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T u e fd a y s
■without weapons. On Mr. K in g ’s, and the gentlemen with
him, landing, with mufquets in their hands, they feemed
alarmed, and made figns expreflive o f their requeft to la y
them down. T his was accordingly done ; and then they
fuffered the gentlemen to walk up to them, and appeared to
be cheerful and fociable. T h e y had with them a few pieces
o f frelh falmon, and feveral dogs. Mr. Law, furgeon o f the
Difcovery, who was one o f the party, having bought one o f
■the latter, took it down toward the boat, and ihot it dead, in
their fight. This feemed to furprize them exceedingly;
and, as i f they did not think themfelves fafe in fuch com-
pany, they walked aw a y ; but it was foon after difcovered,
•that their fpears, and other weapons, were hid in the buihes
d o f e behind them. Mr. K in g alfo informed me, that the
ground was fwampy, and the foil poor, light, and black. It
produced a few trees and flirubs; fuch as pines, alders,
birch, and willows ; rofe and currant b u ih e s ; and a little
g r a f s ; but they faw not a fingle plant in flower.
We weighed anchor, as loon as it was high water; and,
with a faint breeze Southerly, flood over to the Weft Ihore,
where the return o f the flood obliged us to anchor early next
morning. Soon after, feveral large, and fome fmall canoes,
with natives, came off, who bartered their ik in s ; after
which they fold their garments, till many o f them were
quite naked. Amongft others, they brought a number o f
white hair or rabbit Ikins; and very beautiful reddilh ones
o f fo x e s ; but there were only two or three ikins o f otters.
T h e y alfo fold us fome pieces o f falmon and halibut. T h e y
preferred iron to every thing elfe offered to them in exchange.
The lip-ornaments did not feem fo frequent
amongft them, as at Prince William’s Sound; but they had
more o f thole which pafs throu gh the nofe, and, in general,
thefe
thefe were alfo much longer. T h e y had, however, a greater
quantity o f a kind o f white and red embroidered work on
fome parts o f their garments, and on other things, fuch as
their quivers, and knife-cafes.
A t h a lf paft ten, we weighed with the firft o f the ebb, and
aving a gentle breeze at South, plied down the riv e r ; in
the doing o f which, by the inattention and negletft o f the
man at the lead, the Refolution ftruck, and ftuck faft on a
bank, that lies nearly in the middle o f the river, and about
two miles above the two projedting b lu ff points before mentioned.
T h is bank was, no doubt, the occafion o f that very
rong ripp ing, or agitation o f the ftream, which we had
obferved when turning up the river. There was not Iefs than
twelve feet depth o f water about the lhip, at the loweft o f the
eb b ; but other parts o f the bank were dry. As foon as the
fhip came aground, I made a fignal for the Difcovery to ano
E w a J 1 afterward underftood, had been near alhore
on the Weft fide o f the bank. As the flood-tide came in, the
ihip floated off, foon after five o’clock in the afternoon, without
receiving the leaft damage, or g iv in g us any trouble ,
and, after Handing over to the Weft ihore, into deep water,
we anchored to wait for the ebb, as the wind was ftill
contrary.
We weighed again with the ebb, at ten o’clock at night-
and between fou r and five next morning, when the tide was
finiftied, once more caft anchor about two miles below the
bluff point, on the Weft Ihore, in nineteen fathoms water. A
good many o f the natives came off, when we were in this
on, and attended upon us all the morning. Their company
was very acceptable; for they brought with them a
large quantity o f very fine falmon, which they exchanged for
3 fuch
1778.
Jun e .
W ed n e f. 3 ..