A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels Volume Xv Part 36

[Footnote 137: _Iter Palastinum_.]

"But that next in number, and superior in goodness, to the elephant fish, was a sort none of us recollected to have seen before. It partakes of the nature both of a round and of a flat fish, having the eyes placed very near each other; the fore-part of the body much flattened or depressed, and the rest rounded. It is of a brownish sandy colour, with rusty spots on the upper part, and whitish below. From the quant.i.ty of slime it was always covered with, it seems to live after the manner of flat fish, at the bottom."

"Upon the rocks are plenty of muscles, and some other small sh.e.l.l-fish.

There are also great numbers of sea-stars; some small limpets; and large quant.i.ties of sponge; one sort of which, that is thrown on sh.o.r.e by the sea, but not very common, has a most delicate texture; and another, is the _spongia dichotoma_."

"Many pretty _Medusa's heads_ were found upon the beach; and the stinking _laplysia_ or sea-hare, which, as mentioned by some authors, has the property of taking off the hair by the acrimony of its juice; but this sort was deficient in this respect."

"Insects, though not numerous, are here in considerable variety. Amongst them are gra.s.shoppers, b.u.t.terflies, and several sorts of small moths, finely variegated. There are two sorts of dragon-flies, gad-flies, camel-flies; several sorts of spiders; and some scorpions; but the last are rather rare. The most troublesome, though not very numerous tribe of insects, are the musquitoes; and a large black ant, the pain of whose bite is almost intolerable, during the short time it lasts. The musquitoes, also, make up the deficiency of their number, by the severity of their venomous _proboscis_."

"The inhabitants whom we met with here, had little of that fierce or wild appearance common to people in their situation; but, on the contrary, seemed mild and cheerful, without reserve or jealousy of strangers. This, however, may arise from their having little to lose or care for."

"With respect to personal activity or genius, we can say but little of either. They do not seem to possess the first in any remarkable degree; and as for the last, they have, to appearance, less than even the half-animated inhabitants of Terra del Fuego, who have not invention sufficient to make clothing for defending themselves from the rigour of their climate, though furnished with the materials. The small stick, rudely pointed, which one of them carried in his hand, was the only thing we saw that required any mechanical exertion, if we except the fixing on the feet of some of them pieces of _kangooroo_ skin, tied with thongs; though it could not be learnt whether these were in use as shoes, or only to defend some sore. It must be owned, however, they are masters of some contrivance in the manner of cutting their arms and bodies in lines of different lengths and directions, which are raised considerably above the surface of the skin, so that it is difficult to guess the method they use in executing this embroidery of their persons.

Their not expressing that surprise which one might have expected from their seeing men so much unlike themselves, and things, to which, we were well a.s.sured, they had been hitherto utter strangers; their indifference for our presents; and their general inattention; were sufficient proofs of their not possessing any acuteness of understanding."

"Their colour is a dull black, and not quite so deep as that of the African negroes. It should seem also, that they sometimes heightened their black colour, by s.m.u.tting their bodies; as a mark was left behind on any clean substance, such as white paper, when they handled it. Their hair, however, is perfectly woolly, and it is clotted or divided into small parcels, like that of the Hottentots, with the use of some sort of grease, mixed with a red paint or ochre, which they smear in great abundance over their heads. This practice, as some might imagine, has not the effect of changing their hair into the frizzling texture we observed; for, on examining the head of a boy, which appeared never to have been smeared, I found the hair to be of the same kind. Their noses, though not flat, are broad and full. The lower part of the face projects a good deal, as is the case of more Indians I have seen; so that a line let fall from the forehead would cut off a much larger portion, than it would in Europeans. Their eyes are of a middling size, with the white less clear than in us; and though not remarkably quick or piercing, such as give a frank cheerful cast to the whole countenance. Their teeth are broad, but not equal, nor well set; and, either from nature or from dirt, not of so true a white as is usual among people of a black colour.

Their mouths are rather wide; but this appearance seems heightened by wearing their beards long, and clotted with paint, in the same manner as the hair on their heads. In other respects, they are well-proportioned; though the belly seems rather projecting. This may be owing to the want of compression there, which few nations do not use, more or less. The posture of which they seem fondest, is to stand with one side forward, or the upper part of the body gently reclined, and one hand grasping (across the back) the opposite arm, which hangs down by the projecting side."

