NORTH WEST COAST OF AMERICA. 157 



Towards evening he returned on fliore, perfedly fatisfied ^ ^^^ ^' 

 with his reception and the prefents I had given him ; and ' — ^ — »< 

 at funfet all the canoes left the fhips. ' December. 



Friday i. 



We foon begun to feel the good efFedls of Taheeterre's 

 viflt ; the natives, now no longer under the influence of 

 the taboo, brought us water very plentifully, and we 

 procured a good fupply of hogs and vegetables ; fo that I 

 fet a party to fait pork for fea-ftore ; the boatfwain and 

 another fet were employed about the rigging, and the 

 carpenters in decking the long-boat. 



On the 3d Taheeterre paid me another vifit attended as Sunday 3; 

 before, anti brought his cuftomary prefent of a few hogs, 

 vegetables, and cocoa-nuts. Great numbers of canoes 

 were about the fhip, and multitudes of both fexes playing 

 in the water, notwithftanding our diftance from the fhore. 

 My friend the old prieft was almofl: conftantly on board, 

 and, according to his ufual cuftom, drank vaft quantities 

 of yava, which kept him in a moft wretched condition ; 

 he feemed quite debilitated, and his body was entirely 

 covered with a kind of leprous fcurf. The old man had 

 generally two attendants on board to chew the yava root 

 for him, and he found them fo much employment that 

 their jaws were frequently tired, and he was obliged to 

 hire fome of the people along-lide to chew for him at a 

 bead for a mouthful. One of the yava-chewers, a very 

 intelligent man, informed me, that to the Weftward of 

 Point R( fe, in Queen Charlotte's Bay, there was an ex- 

 ceedingly fnug harbour, where the fhips might lie with 

 fafety. As we had a heavy fwell fetting into the bay round 



Point 



