A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels Volume Xvi Part 30

At midnight, a gale of wind came on, which obliged us to double reef the topsails, and get down the top-gallant yards. On the 8th, at day-break, we found that the foremast had again given way, the fishes, which were put on the head, in King George's, or Nootka Sound, on the coast of America, being sprung, and the parts so very defective, as to make it absolutely necessary to replace them, and, of course, to unstep the mast. In this difficulty, Captain Cook was for some time in doubt, whether he should run the chance of meeting with a harbour in the islands to leeward, or return to Karakakooa. That bay was not so remarkably commodious, in any respect, but that a better might probably be expected, both for the purpose of repairing the masts, and for procuring refreshments, of which, it was imagined, that the neighbourhood of Karakakooa had been already pretty well drained. On the other hand, it was considered as too great a risk to leave a place that was tolerably sheltered, and which, once left, could not be regained, for the mere hopes of meeting with a better; the failure of which might, perhaps, have left us without resource.

We, therefore, continued standing on toward the land, in order to give the natives an opportunity of releasing their friends on board from their confinement; and at noon, being within a mile of the sh.o.r.e, a few canoes came off to us, but so crowded with people, that there was not room in them for any of our guests; we therefore hoisted out the pinnace to carry them on sh.o.r.e; and the master, who went with them, had directions to examine the south coasts of the bay for water; but returned, without finding any.

The winds being variable, and a current setting strong to the northward, we made but little progress in our return; and at eight o'clock in the evening of the 9th, it began to blow very hard from the south-east, which obliged us to close reef the topsails; and at two in the morning of the 10th, in a heavy squall, we found ourselves close in with the breakers, that lie to the northward of the west point of Owhyhee. We had just room to haul off, and avoid them, and fired several guns to apprise the Discovery of the danger.

In the forenoon the weather was more moderate, and a few canoes came off to us; from which we learnt that the late storms had done much mischief, and that several large canoes had been lost. During the remainder of the day we kept beating to windward; and, before night, we were within a mile of the bay; but, not choosing to run on while it was dark, we stood off and on till day-light next morning, when we dropt anchor nearly in the same place as before.

SECTION III.

_Suspicious Behaviour of the Natives, on our Return to Karakakooa Bay.--Theft on Board the Discovery and its Consequences.--The Pinnace attacked, and the Crew obliged to quit her.--Captain Cook's Observations on the Occasion.--Attempt at the Observatory.--The Cutter of the Discovery stolen.--Measures taken by Captain Cook for its Recovery.--Goes on Sh.o.r.e to invite the King on Board--The King being stopped by his Wife and the Chiefs, a Contest arises.--News arrives of one of the Chiefs being killed by one of our People.--Ferment on this Occasion.--One of the Chiefs threatens Captain Cook, and is shot by him.--General Attack by the Natives.--Death of Captain Cook. Account of the Captain's Services, and a Sketch of his Character._[1]

[Footnote 1: Every reader must feel so deeply interested in the subject of this section, that he will naturally desire to possess every information as to all the facts and circ.u.mstances in which it was involved. Captain King's narrative, it may be conceived, is likely to have every claim to implicit confidence, and to require no additional statement in order to the most satisfactory conviction of every mind. Such an opinion is only partially correct; and it is evident, that the latter a.s.sertion is not a necessary inference from the former. The narrative may be imperfect, though quite consistent with truth, so far as it goes; and perhaps it cannot be carefully read, without producing an impression somewhat unfavourable to the notion of its completeness. This might be pointed out, as we proceeded, in the usual manner of notes. But a moment's reflection will suggest, that such interference in a case of the kind would prove destructive of the general and proper effect of the relation, and at the same time appear unjust towards the describer. A much better method, and one more likely to obtain attention, presents itself. That is, to insert the circ.u.mstantial narrative of the whole transaction, which was drawn up by Mr Samwell, surgeon of the Discovery, and communicated, with the highest approbation and credit, in the Biographia Britannica, after having been separately published, by the advice of the editor of that work, for two years, without experiencing any objection or a single impeachment. This, therefore, will be given at the end of the section; and will be found so extremely interesting, as to justify its reception in an entire form. Its length, however, and minuteness, in addition to reasons already mentioned, will preclude both room and occasion for any other notice of the subject.--E.]

We were employed the whole of the 11th, and part of the 12th, in getting out the foremast, and sending it with the carpenters, on sh.o.r.e. Besides the damage which the head of the mast had sustained, we found the heel exceedingly rotten, having a large hole up the middle of it, capable of holding four or five cocoa nuts. It was not, however, thought necessary to shorten it; and, fortunately, the logs of red toa-wood, which had been cut at Eimeo for anchor-stocks, were found fit to replace the sprung part of the fishes. As these repairs were likely to take up several days, Mr Bayly and myself got the astronomical apparatus on sh.o.r.e, and pitched our tents on the _morai_; having with us a guard of a corporal and six marines. We renewed our friendly correspondence with the priests, who, for the greater security of the workmen and their tools, _tabooed_ the place where the mast lay, sticking their wands round it, as before. The sail-makers were also sent on sh.o.r.e, to repair the damages which had taken place in their department during the late gales. They were lodged in a house adjoining to the _morai_ that was lent us by the priests. Such were our arrangements on sh.o.r.e. I shall now proceed to the account of those other transactions with the natives, which led, by degrees, to the fatal catastrophe of the 14th.

