_The Run from King George's Islands to the Islands of Saypan, Tinian,
and Aguigan; with an Account of several Islands that were discovered in
that Track._
We pursued our course to the westward the same day, and the next, about
three o'clock in the afternoon, we saw land again, bearing S.S.W.
distant about six leagues. We immediately stood for it, and found it to
be a low and very narrow island, lying east and west: we ran along the
south side of it, which had a green and pleasant appearance, but a
dreadful surf breaks upon every part of it, with foul ground at some
distance, and many rocks and small islands scattered at about three
leagues from the shore. We found it about twenty leagues in length, and
it appeared to abound with inhabitants, though we could only get a
transient glance of them as we passed along. To this place I gave the
name of the _Prince of Wales's Island._ It lies in latitude 15°S. and
the westermost end of it in longitude 151°53' W. It is distant from King
George's Islands about eight-and-forty leagues, in the direction of
S.80 W. the variation here was 5°30'E.
From the western extremity of this island, we steered N. 82 W. and at
noon on the 16th, were in latitude 14°28'S. longitude 156°23'W. the
variation being 7°40'E. The wind was now easterly, and we had again the
same mountainous swell from the southward that we had before we made the
Islands of Direction, and which, from that time to this day, we had
lost: When we lost that swell, and for some days before, we saw vast
flocks of birds, which we observed always took their flight to the
southward when evening was coming on.[38] These appearances persuaded me
that there was land in the same direction, and I am of opinion, that if
the winds had not failed me in the higher latitudes, I should have
fallen in with it: I would indeed at this time have hauled away to the
southward, and attempted the discovery, if our people had been healthy,
for having observed that all the islands we had seen were full of
inhabitants, I was still more confirmed in my opinion; as I could
account for their being peopled only by supposing a chain of islands
reaching to a continent; but the sickness of the crews, in both ships,
was an insuperable impediment.
[Footnote 38: No doubt to the Navigators' Islands, so called by
Bougainville. Captain Wallis touched at one of them, and named them
Boscawen's and Keppel's Islands. Peyrouse has given a very curious, but
not a pleasing account of their inhabitants. To the south of them again
are the Friendly Islands.--E.]
The next day we again saw many birds of various sorts about the ship,
and therefore supposed that some other island was not far distant, for
the swell continuing, I concluded that the land was not of very great
extent: I proceeded, however, with caution, for the islands in this part
of the ocean render the navigation very dangerous, they being so low,
that a ship may be close in with them before they are seen. We saw
nothing, however, on the 18th, the 19th, nor the 20th, during which we
continued to steer the same course, though the birds still continued
about the vessel in great numbers. Our latitude was now 12°33'S.
longitude 167°47'W. The Prince of Wales's Island was distant, 313
leagues, and the variation of the needle was 9°15'E. The next morning
about seven o'clock, we discovered a most dangerous reef of breakers,
bearing S.S.W. and not farther distant than a single league. In about
half an hour afterwards, land was seen from the mast-head, bearing
W.N.W. and distant about eight leagues; it had the appearance of three
islands, with rocks and broken ground between them. The south-east side
of these islands lies N.E. by N. and S.W. by S. and is about three
leagues in length between the extreme points, from both which a reef
runs out, upon which the sea breaks to a tremendous height. We sailed
round the north end, and upon the north-west and west side, saw
innumerable rocks and shoals, which stretched near two leagues into the
sea, and were extremely dangerous. The islands themselves had a more
fertile and beautiful appearance than any we had seen before, and, like
the rest, swarmed with people, whose habitations we saw standing in
clusters all along the coast. We saw also a large vessel under sail, at
a little distance from the shore; but to our unspeakable regret we were
obliged to leave the place without farther examination, for it was
surrounded in every direction by rocks and breakers, which rendered the
hazard more than equivalent to every advantage we might procure. At this
time I took these for part of the islands called Solomon's Islands, and
was in hopes that I should fall in with others of them, in some of which
we might find an harbour.
The reef of rocks which we first saw as we approached these islands,
lies in latitude 10°15'S. longitude 169°28' W. and it bears from Prince
of Wales's Island N.76°48' W. distant 352 leagues. The islands bear from
the reef W.N.W. distant nine leagues: I called them the _Islands of
Danger_, and steered from them N.W. by W. allowing for the variation.
