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which we had feen at noon on the 23d, and to which, 1770: on this occafion, I gave the name of CAPE FARE

WELL.

The bay out of which we had just failed I called ADMIRALTY BAY, giving the name of CAPE STEPHENS to the north-west point, and of CAPE JACKSON to the fouth-east, after the two gentlemen who at this time were Secretaries to the Board of Admiralty.

Admiralty Bay may easily be known by the island that has been just mentioned, which lies two miles N. E. of Cape Stephens, in latitude 40° 37' S. longitude 1850 6 W. and is of a confiderable height. Between this ifland and Cape Farewell, which are between fourteen and fifteen leagues diftant from each other, in the direction of W. by N. and E. by S. the fhore forms a large deep bay, the bottom of which we could fcarcely fee, while we were failing in a straight line from one Cape to the other; it is, however, probably of lefs depth than it appeared to be; for as we found the water fhallower here, than at the fame distance from any other part of the coaft, there is reason to fuppofe, that the land at the bottom which lies next the fea is low, and therefore not easily to be distinguished from it; I have for this reafon called it BLIND BAY, and am of opinion, that it is the fame which was called Murderer's Bay by Tasman.

Such particulars of this country and its inhabitants, with their manners and customs, as could be learned while we were circumnavigating the coast, shall now be related.

CHAP. VIII,

A general Account of New Zealand: its first Discovery,
Situation, Extent, Climate, and Productions.

NEW

TEW ZEALAND was firft difcovered by Abel Janfen Tasman, a Dutch navigator, whofe name has been feveral times mentioned in this narrative, on the 13th of December, in the year 1642. He traversed the eastern coaft from latitude 34° to 43, and entered the ftreight which divides the two iflands, and in the chart is called Cook's STREIGHT; but being atVOL. II tacked

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tacked by the natives foon after he came to anchor, in the place to which he gave the name of Murderer's Bay, he never went on fhore. He gave the country the name of STAATEN LAND, or the land of the States, in honour of the States General, and it is now generally diftinguished in our maps and charts by the name of NEW ZEALAND. As the whole of this country, except that part of the coaft which was feen by Tasman from on board his ship, has from his time, to the voyage of the Endeavour, remained altogether unknown, it has by many been fuppofed to be part of a fouthern continent. It is, however, now known to confift of two large iflands, divided from each other by a ftreight or paffage, which is about four or five leagues broad.

Thefe iflands are fituated between the latitudes of 34" and 480 S. and between the longitudes of 181o and 1940 W. which is now determined with uncommon exactnefs, from innumerable obfervations of the fun and moon, and one of the tranfits of Mercury, by Mr. Green, a perfon of known abilities, who, as has been obferved before, was fent out by the Royal Society, to obferve the tranfit of Venus in the South Seas.

The northermost of these islands is called by the natives Eaheinomauwe, and the fouthermoft Tovy, or Tavai Poenammoo; yet, as I have obferved before, we are not sure whether the name Tovy Poenammoo comprehends the whole fouthern ifland, or only part of it. The figure and extent of these islands, with the fituation of the bays and harbours they contain, and the fmaller iflands that lie about them will appear from the chart that I have drawn, every part of which, however, I cannot vouch to be equally accurate. The coaft of Eaheinomauwe, from Cape Pallifer to Eaft Cape, is laid down with great exactnefs, both in its figure, and the course and diftance from point to point; for the opportunities that offered, and the methods that I used, were fuch as could fcarcely admit of an error. From Eaft Cape to St. Maria van Diemen, the chart, though perhaps not equally exact, is without any error of moment, except poffibly in fome few places, which are here, and in other parts of the chart, diftinguished by a dotted line, and which I had no oppor

tunity to examine. From Cape Maria van Diemen to latitude 36° 15', we were feldom nearer the fhore than between five and eight leagues; and therefore the line that marks the fea coaft may poffibly be erroneous. From latitude 36° 15' to nearly the length of Entry Inland, our course was very near the fhore, and in this part of the chart, therefore, there can be no material error, except perhaps at Cape Tierȧwitte. Between Entry Ifland and Cape Pallifer we were again farther from the fhore, and this part of the coaft, therefore, may not be laid down with minute exactnefs; yet, upon the whole, I am of opinion, that this ifland will be found not much to differ from the figure that I have given it, and that upon the coaft there are few or no harbours which are not noticed in the journal, or delineated in the chart. I cannot, however, fay as much of Tovy Poenammoo, the feafon of the year, and the circumstances of the voyage, would not permit me to fpend fo much time about this ifland as I had employed upon the other; and the ftorms that we met with made it both difficult and dangerous to keep near the fhore. However, from Queen Charlotte's Sound to Cape Campbell, and as far to the S. W. as latitude 43, the chart will be found pretty accurate. Between latitude 43° and latitude 44 20' the line may be doubted; for of fome part of the coaft which it reprefents we had fcarcely a view. From latitude 44° 20' to Cape Saunders, our distance would not permit me to be particular, and the weather was befides extremely unfavourable. From Cape Saunders to Cape South, and even to Cape Weft, there is alfo reafon to fear that the chart will in many places be found erroneous, as we were feldom able to keep the fhore, and were sometimes blown to such a distance, that it could not be feen. From Cape Weft to Cape Farewell, and even to Charlotte's Sound, it is not more to be trufted.

