July?' While the bread-fruit is ripening upon the flats, the inha-
I bitants are fupplied in fome meafure from the trees which o& turuiiy i i , _
they have planted upon the hills to preferve a fucceffion;
but the quantity is not fufficient to prevent fcarcity: they
live therefore upon the four pafle which they call Mahie,
upon wild plantains, and ahee-nuts, which at this time are
in perfection. How it happened that the Dolphin, which
was here at this feafon, found fuch plenty of bread-fruit
upon the trees, I cannot tell, except the feafon in which they
ripen varies.
At our return, our Indian friends crouded about us, and
none o f them came empty-handed. Though I had determined
to reftore the canoes which had been detained to
their owners, it had not yet been done; but I now releafed
them as they were applied for. Upon this occafion I could
not but remark with concern, that thefe people were capable
o f practifing petty frauds againft each other, with a deliberate
difhonefty, which gave me a much worfe opinion of
them than I had ever entertained from the robberies they
committed under the ftrong temptation to which a fudden
opportunity of enriching themfelves with the ineftimable
metal and manufactures of Europe expofed them.
Among others who applied to me for the releafe of a canoe,
was one Potattow, a man of fome confequence, well
known to us all. I confented, fuppofing the veflel to be his
own, or that he applied on the behalf of a friend: he went
immediately to the beach, and took pofleflion of one of the
boats, which, with the afliftance of his people, he began to
carry of. Upon this, however, it was eagerly claimed by the
right owners, who, fupported by the other Indians, clamour-
oufly reproached him for invading their property, and prepared
to take the canoe from him by force. Upon this, he
defired
defired to be heard, and told them, that the canoe did, indeed,
once belong to thofe who claimed i t ; but that I, hav- ___>
ing feized it as a forfeit, had fold it to him for a pig. This s>turday *•
filenced the clamour, the owners, knowing that from my
power there was no appeal, acquiefced; and Potattow would
have carried off- his prize, i f the difpute had not fortunately
been overheard by fome of our people who reported it to me.
I gave orders immediately that the Indians Ihould be undeceived
; upon which the right owners took pofleflion of their
canoe, and Potattow was fo confcious of his guilt, that neither
he nor his wife, who was privy to his knavery, could
look us in the face for fome time afterwards.
Vol. II. Z C H A P .