The Three Voyages of Captain Cook Round the World. Vol. II. Being the Second of the First VoyageCook, James
History
The Three Voyages of Captain Cook Round the World. Vol. II. Being the Second of the First Voyage
Cook, James
Cook, James, 1728-1779 -- Travel; Explorers -- Great Britain -- Biography; Voyages around the world -- History -- 18th century
We went on shore in the evening, to see how the people who were employed
in wooding and watering went on, and were informed that an axe had been
stolen. As the passing over this fault might encourage the commission of
others of the same kind, application was immediately made to the king,
who, after some altercation, promised that the axe should be restored in
the morning; and kept his word, for it was brought to us by a man who
pretended that the thief, being afraid of a discovery, had privately
brought it and left it at his house in the night.
We continued to purchase between two and three hundred weight of turtle
in a day, besides fowls and other necessaries; and, in the evening of
the 13th, having nearly completed our wood and water, Mr. Banks went
ashore to take leave of his Majesty, to whom he had made several
trifling presents, and at parting gave him two quires of paper, which he
graciously received. They had much conversation, in the course of which
his Majesty inquired, why the English did not touch there as they had
been used to do. Mr. Banks replied, that he supposed it was because they
found a deficiency of turtle, of which there not being enough to supply
one ship, many could not be expected. To supply this defect, he advised
his Majesty to breed cattle, buffaloes, and sheep, a measure which he
did not seem much inclined to adopt.
On the 14th we made ready to sail, having on board a good stock of
refreshments, which we purchased of the natives, consisting of turtle,
fowl, fish, two species of deer, one as big as a sheep, the other not
larger than a rabbit; with cocoa-nuts, plantains, limes, and other
vegetables. The deer however served only for present use, for we could
seldom keep one of them alive more than four-and-twenty hours after it
was on board. On our part, the trade was carried on chiefly with Spanish
dollars, the natives seeming to set little value upon any thing else; so
that our people, who had a general permission to trade, parted with old
shirts and other articles, which they were obliged to substitute for
money to great disadvantage. In the morning of the 15th, we weighed,
with a light breeze, at N. E. and stood out to sea. Java Head, from
which I took my departure, lies in latitude 6° 49ʹ S., longitude 253°
12ʹ W.
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