Upon coming to anchor, we were surprised to find our reception very different from what it had been on our first arrival; no shouts, no bustle, no confusion; but a solitary bay, with only here and there a canoe, stealing close along the sh.o.r.e. The impulse of curiosity, which had before operated to so great a degree, might now indeed be supposed to have ceased; but the hospitable treatment we had invariably met with, and the friendly footing on which we parted, gave us some reason to expect, that they would again have flocked about us with great joy on our return.

We were forming various conjectures upon the occasion of this extraordinary appearance, when our anxiety was at length relieved by the return of a boat, which had been sent on sh.o.r.e, and brought us word, that Terreeoboo was absent, and had left the bay under the _taboo_. Though this account appeared very satisfactory to most of us, yet others were of opinion, or rather, perhaps, have been led, by subsequent events, to imagine, that there was something, at this time, very suspicious in the behaviour of the natives; and that the interdiction of all intercourse with us, on pretence of the king's absence, was only to give him time to consult with his chiefs in what manner it might be proper to treat us. Whether these suspicions were well founded, or the account given by the natives was the truth, we were never able to ascertain. For, though it is not improbable that our sudden return, for which they could see no apparent cause, and the necessity of which we afterward found it very difficult to make them comprehend, might occasion some alarm; yet the unsuspicious conduct of Terreeoboo, who, on his supposed arrival, the next morning, came immediately to visit Captain Cook, and the consequent return of the natives to their former friendly intercourse with us, are strong proofs, that they neither meant nor apprehended any change of conduct.

In support of this opinion, I may add the account of another accident, precisely of the same kind which happened to us on our first visit, the day before the arrival of the king. A native had sold a hog on board the Resolution, and taken the price agreed on, when Pareea, pa.s.sing by advised the man not to part with the hog, without an advanced price. For this he was sharply spoken to, and pushed away; and the _taboo_ being soon after laid on the bay, we had at first no doubt but that it was in consequence of the offence given to the chief. Both these accidents serve to shew, how very difficult it is to draw any certain conclusion from the actions of people, with whose customs, as well as language, we are so imperfectly acquainted; at the same time, some idea may be formed from them, of the difficulties, at the first view, perhaps, not very apparent, which those have to encounter, who, in all their transactions with these strangers, have to steer their course amidst so much uncertainty, where a trifling error may be attended with even the most fatal consequences. However true or false our conjectures may be, things went on in their usual quiet course till the afternoon of the 13th.

Toward the evening of that day, the officer, who commanded the watering-party of the Discovery, came to inform me, that several chiefs had a.s.sembled at the well near the beach, driving away the natives, whom he had hired to a.s.sist the sailors in rolling down the casks to the sh.o.r.e. He told me, at the same time, that he thought their behaviour extremely suspicious, and that they meant to give him some farther disturbance. At his request, therefore, I sent a marine along with him, but suffered him to take only his side-arms. In a short time the officer returned, and, on his acquainting me, that the islanders had armed themselves with stones, and were grown very tumultuous I went myself to the spot, attended by a marine, with his musket. Seeing us approach, they threw away their stones; and, on my speaking to some of the chiefs, the mob were driven away, and those who chose it were suffered to a.s.sist in filling the casks. Having left things quiet here, I went to meet Captain Cook, whom I saw coming on sh.o.r.e in the pinnace. I related to him what had just pa.s.sed; and he ordered me, in case of their beginning to throw stones, or behave insolently, immediately to fire a ball at the offenders. I accordingly gave orders to the corporal, to have the pieces of the sentinels loaded with ball, instead of small shot.

Soon after our return to the tents, we were alarmed by a continued fire of muskets from the Discovery, which we observed to be directed at a canoe that we saw paddling toward the sh.o.r.e in great haste, pursued by one of our small boats. We immediately concluded that the firing was in consequence of some theft, and Captain Cook ordered me to follow him with a marine armed, and to endeavour to seize the people as they came on sh.o.r.e. Accordingly, we ran toward the place where we supposed the canoe would land, but were too late; the people having quitted it, and made their escape into the country before our arrival.

We were at this time ignorant that the goods had been already restored; and as we thought it probable, from the circ.u.mstances we had at first observed, that they might be of importance, were unwilling to relinquish our hopes of recovering them. Having, therefore, enquired of the natives, which way the people had fled, we followed them till it was near dark, when, judging ourselves to be about three miles from the tents, and suspecting that the natives, who frequently encouraged us in the pursuit, were amusing us with false information, we thought it in vain to continue our search any longer, and returned to the beach.

