From The Account I Had Of Him
(For I Did Not See Him,) His Whiteness Did Not Proceed From Hereditary
Descent, but from chance or some disease; and such have been seen at
Otaheite and the Society Isles.[6] A
Fresh easterly wind, and the ship
lying a mile from the shore, did not hinder those good-natured people from
swimming off to us in shoals of twenty or thirty, and returning the same
way.
On the 10th, a party was on shore as usual; and Mr Forster so well
recovered as to go out botanizing.
In the evening of the 11th, the boats returned, when I was informed of the
following circumstances. From an elevation which they reached the morning
they set out, they had a view of the coast. Mr Gilbert was of opinion that
they saw the termination of it to the west, but Mr Pickersgill thought not;
though both agreed that there was no passage for the ship that way. From
this place, accompanied by two of the natives, they went to Balabea, which
they did not reach till after sun-set, and left again next morning before
sun-rise; consequently this was a fruitless expedition, and the two
following days were spent in getting up to the ship. As they went down to
the isle, they saw abundance of turtle; but the violence of the wind and
sea made it impossible to strike any. The cutter was near being lost, by
suddenly filling with water, which obliged them to throw several things
overboard, before they could free her, and stop the leak she had sprung.
From a fishing canoe, which they met coming in from the reefs, they got as
much fish as they could eat; and they were received by Teabi, the chief of
the isle of Balabea, and the people, who came in numbers to see them, with
great courtesy. In order not to be too much crowded, our people drew a line
on the ground, and gave the others to understand they were not to come
within it. This restriction they observed, and one of them, soon after,
turned to his own advantage. For happening to have a few cocoa-nuts, which
one of our people wanted to buy, and he was unwilling to part with, he
walked off, and was followed by the man who wanted them. On seeing this, he
sat down on the sand, made a circle round him, as he had seen our people
do, and signified that the other was not to come within it; which was
accordingly observed. As this story was well attested, I thought it not
unworthy of a place in this journal.[7]
Early in the morning of the 12th, I ordered the carpenter to work, to
repair the cutter, and the water to be re-placed, which we had expended the
three preceding days. As Tea Booma the chief had not been seen since he got
the dogs, and I wanted to lay a foundation for stocking the country with
hogs also, I took a young boar and a sow with me in the boat, and went up
to the mangrove creek to look for my friend, in order to give them to him.
But when we arrived there, we were told that he lived at some distance, and
that they would send for him. Whether they did or no I cannot say; but he
not coming, I resolved to give them to the first man of note I met with.
The guide we had to the hills happening to be there, I made him understand
that I intended to leave the two pigs on shore, and ordered them out of the
boat for that purpose. I offered them to a grave old man, thinking he was a
proper person to entrust them with; but he shook his head, and he and all
present, made signs to take them into the boat again. When they saw I did
not comply, they seemed to consult with one another what was to be done;
and then our guide told me to carry them to the Alekee (chief). Accordingly
I ordered them to be taken up, and we were conducted by him to a house,
wherein were seated, in a circle, eight or ten middle-aged persons. To them
I and my pigs being introduced, with great courtesy they desired me to sit
down; and then I began to expatiate on the merits of the two pigs,
explaining to them how many young ones the female would have at one time,
and how soon these would multiply to some hundreds. My only motive was to
enhance their value, that they might take the more care of them; and I had
reason to think I in some measure succeeded. In the mean time, two men
having left the company, soon returned with six yams, which were presented
to me; and then I took my leave and went on board.
I have already observed, that here was a little village; I now found it
much larger than I expected; and about it, a good deal of cultivated land,
regularly laid out, planted and planting with taro or eddy root, yams,
sugar-canes, and plantains. The taro plantations were prettily watered by
little rills, continually supplied from the main channel at the foot of the
mountains, from whence these streams were conducted in artful meanders.
They have two methods of planting these roots, some are in square or oblong
patches, which lie perfectly horizontal, and sink below the common level of
the adjacent land, so that they can let in on them as much water as they
think necessary. I have generally seen them covered two or three inches
deep; but I do not know that this is always necessary. Others are planted
in ridges about three or four feet broad, and two, or two and a half high.
On the middle or top of the ridge, is a narrow gutter, in and along which
is conveyed, as above described, a little rill that waters the roots,
planted in the ridge on each side of it; and these plantations are so
judiciously laid out, that the same stream waters several ridges.
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