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ed to be about fixteen feet high; they were placed in two rows, with a space of about fix feet between them, and the poles in each row were about ten feet diftant from each other. The lane between them was covered by sticks, that were fet up floping towards each other from the top of the poles on each fide, like the roof of a house. This rail-work, with a ditch that was parallel to it, was carried about a hundred yards down the hill in a kind of curve; but for what purpose we could not guess.

The Indians, at the watering-place, at our request, entertained us with their war-fong, in which the women joined, with the most horrid distortions of countenance, rolling their eyes, thrusting out their tongues, and often heaving loud and deep fighs; though all was done in very good time.

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On the 28th we went afhore upon an island that lies Saturd. 28. to the left hand of the entrance of the bay, where we faw the largest canoe that we had yet met with: she was fixty eight feet and a half long, five broad, and three feet fix high; she had a sharp bottom, confifting of three trunks of trees hollowed, of which that in the middle was the longeft: the fide planks were fixty-two feet long in one piece, and were not defpicably carved in bass relief: the head alfo was adorned with carving still more richly. Upon this ifland there was a larger house than any we had yet feen; but it seemed unfinished and was full of chips. The wood work was fquared fo even and smooth, that we made no doubt of their having among them very sharp tools. The fides of the posts were carved in a masterly stile, though after their whimsical taste, which feems to prefer spiral lines and distorted faces as these carved pofts appeared to have been brought from fome other place, fuch work is probably of great value among them.

At four o'clock in the morning of the 29th, having Sunday 29. got on board our wood and water, and a large fupply of excellent celery, with which the country abounds, and which proved a powerful antifcorbutic, I unmoored and put to fea.

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This bay is called by the natives ToLAGA; it is moderately large, and has from feven to thirteen fathom,

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with

1769.

;

with a clean fandy bottom and good anchorage; and October. is fheltered from all winds except the north-east. It lies in latitude 38° 22' S. and four leagues and an half to the north of Gable-end Foreland. On the fouth point lies a small but high island, so near the main as not to be diftinguished from it. Close to the north end of the ifland, at the entrance into the bay, are two high rocks one is round like a corn- -ftack, but the other is long, and perforated in. feveral places, fo that the openings appear like the arches of a bridge. Within these rocks is the cove where we cut wood, and filled our water cafks. Off the north point of the bay is a pretty high rocky ifland; and about a mile without it, are fome rocks and breakers. The variation of the compass here is 14° 31'E. and the tide flows at the full and change of the moon, about fix o'clock, and rifes and falls perpendicularly from five to fix feet: whether the flood comes from the fouthward or the northward, I have not been able to determine.

We got nothing here by traffic but a few fish, and fome sweet potatoes, except a few trifles, which we confidered merely as curiofities. We faw no four-footed animals, nor the appearance of any, either tame or wild, except dogs and rats, and these were very scarce; the people eat the dogs, like our friends at Otaheite ; and adorn their garments with the fkins, as we do ours with fur and ermine. I climbed many of the hills, hoping to get a view of the country, but I could fee nothing from the top except higher hills, in a boundlefs fucceffion. The ridges of thefe hills produce little befides fern; but the fides are moft luxuriantly clothed with wood, and verdure of various kinds, with little plantations intermixed; in the woods we found trees of above twenty different forts, and carried fpecimens of each on board; but there was no body among us to whom they were not altogether unknown. The tree which we cut for firing was fomewhat like our maple, and yielded a whitish gum. We found another fort of it of a deep yellow, which we thought might be used in dying. We found alfo one cabbage-tree, which we cut down for the cabbages. The country abounds with plants, and the woods with birds, in an endlefs variety, exquifitely beautiful, and of which none of us had the

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leaft knowledge. The fod both of the hills and valles is light and fancy, and very it for the proce&ion of a.. kinds of roots; though we law none except tweet potatoes and yams.

CHAP. II.

The Range from Telaga to Mercury-Bay, with an dicount of many Incidents that kippened bith in board and a-feire. A Description of loveral. Views exhibited by the Country, and of the Heppabs, or forgetted Villages of the Inbaitants.

