Sea Islands; but we were not
sufficiently experienced to understand and pronounce distinctly the
words of the vocabularies we had extracted from Cook."
Nearly all the early navigators made a feature of compiling
vocabularies of native words, and Cook devoted particular care to this
task. Dr. Walter Roth, formerly protector of Queensland aboriginals
a trained observer, has borne testimony as recently as last year
(in THE TIMES, December 29, 1911) that a list of words collected from
Endeavour Strait blacks, and "given by Captain Cook, are all more or
less recognisable at the present day." But Cook's spellings were
intended to be pronounced in the English mode. Laperouse and his
companions by giving the vowels French values would hardly be likely to
make the English navigator's vocabularies intelligible.
The native canoes amused the French captain. They "could be of use only
to people who are expert swimmers, for they are constantly turned over.
This is an accident, however, at which they feel less surprise and
anxiety than we should at a hat's blowing off. They lift the canoe on
their shoulders, and after they have emptied it of the water, get into
it again, well assured that they will have the same operation to
perform within half an hour, for it is as difficult to preserve a
balance in these ticklish things as to dance upon a rope."
At Mauna Island (now called Tutuila) some successful bargaining was
done with glass beads in exchange for pork and fruits. It surprised
Laperouse that the natives chose these paltry ornaments rather than
hatchets and tools. "They preferred a few beads which could be of no
utility, to anything we could offer them in iron or cloth."
Two days later a tragedy occurred at this island, when Captain de
Langle, the commander of the ASTROLABE, and eleven of the crew were
murdered. He made an excursion inland to look for fresh water,
and found a clear, cool spring in the vicinity of a village. The ships
were not urgently in need of water, but de Langle "had embraced the
system of Cook, and thought fresh water a hundred times preferable to
what had been some time in the hold. As some of his crew had slight
symptoms of scurvy, he thought, with justice, that we owed them every
means of alleviation in our power. Besides, no island could be compared
with this for abundance of provisions. The two ships had already
procured upwards of 500 hogs, with a large quantity of fowls, pigeons
and fruits; and all these had cost us only a few beads."
Laperouse himself doubted the prudence of sending a party inland, as he
had observed signs of a turbulent spirit among the islanders. But de
Langle insisted on the desirableness of obtaining fresh water where it
was abundant, and "replied to me that my refusal would render me
responsible for the progress of the scurvy, which began to appear with
some violence." He undertook to go at the head of the party, and,
relying on his judgment, the commander consented.