During our absence, a difference of a more serious and unpleasant nature had happened. The officer, who had been sent in the small boat, and was returning on board, with the goods which had been restored, observing Captain Cook and me engaged in the pursuit of the offenders, thought it his duty to seize the canoe, which was left drawn up on the sh.o.r.e. Unfortunately, this canoe belonged to Pareea, who, arriving at the same moment from on board the Discovery, claimed his property, with many protestations of his innocence. The officer refusing to give it up, and being joined by the crew of the pinnace, which was waiting for Captain Cook, a scuffle ensued, in which Pareea was knocked down, by a violent blow on the head, with an oar. The natives, who were collected about the spot, and had hitherto been peaceable spectators, immediately attacked our people with such a shower of stones, as forced them to retreat, with great precipitation, and swim off to a rock, at some distance from the sh.o.r.e. The pinnace was immediately ransacked by the islanders; and, but for the timely interposition of Pareea, who seemed to have recovered from the blow, and forgot it at the same instant, would soon have been entirely demolished. Having driven away the crowd, he made signs to our people, that they might come and take possession of the pinnace, and that he would endeavour to get back the things which had been, taken out of it. After their departure, he followed them in his canoe, with a mids.h.i.+pman's cap, and some other trifling articles of the plunder, and, with much apparent concern at what had happened, asked, if the Orono would kill him, and whether he would permit him to come on board the next day? On being a.s.sured that he would be well received, he joined noses (as their custom is) with the officers, in token of friends.h.i.+p, and paddled over to the village of Kowrowa.

When Captain Cook was informed of what had pa.s.sed, he expressed much uneasiness at it; and, as we were returning on board, "I am afraid,"

said he, "that these people will oblige me to use some violent measures; for," he added, "they must not be left to imagine that they have gained an advantage over us." However, as it was too late to take any steps this evening, he contented himself with giving orders, that every man and woman on board should be immediately turned out of the s.h.i.+p. As soon us this order was executed, I returned on sh.o.r.e; and our former confidence in the natives being now much abated, by the events of the day, I posted a double guard on the _morai_, with orders to call me, if they saw any men lurking about the beach. At about eleven o'clock, five islanders were observed creeping round the bottom of the _morai_; they seemed very cautious in approaching us; and at last, finding themselves discovered, retired out of sight. About midnight, one of them venturing up close to the observatory, the sentinel fired over him; on which the men, fled, and we pa.s.sed the remainder of the night without farther disturbance.

Next morning, at day-light, I went on board the Resolution for the time-keeper; and, in my way, was hailed by the Discovery, and informed, that their cutter had been stolen, during the night, from the buoy where it was moored.

When I arrived on board, I found the marines arming, and Captain Cook loading his double-barrelled gun. Whilst I was relating to him what had happened to us in the night, he interrupted me, with some eagerness, and acquainted me with the loss of the Discovery's cutter, and with the preparations he was making for its recovery. It had been his usual practice, whenever any thing of consequence was lost at any of the islands in this ocean, to get the king, or some of the princ.i.p.al _Erees_, on board, and to keep them as hostages, till it was restored. This method, which had been always attended with success, he meant to pursue on the present occasion; and, at the same time, had given orders to stop all the canoes that should attempt to leave the bay, with an intention of seizing and destroying them, if he could not recover the cutter by peaceable means. Accordingly, the boats of both s.h.i.+ps, well manned and armed, were stationed across the bay; and, before I left the s.h.i.+p, some great guns had been fired at two large canoes that were attempting to make their escape.

It was between seven and eight o'clock when we quitted the s.h.i.+p together; Captain Cook in the pinnace, having Mr Phillips and nine marines with him; and myself in the small boat. The last orders I received from him, were, to quiet the minds of the natives on our side of the bay, by a.s.suring them they should not be hurt; to keep my people together, and to be on my guard. We then parted; the captain went toward Kowrowa, where the king resided; and I proceeded to the beach. My first care, on going ash.o.r.e, was to give strict orders to the marines to remain within the tent; to load their pieces with ball, and not to quit their arms. Afterward I took a walk to the huts of old Kaoo and the priests, and explained to them, as well as I could, the object of the hostile preparations, which had exceedingly alarmed them. I found that they had already heard of the cutter's being stolen; and I a.s.sured them, that though Captain Cook was resolved to recover it, and to punish the authors of the theft, yet that they, and the people of the village on our side, need not be under the smallest apprehension of suffering any evil from us. I desired the priests to explain this to the people, and to tell them not to be alarmed, but to continue peaceable and quiet. Kaoo asked me, with great earnestness, if Terreeoboo was to be hurt; I a.s.sured him he was not; and both, he and the rest of his brethren seemed much satisfied with this a.s.surance.

In the mean time, Captain Cook having called off the launch, which was stationed at the north point of the bay, and taken it along with him, proceeded to Kowrowa, and landed with the lieutenant and nine marines.

