None Of The Natives
Having Yet Made Their Appearance, We Made A Fire On The Point Of The
Island, In Hopes, If They Saw The Smoke, They Might Be Induced To Come To
Us.
Nothing remarkable happened till the 24th, when, in the morning, two canoes
were seen coming down the sound; but as soon as they perceived the ship,
they retired behind a point on the west side.
After breakfast I went in a
boat to look for them; and as we proceeded along the shore, we shot several
birds. The report of the muskets gave notice of our approach, and the
natives discovered themselves in Shag Cove by hallooing to us; but as we
drew near to their habitations, they all fled to the woods, except two or
three men, who stood on a rising ground near the shore, with their arms in
their hands. The moment we landed, they knew us. Joy then took place of
fear; and the rest of the natives hurried out of the woods, and embraced us
over and over again; leaping and skipping about like madmen, but I observed
that they would not suffer some women, whom we saw at a distance, to come
near us. After we had made them presents of hatchets, knives, and what else
we had with us, they gave us in return a large quantity of fish, which they
had just caught. There were only a few amongst them whose faces we could
recognise, and on our asking why they were afraid of us, and enquiring for
some of our old acquaintances by name, they talked much about killing,
which was so variously understood by us, that we could gather nothing from
it, so that, after a short stay, we took leave, and went on board.[3]
Next morning early, our friends, according to a promise they had made us
the preceding evening, paying us a visit, brought with them a quantity of
fine fish, which they exchanged for Otaheitean cloth, &c. and then returned
to their habitations.
On the 26th, we got into the after-hold four boat-load of shingle ballast,
and struck down six guns, keeping only six on deck. Our good friends the
natives, having brought us a plentiful supply of fish, afterwards went on
shore to the tents, and informed our people there, that a ship like ours
had been lately lost in the strait; that some of the people got on shore;
and that the natives stole their clothes, &c. for which several were shot;
and afterwards, when they could fire no longer, the natives having got the
better, killed them with their patapatoos, and eat them, but that they
themselves had no hand in the affair, which, they said, happened at Vanna
Aroa, near Terrawhitte, on the other side of the strait. One man said it
was two moons ago: But another contradicted him, and counted on his fingers
about twenty or thirty days. They described by actions how the ship was
beat to pieces by going up and down against the rocks, till at last it was
all scattered abroad.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 436 of 461
Words from 226226 to 226746
of 239428
