*774*
A ugust. number fat down oppofite the (hip, gazing at it with the
greateft attention. At once we heard the difcharge of
fome mufkets, and an irregular fire kept up for fome
time. Upon this alarm, another boat was inftantly equipped,
and fent to the affiftance of the former, and a fwivel
fhot directed over the point.- A great gun was likewife
brought upon the fore-caftle, and fired off towards the
hills. This ftruck a panic into ithe inhabitants in our
fight, who all haftened to fcreen themfelves in the bufhes ;
many were feen running out of the plantations on the hills,
routed by the found, and hurrying away again, as foon
as they beheld their countrymen .put to flight. We alfo
faw feveral dragging a dead or wounded man up one of
the ‘hills, from the place; where we heard the fire of our
boats. In a little time the captain returned in one boat,
while the two others continued to found in the bay. Öhe
of our feamen was brought into the fhip with a wound in
the cheek and another in the wr-ift; and we had the foll
o w i n g account from captain Cook and thofe who accompanied
him, concerning this unfortunate attack, The boats
had no fooner rowed round the point than they found a
good landing-place, where the captain and another perfon
Hepped alhore. He found feveral hundred natives armed
with bows and arrows, -clubs, and long fpears. Their Harare
was of the middle fize, and much fuperior to that of
the Mallicollefe ; they were indeed nearly of the fame
fwarthy
fwarthy hue, but better limbed and better featured. They awS st,'
went ftark naked, with a rope only about the middle, and
were for the reft to the full as indecent in the eyes of
Europeans as the Mallicollefe. Black paint and ruddle were
likewife not fpared on fome of their faces ; their hair was
black, ver-y curly or frizzled, but not woolly in all perfon«-
alike, and in a great- quantity. Some, however, had reddifl*
hair, and all had ftrong black beards.
Captain Cook began with diftributing prefents to feveral
of the natives, and- particularly to a man who appeared to
have föine' authority over the. reft. Having expreffed by
figns that he wanted frefh water and other provifions, the
chief fent :away • fome men, and continued to converfe by
figns. In a- fhort time the men returned, bringing a hollow
bamboo filled with frefh water, a few coco-nuts, and
the root of a yam. Our people underftood from their gef-
tures, that' they had fetched the water at a -little diftafice,
but it feerned the natives Were not inclined to let them walk
thither to- examine it. Their numbers encrcsfing every
moment, the captain re-embarked, and ordered his boat to-
be pufhed off. One of the natives immediately feized an
oar, but another took it Out of his hand and threw it back
towards the boat. Some then took hold of the gang-board,
which the fa-tlors had neglecfted to fecure, and hauled the
boat back to the fhore, whilft others came into the water
and;