Voyage in Search of La Pérouse/Volume 2/Chapter 11
CHAP. XI.
15th February.
AT day-break we set sail from Rocky Bay with a south-west wind, and steered east-north-east till we reached its mouth, intending to cast anchor in Dentrecasteaux Strait.
Some of the natives gave us notice of their presence by several fires, which they had lighted on the eastern coast.
We had already crossed the great road, which is at the beginning of the Strait, and were running along very close to the larboard shore, when about half after one, P.M. we struck on a small shoal, consisting of sand mixed with mud. The ebb had just begun to set the current against us; and the tide falling lower and lower, we were obliged to wait till half after six for high water, to set us afloat again. The Esperance had gotten still deeper in the sand than we, for she was not able to get off till near eight o'clock.
Our boat, which had been sent off five days before, returned, after having discovered several very deep creeks, that formed excellent anchoring places, but without finding any river. It is remarkable, that all we had seen at Cape Diemen were small, which indicates a very broken country.
The boat was laden with black swans, shot by our people, whom they suffered to come very near them. It was not easy to get those that had been merely wounded; for, as they could still swim with great speed, it was necessary to row hard, to catch them even then.
16th. During the whole night we saw several fires, which the natives had kindled on the borders of the sea toward the south-south-east, near two miles from the place where we had anchored.
We hoped that a fair wind would have allowed us to set sail again in the morning; but the wind proving contrary, the General determined that he would remain at anchor till the next day. Accordingly we went ashore toward the south-east, on some low ground, whence it was easy to reach Adventure Bay in a short time.
Among the different shrubs that constitute the ornaments of these places, I shall mention one, which I refer to the genus, that I have already described under the name of mazeutoxeron. It agrees with this genus in all its characters; only the petals, which are distict at the base, adhere together at the middle of their edges, but they may be separated without breaking them. The style is simple and acute.
To this new species I give the name of mazeutoxeron reflexum, on account of its leaves, which are inclined toward the ground. They are hairy and whitish beneath.
The flowers are greenish, solitary, and issue out between two small oval leaves: toward the middle of the peduncle they have two filiform appendices a little larger than the calyx.
Mazeutoxeron Reflexum
Explanation of the Figures, Plate XIX.
Fig. 1. A branch.
Fig. 2. The flower.
Fig. 3. The corolla.
Fig. 4. The corolla displayed, to show how the petals adhere together laterally.
Fig. 5. The calyx, with the stamens and germen, the corolla having been removed.
Fig. 6. The capsule, beneath which the calyx is seen.
Fig. 7. One of the valves of the capsule.
Citizen Beaupré, engineer geographer, set off in the evening, in the General's barge, for the great creek, which we had perceived the preceding year to the north, in sailing out of Dentrecasteaux Strait. The principal object was, to ascertain whether it had any opening that communicated with the main sea, and whether the island of Maria was really separated from the land of New Holland; for this had not been sufficiently resolved by Marion, or even by Captain Cook.
The wind continuing to the north all the 17th, prevented our weighing anchor, and we went ashore, while our fishers proceeded toward the mouth of the strait. The flood brought in with it a considerable quantity of fish, and they caught several species of ray of a large size. Some were found to weigh upwards of two hundred and sixty pounds.
We got under way the next morning; but the wind was too faint, to enable us to stem the current, which set against us, so that we quickly let go our anchor again.
Toward noon some of the natives appeared on the eastern shore, about half a mile from our ship. Some others soon joined them; and we could count as many as ten, when they kindled a fire, and seated themselves round it. From time to time they answered with shouts of joy the shouts of our sailors. We hastened on shore in a large party, to have a nearer view of them; and when we were but a little way from the beach, they advanced toward us without arms, their smiling countenances leaving us no room to doubt that our visit gave them pleasure. They were as destitute of clothes as those whom we had seen in the neighbourhood of Port Dentrecasteaux; but we were much surprised to see most of them holding the extremity of the prepuce with the left hand; no doubt from a bad habit, for we did not observe any thing of the kind among some others, who soon after joined them. Their joy was expressed by loud bursts of laughter; at the same time they carried their hands to their heads, and made a quick tapping with their feet on the ground, while their countenances showed, that they were well pleased to see us.
