Jui8' his authority for the requifition he had made: he replied,,
that he had no teftimony o f authority but the notoriety o f
his being a public officer, and the evidence of the gentlemen
that were with him, confirming his own declaration, that he
afted in this particular by the exprefs order o f Council. I
then repeated my requeft, that whatever the Council required
o f me might be given me in writing, that the fenfe o f iti
might be fixed and certain, and that I might have time to
confider of my reply; but he gave me to underftand that he
could not do this without an order from the Council, and I
then abfolutely refufed to fign the paper, at the fame time
defiring an anfwer to my letter, which they not being prepared
to give, we parted, not in very good humour with
each other.
Wednef. 15. After this, I waited in a fruitlefs expeAation till the 15th,
when the fame three gentlemen came to me the third timel
and faid they had been fent to tell me that the Council had
protefted againft my behaviour at Macaffar, and my having
refufed to fign the certificate which had been required o f me,
as an infult upon them, and an a A o f injuftice to their nation.
I replied, that I was not confcious o f having in any
inftance aAed contrary to the treaties fubfifting between the
two kingdoms, unworthy of my charaAer as an officer, honoured
with a coromiffion o f his Britannic Majefty, or un-
fuitable to the truft repofed in me, though I did not think
I had been ufed by the Governor o f Macaffar as the fubjeAr
of a friend and ally; defiring that i f they had any thing to.
allege againft me. it might be reduced to writing, and laid
before the King my Mailer, to whom alone I thought my-
felf amenable. With this anfwer they again departed, and
Thurfjay 16. next fiay> having not yet received any anfwer to my letter,
I wrote a fecond, direAed like the firft, in which I re-
prefented that the ffiip’s leaks were every day increafing, •
and
R O U N D T H E W O R L D .
and urged, in more preffing terms, my r e q u e f t that ffie 1768.
might be repaired, and that the ufe of wharfs and {tore- ■''' J“"e - ■
houfes might be afforded me. t S W 16.
On the 18th, the ffiebander came again to me, and ac- Saturday .s
quainted me, that the Council had given orders for the repair
o f the ffiip at Onruft, and as there was no ftore-houfe
empty, had appointed one o f the Company’s veffels to attend
me, and take in my ftores. I enquired whether there was
not an anfwer to my letter in writing; to which he anfwered
in the negative, adding, that it was not ufual, a meffage by
him, or fome other officer, having been always thought
fuflicient. 6 >
After this I was fupplied, for m y money, with every thing
I could defire, from the Company’s ftores, without any further
difficulty.
A pilot was ordered to attend me, and on the zzd, we an- we<W 22.
chored at Onruft, where, having cleared the ffiip, and put
her ftores on board the Company’s veffel, we found the bow-
fprit and cap, as well as the main yard, rotten, and altogether
unferviceable, the ffieathing every where eaten off
by the worms, and the main planks o f the ffiip’s bottom fo
much damaged and decayed, that it was abfolutely neceffary
to heave her down, before ffie could be fufficiently repaired
to fail for Europe; but as other ffiips were already heaved
down, and confequently the wharfs at this time pre-occu-
pied, the carpenters could not begin their work till the 24th
of July. ' . ' - “ H'
Under the hands o f thefe people the fliip continued till Await
Tuefday the 16th of Auguft. When they came to examine. Tue<a°)';’5i
her bottom, they found it fo bad that they were unanimoufly
of opinion it fhould be ffiifted: this, however, I ftrenuoufly
oppofed; I knew flie was an old ffiip, and I was afraid that
3 K 3 - i f