CAPTAIN COOK’S SECOND VOYAGE.

59S

were the Ieaft Iofs felt by thefe people leaving them ; while they remained they weregenerally well fupplied with fill), at a fmall expence.

In unpacking the bread, four thoufand two hundred.and ninety-two pounds theyfound totally unfit to eat, and about three thoufand pounds more could only be eatenby people in their fituation.

The 15th being a pleafant morning, a party went over to the Fad Bay, and climbedone of the hills which overlooked the eaftern part of the ftrait, in order to look for theAdventure . They had a fatiguing walk to little purpofe ; for when they came to thefutnmit, they found the eaftern horizon fo foggy that they could not fee above two miles'.Mr. Forfter, who was one of the party, profited by this excurfion, in collecting fomenew plants, lhey now began to defpair of feeing the Adventure any more, and wastotally at a lofs to conceive what was beome of her.

From this day to the 22d nothing remarkable happened, and they were occupied ingetting every thing in readinefs to put to fea, being refolved to wait no longer than theafligned time for the Adventure.

Very early in the morning they were vifited by a number of the natives, in four orfive canoes, very few of whom they had feen before. They brought with them variousarticles (curiofities) which they exchanged for Otaheitean cloth, &c. At firft theexchanges were very much in the failors’ favour, till an old man, who was no ftranger,came and affifted his countrymen with his advice; which, in a moment, turned thetrade above a thoufand per cent, againft them.

After thefe people were gone, the captain took four hogs, (that is, three fovs andone boar) two cocks and two hens, which he landed in the bottom of the Weft Bay*carrying them a little way into the woods, where he left them as much food as wouldferve them ten or twelve days. This was done with a view of keeping them in thewoods, left they Ihould come down to the Ihore in fearch of food, and be difcovered bythe natives.

Having now put the ffiip in a condition for fea, and to encounter the fouthern lati-tudes, the tents were ftruck and every thing got on board.

1 he boatfwain, with a party of men, being in the woods cutting broom, fome of themfound a private hut of the natives, in which was depofited mod of the treafure they hadreceived from them, as well as fome other articles of their own. It is very probablefome were fet to watch this hut; as, foon after it was difcovered, they came, and tookall away. But miffing fome things, they told fome of the failors they had ftolen them;and, in the evening, came and made their complaint to Captain Cook , pitching uponone of the party as the perfon who had committed the theft. Having ordered this manto be punifhed before them, they went away feemingly fatisfied, although they did notrecover any of the things they had loft, nor could by any means find out what hadbecome of them ; though nothing was more certain than that fomething had been ftolenby fome of the party, if not by the very man the natives pitched upon. It was ever amaxim with the captain to punifh the leaft crimes any of his people committed againftthefe uncivilized nations. 1 heir robbing them with impunity is, by no means, a fuffi-cient reafon why the Europeans fhould treat thefe uninformed people in the famemanner.

Calm light airs from the north, all day, on the 23d, hindered them from putting tofea, as intended. In the afternoon, fome of the officers went on ffiore to amufe them-felves among the natives, where they faw the head and bowels of a youth, who had latelybeen killed, lying on the beach ; and the heart ftuck on a forked flick, which was fixgdto the head of one of the largeft canoes. One of the gentlemen bought the head and

brought