Maori families lilie tlie one siiown liere were 

 seen by Cnol<. during iiis explorations of the 

 many inlets along the New Zealand coast. 

 This family is pictured on the shore of 

 Dusky Bay, South Island, which Cook visited. 



came the question of the Great Southern Continent; in secret sealed 

 instructions the Admiralty had ordered Cook to proceed from 

 Tahiti ". . . to the southward in order to make discovery of the 

 continent abovementioned until you arrive in latitude of 40°." 

 Should Cook fail to discover the hoped-for land mass, he was to 

 sail westward ". . . until you discover it or fall in with the eastern 

 side of the land discovered by Tasman and now called New Zea- 

 land." He was to ". . . carefully observe the latitude and longitude 

 in which that land is situated, and explore as much of the coast as 

 the condition of the bark, the health of her crew and state of your 

 provisions will admit of." He might then return to England either 

 by Cape Horn or the Cape of Good Hope. 



This was a formidable program in an age when the fixing of a 

 ship's position at sea was constantly subject to error. Furthermore, 

 Cook had to face the strong probability of an outbreak of scurvy. 

 It was a rare crew that escaped scurvy in those days, but one of the 

 marks of Cook's greatness was his consideration for the health of 

 his men. After making his way down the coast of South America, 

 Cook reached the bleak coasts of Tierra del Fuego. Its inhabitants, 

 he noted in his journal, were "... perhaps as miserable a set of 

 people as are this day upon earth." Rounding Cape Horn, the 

 Endeavour set a northwesterly course for Tahiti and sailed right 

 over what the map makers still designated as part of the fabulous 

 Great Southern Continent. In April 1769 the ship dropped anchor 

 off Tahiti. 



The expedition spent three months on the island, where, for the 

 first time, Cook displayed his genius for dealing with native peoples. 

 The Tahitians were a high-spirited, friendly race, but their code of 

 ethics differed fundamentally from that of the Europeans. Theft 

 was their chief accomplishment; they are on record as being "pro- 

 digious expert" at the art of making off with anything not nailed 

 down. Cook's stockings were stolen from under his pillow one 

 night as he lay on his bunk fully awake. To the Tahitians such 



58 