He immediately marched into the village, where he was received with the usual marks of respect; the people prostrating themselves before him, and bringing their accustomed offerings of small hogs. Finding that there was no suspicion of his design, his next step was to enquire for Terreeoboo, and the two boys, his sons, who had been his constant guests on board the Resolution. In a short time, the boys returned, along with the natives, who had been sent in search of them, and immediately led Captain Cook to the house where the king had slept. They found the old man just awoke from sleep; and, after a short conversation about the loss of the cutter, from which Captain Cook was convinced that he was in no wise privy to it, he invited him to return in the boat, and spend the day on board the Resolution. To this proposal the king readily consented, and immediately got up to accompany him.

Things were in this prosperous train, the two boys being already in the pinnace, and the rest of the party having advanced near the water-side, when an elderly woman, called Kanee-kabareea, the mother of the boys, and one of the king's favourite wives, came after him, and, with many tears and entreaties, besought him not to go on board.

At the same time, two chiefs, who came along with her, laid hold of him, and, insisting that he should go no farther, forced him to sit down. The natives, who were collecting in prodigious numbers along the sh.o.r.e, and had probably been alarmed by the firing of the great guns, and the appearances of hostility in the bay, began to throng round Captain Cook and their king. In this situation, the lieutenant of marines, observing that his men were huddled close together in the crowd, and thus incapable of using their arms, if any occasion should require it, proposed to the captain to draw them up along the rocks, close to the waters edge; and the crowd readily making way for them to pa.s.s they were drawn up in a line, at the distance of about thirty yards from the place where the king was sitting.

All this time, the old king remained on the ground, with the strongest marks of terror and dejection in his countenance; Captain Cook, not willing to abandon the object for which he had come on sh.o.r.e, continuing to urge him, in the most pressing manner, to proceed; whilst, on the other hand, whenever the king appeared inclined to follow him, the chiefs, who stood round him, interposed, at first with prayers and entreaties, but afterward had recourse to force and violence, and insisted on his staying where he was. Captain Cook, therefore, finding that the alarm had spread too generally, and that it was in vain to think any longer of getting him off without bloodshed, at last gave up the point; observing to Mr Phillips, that it would be impossible to compel him to go on board, without the risk of killing a great number of the inhabitants.

Though the enterprise, which had carried Captain Cook on sh.o.r.e, had now failed, and was abandoned, yet his person did not appear to have been in the least danger, till an accident happened which gave a fatal turn to the affair. The boats, which had been stationed across the bay, having fired at some canoes that were attempting to get out, unfortunately had killed a chief of the first rank. The news of his death arrived at the village where Captain Cook was, just as he had left the king, and was walking slowly toward the sh.o.r.e. The ferment it occasioned was very conspicuous; the women and children were immediately sent off; and the men put on their war-mats, and armed themselves with spears and stones. One of the natives, having in his hands a stone, and a long iron pike, (which they call a _pahooa_,) came up to the captain, flouris.h.i.+ng his weapon, by way of defiance, and threatening to throw the stone. The captain desired him to desist; but the man persisting in his insolence, he was at length provoked to fire a load of small shot. The man having his mat on, which the shot were not able to penetrate, this had no other effect than to irritate and encourage them. Several stones were thrown at the marines; and one of the _Erees_ attempted to stab Mr Phillips with his _pahooa_, but failed in the attempt, and received from him a blow with the b.u.t.t end of his musket. Captain Cook now fired his second barrel, loaded with ball, and killed one of the foremost of the natives. A general attack with stones immediately followed, which was answered by a discharge of musketry from the marines, and the people in the boats. The islanders, contrary to the expectations of every one, stood the fire with great firmness; and, before the marines had time to reload, they broke in upon them with dreadful shouts and yells. What followed was a scene of the utmost horror and confusion.

Four of the marines were cut off among the rocks in their retreat, and fell a sacrifice to the fury of the enemy; three more were dangerously wounded; and the lieutenant, who had received a stab between the shoulders with a _pahooa_, having fortunately reserved his fire, shot the man who had wounded him, just as he was going to repeat his blow.

Our unfortunate commander, the last time he was seen distinctly, was standing at the water's edge, and calling out to the boats to cease firing, and to pull in. If it be true, as some of those who were present have imagined, that the marines and boatmen had fired without his orders, and that he was desirous of preventing any further bloodshed, it is not improbable, that his humanity, on this occasion, proved fatal to him: For it was remarked, that whilst he faced the natives, none of them had offered him any violence, but that having turned about to give his orders to the boats, he was stabbed in the back, and fell with his face into the water. On seeing him fall, the islanders set up a great shout, and his body was immediately dragged on sh.o.r.e, and surrounded, by the enemy, who, s.n.a.t.c.hing the dagger out of each other's hands, shewed a savage eagerness to have a share in his destruction.