"What the ancient poets tell us of _Fauns_ and _Satyrs_ living in hollow trees, is here realized. Some wretched constructions of sticks, covered with bark, which do not even deserve the name of huts, were indeed found near the sh.o.r.e in the bay; but these seemed only to have been erected for temporary purposes; and many of their largest trees were converted into more comfortable habitations. These had their trunks hollowed out by fire, to the height of six or seven feet; and that they take up their abode in them sometimes, was evident from the hearths, made of clay, to contain the fire in the middle, leaving room for four or five persons to sit round it.[138] At the same time, these places of shelter are durable; for they take care to leave one side of the tree sound, which is sufficient to keep it growing as luxuriantly as those which remain untouched."

[Footnote 138: Tasman, when in the bay of Frederick Henry, adjoining to Adventure Bay, found two trees, one of which was two fathoms, and the other two fathoms and a half in girth, and sixty or sixty-five feet high, from the root to the branches.--See his Voyage, in Harris's Collection, Campbell's Edition, vol. i. p. 326.--D.]

"The inhabitants of this place are, doubtless, from the same stock with those of the northern parts of New Holland. Though some of the circ.u.mstances mentioned by Dampier, relative to those he met with on the western coast of this country, such as their defective sight, and want of fore-teeth, are not found here; and though Hawkesworth's account of those met with by Captain Cook on the east side, shews also that they differ in many respects; yet still, upon the whole, I am persuaded that distance of place, entire separation, diversity of climate, and length of time, all concurring to operate, will account for greater differences, both as to their persons and as to their customs, than really exist between our Van Diemen's Land natives, and those described by Dampier, and in Captain Cook's first voyage. This is certain, that the figure of one of those seen in Endeavour River, and represented in Sidney Parkinson's Journal of that voyage, very much resembles our visitors in Adventure Bay. That there is not the like resemblance in their language, is a circ.u.mstance that need not create any difficulty.

For though the agreement of the languages of people living distant from each other, may be a.s.sumed as a strong argument for their having sprung from one common source, disagreement of language is by no means a proof of the contrary."[139]

[Footnote 139: The ingenious author of _Recherches sur les Americains_ ill.u.s.trates the grounds of this a.s.sertion in the following satisfactory manner: "C'est quelque chose de surprenant, que la foule des idiomes, tous varies entr'eux, que parlent les naturels de l'Amerique Septentrionale. Qu'on reduise ces idiomes a des racines qu'on les simplifie, qu'on en separe les dialectes et les jargons derives, il en resulte toujours cinq ou six languesmeres, respectivement incomprehensibles. On a observe la meme singularite dans la Siberie et la Tartarie, ou le nombre des idiomes, et les dialectes, est egalement multiplie; et rien n'est plus commun, que d'y voir deux hordes voisines qui ne se comprennent point. On retrouve cette meme multiplicite de jargons dans toutes les Provinces de l'Amerique Meridionale." [He might also have included Africa.] "Il y a beaucoup d'apparence que _la vie sauvage, en dispersant les hommes par pet.i.tes troupes isolees dans des bois epais, occasione necessairement cette grande diversite des langues_, dont le nombre diminue a mesure que la societe, en ra.s.semblant les barbares vagabonds, en forme un corps de nation. Alors l'idiome le plus riche, ou le moins panvre en mots, devient dominant, et absorbe les autres." Tom. i. p. 159, 160.--D.]

"However, we must have a far more intimate acquaintance with the languages spoken here, and in the more northern parts of New Holland, before we can be warranted to p.r.o.nounce that they are totally different.

Nay, we have good grounds for the opposite opinion; for we found that the animal called _kangooroo_ at Endeavour river, was known under the same name here; and I need not observe, that it is scarcely possible to suppose that this was not transmitted from one another, but accidentally adopted by two nations, differing in language and extraction. Besides, as it seems very improbable that the Van Diemen's Land inhabitants should have ever lost the use of canoes or sailing vessels, if they had been originally conveyed thither by sea, we must necessarily admit that they, as well as the _kangooroo_ itself, have been stragglers by land from the more northern parts of the country. And if there be any force in this observation, while it traces the origin of the people, it will, at the same time, serve to fix another point, if Captain Cook and Captain Furneaux have not already decided it, that New Holland is no where totally divided by the sea into islands, as some have imagined."[140]

[Footnote 140: The reader is aware of the erroneous opinion generally entertained at this time, of Van Diemen's Land being connected with the continent of New Holland. He will therefore modify the remark above given, as to its inhabitants being stragglers by land from the more northern parts of the country. It is of some consequence also to inform him, that in the visit of D'Entrecasteaux, it was found that the people who inhabited the sh.o.r.es of the channel were in possession of bark canoes.--E.]

