The 28th We Had Many Violent Tornadoes, Wind, Rain, And Some Spouts,
And In The Tornadoes The Wind Shifted.
In the night we had fair
weather, but more lightning than we had seen at any time this
voyage.
This morning we left a large high island on our larboard
side, called in the Dutch drafts Wishart's Isle, about six leagues
from the main; and, seeing many smokes upon the main, I therefore
steered towards it.
The mainland at this place is high and mountainous, adorned with
tall, flourishing trees; the sides of the hills had many large
plantations and patches of clear land, which, together with the
smoke we saw, were certain signs of its being well inhabited; and I
was desirous to have some commerce with the inhabitants. Being nigh
shore, we saw first one proa; a little after, two or three more, and
at last a great many boats came from all the adjacent bays. When
they were forty-six in number they approached so near us that we
could see each other's signs and hear each other speak, though we
could not understand them, nor they us. They made signs for us to
go in towards the shore, pointing that way. It was squally weather,
which at first made me cautious of going too near; but the weather
beginning to look pretty well, I endeavoured to get into a bay ahead
of us, which we could have got into well enough at first; but while
we lay by, we were driven so far to leeward that now it was more
difficult to get in. The natives lay in their proas round us; to
whom I showed beads, knives, glasses, to allure them to come nearer.
But they would not come so nigh as to receive anything from us;
therefore I threw out some things to them, viz., a knife fastened to
a piece of board, and a glass bottle corked up with some beads in
it, which they took up, and seemed well pleased. They often struck
their left breast with their right hand, and as often held up a
black truncheon over their heads, which we thought was a token of
friendship, wherefore we did the like. And when we stood in towards
their shore, they seemed to rejoice; but when we stood off, they
frowned, yet kept us company in their proas, still pointing to the
shore. About five o'clock we got within the mouth of the bay, and
sounded several times, but had no ground, though within a mile of
the shore. The basin of this bay was about two miles within us,
into which we might have gone; but as I was not assured of anchorage
there, so I thought it not prudent to run in at this time, it being
near night, and seeing a black tornado rising in the west, which I
most feared. Besides, we had near two hundred men in proas close by
us; and the bays on the shore were lined with men from one end to
the other, where there could not be less than three or four hundred
more.
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