Mml fandy beach before mentioned, being E. S. Ety diftant one
'— ----' mile and an half. The two rocky illots lying off the South
Monday 14. . 0
point or the ifland, were juft flint behind a point to the North
of them; they bore South 4. Weft, four miles diftant; and
the other extreme of the ifland bore N. 250 E., diftant about fix
miles. But the beft mark for this- anchoring-place is the
beach; becaufe it is the only one on this fide the ifland. In
the afternoon, we got on board a few calks of water, and
opened a trade with the natives for fuch things as they had
to difpofe of. Some of the gentlemen alfo made an excurfion
into the country to fee what it produced ; and returned
again in the evening, with the lofs only of a hat, which one
of the natives fnatched off the head of one of the party.
Tuefday 15. Early next morning, I fent Lieutenants Pickerfgill and
Edgcumbe with a party of men, accompanied by feveral of
the gentlemen, to examine the country. As I was not fuffi-
ciently recovered from my late illnefs to make one of the
party, I was obliged to content myfelf with remaining at
the landing-place among the natives. We had, at one time,
a pretty brilk trade with them for potatoes, which we ob-
ferved they dug up out of an adjoining plantation ; but this
traffic, which was very advantageous to us, was foon put a
flop to, by the owner (as we fuppofed) of the plantation
coming down, and driving all the people out of it. By this
we concluded, that he had been robbed of his property, and
that they were not lefs fcrupulous of ftealing from one another,
than from us, on whom they pradtifed. every little fraud
they could think on, and generally with fuccefs ; for we no
fooner detected them in one, than they found out another.
About feven o’clock in the evening, the party I had fent into
the country returned, after having been over the greateft
part of the ifland.
They
They left the beach about nine o’clock in the morning,
and took a path which led acrofs to the S. E. fide of the ifland,
followed by a great crowd of the natives, who prefled much
upon them. But they had not proceeded far, before a middle-
aged man, pundtured from head to foot, and his face painted
with a fort of white pigment, appeared with a fpear in his
hand, and walked along-fide of them, making figns to his
countrymen to keep at a diftance, and not to moleft our
people. When he had pretty well effedled this, he hoifted a
piece of white cloth on his fpear, placed himfelf in the front,
and led the way, with his enfign of peace, as they underflood
it to be. For the greateft part of the diftance acrofs,
the ground had but a barren appearance, being a dry hard
clay, and every where covered with ftones; but notwith-
ftanding this; there were feveral large tradts planted with
potatoes ; and fome plantain walks, but they faw no fruit on
any of the trees. Towards the higheft part of the South end
of the ifland, the foil, which was a fine red earth, feemed .
much better; bore a longer grafs; and was not covered with
ftones as in the other parts; but here they faw neither houfe
nor plantation.
On the Eaft fide, near the fea, they met with three platforms
of ftone-work, or rather the ruins of them. On each
had flood four of thofe large ftatues, but they were all fallen
down from two of them, and alfo one from the third'; all
except one were broken by the fall, or in fome meafure defaced.
Mr. Wales meafured this' one, and found it to be
fifteen feet in length, and fix feet broad over the Ihoulders,
Each ftatue had on its head a large cylindric ftone of a red
colour, wrought perfectly round.’ The one they meafured, -
which was not by far the largeft, was fifty-two inches high,
and fixty-fix in diameter. In fome the upper corner of the
Vol.I. O o ’ cylinder