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Volume the eleventh.
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624
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CAPTAIN COOK ’S SECOND VOYAGE.

624

down to him by a line; but the moment they were in his poffeffion, he and his coni'’panions paddled off in all hafte, without giving the club or any thing elfe in return.I his was what the captain expetted, and indeed what he was not forry for, as he wantedan opportunity to ihew the multitude on Ihore the effect of their fire-arms withoutmaterially hurting any of them. Having a fowling-piece loaded with final! fhot (No. 3.)he gave the fellow the contents; and when they were above muquet-fhot off, heordered fo me of the mufquetoons, or wall-pieces, to be fired, which made them leapout of the canoe, keep under her off-fide, and fwim with her afhore. This tranfa&ionfeemed to make little or no imprefiion on the people there; on the contrary, they'began to halloo, and to make fport of it,

After mooring the fhip, by' four anchors, with her broadfide to the landing-place,hardly mufquet-fhot oft, and placing the artillery in fuch a manner as to command thewhole harbour, he embarked with the marines, and a party of feamen, in three boats,and rowed in for the fhore. It hath been already mentioned, that the two divifions ofthe natives were drawn up on each fide the landing-place. They had left a fpacebetween them of about thirty or forty yards, in which were laid, to the mod advantage,a few fmall bunches of plantains, a yam, and two or three roots. Between thefe andthe water were ftuck upright in the fand, for what purpofe they never could learn,four fmall reeds, about two feet from each other, in a line at right angles to the fhore,wheie they remained for two or three days after. The old man before mentioned,and two more, flood by thefe things, inviting them by figns to land ; but the formertrap was ftill in their memory, which they were fo near being caught in at the laftifland ; and this looked fomething like it. In fhorl, every thing confpired to makethem believe they meant to attack them as foon as they fhould be on fhore; the con-fequence of which was eafily fuppofed: many of them muff have been killed andwounded, and they fhould hardly have efcaped unhurt; two things the captain equallywifhed to prevent. He ordered a mufquet to be fired over the party on the right*which was by far the ftrongeft body; but the alarm it gave them was momentary-In an inftant tney recovered themfelves, and began to difplay their weapons. Onefellow ftiewed them his backfide, in a manner which plainly conveyed his meaning-After this, he ordered three or four more mufquets to be fired. This was the figumfor the fhip to fire a few great guns, which prefently difperfed them; and then theylanded, and marked out the limits, on the right and left, by a line. The old manbefore mentioned itood his ground, though deferted by his two companions, and thecaptain rewarded him. ihe natives came gradually to them, feemingly in a mornfriendly manner; fome even without their weapons, but by far the greateft p aItbrought them; and when they made figns to lay them down, they gave the Enghlj 1to underftand that they muft lay down theirs firfl: thus all parties flood armed*They indeed climbed the cocoa-nut trees, and threw down the nuts without requiringany thing for them ; but the captain took care that they fhould always have fomethingin return. He obferved that many were afraid to touch what belonged to them; ar | dthey feemed to have no notion of exchanging one thing for another. The captaintook the old man (whofe name was now found to be Paowang) to the woods, andmade him underftand he wanted to cut down fome trees to take on board the fhip >cutting down fome at the fame time, which they put into one of the boats, togetherwith a few fmall calks of water, with a view of letting the people fee what it was theychiefly wanted. Paowang very readily gave his content to cut wood; nor was thereany one who made the Ieaft objection. Having landed again, they loaded the launcwith water, and after making three hauls with the feine, caught upwards of three