aS 'i . was extremely ill of my bilious diforder, I crawled on deck,,
and fixed my eyes with great eagernefs upon it, as upon a
place where I hoped my pains would ceafe. Early in the
morning I awoke, and was as much furprifed at the beauty
of the profpeft, as if fl had never beheld it before. It was-
indeed infinitely more beautiful at prefent,, than is had»
been eight months ago* owing to the difference of the fea-
fon. The forefts on the mountains were all clad in. frefh.
foliage, and gloried in- many variegated hues; and even the;
lower hills were not entirely deftitute of pleafing fpots, andi
covered with herbage. But the plains, above all, fhone-
forth in the greateft luxuriance of colours, the brightefb
tints of verdure being profufely lavifhed upon their fertile'
groves ; in fhort, the whole called to our mind the deferip-
tion o f Calypfo’s enchanted ifland..
With fuch a landfcape before us, it cannot be doubted;,
but that our eyes were continually fixed upon it. We had;
the farther pleafure to diftinguifh every well-known fpot
as we failed along. At laft the beautiful feenery of Mata-
vai opened to our view in all its grandeur; and we directed
our courfe into the bay, from whence we had. failed nears
eight months, before;
e n a p;.
Si
’7I4I*I,
C H A P . VI.
An account of our fécond vi/it to the i/land of o-Taheitee.
Ille terrarum mihi præter omnes
Angulus ridet ...........—■ Hor.
\ V T E were no fooner difeovered from the fhore, than «<
feveral canoes put off to welcome us with prefents
of fruit. Among the firft who came on board, were two
young men of fome note, whom we immediately invited
into the cabin, where they were made acquainted with Ma-
hine. The politenefs of the nation required that they
fhould make him a prefent of clothing ; accordingly they
took off their own upper garments, which were of the bell
fort, and put them on him. He gratified them in return
with a fight of his rarities, and made them a prefent of a
few red feathers, which they valued very highly.
At eight o’clock in the morning we dropped an anchor
in Matavai bay, and were furrounded prefently after by a
whole fleet of canoes, in which our old friends brought
us fifh, bread-fruit, apples, coco-nuts, and bananas, all
which they fold at low rates with the greateft readinefs.
Their fifh were mullets and bonitos, which they brought
perfetftly alive in a kind of trough, fixed between the two
H 2 hulls