The 24th in the afternoon being calm Capt. B. went on board the Discovery, and Mr. Paget[148] returned and dined on board the Chatham, when we learnt that their Main Mast was not only sprung, as we conjectured but that they had found the head of the Foremast also sprung, and had carried away both the Fore & Main Top Gallant Yards on the night of the 19th. In the evening we had the wind again from the N Erd. which continued and with it continued also very gloomy disagreeable weather. On the 27th our Lat: was at noon 24.21 N and the Longe: 215.5 Et. Tack'd and stood to the N W. We kept tacking occasionally, and on the 31st we were no further to the Nd. than the Lat. of 28°.
The 1st of April being the Anniversary of our leaving England, double allowance of Grog was served to the Ship's Company to commemorate the day and drink the healths of their old friends at home. We made but a very poor hand of working through the Trade Wind and from the 1st to the 4th made scarce anything. We then got the breeze pretty fresh with fair weather at N. E. and steered N. N. W. the Lat: 30.26 N. this fine weather continued till the 6th when we were in Lat: of 33.59 N. and the Longe: of 216.30 Et. It was not till the 8th in the Lat: of 36° N. that we lost the N E trade, to carry it so far is uncommon; we then had it calm, and two gentlemen from the Discovery who had been shooting some marine Birds came on board. They had kill'd a very large bird call'd by the sailors Mother Carey's Goose, it measured 7½ feet from tip to tip of the wings. They told us they had seen a duck fly past the Ship the day before, which is somewhat surprising as we know of no land very near us. This day and yesterday observed the surface of the water to be covered with a species of what is call'd the Medusa Vanilla.[149]
The weather became now very thick & foggy with drizzling rain, and it continued for the most part calm till the 10th. When a breeze began to freshen from the W b S we made all sail steering E N E. In the morning of the 11th it veer'd to S E b S where it made a stand with fine pleasant weather. Our Lat: that day was 36.10 and the Longe: 221.8 Et. We had this fine weather till the 16th when the wind veer'd to E S E blowing in hard squalls attended with rainy dirty weather, that at night increased to a hard gale and brought us to close reef'd Topsails. We wore occasionally, and our Lat: at Noon was 38.50 N. The gale settled at S. E. increasing in volume, and in the course of the night, we were oblig'd to hand the Topsails. Moderating a little by the morning, we let out the reefs and stood to the E N E. At noon the 17th the Lat: was 39.23 N and the Longe: 234.50 Et. The weather was very thick and Hazy, and about 4 o'clock in the afternoon, the Discovery who was two mile ahead of us made the Signal for seeing the Land. At this time we had vast numbers of Shags, Divers, Ducks & other Birds of the Seashore about us, but from the thickness of the weather it was not till near 5 o'clock that we saw the Land, when the Coast of New Albion[150] was seen bearing from N b E to E b S. not many miles distant. The haze over the Land clearing up a little gave us an opportunity of seeing it. It had a very pleasing appearance, high and covered to the top with tall pines with here and there some rich verdant lawns. We tack'd early and stood off and on during the night and in the morning stretch'd in again for the shore. We had no wind till towards noon when a fine breeze from S. S. E. sprung up and we bore away along shore with all sail set. As we had now entered upon our Station, and the survey of the Coast, we were obliged to haul off at dark and spend the night in short boards, that we might take up the Land in the morning where we left off the evening before. The 19th we had a fine moderate Breeze at S. E. with which we run along shore. Our Lat: at Noon 40.2 N & Long: 235.22 Et. It freshened in the evening with rainy hazy weather and by midnight we had a very hard gale which continued all the 21st. In the morning of the 22nd it fell calm with thick, foggy unpleasant weather and it was not till the following day that we were enabled to get in with the Land and run along shore. Our weather was now clear and pleasant with the wind from the Sd: & S. Eastd. At noon on the 24th our Lat: was 42.31 N and it falling calm soon after, with a Current setting us fast on Shore we anchor'd per Signal in 37 fm: in a deep Bay, the N Extreme of which is a remarkable Cape, which Captn: Vancouver named Cape Orford[151], in honor of the Earl of that name.
We presently found that this place was inhabited, for two Canoes appear'd (the first on this Coast we had seen) one of which went to the Discovery, the other came to us. In this one there were five men who after making fast their canoe came on board with great confidence, and did not shew much surprise on entering the Vessel. Though they had brought nothing purposely to sell yet they were perfectly well acquainted with bartering, and their Cloathing which was Deer Skins with one or two Fox Skins, and a few Bows & Arrows that they had, they readily sold for trifles, nor wou'd they part with anything till they got what they conceived an equivalent. They were fond of metal of any kind and Bits of Iron & Yellow Buttons they eagerly took. One of them had a thin bit of old Iron fixed into a piece of wood as a knife. Some of them had ornaments of Necklaces, composed of a small black berry and shells, intermixed with small tubes of copper. Their Ears and the Septum of the Nose were perforated and ornamented in the same manner. They were perfectly naked except two of them that had deer skins thrown loosely over their shoulders. Their colour was not easily to be found out from the quantity of dirt and paint with which they were besmeared, but were they clean I should suppose they are something of an Olive colour. They had very bad teeth, their hair was black and grew long behind, and their Language was the most uncouth I ever heard. Their Bows were small and made from the Ewe Tree and their Arrows were strait and even of about two feet and a half long, feathered at one end and barbed and pointed with flint at the other. Some of them had also Knives of Flint. Their canoes were extremely rude and unwieldy and little calculated for any distant embarkation, they were about 17 feet in length, 4ft. 6in. in breadth at the Gunwales, and 3 feet deep, roughly hewn out of one solid tree, flat bottom'd and square at each end. After selling every little thing they had they took their leave. This Canoe had no Sea Otter skins in her but the one that went to the Discovery had a couple of small Cub Otter Skins.
