Narrative of the Voyages Round the World, Performed by Captain James Cook / With an Account of His Life During the Previous and Intervening Periods

by Andrew Kippis

Curiosities, fish, and women, were the articles of commerce supplied by the New Zealanders. The two first always came to a good market; but the latter did not happen, at this time, to be an acceptable commodity. Our seamen had conceived a dislike to these people, and were either unwilling or afraid to associate with them; the good effect of which was, that our commander knew no instance of a man's quitting his station, to go to the habitations of the Indians. A connexion with women it was out of Captain Cook's power to prevent; but he never encouraged it, and always was fearful of its consequences. Many, indeed, are of opinion, that such an intercourse is a great security among savages. But if this should ever be the case with those who remain and settle among them, it is generally otherwise with respect to travellers and transient visitors. In such a situation as was that of our navigators, a connexion with the women of the natives, betrays more men than it saves. 'What else,' says the captain, 'can reasonably be expected, since all their views are selfish without the least mixture of regard or attachment? My own experience, at least, which hath been pretty extensive, hath not pointed out to me one instance to the contrary.'

Amongst the persons who occasionally visited the English, was a chief of the name of Kahoora, who, as Captain Cook was informed, had headed the party that cutoff Captain Furneaux's people, and had himself killed Mr. Rowe, the officer who commanded. This man our commander was strongly solicited to put to death, even by some of the natives; and Omai was perfectly eager and violent upon the subject. To these solicitations the captain paid not the least degree of attention. He even admired Kahoora's courage, and was not a little pleased with the confidence with which he had put himself into his power. Kahoora had placed his whole safety in the declarations that Captain Cook had uniformly made to the New Zealanders; which were that he had always been a friend to them all, and would continue to be so, unless they gave him cause to act otherwise; that as to their inhuman treatment of our people, he should think no more of it, the transaction having happened long ago, and when he was not present; but that, if ever they made a second attempt of the same kind, they might rest assured of feeling the weight of his resentment.

While our commander on the 16th, was making an excursion for the purposes of collecting food for his cattle, he embraced the opportunity to inquire, as accurately as possible, into the circumstances which had attended the melancholy fate of our countrymen. Omai was his interpreter on this occasion. The result of the inquiry was, that the quarrel first took its rise from some thefts, in the commission of which the natives were detected; that there was no premeditated plan of bloodshed; and that if these thefts had not, unfortunately, been too hastily resented, no mischief would have happened. Kahoora's greatest enemies, and even the very men that had most earnestly solicited his destruction, confessed, at the same time, that he had no intention of quarrelling with Captain Furneaux's people, and much less of killing any of them, till the fray had actually commenced.

Captain Cook continued in this his last visit to New Zealand, the solicitude he had formerly shewn to be of some essential future service to the country. To one chief he gave two goats, a male and female, with a kid; and to another two pigs, a boar and a sow. Although he had obtained a promise from both these chiefs, that they would not kill the animals which had been presented to them, he could not venture to place any great reliance upon their assurances. It was his full intention, on his present arrival in Queen Charlotte's Sound, to have left not only goats and hogs, but sheep, together with a young bull and two heifers. The accomplishment, however, of this resolution depended either upon his finding a chief, who was powerful enough to protect and keep the cattle, or upon his meeting with a place where there might be a probability of their being concealed from those who would ignorantly attempt to destroy them. Neither of these circumstances happened to be conformable to his wishes. At different times he had left to New Zealand ten or a dozen hogs, besides those which had been put on shore by Captain Furneaux. It will, therefore, be a little extraordinary, if this race of animals should not increase and be preserved, either in a wild or a domestic state, or in both. Our commander was informed, that Tiratou, a popular chief among the natives, had a number of cocks and hens, and one sow, in his separate possession. With regard to the gardens which had formerly been planted though they had almost entirely been neglected, and some of them destroyed, they were not wholly unproductive. They were found to contain cabbages, onions, leeks, purslain, radishes, mustard, and a few potatoes. The potatoes, which had first been brought from the Cape of Good Hope, were greatly meliorated by change of soil; and, with proper cultivation, would be superior to those produced in most other countries.

