Ikins, though moift, had neither a tafte nor fmell that
could giv e room to fufpetft the u fe o f antiputrefcent fubftances*.
' ■ ' .
In the night, and all the morning, on the zzd, it rained
àlmoft continually. T h e wind was at South Eaft, South
. South Eaft, and South ; w h ich brought in a fliort, chopping
fea ; and as there were breakers little more than two cables
len gth from the ftern o f our Ihip, her fituation was none o
the fafeft. T h e fu r f broke fo h ig h againft the ihore, that
w e could not land in our boats ; but the day was not w ho y
loft -, for the natives ventured in their canoes, to bring oft to
the Ihips hogs and roots, w h ich they bartered as before.
One o f our vifiters, on this occafion, w ho offered fome fifli-
hooks to fale, was obferved to have a ve ry fmall parcel, tied
w h ê L è ’the Dutch bring their birds o f paradife, a s o r i g i n a l l y peopled b y the fame race,
Z h L T C a p t^ C o o k found at every i f l a n d frpn, ^New Z e a la n d ^ th.s new group,
t0 W t o i T & S r f U - ™ , about the bird o f paradife, agrees p - W H y * * the
f ¿ t e d v e n o f th e preferved red-birds. Speaking,of, the » „ h e proaccount
here g .v n o f P ^ efpcces ^ auffi a y a n t s parceeds
thus. Us no p eur couleurs. L a dépouille des oifeaüx fert
:e:c ia tla §par1ure des , q F , H^ollanda is, qui tra?fiqiugernTt fur.
“ préparées, les tranfportent en Perfe, à S u:
“ T “ dans k T l n t e où ils les vendent fort chère aux-habitans riches, qui en font
« leur chevaux. C eft d e1 q ^ Hollandois ont accrédité ces fabîes,
:: étoient propres à
« jendre plus précieux, & à e n réchauffer la valeur. •
to the firing o f one o f them, w hich he feparated w ith great '»7*.
care, and referved fo r himfelf, when he parted w ith the 1— *— -
hook. Being aiked, w hat it was i He pointed to his be lly,
and fpoke fomething o f its be in g d e ad ; at the fame time
faying, it was b a d ; as i f he did not w ifh to anfwer any
more queftions about it. On fee ing him fo anxious to conceal
the contents o f this parcel, he was requefted to open it,
w h ich he did with great reludtance, and fome difficulty, as
it was wrapped up in many folds o f cloth. We found, that
it contained a thin bit o f flefh, about two inches long,
which, to appearance, had been dried, but was now wet
with fait water. It ftruck us, that it might be human flefh,
and that thefe people might, perhaps, eat their enemies; as
w e kn ew , that this was the pradlice o f fome o f the natives
o f the Stiuth Sea iflands. T h e queftion be in g put to the
perfon w ho produced -it, he anfwered, that the flefh was
part o f a man. Another o f his countrymen, who flood by
him, was then aiked, whether it was their euftom to eat
thofe killed in battle? and he immediately anfwered in the
affirmative.
The re were fome intervals o f fair weather in the afternoon;
and the wind then inclined to the Eaft and North
E a ft ; but, in the evening, it veered back again to South
South Eaft, and the rain alfo returned, and continued a ll
night. V e ry lu ck ily , it was not attended with much wind.
We had, however, prepared for the worft, b y dropping the
fmall bower anchor ; and_ftriking our top-gallant-yards.
At feven o ’clock, the next morning, a breeze o f wind Friday 25.*
fpringing up at North Eaft, I took up the anchors, with a
view o f removing the ih ip farther out. The moment that
the laft anchor was up, the wind veered to the Eaft, which
Vox. II. E e made