Abbildungen der Seite
PDF
EPUB

1769.

We found, thrown upon the fhore, in feveral parts November of this bay, great quantities of iron fand, which is brought down by every little rivulet of fresh water that finds its way from the country; which is a demonftration that there is ore of that metal not far inland: yet neither the inhabitants of this place not any other part of the coaft that we have feen, know the use of iron, or fet the least value upon it; all of them preferring the moft worthlefs and useless trifle, not only to a nail, but to any tool of that metal.

Before we left the bay, we cut upon one of the trees near the watering-place the fhip's name, and that of the Commander, with the date of the year and month when we were there; and, after difplaying the English colours, I took a formal poffeffion of it in the name of his Britannic Majefty King George the Third.

Satur. 18.

CHA P. IV.

The Range from Mercury Bay to the Bay of Iftands. An
Expedition up the River Thames: Some Account of
the Indians who inhabit its Banks, and the fine Timber
that
grows there. Several interviews with the Natives
on different Parts of the Coast, and a Skirmish with
them upon an Island.

I

Continued plying to windward two days to get under the land, and on the 18th, about feven in the morning, we were a-breaft of a very confpicuous promontory, being then in latitude 36° 26', and in the direction of N. 48 W. from the north head of Mercury Bay or Point Mercury, which was diftant nine leagues: upon this point ftood many people, who feemed to take little notice of us, but talked together with great earnestness. In about half an hour, feveral canoes put off from different places, and came towards the fhip; upon which the people on the point alfo launched a canoe, and about twenty of them came in her up with the others. When two of thefe canoes, in which there might be about fixty men, came near enough to make themfelves heard, they fung their war-fong; but fee

ing that we took little notice of it, they threw a few stones at us, and then rowed off towards the shore. We hoped that we had now done with them, but in a short time they returned, as if with a fixed refolution to provoke us into a battle, animating themselves by their fong as they had done before. Tupia, without any directions from us, went to the poop, and began to expoftulate he told them, that we had weapons which would destroy them in a moment: and that, if they ventured to attack us, we should be obliged to use them. Upon this, they flourished their weapons and cried out in their language, "Come on fhore, and we "will kill you all:" Well, faid Tupia, but why should you moleft us while we are at sea ? As we do not wish to fight, we fhall not accept your challenge to come on fhore; and here is no pretence for a quarrel, the fea being no more your property than the ship. This eloquence of Tupia, though it greatly furprized us, having given him no hints for the arguments he ufed, had no effect upon our enemies, who very foon renewed their battery: a mufquet was then fired through one of their boats, and this was an argument of fufficient weight, for they immediately fell a-stern and left us.

From the point, of which we were now a-breast, the land trends W. S. near a league, and then 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 the N. W. but whether this was the main or islands, we could not then determine the fear of lofing the main, however, made me refolve to follow its directi

on.

With this view, I hauled round the point and steered to the southward, but there being light airs all round the compafs, we made but little progrefs.

About one o'clock, a breeze fprung up at east, 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 seven in the evening, having run seven 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, form

1769. November.

1769. November.

Sunday 19.

Monday 20.

ing the entrance of a freight, 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 fill favourable, we weighed and ftood with an eafy fail up the inlet, keeping neareft to the eaft 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 Tupia by his name. I invited fome

of them on board; and as they knew they had nothing to fear from us, while they behaved honeftly and peaceably, they immediately complied: I made each of them fome prefents, 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 thefe alfo mentioned the name of Toiava, and fent a young man into the thip, 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 fathom; and not choofing 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 pinnace and long-boat, accompanied by Mr. Banks, Dr. Solander, and Tupia; and we found the inlet end in a river, about nine miles above the fhip: into this river we entered with the first of the flood, and within three miles found the water perfectly freth. Before we had proceeded more than one third of that diftance, we found an Indian town, which was built upon a small bank of dry fand, but intirely furrounded by a deep mud, which poffibly the inhabitants might confider as a defence. Thefe people, as foon as they faw us, thronged

to.

November.

to the banks, and invited us on fhore. We accepted 1769.
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 cu-
riofity in view. We proceeded up the river till near
noon, when we were fourteen miles within its en-
trance; and then, finding the face of the country to
continue nearly the fame, without any alteration in
the course of the ftream, which we had no hopes of
tracing to its fource, we landed on the west fide, to
take a view of the lofty trees which every where adorn-
ed its banks. They were of a kind that we had feen
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 meafured its height from the root
to the first branch, and found it to be eighty-nine feet:
it was as ftrait as an arrow, and tapered but very little
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 mafts, 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 me-
thod might be found to lighten thefe, and they would
then be such mafts as no country in Europe can pro-
duce. As the wood was fwampy, we could not range
far; but 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 frong; it is not indeed quite fo deep, but has water enough for veffels of more than a middle fize, and a bottom of mud, to foft that nothing could take damage by running a fhore.

About

[merged small][ocr errors]

1769. November.

About three o'clock, we re-embarked, in order to return with the first of the ebb, and named the river the THAMES, it having some resemblance to our own river of that name. In our return, 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 difpofed of the few trifles they had. The tide of

ebb juft carried us out of the narrow part of the river, into the channel that ran up from the fea, before it was dark; and we pulled hard to reach the ship, 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 ran under the land, and came to a grappling, where we took fuch reft as our fituation Tuesday 21. would admit. 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 ourfelves happy to be on board; for before nine it blew fo hard that the boat could not have rowed a-head, and must therefore either have gone a-fhore, or taken. fhelter under it.

Wednef. 22.

About three o'clock, having the tide of ebb, we took up our anchor, and made fail, and plied down the river till eight in the evening, when we came to an anchor again; early in the morning we made fail with the first 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 shore; but I faw nothing worthy of notice.

When I left the fhip, many canoes were about it; Mr. Banks therefore chose to stay on board, and traffic with the natives: they bartered their clothes and arms, chiefly for paper, and behaved with great friendship and honesty. But while some of them were below with Mr. Banks, a young man who was upon the deck ftole a half-minute glass which was in the binacle, and was detected just as he was carrying it off. Mr. Hicks, who was commanding officer on board, took it into his head to punish him, by giving him twelve lashes with a cat-o'nine-tails; and accordingly ordered him to be taken to the gang-way, and tied up

to

« ZurückWeiter »