177°- carpenter was bufy in caulking the fhip, and the men em-
<----.----1 ployed in filling water and over-hauliiig the rigging: in the
c ne ‘ 2?' forenoon, I went myfelf in the pinnace up the harbour, and
made feveral hauls with the feine, but caught only between
twenty and thirty fifh, which were given to the fick and
convalefcent.
Thurfday 28. On the 28th, Mr. Banks went with fome of the feamen up
the country, to flicw them the plant which in the Weft Indies
is called Indian kale, and which ferved us for greens. Tu-
pia had much meliorated the root of the coccos, by giving
.them a long drefling in his country oven, but they were fo
fmall that we did not think them an objeCt for the fhip. In
their walk they found one tree which had been notched for
the convenience of climbing it, in the fame manner with
thofe we had feen in Botany Bay: they faw alfo many nefts
of white ants, which refemble thole of the Eaft Indies, the
moft pernicious infeCts in the world. The nefts were of a
pyramidical figure, from a few inches to fix feet high, and
very much refembled the ftones in England, which are faid
to be monuments of the Druids. Mr. Gore, who was alfo
this day four or five miles up the country, reported that he
had feen the footfteps of men, and tracked animals of three
or four different forts, but had not been fortunate enough to
fee either man or beaft.
Friday 19. At two o’clock in the morning o f the 29th, I obferved, in
conjunction with Mr. Green, an emerfion of Jupiter’s firft
fatellite; the time here was zh r 8 3", which gave the longitude
of this place 214° 42' 3o"W.: its latitude is 15° 26'S.
At break of day, I fent the boat out again with the feine, and
in the afternoon, it returned with as much fifh as enabled
me to give every man a pound and an half. One of my
midlhipmen, an American, who was this day abroad with
his gun, reported that he had feen a wolf, exactly like thofe
which
which he had been ufed to fee in his own country, and that
he had fhot at it, but did not kill it.
The next morning, encouraged by the fuccefs of the day
before, I fent the boat again to haul the feine, and another
party to gather greens : I fent alfo fome of the young gentlemen
to take a plan of the harbour, and went myfelf upon
a hill, which.lies over the fouth point, to take a view of the
fea. At this time it was low water, and I faw, with great
concern, innumerable fand banks and fhoals lying all along
the coaft in every direction. The innermoft lay about three
or four miles from the fhore, the outermoft extended as far
as I could fee with my glafs, and many of them did but juft
rife above water. There was fome appearance of a paffage
to the northward, and I had no hope of getting clear but in
that direction, for as the wind blows conftantly from the
S. E. it would have been difficult, if not impoffible, to return
back to the fouthward,
Mr. Gore reported, that he had this day feen two animals
like dogs, of a ftraw colour, that they ran like a hare, and
were about the fame fize. In the afternoon, the people returned
from hauling the feine, with ftill better fuccefs than
before, for I was now able to diftribute two pounds and an
half fo each man : the greens that had been gathered I ordered
to be boiled among the peas, and they made an excellent
mefs, which, with two copious fupplies of fifh, afforded
us unfpeakable refrefhment.
The next day, July the tft, being Sunday, every body had
liberty to go afhore, except one from each mefs, who were
again fent out with the feine. The feine was again equally
fuccefsful, and the people who went up the country gave
an account of having feen feveral animals, though none of
them were to be caught. They faw a fire alfo about a mile
Vo:, till. X up