We invited them to sit down, speaking in the language of the other natives, whom we had already met with at this extremity of New Holland; and they understood us very well, immediately acceding to our invitation. They understood likewise the other words of the language of these people, which we had collected from them, and we had no doubt, that they spoke the same tongue: yet Anderson has given to the public some words of the language of the people of Adventure Bay, which have no similitude to those, that we had an opportunity of acquiring and verifying.
These savages expressed much thankfulness, when we gave them a few small pieces of stuffs of different colours, glass beads, a hatchet, and some other articles of hardware.
Several other savages came out of the wood, and approached us. There was no woman among them, but there were some young men. Among these was one of the middle size, whose figure, which we all admired, was very finely proportioned, even in the judgment of our painter. From his dress we presumed this savage to be a New Holland beau: he was tatooed with great symmetry, and his hair, plastered with grease, was well powdered with ochre.
One of the natives gave us to understand, that he had seen vessels in Adventure Bay before: probably he spoke of Bligh, who had anchored there in the beginning of 1792, as we learned some days after from several inscriptions, which we found carved on the trunks of trees.
An officer belonging to our ship imagined, that he should not frighten them, by letting them see the effects of our fire-arms: but as most of them were not previously informed of his design, they were alarmed at the report of the gun, immediately rose, and would not sit down again. Supposing their wives and children were retired to a little distance in the wood, we expressed to them our wishes to see them join us; and the savages informed us that we should find them, after walking some time across the wood in a path, which led toward the south-south-west, and which they immediately took, inviting us to follow them. This we did: but it was not long before they expressed their desire to see us return toward our ships, and parted from us, frequently looking back to watch our motions.
On my pronouncing the word quangloa, however, which signifies, in their language, will you come, they stopped, and I went up to them with one of the officers of the Recherche. They continued to lead us along the same path, which appeared much frequented, and we walked slowly, that our people might have time to join us. In this way we walked on for a quarter of an hour, holding them by the arm, when on a sudden they quickened their pace, so that it was not easy for us to follow them farther. It appeared to us, that they wished we should leave them, for some of them would not allow us to hold them by the arm any longer, and walked by themselves, at some distance from us. One of our crew, desirous of rejoining one of the fugitives, ran after him, bawling out with all his might; and this alarmed all the rest, who immediately hastened away, and kept at a considerable distance from us. No doubt they were desirous to reach the place where they had deposited their weapons unaccompanied; for, after having again quickened their pace, they struck out of the path a little, and presently we saw them with three or four spears each, which they carried away, most of them proceeding toward Adventure Bay, while others took their course to the west. They then invited us to follow them; but we were not willing to go any farther, for we had no desire to imitate them in their course, and besides it was time for us to return on board.
These natives appeared to us to have the greatest resemblance to those whom we had seen a few days before; only we observed some, in whom one of the middle teeth of the upper jaw was wanting, and others in whom both were gone. We could not learn the object of this custom; but it is not general, for the greater part of the people had all their teeth.
They appeared to be equally ignorant with the others of the use of the bow.
Almost all of them were tatooed with raised points, sometimes placed in two lines, one over the other, much in the shape of a horse-shoe; though frequently these points were in three straight and parallel lines on each side of the breast: some were observed, too, toward the bottom of the shoulder blades, and in other places.
In many the navel appeared puffed up, and very prominent, but we assured ourselves, that this deformity was not occasioned by a hernia. Perhaps it is owing to the too great distance from the abdomen, at which the umbilical cord is separated.
