Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly volume 23.djvu/340

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290 F. W. HOWAY

tember 1791 for China by way of the Hawaiian Islands. 32 At Niihau he again landed three men to collect sandal- wood. According to Vancouver, who met these men at Oahu in March 1792, he had left them in October 1791 with the intention of disposing of his furs in China and proceeding thence to Boston. He expected to return from New England, spend a season trading on the North- west Coast, and in the ensuing year to call for them at Kauai, take aboard the sandalwood and pearls collected by them, and sail to India. 33 Here again he appears to have sown, but reaped not. If Vancouver correctly re- ports Kendrick's intention we have here another of those changes of conduct with which Haswell charges him.

In the main Vancouver's remarks correspond with those contained in the journal of Archibald Menzies, the botanist, and later the surgeon of the expedition, but the latter makes no mention of any intended visit to Boston. As this entry and some others that will later be men- tioned have never been published they will, with the per- mission of the Provincial Archivist, be reproduced from the copy of the journal now in the archives of British Columbia. This entry is dated 10th March 1792 : "He brought with him an English seaman who was left here about five months ago by an American brig, the Lady Washington, commanded by Mr. Kendrick. This man's name was John Roebottom. He told us that two other seamen were left with him on the island by the same ves- sel to collect Sandars wood and Pearls and that Mr. Ken- drick was to return in about twenty months to take them and their cargo on board. He also said that they were almost starved and very ill treated by the natives for some time after they landed, but that they now lived with the young king and his guardian on very good terms and were no ways tired of their situation." Menzies

32 This date may not be absolutely correct. It is given by Meares in a letter of 3rd July 1790, published in Archives Report B. C. 1913, p. 34.

33 Vancouver's Voyage, 1801 Ed., Vol. I, pp. 378-9.