92 cook's first voyage APRIL, 



a joy in his countenance that was painted with a 

 strength of expression which distinguishes these 

 people from all others, delivered them to the owners. 

 The case of the opera-glass, however, upon being 

 opened, was found to be empty ; upon this dis- 

 covery, his countenance changed in a moment ; 

 and catching Mr. Banks again by the hand, he 

 rushed out of the house, without uttering any sound, 

 and led him along the shore, walking with great 

 rapidity : when they had got about a mile from the 

 house, a w^oman met him and gave him a piece of 

 cloth, which he hastily took from her, and continued 

 to press forward with it in his hand. Dr. Solander 

 and Mr. Monkhouse had followed them, and they 

 came at length to a house where they were received 

 by a woman, to whom he gave the cloth, and inti- 

 mated to the gentlemen that they should give her 

 some beads. They immediately complied ; and the 

 beads and cloth being deposited upon the floor, the 

 woman went out, and in about half an hour re- 

 turned with the opera-glass, expressing the same 

 joy upon the occasion that had before been ex- 

 pressed by the chief. The beads were now re- 

 turned, with an inflexible resolution not to accept 

 them ; and the cloth was, with the same pertinacity, 

 forced upon Dr. Solander, as a recompence for the 

 injury that had been done him. He could not 

 avoid accepting the cloth, but insisted in his turn 

 upon giving a new present of beads to the woman. 

 It will not, perhaps, be easy to account for all 

 the steps that were taken in the recovery of this 

 glass and snuff-box ; but this cannot be thought 

 strange, considering that the scene of action was 

 among a people whose language, policy, and con- 

 nections, are even now but imperfectly known j 

 upon the whole, however, they show an injtelligence 

 and influence which would do honour to any system 

 of government, however regular and improved. In 

 the evening, about six o'clock, we returned to the 

 ship. 



