made fail off the Chore, and plied during the night. The next morning,
with a freCh gale at e .s.e ., we failed along the n .e . fide of Owhyhee,
within two or three miles of its Chores; thefe were-firm and compact,
terminating modly in deep rocky cliffs, with a few fmall indented bays,
rendered eafily acceflible to their canoes by the fandy beaches that
bounded them. From the rugged rocky cliffs, many dreams of water
fell, and difcharged themfelves into the ocean.
The country, in this point of view, had a very dreary afpect; perfeftly
uncultivated, and nearly dellitute of habitations.; thofe which were obferved
were fmall, and thinly fcattered at great diftances from each other.
As we advanced to the weftward, the population and cultivation feem-
ed to increafe, and to keep pace with each other. About nine o’clock,
a canoe was feen coming towards' the Chip from one of the fmall bays ;
we immediately brought to, in the hope that others would follow her
example, but we were again difappointed.
On the arrival of our vifitors they gave us to underhand, that a general
taboo had prevented the inhabitants coming off to us; they however
had ventured to trefpafs on the interdiftion, at the hazard of differing"
death, Chould their tranfgrefiion be ever known to any of the
priefts or chiefs. The taboo had now exilted fome days, and in the
courfe of a day or two more would ceafe. Thefe people further informed
us, that Tamaahmaah was then redding at Karakakooa, and
that hogs, and the other refreChments of the ifland, were prohibited from
being difpofed of to European or American vifitors, under penajty
of death, for any other commodities whatever than arms and ammunition.
This is the baneful confequence arifing from the injudicious conduft
of unrellrained commercial adventurers, who have thought proper to
furnifh thefe people, naturally a "warlike and daring race, with a large
affortment of arms and ammunition; not only rendering them, by
thefe means, a formidable nation; but by thus abfurdly and pro-
fufely out-bidding each other, bringing the generality of other European
commodities into contempt and low eftimation. Our vifitors,
however, regardlefs of the taboo, difpofed of their cargo, confiding of
one
one ho£T, two or three fowls, fome roots, and bread-fruit, feeminely >793-
much to their fatisfachon, for fome iron; with which they returned to u—v—,
the" Chore.
Towards noon we arrived off a part of the northern fide of Owhyhee,
where the coad is compofed of a duller of remarkably high deep
rugged and romantic cliffs, difcharging from their naked fummits many
rapid catarafts into the ocean. The rufhing of thefe impetuous torrents
down the black barren furface of the rocky cliffs, contraded with
the enchanting, cultivated, and populous country to the ead and wed, and
behind this dreary frontier, for a confiderable didance up the fides of the
lofty mountains, on approaching them in the offing, preferit a very
beautiful and pifturefque appearance. Nearly in the centre of thefe
cliffs is a tolerably deep fmall bay, much refembling, in appearance and
in mod other refpefts, the bay in the ifland of St. Helena; but, unfortunately,
feemed too much expofed to the fea, and the generally prevailing
winds, to be an eligible fituation for Chipping. Off the wedern ex-,
tremity of thefe cliffs lie fome rocky iflets, at a little didance from the
land. Weftward from thefe cliffs, the furf was obferved to break with
great violence near the Chore, which was then within two miles of us ; at
this moment we fuddenly arrived in 7 fathoms water, the wed point of
the ifland lying s. 70 w., at the didance of nine miles. The trade wind
blew a drong gale, attended by a very heavy, confufed, irregular fea,
probably occafioned by the violence of the wind, and an uneven bottom.
As this appearance extended all the way to the wed end of the
ifland, on finding ourfelves in foundings of 7 fathoms we hauled a
little off the Chore, and did not again reach the bottom; though at the
rate we were then going we were not likely to. have gained foundings,
in much deeper water.
The wedern part of the land, from this fituation, falls in a gradual
defcent from the bafe of the mountains, and forms an extenfive plain
towards the water-fide, which feemed to be in a date of high cultivation,
and abounded with the habitations of the natives. We paffed the wed
point at the didance of about a league, c)ofe on the verge of the agitated
water; this I fufpected to arife from a very fudden decreafe in its
depth,