THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 
279 
1778. 
April. 
ried on a trade with more didant tribes, in the articles 
they had procured from us. For we obferved that they 
would frequently difappear for four or five days at a time, 
and then return with frefh cargoes of fkins and curiolities, 
which our people were fo paffionately fond of, that they al¬ 
ways came to a good market. But we received mod: bene¬ 
fit from fuch of the natives as vifited us daily. Thefe, after 
difpofing of all their little trifles, turned their attention 
to hilling; and we never failed to partake of what they 
caught. We alfo got from thefe people a conliderable quan¬ 
tity of very good animal oil, which they had referved in 
bladders. In this traffic fome would attempt to cheat us, by 
mixing water with the oil; and, once or twice, they had 
the addrefs to carry their impohtion fo far, as to fill their 
bladders with mere water, without a fingle drop of oil. It 
was always better to bear with thefe tricks, than to make 
them the foundation of a quarrel; for our articles of traffic 
confided, for the mod part, of mere trifles; and yet we 
were put to our ffiifts to hnd a conftant fupply even of 
thefe. Beads, and fuch other toys, of which I had dill fome 
left, were in little eflimation. Nothing would go down with 
our vifiters but metal; and brafs had, by this time, fup- 
planted iron; being fo eagerly fought after, that before we 
left this place, hardly a bit of it was left in the ffiips, except 
what belonged to our neceflary inftruments. Whole fuits 
of clothes were dripped of every button; bureaus of their 
furniture; and copper kettles, tin canniders, candledicks, 
and the like, all went to wreck; fo that our American 
friends here got a greater medley and variety of things 
from us, than any other nation whom we had vifited in the 
courfe of the voyage. 
After a fortnight’s bad weather, the 19th proving a fair Sunday i<> 
day. 