"As the New Hollanders seem all to be of the same extraction, so neither do I think there is any thing peculiar in them. On the contrary, they much resemble many of the inhabitants whom I have seen at the islands Tanna and Mallicolla. Nay, there is even some foundation for hazarding a supposition, that they may have originally come from the same place with all the inhabitants of the South Sea. For, of only about ten words which we could get from them, that which expresses _cold_, differs little from that of New Zealand and Otaheite; the first being _Mallareede_, the second _Makkareede_, and the third _Mareede_. The rest of our very scanty Van Diemen's Land Vocabulary is as follows:

Quadne, _A woman._ Everai, _The eye._ Muidje, _The nose._ Kamy, _The teeth, mouth, or tongue_.

Laerenne, _A small bird, a native of the woods here_.

Koygee, _The ear_.

Noonga, _Elevated scars on the body_.

Teegera, _To eat_.

Togarago, _I must begone,_ or, _I will go_.

"Their p.r.o.nunciation is not disagreeable; but rather quick; though not more so than is that of other nations of the South Sea; and, if we may depend upon the affinity of languages as a clue to guide us in discovering the origin of nations, I have no doubt but we shall find, on a diligent enquiry, and when opportunities offer to collect accurately a sufficient number of these words, and to compare them, that all the people from New Holland, eastward to Easter Island, have been derived from the same common root."[141]

[Footnote 141: We find Mr Anderson's notions on this subject conformable to those of Mr Marsden, who has remarked, "that one general language prevailed (however mutilated and changed in the course of time) throughout all this portion of the world, from Madagascar to the most distant discoveries eastward; of which the Malay is a dialect, much corrupted or refined by a mixture of other tongues. This very extensive similarity of language indicates a common origin of the inhabitants; but the circ.u.mstances and progress of their separation are wrapped in the darkest veil of obscurity."--_History of Sumatra_, p. 35.

See also his very curious paper, read before the Society of Antiquaries, and published in their _Archaeologia_, vol. vi, p. 155; where his sentiments on this subject are explained more at large, and ill.u.s.trated by two Tables of corresponding Words.--D.]

SECTION VII.

_The Pa.s.sage from Van Diemen's Land to New Zealand.--Employments in Queen Charlotte's Sound.--Transactions with the Natives there.--Intelligence about the Ma.s.sacre of the Adventure's Boat's Crew.--Account of the Chief who headed the Party on that occasion.--Of the two young Men who embark to attend Omai.--Various Remarks on the Inhabitants.--Astronomical and Nautical Observations._

At eight o'clock in the morning of the 30th of January, a light breeze springing up at W., we weighed anchor, and put to sea from Adventure Bay. Soon after, the wind veered to the southward, and increased to a perfect storm. Its fury abated in the evening, when it veered to the E, and N.E.

This gale was indicated by the barometer, for the wind no sooner began to blow, than the mercury in the tube began to fall. Another remarkable thing attended the coming on of this wind, which was very faint at first. It brought with it a degree of heat that was almost intolerable.

The mercury in the thermometer rose, as it were instantaneously, from about 70 to near 90. This heat was of so short a continuance, that it seemed to be wafted away before the breeze that brought it; so that some on board did not perceive it.

We pursued our course to the eastward, without meeting with any thing worthy of note, till the night between the 6th and 7th of February, when a marine belonging to the Discovery fell over-board, and was never seen afterward. This was the second misfortune of the kind that had happened to Captain Clerke since he left England.

On the 10th, at four in the afternoon, we discovered the land of New Zealand. The part we saw proved to be Rock's Point, and bore S.E. by S., about eight or nine leagues distant. During this run from Van Diemen's Land, the wind, for the first four or five days, was at N.E., N., and N.N.W., and blew, for the most part, a gentle breeze. It afterward veered to S.E., where it remained twenty-four hours. It then came to W.

and S.W.; in which points it continued, with very little deviation, till we reached New Zealand.

After making the land, I steered for Cape Farewell, which at day-break the next morning bore S. by W., distant about four leagues. At eight o'clock, it bore S.W. by S., about five leagues distant; and, in this situation, we had forty-five fathoms water over a sandy bottom. In rounding the Cape we had fifty fathoms, and the same sort of bottom.

I now steered for Stephens's Island, which we came up with at nine o'clock at night; and at ten, next morning, anch.o.r.ed in our old station, in Queen Charlotte's Sound. Unwilling to lose any time, our operations commenced that very afternoon, when we landed a number of empty water-casks, and began to clear a place where we might set up the two observatories, and tents for the reception of a guard, and of such of our people whose business might make it necessary for them to remain on sh.o.r.e.

