On the 5th in the morning, we passed the south point of the island, which lies in the latitude of 18° 54ʹ; and beyond it we found the coast to trend N. 60° W. On this point stands a pretty large village, the inhabitants of which thronged off to the ship with hogs and women. It was not possible to keep the latter from coming on board; and no women I ever met with were less reserved. Indeed it appeared to me that they visited us with no other view than to make a surrender of their persons. As I had now got a quantity of salt, I purchased no hogs but such as were fit for salting; refusing all that were under size. However we could seldom get any above fifty or sixty pounds’ weight. It was happy for us that we still had some vegetables on board; for we now received few such productions. Indeed this part of the country, from its appearance, did not seem capable of affording them. Marks of its having been laid waste by the explosion of a volcano, every where presented themselves; and though we had as yet seen nothing like one upon the island, the devastation that it had made, in this neighbourhood, was visible to the naked eye.
This part of the coast is sheltered from the reigning winds; but we could find no bottom to anchor upon; a line of an hundred and sixty fathoms not reaching it, within the distance of half a mile from the shore. The islanders having all left us toward the evening, we ran a few miles down the coast; and then spent the night standing off and on.
The next morning the natives visited us again, bringing with them the same articles of commerce as before. Being now near the shore, I sent Mr. Bligh, the master, in a boat, to sound the coast, with orders to land, and to look for fresh water. Upon his return, he reported that, at two cables lengths from the shore, he had found no soundings with a line of one hundred and sixty fathoms; that, when he landed, he found no stream or spring, but only rain-water, deposited in holes upon the rocks; and even that was brackish, from the spray of the sea; and that the surface of the country was entirely composed of slags and ashes, with a few plants here and there interspersed. Between ten and eleven we saw with pleasure the Discovery coming round the south point of the island; and, at one in the afternoon, she joined us. Captain Clerke then coming on board, informed me that he had cruised four or five days where we were separated, and then plied round the east side of the island; but that, meeting with unfavourable winds, he had been carried to some distance from the coast. He had one of the islanders on board all this time, who had remained there from choice, and had refused to quit the ship, though opportunities had offered.
Having spent the night standing off and on, we stood in again the next morning, and when we were about a league from the shore, many of the natives visited us. At noon the observed latitude was 19° 1ʹ, and the longitude, by the time-keeper, was 203° 26ʹ; the island extending from S. 74° E., to N. 13° W.; the nearest part two leagues distant.
At day-break, on the 8th, we found that the currents, during the night, which we spent in plying, had carried us back considerably to windward, so that we were now off the south-west point of the island. There we brought to, in order to give the natives an opportunity of trading with us. At noon our observed latitude was 19° 1ʹ, and our longitude, by the time-keeper, was 203° 13ʹ; the south-west point of the island bearing N. 30° E.; two miles distant.
We spent the night as usual, standing off and on. It happened that four men and ten women who had come on board the preceding day, still remained with us. As I did not like the company of the latter, I stood in shore toward noon, principally with a view to get them out of the ship; and some canoes coming off, I took that opportunity of sending away our guests.
We had light airs from N. W. and S. W., and calms, till eleven in the morning of the 10th, when the wind freshened at W. N. W., which, with a strong current setting to the S. E., so much retarded us, that in the evening, between seven and eight o’clock, the south point of the island bore N., 101⁄2° W., four leagues distant. The south snowy hill now bore N. 11⁄2° E.
At four in the morning of the 11th, the wind having fixed at W., I stood in for the land, in order to get some refreshments. As we drew near the shore, the natives began to come off. We lay to, or stood on and off, trading with them all the day; but got a very scanty supply at last. Many canoes visited us, whose people had not a single thing to barter; which convinced us that this part of the island must be very poor, and that we had already got all that they could spare. We spent the 12th plying off and on, with a fresh gale at west. A mile from the shore, and to the north-east of the south point of the island, having tried soundings, we found ground at fifty-five fathoms depth; the bottom a fine sand. At five in the evening we stood to the S. W., with the wind at W. N. W.; and soon after midnight we had a calm.
At eight o’clock next morning, having got a small breeze at S. S. E., we steered to the N. N. W., in for the land. Soon after a few canoes came alongside with some hogs, but without any vegetables, which articles we most wanted. We had now made some progress; for, at noon, the south point of the island bore S. 861⁄2° E.; the S. W. point N. 13° W,; the nearest shore two leagues distant; latitude, by observation, 18° 56ʹ, and our longitude, by the time-keeper, 203° 40ʹ. We had got the length of the south-west point of the island in the evening; but the wind now veering to the westward and northward, during the night we lost all that we had gained. Next morning, being still off the south-west point of the island, some canoes came off; but they brought nothing that we were in want of. We had now neither fruit nor roots, and were under a necessity of making use of some of our sea-provisions. At length some canoes from the northward brought us a small supply of hogs and roots.
We had variable light airs, next to a calm, the following day, till five in the afternoon, when a small breeze at E. N. E. springing up, we were at last enabled to steer along shore to the northward. The weather being fine, we had plenty of company this day, and abundance of every thing. Many of our visitors remained with us on board all night, and we towed their canoes astern.