A great addition of knowledge was obtained, during this voyage, with respect to the productions of New Zealand, and the manners and the customs of its inhabitants. The zeal of Captain Cook upon the subject was admirably seconded by the sedulous diligence of Mr. Anderson, who omitted no opportunity of collecting every kind and degree of information. I shall only so far trespass on the patience of my readers, as to mention a few circumstances tending to delineate the character of the natives. They seemed to be a people perfectly satisfied with the little they already possess; nor are they remarkably curious either in their observations or their inquiries. New objects are so far from striking them with such a degree of surprise as might naturally be expected, that they scarcely fix their attention even for a moment. In the arts with which they are acquainted, they shew as much ingenuity, both in invention and execution, as any uncivilized nations under similar circumstances. Without the least use of those tools which are formed of metal, they make every thing that is necessary to procure their subsistence, clothing, and military weapons; and all this is done by them with a neatness, a strength, and a convenience, that are well adapted to the accomplishment of the several purposes they have in view. No people can have a quicker sense of an injury done to them than the New Zealanders, or be more ready to resent it; and yet they want one characteristic of true bravery; for they will take an opportunity of being insolent, when they think that there is no danger of their being punished. From the number of their weapons, and their dexterity in using them, it appears, that war is their principal profession. Indeed, their public contentions are so frequent, or rather so perpetual, that they must live under continual apprehensions of being destroyed by each other. From their horrid custom of eating the flesh of their enemies, not only without reluctance, but with peculiar satisfaction, it would be natural to suppose that they must be destitute of every humane feeling, even with regard to their own party. This, however, is not the case; for they lament the loss of their friends with a violence of expression which argues the most tender remembrance of them. At a very early age the children are initiated into all the practices, whether good or bad, of their fathers; so that a boy or girl, when only nine or ten years old, can perform the motions, and imitate the frightful gestures, by which the more aged are accustomed to inspire their enemies with terror. They can keep likewise the strictest time in their song; and it is with some degree of melody that they sing the traditions of their forefathers, their actions in war, and other subjects. The military achievements of their ancestors, the New Zealanders celebrate with the highest pleasure, and spend much of their time in diversions of this sort, and in playing upon a musical instrument, which partakes of the nature of a flute. With respect to their language, it is far from being harsh or disagreeable, though the pronunciation of it is frequently guttural; nor, if we may judge from the melody of some kinds of their songs, is it destitute of those qualities, which fit it to be associated with music. Of its identity with the languages of the other islands throughout the South Sea, fresh proofs were exhibited during the present voyage.

At the request of Omai, Captain Cook consented to take with him two youths from New Zealand. That they might not quit their native country under any deluding ideas of visiting it again, the captain took care to inform their parents, in the strongest terms, that they would never return. This declaration seemed, however, to make no kind of impression. The father of the youngest had resigned him with an indifference, which he would scarcely have shewn at parting with his dog, and even stripped the boy of the little clothing he possessed, delivering him quite naked into the hands of our voyagers. This was not the case with the mother of the other youth. She took her leave of him with all the marks of tender affection that might be expected between a parent and a child on such an occasion; but she soon resumed her cheerfulness, and went away wholly unconcerned.

On the 25th of the month, Captain Cook stood out of Queen Charlotte's Sound, and by the 27th got clear of New Zealand. No sooner had the ships lost sight of the land, than the two young adventurers from that country, one of whom was nearly eighteen years of age, and the other about ten, began deeply to repent of the step they had taken. It was the experience of the sea-sickness, which gave this turn to their reflections; and all the soothing encouragement the English could think of, was but of a little avail. They wept, both in public and in private, and made their lamentation in a kind of song, that seemed to be expressive of the praises of their country and people, from which they were to be separated for ever. In this disposition they continued for many days: but as their sea-sickness wore off, and the tumult of their minds subsided, the fits of lamentation became less and less frequent, and at length entirely ceased. By degrees, their native country and their friends were forgotten, and they appeared to be as firmly attached to our navigators, as if they had been born in England.

In the prosecution of the voyage, Captain Cook met with unfavourable winds; and it was not till the 29th of March that land was discovered. It was found to be an inhabited island, the name of which, as was learned from two of the natives, who came off in a canoe, is Mangeea. Our commander examined the coast with his boats, and had a short intercourse with some of the inhabitants. Not being able to find a proper harbour for bringing the ships to an anchorage, he was obliged, to leave the country unvisited, though it seemed capable of supplying all the wants of our voyagers. The island of Mangeea is full five leagues in circuit, and of a moderate and pretty equal height. It has, upon the whole, a pleasing aspect, and might be made a beautiful spot by cultivation. The inhabitants, who appeared to be both numerous and well fed, seemed to resemble those of Otaheite and the Marquesas in the beauty of their persons; and the resemblance, as far as could be judged in so short a compass of time, takes place, with respect to their general disposition and character.

From the coast of Mangeea our commander sailed in the afternoon of the 30th, and on the next day land was again seen, within four leagues of which the ships arrived on the 1st of April. Our people could then pronounce it to be an island, nearly of the same appearance and extent with that which had so lately been left. Some of the natives speedily put off in their canoes, and three of them were pursuaded to come on board the Resolution; on which occasion, their whole behaviour marked that they were quite at their ease, and felt no kind of apprehension that they should be detained, or ill used. In a visit from several others of the inhabitants, they manifested a dread of approaching near the cows and horses: nor could they form the least conception of their nature. But the sheep and goats did not, in their opinion, surpass the limits of their ideas; for they gave our navigators to understand that they knew them to be birds. As there is not the most distant resemblance between a sheep or goat, and any winged animal, this may be thought to be almost an incredible example of human ignorance. But it should be remembered, that, excepting hogs, dogs, and birds, these people were strangers to the existence of any other land animals.

In a farther intercourse with the natives, who had brought a hog, together with some plantains and cocoanuts, they demanded a dog from our voyagers, and refused every thing besides which was offered in exchange. One of the gentlemen on board happened to have a dog and a bitch which were great nuisances in the ship; and these he might now have disposed of in a manner that would have been of real future utility to the island. But he had no such views in making them the companions of his voyage. Omai, however, with a goodnature that reflects honour upon him, parted with a favourite dog which he had brought from England; and with this acquisition the people departed highly satisfied.