Thus fell our great and excellent commander. After a life of so much distinguished and successful enterprise, his death, as far as regards himself, cannot be reckoned premature, since he lived to finish the great work for which he seems to have been designed, and was rather removed from the enjoyment, than cut off from the acquisition of glory. How sincerely his loss was felt and lamented by those who had so long found their general security in his skill and conduct, and every consolation, under their hards.h.i.+ps, in his tenderness and humanity, it is neither necessary nor possible for me to describe; much less shall I attempt to paint the horror with which we were struck, and the universal dejection and dismay which followed so dreadful and unexpected a calamity. The reader will not be displeased to turn from so sad a scene, to the contemplation of his character and virtues, whilst I am paying my last tribute to the memory of a dear and honoured friend, in a short history of his life and public services.

Captain James Cook was born near Whitby, in Yorks.h.i.+re, on the 27th of October, 1728; and, at an early age, was put apprentice to a shopkeeper in a neighbouring village. His natural inclination not having been consulted on this occasion, he soon quitted the counter from disgust, and bound himself, for nine years, to the master of a vessel in the coal trade. At the breaking out of the war, in 1755, he entered into the king's service, on board the Eagle, at that time commanded by Captain Hamer, and afterward by Sir Hugh Palliser, who soon discovered his merit, and introduced him on the quarter-deck.

In the year 1758, we find him master of the Northumberland, the flag-s.h.i.+p of Lord Colville, who had then the command of the squadron stationed on the coast of America. It was here, as I have often heard him say, that, during a hard winter, he first read Euclid, and applied himself to the study of mathematics and astronomy, without any other a.s.sistance than what a few books, and his own industry, afforded him.

At the same time that he thus found means to cultivate and improve his mind, and to supply the deficiencies of an early education, he was engaged in most of the busy and active scenes of the war in America.

At the siege of Quebec, Sir Charles Saunders committed to his charge the execution of services of the first importance in the naval department. He piloted the boats to the attack of Montmorency; conducted the embarkation to the Heights of Abraham; examined the pa.s.sage, and laid buoys for the security of the large s.h.i.+ps in proceeding up the river. The courage and address with which he acquitted himself in these services, gained him the warm friends.h.i.+p of Sir Charles Saunders and Lord Colville, who continued to patronize him during the rest of their lives, with the greatest zeal and affection.

At the conclusion of the war, he was appointed, through the recommendation of Lord Colville and Sir Hugh Palliser, to survey the Gulf of St Laurence and the coasts of Newfoundland. In this employment he continued till the year 1767, when he was fixed on by Sir Edward Hawke to command an expedition to the South Seas, for the purpose of observing the transit of Venus, and prosecuting discoveries in that part of the globe. From this period, as his services are too well known to require a recital here, so his reputation has proportionably advanced to a height too great to be affected by my panegyrick.

Indeed, he appears to have been most eminently and peculiarly qualified for this species of enterprise. The earliest habits of his life, the course of his services, and the constant application of his mind, all conspired to fit him for it, and gave him a degree of professional knowledge, which can fall to the lot of very few.

The const.i.tution of his body was robust, inured to labour, and capable of undergoing the severest hards.h.i.+ps. His stomach bore, without difficulty, the coa.r.s.est and most ungrateful food. Indeed, temperance in him was scarcely a virtue; so great was the indifference with which be submitted to every kind of self-denial. The qualities of his mind were of the same hardy, vigorous kind with those of his body. His understanding was strong and perspicuous. His judgment, in whatever related to the services he was engaged in, quick and sure. His designs were bold and manly; and both in the conception, and in the mode of execution, bore evident marks of a great original genius. His courage was cool and determined, and accompanied with an admirable presence of mind in the moment of danger. His manners were plain and unaffected.

His temper might, perhaps, have been justly blamed, as subject to hastiness and pa.s.sion, had not these been disarmed by a disposition the most benevolent and humane.

Such were the outlines of Captain Cook's character; but its most distinguis.h.i.+ng feature was, that unremitting perseverance in the pursuit of his object, which was not only superior to the opposition of dangers, and the pressure of hards.h.i.+ps, but even exempt from the want of ordinary relaxation. During the long and tedious voyages in which he was engaged, his eagerness and activity were never in the least abated. No incidental temptation could detain him for a moment; even those intervals of recreation, which sometimes unavoidably occurred, and were looked for by us with a longing, that persons, who have experienced the fatigues of service, will readily excuse, were submitted to by him with a certain impatience, whenever they could not be employed in making further provision for the more effectual prosecution of his designs.

It is not necessary here to enumerate the instances in which these qualities were displayed, during the great and important enterprises in which he was engaged. I shall content myself with stating the result of those services, under the two princ.i.p.al heads to which they maybe referred, those of geography and navigation, placing each in a separate and distinct point of view.

Perhaps no science ever received greater additions from the labours of a single man, than geography has done from those of Captain Cook. In his first voyage to the South Seas, he discovered the Society Islands; determined the insularity of New Zealand; discovered the straits which separate the two islands, and are called after his name; and made a complete survey of both. He afterward explored the eastern coast of New Holland, hitherto unknown; an extent of twenty seven degrees of lat.i.tude, or upward of two thousand miles.

