auotst. man feemed to underftand, but all in vain; a mulket,
charged with fmall Ihot was fired into his face, upon which
he, and two men who were with him, betook themfelves to
paddling with the greateft agility. Their canoe was purified
from deck by feveral fhot from the fhip’s mufketoons;
one of them fell fo near them, and rebounded fo often from
the water, that they all jumped into the fea and fwam
afhore. A great concourfe of natives was prefently obferv-
ed near the fpot where they landed, to whom they probably
related their ftory. A few minutes after, a Angle man came
off to us in a canoe, with fome fugar-canes, coco-nuts, and
yams. He was an old man, of a low ftature, but had a
very friendly countenance, which announced his good dif-
pofition. He had been adtive the preceding afternoon to
preferve the peace with our people, and his arrival was
therefore the more acceptable to us. Captain Cook made
him a prefent of a complete drefs of the belt red Taheitee
cloth, with which the old man was highly pleafed. He had
in his canoe two large clubs, none of thefe people ever going
without arms; but captain Cook, being in one of our
boats along fide, took them out and threw them into the
fea, making figns to the man, that all his countrymen on
fhore Ihould lay down their arms. The old fellow liked
this propofal exceedingly, and feeming entirely contented
with the dofs of his dubs, returned to the fliorc, where we
obferved him parading for fome time in his new drefs.
Vail
Vaft numbers of people were now feen affembling on the avcust
beach from all quarters of the ifland, but far the greateft
part came down from the fteep hill on the weft fide of the
bay. The buflies and groves on the plain were filled with
men of whom none went without arms. Towards nine
o’clock, having fixed a fpring on the cable, we prepared to-
land in the launch and two other boats, with all our marines
and a party of feamen well armed. As foon as the
natives faw our boats coming, they haftened out of the-
bufhes on the beach, and formed chiefly in two large bodies,
one on each fide of the watering-place.- That on the
weft fide was by far the moft confiderable, confiding of no-
lefs than feven hundred men, in a compact body, who
feemed prepared for aftion. On the eaft fide we gueffed
there might be about two hundred men, who, though equally
well armed, had however a more peaceable look. In the
middle, between them, flood the little old man who had
been with us juft before, and two other natives. Thefe
three were unarmed, and had laid a heap of bananas on
the beach. Having approached within twenty yards of the-
beach, captain Cook called to the natives, and made figns:
for them to lay down their arms, and to recede from the
beach. But of this demand they took no manner o f notice,
perhaps thinking it abfurd and unjuft that a few
ftrangers Ihould prefcribe laws to them on their own
ground As it was not thought prudent to land between
6 the