DAMPIER’s ACCOUNT OF NEW HOLLAND.

475

then fee us, we made a halt, and hid ourfelves in a bending of the fand-bank. Theyknew we muft be thereabouts, and being three or four times our numbers, thought to

feize us. So they difperfed themfelves, fome going to the fea-fhore, and others beatingabout the fand-hills. We knew by what rencounter we had had with them in themorning that we could eafily out-run them; fo a nimble young man that was with mefeeing fome of them near, ran towards them; and they for fome time ran away beforehim ; but he foon overtaking them, they faced about and fought him. He had acutlafs, and they had wooden lances; with which, being many of them, they were toohard for him. When he firft ran towards them I chafed two more that were by thefhore ; but fearing how it might be with my young man, I turned back quickly, and'vent up to the top of a fand-hill, whence I faw him near me, clofely engaged withthem. Upon their feeing me, one of them threw a lance at me, that narrowly miffedme. I difcharged my gun to fcare them, but avoided fhooting any of them ; till findingthe young man in great danger from them, and myfelf in fome $ and that though thegun had a little frightened them at firft, yet they had foon learnt to defpife it, tolling uptheir hands, and crying, “ pooh, pooh, poohand coming on afrefh with a greatnoife, I thought it high time to charge again, and fhoot one of them, which I did.The reft, feeing him fall, made a ftand again ; and my young man took the opportunityto difengage himfelf, and come off to me; my other man alfo was with me, who haddone nothing all this while, having come out unarmed ; and I returned back with mymen, defigning to attempt the natives no farther, being very forry for what had hap-pened already. They took up their wounded companion ; and my young man, whohad been ftruck through the cheek by one of their lances, was afraid it had beenpoifoned : but I did not think that likely. His wound was very painful to him, beingmade with a blunt weapon ; but he foon recovered of it.

Among the New Hollanders, whom we were thus engaged with, there was one whoby. his appearance and carriage, as well in the morning as this afternoon, feemed to bethe chief of them, and a kind of prince or captain among them. He was a youngbrifk man, not very tall, nor fo perfonable as fome of the reft, though more aftive andcourageous : he w'as painted (which none of the reft were at all) with a circle of whitepafte or pigment (a fort of lime, as we thought) about his eyes, and a white ftreak downhis nofe, from his forehead to the tip of it: and his breaft and fome part of his arms were•dfo made white with the fame paint ; not for beauty or ornament, one would think,hut as fome wild Indian warriors are faid to do, he feemed thereby to defign the lookingmore terrible ; this his painting adding very much to his natural deformity; for theya fi of them have the moft unpleafant looks and the worft features of any people thatever I faw, though I have feen great variety of favages. Thefe New Hollanders wereProbably the fame fort of people as thofe I met with on this coaft in my Voyage roundhe World ; for the place I then touched at was not above forty or fifty leagues to thehorth-ealt of this ; and thefe were much the fame blinking creatures, (here being alfo_ undance of the fame kind of flefh-flies teazing them,) and with the fame black flrins,und hair frizzled, tall and thin, &c. as thofe were : but we had not the opportunity toee whether thefe, as the former, wanted two of their fore-teeth.

We faw a great many places where they had made fires, and where there were com-t , °uly three or four boughs ftuck up to windward of them ; for the wind (which isi k fea-breeze) in the day-time blows always one way with them, and the land-breezeft Ut bnall. By their fire-places we fhould always find great heaps of fifh-fhells of

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ds mote I before described did on lrnall-frlh, which tney caught m wires or holes

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