was afterwards made at him by the man who took the muf-
quet, before any command was given to fire. It was alfo
fuggefted, that Owhaw had fufpicions, at leaft, i f not certain
knowlege, that fomething would be attempted again!!
our people at the tent, which made him fo very earn.eft in,
his endeavours to prevent our leaving i t ; others imputed his,
importunity to his defire that we Ihould confine ourfelves to
the beach: and it was remarked that neither Owhaw, nor
the Chiefs wffip remained with us after he had fent the reft,
of the people away, would have inferred the, breach of peace
from the firing- at the tent, if they had had no reafon to
fufpeCt that fome, injury had been offered by their conn»
trynien; efpecially as Mr. Banks had juft fired at the ducksr
and yet that they did infer a breach of peace from that inch
dent, as was manifeft from their waving their hands; for the
people to difperfe,,and inftantly pulling green branches- from
the trees. But what were the real circumfiances of this unhappy
affair, and whether either and which of thefe conjectures
were true, can never certainly be known.
The next morning but few of the natives were feen upon,
the beach, and-not one of them came off to the fhip. This,
convinced us that our endeavours to quiet their apprchenfionsi.
had not been effectual j and we remarked- with particular
regret, that we were, deferted even by Owhaw, who had hitherto
been fo conftant in his attachment, and fo adtive in
renewing the peace that had been broken.
Appearances being thus unfavourable, I warped the fhip
nearer to the !hore, and moored her in fueh a manner as to
command all the N.£. part of the bay, particularly the place
which I had marked out for the building a fort. In the evening,
however, I went on fhore with only a boat’s crew, and
feme of the gentlemen: the natives gathered about us, but
9 not
not in the fame number as before; there were I believe be- lift- April.
tween thirty and forty, and they trafficked with us for cocoa- —-j
nuts and other fruit, to all appearance as friendly as ever.
On the 17th, early in the morning, wé had the misfortune Monday 17.
to lofe Mr. Buchan, the perfon whom Mr-. Banks had brought
out as a painter of laticlfcapes and figures. He was a fober,
diligent, and ingenious young man, and greatly regretted
by Mr. Banks; who hoped, by his means, to have gratified
his friends in England with reprefentatïóns Of this country
and its inhabitants, which no-other perfon on board could
delineate with the fame accuracy and elegance. He had always
been fubject to epileptic fits, one of which feized him
on the mountains of Terra del Fuego, and this diforder being
aggravated by a bilious complaint which he contracted on
board the fhip, at length put an end to his life. It was at
firft propofed to bury him on fhore, but Mr. Banks thinking
that it might perhaps givè offence to the natives, with whofe
cuftnnis we were then wholly unacquainted, we committed
his bódy to, the fea, with as much decency and foleöirtity ak
our circumftances and fituation would admit,
In the forenoon of this day we received a vifit from Tu-
bóurai Tamaide and Toritahah, our Chiefs, from the Weft
they brought with them, as'emblemsof peace, not branches
Of plantain, but two young trees, arid would not venture on
board till thefe had been received, having probably been
alarmed by the mischief which had been done at the tent.
-Each of them alfo brought, as propitiatory gifts, fome breadfruit,
and a hog ready dreffed: this was a moft acceptable
prefent, as we perceived that hogs were not always to be got;
and in return we gave to each of our noble benefactors a
hatchet and a nail. In the evening we went on fhore and
fet up a tent, in which Mr. Green and m yfelf fpent the night,
N 3 in