5 11
The produce of this ifland, according to the infpeftion of Mr. Banks , proved to bemuch the fame as that of Otaheite , the people alfo refembling thofe of that ifland;many of them he had feen upon it, who were well acquainted with the value of thetrading articles.
Both the parties which were fent out, made their obfervations with great fuccefs.They neverthelefs differed in the accounts of the times of the conta&s more than mighthave been imagined.
Mr. Green’s account was as follows:
The firft external contadt, or firft appearance of Venus on >
the fun, was y
The firft internal contact or total immerfion wasThe fecond internal contadf, or beginning of the im-
merfion 5
The fecond external contact, or total immerfionLatitude of the obfervatoryLongitude 149 0 32' 3o // weft of Greenwich.
While they were viewing the tranfit of Venus, fome of the fhip’s company brokeinto one of the ftore-rooms, and Hole a quantity of fpike nails. As the circulation ofthefe nails might have been highly detrimental to them, ftri£l fearch was made, andone of the thieves was detected. He had only a few in his cuftody •, but was howeverpunifhed with two dozen lafhes.
There having been a fcarcity of bread-fruit for fome days, an enquiry was made ofthe caufe, and the reafon the Indians gave was, that there being a great crop, the fruithad been gathered to make a fort of four pafte, which the natives call mahie, which,after fermentation, will keep a long time, and fupply them in times of dearth.
Complaint was made on Monday, the 12th, to the captain, that the Indians had loftfome bows and arrows, and firings of plaited hair; the affair was enquired into,and the fa£t being well attefted, two dozen lafhes were inflicted upon the failors whohad ftolen them.
An iron coal-rake for the oven being ftole in the night of the 14th, and many otherthings having at different times been taken by the Indians, the captain judged it of fomeconfequence, if poffible, to put an end to thefe practices, by making it their commonmterefl to prevent it. He had already given ftritl orders that the fentinels fhould notfife upon them, even if they were detefted in the faff. About twenty-feven of theirdouble canoes with fails were juft come in with cargoes of fifh, which the captain^zed, and then gave notice, that unlefs the rake, and all the other things, whichdad at different times been ftolen, were returned, the veffels fhould be burnt. The^ a ptain had, indeed, no fuch defign, as will appear by the event. The menace pro-duced no other effect than the reftitution of the rake, all the other things remainingl!a their poffeflion. At length the captain thought proper to give up the cargoes, as*de innocent natives were in great diftrefs for want of them ; and at laft, to preventc °nfufion, from the difficulty of afcertaining to whom the different lots belonged, hePfomifed alfo to releafe the canoes.
About this time another event had nearly involved the Engliffi in a quarrel with the. n dians. The captain having fent a boat on fhore to get ballaft, the officer not meeting^mediately with what he wanted, began to pull down one of their fepulchral buildings j^ ls nieafure was ftrenuoufly oppofed by the Indians. Mr. Banks , having received
intelligence
Hours.
Min.
Sec.
9
2 5
4
k'
4 ■
9
44
3
14
8
3
3 2
10
I 7° .
29 ^