“ De Vogelen (daar’t van vol is) zijn van allerhande slag: Duyven, Papegayen,.lndische-Bavens,
Sparwers, Valken, Lijsters, Vlen, Swalnwen, en menigten van’t kleyn gevlengelt gqet; yritte m swarte
Beygers, Gansens, Eent-Vogels, Dod-aarsen, Schil-padden, Koeyen vander zee.”—fed. 19, p. 2.
""Waxen de Scheep-lieden alle dagen uyt om Vogden en meer andere gedierten (diese o p ’t Landt
rinden konden) té jagen, daar benevens hiddense nau op, met de Zegens, Hoeken, en andere vissing in
de weer te zijn; viervoetige gedierten, nytgezondert Katten, zijnder niet, de onse hebben namads daar
Bocken, ßeyten en Verkens op-geplant: De Beygeren toonden baar ongetemder als andere Vogden,
waren niet wel te krijgen, vermits haar vlngt in de diebte tacken der Boomen; zy grepen Vogden
by sommige Dod-aarsen, by sommige Dronten genaamt; kregen den naam van Walliclx-Vogds, ten
tijden dat Jacob van Nek bier was, Om datse door V lang zieden nañlijx murruw wilden, tay en hard
bleven, nytgesondert de borst en maag die seer goet waren, ook om datse door de overvloedige Tortel-
duyfles (diese konde bekomen) genoegsaamde de walg kregen van de gemdjle Dod-aarsen; baar
afbeeltsel is in de voorige Plaat; sy hebben groote hoofden, en daar kapkens op, zijn sonder víeugelen
en staarten, hebben alleen ter zyden kleine wiekxkens, achter vier oí vijf veerkens, wat meer verhieven
van de andere; Hebben bekken en voeten, en gemendijk in de maag een steen eajsvuysten groote
hebbende."—fol. 21, p. 1.
“De Dod-aarsen met haar ronde stuyten, mosten (om datse wel gevöedt waren) mede stuyt keren;
't was al in rep en roer wat sig maar reppen kond, de Visschen die voor eenige jaren vredig leefden,
wierden in de diepste water-knylen na-gejaagt,” &c.—Pol. 81, p. 8.
"Den 85 (Julius) bracht Willem met zijn mafiosen eenige Dod-aarsen die seer vet waren; pbheSp,
al't scheepvolk, hadden aan drie of vier tot een maal-tijdt genoeg te kluyven, en daar school noch
™ ................... ’■ ®e schikten gerookte Vis, en ook gesouten M-aarsen,nevens tsEd-Sehil-padden,
en andere Vogelen, aan boordt, welke voor-sorg daar na wel te bate quam. Waren hier mede nog
eenige dagen doende en besig aan't Schip te brengen; de Matrosen van Willem brachten | § den 4
van Oegst-maandt 50 grote Vogelen in deBnyn-Vu, hier onder waren 84 of 85 Dod-aarsen, so groof
en swaar datser ter maaltijd geen twee dar van opeten mogten, al watter voorts over was, wierd' in 't
sout gesmeten.”—Pol. 88, p. 8.
“ S anderen-daags toog Hogeveen (Willems Coopman) met vier mafiosen uyt de tent, versien met
stocken, netten, mosqueteo, en ander gereetschap, op de Jacht, rende Heuvel en Berg op,liepen Bosch
en Valey door, en ringen in de drie dagen, datse uyt waren by de ander-half-hondert VogSteS? en
onder de sdve wel 80 Dronten of Död-aarsen, diese d l e ’t Scheep brachten en in ’t^ lü t staken,
warense vorder, nevens 't andere volk vande vloot, in 't Vogelen en Visschen besig.” Pol. 23, p. 15t ■
TBANSLATION.
“ The birds (of which the island is fall) are of all kinds : Doves, Parrots, M a n . Crows, Sparrows,
Hawks, Thrushes, Owls (?), Swallows, and many small birds; white and black Herons, Geese, Ducks,
Dodos, Tortoises, Sea-cows.
“ The sailors out every day to hunt for birds and other game, such as they could find on the
land, while they became less active with their nets, hooks, and other fishing tackle. No quadrupeds
occur there except Cats, though our countrymen have subsequently introduced Goats and Swine. The
Herons were less tame than the other birds, and were difficult to procure, owing to their flying amongst
the thick branches of the trees. They also caught birds which some name Dod-aarsen, others Dronten ;
when Jacob van Neck was here, these birds were called WalUcl-Vogels, because even a long boiling
would scarcely make them tender, but they remained tough and hard, with the exception of the breast
and belly, which were very good; and also, because, from the abundance of Turtle-doves which the
men procured, they became disgusted with the Dodos. The figure of these birds is given in the
accompanying plate; they have great heads, with hoods thereon; they are without wings or tail, and
have only little winglets on their sides, and four or five feathers behind, more elevated than the rest.
They have beaks and feet, and commonly in the stomach a stone the sizé of a fist.1 ..............
“ The Dodos, with their round stems, (for they were well fattened,) were also obliged to turn tail;
everything that could move was in a bustle; the fish, which had lived in peace for many a year, were
pursued into the deepest water-pools.................
“ On the 25th July, Willem and his sailors brought some Dodos which were very fat; the whole
crew made an ample meal from three or four of them, and a portion remained over. .............. They
sent on board smoked fish, salted Dodos, Land-tortoises, and other game, which supply was very
acceptable. They were busy for some days bringing provisions to the ship. On the 4th of August
Willem's men brought 50 large birds on board the Bruyn-Yis; among them were 24 or 25 Dodos, so
large and heavy, that they could not eat any two of them for dinner, and all that remained over was
salted.
“ Another day, Hogeveen (Willem's supercargo) set out from the tent with four seamen, provided
with sticks, nets, muskets, and other necessaries for hunting. They climbed up mountain and hill,
roamed through forest and valley, and during the three days that they were out they captured another
half hundred of birds, including a matter of 20 Dodos, all which they brought on board and salted.
Thus were they, and the other crews in the fleet, occupied in fowling and fishing."
This account is accompanied by a very rude plate, intended to represent the “ Scheep-
lieden” killing Dodos; but as the artist has evidently taken Penguins as his models, I do not
repeat this engraving. At the foot of the plate are these lines:—
“ Victali soektmen hier en vlees van’t pluim gediert,
Der pallembomen sap, de dronten rond van stuiten,
’t Wylmen de papegai hout dat hij piept en tiert,
En doet dat and’re meer ook raaken inder miuten.”
Which may be thus Englished:—
“ For food the seamen hunt the flesh of feathered fowl,
They tap the Palms, the round-stemed Dodos they destroy,
The Parrot’s life they spare that he may scream and howl.
And thus his fellows to imprisonment decoy.’’ ...
It is not easy to determine the date when the synonymous words Dodars, from which
our ñame Dodo is derived, and Dronte were first introduced. The earliest apparent authority
for their use is this voyage of Willem van West-Zanen, but his Journal, though written in
1603, seems to have been unpublished till 1648, and these names may therefore have been
interpolated among the other alterations made in Willem’s text by his editor Soeteboom.
Matelief’s Journal, again, which speaks of Dodaersen, otherwise Dronten, was written in 1606,
and Van der Hagen’s in 1607, but I have seen no edition of either work earlier than
1 This description is evidently extracted from Matelief’s Voyage.—Vide infra, p. 17.