i778. j jlaci never met with a behaviour fo free from referve and
D e c em b e r , in m y intercourfe with any tribes o f favages, as
w e experienced in the people o f this ifland. It was ve ry
common for them to fend up into the ihip the feveral articles
they brought o ff for barter; afterward, they would
come in themfelves, and make their bargains on the quarter
deck. The people o f Otaheite, even after our repeated'
vifits, do not care to put fo much confidence in us. I in fe r
from this,, that thofe o f Owhyhee muft be more fa ith fu l Sha
their dealings with one another, than the inhabitants off
Otaheite are. For i f little faith were obferved- amongil
themfelves, they would not be fo ready to truft ftrangers. It:
is alfo to be obferved,. to their honour, that they had never
once attempted to cheat us in exchanges, nor to commit a
theft. T h e y underftand trading as well as moft people ; :
and fe en a ed -to -e em p r c ire ira : clearly tlie reafon o f our p lyin g
upon the coaft. For,, though they brought o ff provifions in»
great plenty, particularly pigs, yet they kept up their
p rice ; and, rather than difpofe o f them for lefs than»
they thought they w ere worth, would take them aihore
again.
TueWay 22. On the 2 ad, at eight in the morning, w e ta ck ed 'to the:
Southward with a frefli breeze at Eaft by North. At noon,,
the. latitude was 20° 38' 30"; and the fnowy peak bore South»
Weft h a lf South. We had a good'view o f it the pre cedin g;
day, and the quantity o f fnow feemed to have increafed;
and to extend lower down the hill. I flood to the South.
Eaft till midnight, then, tacked to the North till four in the
morning, when we returned to the South Eaft tack ; and, as
Wednef. 23. IgE - , _ r
the wind was at North Eaft by Eaft, we had hopes or wea-
thering the ifland. We fhould have fucceeded, i f the. wind»
a had?
Had not died away, and left us to the mercy o f a great fwell, 078;
which carried us fail toward the land, which was not two , e!l"Lery
leagues-diftant. At length, we got our head off, and fome
ligh t puffs o f wind, which, came with ihowers o f rain, put
ms out o f danger. W h ile we lay, as it were, becalmed,
ieveral o f the iilanders came o ff with hogs, fowls, fruit, and
roots. Out o f one canoe we got a goofe ; w hich was about
the fize o f a Mufcovy duck. Its plumage was dark grey>.
and the bill and legs black.
A t four in the afternoon, after purchaffng every thing»
that the natives had brought off, which was fu ll as much
as we had; occafion for, w e made fail, and ftretched to the
North, with the wind at Eaft North Eaft. At midnight, we
tacked, and flood to the South Eaft. Upon a fuppoiition tha t
the Difcovery would fee us tack, the fignal was omitted; but
fhe did not fee us,, as» we afterward fo u n d , and continued
Handing to the N o r th ; for, at day-light next morning, Thurfchyzt*
ihe was not in fight. At this time,, the weather being hazy,
w e could not fee f a r ; fo that it was poflible the Difcovery-
might be following u s a n d , being pail the North Eaft part
o f the ifland, I was tempted to Hand cm, till, by the wind:
veering to North Eaft, we could not weather the land upon»
the other tack. Confequently we could not Hand to the
North, to join, or look, for, the Difcovery, At, noon, w e ;
were, by obfervation, in the latitude o f 19° s j '., and in the
longitude o f 305° 3' ; the South Eaft point o f the ifland
bore South b y Eaft a quarter Eaft, fix leagues diftant; the
other extreme bore North, 60’ Weft ;, and we were two
leagues from the neareft fhore. At fix in the evening, the
Southernmoil extreme o f the ifland bore South Weil, the-
neareft fhore. feven or eight: miles diftant ; fo that we h a d :
now.,-