9,4 
PORTER’S JOURNAL 
numbers. Finding that we could not dislodge them, I directed a 
volley to be fired, three cheers to be given, and to dash across the 
river. We soon gained the opposite bank and continued our march 
rendered still more difficult by the underwood which was here in¬ 
terlaced to that degree as to make it necessary sometimes to crawl 
on our hands and knees to get along. We were harrassed as usual 
by the Typees for about a quarter of a mile through a thicket which, 
at almost any other time, I should have considered impassible. Moui- 
na and two or three others of the natives had kept with us, the 
others had not crossed the river; we soon came to a small space 
cleared of the small trees and the underwood; the natives had ceas¬ 
ed to annoy us, and we had hoped soon to have arrived at their vil¬ 
lage, which I had been informed was at no great distance. On 
immerging from the swamp we felt new life and spirits; but this 
joy was of short duration, for on casting up our eyes, we perceived 
a strong and extensive wall of seven feet in height, raised on an 
eminence crossing our road, and flanked on each side by an im¬ 
penetrable thicket, and in an instant afterwards were assailed by 
such a shower of stones, accompanied by the most horrid yells, 
which left no doubt in our minds that we had here to encounter 
their principal strength, and that we should here meet with much 
resistance in passing this barrier. It fortunately happened that a 
tree which afforded me shelter from their stones enabled me, ac¬ 
companied by lieutenant Gamble, to annoy them as they would 
raise above the wall to throw at us: these were the only muskets 
which could be employed to any advantage; others kept up a scat¬ 
tering fire without effect. Finding we could not dislode them I gave 
orders for pushing on and endeavouring to take it by storm: but 
some of my men had by this time expended all their cartridges* 
and there were few who had more than three or four remaining. 
This discouraging news threw a damp on the spirits of the whole 
party; without ammunition our muskets were rendered inferior to 
the weapons of the Typees, and if we could not advance, there 
could be no doubt we should be under the necessity of fighting 
our way back; and to attempt this with our few x*emaining car¬ 
tridges, would be hazarding too much. Our only safety now de¬ 
pended on holding our ground until we could procure a fresh sup¬ 
ply of ammunition, and in reserving the few charges on hand un- 
