A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13 eBook

Robert Kerr (writer)
This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 794 pages of information about A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13.

A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13 eBook

Robert Kerr (writer)
This eBook from the Gutenberg Project consists of approximately 794 pages of information about A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13.
retired to a little eminence, whence they could conveniently observe our motions.  Soon after two canoes, each having two men on board, came to the shore just under the eminence, and the men joined the rest on the top of it.  The pinnace, which had been sent ahead to sound, now approached the place, upon which all the Indians retired farther up the hill, except one, who hid himself among some rocks near the landing-place.  As the pinnace proceeded along the shore, most of the people took the same route, and kept abreast of her at a distance; when she came back, the master told us, that in a cove a little within the harbour, some of them had come down to the beach, and invited him to land by many signs and words of which he knew not the meaning; but that all of them were armed with long pikes, and a wooden weapon shaped somewhat like a cymitar.  The Indians who had not followed the boat, seeing the ship approach, used many threatening gestures; and brandished their weapons; particularly two, who made a very singular appearance, for their faces seemed to have been dusted with a white powder, and their bodies painted with broad streaks of the same colour, which, passing obliquely over their breasts and backs, looked not unlike the cross-belts worn by our soldiers; the same kind of streaks were also drawn round their legs and thighs like broad garters:  Each of these men held in his hand the weapon that had been described to us as like a cymitar, which appeared to be about two feet and a half long, and they seemed to talk to each other with great earnestness.

We continued to stand into the bay, and early in the afternoon anchored under the south shore, about two miles within the entrance, in six fathom water, the south point bearing S.E. and the north point east.  As we came in we saw, on both points of the bay, a few huts, and several of the natives, men, women, and children.  Under the south head we saw four small canoes, with each one man on board, who were very busily employed in striking fish with a long pike or spear:  They ventured almost into the surf, and were so intent upon what they were doing, that although the ship passed within a quarter of a mile of them, they scarcely turned their eyes toward her; possibly being deafened by the surf, and their attention wholly fixed upon their business or sport, they neither saw nor heard her go past them.

The place where the ship had anchored was abreast of a small village, consisting of about six or eight houses; and while we were preparing to hoist out the boat, we saw an old woman, followed by three children, come out of the wood; she was loaded with fire-wood, and each of the children had also its little burden:  When she came to the houses, three more children, younger than the others, came out to meet her:  She often looked at the ship, but expressed neither fear nor surprise:  In a short time she kindled a fire, and the four canoes came in from fishing.  The men landed, and having hauled up their boats, began to dress their dinner, to all appearance wholly unconcerned about us, though we were within half a mile of them.  We thought it remarkable that of all the people we had yet seen, not one had the least appearance of clothing, the old woman herself being destitute even of a fig-leaf.

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A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13 from Project Gutenberg. Public domain.