The ships having happily found an excellent inlet, the coasts of which appeared to be inhabited by a race of people who were disposed to maintain a friendly intercourse with strangers, Captain Cook's first object was to search for a commodious harbour; and he had little trouble in discovering what he wanted. A trade having immediately commenced, the articles which the inhabitants offered for sale were the skins of various animals, such as bears, wolves, foxes, deer, racoons, polecats, martins; and, in particular, of the sea-otters. To these were added, besides the skins in their native shape, garments made of them; another sort of clothing, formed from the bark of a tree; and various different pieces of workmanship. But of all the articles brought to market, the most extraordinary were human skulls, and hands not yet quite stripped of their flesh; some of which had evident marks of their having been upon the fire. The things, which the natives took in exchange for their commodities, were knives, chisels, pieces of iron and tin, nails, looking-glasses, buttons, or any kind of metal. Glass beads did not strike their imaginations; and cloth of every sort they rejected. Though commerce, in general, was carried on with mutual honesty, there were some among these people who were as much inclined to thievery as the islanders in the Southern Ocean. They were, at the same time, far more dangerous thieves; for, possessing sharp iron instruments, they could cut a hook from a tackle, or any other piece of iron from a rope, the moment that the backs of the English were turned. The dexterity with which they conducted their operations of this nature, frequently eluded the most cautious vigilance. Some slighter instances of deception, in the way of traffic, Captain Cook thought it better to bear with, than to make them the foundation of a quarrel; and to this he was the rather determined, as the English articles were now reduced to objects of a trifling nature. In the progress of the commerce, the natives would deal for nothing but metal; and, at length, brass was so eagerly sought for, in preference to iron, that, before our navigators quitted the place, scarcely a bit of it was left in the ships, excepting what belonged to the necessary instruments. Whole suits of clothes were stripped of every button: bureaus were deprived of their furniture; copper kettles, tin canisters, candlesticks, and whatever of the like kind could be found, all went to wreck; so that these Americans became possessors of a greater medley and variety of things from our people, than any other nation that had been visited in the course of the voyage.
Of all the uncivilized tribes which our commander had met with in his several navigations, he never found any who had such strict notions of their having a right to the exclusive property of everything which their country produces, as the inhabitants of the sound where he was now stationed. At first, they wanted to be paid for the wood and water that were carried on board; and had the captain been upon the spot, when these demands were made, he would certainly have complied with them; but the workmen, in his absence, maintained a different opinion, and refused to submit to any such claims. When some grass, which appeared to be of no use to the natives, was wanted to be cut, as food for the few goats and sheep which still remained on board, they insisted that it should be purchased, and were very unreasonable in their terms; notwithstanding which Captain Cook consented to gratify them, as far as he was able. It was always a sacred rule with him, never to take any of the property of the people whom he visited, without making them an ample compensation.
The grand operation of our navigators, to their present station, was to put the ships into a complete repair for the prosecution of the expedition. While this business was carrying on, our commander took the opportunity of examining every part of the sound; in the course of which he gained a farther knowledge of the inhabitants, who in general, received him with great civility. In one instance he met with a surly chief, who could not be softened with presents, though he condesended to accept of them. The females of the place over which he presided shewed a more agreeable disposition; for some of the young women expeditiously dressed themselves in their best apparel, and, assembling in a body, welcomed the English to their village, by joining in a song, which was far from being harsh or dissagreeable. On another occasion, the captain was entertained with singing. Being visited by a number of strangers, on the 22nd of April, as they advanced towards the ships, they all stood up in their canoes, and began to sing. Some of their songs, in which the whole body joined, were in a slow, and others in a quicker time; and their notes were accompanied with the most regular motions of their hands; or with beating in concert, with their paddles, on the sides of their canoes; to which were added other very expressive gestures. At the end of each song, they continued silent for a few moments, and then began again, sometimes pronouncing the word Hooee! forcibly as a chorus.
Among the natives of the country, there was one chief who attached himself to our commander in a particular manner. Captain Cook having, at parting, bestowed upon him a small present, received, in return, a beaver skin, of much greater value. This called upon the captain to make some addition to his present, with which the chief was so much pleased, that he insisted on our commander's acceptance of the beaver-skin cloak which he then wore; and of which he was particularly fond. Admiring this instance of generosity, and desirous that he should not suffer by his friendship, the captain gave him a new broad-sword, with a brass hilt; the possession of which rendered him completely happy.
