394 cook's first voyage feb. 



neighbours, who made a much better appearance. 

 Their dress has been mentioned already, particularly 

 their large round head-dresses of feathers, which 

 were far from being unbecoming. 



As soon as we got out of the Sound, I stood over 

 to the eastward, in order to get the streight well 

 open before the tide of ebb came on. At seven in 

 the evening, the two small islands which lie off Cape 

 Koamaroo, the south-east head of Queen Charlotte's 

 Sound, bore east, distant about four miles : at this 

 time it was nearly calm, and the tide of ebb setting 

 out, we were, in a very short time, carried by the 

 rapidity of the stream close upon one of the islands, 

 which was a rock rising almost perpendicularly out 

 of the sea : we perceived our danger increase every 

 moment, and had but one expedient to prevent our 

 being dashed to pieces, the success of which a few 

 minutes would determine. We were now within little 

 more than a cable's length of the rock, and had more 

 than seventy-five fathom water; but upon dropping an 

 anchor, and veering about one hundred and fifty 

 fathom of cable, the ship was happily brought up : 

 this, however, would not have saved us, if the tide 

 which set S. by E. had not, upon meeting with the 

 island, changed its direction to S. E. and carried us 

 beyond the first point. In this situation, we were 

 not above two cables' length from the rocks ; and 

 here we remained in the strength of the tide, which 

 set to the S. E. after the rate of at least ^ve miles an 

 hour, from a little after seven till near midnight, 

 when the tide abated, and we began to heave. By 

 three in the morning the anchor was at the bows, 

 and having a light breeze at N. W. we made sail for 

 the eastern shore ; but the tide being against us, we 

 made but little way : the wind, however, afterwards 

 freshened, and came to N. and N. E. with which, 

 and the tide of ebb, we were in a short time hurried 

 through the narrowest part of the streight, and then 

 stood away for the southernmost land we had in sight, 

 which bore from us S. by W. Over this land ap- 



