly, but to fight; and, when the boat came up, they began the attack with their paddles, and with ftones and other offenfive weapons that were in the canoe, fo vigorously, that we were obliged to fire upon them in our own defence; four were unhappily killed, and the other three, who were boys, the eldest about nineteen, and the youngest about eleven, inftantly leaped into the water; the eldest swam with great vigour, and refifted the attempts of our people to take him into the boat, by every ef fort that he could make; he was, however, at last overpowered,

October.