oaob7er. was n a tu r a lt0 apprehend, that all wou ld be ready to join It*
— v— j attempting to ftrip its foie proprietor.
T o prevent this, i f pollible, I'advifed h im to make a pro*
per diftribution o f fome o f his moveables, to two or three-
o f the principal C h ie fs ; who, b e in g thus gratified them-
felves, might be induced to take him under their patronage,
and protect him from the injuries o f others. He promifed
to fo llow m y ad v ic e ; and I heard, w ith fatisfa&ion, b e fo re
I failed, that this ve ry prudent ftep had been taken. Not
tra ilin g , however, entirely to the operations o f gratitude, I
had recourfe to the more forcible motive o f intimidation.
With this view, I took every opportunity o f n o tify in g to the
inhabitants, that it was m y intention to return to their
ifland again, after being abfent the ufual tim e ; and that, i f
I did not find Qmai in the fame ftate o f fecurity in which I:
was now to leave him, all thofe whom I ihould then dif-
cover to have been his enemies, migh t expeit to fe e l the
w e igh t o f my refentment. T his threatening declaration!
w ill, probably, have no inconfiderable effeft. For our fuccef-
five vifits o f late years have taught thefe people to believe;
that our fhips are to return at certain periods,* and while
they continue to be imprefled with fuch a notion, w hich P
thought ir a fair llratagem to confirm, Omai has ' fome-
p ro fpe il o f being permitted to thrive upon his new plant*
ation.
While we lay in this harbour, we carried aihore the bread,,
remaining in the bread-room, to clear it o f vermin. T h e
number o f cock-roaches that infelled the fhip, at this time,.
is incredible. T he damage they did u s was very confider-
a b le ; and every method devifed by us to dejlroy them
proved ineffeftual. Thefe animals, which, at firll, were a.
7 nuifance,
-nuifance, like all other infedls, had now become a real p e ll;
and fo deftruftive, that few things were free from their ravages.
I f food o f any kind was expofed, only for a few
minutes, it was covered with th em ; and they foon pierced
it fu ll o f holes, refembling a honeycomb. T h e y were particularly
deftrucftive to birds, w hich had been fluffed and
pieferved as curiofities ; and, what was worfe, were uncommonly
fond o f ink ; fo that the writing on the labels, faft-
ened to different articles, was quite eaten o u t ; and the only
thing that preferved books from them, w a s the clofenefs o f
the binding, w hich prevented thefe devourers ge tting between
the leaves. According to Mr. Anderfon’s obferva-
tions, they were o f two forts, the blatta oriental, and ■
mamca. T he firll o f thefe had been carried home in the
ihip from her former voyage, where they withftood the fe-
verity o f the hard winter in 1776, though fhe w a s 'in dock'
all the time. The others had only made their appearance'
fince our lea vin g New Zealand ; but had increafed fo fa ll
that they n ow not only did all the m ifch ie f mentiohed
above, but had even got amongft the r ig g in g ; fo that when
a fail was loofened, thoufands o f them fe ll upon the decks.
T h e orientates, though in infinite numbers, fcarcely came
out but in the night, when the y made every thing in the
cabins feem as i f in motion, from the particular noife in
crawling about. And, befides their difagreeable appearance,
they did great m ifch ie f to our bread, which was fo
befpattered w ith their excrement, that .it would have been
badly relilhed by delicate feeders.
T h e intercourfe o f trade, and friendly offices, was carried
on, between us and the natives, without befog difturbed by
any one accident, till the evening o f the ¡ g | when a man L * * - •
found means to get into Mr. Bayly’s obfervatory, and to
wO 22 carry