»70*- Otaheite, the fecond mate and two of the failors had, in one of their
i - _ i open whale boats, proceeded towards New Sooth Wales. The reft of the
crew remained on the ifland, excepting Mr. Matthew Weatherhead the
commander of the velfel, who, with two men and two boys, had taken
their paffage from Otaheite on board the Jenny of Briftol; and on their
arrival at Nootka, Sen'- Quadra not only provided Mr. Weatherhead
with a paffage towards England through New Spain, but benevolently
furnilhed him with a fum of money to defray his expences through a
Country where the inhabitants would neceffarilybe ftrangers to himfelf
and all his'conne&ions.
The misfortune of this fhipwreck appeared to have been attended
with very unpleafant conlequences to our friends'at Otaheite. The few
valuable articles which thefe unfortunate people had been able to fave
from the wreck, inftéad of having been fecured and properly taken
care of, had been indifcriminately difperfed, or left to the difpofal o f
the natives. This had produced a jealoufy between the chiefs-of Matavai
and thofeof Oparre ; and on their difagreement concerning the divifion
o f the fpoil, fome of the Englilhmen had fided with the chiefs o f the one
party, whilft others'had taken up the caufe-of the 'Other? A war
was the neceflary confequence between the two diftrife, which had
terminated very difaftroufly for Matavai. Nearly the. whole of that
beautiful diftrift had been laid wafte, their houfes burnt down, and
their fruit-trees torn up by the roots, and otherways deftroyed.
This was the fum of what I was able to learn ; but the very confufed
and incoherent detail that was given me o f aft thefe tranfafftiqns, prevented
my acquiring any fatisfaSory information on this melancholy
event.
Havino- now pofitrvely determined on the mode to be purfued in the
execution of the remaining objefls of our voyage, I requefted Commodore
Phillips would, at port jackfon, complete the cargo of the D*da-
ltis to a year’s provtfions o f aft fpeties, and 'fuch flares as I judged
would be neceflary for the Difcovery and Chatham ; and to forward
them by this vdfel to me at Nootka, where her commander ftould find
■ fufficient
fufficient inftfufiions for the regulation o f his conduft, flrould he arrive
there in my abfence. v ;.;:. § • ■>---- -
I communicated to Commodore Phillips the few difcoveries we had
made in tire fouth pacific ocean, and tranfmitted him a copy of my
furvey of that part o f the fouth-weft coaft of New Holland, which we
had vifited.
We had, by this time, procured fuch obfervations as were neceflary
for determining the fituation o f this place, as likewife for afcertaining
the rate of the chronometers, and for coiTtci ing my furvey o f the coaft
o f New Albion, fouthward, from cape Mendocino to this Bay. Thefe
feveral matters, owing to the very unfavorable paffage we had had from
Nootka, not l>eing yet intirely completed, produced a longer delay at
Monterrey than I -could have wi f tiednot only, becaufe I was anxious
that our time fhould be otherways employed, but alfo, that Sen1' Quadra s
departure Ihould not be poftponed on our account. I was, however,
in fome degree reconciled to his detention, by the repeated friendly
affurances he gave me, that his time was mine, earneftly requefting that
I would not hefitate fo to employ it, as to make my difpatches as complete
as I might o n the prefent occafion deem it expedient.
Every hour was therefore dedicated to this purpofe, which neceffarily
precluded me from making more than a few curfory remarks on Monterrey.
Thefe, with the aftronomical and nautical obfervations that
were made on fhore at the obfervatory, will conclude this chapter.
This famous Bay is fituated between point Pinos and point Anno
Nuevo, lying from each other -n. 72 w . and s. 27 e., 22 miles apart.
Between thefe points, this fpacious but very open Bay is formed, by
the coaft falling back from the line of the two points, nearly 4 leagues.
The only part of it that is at-all eligible for anchoring, -is near its fouth
extremity, about a league fouth-eaftward from point Pinos; where the
lhores form a fort o f cove, that affords clear good riding, with tole-
able fhelter for a few veflels. Thefe, for their neceflary protection from
the fea, muft lie at no very great diftance from the fouth-weft fhore;
where, either at night or in the morning, the prevailing wind from
the land admits the failing o f veflels out of the bay, which otherways
V o l .TI. G would