SECOND VOYAGE 187 



surprising. But since I have seen what these people can 

 do with their wooden spears, and them badly pointed, and 

 not of a very hard nature, I have not the least exception 

 to any one passage in that great poet on this account. But 

 if I see fewer exceptions, I can find infinitely more beauties 

 in him ; as he has, I think, scarce an action, circumstance, 

 or description of any kind whatever, relating to a spear, 

 which I have not seen and recognized among these people, 

 as their whirling motion, and whistling noise, as they fly ; 

 their quivering motion, as they stick in the ground when 

 they fall ; their meditating their aim, when they are going 

 to throw ; and their shaking them in their hand as they 

 go along." 



As soon as the boats were hoisted in, they made sail, and 

 stretched to the eastward. Nothing material occurred till 

 September 4th, when looking S.E. the coast seemed to 

 terminate in a high promontory, which the Captain named 

 Cape Colnet, after one of his midshipmen, who first dis- 

 covered this land. 



Some gaps or openings were seen on the 5th to lie all 

 along the coast, whither they plied up. After running two 

 leagues down the outside of the reef (for such it proved) they 

 came before an opening that had the appearance of a good 

 channel. They wanted to get on shore, to have an oppor- 

 tunity to observe an eclipse of the sun, which was soon to 

 happen. With this view they hoisted out two armed boats, 

 and sent them to sound the channel ; ten or twelve large 

 sailing canoes being then near them. They had observed 

 them coming off from the shore all the morning, from 

 different parts. 



The boats having made a signal for a channel, they stood 

 in. They had hardly got to an anchor before they were 

 surrounded by a great number of the natives, in sixteen or 

 eighteen canoes, the most of whom were without any sort 

 of weapons. At first they were shy of coming near the ship ; 

 but in a short time they prevailed on the people in one boat 

 to get close enough to receive some presents. These they 

 lowered down to them by a rope, to which, in return, they 

 tied two fish that stunk intolerably. These mutual ex- 

 changes bringing on a kind of confidence, two ventured on 

 board the ship ; and presently after she was filled with them, 

 and they had the company of several at dinner in the 

 cabin. Like all the nations they had lately seen, the men 

 were almost naked. They were curious in examining every 

 part of the ship, which they viewed with uncommon 

 attention. They had not the least knowledge of goats, 

 hogs, dogs, or cats, and had not even a name for one of them. 

 They seemed fond of large spike-nails and pieces of red 



