A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13Kerr, Robert
History
A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13
Kerr, Robert
Voyages and travels
upon grass, and which we judged could not be less than a deer; and the
footsteps of another, which was clawed like a dog, and seemed to be
about as big as a wolf; we also tracked a small animal, whose foot
resembled that of a polecat or weasel. The trees over our head abounded
with birds of various kinds, among which were many of exquisite beauty,
particularly loriquets and cockatoos, which flew in flocks of several
scores together. We found some wood which had been felled by the natives
with a blunt instrument, and some that had been barked. The trees were
not of many species; among others there was a large one which yielded a
gum not unlike the _Sanguis draconis_; and in some of them steps that
had been cut at about three feet distance from each other, for the
convenience of climbing them.
From this excursion we returned between three and four o'clock, and
having dined on board, we went ashore again at the watering-place, where
a party of men were filling casks. Mr Gore, the second lieutenant, had
been sent out in the morning with a boat to dredge for oysters at the
head of the bay; when he had performed this service, he went ashore, and
having taken a midshipman with him, and sent the boat away, set out to
join the waterers by land. In his way he fell in with a body of
two-and-twenty Indians, who followed him, and were often not more than
twenty yards distant; when Mr Gore perceived them so near, he stopped,
and faced about, upon which they stopped also; and when he went on
again, continued their pursuit: They did not however attack him, though
they were all armed with lances, and he and the midshipman got in safety
to the watering-place. The Indians, who had slackened their pursuit when
they came in sight of the main body of our people, halted at about the
distance of a quarter of a mile, where they stood still. Mr Monkhouse
and two or three of the waterers took it into their head to march up to
them; but seeing the Indians keep their ground till they came pretty
near them, they were seized with a sudden fear very common to the rash
and fool-hardy, and made a hasty retreat: This step, which insured the
danger that it was taken to avoid, encouraged the Indians, and four of
them running forward discharged their lances at the fugitives, with such
force, that flying no less than forty yards, they went beyond them. As
the Indians did not pursue, our people, recovering their spirits,
stopped to collect the lances when they came up to the place where they
lay; upon which the Indians, in their turn, began to retire. Just at
this time I came up, with Mr Banks, Dr Solander, and Tupia; and being
desirous to convince the Indians that we were neither afraid of them,
nor intended them any mischief, we advanced towards them, making signs
of expostulation and entreaty, but they could not be persuaded to wait
till we could come up. Mr Gore told us, that he had seen some of them up
the bay, who had invited him by signs to come on shore, which he,
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