On Captain Cook's first arrival in this inlet, he had honoured it with the name of King George's Sound; but he afterward found that it is called Nootka by the natives. During his stay in the place, he displayed his usual sagacity and diligence, in conjunction with Mr. Anderson, in collecting every thing that could be learned concerning the neighbouring country and its inhabitants; and the account is interesting, as it exhibits a picture of productions, people, and manners very different from what had occurred in the Southern Ocean. I can only, as on former occasions, slightly advert to a few of the more leading circumstances. The climate, so far as our navigators had experience of it, was found to be in an eminent degree milder than that on the east coast of America, in the same parallel of latitude: and it was remarkable, that the thermometer, even in the night, never fell lower than 42°; while in the day it frequently rose to 60°. With regard to trees, those of which the woods are chiefly composed, are the Canadian pine, the white cypress and the wild pine, with two or three different sorts of pine that are less common. In the other vegetable productions there appeared but little variety: but it is to be considered, that, at so early a season, several might not yet have sprung up; and that many more might be concealed from our voyagers, in consequence of the narrow sphere of their researches. Of the land animals, the most common were bears, deer, foxes, and wolves. The sea animals, which were seen off the coast, were whales, porpoises, and seals. Birds, in general, are not only rare as to the different species, but very scarce as to numbers; and the few which are to be met with are so shy, that, in all probability, they are continually harassed by the natives; either to eat them as food, or to get possession of their feathers, which are used as ornaments. Fish are more plentiful in quantity than birds, but were not found in any great variety; and yet, from several circumstances, there was reason to believe, that the variety is considerably increased at certain seasons. The only animals that were observed of the reptile kind were snakes and water-lizards; but the insect tribe seemed to be more numerous.
With respect to the inhabitants of the country, their persons are generally under the common stature; but not slender in proportion, being usually pretty full or plump, though without being muscular. From their bringing to sale human skulls and bones, it may justly be inferred, that they treat their enemies with a degree of brutal cruelty; notwithstanding which, it does not follow, that they are to be reproached with any charge of peculiar inhumanity: for the circumstance now mentioned only marks a general agreement of character with that of almost every tribe of uncivilized men, in every age, and in every part of the globe. Our navigators had no reason to complain of the disposition of the natives, who appeared to be a docile courteous, good-natured people; rather phlegmatic in the usual cast of their tempers, but quick in resenting what they apprehend to be an injury, and easily permitting their anger to subside. Their other passions, and especially their curiosity, seemed to lie in some measure dormant; one cause of which may be found in the indolence that, for the most part, is prevalent amongst them. The chief employments of the men are those of fishing, and of killing land or sea animals, for the sustenance of their families; while the women are occupied in manufacturing their flaxen or woollen garments, or in other domestic offices. It must be mentioned to their honour, that they were always properly clothed, and behaved with the utmost decorum; justly deserving all commendation, for a bashfulness and modesty becoming their sex: and this was the more meritorious in them, as the male inhabitants discovered no sense of shame. In their manufactures and mechanic arts, these people have arrived to a greater degree of extent and ingenuity, both with regard to the design and the execution, than could have been expected from their natural disposition, and the little progress to which they have arrived in general civilization. Their dexterity, in particular, with respect to works of wood, must principally be ascribe to the assistance they receive from iron tools, which are in universal use amongst them, and in the application of which they are very dexterous. Whence they have derived their knowledge of iron was a matter of speculation with Captain Cook. The most probable opinion is, that this and other metals may have been introduced by way of Hudson's Bay and Canada, and thus successively have been conveyed across the continent, from tribe to tribe. Nor is it unreasonable to suppose, that those metals may sometimes be brought, in the same manner, from the north-western parts of Mexico.[11] The language of Nootka is by no means harsh or disagreeable; for it abounds, upon the whole, rather with what may be called labial and dental, than with guttural sounds. A large vocabulary of it was collected by Mr. Anderson.
[Footnote 11: Two silver spoons of a construction similar to what may sometimes be seen in Flemish pictures of still life, were procured here by Mr. Gore, who bought them from a native, who wore them, tied together with a leather thong, as an ornament round his neck. Mr. Gore gave the spoons to Sir Joseph Banks.]
Whilst Captain Cook was at Nootka Sound, great attention was paid by him, as usual, to astronomical and nautical subjects. The observations which he had an opportunity of making were, indeed, so numerous, as to form a very considerable addition to geographical and philosophical science.
On the 26th, the repairs of the ships having been completed, every thing was ready for the captain's departure. When, in the afternoon of that day, the vessels were upon the point of sailing, the mercury in the barometer fell unusually low; and there was every other presage of an approaching storm, which might reasonably be expected to come from the southward. This circumstance induced our commander in some degree to hesitate, and especially as night was at hand, whether he should venture to sail, or wait till the next morning. But his anxious impatience to proceed upon the voyage, and the fear of losing the present opportunity of getting out of the sound, made a greater impression upon his mind, than any apprehension of immediate danger. He determined, therefore, to put to sea at all events; and accordingly carried his design into execution that evening. He was not deceived in his expectations of a storm. Scarcely were the vessels out of the sound before the wind increased to a strong gale, with squalls and rain, accompanied by so dark a sky, that the length of the ships could not be seen. Happily the wind took a direction that blew our navigators from the coast; and though, on the 27th, the tempest rose to a perfect hurricane, and the Resolution sprang a leak, no material damage ensued.
In the prosecution of the voyage to the north, and back again to the Sandwich Islands, the facts that occurred were chiefly of a nautical kind. Minutely to record these is not the purpose of the present work, and indeed would extend it to an unreasonable length.