In his second expedition, he resolved the great problem of a southern continent, having traversed that hemisphere, between the lat.i.tudes of 40 and 70, in such a manner as not to leave a possibility of its existence, unless near the Pole, and out of the reach of navigation.

During this voyage be discovered New Caledonia, the largest island in the Southern Pacific, except New Zealand; the island of Georgia; and an unknown coast, which he named Sandwich Land, the _Thule_ of the southern hemisphere; and having twice visited the tropical seas, he settled the situations of the old, and made several new discoveries.

But the voyage we are now relating is distinguished, above all the rest, by the extent and importance of its discoveries. Besides several smaller islands in the Southern Pacific, he discovered, to the north of the equinoctial line, the group called the Sandwich Islands; which, from their situation and productions, bid fairer for becoming an object of consequence, in the system of European navigation, than any other discovery in the South Sea. He afterward explored what had hitherto remained unknown of the western coast of America; from the lat.i.tude of 43 to 70 N., containing an extent of three thousand five hundred miles; ascertained the proximity of the two great continents of Asia and America; pa.s.sed the straits between them, and surveyed the coast, on each side, to such a height of northern lat.i.tude, as to demonstrate the impracticability of a pa.s.sage in that hemisphere, from the Atlantic into the Pacific Ocean, either by an eastern or a western course. In short, if we except the sea of Amur, and the j.a.panese Archipelago, which still remain imperfectly known to Europeans, he has completed the hydrography of the habitable globe.

As a navigator, his services were not, perhaps, less splendid; certainly not less important and meritorious. The method which he discovered, and so successfully pursued, of preserving the health of seamen, forms a new aera in navigation; and will transmit his name to future ages amongst the friends and benefactors of mankind.

Those who are conversant in naval history need not be told, at how dear a rate the advantages which have been sought through the medium of long voyages at sea, have always been purchased. That dreadful disorder, which is peculiar to this service, and whose ravages have marked the tracks of discoverers with circ.u.mstances almost too shocking to relate, must, without exercising an unwarrantable tyranny over the lives of our seamen, have proved an insuperable obstacle to the prosecution of such enterprises. It was reserved for Captain Cook to shew the world, by repeated trials, that voyages might be protracted to the unusual length of three, or even four years, in unknown regions, and under every change and rigour of climate, not only without affecting the health, but even without diminis.h.i.+ng the probability of life in the smallest degree. The method he pursued has been fully explained by himself in a paper which was read before the Royal Society in the year 1776;[2] and whatever improvements the experience of the present age has suggested, are mentioned in their proper places.

[Footnote 2: Sir G.o.dfrey Copley's gold medal was adjudged to him on this occasion.]

With respect to his professional abilities, I shall leave them to the judgment of those who are best acquainted with the nature of the services in which he was engaged. They will readily acknowledge, that, to have conducted three expeditions of so much danger and difficulty, of so unusual a length, and in such a variety of situation, with uniform and invariable success, must have required not only a thorough and accurate knowledge of his business, but a powerful and comprehensive genius, fruitful in resources, and equally ready in the application of whatever the higher and inferior calls of the service required.

Having given the most faithful account I have been able to collect, both from my own observation and the relations of others, of the death of my ever-honoured friend, and also of his character and services, I shall now leave his memory to the grat.i.tude and admiration of posterity; accepting with, a melancholy satisfaction, the honour which the loss of him hath procured me, of seeing my name joined with his; and of testifying that affection and respect for his memory, which, whilst he lived, it was no less my inclination, than my constant study, to shew him.[3]

[Footnote 3: We shall not easily find a more excellent specimen of biographical eulogium than what Captain King has now given us. It does justice to his subject--and this, be it remembered, is a merit of the highest kind; and it does justice to himself, to his own sense of propriety and principle, which, in the warmth of their friends.h.i.+p, professed admirers are too apt to sacrifice at the shrine of departed worth. The style is suitable to the sentiments, possessing a dignified simplicity, and an apparent rect.i.tude of aim, which it is impossible not to consider, as, in a great degree, resulting from intimacy with the truly great character whom it so forcibly recommends to our esteem, and which, therefore, may be held as no mean ill.u.s.tration of the efficacy of those virtues which so eminently adorned him. In this respect, then, Cook was peculiarly fortunate, were there no other record to which posterity might appeal--more fortunate, by much, indeed, than many, whose lives have been blazoned by vain-glorious historians. We appeal, therefore, to the feelings of every reader, whether this very circ.u.mstance, so providentially directed towards the perpetuity of his fame, does not indicate the real superiority of such a man as Cook over the ma.s.s of vulgar conquerors, whom, unfortunately for the world, it has been so much and so long the fas.h.i.+on to admire?

