The Explorers (8 page)

During the whole time of this distress I must say for the credit of our people that I believe every man exerted his utmost for the preservation of the ship, contrary to what I have universally heard to be the behaviour of seamen who have commonly as soon as a ship is in a desperate situation began to plunder and refuse all command. This was no doubt owing entirely to the cool and steady conduct of the officers, who during the whole time never gave an order which did not show them to be perfectly composed and unmoved by the circumstances howsoever dreadful they might appear.

13 June—One pump, and that not half worked, kept the ship clear all night. In the morn we weighed with a fine breeze of wind and steered along ashore among innumerable shoals, the boats keeping ahead and examining every appearance of a harbour which presented itself; nothing, however, was met with which could possibly suit our situation, bad as it was, so at night we came to an anchor. The pinnace, however, which had gone far ahead was not returned, nor did she till nine o'clock, when she reported that she had found just the place we wanted, in which the tide rose sufficiently and there was every natural convenience that could be wished for either laying the ship ashore or heaving her down. This was too much to be believed by our most sanguine wishes: we, however, hoped that the place might do for us if not so much as we had been told yet something to better our situation, as yet but precarious, having nothing but a lock of wool between us and destruction.

14 June—Very fresh sea breeze. A boat was sent ahead to show us the way into the harbour, but by some mistake of signals we were obliged to come to an anchor again of the mouth of it without going in, where it soon blew too fresh for us to weigh. We now began to consider our good fortune; had it blown as fresh the day before yesterday or before that we could never have got off but must inevitably have been dashed to pieces on the rocks.

The captain and myself went ashore to view the harbour and found it indeed beyond our most sanguine wishes: it was the mouth of a river the entrance of which was, to be sure, narrow enough and shallow but, when once in, the ship might be moored afloat so near the shore that, by a stage from her to it, all her cargo might be got out and in again in a very short time; in this same place she might be hove down with all ease, but the beach gave signs of the tides rising in the springs six or seven feet which was more than enough to do our business without that trouble. The meeting with so many natural advantages in a harbour so near us at the very time of our misfortune appeared almost providential; we had not in the voyage before seen a place so well suited for our purpose as this was, and certainly had no right to expect the tides to rise so high here that did not rise half so much at the place where we struck, only eight leagues from this place; we therefore returned on board in high spirits…

17 June—Weather a little less rough than it was. Weighed and brought the ship in but in doing it ran her twice ashore by the narrowness of the channel; the second time she remained till the tide lifted her off. In the meantime Dr Solander and myself began our plant gathering. In the evening the ship was moored within twenty feet of the shore afloat and before night much lumber was got out of her…

20 June—Weather cleared up so we began to gather and dry plants of which we had hopes of as many as we could muster during our stay…

21 June—Fine clear weather: began today to lay plants in sand. By night the ship was quite clear and in the night's tide (which we had constantly observed to be much higher than the day's) we hauled her ashore.

22 June—In the morn I saw her leak which was very large: in the middle was a hole large enough to have sunk a ship with twice our pumps, but here providence had most visibly worked in our favour, for it was in great measure plugged up by a stone which was as big as a man's fist. Round the edges of this stone had all the water come in which had so near overcome us, and here we found the wool and oakum or fothering which had relieved us in so unexpected a manner. The effects of the coral rock upon her bottom is difficult to describe but more to believe; it had cut through her plank and deep into one of her timbers, smoothing the gashes still before it so that the whole might easily be imagined to be cut with an axe. Myself employed all day in laying in plants. The people who were sent to the other side of the water in order to shoot pigeons saw an animal as large as a greyhound, of a mouse colour and very swift.† They also saw many Indian houses and a brook of fresh water.

23 June—The people who went over the river saw the animal again and described him much in the same manner as yesterday.

24 June—Gathering plants and hearing descriptions of the animal which is now seen by everybody. A seaman who had been out in the woods brought home the description of an animal he had seen, composed in so seamanlike a style that I cannot help mentioning it: it was (says he) about as large and much like a one gallon cagg, as black as the devil and had two horns on its head; it went but slowly but I dared not touch it.††

25 June—In gathering plants today I myself had the good fortune to see the beast so much talked of, though but imperfectly; he was not only like a greyhound in size and running but had a long tail, as long as any greyhound's; what to liken him to I could not tell, nothing certainly that I have seen at all resembles him…

29 June—One of our midshipmen, an American who was out a shooting today, saw a wolf, perfectly he said like those he had seen in America; he shot at it but did not kill it.††† The seine was hauled today for the first time and 150 pounds of fish caught in it… 1 July—Being Sunday all hands were ashore on liberty; many animals were seen by them. The Indians had a fire about a league off up the river…

The ship was now finished and tomorrow being the highest spring tide it was intended to haul her off, so we began to think how we should get out of this place, where so lately to get only in was our utmost ambition. We had observed in coming in innumerable shoals and sand all round us, so we went upon a high hill to see what passage to the sea might be open. When we came there the prospect was indeed melancholy: the sea everywhere full of innumerable shoals, some above and some under water, and no prospect of any straight passage out. To return as we came was impossible, the trade wind blew directly in our teeth. Most dangerous then our navigation must be among unknown dangers. How soon might we again be reduced to the misfortune we had so lately escaped! Escaped indeed we had not till we were again in an open sea…

6 July—Set out today with the second lieutenant resolved to go a good way up the river and see if the country inland differed from that near the shore. We went for about three leagues among mangroves, then we got into the country which differed very little from what we had seen. From hence we proceeded up the river which contracted itself much and lost most of its mangroves; the banks were steep and covered with trees of a beautiful verdure particularly what is called in the West Indies mohoe or bark tree (
Hibiscus tiliaceus
). The land within was generally low, covered thick with long grass, and seemed to promise great fertility were these people to plant and improve it. In the course of the day Tupia saw a wolf, so at least I guess by his description, and we saw three of the animals of the country but could not get one; also a kind of bats as large as a partridge but these also we were not lucky enough to get.† At night we took up our lodgings close to the banks of the river and made a fire, but the mosquitoes, whose peaceful dominions it seems we had invaded, spared no pains to molest as much as was in their power: they followed us into the very smoke, nay almost into the fire, which hot as the climate was we could better bear the heat of than their intolerable stings.

