with her husband on his treatment of her, which we were much inclined to do, and plainly told us, that he had done no more than he ought.

Whilst I was ashore at the observatory at Karakakooa Bay, I had twice an opportunity of seeing a considerable part of their funeral rites. Intelligence was brought me of the death of an old chief in a house near our observatories, soon after the event happened. On going to the place, I found a number of people assembled, and seated round a square area, fronting the house in which the deceased lay, whilst a man, in a red-feathered cap, advanced from an interior part of the house to the door, and, putting out his head, at almost every moment uttered a most lamentable howl, accompanied with the most singular grimaces and violent distortions of his face that can be conceived. After this had passed a short time, a large mat was spread upon the area, and two men and thirteen women came out of the house, and sate themselves down upon it, in three equal rows; the two men and three of the women being in front. The necks and hands of the women were decorated with feathered ruffs; and broad green leaves, curiously scolloped, were spread over their shoulders. At one corner of this area, near a small hut, were half a dozen boys, waving small white banners, and the tufted wands, or taboo sticks, which have been often mentioned, who would not permit us to approach them. This led me to imagine that the dead body might be deposited in this little hut; but I afterwards understood, that it was in the house where the man in the red cap opened the rites, by playing his tricks at the door. The company just mentioned being seated on the mat, began to sing a melancholy tune, accompanied with a slow and gentle motion of the body and arms. When this had continued some time, they raised themselves on their knees, and, in a posture between kneeling and sitting, began by degrees to move their arms and their bodies with great rapidity, the tune always keeping pace with their motions. As these last exertions were too violent to continue long, they resumed, at intervals, their slower movements; and, after this performance had lasted an hour, more mats were brought and spread upon the area, and four or five elderly women, amongst whom I was told was the dead chief's wife, advanced slowly out of the house, and seating themselves in the front of the first company, began to cry and

wail

*

wail most bitterly; the women in the three rows behind joining them, whilst the two men inclined their heads over them in a very melancholy and pensive attitude. At this period of the rites, I was obliged to leave them to attend at the observatory; but returning within half an hour, found them in the same situation. I continued with them till late in the evening, and left them proceeding, with little variation, as just described; resolving, however, to attend early in the morning, to see the remainder of the ceremony. On my arrival at the house, as soon as it was day, I found, to my mortification, the crowd dispersed, and every thing quiet; and was given to understand, that the corpse was removed; nor could I learn in what manner it was disposed of. I was interrupted in making farther enquiries for this purpose, by the approach of three women of rank, who, whilst their attendants stood near them with their fly-flaps, sat down by us, and, entering into conversation, soon made me comprehend that our presence was a hindrance to the performance of some necessary rites. I had hardly got out of sight, before I heard their cries and lamentations; and meeting them a few hours afterward, I found they had painted the lower part of their faces perfectly black.

The other opportunity I had of observing these ceremonies, was in the case of an ordinary person; when, on hearing some mournful female cries issue from a miserable-looking hut, I ventured into it, and found an old woman with her daughter, weeping over the body of an elderly man, who had but just expired, being still warm. The first step they took was to cover the body with cloth, after which, lying down by it, they drew the cloth over themselves, and then began a mournful kind of song, frequently repeating, Aweh medooah! Aweh tanee! Oh my father! Oh my husband! A younger daughter was also at the same time lying prostrate, in a corner of the house, covered over with black cloth, repeating the same words. On leaving this melancholy scene, I found at the door a number of their neighbours collected together, and listening to their cries with profound silence. I was resolved not to miss this opportunity of seeing in what manner they dispose of the body; and, therefore, after satisfying myself before I went to bed that it was not then removed, I gave orders that the sentries should walk backward and forward before the house, and, in case they suspected any measures were taking for

the

the removal of the body, to give me immediate notice. However, the sentries had not kept a good look-out, for in the morning I found the body was gone. On enquiring what they had done with it, they pointed toward the sea; indicating most probably thereby, that it had been committed to the deep, or perhaps that it had been carried beyond the bay, to some burying-ground in another part of the country. The chiefs are interred in the morais, or Heree-erees, with the men sacrificed on the occasion, by the side of them; and we observed that the morai, where the chief had been buried, who, as I have already mentioned, was killed in the cave after so stout a resistance, was hung round with red cloth,

CHAPTER

CHAPTER VI.