We had not been long at anchor before several canoes, filled-with natives, came along-side of the s.h.i.+ps; but very few of them would venture on board; which appeared the more extraordinary, as I was well known to them all. There w as one man in particular amongst them, whom I had treated with remarkable kindness, during the whole of my stay when I was last here. Yet now, neither professions of friends.h.i.+p, nor presents, could prevail upon him to come into the s.h.i.+p. This shyness was to be accounted for only upon this supposition, that they were apprehensive we had revisited their country, in order to revenge the death of Captain Furneaux's people. Seeing Omai on board my s.h.i.+p now, whom they must have remembered to have seen on board the Adventure when the melancholy affair happened, and whose first conversation with them, as they approached, generally turned on that subject, they must be well a.s.sured that I was no longer a stranger to it. I thought it necessary, therefore, to use every endeavour to a.s.sure them of the continuance of my friends.h.i.+p, and that I should not disturb them on that account. I do not know whether this had any weight with them; but certain it is, that they very soon laid aside all manner of restraint and distrust.

On the 13th we set up two tents, one from each s.h.i.+p, on the same spot where we had pitched them formerly. The observatories were at the same time erected; and Messrs King and Bayly began their operations immediately, to find the rate of the time-keeper, and to make other observations. The remainder of the empty water-casks were also sent on sh.o.r.e, with the cooper to trim, and a sufficient number of sailors to fill them. Two men were appointed to brew spruce beer; and the carpenter and his crew were ordered to cut wood. A boat, with a party of men, under the direction of one of the mates, was sent to collect gra.s.s for our cattle; and the people that remained on board were employed in refitting the s.h.i.+p, and arranging the provisions. In this manner we were all profitably busied during our stay. For the protection of the party on sh.o.r.e, I appointed a guard of ten marines, and ordered arms for all the workmen; and Mr King, and two or three petty officers, constantly remained with them. A boat was never sent to any considerable distance from the s.h.i.+ps without being armed, and under direction of such officers as I could depend upon, and who were well acquainted with the natives.

During my former visits to this country, I had never taken some of these precautions; nor were they, I firmly believe, more necessary now than they had been formerly. But after the tragical fate of the Adventure's boat's crew in this sound, and of Captain Marion du Fresne, and of some of his people, in the Bay of Islands (in 1772), it was impossible totally to divest ourselves of all apprehension of experiencing a similar calamity.

If the natives entertained any suspicion of our revenging these acts of barbarity, they very soon laid it aside. For, during the course of this day, a great number of families came from different parts or the coast, and took up their residence close to us; so that there was not a spot in the cove where a hut could be put up, that was not occupied by them, except the place where we had fixed our little encampment. This they left us in quiet possession of; but they came and took away the ruins of some old huts that were there, as materials for their new erections.

It is curious to observe with what facility they build these occasional places of abode. I have seen above twenty of them erected on a spot of ground, that, not an hour before, was covered with shrubs and plants.

They generally bring some part of the materials with them; the rest they find upon the premises. I was present when a number of people landed, and built one of these villages. The moment the canoes reached the sh.o.r.e, the men leaped out, and at once took possession of a piece of ground, by tearing up the plants and shrubs, or sticking up some part of the framing of a hut. They then returned to their canoes, and secured their weapons, by setting them up against a tree, or placing them in such a position, that they could be laid hold of in an instant. I took particular notice that no one neglected this precaution. While the men were employed in raising the huts, the women were not idle. Some were stationed to take care of the canoes; others to secure the provisions, and the few utensils in their possession; and the rest went to gather dry sticks, that a fire might be prepared for dressing their victuals.

As to the children, I kept them, as also some of the more aged, sufficiently occupied in scrambling for beads, till I had emptied my pockets, and then I left them.

These temporary habitations are abundantly sufficient to afford shelter from the wind and rain, which is the only purpose they are meant to answer. I observed that, generally, if not always, the same tribe or family, though it were ever so large, a.s.sociated and built together; so that we frequently saw a village, as well as their larger towns, divided into different districts, by low pallisades, or some similar mode of separation.

The advantage we received from the natives coming to live with us, was not inconsiderable. For, every day, when the weather would permit, some of them went out to catch fish; and we generally got, by exchanges, a good share of the produce of their labours. This supply, and what our own nets and lines afforded us, was so ample, that we seldom were in want of fish. Nor was there any deficiency of other refreshments.

