»770.
July.
turday 14,
Sunday 15.
like the gerbua, which it alfo refembles in its motion, as
has been obferved already, but it greatly differs in fize, the
gerbua not being larger than a common rat, and this animal,
when full grown, being as big as a fheep: this individual was
a young one, much under its full growth, weighing only
thirty-eight pounds. The head, neck, and Ihoulders, are very
fmall in proportion to the other parts of the body; the tail is
nearly as long as the body, thick near the rump, and tapering
towards the end: the fore-legs of this individual were
only eight inches long, and the hind-legs two and twenty:
its progrefs is by fuccefiive leaps or hops, of a great length,
in an eredt pofture ; the fore-legs are kept bent clofe to the
breaft, and feemed to be of ufe only for digging: the fkin is
covered with a fhort fur, of a dark moufe or grey colour,
excepting the head and ears, which bear a flight refemblance
to thofe of a hare. This animal is called by the natives
Kangaroo.
The next day, our Kanguroo was dreffed for dinner, and
proved moft excellent meat; we might now indeed be faid
to fare fumptuoufly every day, for we had turtle in great
plenty, and we all agreed that they were much better than
any we had tailed in England, which we imputed to their
being eaten frelh from the fea, before their natural fat had
been wafted, or their juices changed by a diet and fituatioh
fo different from what the fea affords them, as garbage and
a tub. Moft of thofe that we caught here, were of the kind
called green turtle, and weighed from two to three hundred
weight, and when thefe were killed, they were always found
to be full of turtle grafs, which our naturalifts took to be a
kind of confervaJ two of them were loggerheads, the flefhof
which was much lefs delicious, and in their ftomachs nothing
was to be found but fhells. In
Ih the morning of the 16th, while the people were employed
as ufual in getting the Chip ready for the fea, I
climbed one of the hills on the north fide of the river, from'
which I had an extenfive view of the inland country,- and-
found it agreeably diverfified by hills, vallies, and large
plains, which in many places were richly covered with-
wood. This evening, we obferved an emerfion of Jupiter’s-
firft fatellite, which gave 214° 53' 45' of longitude. The-
obfervation which was made on the 29th of June gave 214“’
42.' 30"; the mean is 214° 48! 74”, the longitude of this place
weft of Greenwich.
Monday. 16V
On the 17th, I fent the Maffier and one o f the Mates in the Tueflay >7*.
pinnace to look for a channel to the northward ; and I went
myfelf with Mr. Banks and Dr. Solander into the woods on
the other fide of the water. Tupia, who had been thither by
himfelf, reported', that he had' feen three Indians who had
given him fome roots about as thick as a man’s finger, in
Chape not much unlike a rhadifh, and of a very agreeable"
tafte. This induced us to go over, hoping that we fliould be
able to improve our acquaintance with the natives: in a very
little time we difcovered four of them in a canoe, who as foon
as they faw us came afliore, and, though they were all ftran-
gers, walked up to us, without, any figns of fufpicion or fear.
Two of thefe had necklaces of fhells, which we could not
perfuade them to part with for any thing we could give
them: we prefented them however with fome beads,, and;
after a. fhort ftay they departed! We attempted to follow
them, hoping that they would conduit us to fome place
where we fhould find more' of them, and have an opportunity
o f feeing their womenbut they made us underftand,
by figns, that they did not defire our company..