IMi I ; J a II
3 7 0
1 in *774*
August,
Friday a 5,
f t w l
III!)
k PS
ill
hundred and thirty, and one hundred and forty fathom,
about a mile from the Ihore. It was foon perfectly dark,
and as we only difcerned the land by the lights which
glimmered through the woods in different places, our fitua-
tion was beginning to be alarming, and we thought, of
hoifting out our boats to tow us off, when a faint breeze
affifted us to get into the middle of the bay. Here we
waited for day-light, and then continued to ftand in to the
fouthward with light airs, which vanilhed towards noon,.
Two boats were fent after dinner to the beach which runs,
along the bottom of the bay, in order to reconnoitre whether
there was any port, or a river, which we could not:
difcern from on board, being ftill above a league and a
half diftant. In the mean while three canoes put off from
the Ihore, with triangular fails, and approached the flfip
very fall. In each of them we obferved four or five men,
to whom we called, as foon as we thought them within
hearing. They were naked, and of the fame colour as the
Mallicollefe ; but taller, and more ftoutly formed; .their
hair feemed to be woolly, and their beards frizzled. Some
of them had a bunch of feathers on the top of the head
and others wore a white (hell tied on the fore-head. On
their arms they had bracelets of Ihell-work, .exactly re-
fembling thole which we had obferved at Mallicollo, and
round their middle they wore a narrow belt, from whence
a long flip of matted-work, five inches broad, defcended to
the;
the knees before and behind. One of them had a fago-
leaf rolled round his head, forming a kind of airy cap.
Their canoes were of indifferent workmanfliip like thofe of
Mallicollo, and had out-riggers. We faw fome fpears in
them, which had two or three prongs, and were doubtlefs
intended as filh-gigs; but, befides thefe, the people had no
arms whatfoever. They came fo near as to accept a pre-
fent of medals, nails, Taheitee cloth, and red baize; and we
could obferve them feizing upon the nails with peculiar
eagernefs, which feems to indicate that they were not
wholly unacquainted with them: Quiros perhaps might
leave fome iron-ware on this ifland, which has thus acquired
a high value among the natives. They faftened a
branch of the pepper-plant to the fame rope by which we
had lowered down the nails to them; but it appeared, that
befides this emblem of friendlhip, they had nothing elfe to
give. We fpoke a good deal to them, and they anfwered
from time to time, but neither party underftood the other.
However, I thought of repeating the numerals in the dialed!:
of the Friendly Iflahds, and had fcarcely begun to count,
when they immediately interrupted me, and counted very
exadtly till ten. We now pointed to the Ihore, and enquired
for the name of the ifland. They repeated the word
Fannoba, which in the dialed! juft mentioned fignifies land ;
and called the level diftridt, at the bottom of the bay, Talla-
Bb b 2 onee,
1774«
A ugust,