I acquainted
Captain Furneaux therewith, and ordered him to get his ship in readiness to
put to sea as soon as possible.
In the morning of the 20th, I sent ashore, to the watering-place near the
Adventure's tent, the only ewe and ram remaining, of those which I brought
from the Cape of Good Hope, with an intent to leave them in this country.
Soon after I visited the several gardens Captain Furneaux had caused to be
made and planted with various articles; all of which were in a flourishing
state, and, if attended to by the natives, may prove of great utility to
them. The next day I set some men to work to make a garden on Long Island,
which I planted with garden seeds, roots, &c.
On the 22d in the morning, the ewe and ram, I had with so much care and
trouble brought to this place, were both found dead, occasioned, as was
supposed, by eating some poisonous plant. Thus my hopes of stocking this
country with a breed of sheep, were blasted in a moment. About noon, we
were visited, for the first time since I arrived, by some of the natives,
who dined with us; and it was not a little they devoured. In the evening
they were dismissed with presents.[1]
Early in the morning of the 24th, I sent Mr Gilbert the master to sound
about the rock we had discovered in the entrance of the sound. Myself,
accompanied by Captain Furneaux and Mr Forster, went in a boat to the west
bay on a shooting party. In our way, we met a large canoe in which were
fourteen or fifteen people. One of the first questions they asked was for
Tupia, the person I brought from Otaheite on my former voyage; and they
seemed to express some concern when we told them he was dead. These people
made the same enquiry of Captain Furneaux when he first arrived; and, on my
return to the ship in the evening, I was told that a canoe had been along-
side, the people in which seemed to be strangers, and who also enquired for
Tupia.[2] Late in the evening Mr Gilbert returned, having sounded all round
the rock, which he found to be very small and steep.
Nothing worthy of notice happened till the 29th, when several of the
natives made us a visit, and brought with them a quantity of fish, which
they exchanged for nails, &c. One of these people I took over to Motuara,
and shewed him some potatoes planted there by Mr Fannen, master of the
Adventure. There seemed to be no doubt of their succeeding; and the man was
so well pleased with them, that he, of his own accord, began to hoe the
earth up about the plants. We next took him to the other gardens, and
shewed him the turnips, carrots, and parsnips; roots which, together with
the potatoes, will be of more real use to them than all the other articles
we had planted.
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