25th. At night with the land wind we weigh'd and stood out to the Wd. and at daylight with a fair Soly: Breeze bore away along shore. The fair and pleasant weather continued, and on the 27th at noon we observed in the Lat: of 46.10 N. Just then the Discovery made the Signal that we were standing into Danger, we haul'd out, this situation is off Cape Disappointment from whence a very extensive Shoal stretches out and there was every appearance of an opening there, but to us the sea seem'd to break entirely across it.[152] On the 28th at Noon our Lat: was 47.32 N and in the Evening the 29th falling calm, we came to an anchor with the Discovery near Destruction Island, the place where a Boat's Crew of the Imperial Eagle commanded by Mr. Berkley[153] were barbarously murdered by the Natives as mention'd in Mears' Voyage. None of the natives came off to us but we observ'd two canoes entering a small Bay abreast of us. At about 3 we weigh'd per Signal and at 5 set Studding Sails with a moderate Soly: Breeze, but rainy weather. At daylight a strange Sail was seen in the N. W. quarter standing towards us, she hoisted American Colours. About 7 we spoke her, she proved to be the Ship Columbia of Boston commanded by a Mr Grey,[154] on the Fur trade. She had wintered on the Coast in Port Clynquot[155] in Berkley's Sound. This Mr. Grey being the man who Mr Mears[156] in his Chart has published having entered the Streights of De Fuca, and after proceeding a considerable distance up, return'd to sea again by another passage to the Northward of that by which he entered—Captn: Vancouver was desirous of obtaining from him some information respecting the Streights, he therefore hoisted a boat out, and sent an officer on board the Columbia. Mr Grey very civilly offered him any information he could possibly give him, but at the same time told him that Mr Mears had been very much misled in his information and had published what never had happened; for though he (Mr Grey) did enter the Streights of De Fuca, and proceeded a considerable distance, where he still saw an unbounded horizon, he return'd, but return'd by the same way he entered. He had been two & twenty months from Boston, and had obtained a valuable cargo of Furs. He had built a small sloop of about 45 tons at Clyoquot which was now trading to the Northward.
He gave no very favourable account of the Northern Indians whose daring and insolent spirit had carried them to very unwarrantable lengths. Several attempts had been made by them to seize his, and other Vessels on the Coast. Several people of different Ships had been treacherously murdered, and Mr Grey's Chief Mate with two of the seamen were in this manner murder'd while fishing round a point of Land, a small distance from the Ship. This happen'd somewhere about the Lat: of 54¼°. After the Boat with the Officer return'd we made sail to the Nd. and the Columbia stretched in for the Shore. About noon we were nearly abreast of the much talked of Streights of Juan De Fuca, the Discovery made our Signal to lead in. The weather was thick and Hazy and prevented our having an observation. Cape Classet[157] at Noon bore N 20 E 2 miles. This Cape is settled by Captn: Vancouver in the Lat: of 48.23 N and the Longe: 235.38 Et.
At one o'clock we haul'd round Green Island,[158] and as we pass'd had a view of the Spiral Rock,[159] which is remarkable. On Green Island is a very large Village, and from it and the Villages on the Main, a number of canoes came off. The Natives brought a number of Otter Skins to sell, but wou'd part with none for anything but Copper & Blue Cloth Cloathing with Metal Buttons they were very eager after and we saw several with Blue Coats & round Hats. Mr Mears is very much out in the distance he makes the entrance of these Streights, he says they are 15 leagues wide, whereas the Entrance is no more than 12 leagues in breadth. In the Evening having but little wind and it coming on thick we brought up on the S. shore in 12 fathoms water and then observed the Columbia following us. She had just entered the Streights. After we came too a few fish were caught with the hook & line.
May. The following morning the 1st of May with a fine breeze at West and clear pleasant weather we got under weigh and proceeded up the Streights, and left the Columbia off Green Island laying too, bartering with the Natives for Skins. Several canoes follow'd us with skins, fish &c., to sell but the rage was copper; next to this article Cloth & wearing apparel with Brass Buttons, Copper wrist bands, Musquets & Swords were chiefly in demand.
Among other articles offered for sale was their children, several were offered for a Musket or a Sheet of Copper. The women being the first we had seen since leaving the Sandwich Islands, had not a few attacks of Gallantry made on them by the Sailors though they were by no means inviting. But however great the difference between them and the Sandwich Islanders in point of Beauty much greater was it in point of behaviour, for here the smallest degree of indelicacy towards one of these Ladies, shock'd their modesty to such a degree, and had such an effect on them, that I have seen many of them burst into tears, they would endeavour to hide themselves in the bottom of their canoes and discover the most extreme degree of uneasiness and distress.
Some of the canoes were very large and contain'd a whole family of men & women and a considerable part of their Household furniture, large Bladders full of their delicious Whale Oil was in every canoe and the little Infants in their Cradles were plied with large quantities of it by their Mothers. As we got the Breeze fresher, the canoes soon dropp'd off.