f 
230 A VOYAGE TO [East Coast. 
iso2. Captain Baudin arrived in Le Geographe on the 20th, and a 
June ' boat was sent from the Investigator to assist in towing the ship up 
to the cove. It was grievous to see the miserable condition, to which 
both officers and crew were reduced by scurvy ; there being not more 
out of one hundred and seventy, according to the commander's 
account, than twelve men capable of doing their duty. The sick 
were received into the colonial hospital ; and both French ships fur- 
nished with every thing in the power of the colony to supply. Be- 
fore their arrival, the necessity of augmenting the number of cattle 
in the country had prevented the governor from allowing us any 
fresh meat; but some oxen belonging to government were now killed 
for the distressed strangers ; and by returning an equal quantity of 
salt meat, which was exceedingly scarce at this time, I obtained a 
quarter of beef for my people. The distress of the French naviga- 
tors had indeed been great; but every means were used by the 
governor and the principal inhabitants of the colony, to make them 
forget both their sufferings and the war which existed between the 
two nations.* 
July. His Excellency, governor King, had done me the honour to 
visit the Investigator, and to accept of a dinner on board ; on which 
occasion he had been received with the marks of respect due to his 
rank of captain-general ; and shortly afterward, the captains Baudin 
and Hamelin, with monsieur Peron and some other French officers, 
as also colonel Paterson, the lieutenant governor, did me the same 
favour; when they were received under a salute of eleven guns. 
The intelligence of peace, which had just been received, contributed 
to enliven the party, and rendered our meeting more particularly 
agreeable. I showed to captain Baudin one of my charts of the 
South Coast, containing the part first explored by him, and distinctly 
marked as his discovery. He made no objection to the justice of 
* These liberal proceedings, which do so much honour to governor King and the 
colonists, are handsomely acknowledged by M. Peron in his account of the French 
voyage. 