Shall we ever witness the time, when the wanton destroyers of our species, under whatever name or trappings they vaunt themselves, shall inherit the abhorrence and the curses of humanity; and when the only claim to applause that shall be sanctioned, must be founded, like that of our navigator, on the ability and the disposition to confer benefits on society? It has often been regretted, as is said in the Biographia Britannica, that a monument has not yet been erected to the memory of Captain Cook in Westminster Abbey. The uneasiness is not superfluous, in so far as the honour of our country is concerned, to which, perhaps, his exertions have really contributed as much as those of almost any individual whose greatness is there embalmed; but to the reputation of Cook, a monument in Westminster Abbey, we agree with the work alluded to, would be of little or no consequence. "His fame stands upon a wider base, and will survive the comparatively peris.h.i.+ng materials of bra.s.s, or stone, or marble. The name of Cook will be held in honour, and recited with applause, so long as the records of human events shall continue in the earth."--E.

The following particulars, respecting the death of Captain Cook, are taken from Mr Samwell's Narrative, as given in the Biographia Britannica; to which, also, we are indebted for the most minute and satisfactory account of this ill.u.s.trious man ever yet published, and to which, therefore, we refer the more inquisitive reader.

"On the 6th of February, we were overtaken by a gale of wind; and the next night, the Resolution had the misfortune of springing the head of her foremast, in such a dangerous manner, that Captain Cook was obliged to return to Keragegooah,[1] in order to have it repaired; for we could find no other convenient harbour on the island. The same gale had occasioned much distress among some canoes that had paid us a visit from the sh.o.r.e. One of them, with two men and a child on board, was picked up by the Resolution, and rescued from destruction; the men, having toiled hard all night in attempting to reach the land, were so much exhausted that they could hardly mount the s.h.i.+p's side.

When they got upon the quarter-deck, they burst into tears, and seemed much affected with the dangerous situation from which they had escaped; but the little child appeared lively and cheerful. One of the Resolution's boats was also so fortunate as to save a man and two women, whose canoe had been upset by the violence of the waves. They were brought on board, and, with the others, partook of the kindness and humanity of Captain Cook.

"On the morning of Wednesday, the 10th, we were within a few miles of the harbour; and were soon joined by several canoes, in which appeared many of our old acquaintance, who seemed to have come to welcome us back. Among them was Coo,aha, a priest; he had brought a small pig and some cocoa nuts in his hand, which, after having chaunted a few sentences, he presented to Captain Clerke. He then left us, and hastened on board the Resolution, to perform the same friendly ceremony before Captain Cook. Having but light winds all that day, we could not gain the harbour. In the afternoon, a chief of the first rank, and nearly related to Kariopoo, paid us a visit on board the Discovery. His name was Ka,mea,mea: He was dressed in a very rich feathered cloak, which he seemed to have brought for sale, but would part with it for nothing except iron daggers. These the chiefs, some time before our departure, had preferred to every other article; for, having received a plentiful supply of hatchets and other tools, they began to collect a store of warlike instruments. Kameamea procured nine daggers for his cloak; and, being pleased with his reception, he and his attendants slept on board that night.

