THE PE LEW ISLANDS, 
73 
Ihocked their fenfibility.—The matter they laboured with 
was, in their opinions, of the higheft imaginable confe- 
quence to them. The King had probably talked it over 
with his brothers the preceding day, had deliberated on it in 
the evening at the back of the illand, and came to the cove 
this day determined to propofe it, but when there, wanted 
refolution to make it known; yet the object being fo im¬ 
portant, he felt unwilling to leave it in filence, and perhaps 
conceived that he could better difclofe it from his canoe, than 
when furrounded by fo many Engli/h .—After much appa¬ 
rent ftruggle in the King’s mind, the requeft with great dif¬ 
ficulty was at laft made, and proved to be this :—that the 
King being in a few days going to battle againft an ifland 
that had done him an injury, he wifhed Captain Wilson 
would permit four or five of his men to accompany him 
to war with their mufquets. Captain Wilson inftantly 
replied, that the Engli/h were as his own people, and that 
the enemies of the King were their enemies.—The inter¬ 
preter certainly very well tranflated this declaration, for in an 
inftant every countenance, which was before overfhadowed, 
became brightened and gay. The King faid he fliould want 
the men in five days, by which time his own people would 
be prepared for battle, and that he would take them down 
to Pelew with him the next day. Thus was harmony re- 
ftored between our people and the natives ; interrupted only 
for a few hours, from no other caufe than that extreme de¬ 
licacy of fentiment which no one would have expe&ed to 
L have 