After having seen the breakers soon after it was light in the morning, I
told my officers that I apprehended we should have frequent alarms in
the night; at night, therefore, every body was upon the watch, which a
very hard squall of wind, with rain, rendered the more necessary. About
nine o'clock, having just gone down into my cabin, I heard a great noise
above, and when I enquired what was the matter, I was told that the
Tamar, who was a-head, had fired a gun, and that our people saw breakers
to leeward: I ran instantly upon deck, and soon perceived that what had
been taken for breakers was nothing more than the undulating reflection
of the moon, which was going down, and shone faintly from behind a cloud
in the horizon; we therefore bore away after the Tamar, but did not get
sight of her till an hour afterwards.
Nothing worthy of notice happened till Monday the 24th when, about ten
o'clock in the morning, we discovered another island, bearing S.S.W.
distant about seven or eight leagues: We steered for it, and found it to
be low, but covered with wood, among which were cocoa-nut trees in great
abundance. It had a pleasant appearance, and a large lake in the middle,
like King George's Island: It is near thirty miles in circumference, a
dreadful sea breaks upon almost every part of the coast, and a great
deal of foul ground lies about it. We sailed quite round it, and when we
were on the lee-side, sent out boats to sound, in hopes of finding
anchorage: No soundings, however, were to be got near the shore, but I
sent the boats out a second time, with orders to land, if it were
possible, and procure some refreshments for the sick: they landed with
great difficulty, and brought off about two hundred cocoa-nuts, which,
to persons in our circumstances, were an inestimable treasure. The
people who were on shore, reported that there were no signs of its
having ever been inhabited, but that they found thousands of sea fowl
sitting upon their nests, which were built in high trees: These birds
were so tame that they suffered themselves to be knocked down without
leaving their nests: The ground was covered with land crabs, but our
people saw no other animal. At first I was inclined to believe that this
island was the same that in the Neptune François is called Maluita, and
laid down about a degree to the eastward of the great island of Saint
Elizabeth, which is the principal of the Solomon's Islands; but being
afterwards convinced to the contrary, I called it the _Duke of York's
Island_, in honour of his late royal highness, and I am of opinion that
we were the first human beings who ever saw it. There is indeed great
reason to believe that there is no good authority for laying down
Solomon's Islands in the situation that is assigned to them by the
French: The only person who has pretended to have seen them is Quiros,
and I doubt whether he left behind him any account of them by which they
might be found by future navigators.[39]
[Footnote 39: The opinion here stated is now pretty generally confided
in. Byron we see sailed over the northern, and Captain Carteret (as we
shall find) the southern limits of these supposed islands, but could
not find them. The name is now given to a cluster of islands tying
betwixt the north of Queen Charlotte's Archipelago, discovered by
Carteret, and the south-east coast of New Britain, &c.--E.]
We continued our course till the 29th, in the track of these islands,
and being then ten degrees to the westward of their situation in the
chart, without having seen any thing of them, I hauled to the northward,
in order to cross the equinoxial, and afterwards shape my course for the
Ladrone Islands, which, though a long run, I hoped to accomplish before
I should be distressed for water, notwithstanding it now began to fall
short. Our latitude, this day, was 8°13'S., longitude 176°20'E. and the
variation was 10°10'E.
