About this time a party was made, of which I was one, to pay a visit to Maquinna the King of the Sound at his Village at Tashees, about 15 miles up the sound.[302] Four boats well mann'd and arm'd in case of accident set out on this expedition. The party consisted of Seigr. Quadra and his officers, Captns. Vancouver and Broughton and some of their officers. The weather was fine and the expedition was productive of much variety and amusement. Maquinna received us with all the welcome and Hospitality of a Prince and seem'd much pleased with the honor done him. On entering his house we were conducted up to the end of it where there were seats placed in a long range covered with clean mats. His wives (for he had no less than four) & his children all clean dressed were seated near this end of the house ready to receive us and along the sides within the house were ranged crowds of his subjects. Maquinna had prepared an entertainment for us which was to be exhibited after Dinner, in the meantime the two Captains made the Royal family some handsome presents consisting of Copper, Blue Cloth. Blankets &c. The frame of Maquinna's house was amazingly large but only the habitable part of it was roof'd, this part was thirty yards long and eighteen broad. The roof was about 10 or 12 feet distant from the ground, and composed of large planks of Fir the ends of which were laid on Beams and were moveable at pleasure. But the size of the Beams and their supporters was what raised in us more surprise and astonishment from the labour they must have cost in placing them in their present situation than any thing else we saw among them. In this house were three of these Beams that run along the whole house, one along each side and the other in the middle. They were of an equal length and thickness. We measur'd one of them, and the dimensions were, in length, sixteen fathoms (or 32 feet) and in circumference twelve feet. They were supported at each extremity by Trees of much the same size on which were carved figures resembling (from the formation of the features) human figures but so large, and so horribly preposterous that they were frightful to appearance. The Beams were solid Trees without a Knot in them and varied very little in thickness at either end. At one end of this house were piles of Boxes and Chests, containing their Property and about a foot from the ground was a kind of Platform raised for the purpose of sleeping on & sitting on. It ran along one side of the house and across the ends and was about a yard wide. In a corner of the house was the Royal Kitchen, where the Cooks were busily employed in boiling Oil of different kinds, preparing Stews and Fricassees of Porpoise, Whale, Seal, and such delicious Meats. But the Cooks' trouble & skill was thrown away upon us for we had a far better dinner to sit down to. It was agreed on setting out that Don Quadra shou'd furnish the Eatables and Captn. Vancouver the Drinkables but one would have