They acquainted us that they lived upon fish, as well as the other inhabitants of Cape Diemen: yet I must observe, that we did not see a single person who had the least trace of any disease of the skin; which by no means agrees with the opinion of those, who maintain, that ichthyophagi are subject to a species of leprosy. Historians even assert, that such of the Greeks as would not adopt in Egypt the regimen prescribed by Orpheus, were attacked by the elephantiasis.
Soon after sun-set we arrived on board; when, the wind having become fair, we weighed, and proceeded two leagues farther, where we dropped anchor again.
19th. The next morning we got up our anchor pretty early, but were obliged to let it go again almost immediately, as the wind became foul.
I then landed on the eastern shore, whence I penetrated into the woods, taking paths much frequented by the savages. It was not long before I perceived a new species of exocarpos, which I call exocarpos expansa, because its branches spread much wider from each other than those of the exocarpos cupressiformis. Its fruit is larger than that of the latter species.
Two guns from the Recherche informed us, that she was preparing to get up her anchor, and immediately we repaired on board. By five o'clock we were under sail, but the breeze was so faint, that we had made little way when night came. From the place where we came to an anchor we reckoned now we had not above a couple of leagues to the extremity of the strait: but we were so delayed by the winds and currents, that it was four days longer, before we could clear it.
In this interval the barge, which the Generel had dispatched for the purpose of making geographical researches, returned after five days absence. Citizen Beaupré had discovered several bays before unknown: the farthest to the north extended to 42° 42′ of S. lat., and the easternmost reached to the longitude of Cape Pillar. He had seen the channel, which separates the Island of Maria from the main land.
It was with astonishment we saw the prodigious number of sheltered situations, which, from Cape South to the meridian of Cape Pillar, offer a continued chain of excellent anchoring places, in a space including about sixteen leagues from east to west, and about twenty from north to south.
Fresh water appears to be very scarce in these bays at this season: yet near the head of that, which stretches farthest to the north, there is a river, where, about fifty paces distant from its mouth, there is perfectly fresh water of the depth of six feet, even within an hour after flood-tide; for its current is sufficiently rapid to repel the water of the sea, and prevent its mingling with the stream.
On the 24th, about half after eleven in the morning, we anchored in Adventure Bay, in eleven fathoms water, on a bottom of mud mixed with a small portion of sand.
The nearest shore bore from us south-east, distant five furlongs, and Penguin Island north 51° east.
Immediately a boat was dispatched, to see whether it were easy to furnish ourselves with water toward the north-west, at the place pointed out by Captain Cook, in the plan which he has given of this bay. The east-south-east winds, however, occasioned a very troublesome surf there, which induced us to prefer a place to the south-east; but we found that the water procured there was a little brackish; which proved, that it was taken from a place too low, and too near the sea.
This bay being open to the east and south-east winds, they sometimes occasion a heavy swell on the western shore, which, tending thither from all sides, render it somewhat difficult to land.
During the time we remained at anchor, I made excursions into the adjacent country every day; but I found little to add to the numerous articles I had collected at Cape Diemen.
Penguin Island, which I visited, is nothing but a hill, scarcely separated from the great island, for at low water I crossed the channel between them almost dry-shod. It consists of a dark gray sandstone, the same as forms great part of the borders of Adventure Bay. To the south it is overtopped by Fluted Cape, which is formed of a reddish sandstone, disposed in parallel strata perpendicular to the horizon. The difference of tint in these strata exhibit at a distance the appearance of deep flutings, which has given occasion to its name. It must be from an error of the press, that it is said Anderson found this cape to consist of a white sandstone.
On Penguin Island I found a new species of slate, remarkable for its large laminæ of a light fawn colour; an eucalyptus of a moderate height, which may readily be distinguished by its opposite, sessile leaves, of a whitish green colour, with a slight tint of blue (glauques); an embothrium, with leaves very deeply indented; several fine species of philadelphus, the flowers of which have no smell, &c.