On Tuesday the 2d of July, we again saw many birds about the ship, and
at four o'clock in the afternoon, discovered an island bearing north,
and distant about six leagues: We stood for it till sun-set, when it was
distant about four leagues, and then kept off and on for the night. In
the morning, we found it a low flat island, of a most delightful
appearance, and full of wood, among which the cocoa-nut tree was very
conspicuous: We saw, however, to our great regret, much foul ground
about it, upon which the sea broke with a dreadful surf. We steered
along the southwest side of it, which we judged to be about four leagues
in length, and soon perceived not only that it was inhabited, but very
populous; for presently after the ship came in sight, we saw at least a
thousand of the natives assembled upon the beach, and in a very short
time more than sixty canoes, or rather proas, put off from the shore,
and made towards us. We lay by to receive them, and they were very soon
ranged in a circle round us. These vessels were very neatly made, and so
clean that they appeared to be quite new: None of them had fewer than
three persons on board, nor any of them more than six.[40] After these
Indians had gazed at us some time, one of them suddenly jumped out of
his proa, swam to the ship, and ran up the side like a cat: As soon as
he had stepped over the gunwale, he sat down upon it, and burst into a
violent fit of laughter, then started up, and ran all over the ship,
attempting to steal whatever he could lay his hands upon, but without
success, for, being stark naked, it was impossible to conceal his booty
for a moment. Our seamen put on him a jacket and trowsers, which
produced great merriment, for he had all the gestures of a monkey newly
dressed: We also gave him bread, which he eat with a voracious appetite,
and after having played a thousand antic tricks, he leaped overboard,
jacket and trowsers and all, and swam back again to his proa; after this
several others swam to the ship, ran up the side of the gun-room ports,
and having crept in, snatched up whatever lay in their reach, and
immediately leaped again into the sea, and swam away at a great rate,
though some of them, having both hands full, held up their arms quite
out of the water, to prevent their plunder from being spoiled. These
people are tall, well-proportioned, and clean-limbed; Their skin is a
bright copper-colour, their features are extremely good, and there is a
mixture of intrepidity and cheerfulness in their countenances that is
very striking. They have long black hair, which some of them wore tied
up behind in a great bunch, others in three knots: Some of them had long
beards, some only whiskers, and some nothing more than a small tuft at
the point of the chin. They were all of them stark naked, except their
ornaments, which consisted of shells, very prettily disposed and strung
together, and were worn round their necks, wrists, and waists: All their
ears were bored, but they had no ornaments in them when we saw them:
Such ornaments as they wear, when they wear any, are probably very
heavy, for their ears hang down almost to their shoulders, and some of
them were quite split through.[41] One of these men, who appeared to be
a person of some consequence, had a string of human teeth about his
waist, which was probably a trophy of his military prowess, for he would
not part with it in exchange for any thing I could offer him. Some of
them were unarmed, but others had one of the most dangerous weapons I
had ever seen: It was a kind of spear, very broad at the end, and stuck
full of sharks' teeth, which are as sharp as a lancet, at the sides, for
about three feet of its length. We shewed them some cocoa-nuts, and made
signs that we wanted more; but instead of giving any intimation that
they could supply us, they endeavoured to take away those we had.
[Footnote 40: "These have some resemblance to the proas used by the
Indians of the Ladrone Islands, they having what is termed an outrigger,
that is, a frame laid out to the windward, to balance this little
vessel, and prevent its oversetting, which would otherwise infallibly
happen, from its small breadth in proportion to its length."]
[Footnote 41: "Though we saw upwards of a hundred of them in their
proas, there was but one woman among them, and of her they seemed to
take great notice; she was distinguished by wearing something about her
waist."]
I sent out the boats to sound soon after we brought-to off the island,
and when they came back, they reported that there was ground at the
depth of thirty fathom, within two cables' length of the shore; but as
the bottom was coral rock, and the soundings much too near the breakers
for a ship to lie in safety, I was obliged again to make sail without
procuring any refreshments for the sick. This island, to which my
officers gave the name of Byron's Island, lies in latitude 1°18'S.,
longitude 173°46'E., the variation of the compass here was one point E.
In our course from this place, we saw, for several days, abundance of
fish, but we could take only sharks, which were become a good dish even
at my own table. Many of the people now began to fall down with fluxes;
which the surgeon imputed to the excessive heat and almost perpetual
rains.
By the 21st, all our cocoa-nuts being expended, our people began to fall
down again with the scurvy. The effect of these nuts alone, in checking
this disease, is astonishing: Many whose limbs were become as black as
ink, who could not move without the assistance of two men, and who,
besides total debility, suffered excruciating pain, were in a few days,
by eating these nuts, although at sea, so far recovered as to do their
duty, and could even go aloft as well as they did before the distemper
seized them. For several days about this time, we had only faint
breezes, with smooth water, so that we made but little way, and as we
were now not far from the Ladrone Islands, where we hoped some
refreshments might be procured; we most ardently wished for a fresh
gale, especially as the heat was still intolerable, the glass for a long
time having never been lower than eighty-one, but often up to
eighty-four; and I am of opinion that this is the hottest, the longest,
and most dangerous run that ever was made.
On the 18th, we were in latitude 13°9'N., longitude 158°50'E., and on
the 22d, in latitude 14°25'N., longitude 153°11'E, during which time we
had a northerly current. Being now nearly in the latitude of Tinian, I
shaped my course for that island.