•»773- and various flowers ; nay feveral flirubs, and trees to the-
height of forty feet, rife on both fides of the ftreim, and
hide its courfe from the fun. The noife of the cafcade is fo
loud, and fo repeatedly reverberated from thé echoing rocks,
that it drowns almoft every other found; the birds feemed
to retire from it to a little diftance, where the Ihrill notes
of thruflies, the graver pipe of wattle-birds, and the enchanting
melody of various creepers refounded on all fides,
and completed the beauty of this wild and romantic fpot.
On turning round we beheld an extenfive bay, ftrewed as
it were With ftnall iflands, which are covered With lofty
trees; beyond them on one fide, the mountains rife ma-
iefti'c on the main land, capt with clouds and perpetual
fnow; and on the other, the immenfe ocean bounded our
view. The grandeur of this fcene was fuch, that the
powers of defection fall Ihort of the force and beauty of
nature, which could only be truly imitated by the pencil
of Mr. Hodges, who went on this voyage with us ; and
whofe performances do great credit and honour to his
judgment and execution, as well as to the choice of his
employers. Satisfied with the contemplation of this magnificent
fight, we directed our attention next .0 the flowers
which enlivéned the ground, and the fmall birds whic
fung very cheerfully all round us. We had as yet found
neither the vegetable nor animal creation fo beautiful,
or fo numerous, in any part of this bay ; perhaps, becau e
the
the ftrong refraction of the fun-beams from the perpendi- avril.
Jar walls of rock, and the fhelter from ftorms, made the
climate confiderably more mild and genial in this fpot than
in any other part. The foil was in nothing different
here from that in other parts round the bay, but feemed to
be the fame vegetable mould ; and the rocks and Hones
about the cafcade confifted of maffes of granite, or moor-
ftone (fhxianj, and of a kind of brown talcous clay-ftone,
in ftrata, which is common to all New Zeeland.
We returned on board before fun-fet, well pleafed with-
our acquifidons during this excurfion. At our return
we were told, that the Indian family, whom we had feen
paddling into the cove, in the morning, in their beft attire,
had gradually approached the Ihip with great caution. Captain
Cook meeting them in a boat, quitted it, and went
into their canoe, but could not prevail on them to come
along-fide of the Ihip, and was obliged to leave them to follow
their own inclination. At length they went afliore, in
a little creek hard by ours, and afterwards came and fat down
on the Ihore abreaft of the veffel, to which they were near,
enough to be heard, and fpoken to. The captain gave orders
to play the fife and bagpipe, and to beat the drum;.
but they entirely difregarded the two firft, and were nor
very attentive to the laft, nor could any thing induce them,
to come on board. Several of our officers and feamen then
going on Ihore to them, were received with great goodnature,.