54f cook's second voyage august, 



guard, which was now thought sufficient, as the na- 

 tives seemed to be pretty well reconciled to us. I 

 was told, that they asked our people to go home with 

 them, on condition they stripped naked as they were. 

 This shows that they had no design to rob them, 

 whatever other they might have. 



On the 9th, I sent the launch for more ballast, 

 and the guard and wooders to the usual place. With 

 these I went myself, and found a good many 

 of the natives collected together, whose beha- 

 viour, though armed, was courteous and oblig- 

 ing ; so that there was no longer any occasion to 

 mark out the limits by a line ; they observed them 

 without this precaution. As it was necessary for 

 Mr. Wales's instruments to remain on shore all the 

 middle of the day, the guard did not return to dinner, 

 as they had done before, till relieved by others. 

 When I came off, I prevailed on a young man, whose 

 name was Wha-a-gou, to accompany me. Before 

 dinner I showed him every part of the ship ; but did 

 not observe that any one thing fixed his attention a 

 moment, or caused in him the least surprise. He 

 had no knowledge of goats, dogs, or cats, calling 

 them all hogs (Booga or Boogas). I made him a 

 present of a dog and a bitch, as he showed a liking 

 to that kind of animal. Soon after he came on 

 board, some of his friends followed in a canoe, and 

 enquired for him, probably doubtful of his safety. 

 He looked out of the quarter-gallery, and having 

 spoken to them, they went ashore, and quickly re- 

 turned with a cock, a little sugar-cane, and a few 

 cocoa-nuts, as a present to me. Though he sat 

 down with us, he did but just taste our salt pork, 

 but eat pretty heartily of yam, and drank a glass of 

 wine. After dinner I made him presents, and then 

 conducted him ashore. 



As soon as we landed, the youth and some of his 

 friends took me by the hand, with a view, as I un- 

 derstood, to conduct me to their habitations. We 



