Continuing our couríe N. wefterly, between the Dolphins firft and iecond
track, on the 4th of April, about three o’clock in the afternoon we difcovered
land ; and after two hours failing we approached near to it. It is a flat ifland, extending
a great length from E. to W. deicribing the form of a crefcent ; and lias a'
fand-bank joined to on which the furf ran very high. In the middle of
the ifland, there is a large fait lagoon, or lake; and at the eaft end of it are
many palm trees. We faw clouds of fmoke aícend fróm. different parts, proceeding*
as we apprehended, from fires kindled by the natives, and defigned
as fignals to us. Night came on before we could difcover the weft end of the
ifland; and not knowing but there might be more iflands, we lay-to all night, and
the next morning we faw another in latitude 18° 23', whieÜ, on account of a great
fait lagoon in the middle of it, we called Lagoon-Ifle: Before noon we made
another low ifland, which we called Thumb-cap Ifland. It ftretched a long;
way, and is made up of feveral parcels of land joined together by reefs : it Has alfo
a lagoon inclofed with a reef, upon which we difcovered many canoes ; fome having
ten people in them, and others a leffer number. As we failed along, the natives,
followed us, fome on the reef, others in canoes, and feemed defirous to have an
intercourfe with us; but thoughwe beckoned to them, they would not come offl
They appeared to be very ftout men ; their complexion almoft black, with fhort
hair, and quite naked, having long lances, or poles, in their hands. Some of them:
waded up to the neck in water to look at us, but they did not difcover any hoftile
intentions. Their canoes had. out-riggers, with mat-fails: and when we put
away from the land one of them followed us.-
Upon thefe iflands we fáw a variety o f verdant trees, amongft which were fome
palms j and upon the coaft, reeks of coral appeared above Water. We difcovered
fome of their huts, and feveral fires burning around them. The land formed
a large femieircular bay, and the reef before it the fame figure; and the water-
was as fmooth as a mill-pond, and abounded with flying-fiih ; but, to our furprife,,
we could not reach the bottom of it with 130 fathom, of fine* at one mile, diftance
from the ihore.
This
T O T H E S O U T H S E A S. *3
This day we alfo difcovered another low ifland, which we called Chain Ifland:
It is of an oval figure, confifting of a ridge of coral and fand, with a few clumps
©f fmall trees, and had a lagoon in the middle of it. Thefe iflands were dedicated
to the Royal Society.
In the morning of the 10th, we faw Oinabrug Ifland, bearing N. W. by W.
half W. about fix leagues diftant, and, leaving it to the northward, at noon we
difcovered George’s Ifland from the main-top maft head, and flood toward it.
The 12th, the fea being moftly ealm in the forenoon, we could get very little
nearer, land j but many of the. Indians came off to-us in canoes (one of which was
double, and had much carved work upon it) bringing with them cocoa nuts, .and
apples, to truck for nails* buttons, and beads. Thefe canoes were but juft wide
enough for one perfon to fit in the breadth: to prevent them from overfetting,
they place out riggers, upon the top.* of which is fixed a bamboe fiihing rod. The
people in the canoes were of a pale, tawny, complexion, and had long black hair.
They feemed to be very good-natured, and not of a covetous difpofition j giving u&
a couple of cocoa nuts* or a bafket of apples* for a hutton, or.-a nail.
While we lay before thefe iflands* we had fqualls of wind, fome calms, and
heavy fhowers of rain. Toward night we opened the N. W. point, and difcovered
the ifland named by the Dolphin’s people, York Ifland* and called by the natives,
as we afterwards learned, Eimayo. A breeze fpringing up, we lay off and on all
that night"; and, on the 13th, we made the ifland of Otaheite, called by the Dolphin’s
people George’s Ifland, which is oppofite to York Ifland., We entered Port
Royal harbour, called by the natives Owarrowarrow, and anchored in nine fathom
water, within half a mile of the ihore. The land appeared as uneven as a piece of
crumpled paper, being divided irregularly into hills and valleys ? but ,a Beautiful
verdure covered both, even to the tops of the higheft peaks. A great number of
the natives cameoff to us in canoes, and brought with them bananasj cocoas, breadfruit,
apples, and fome pigs ; but they were errant thieves j and, while I was bufied
in the forenoon in trucking with them for fome of their cloth, (an account o f which
will be giver* hereafter*} one of them pilfered an earthen veflel out of my cibim It
w a s