Toes-are the article of traffic held in the firft eftimation at this
place; but they always refufed fmall ones, wanting them in general
from eight to fourteen inches long. Befides thefe, we traded
with pewter bafons, hatchets, howels, buckles, rings, &c. Of thefe
•the bafons were belt liked; for though the hatchets and howels
were obvioufly the molt ufeful tools thefe people could poffibly
have, yet they were only taken in exchange for furs of inferior value.
Beads of every fort were conltantly refufed with contempt,
when offered by way of barter, and would Icarcely be accepted as
prefents.
In the evening of the 16th, a frelh gale of wind came on from
the Southward, which caufed a very heavy fea to fet into the bay.
We were preparing to Itrike the top-malts, when fortunately, about
midnight, the weather moderated. This circumltance, however,
fcrved to Ihew us, that the bay was not fo fecurely Iheltered from'
bad weather as we at firlt imagined.
From the 17th to the 2tit, our trade gradually fell o ff; and towards
the lalt, they brought us fcarcely any thing but rubbilh, b&-
ing pieces o f old cloaths nearly wore ou t; however, we had no rea-
fon to complain of their backwardnefs in parting with what little
trade they had le ft; their conduct in this particular being quite
the reverfe to that of our old friends in Port Mulgrave.
Amonglt the people who came to trade with us, was an old
man, who feemed remarkably intelligent: he gave us to under-
Itand, that a good while ago there had been two veffels at anchor
near this place, one of which was coniiderably larger than our’s j
that they carried a great number of guns, and that the people re-
fembled us in colour and drefs. He fliewed us a white lhirt they
had
had given him, and which he feemed to regard as a great curiofity t i
on examining it, we found it made after the Spanilh falhion, and ^
immediately judged thefe veffels defcribed by this Indian to be the
Spaniards who (as I have already related) were on this coaft in the
year 1775.
In the Journal of the Spanilh Voyage, publilhed by the Honourable
Daines Barrington, the Spaniards are faid to have anchored
in 57 deg. 18 min. North latitude : we now lay in 57 deg. 3 min.
North latitude; and the old man, when defcribing the fituation of
the above Ihips, always pointed up the found, to the Northward,
which helped to confirm us in our opinion, that the people defcribed
by him muff have been the Spaniards. Should this conjefture
be right, it fufficiently proves, that this place is feldom vifited by
Europeans ; for in that cafe, a variety of Ihips would have rendered
the accounts of our new acquaintance confufed and imperfedt l
on the contrary, his remarks were always clear and pertinent, and
uniformly tended to defcribe .the fame objedt.
During this time, though trade principally engaged our attention,
yet a number of fubordinate, though neceffary employments,,
were carried on ; parties were frequently lent .on Ihore, fome to cut
fire-wood, others to fill up our water, and the carpenters cut a
fpare top-maft, and feveral Ipars, for various purpofes. The water
was procured from a fmall river round a point of land, at the
diftance of a mile from the Ihip.
At firft, the natives behaved, civilly enough, and fuffered our
people to follow their various employments unmolefted 5. but they
loon grew very troublefome, and attempted to pick their pockets,,
and even, to fteal their faws and axes in. the moll open, daring
manner &