SECOND VOYAGE 167 



greatest haste ; even the one he had left alongside the ship 

 had evaded going on board, and was making her escape. 

 Vexed at being thus outwitted, he resolved to pursue them, 

 and as he passed the ship, gave orders to send another 

 boat for the same purpose. Five out of six they took, and 

 brought alongside ; but the first, which acted the finesse 

 so well, got clear off. 



In one of the canoes they had taken was a chief, a friend 

 of Mr. Forster's, who had hitherto called himself an Earee, 

 and would have been much offended if any one had called 

 his title in question ; also three women, his wife and 

 daughter, and the mother of the late Toutaha. These, 

 together with the canoes, the Captain resolved to detain, 

 and to send the chief to Otoo ; thinking he would have 

 weight enough with him to obtain the return of the musket, 

 as his own property was at stake. 



In the dusk of the evening it was brought to the tents, 

 together with some other things they had lost, which they 

 knew nothing of, by three men who had pursued the thief, 

 and taken them from him. The Captain knew not if they 

 took this trouble of their own accord, or by order of 

 Otoo. He rewarded them, and made no farther inquiry 

 about it. 



When the musket and other things were brought in, every 

 one then present, or who came after, pretended to have had 

 some hand in recovering them, and claimed a reward 

 accordingly. But there was no one acted this farce so 

 well as Nuno, a man of some note, and well known to 

 Captain Cook wfcen he was here in 1769. This man came, 

 with all the savage fury imaginable in his countenance, 

 and a large club in his hand, .with which he beat about 

 him, in order to show how he alone had killed the thief ; 

 when, at the same time, they all knew he had not been out 

 of his house the whole time. 



Things were now once more restored to their former state ; 

 and Otoo promised, on his part, that the next day they 

 should be supplied as usual. 



They then returned with him to his proper residence at 

 Oparree, and there took a view of some of his dockyards 

 (for such they well deserved to be called) and large canoes ; 

 some lately built and others building ; two of which were 

 the largest they had ever seen under that name. They 

 now returned to the ship. 



Otoo desiring to see some of the great guns fire from the 

 ship, Captain Cook ordered twelve to be shotted and fired 

 toward the sea. As he had never seen a canon fired before, 

 the sight gave him as much pain as pleasure. In the 

 evening, they entertained him with fireworks, which gave 



