50, cook's voyage TO FEB- 



panions, if any of them should still remain alive, an 

 opportunity of escaping. These efforts, seconded 

 by a few guns, that were fired at the same time, 

 from the Resolution, having forced the natives at 

 last to retire, a small boat, manned by five of our 

 young midshipmen, pulled toward the shore, where 

 they saw the bodies, without any signs of life, lying 

 on the ground ; but judging it dangerous to attempt 

 to bring them offj with so small a force, and their 

 ammunition being nearly expended, they returned to 

 the ships, leaving them in possession of the islanders, 

 together with ten stands of arms. 



As soon as the general consternation, which the 

 news of this calamity occasioned throughout both 

 crews, had a little subsided, their attention was 

 called to our party at the Moral, where the mast 

 and sails were on shore, with a guard of only six 

 marines. It is impossible for me to describe the 

 emotions of my own mind, during the time these 

 transactions had been carrying on at the other side 

 of the bay. Being at the distance only of a short 

 mile from the village of Kowrowa, we could see 

 distinctly an immense crowd collected on the spot 

 where Captain Cook had just before landed. We 

 heard the firing of the musketry, and could perceive 

 some extraordinary bustle and agitation in the mul- 

 titude. We afterward saw the natives flying, the 

 boats retire from the shore, and passing and repassing, 

 in great stillness, between the ships. I must confess 

 that my heart soon misgave me. Where a life so 

 dear and valuable was concerned, it was impossible 

 not to be alarmed, by appearances both new and 

 threatening. But, besides this, I knew that a long 

 and uninterrupted course of success, in his transac- 

 tions with the natives of these seas, had given the 

 Captain a degree of confidence, that I was always 

 fearful might, at some unlucky moment, put him too 

 much off his guard ; and I now saw all the dangers to 

 which that confidence might lead, without receiving 