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Tovy Poenammoo is for the most part a mountain- Country. ous, and, to all appearance, a barren country; and the people whom we faw in Queen Charlotte's Sound, thofe that came off to us under the fnowy mountains, and the fires to the weft of Cape Saunders, were all

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Quadrupeds.

the inhabitants, and figns of inhabitants, that we difcovered upon the whole island.

Eaheinomauwe has a much better appearance; it is indeed not only hilly but mountainous, yet even the hills and mountains are covered with wood, and every valley has a rivulet of water. The foil in these vallies, and in the plains, of which there are many that are not overgrown with wood, is in general light, but fertile, and in the opinion of Mr. Banks and Dr. SoJander, as well as of every other gentleman on board, every kind of European grain, plants, and fruit, would flourish here in the utmoft luxuriance. From the vegetables that we found here, there is reason to conclude, that the winters are milder than thofe in England, and we found the fummer not hotter, though it was more equally warm; fo that if this country fhould be fettled by people from Europe, they would, with a little induftry, be very foon fupplied not only with the neceffaries, but the luxuries of life in great abundance.

In this country there are no quadrupeds but dogs and rats, at least we saw no other, and the rats are so scarce that many of us never faw them. The dogs live with the people, who breed them for no other purpose than to eat there might, indeed, be quadrupeds that we did not fee; but this is not probable, because the chief pride of the natives, with refpect to their drefs, is in the fkins and hair of fuch animals as they have, and we never faw the skin of any animal about them but thofe of dogs and birds. There are indeed feals upon the coaft, and we once faw a fea-lion, but we imagine. they are feldom caught; for though we faw fome of their teeth, which were fashioned into an ornament like a bodkin, and worn by the natives at their breast, and highly valued, we faw none of their fkins. There are whales alfo upon this coaft; and though the people did not appear to have any art or inftrument, by which fuch an animal could be taken and killed, we faw pattoo-pattoos in the poffeffion of fome of them, which were made of the bone of a whale, or of fome other animal whofe bone had exactly the fame appear

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Of birds, the species are not many; and of these 1770. none, except perhaps the gannet, is the fame with thofe of Europe: here are ducks, indeed, and fhaggs Birds. of several kinds, fufficiently resembling those of Europe, to be called the fame, by those who have examined them very nicely. Here are alfo hawks, owls, and quails, which differ but little from thofe of Europe at first fight; and several small birds, whofe fong, as has been remarked in the courfe of the narrative, is much more melodious than any that we had ever heard.

The fea coaft is alfo vifited by many oceanic birds, particularly albatroffes, fheerwaters, pintados, and a few of the birds which Sir John Narborough has called penguins, and which indeed are what the French call Nuance, and feem to be a middle fpecies between bird and fish; for their feathers, especially thofe upon their wings, differ very little from fcales; and their wings themselves, which they use only in diving, and not to accelerate their motion even upon the surface of the water, may perhaps, with equal propriety, be called fins.

Neither are infects in greater plenty than birds a few butterflies and beetles, flesh-flies, very like those in Europe, and fome mufquitos and fand-flies, perhaps exactly the fame with those of North America, make up the whole catalogue. Of mufquitos and fand-flies, however, which are justly accounted the curfe of every country where they abound, we did not fee many: there were, indeed, a few in almost every place where we went on fhore, but they gave us fo little trouble, that we did not make ufe of the fhades which we had provided for the fecurity of our faces.

For this fcarcity of animals upon the land, the fea, Fim, however, makes an abundant recompence, every creek fwarming with fith, which are not only wholefome, but equally delicious with thofe of Europe. The hip feldom anchored in any ftation, or with a hight gale paffed any place, that did not afford us enough, with hook and line, to ferve the whole fhip's company, elpecially to the fouthward. When we lay at anchor, the boats, with hook and line, near the rocks, could take fish in any quantity, and the feine feldom failed of producing a still more ample fupply; fo that both

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