"The musicians had reserved their best pieces for this moment, for at each succeeding effort we heard applauding cries of 'Mâli, Mâli;' and it was evident that the music had an agreeable and inspiriting effect upon the natives. The 'kava' was then offered to the various chiefs by those who had prepared it."
This concert, it will be seen, was by no means equal to the splendid entertainment which had been given to Captain Cook.
|
Fête in honour of D'Entrecasteaux at the Friendly Islands. (Fac-simile of early engraving.) |
Queen Tina followed it up by giving a grand ball, which was preceded by a concert, fully attended by the natives, amongst whom, we may incidentally mention, were numbers of thieves, who became so bold that they ended by forcibly taking possession of a cutlas. As the blacksmith of the Recherche pursued the thieves, they turned, and seeing him alone, struck him on the head with a club. Fortunately his danger was perceived by those on board the Espérance, and a well-directed shot dispersed his assaillants. Several natives were killed upon this occasion by the officers and sailors, who, not seeing exactly what had happened, treated all the islanders they met as dangerous. Fortunately, concord was soon restored; and the relations were so friendly when the time came for the French to leave, that many of the natives begged to accompany them to France.
"The intelligent account which these islanders gave of the vessels which had anchored in this archipelago," says the narrative, "convinced us that La Perouse had not visited any of these islands. They remembered perfectly every occasion upon which they had seen Captain Cook, and they indicated the intervals between his visits by the crops of yams, reckoning two in each year."
It is true that their information, as far as it related to La Perouse, was in direct contradiction to the facts which Dumont-Durville collected thirty-six years later, when Tamaha was queen.
"I was anxious to know," he says, "if any Europeans had visited Tonga between Cook and D'Entrecasteaux. After a few moments' reflection, she explained to me very clearly that a few years before D'Entrecasteaux's visit, two large vessels, like his in every respect, carrying guns and many Europeans, had anchored off Annamooka, and remained there six days. They showed a white flag, quite unlike the English one. The strangers had been very friendly with the natives, and had had a house on the island and entered into trade. She related that a native who had agreed to exchange a wooden bolster for a knife, was shot by an officer because he wanted to take back his merchandise when he had been paid for it. However, the incident had not broken the peace, because in that instance the native was in the wrong."
Although it is impossible to suspect Dumont-Durville of any attempt at imposition, many portions of this circumstantial account bear the impress of truth, more especially that relating to the flag, as being different to that of the English. Must we then charge D'Entrecasteaux with want of thoroughness in his work? This would be a very serious charge. Yet two circumstances, which we shall presently relate, appear to point to that conclusion.
The natives witnessed the departure of the French with keen regret. The expedition left upon the 21st Germinal,5 and six days later the Espérance signalled Erronan, the most easterly of the islands of Santo Espiritu, discovered by Quiros in 1660. Beyond this Annatom, Tanna, with its volcano in constant eruption, and the Beautemps-Beaupré Islands were passed. Carried onwards by the currents, the vessels were soon in sight of the mountains of New Caledonia, and anchored in Balade harbour, where Captain Cook had cast anchor in 1774.