We found a raft, which the waves had thrown upon the western shore of Adventure Bay. 
Perhaps it had served to bring some savages into this bay from the island of Maria. It was made of the bark of trees; in shape nearly resembling that which is represented in Plate XLVI. fig. 2, being as broad, but not so long by more than a third. The pieces of bark, that composed it, were of the same structure as that of the eucalyptus resinifera, but its leaves were much thinner. These pieces had been held together by cords, made of the leaves of grasses, forming a texture of very large meshes, most of which had the form of a pretty regular pentagon.
Just by we saw some limestone rocks, bounding an extensive sandy shore. On its borders we found the remains of a place which had been made by Europeans for sawing wood, the pegs they had used for erecting a tent, and some large logs, on which, it appeared to us, they had placed instruments for making astronomical observations.
The steep hills, which skirt the sandy shore a little farther to the north, had in them caves, which appeared pretty much frequented by the natives, to judge by the black colour they had received from smoke, and the shells of lobsters and other fish which we found there.
Several inscriptions, engraved on the trunks of trees, acquainted us, that Captain Bligh had anchored in this bay in the month of February 1792; when he was on his voyage to the Society Islands for bread-fruit trees, which he was to carry to the English colonies in the West Indies lying between the tropics.
Bligh had with him two botanists, who sowed, at a little distance from the shore, cresses, a few acorns, celery, &c. We saw three young fig trees, two pomegranate trees, and a quince tree they had planted, which had thriven very well: but it appeared to us, that one of the trees they had planted in this country had already perished, for the following inscription, which we found on the trunk of a large tree near, mentions seven:
Near this Tree Captain William Bligh planted seven Fruit Trees, 1792. Messrs. S. and W. Botanists.
The other inscriptions were couched in nearly similar terms. They all displayed the same marks of deference which the English botanists paid the Commander of their ship, by putting only the initial letters of their own names, and expressing that the Captain himself had sowed and planted the various vegetable productions, which he had carried from Europe. I am much inclined to doubt, whether Bligh was very sensible to the honour which the botanists were desirous of paying him.
Toward the south-east, at a little distance from the beach, we found an apple tree, the stem of which was near six feet and a half high, and about two inches thick. It did not appear to us that it had ever been grafted.
Our fishers were not unsuccessful at this anchoring place. The fires they kindled along the shore in the night attracted a large quantity of fish to their nets. The stratagem had before succeeded so completely with the fishers of the Esperance in Dentrecasteaux Strait, that they had laid in a stock of fish sufficient for some months, part dried, and part pickled in strong brine.
Several times in the course of the day I was present when they hauled the seine, and always observed some new species of diodon (porcupine fish). I admired the readiness with which these little fishes erected the prickles that cover them, by distending their bodies as soon as they were touched: but they lowered them, and kept them close to their skin, throughout their whole length, as soon as they imagined themselves out of danger. This observation shows, that the attitude given to fish of this genus, by distending them as much as possible, in which manner they are exhibited in collections of natural history, is not that which is most usual to them.
Near the north shore of this bay we landed a young he-goat, and a she-goat big with kid, putting up our prayers that the savages might allow them to propagate their breed in this island. Perhaps they may multiply in it to such a degree, as to occasion a total change in the manner of life of the inhabitants, who may then become a pastoral people, quit without regret the borders of the sea, and taste the pleasure of not being obliged to dive in search of their food, at the risk of being devoured by sharks. The women, who are condemned to this toilsome occupation, will be much more sensible of the value of such a present than the men: but it is to be feared that these animals will be killed before they have time to breed, as appears to have happened to the sow and boar left by Captain Cook; at least no one of us ever perceived the slightest trace of these animals.
The latitude of our observatory, which was near a mile and a quarter south from our anchoring place, was 43° 21′ 18″ south, and its longitude 145° 12′ 17″ east.
The variation of the needle, observed at the same place, was 7° 30′ east.
