When
This Was Over, He Threw The Branch Into The Main Chains, And Came On Board.
This Custom And Manner Of Making Peace, As It Were, Is Practised By All The
Nations In The South Seas That I Have Seen.
I took them both down into the cabin, where we were to breakfast.
They sat
at table with us, but would not taste any of our victuals. The chief wanted
to know where we slept, and indeed to pry into every corner of the cabin,
every part of which he viewed with some surprise. But it was not possible
to fix his attention to any one thing a single moment. The works of art
appeared to him in the same light as those of nature, and were as far
removed beyond his comprehension. What seemed to strike them most was the
number and strength of our decks, and other parts of the ship. The chief,
before he came aboard, presented me with a piece of cloth and a green talc
hatchet; to Mr Forster he also gave a piece or cloth; and the girl gave
another to Mr Hodges. This custom of making presents before they receive
any, is common with the natives of the South Sea isles; but I never saw it
practised in New Zealand before. Of all the various articles I gave my
guest, hatchets and spike-nails were the most valuable in his eyes.
These he never would suffer to go out of his hands after he once laid hold
of them; whereas many other articles he would lay carelessly down any
where, and at last leave them behind him.
As soon as I could get quit of them, they were conducted into the gun-room,
where I left them, and set out with two boats to examine the head of the
bay; myself in one, accompanied by Mr Forster and Mr Hodges, and Lieutenant
Cooper in the other. We proceeded up the south side, and without meeting
with any thing remarkable, got to the head of the bay by sun-set; where we
took up our lodging for the night, at the first place we could land upon;
for the flats hindered us from getting quite to the head.
At day-light in the morning, I took two men in the small boat, and with Mr
Forster went to take a view of the flat land at the head of the bay, near
to where we spent the night. We landed on one side, and ordered the boat to
meet us on the other side; but had not been long on shore before we saw
some ducks, which, by their creeping through the bushes, we got a shot at,
and killed one. The moment we had fired, the natives, whom we had not
discovered before, set up a most hideous noise in two or three places close
by us. We hallooed in our turn; and, at the same time, retired to our boat,
which was full half a mile off. The natives kept up their clamouring noise,
but did not follow us. Indeed we found afterwards that they could not,
because of a branch of the river between us and them, nor did we find their
numbers answerable to the noise they made. As soon as we got to our boat,
and found that there was a river that would admit us, I rowed in, and was
soon after joined by Mr Cooper in the other boat. With this reinforcement I
proceeded up the river, shooting wild ducks, of which there were great
numbers; as we went along, now and then hearing the natives in the woods.
At length two appeared on the banks of the river, a man and a woman; and
the latter kept waving something white in her hand, as a sign of
friendship. Mr Cooper being near them, I called to him to land, as I wanted
to take the advantage of the tide to get as high up as possible, which did
not much exceed half a mile, when I was stopped by the strength of the
stream and great stones which lay in the bed of the river.
On my return, I found that as Mr Cooper did not land when the natives
expected him, they had retired into the woods, but two others now appeared
on the opposite bank. I endeavoured to have an interview with them, but
this I could not effect. For as I approached the shore, they always retired
farther into the woods, which were so thick as to cover them from our
sight. The falling tide obliged me to retire out of the river to the place
where we had spent the night. There we breakfasted, and afterwards
embarked, in order to return on board; but, just as we were going, we saw
two men on the opposite shore, hallooing to us, which induced me to row
over to them. I landed with two others, unarmed; the two natives standing
about 100 yards from the water-side, with each a spear in his hand. When we
three advanced, they retired; but stood when I advanced alone.
It was some little time before I could prevail upon them to lay down their
spears. This, at last, one of them did; and met me with a grass plant in
his hand, one end of which he gave me to hold, while he held the other.
Standing in this manner, he began a speech, not one word of which I
understood, and made some long pauses, waiting, as I thought, for me to
answer; for, when I spoke, he proceeded. As soon as this ceremony was over,
which was not long, we saluted each other. He then took his hahou, or coat,
from off his own back, and put it upon mine; after which peace seemed
firmly established. More people joining us did not in the least alarm them;
on the contrary, they saluted every one as he came up.
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