At Erromango, on 4th August, Cook went in with the boats, and the natives tried to induce them to come on shore, but something roused suspicion after he and one man had got into the water, so, making signs that he would come back later, he stepped back. The natives then rushed the boats, trying to drag them onto the beach, and succeeded in stealing two oars, at the same time wounding several of the boats' crews, amongst them Mr. Gilbert, the Master, with a shower of stones, spears, and arrows. Cook attempted to give one of the chiefs a charge of small shot, but his gun missed fire, and he was obliged, very reluctantly, to order the marines to fire, with the result that several of the natives were wounded. Under the circumstances it was not considered worth while remaining, so the ship left for Tanna, some twelve leagues to the south. A bright light had been noticed in that direction the night before, which proved to have been caused by a volcanic eruption.
A good anchorage was found at Tanna, and the ship warped close in. Several natives coming on board to trade soon developed the usual propensity to carry off anything that took their fancy—on this occasion the anchor buoys were the special attraction. Muskets were fired over their head to no purpose, so a four-pounder was discharged, which for a time had a good result; but soon they were as bad as ever, so two or three musquetoons were fired close to them, and though none were hurt, the crew were able to get their dinner in peace.
HOT SPRINGS.
An old man, called by Cook Paowang, appeared to be inclined to be friendly, so Cook landed with a strong party to look for water under his guidance, and met with some of the elders, exchanging presents with them. The next day the ship was warped in, and three boats went ashore, but the natives were very threatening, and after some futile attempts to put things on a peaceable footing a signal was given to the ship and several guns were fired, when all the natives ran away except Paowang, who was suitably rewarded for his confidence. After a time permission was obtained to get wood, water, and ballast, and whilst trying to lift a stone out of a pool below high-water mark, one of the crew scalded his hand badly. The pool proved to be one of a series of springs running down a spur of the volcano into the sea. Several were tested with the thermometer, and as much as 202 degrees Fahrenheit was attained. Forster found a number of cracks on the ridge from which sulphurous vapour and smoke issued, and one of the crew who had been suffering severely from rheumatism received great temporary benefit from bathing in one of the springs.
Many good plantations of yams, sugar-cane, and plantains were seen, but they could purchase very little as their articles of trade were not appreciated. The natives did not understand the use of iron, and did not require cloth as they went almost entirely naked. Though no direct signs of cannibalism had been found, Cook was convinced that the practice was not unknown.
After leaving Tanna, the western coasts of the different islands were followed up till De Bougainville's Passage was reached, when the course was set for Espiritu Santo. In passing Malicolo canoes put off for the ship, but the wind being favourable, Cook would not delay, and gave Forster the opportunity to remark that the main object of the voyage, i.e. the obtaining a knowledge of the natural history of the islands, was made subservient to the production of a new track on the chart of the Southern Hemisphere.
CARDINAL MORAN'S GEOGRAPHY.
On 25th August they entered the bay which Cook believed to be that discovered by De Quiros, and named by him the Bay of St. Philip and St. Iago in the Tierra Austral del Espiritu Santo, now known as the New Hebrides. In this conclusion Cook has the support of Dalrymple and modern geographers, but Forster, for some reason which is not quite clear, felt compelled to differ. Cardinal Moran, the Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, also believes Cook to have been mistaken, for in his History of the Catholic Church in Australia, he places De Quiros's discovery in Port Curtis, Queensland, where he claims that the first Catholic service ever celebrated in Australia was held. He puts aside the fact that the latitude of Port Curtis, 24 degrees South, does not agree with that given by De Quiros, 15 degrees 20 minutes South, by saying that the positions of newly discovered places were, in those days, "often purposely concealed lest other navigators might appropriate to themselves and their respective countries, the results of the discovery." He quotes details given in De Quiros's petitions to the King of Spain, and says: "All these details fit in admirably with Port Curtis on the Queensland coast." Now De Quiros says the country he discovered was thickly inhabited by a people who were armed with bows and arrows, possessed vessels of earthenware, lived in houses of wood, roofed with palm leaves, were amply supplied with oranges, limes, pears, almonds larger than those of Spain, hogs, fowls, goats, capons, etc. That in the bay where he anchored there was no sandy barren ground, no mangroves, no ants, no mosquitoes, and that his anchorage lay between two considerable rivers. How these details fit in with Port Curtis may be evident to his Eminence, but is not apparent to less distinguished mortals. The district of Port Curtis when discovered was very thinly populated, and shows no signs of ever having been otherwise. Bows and arrows and earthenware vessels were absolutely unknown throughout Australia; houses did not exist, except in the form of temporary shelters of branches, leaves, and bark; the fruits and animals mentioned were unknown; and sandy barren country with mangroves, ants, and mosquitoes does exist in considerable quantity. The anchorage, had De Quiros ever been there, might have been between two rivers, the Boyne and Calliope (both of small size), but Cardinal Moran, to make this detail "fit in admirably", has recourse to the bold measure of moving the mouth of the Burnett River from Wide Bay to Port Curtis—some 2 1/2 degrees to the north of its real position.
On the other hand, Cook's description of the New Hebrides fits in with much greater accuracy. The latitude was found to be 15 degrees 5 minutes South, and Mr. Cooper, who went ashore with the boats, reported that he landed near a fine stream of fresh water, "probably one of those mentioned by De Quiros; and if we were not deceived, we saw the other." The country was described by Cook thus:
"an uncommonly luxuriant vegetation was everywhere to be seen; the sides of the hills were chequered with plantations; and every valley watered by a stream; of all the productions of nature this country was adorned with, the coconut trees were the most conspicuous."