110 cook's first voyage APRIL, 



dressed herself with more than usual expedition ; and, 

 as a token of special grace, clothed him in a suit of 

 fine cloth and proceeded with him to the tents. In 

 the evening Mr. Banks paid a visit to Tubourai Ta- 

 maide, as he had often done before, by candle-light, 

 and was equally grieved and surprised to find him 

 and his family in a melancholy mood, and most of 

 them in tears : he endeavoured in vain to discover 

 the cause, and therefore his stay among them was 

 but short. When he reported this circumstance to 

 the officers at the fort, they recollected that Owhaw 

 had foretold, that in four days we should fire our 

 great guns ; and as this was the eve of the third day, 

 the situation in which Tubourai Tamaide and his fa- 

 mily had been found alarmed them. The sentries 

 therefore were doubled at the fort, and the gentle- 

 men slept under arms. At two in the morning, Mr. 

 Banks himself went round the point, but found every 

 thing so quiet, that he gave up all suspicions of mis- 

 chief intended by the natives as groundless. We 

 had, however, another source of security, — our little 

 fortification was now complete. The north and south 

 sides consisted of a bank of earth four feet and a 

 half high on the inside, and a ditch without ten feet 

 broad and six deep : on the west side, facing the 

 bay, there was a bank of earth four feet high, and 

 palisadoes upon that, but no ditch, the works here 

 being at high-water mark : on the east side, upon the 

 bank of the river, was placed a double row of water- 

 casks, filled with water ; and as this was the weakest 

 side, the two four pounders were planted there, and 

 six swivel guns were mounted so as to command the 

 only two avenues from the woods. Our garrison 

 consisted of about five-and-forty men with small 

 arms, including the officers and the gentlemen who 

 resided on shore ; and our sentries were as well re- 

 lieved as in the best regulated frontier in Europe. 



We continued our vigilance the next day, though 

 we had no particular reason to think it necessary ; 



