Wc fent the pinnace to haul the feme, and caught a large dratight of mullets,
and other kind of fifh. In the mean time the yaul drudged for Ihell-filh, and met
with indifferent fuccefs.
On the 9th, a great number of the natives came in canoes about the (hip, and
brought us a large quantity of fi(h, moftly of the mackrel kind, with a few John
Dories; and we pickled down feveral calks full of them.
Some of thefe canoes came from another part of the country, which were larger,
and of a better lort than the reft : the people in them, too, had a better appearance;
among whom there were fome of fuperior rank, furnilhed with good garments,
dreffed up with feathers on their heads, and had various things of value amongft
them, which they readily exchanged for Otaheite cloth. In’tfiie- of the canoes
there was a very handfome young man, of whom I bought fome things: he feemed,
by the variety of his garments, which he fold one after another till he had but
one-left, to be a perfon of diftinbtion amongft them: his laft garment was an
tipper one, made of black and white dog-lkin, which one of the lieutenants
would have purchafed, and offered him a large piece of Cloth for it, which hefwung
down the ftern by a rope into the canoe j but, as foon as the young man had taken
if, his companions paddled away as fall as poffible, Ihouting, and brandilhing their
weapons as if they had made a great prize ; and, being ignorant of the power of our
weapons, thought to have carried it off fecurely ; but a muiket was fired at them
from the ftern of the Ihip: the young man fell down immediately, and, it is
probable, was mortally wounded, as we d-d not fee him rife, again. What a
fevere punifhment of a crime committed, perhaps, ignorantly ! The name of this
unfortunate young man, we afterwards learned, was Olirreeoomooe.
The weather being clear all day, we made a good obfervation of the paffage of
Mercury over the fun’s dilk, while Mr. Green made an obfervation on (hole. From .
this circumftance the Bay was termed Mercury Bay.
On the nth, it blew very hard all day from the N. and N. by E. and a
great fwell tumbled into the bay, which rendered our fituation a very favourable ‘
, ' - one;
onej for, had we been out at fea, we (hould have had a lee-fhore. The inhabitants
did not venture out in their canoes this day; and, the night before, we
were almoft fwamped in coming off in the long-boat, being upon the Ihoals, and
the fea running high.
While we lay in this bay the- natives brought us a great number of cray-
■ftlh, of an enormous fize, which were very good. Thefe were caught by
■women, .who dived- for them in the furf amongft the rocks. A lortg-boit full of
rock oyilers, too; were brought on board pf us at one time, which were good
food, and tailed delicioufl.y. A little way up the river there were banks entirelv
c6mpofed of them. ' We_alfo got abundance of parfley for the (hip's ufej and, at
the place where we watered, we found a great quantity, of fern, the root of which
partakes, much of a farinaceous quality: the natives dry it upon the fire, then
beat it upon a (lone, and eat it inftead of bread.
On the 16th, in the mbrning, the weather being very fair, we weighed anchor,
and flood out to fea, but, having a ftrong breeze from the weft, which was againft
us .all this day and the next, being the 17th, we did. Bathing hut beat; to windward.
The country in view appeared rather barren, and had but few figns of
• inhabitants. We faw feveral ¡(lands, which we named Mercury ¡Hands.' ■ '
On the 18th, in the morning, we paffcd between the main and an ¡¡land wlvch
appeared to be very fertile, and as large as Yodee-Etea. Two ca-uaes came to us
from the main, having Carved heads, like tllofe we had feeu in the bay of Opoo
rsngep: one of them was longer than the other, and had fixty of the natives in
her: they gazed at us awhile, and then gave us- feveral hcivos; but the breeze
frefhening, they were obliged-to drop aftern, and we foon left them. The coaft
hereabout is full of ¡flunds : the name of the larged is Waoataia; and one o' the
fmall ones, is-called Matoo Taboo: After we had pafftd this H am ^ h e paflVe
between which and the main we named Port Charles,) it feemed as if we were
in a large bay, the land furrounding us on every fide, excepting a-head, where
we could d-ifcover none : we bent: our courfe that way, and got, at leng h, inclofcd
between two (bores, which feemed to form a kind- of ftrait. Night coming on, we
anchored here, not daring to venture farther, as we knew not whether we were
P in