Friday 30.
Saturday 1.
Sunday 2. ■
grounded on a bank we had not before perceived; this was covered with
oyfters of a moft delicious flavour, on which we fomptuoufly regaled;
and, loading in about half an hour, the boats for our friends on board,
we commemorated the difcovery by calling it O y s t e r H a r b o u r .
In the morning of the 30th, we began cutting wood and providing
water, which fufficiently employed all our healthy men ; whilft thofe who
were ftiU'indifpofed were direfted to amufe themfelves on fhore. Finding
it practicable to place the Chip much nearer to the fpot whence the
wood and water were procured, the next day fhe was removed; and, by
funday, we had made fucb progrefs, that the yawl could be fpared for
the further examination of the- found. In her I proceeded to Princels
Royal harbour, where, near a rocky cliff, on the s.w. fide, was found a
fmall {hallow ftream of excellent water. On tracing its meanders through
a copfe it brought us to a deferred village of the natives, amidft the trees,
on nearly a level fpot o f ground, confiding of about two dozen miferable
huts moftly of the fame fafhion and dimenfions, with that before defcribed,
though no one of them fcemed fo recently ere&ed. This village had,
probably, been the refidence of, what may in this country be efteemed, a
confiderable tribe ; and the conftruftion of it afforded us an opportunity
of concluding, that however humble the ftate o f their exiftence might be,
they were not deftitute of diftinffions, T wo or three huts'were larger, and
differed in {hape from the reft, as if a couple were fixed clofe to the fide
of each other; but the parts which in that cafe would have caufed a reparation
were removed, and the edges joined clofe together, as defcribed in
the plate, leaving, the whole of their fronts open, and increafing their
diameter about one third more than the reft. Yet were they not an inch
loftier, nor were they of greater extent from the front to the back than
the fingle one before mentioned. Fires had been made in the fronts of all,
but not recently ; and, excepting fome branches of trees that feemed to
have been lately broken down, there were not any figns of this place having
been vifited for fome time; and although we were very induftrious to
afcertain the food on which the inhabitants of this village fubfifted, we
{till remained in ignorance o f it; as neither {hells, bones, nor any other
relifts, which might ferve as indications, could be found, notwithftanding
this
this place had the appearance of a principal refort; for befides the in habitations
already mentioned, which were in pretty good repair, there 1.. .<
were many others in different ftates o f decay. This fpot was interfered
with feveral fmall ftreams o f water, yet the fame marks of fire were evident
on all the-vegetable kingdom; although none of the huts feemed to
have been affected by it, which led me to fuppofe that this general fire,
was of a lefs recent date than at firft I had imagined. In one of the larger
huts, probably the refidence of a chief, towards which were feveral paths
leading in different direftions, fome beads, nails, knives, looking glaffes,
and medals, were depofited as tokens of our friendly difpofition, and to
induce any o f the natives, who might, unperceived by us, have been in
the neighbourhood, to favour us with a vifit. Having gratified our
curiofity, though at the expence o f our feelings, in contemplating thefe
very wretched and humiliating efforts o f human ingenuity, we returned
on board, and having by the morning o f the 4th replenilhed our water, Tuefday 4.
Und taken oh board a fupply of firewood, Meffrs. Puget and Whidbey
Went to Oyfter Harbour, with three boats, for the purpofe of hauling
the feine, and obtaining a quantity of thofe {hell fi{h, previoufly to our
proceeding the following morning to fea. In this part o f our plan, however,
we were difappointed, as the wind which had blown a fteady
moderate breeze from the N.w. towards the evening blew a ftrong gale
from the s.E. with a heavy fwell, and prevented the return of the boats ;
at the fame time that the cloudinels of the weather precluded me from
making thofe lunar obfervations, for the foie purpofe of obtaining which
I had remained on board.
The gale moderating the next morning, the boats returned, not hav- WecW. s.
ing been very fuccefsful with the feine, but bringing a fufficient fupply
of oyfters not only for our convalefcents, but for the affording alfo of
two or three excellent meals for all hands. As the s.E. wind and a
heavy* fea in the offing prevented our departure, Mr. Broughton was
employed in examining the eaftern fide of the found from Oyfter Harbour
to Mount Gardner : this was found nearly a ftraight and compaft
Ihore, on which Mr. Broughton landed in feveral places, where the lame
effects of fire were evident, although there -were not any traces o f the
natives or of their habitations to be difeovered.
The