etfz A V O Y A G E ROUND THE WORLD.
H\l in our coops particularly attradled their attention ; a hand-
fome car, was likewife much courted, but they always
flroked it the wrong way, fo as to make the hair ftand upright,
though we fliowed them to do it in a contrary direction
; probably they admired the richnefs of the furr. The
man looked upon every new objeft with furprize, but as his
attention could not be fixed to any one objetft for more than
a Angle moment,, many of our works of art mull have appeared
to him as incomprehenfible, as thofe of nature.
However, the number and ftrength of our decks and of
other parts of our veffel engroffed his admiration more than
any thing elfe. The girl, feeing Mr. Hodges, whofe pencil
Ihe had much admired, made him a pi^fent of a piece
of cloth, of the fame kind as thole which the man had
given to captain Cook and my father. This cuftom of.
making prefents is not fo ufual in other parts of New Zee-
land, as in the tropical iflands : but it appears on the whole,,
that this family were not always guided by national cuf-
toms, but took fuch meafures as prudence and integrity;
fuggefted in their fituation, which left them at the mercy,
of a greater force. We defired them to come into the cabin,,
and after a long debate among themfelves, they accepted
the invitation, and defeended by the ladder. Here they,
admired every thing, and were particularly pleafed to.
learn the ufe of chairs, and that they might be removed;
from place to place. They were prefented. with hatchets
by
by the captain and my father, and received a great num- aVmL
ber of trinkets of left value. Theft laft the man laid
down in a heap, and would have gone away without them,
had we not reminded him of them ; whereas he never
let a hatchet or fipike-nail go out of his hand, after he had
once taken hold of it. They few us fit down to our break-
fall, and were feated near u s ; but all our intreaties could
not prevail on them to touch our vift.uals. They likewife
exprefsly inquired where we went to fleep, and the captain
fliowed them his cot, which was fufpended, at which
they were mightily pleafed. From the cabin they proceeded
to the.gun-room, on the deck below ; and having received
feveral prefents there, they returned to the captain again.
The man now piilled out a little leather bag, probably of
feals fkin, and having, with a good deal of ceremony, put
in his fingers, which he pulled out covered with oil, offered
to anoint captain Cook's hair ; this honour was however
declined, becaufe the unguent, though perhaps held as a *
delicious perfume, and as the moft precious thing the man
could beftow, yet feemed to our noftrils not a little offensive
; and the very fqualid appearances of the bag in which
it was contained, contributed to make it Hill more difguff-
ful. Mr. Hodges did not efcape fo well; for the girl, having
a tuft of feathers, dipt in oil, on a firing round her
neck, infilled upon dreffmg him out with it, and he was
forced to wear the odoriferous prefent, in pure civility..
y 2 Wn