TRANSACTIONS DURING THE SECOND EXPEDITION TO THE NORTH, BY THE WAY OF KAMTSCHATKA; AND ON THE RETURN HOME BY THE WAY OF CANTON AND THE CAPE OF GOOD HOPE.

SECTION I.

Departure from Onecheow.-Fruitless Attempt to discover Modoopapappa.-Course steered for Awatska Bay.-Occurrences during that Passage.-Sudden Change from Heat to Cold.-Distress occasioned by the leaking of the Resolution.-View of the Coast of Kamtschatka.- Extreme Rigour of the Climate.-Lose Sight of the Discovery.-The Resolution enters the Bay of Awatska.-Prospect of the Town of Saint Peter and Saint Paul.-Party sent ashore. -Their Reception by the Commanding-Officer of the Port. -Message dispatched to the Commander at Bolcheretsk.— Arrival of the Discovery.-Return of the Messengers from the Commander.-Extraordinary Mode of Travelling.Visit from a Merchant and a German Servant belonging to the Commander.

ON

N the 15th of March, at seven in the morning, we weighed anchor, and passing to the north of Tahoora, stood on to the south-west, in hopes of falling in with the island of Modoopapappa, which, we were told by the natives, lay in that direction, about five hours sail from Tahoora. At four in the afternoon, we were overtaken by a stout canoe, with ten men, who were going from Oneeheow to Tahoora, to kill tropic and man-of-war birds, with which that place was said to abound. It has been mentioned before, that the feathers of these birds are in great request,

being much used in making their cloaks and other ornamental parts of their dress.

At eight, having seen nothing of the island, we hauled the wind to the northward till midnight, and then tacked, and stood on a wind to the south-east till day-light next morning, at which time Tahoora bore E.N E., five or six leagues distant. We afterward steered W.S.W, and made the Discovery's signal to spread four miles upon our starboard-beam. At noon our latitude was 21° 27′, and our longitude 198° 42'; and having stood on till five, in the same direction, we made the Discovery's signal to come under our stern, and gave over all hopes of seeing Modoopapappa. We conceived that it might probably lie in a. more southerly direction from Tahoora, than that in which we had steered; though, after all, it is possible that we might have passed it in the night, as the islanders described it to be very small, and almost even with the surface of the

sea.

The next day we steered west; it being Captain Clerke's intention to keep as near as possible in the same parallel of latitude, till we should make the longitude of Awatska Bay, and afterward to steer due north for the harbour of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in that bay, which was also appointed for our rendezvous in case of separation. This track was chosen on account of its being, as far as we knew, unexplored; and we were not without hopes of falling in with some new island on our passage.

We had scarcely seen a bird since our losing sight of Tahoora, till the 18th in the afternoon, when, being in the latitude of 21° 12′, and the longitude of 194° 45', the appearance of a great many boobies, and some man-of-war birds, made us keep a sharp look-out for land. Toward evening the wind lessened, and the north-east swell, which, on the 16th and 17th, had been so heavy as to make the ships labour exceedingly, was much abated. The next day we saw no appearance of land; and at noon, we steered a point more to the southward, viz. W. by S., in the hopes of finding the trade-winds, (which blew almost invariably from the E. by N.,) fresher as we advanced within the tropic. It is somewhat singular that, though we saw no birds. in the forenoon, yet toward evening we had again a number of boobies and man-of-war birds about us. This seemed to indicate that we had passed the land from whence the former

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