THEPACIFICOCEAN. 233 



The firfl; day of our arrival at Annamooka, one of the 'J/r- 



. . May. 



natives had ftolen, out of the fliip, a large junk axe. I now ' ,r-—» 



applied to Feenou to exert his authority to get it reflored to 

 ■me ; and fo implicitly was he obeyed, that it was brought 

 on board while we were at dinner. Thefe people gave us 

 very frequent opportunities of remarking what expert 

 thieves they were. Even fome of their Chiefs did not think 

 this profeflion beneath them. On the 9th, one of them was Friday 9. 

 detedled carrying out of the fliip, concealed under his 

 clothes, the bolt belonging to the fpun yarn winch ; for 

 which I fentenced him to receive a dozen laflies, and kept 

 him confined till he paid a hog for his liberty. After this, 

 we were not troubled with thieves of rank. Their fervants, 

 or Haves, however, were flill employed in this dirty work ; 

 and upon them a flogging fcemed to make no greater im- 

 preffion, than it would have done upon the main-maft. 

 When any of them happened to be caught in the acft, their 

 mafters, far from interceding for them, would often advife 

 us to kill them. As this was a punifliment we did not . 

 choofe to infliift, they generally efcaped without any punifli- 

 ment at all ; for they appeared to us to be equally infen- 

 fible of the fliame, and of the pain of corporal chaftifement. 

 Captain Gierke, at lad, hit upon a mode of treatment, which, 

 ■we thought, had fome efFecft. He put them under the hands 

 of the barber, and completely fhaved their heads ; thus 

 pointing them out as objecfts of ridicule to tlieir country- 

 men, and enabling our people to deprive them of future 

 opportunities for a repetition of their rogueries, by keeping 

 them at a diflance. 



Feenou was fo fond of aflbciating with us, that he dined 

 on board every day ; though, fometimes, he did not partake 

 of our fare. On the loth, fome of his fervants brought a Saturday 10. 



Vol. I. H h mefs, 



