1778. THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 255 



ference. This, however, was not without exception ; 

 for a few of the company showed a certain degree of 

 curiosity. 



In the afternoon of the next day I went into the 

 woods with a party of our men, and cut down a tree 

 for a mizen-mast. On the day following, it was 

 brought to the place where the carpenters were em- 

 ployed upon the foremast. In the evening the wind, 

 which had been for some time westerly, veered to the 

 south-east, and increased to a very hard gale, with 

 rain, which continued till eight o'clock the next 

 morning, when it abated, and veered again to the 

 west. 



The fore-mast being, by this time, finished, we 

 hauled it along-side ; but the bad weather prevented 

 our getting it in till the afternoon ; and we set about 

 rigging it with the greatest expedition, while the 

 carpenters were going on with the mizen-mast on 

 shore. They had made very considerable progress in 

 it on the 16th, when they discovered that the stick 

 upon which they were at work was sprung, or 

 wounded, owing, as supposed, to some accident in 

 cutting it down. So that all their labour was thrown 

 away ; and it became necessary to get another 

 tree out of the woods, which employed all hands 

 above half a day. During these various operations, 

 several of the natives, who were about the ships, 

 looked on with an expressive silent surprize, which 

 we did not expect, from their general indifference 

 and inattention. 



On the 18th a party of strangers, in six or eight 

 canoes, came into the cove, where they remained, 

 looking at us, for some time ; and then retired, with- 

 out coming alongside either ship. We supposed that 

 our old friends, who were more numerous at this time 

 about us than these new visitors, would not permit them 

 to have an intercourse with us. It was evident, upon 

 this and several other occasions, that the inhabitants 

 of the adjoining parts of the Sound engrossed us en* 



