, ’” *• making ufe of them for the benefit of feience *. We had
therefore more reafon than ever to regret that our illnefs
difabled us from (haring the perils of this little excurfion.
We accompanied captain Cook the next morning into
the river to the eaftward, where he went to give his friend
* It will not be improper to acquaint tbe reader, that we were fo iituated o n
board the Refolutiou, as to meet with obftacles in all our refearches, from thofe
who might have been expedled to give us all manner o f affiftance. It has always
been the fate of fcienee and philofophy to incur the contempt o f ignorance, and
this we might have fuffered without repining; but as we could not purchafe the'
good will o f every petty tyrant with gold, we were ftudioufly debarred the means
of drawing the lead advantage to fcienee from the obfervations o f others, who of
themfelves did not know how to make the proper ufe o f a -difeovery when they
had made it. Circumftances which were known to every perfon around us, re .
maiued impenetrable myfteries to* us ; and it was affuredly not owing to the good
nature o f our fhipmates, i f we have been fortunate enough to obtain even fuch
trifling information, as has enabled me to give the true and exadfc Situations o f
every place in this narrative, and' in my chart. I f it had been poffible, they
would have deceived even our eyes. I t may feem extraordinary, that men o f
fcience, fent out in a {hip belonging to the moil enlightened nation in the world,
lhould be cramped and deprived, o f the means o f purfuing knowledge, in a man-
« ner which would only become a fet o f barbarians ; but it is certain, that the traveller
who vifits the ruins o f Egypt and Paleftine, cannot experience greater mortification
from the ignorant felfilhnefs o f Bedouins and other Arabs, than fell to
our lo t ; fince every difeovery we attempted to make, was fuppofed to contain a
treafure* which became the objeft o f envy. T h e world will, however, derive
one advantage from this proceeding ; we {hall have little to offer, but what we
have feen with our own eyes, and for the truth and precifion of which we can be
anfwerable. I f there had not been a few individuals of a more liberal way o f
thinking, whole difinterefted love for the fciences comforted us from time to time,
we Should in all probability have fallen viflims to that malevolence, which even
the pofitive commands o f captain Cook were fometimes inefficient to keep within
bounds. Heebaï
Heebai a little pig of each fex, in order to provide, if pof- t o S t r .
fible, a flock of dotneftic animals for a nation, whofe good,
inoffenfive temper feetned highly to deferve fuch a prefent.
We found this man and his family at the huts where we
had firft feen him ; and captain Cook having delivered the
pigs to him, each of us contributed his mite of knowledge
of the language, in order to make it intelligible to
him, that the propagation of tKefe animals would fupply
him, in courfe of time, with conftant food, and that they
deferved to be carefully nurfed. He, as well as the whole
'family, were furprifed at the fight of thefe creatures, aad
at firft expreffed fo much diflike and dread of them, that
they made figns to us to rake them back. We now redoubled
our efforts to convince them of their error, and at
laft prevailed upon them to keep the pigs. It muft be allowed,
that fwine are far from being well-looking quadrupeds,
and that thofe who have never feen an animal of that
clafs, cannot be fuppofed to like them at firft fight. Men
feem to have had recourfe to animal food through neceffity,
at firft, as the depriving any creature of life is an aft of
violence, which demands a powerful caufe, before it is
made familiar by habit. When they had the choice, it
fhould feem that fuch ill-looking animals as hogs were
commonly rejected, till a more urgent opportunity proved,
that, in fpite of their appearance, their flefh was as delicious
as that of flieep and oxen. The poor natives of New
Gale