"In the morning of the 11th of February, the s.h.i.+ps anch.o.r.ed again in Keragegooah bay, and preparation was immediately made for landing the Resolution's foremast. We were visited but by few of the Indians, because there were but few in the bay. On our departure, those belonging to other parts had repaired to their several habitations, and were again to collect from various quarters before we could expect to be surrounded by such mult.i.tudes as we had once seen in that harbour. In the afternoon, I walked about a mile into the country to visit an Indian friend, who had, a few days before, come near twenty miles, in a small canoe, to see me, while the s.h.i.+p lay becalmed. As the canoe had not left us long before a gale of wind came on, I was alarmed for the consequence; however, I had the pleasure to find that my friend had escaped unhurt, though not without some difficulties. I take notice of this short excursion, merely because it afforded me an opportunity of observing that there appeared no change in the disposition or behaviour of the inhabitants. I saw nothing that could induce me to think that they were displeased with our return, or jealous of the intention of our second visit. On the contrary, that abundant good-nature, which had always characterised them, seemed still to glow in every bosom, and to animate every countenance.[2] The next day, February the 12th, the s.h.i.+ps were put under a taboo by the chiefs; a solemnity, it seems, that was requisite to be observed, before Kariopoo, the king, paid his first visit to Captain Cook, after his return. He waited upon him the same day, on board the Resolution, attended by a large train, some of which bore the presents designed for Captain Cook; who received him in his usual friendly manner, and gave him several articles in return. This amicable ceremony being settled, the taboo was dissolved; matters went on in the usual train; and the next day, February the 13th, we were visited by the natives in great numbers. The Resolution's mast was landed, and the astronomical observatories erected on their former situation. I landed, with another gentleman, at the town of Kavaroah, where we found a great number of canoes, just arrived from different parts of the island, and the Indians busy in erecting temporary huts on the beach for their residence during the stay of the s.h.i.+ps. On our return on board the Discovery, we learned, that an Indian had been detected in stealing the armourer's tongs from the forge; for which he received a pretty severe flogging, and was sent out from the s.h.i.+p. Notwithstanding the example made of this man, in the afternoon another had the audacity to s.n.a.t.c.h the tongs and a chisel from the same place, with which he jumped overboard, and swam for the sh.o.r.e. The master and a mids.h.i.+pman were instantly dispatched after him in the small cutter. The Indian, seeing himself pursued, made for a canoe; his countrymen took him on board, and paddled as swift as they could towards the sh.o.r.e; we fired several muskets at them, but to no effect, for they soon got out of the reach of our shot. Pareah, one of the chiefs, who was at that time on board the Discovery, understanding what had happened, immediately went ash.o.r.e, promising to bring back the stolen goods. Our boat was so far distanced, in chacing the canoe which had taken the thief on board, that he had time to make his escape into the country. Captain Cook, who was then ash.o.r.e, endeavoured to intercept his landing; but it seems that he was led out of the way by some of the natives, who had officiously intruded themselves as guides. As the master was approaching near the landing-place, he was met by some of the Indians in a canoe. They had brought back the tongs and chisel, together with another article that we had not missed, which happened to be the lid of the water-cask. Having recovered these things, he was returning on board, when he was met by the Resolution's pinnace, with five men in her, who, without any orders, had come from the observatories to his a.s.sistance. Being thus unexpectedly reinforced, he thought himself strong enough to insist upon having the thief, or the canoe which took him in, delivered up as reprisals. With that view he turned back; and having found the canoe on the beach, he was preparing to launch it into the water, when Pareah made his appearance, and insisted upon his not taking it away, as it was his property. The officer not regarding him, the chief seized upon him, pinioned his arms behind, and held him by the hair of his head; on which one of the sailors struck him with an oar. Pareah instantly quitted the officer, s.n.a.t.c.hed the oar out of the man's hand, and snapped it in two across his knee. At length the mult.i.tude began to attack our people with stones. They made some resistance, but were soon overpowered, and obliged to swim for safety to the small cutter, which lay farther out than the pinnace. The officers, not being expert swimmers, retreated to a small rock in the water, where they were closely pursued by the Indians. One man darted a broken oar at the master, but his foot slipping at the time, he missed him, which fortunately saved that officer's life. At last, Pareah interfered, and put an end to their violence. The gentlemen, knowing that his presence was their only defence against the fury of the natives, entreated him to stay with them till they could get off in the boats; but that he refused, and left them. The master went to seek a.s.sistance from the party at the observatories; but the mids.h.i.+pman chose to remain in the pinnace. He was very rudely treated by the mob, who plundered the boat of every thing that was loose on board, and then began to knock her to pieces for the sake of the iron work; but Pareah fortunately returned in time to prevent her destruction. He had met the other gentleman on his way to the observatories, and, suspecting his errand, had forced him to return.

He dispersed the crowd again, and desired the gentlemen to return on board. They represented that all their oars had been taken out of the boat; on which he brought some of them back, and the gentlemen were glad to get off, without farther molestation. They had not proceeded far, before they were overtaken by Pareah, in a canoe. He delivered the mids.h.i.+pman's cap, which had been taken from him in the scuffle, joined noses with them, in token of reconciliation, and was anxious to know if Captain Cook would kill him for what had happened. They a.s.sured him of the contrary, and made signs of friends.h.i.+p to him in return. He then left them, and paddled over to the town of Kavaroah, and that was the last time we ever saw him. Captain Cook returned on board soon after, much displeased with the whole of this disagreeable business; and the same night sent a lieutenant on board the Discovery to learn the particulars of it, as it had originated in that s.h.i.+p. It was remarkable, that in the midst of the hurry and confusion attending this affair, Kanynah (a chief who had always been on terms particularly friendly with us) came from the spot where it happened, with a hog to sell on board the Discovery; it was of an extraordinary large size, and he demanded for it a pahowa, or dagger, of an unusual length. He pointed to us, that it must be as long as his arm. Captain Clerke not having one of that length, told him, he would get one made for him by the morning; with which being satisfied, he left the hog, and went ash.o.r.e without making any stay with us. It will not be altogether foreign to the subject, to mention a circ.u.mstance that happened to-day on board the Resolution. An Indian chief asked Captain Cook at his table if he was a _Tata Toa_, which mean's a fighting man, or a soldier. Being answered in the affirmative, he desired to see his wounds; Captain Cook held out his right-hand, which had a scar upon it, dividing the thumb from the finger the whole length of the metacarpal bones. The Indian being thus convinced of his being a Toa, put the same question to another gentleman present, but he happened to have none of those distinguis.h.i.+ng marks; the chief then said, that he himself was a Toa, and shewed the scars of some wounds he had received in battle. Those who were on duty at the observatories were disturbed, during the night, with shrill and melancholy sounds, issuing from the adjacent villages, which they took to be the lamentations of the women. Perhaps the quarrel between us might have filled their minds with apprehensions for the safety of their husbands; but, be that as it may, their mournful cries struck the sentinels with unusual awe and terror.