the boats, which were sent accordingly; and, not long after, they returned with a few yams and some salt.  A tolerable quantity of both had been procured in the course of the day; but the surf was so great, that the greatest part of both these articles had been lost in conveying them to the boats.  The officer and twenty men, deterred by the danger of coming off, were left ashore all night; and, by this unfortunate circumstance, the very thing happened, which, as I have already mentioned, I wished so heartily to prevent, and vainly imagined I had effectually guarded against.  The violence of the surf, which our own boats could not act against, did not hinder the natives from coming off to the ships in their canoes.  They brought refreshments with them, which were purchased in exchange for nails, and pieces of iron-hoops; and I distributed a good many pieces of ribbon, and some buttons, as bracelets, amongst the women in the canoes.  One of the men had the figure of a lizard punctured upon his breast, and upon those of others were the figures of men badly imitated.  These visitors informed us, that there was no chief, or Hairee, of this island; but that it was subject to Teneooneoo, a chief of Atooi; which island, they said, was not governed by a single chief, but that there were many to whom they paid the honour of moe, or prostration; and, amongst others, they named, Otaeaio and Terarotoa.  Among other things, which these people now brought off, was a small drum, almost like those of Otaheite.

About ten or eleven o’clock at night, the wind veered to the S., and the sky seemed to forebode a storm.  With such appearances, thinking that we were rather too near the shore, I ordered the anchors to be taken up, and having carried the ships into forty-two fathoms, came to again in that safer station.  The precaution, however, proved to be unnecessary; for the wind, soon after, veered to N.E., from which quarter it blew a fresh gale, with squalls, attended with very heavy showers of rain.

This weather continued all the next day; and the sea ran so high, that we had no manner of communication with our party on shore; and even the natives themselves durst not venture out to the ships in their canoes.  In the evening, I sent the master in a boat up to the S.E. head, or point of the island, to try if he could land under it.  He returned with a favourable report; but it was too late, now, to send for our party till the next morning; and thus they had another night to improve their intercourse with the natives.

Encouraged by the master’s report, I sent a boat to the S.E. point, as soon as day-light returned, with an order to Mr Gore, that, if he could not embark his people from the spot where they now were, to march them up to the point.  As the boat could not get to the beach, one of the crew swam ashore, and carried the order.  On the return of the boat, I went myself with the pinnace and launch up to the point,