April.* 1 met him at the tents, and conduced him and his friends
sdtfep! onboard’ in my boat, where they ftaid dinner; after .which
they -were difmiffed with fuitable prefents, and highly
pleafed with the reception they had met with.
Monday.35, Next day we had much thunder, lightning, and rain.
This did not hinder the king from making me another
vifit, and a prefent of a large quantity of refrefhments. It
hath been already mentioned, that when we were at the
ifland of Amfterdam we had colledted, among!! other curio-
fxties, fome red parrot feathers. When this was known here"
all the principal people of both fexes endeavoured to ingratiate
themfelves into our favour by bringing us hogs, fruit
and every other thing the ifland afforded, in order to'obtain
thefe valuable jewels. Our having thefe feathers was a
fortunate circumftance; for as they were valuable to the
natives, they became fo to us ; but more efpecially as my
flock of trade was, by this time, greatly exhaufted ; fo that, if
it had not been for the feathers, I fhould have found it difficult
to have fupplied the Ihip with the neceffary refrelhments.
When I put in at this ifland I intended to flay no longer
than till Mr. Wales had made the neceffary obfervations for
,the purpofes already mentioned; thinking we fhould meet
with no better fuccefs than we did the Taft time we were
here. But the reception we had already met with, and the
few excurfions we had made, which did not exceed the
plains of Matavai and Oparree, convinced us of our error.
We found at thefe two places, built and building, a great
number of large cano.es, and houfes of every kind; people
living in fpacious habitation«, who had not a place to fhelter
themfelves in eight months before; feveral large hogs about
-every houfe ; and every other fign of a. riling ftate.
Judging
Judging from thefe favourable circumftances that we 1774.
fhould not mend ouffelves by removing to another ifland,
I refolved1 to make a longer flay, and to begin with the re- Mon ay 2i'
pairs of the fliip and ftores, &c. Accordingly I ordered the
empty calks and fails to be got alhore to be repaired; the
Ihip to be caulked; and the rigging to be overhauled ; all
of which the high fouthern latitudes had made indifpenfably
neceffary..
In the- morning of the 26th, I went down to Opa-rree, Tuerday26.
accompanied by fome of the officers and gentlemen, to pay
©too a vifit by appointment. As we drew near, we obferved
a number of large canoes in motion; but were furprized*
when we arrived, to fee upwards-of three hundred ranged
in order; for fome diftance, along the Ihore, all completely
equipped, and manned, befides a vaft number of armed men 1
upon the ftiore. So unexpected an armament collected together
in: our neighbourhood; in the fpace of one night,
gave rife to various conjedturesv We landed, , however, in
the midft of them, and were received, by a vaft? multitude, -
many of them under arms; and many not. The cry of the-
latter was Tiyo no Qtoo, and that of the former Tiyo no Toivha.
This chief, we afterwards learnt, was admiral or commander
of the fleet and troops prefent. The moment we landed' I ■
was met by a chief whofe name was Tee, uncle to the king,
and one of his prime minifters, of whom I inquired for ©too.
Prefently after, we were met by Towha, who received me
with great courtefy. He took me by the one .hand, and Tee *
by the other; and, without my knowing: where they inr
tended to carry me, dragged me, as it were, through the -
crowd that was divided into two parties, both of which pro-
feffed themfelves my friends by crying out Tiyo no Tootee.
5 One