Between the hardness of our beds, the heat of the fire and the stings of these indefatigable insects the night was not spent so agreeably but that day was earnestly wished for by all of us; at last it

7 July—came and with its first dawn we set out in search of game. We walked many miles over the flats and saw four of the animals, two of which my greyhound fairly chased, but they beat him owing to the length and thickness of the grass which prevented him from running while they at every bound leaped over the tops of it. We observed much to our surprise that instead of going upon all fours this animal went only upon two legs, making vast bounds just as the jerboa (
Mus jaculus
) does.

We returned about noon and pursued our course up the river, which soon contracted itself into a freshwater brook where, however, the tide rose pretty considerably; towards evening it was so shallow, being almost low water, that we were obliged to get out of the boat and drag her, so finding a convenient place for sleeping in we resolved to go no farther. Before our things were got up out of the boat we observed a smoke about a furlong from us; we did not doubt at all that the natives, who we had so long had a curiosity to see well, were there. So three of us went immediately towards it, hoping that the smallness of our numbers would induce them not to be afraid of us. When we came to the place, however, they were gone, probably upon having discovered us before we saw them. The fire was in an old tree of touchwood; their houses were there, and branches of trees broken down, with which the children had been playing, not yet withered; their footsteps also upon the sand below the high-tide mark proved that they had very lately been there; near their oven, in which victuals had been dressed since morn, were shells of a kind of clam and roots of a wild yam which had been cooked in it.

Thus were we disappointed of the only good chance we have had of seeing the people since we came here by their unaccountable timidity, and night soon coming on we repaired to our quarters, which was upon a broad sandbank under the shade of a bush where we hoped the mosquitoes would not trouble us. Our beds of plantain leaves spread on the sand as soft as a mattress, our cloaks for bedclothes and grass pillows, but above all the entire absence of mosquitoes made me and, I believe, all of us sleep almost without intermission; had the Indians came they would certainly have caught us all napping but that was the least in our thoughts…

10 July—Four Indians appeared on the opposite shore; they had with them a canoe made of wood with an outrigger in which two of them embarked and came towards the ship but stopped at the distance of a long musket shot, talking much and very loud to us. We hollored to them and waving made them all the signs we could to come nearer; by degrees they ventured almost insensibly nearer and nearer till they were quite alongside, often holding up their lances as if to show us that if we used them ill they had weapons and would return our attack. Cloth, nails, paper etc. etc. was given to them all which they took and put into the canoe without showing the least signs of satisfaction.

At last a small fish was by accident thrown to them on which they expressed the greatest joy imaginable, and instantly putting off from the ship made signs that they would bring over their comrades, which they very soon did and all four landed near us, each carrying in his hand two lances and his stick to throw them with. Tupia went towards; they stood all in a row in the attitude of throwing their lances; he made signs that they should lay them down and come forward without them; this they immediately did and sat down with him upon the ground. We then came up to them and made them presents of beads, cloth, etc. which they took and soon became very easy, only jealous if anyone attempted to go between them and their arms. At dinner time we made signs to them to come with us and eat but they refused; we left them and they going into their canoe paddled back to where they came from.

11 July—Indians came over again today, two that were with us yesterday and two new ones who our old acquaintance introduced to us by their names, one of which was Yaparico. Though we did not yesterday observe it they all had the septum or inner part of the nose bored through with a very large hole, in which one of them had stuck the bone of a bird as thick as a man's finger and five or six inches long, an ornament no doubt, though to us it appeared rather an uncouth one. They brought with them a fish which they gave to us in return I suppose for the fish we had given them yesterday. Their stay was but short for some of our gentlemen being rather too curious in examining their canoe they went directly to it and pushing it off went away without saying a word. At night the boat which had been sent to the reef for turtle came home and brought three.

12 July—Indians came again today and ventured down to Tupia's tent, where they were so well pleased with their reception that three stayed while the fourth went with the canoe to fetch two new ones; they introduced their strangers (which they always made a point of doing) by name and had some fish given them. They received it with indifference, signed to our people to cook it for them, which was done, and they eat part and gave the rest to my bitch. They stayed the most part of the morning but never ventured to go above twenty yards from their canoe. The ribbands, by which we had tied medals round their necks the first day we saw them, were covered with smoke; I suppose they lay much in the smoke to keep off the mosquitoes.

They are a very small people or at least this tribe consisted of very small people, in general about five feet six in height and very slender; one we measured five feet two and another five feet nine, but he was far taller than any of his fellows. I do not know by what deception we were to a man of opinion, when we saw them run on the sand about a quarter of a mile from us, that they were taller and larger than we were. Their colour was nearest to that of chocolate, not that their skins were so dark but the smoke and dirt with which they were cased over, which I suppose served them instead of clothes, made them of that colour.

Their hair was straight in some and curled in others; they always wore it cropped close round their heads; it was of the same consistence with our hair, by no means woolly or curled like that of Negroes. Their eyes were in many lively and their teeth even and good; of them they had complete sets, by no means wanting two of their foreteeth as Dampier's New Hollanders did.