ON Monday the 30th, about half an hour after Monday zo,

one o'clock, having made fail again to the north

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ward for about ten hours, with a light breeze, I hauled round a small island, which lay east one mile from the north-east point of the land: from this place I found the land trend away N. W. by W. and W. N. W, as far as I could fee. This point being the eaftermolt land on the whole coast, I gave it the name of EAST CAPE, and I called the ifland that lies off it the EAST ISLAND; it is of a fmali circuit, high and round, and appears white and barren; the Cape is high with white cliffs, and lies in latitude 37° 42 3 S. and longitude 181 W. The land from Tolaga Bay to Eaft Cape is of a moderate, but unequal height, forming feveral small bays, in which are fandy beaches of the inland country we could not fee much, the weather being cloudy and hazy. The foundings were from twenty to thirty fathom at the distance of about a league from the shore. After we had rounded the Cape, we faw in our run along the fhore a great number of villages, and much cultivated land; the country in general appeared more fertile than before, and was low near the fea, but hilly within. At fix in the evening, being four leagues to the weftward of Eaft Cape, we paffed a bay which was first discovered by Lieutenant Hicks, and which therefore I called HICKS'S BAY. At eight in the evening, being eight leagues to the weftward of the Cape, and three or four miles from the fhore, I fhortened fail and brought to for the night, having at this time L 3

a fresh

1769. October.

Tuefd.

31.

November.

a fresh gale at S. S. E. and fqually; but it foon became moderate, and at two in the morning, we made fail again to the S. W. as the land now trended; and at eight o'clock in the morning faw land, which made like an ifland, bearing weft, the fouth-westermoft part of the main bearing fouth-west; and about nine no lefs than five canoes came off, in which were more than forty men, all armed with their country pikes and battle-axes, fhouting, and threatening an attack: this gave us great uneafinefs, and was indeed what we did not expect; for we hoped, that the report both of our power and clemency had spread to a greater extent. When one of these canoes had almost reached the fhip, another, of an immense size, the largest we had yet feen, crowded with people who were also armed, put off from the fhore, and came up at a great rate; as it approached it received fignals from the canoe that was nearest to the ship, and we could see that it had fixteen paddles on a fide, befide people that fat, and others. that flood in a row from stem to ftern, being in all about fixty men as they made directly to the fhip, we were defirous of preventing an attack, by fhewing what we could do; and therefore fired a gun, loaded with grape fhot, a-head of them; this made them stop, but not retreat; a round fhot was then fired over them, and upon feeing it fall, they feized their paddles and made towards the fhore with fuch precipitation, that they feemed scarcely to allow themfelves time to breathe. In the evening, three or four more canoes came off unarmed; but they would not venture within a musquet fhot of the veffel. The cape, off which we had been threatened with hoftilities, I called, from the hafty retreat of the enemy, CAPE RUNAWAY. It lies in latitude 37° 32'; longitude 181° 48'. In this day's run, we found that the land, which made like an ifland in the morning, bearing welt, was fo; and we gave it the name of WHITE ISLAND.

At day-break, on the first of Nov. we counted no Wednesd. 1. lefs than five and forty canoes that were coming from the fhore towards the fhip: feven of them came up with us, and after fome converfation with Tupia, fold us fome lobsters and muscles, and two conger-eels. Thefe. people traded pretty fairly but when they were gone,

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fome others came off from another place, who began allo to trade fairly; but after fome time they took what was handed down to them, without making any return; one of them who had done fo, upon being threatened, began to laugh, and with many marks of derision set us at defiance, at the fame time putting off the canoe from the ship: a mufquet was then fired over his head, which brought him back in a more ferious mood, and trade went on with great regularity. At length, when the cabin and gun room had got as much as they wanted, the men were allowed to come to the gang-way, and trade for themselves. Unhappily the fame care was not taken to prevent frauds as had been taken before, fo that the Indians, finding that they could cheat with impunity, grew infolent again, and proceeded to take greater liberties. One of the canoes, having fold every thing on board, pulled forward, and the people that were in her feeing some linen hang over the ship's fide to dry, one of them, without any ceremony, untied it, and put it up in his bundle: he was immediately called to, and required to return it; instead of which, he let his canoe drop a-ftern, and laughed at us: a musquet was fired over his head, which did not put a stop to his mirth; another was then fired at him with small shot, which ftruck him upon the back; he shrunk a little when the shot hit him, but did not regard it more than one of our menwould have done the stroke of a rattan; he continued with great compofure to pack up the linen that he had ftolen. All the canoes now dropped a-stern about a hundred yards, and all fet up their fong of defiance, which they continued till the fhip was diftant from them about four hundred yards. As they feemed to have no defign to attack us, I was not willing to do them any hurt; yet I thought their going off in a bravado might have a bad effect when it fhould be reported a-fhore. To fhew them therefore that they were still in our power, though very much beyond the reach of any miffile weapon with which they were acquainted, I gave the hip a yaw, and fired a four pounder fo as to pass near them. The fhot happened to strike the water, and rise several times at a great distance beyond the canoes: this ftruck them with ter

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