Notable Voyagers, From Columbus to NordenskioldKingston, William Henry Giles
History
Notable Voyagers, From Columbus to Nordenskiold
Kingston, William Henry Giles
Explorers; Voyages and travels
About this time another double canoe appeared, which outsailed the
_Unity_. She was steered with two oars, one in each canoe. The Dutch,
wishing to anchor, stood in until they brought up about a cannon-shot
from the island, which consisted of an entire mountain, resembling one
of the Moluccas, and was covered over with cocoa-nut-trees. No sooner
had the ship come to an anchor than she was surrounded by canoes, the
people from which leaped into the water and swam to her, carrying in
their hands cocoa-nuts and roots of various sorts. These they bartered
for nails, beads, and other trifles; so that the crew obtained a
sufficient number of cocoa-nuts to supply each of them bountifully.
This traffic brought so many of the native canoes round the ship, that
the Dutchmen had a difficulty in steering clear of them. A boat was now
sent to the other island to discover better anchorage, but she was
quickly beset with a vast number of canoes, full of wild savages armed
with clubs, who attempted to board her. When the seamen first fired
their muskets, the natives laughed at them for making so much noise and
doing so little harm; but at the next discharge, a savage being shot
through the breast, they quickly retreated. They were strong,
well-proportioned men, and expert swimmers.
Notwithstanding the hostility they first displayed, the savages came
again on the 12th in their canoes, laden with cocoa-nuts, bananas,
roots, hogs, and fresh water, all struggling to get first on board.
Those from the canoes outside leaped into the sea, and, diving, swam to
the ship with bunches of cocoa-nuts in their mouths, climbing up the
sides like so many rats, in such swarms that the Dutch had to keep them
off with their cutlasses. Sufficient cocoa-nuts were obtained that day
to give each man of the crew a dozen.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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