1
212 W H l T ' E ^ s ' J O U E N A E O F A
Au§ufh
Lieutenant King, the fuperintendant), was.loft, with three
feamen, in a boat that was fwamped by the furf, which on
every part.of;,,the, coaft runs'highj and beats againft tile
fhore.wijth great violence,; fo that I much -'fear, from, thé
difficulty of, accefs, and its fituaïióh,it never will Tprove
of any great corifequence, although it promifed fome advantages
particularly in furnifliing us with pine trees, which '
grow here to a fize nearly equal-to tftofe q£\Norway. In-
"thè whole ifland there is not a harbour ..capable, of admitting '
eyeii fo fmall a veffel as. the Supply, and the anchorage on
every part of the coaft is equally bad:. •
Thei f land produces/akind of gladiolus luteqs, or iris','
paluftris, of which, as may.be feen by'the fpecimens "feiftr
Mr. Wilfon, exceeding good hemp is to be made';" arid-
which is to be procured in any quantity, the plants'growing
in gréât abundance throughout the, whole1 iftarid. ^ 'The ‘
’ foïêgóihg articles, were the iftandlarger and more-eafyjpf-
açcefs/ with even a tolerable harbour, might, in any other
country, be,of the firff oonfeqhence. to âiirarifeime1 nation.
But from every information which I have gained from the
officers and crew of the-Supply, the’procuring of this beneficial
acquifitiori is at prefent fbniewhat doubtful. The
people
people fettled upon it,' when theycan venture out, get great
"plentyfoffifti; and, at certain, feafons, turtle. In the ifland
i-alfo are pigeons', as* tamejas domeftic . f o w l s a nd the? foil
‘ feems well'adapted'fon the growth o f.a li kinds-'of grim and
vegetables. It produces a wild ibajiana^ Or plantain tree,l
which, .by cultivation, may affiftphe*fettlers; as ajfuccew
daneum for bread jjja nd I am; not;.without hope&Jthat we
.fliall be able to mikelotne^ additions from |h|hc(e to>; fuch
ffeceffaries of life-as maysin time be* produced here.
A few days fince the nativ,e&Janded\near | thehofpjtal^;
wh eri'fo n ^<* ^ S t : b e lS |m g 'to .th e Supply,? were browfihg';
when'they 'killed, with ^theirudpear;; ai kid, and capi.ed.it
away. ' Within this v fortnight; they.have alfo .killed a he-
goat b£?th© governdr’s.'Vi- Whenever-, an oppopijnitjE offered,
they have>lef^om failed) to deftroy wftatevepft|e.k they: co&ld
u.nobferVed..fM h e y , have! bediljdqually really to
attack' th # convifts,: on' every <|&afion presented
itfelf; and*'*fdmd oft \ f t m have ^become vidimsl- t & theft?
’lavages. I have already obferyed- that, they ftand* :rnuch in.
fear o# a mufquepj'arid' therefore t h ||: ’k ry feidom approach
any peffdn By- whoih ip d ^ a r r i e d ; an^the^apprehenfions
are almoft equally g l | t when. they, pdrebive g red'garment.
September