Next day we had much thunder, lightning, and rain.  This did not hinder the king from making me another visit, and a present of a large quantity of refreshments.  It hath been already mentioned, that when we were at the island of Amsterdam we had collected, amongst other curiosities, some red parrot feathers.  When this was known here, all the principal people of both sexes endeavoured to ingratiate themselves into our favour by bringing us hogs, fruit, and every other thing the island afforded, in order to obtain these valuable jewels.  Our having these feathers was a fortunate circumstance, for as they were valuable to the natives, they became so to us; but more especially as my stock of trade was by this time greatly exhausted; so that, if it had not been for the feathers, I should have found it difficult to have supplied the ship with the necessary refreshments.

When I put in at this island, I intended to stay no longer than till Mr Wales had made the necessary observations for the purposes already mentioned, thinking we should meet with no better success than we did the last time we were here.  But the reception we had already met with, and the few excursions we had made, which did not exceed the plains of Matavai and Oparree, convinced us of our error.  We found at these two places, built and building, a great number of large canoes, and houses of every kind; people living in spacious habitations who had not a place to shelter themselves in eight months before; several large hogs about every house; and every other sign of a rising state.[5]

Judging from these favourable circumstances that we should not mend ourselves by removing to another island, I resolved to make a longer stay, and to begin with the repairs of the ship and stores, &c.  Accordingly I ordered the empty casks and sails to be got ashore to be repaired; the ship to be caulked, and the rigging to be overhauled; all of which the high southern latitudes had made indispensably necessary.

In the morning of the 26th, I went down to Oparree, accompanied by some of the officers and gentlemen, to pay Otoo a visit by appointment.  As we drew near, we observed a number of large canoes in motion; but we were surprised, when we arrived, to see upwards of three hundred ranged in order, for some distance, along the shore, all completely equipped and manned, besides a vast number of armed men upon the shore.  So unexpected an armament collected together in our neighbourhood, in the space of one night, gave rise to various conjectures.  We landed, however, in the midst of them, and were received by a vast multitude, many of them under arms, and many not.  The cry of the latter was Tiyo no Otoo, and that of the former Tiyo no Towha.  This chief, we afterwards learnt, was admiral or commander of the fleet and troops present.  The moment we landed I was met by a chief whose name was Tee, uncle to the king, and one of his prime ministers, of whom I enquired