I !
Monday aft
Tuefday ay.
ever fuggefted this horrid practice, I lliould admit that if
was poflible,. among a ftnall number of unhappy individuals,
driven from more convenient feats to thefie barren extremis
ties of the world; and in that cafe it muft likewife be allowed,
that fueh' a tribe cannot long continue in being.
The poor- Pecherais embarked^ in their canoes again
about noon, and flowly and filently paddled away, in the-
fame manner as they came., Our failors well pleafed to-
fee their fhip fafe at anchor, had already begun their
holiday the evening before, and continued to caroufe during:
two days without intermiffion, till captain Cook ordered the
greateft part of them to be packed into a boat-, and put
afhore, to recover from their drunkennefs in the frefli .
air.
On the 27 th in the morning, fome of the people being,
tolerably fober, captain Cook manned a boat, and went-
with my father, and' Dr. Sparrman-, to the fame ifland where-
we had been fo- fuccefsful on the 24th, He brought on
board in the evening fome geefe and other fowls, which
were roafted, and preferved as a kind of fea-ftock. In his
abfence the natives came on board again, but made a very
fhort flay, as nobody took any notice of them on account
of their infufferable fiench. The word fefferay which they
repeated from time to time, was pronounced in fuch a
piteous tone, that we fometimes believed the natives were
begging ; but upon looking at them, we difcovered no*
change
change of countenance; nothing but that vacant flare
which is the chara&eriftic of the moft confummate ftu-
pidity.
Having completed our provifion of wood and water, and
brought the tents on board, which had been ere&ed on
fhore, we failed the 28th in the morning, at eight o’clock,
on our way towards Cape Horn. The refrefliments which
we had obtained in this found, which was named Chrift-
mas Sound, and its convenient fituation for fhips coming
into, or going out of the South Sea, make it a very fit
place of refort. It contains many excellent harbours, and
has wood enough for fuel, though little or none! for the
carpenter’s ufe; its water is very pure, and well-tafted, and
the air though keen, is yet very falubrious. Whiift we
lay in this found, one of the marines was unfortunately
drowned. He was not miffed till two days after, when an
enquiry being made, it was difcovered, that being much intoxicated
he had gone down into the head, where he had
probably flipped overboard. It was the fame perfon who
had before efcaped drowning off the Ifle of Irromanga, and
who afterwards fhot a native of Tanna. This was the
fourth and laft man we loft in the courfe of our whole
voyage.
In the afternoon we palled the ifland of St, lldefonfo,
probably fo called by Spanilh navigators after which we
fleeted to the -caftward whiift it was light, and tacked till
T t t 2 the
7774- ’
D ecember.
Wednefd. aS.
Thurfday *5.