Celery, scurvy-gra.s.s, and portable soup were boiled with the pease and wheat, for both s.h.i.+ps' companies, every day daring our whole stay; and they had spruce-beer for their drink. So that, if any of our people had contracted the seeds of the scurvy, such a regimen soon removed them.

But the truth is, when we arrived here, there were only two invalids (and these on board the Resolution) upon the sick lists in both s.h.i.+ps.

Besides the natives who took up their abode close to us, we were occasionally visited by others of them, whose residence was not far off; and by some who lived more remote. Their articles of commerce were, curiosities, fish, and women. The two first always came to a good market, which the latter did not. The seamen had taken a kind of dislike to these people, and were either unwilling, or afraid, to a.s.sociate with them; which produced this good effect, that I knew no instance of a man's quitting his station, to go to their habitations.

A connection with women I allow, because I cannot prevent it; but never encourage, because I always dread its consequences. I know, indeed, that many men are of opinion, that such an intercourse is one of our greatest securities amongst savages; and perhaps they who, either from necessity or choice, are to remain and settle with them, may find it so. But with travellers and transient visitors, such as we were, it is generally otherwise; and, in our situation, a connection with their women betrays more men than it saves. What else can be reasonably expected, since all their views are selfish, without the least mixture of regard or attachment? My own experience, at least, which hath been pretty extensive, hath not pointed out to me one instance to the contrary.[142]

[Footnote 142: We ought to distinguish betwixt the affection of the s.e.xes, and those gross physical principles which lead to their temporary intercourse. The latter exist, in some degree or other, wherever the difference of s.e.x is found; but the former is the result of refinement in feeling, and a habit of reflection on objects of common interest, which civilization alone can produce. This is with respect to members of the same community; much more does the rule hold where strangers are concerned. It is positively absurd for them to expect affection, where the lawful and accustomed possessors of the she-savage have never yet been fortunate enough to elicit its display. Well, therefore, has Captain Cook remarked, that the motives which lead to their occasional connexion are selfish, by which must be understood, the mercenary nature of the principle which actuates the female.--E.]

Amongst our occasional visitors was a chief named Kahoora, who, as I was informed, headed the party that cut off Captain Furneaux's people, and himself killed Mr Howe, the officer who commanded. To judge of the character of Kahoora, by what I heard from many of his countrymen, he seemed to be more feared than beloved amongst them. Not satisfied with telling me that he was a very bad man, some of them even importuned me to kill him; and, I believe, they were not a little surprised that I did not listen to them; for, according to their ideas of equity, this ought to have been done. But if I had followed the advice of all our pretended friends, I might have extirpated the whole race; for the people of each hamlet, or village, by turns, applied to me to destroy the other. One would have almost thought it impossible, that so striking a proof of the divided state in which this miserable people live, could have been a.s.signed. And yet I was sure that I did not misconceive the meaning of those who made these strange applications to me; for Omai, whose language was a dialect of their own, and perfectly understood all that they said, was our interpreter.

On the 15th, I made an excursion in my boat to look for gra.s.s, and visited the Hippah, or fortified village at the S.W. point of Motuara, and the places where our gardens had been planted on that island. There were no people at the former; but the houses and pallisades had been rebuilt, and were now in a state of good repair; and there were other evident marks of its having been inhabited not long before. It would be unnecessary, at present, to give a particular account of this Hippah, sufficient notice having been taken of it in the account of my first voyage.

When the Adventure arrived first at Queen Charlotte's Sound, in 1773, Mr Bayly fixed upon this place for making his observations; and he, and the people with him, at their leisure hours, planted several spots with English garden seeds. Not the least vestige of these now remained. It is probable that they had been all rooted out to make room for buildings, when the village was re-inhabited; for, at all the other gardens then planted by Captain Furneaux, although now wholly over-run with the weeds of the country, we found cabbages, onions, leeks, purslain, radishes, mustard, &c. and a few potatoes. These potatoes, which were first brought from the Cape of Good Hope, had been greatly improved by change of soil; and, with proper cultivation, would be superior to those produced in most other countries. Though the New Zealanders are fond of this root, it was evident that they had not taken the trouble to plant a single one (much less any other of the articles which we had introduced); and if it were not for the difficulty of clearing ground where potatoes had been once planted, there would not have been any now remaining.

On the 16th, at day-break, I set out with a party of men, in five boats, to collect food for our cattle. Captain Clerke, and several of the officers, Omai, and two of the natives, accompanied me. We proceeded about three leagues up the sound, and then landed on the east side, at a place where I had formerly been. Here we cut as much gra.s.s as loaded the two launches.